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Wednesday Club records

Call Number

MS 3071

Date

1920-2015, inclusive

Creator

Wednesday Club (New York, N.Y.)

Extent

1.25 Linear feet (in one record carton and one small document box)

Language of Materials

English .

Abstract

Records of the Wednesday Club, a Manhattan-based women's group organized in 1920 to discuss current events, topics of interest, and books of the day, at Wednesday afternoon meetings held between November and May. Includes by-laws, minutes, annual reports, membership lists, programs, some correspondence, and financial accounts.

Historical Note

The Wednesday Club, a Manhattan-based women's group organized to discuss events, "topics of current interest and books of the day," first met on 17 November 1920 at the home of Miss Emily Sherman, 126 East 31st Street.

The Wednesday Club was born through the dissolution of the Discussion Club, a similarly-themed group formed around 1910 by women who had attended finishing classes conducted by one Mary Gass. Mrs. Gass suggested they meet regularly to learn to converse intelligently, and so appear more captivating at dinners and dances. A controversial topic of the day—the Baby Bollinger case, in which Harry J. Haiselden (1870–1919), a Chicago surgeon and eugenicist refused to perform life-saving surgery on the deformed newborn, John Bollinger (1915–1915)—led to the club's demise. In discussing the case, some members made "dreadful remarks," others giggled, so the officers decided to disband the club, citing impending war work as the reason.

In 1920, Lois Herrick, along with a few members of the original club, invited those who had given no offense at the Bollinger discussion to attend meetings of a new club to be held on alternate Wednesdays—hence the name—between November and May. Most meetings were to be led by members and given over to discussion or debate. Some dates were to feature professional speakers or discussion leaders. Meetings were to take place at members' homes, thus limiting the size of the club's roster. Sixteen members attended the first meeting to discuss "Modern Youth and Its Ways."

Topics in the ensuing 95 years of the Wednesday Club's existence have been chosen by committee from ideas submitted by the membership. At two or three meetings each year during the club's early existence, members were expected to express their views on a book they had each read. There were theater outings and site visits (e.g., the United Nations, the New York Stock Exchange). At some meetings members recited poems and read essays, or discussed hobbies and collecting interests. At others they were entertained by well-known speakers like the Algonquin Round Table wit Heywood Broun (1888–1939). Christopher Morley (1890–1957) refused their invitation by a humorous letter which must have generated discussion enough for a whole session: "My fee is One Hundred and Fifty dollars and if you say that is too much I shall be the first to agree!" (see Box 1, Folder 25).

[This note is drawn largely from "History of the Wednesday Club, 1920–1970" in Box 1, Folder 17.]

Arrangement

The Wednesday Club Records are organized in six series devised by the archivist:

Series I. By-laws and amendments, 1926-1999
Series II. Minutes, reports, membership lists, programs, etc., 1920-2015
Series III. Index cards, 1920-1949
Series IV. Correspondence, 1922-2008 (scattered)
Series V. Potential topics for discussion, 1956-1959
Series VI. Financial, 1959-1987

Scope and Contents

The Wednesday Club Records document the group's 95-year history, from its founding in 1920, through 2015, when the collection came to the New-York Historical Society. Included are printed by-laws, with amendments, issued between 1926 and 1999; minutes of committee meetings, regular meetings, and annual meetings (which typically took place in May, at the close of the club's November-May season); annual reports of the club's president; membership lists; programs for most seasons (generally in the form of lists of topics discussed); and some correspondence, chiefly regarding membership matters (e.g., letters of resignation or nominations of prospective members), but including a few letters from well-known writers invited to speak before the club (e.g., Christopher Morley). The collection includes scattered financial accounts for the period 1959–1987.

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is stored offsite. To arrange to consult it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Conditions Governing Use

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282. Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: www.nyhistory.org/rights-and-reproductions.

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as the Wednesday Club Records, MS 3071, The New-York Historical Society.

Location of Materials

This collection is stored offsite. To arrange to consult it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of the Wednesday Club, 2015.

Collection processed by

Joseph Ditta

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-09-01 13:07:23 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: English

Processing Information

Archivist Joseph Ditta processed this collection in October 2018.

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024