YWCA of the U.S.A. Records. Record Group 6. Program: Series VI. Publications
General International Standard for Archival Description
Sophia Smith Collection Smith CollegeNorthampton, MA
Finding aid encoded by Carrie Baldwin. July 15, 2008
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
Creation of YWCA of the U.S.A. Records. Record Group 6. Program: Series VI. Publications
Time of Creation of YWCA of the U.S.A. Records. Record Group 6. Program: Series VI. Publications
Young Women's Christian Association of the U.S.A.
Biographical History for: YWCA of the U.S.A. Records. Record Group 6. Program: Series VI. Publications
Historical Note Early in its history, the YWCA of the U.S.A. established a Publication Department to publish its monthly magazine, then known as the Association Monthly; to produce study materials, programs, and other publications for the National Convention and for conferences; and to facilitate and oversee publication, promotion, and distribution of "technical" publications written by and for the Association's departments and divisions. Cover of April 1919 issue of "The Womans Press" In the spring of 1916 the Publication Department and Committee started discussing a plan for enlarging the publishing venture. The idea was to finance the Association's "technical" publications through sales of more general interest material which could "Christianize the Woman's Movement." In the spring of 1917 they consulted with National Association staff, librarians, teachers, and social workers "to discover what sort of books they looked for…but did not find." These groups cited a real need for "books on vocations, written for girls; books on personal efficiency; biographies; collections of poetry; stories which will help the modern-day woman to adjust herself to the world in which she lives; and reprints in attractive form of books or parts of books which every girl ought to read." (Association Monthly, June 1917) The Department settled on a new name, The Womans Press, to reflect the more general character of the venture. (For its first 28 years, 1917-45, the name was usually printed without an apostrophe.) The first two titles under the new imprint, Mobilizing Woman-Power by Harriot Stanton Blatch and The Young Woman Citizen by Mary Austin went on sale in 1918. In addition to their work on production and distribution of technical publications (which were generally written by staff most closely involved with the subject), the Publications Department selected authors and editors for the new general interest books, oversaw their design, publication, publicity, and distribution; produced the monthly magazine (re-christened The Womans Press) and Convention publications; and administered the Woman's Bookshop in the National headquarters. The hard-cover general interest titles included religious books, such as collections of prayers and meditations, books on How to Use the Bible, and Christianity's relation to communism, peace, work, citizenship, and social morality. The Association also published poetry collections, women's memoirs and biographies, and books on women in history. Many titles reflected the staff's areas of expertise, presenting topics such as group work, adolescent girls' development, race relations, international understanding, health, jobs, citizenship, leadership, and sex education. Recreation and creative expression were promoted through volumes about nature study, flower arranging, parties, festivals, and Decorating the Small Apartment. The impressive catalog of "technical" publications on a myriad of topics made up one of the most important contributions of the National Association to Community and Student Associations. The publications were clear, comprehensive, attractive, and eminently useful. In the face of the financial challenges of the Depression, the Publications Department adjusted such things as the quality of the paper and formality of presentation, and managed to continue to put out a substantial catalog of titles. Paper and other shortages curtailed publication during World War II. After the war, the National Association attempted a revival on advice of a "business analyst." A three-year plan concentrated in three major subject areas appropriate to YWCA: social group work, religion, and self-help books for women. The records are vague about why the Association ultimately abandoned this plan, but it eventually decided to sell its rights in the "general interest" hardcover books to Whiteside, Inc., in 1952. As part of the agreement, the National Association promised to limit its future publications to items for use within the Association and not to enter the publishing business in any form. The National Association continued to put out technical and publicity materials, but on a much smaller scale. In 1961, the efforts became the responsibility of the Communications Bureau. Administrative History1909-12Publication Department1912-22 Publication Department1923-24Editorial Department in Editorial and Publicity Division1923-32program staff decentralized in Field Division and Education and Research Division1925-31Education and Research Division1932-39Publications in Laboratory Division1940-49Publication Department1950-51Publications Services in Membership Resources and Woman's Press in General Administration1951-53Publications Services in Membership Resources1954-60Publications Services in General Administration1961-part of Communications Bureau in Executive Office
The YWCA of the U.S.A. donated a portion of its records to the Sophia Smith Collection in 1964 and the remainder in 2002 and 2003.
Scope and Contents Forms part of the YWCA of the U.S.A. Records--Record Group 6. Program. NOTE: For the most part, the Microfilmed Records and the Original Format Records do not duplicate each other and both should be consulted. This description covers materials in both formats. See the Contents List for a folder-level inventory of the Original Format Records. See the Microfilmed Records Reel Lists for a detailed inventory of the microfilm. The records in this series include Publications Department minutes, correspondence, reports, catalogs, and advertising. They document the work of those making decisions about the general interest publications, coordinating and scheduling all of the publications, and overseeing production. There are significant gaps in the minutes and only a few years of records of the production side of the operation, yet what survives provides significant insight into this aspect of the National program. The series also includes some of the voluminous output of publications. Those that are filed with this series are the main Association-wide serials, the general interest books, and gift and keepsake items, such as engagement calendars. Other publications are filed with related records in other Series and Record Groups throughout the Records. For example, play scripts are in Pageantry and Drama, and the serial Foreign Born is in Immigration and Foreign Communities. The National Board Library at YWCA headquarters in New York kept copies of many of the publications. That collection was transferred to the Sophia Smith Collection with the rest of the records. It is difficult to say for certain whether the collection, which consists of approximately 1700 books, pamphlets, scripts, serials, and other types of publications is complete. There are some projects mentioned in the minutes, for instance, that may not ultimately have been published, or may have been published under a different title. Many publications were microfilmed. These were mainly the "technical" items and only rarely the hard-cover books. For general information about the National Association and Community Associations, the Association Monthly/Womans Press/YWCA Magazine is an unparalleled source. In addition to the articles and columns, details of Association history can be traced through such things as staff and committee rosters, "secretarial changes," conference schedules, news from Community Associations, and conference and convention reports. When the YWCA Records were transferred to the Sophia Smith Collection, they included multiple copies of many publications. The processing staff took advantage of this bounty, to file duplicates in multiple places where applicable-for instance, booklets about training Girl Reserve workers could be filed both in Training and Teenage Program. Microfilmed Records, 1907-71 [see Microfilmed Records Reel List] In addition to Committee records listed below, many YWCA publications were microfilmed with other records related to their subject or department. They are usually located in the "Miscellaneous" section at the end of each Subject in the Subject Files. The main serials were not microfilmed. Records relating to YWCA publishing efforts can be found on the microfilm under: Minutes and Reports Communications CommitteePublications Services CommitteePublication Department and Woman's Press CommitteePublications, Committee on Correlation ofWoman's Press CommitteeSubject Files CopyrightsPublications ServicesReprint PrivilegeWoman's Press [reel lost] Original Format Records, 1907-98, n.d., circa 20 linear feet [see Original Format Records folder list] The Departmental office files in the Original Format Records include hard copy of the minutes and reports that are also on the microfilm; Womans Press and other publications catalogs; advertising; a few "Schedules" forms for proposed publications and reprints from the 1930s; and card file title indexes to YWCA publications. Publications filed with this series include the main Association-wide serials, the hard-cover "general interest" books, and gift and keepsake publications such as engagement calendars. The Association's main serial, The Association Monthly/Womans Press/YWCA Magazine is an excellent source for tracing the history of the YWCA publishing through its articles, but also through the advertising and publications announcements. Related Materials "Technical" publications can be found throughout the records, usually in the Publications section within a series or subseries. In other Series in this Record Group The Publications Department was sometimes under the administrative supervision of other departments or divisions, usually the "program"-related departments. Additional information can be found in the department/division minutes in SERIES I. DEPARTMENT, STAFF, AND COMMITTEES. In other Record Groups In later years, the Publications were the responsibility of the Publicity staff, Additional information can be found in SERIES VI. PUBLICITY of RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE. Records about the sale of the Woman's Press general interest titles in 1952 are in SERIES III. FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT under Comptroller's Office in RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICE. Legal files with information about publications copyrights are in SERIES I. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION of RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICE. A major part of the mission of the Publications Department was responsibility for Convention and Conference publications filed in RECORD GROUP 4. NATIONAL CONVENTIONS AND CONFERENCES.
The records are open to research according to the regulations of the Sophia Smith Collection without any additional restrictions. Access to audiovisual materials may first require production of research copies.
The YWCA of the USA retains copyright ownership of the records, but has authorized the Sophia Smith Collection to grant permission to publish reproductions or quotations from the records on its behalf. Copyright to materials authored by persons other than YWCA staff may be owned by those individuals or their heirs or assigns. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights for permission to publish reproductions or quotations beyond "fair use."
Additional Formats A copy of the microfilmed records of the YWCA of the U.S.A. Records is available to borrow from the William Allan Neilson Library at Smith College via Interlibrary Loan. To request the microfilm from our library you will need to submit the following information to your library's Interlibrary Loan department: Author: Young Women's Christian Association of the U.S.A. National BoardTitle: Records, 1876-1970 [microform]WorldCat Accession Number: OCLC 57415795Notes: "Call # 689" and reel number(s) you want to borrow Full descriptions and reel lists of the microfilm are available online.
This Record group forms part of the YWCA of the U.S.A. Records
Processed by Maida Goodwin, Amy Hague, Kara McClurken, Amanda Izzo, 2008 FY 07-08
McCulloch, Rhoda Elizabeth, 1884-
lcnaf
series
SERIES VI. PUBLICATIONS
This is the Contents List for the Original Format Records only. The reel lists for the Microfilmed Records are in a separate file. See Scope and Content note for more description.
General, 1918-89, n.d.
Publications Committee/Publications Services Committee
Minutes, 1907-24
Agendas, 1932-37
Minutes
Correlation of Publications Committee: minutes, 1920-24
Woman's Press Committee: minutes, 1950-51
Reports
Publications Department
Biennial, 5-year, 1914-20
"Schedules" (Form for Proposed Publications and Reruns), 1932-33, 1935-37
Publications catalogs
Publicity materials for Womans Press publications
Miscellaneous lists, 1930-47, n.d.
Christmas, 1947, n.d.
Inserts for complementary/promotion copies, circa 1926-80, n.d.
YWCA serials, circa 1926-72, n.d.
Miscellaneous publications, 1935-88, n.d.
Serials Indexes
Miscellaneous, n.d.
The Bookshelf, 1930-72
International Messenger, 1894-1902 (selective)
Evangel, 1888-1906 (selective)
War Work Bulletin, 1917-19
Womans Press/YWCA Magazine, 1930-77
World YWCA Monthly, 1963-70
YWCA Interchange, 1974-86
Card files
Title Index to YWCA Publications, 1901-70
Pi-Z, and those beginning "YWCA…" 1901-70
Publication Series and Subject Index; Bureau of Communications Publications record cards (includes cost and number ordered); and Woman's Press Titles with copyright transferred to Whiteside 1901-70
Miscellaneous publications
Christmas stories, 1921, 1942-45
Edit Your Own Copy, Womans Press style manual, 1940, 1942
Pocketbook Bibliographies, 1934
Calendars
YWCA Calendar
Modern Readers Calendar
Calendar, 1937-39
Engagement Calendar
Pop-up calendars, 1984-92
Books
Lyman Abbott, The Crucifers, 1923
Barbara Abel, Follow the Leadership and Other Skits, 1938
Charlotte Adams, Women of Ancient Israel, 1916
Katharine L. Aller Along the Bethlehem Way,1941
George H. Atkinson Frances Bridges Atkinson, 1908
Mary Austin
The Young Woman Citizen, 1918
Young Woman in the New Social Order, study outline for use with the Young Woman Citizen, 1919
Lucy T. Bartlett, compiler, Services for Special Needs, 1941
Katherine Lee Bates
Little Robin Stay-Behind, 1923
The Pilgrim Ship, 1926
John C. Bennett Christianity and Communism, 1948
Peter Bertocci The Human Venture in Sex, Love, and Marriage, 1949
Harriot Stanton Blatch Mobilizing Woman-Power, 1918, and A Woman's Point of View, 1920
Ella Bowles Practical Parties, 1926
Stella Burgess Toward the Summit, 1948
Margaret Burton
Comrades in Service, 1915
Mabel Cratty: Leader in the Art of Leadership, 1929
Remember April, 1941
The Star-Promise, 1925
Emma Byers Out of Doors with Birds, 1937
Richard Cabot The Christian Approach to Social Morality, 1913
Vivian Campbell A Christmas Anthology of Poetry and Painting, 1947
Adelaide Teague Case The Servant of the Lord: a Devotional Commentary, 1940
Margaret Clark and Briseis Teall The Executive Director on the Job, 1947
Elspeth Clarke The Joy of Service: Memoirs of Elizabeth Dodge Huntington Clarke, 1979
Alice Collins Methods in Group Work, 1938
Bertha Cond?é The Human Element in the making of a Christian, 1917
Grace Coyle
Group Experience and Democratic Values, 1947
Jobs and Marriage?, 1928
Brooks Spivey Creedy Women Behind the Lines, 1949
Martha Foote Crow Christ in the Poetry of Today, 1917, 1918, 1923
Marion Cuthbert
April Grasses, 1936
Juliette Derricotte, 1936, and Songs of Creation, 1949
Ethel Cutler One People Among Many: The Ancient Hebrews and Their Neighbors, 1942, and One Prophet - and Another, 1942
Anne Darlington Yelenka the Wise, 1926
Enid Day Adventures of a Nurse's Aid, 1951
Frances Densmore The American Indians and Their Music, 1926
Sarah Truslow Dickinson, compiler, Fellowship Prayers, 1928
Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Grand Inquisitor, 1948
Marion Dudley Explorers, 1926
Carlisle Ellis Red Shoes, 1930
Mary G. Ellsworth Birthday Parties for Boys and Girls, 1951
Victoria Emerson Into the World, 1950
L. Wendell Fifield How to Use the Bible, 1920
Jack Finegan Youth Asks About Religion, 1949
Welthy Fisher A String of Chinese Pearls, 1924
R. Louise Fitch Madame France, 1919
Harry Emerson Fosdick The Challenge of the Present Crisis, 1917
Stephen Hole Frichtman, editor, Prayers of the Free Spirit, 1945
Edith Gates Health Through Leisure-Time Recreation, 1931
Josephine H. Gerth Highways to Jobs for Women, 1948
Hazel Gewinner Lalah of the Mountain, 1924
Emily Gibson English-Class Plays for New Americans, 1927
Charles Gilkey New Frontiers of Faith,1927
Girl Reserve staff The Girl Reserve Movement, 1924
Abbie Graham
Ceremonials of Common Days, 1923, 1925, 1942
The Girls' Camp, 1933, and Working at Play in Summer Camp, 1941
Grace H. Dodge: Merchant of Dreams, 1926
High Occasions, 1930
Ladies in Revolt,1934, On Being Immortal, 1942, and Outposts of the Imagination: A Travel Guide to Cities by Way of Historical Fiction, 1930
Time Off and On, 1939
Vain Pomp and Glory, 1927
Ivan Grimshaw How to Prepare a Speech, 1952
Eva Hansl Trends in Part Time Employment for College Trained Women, 1949
Louise Hasbrouck The Hall With Doors, 1920
Charles Hendry The Role of Groups in World Reconstruction, 1952
Margaret Hiller Leadership in the Making, 1936, 1939
Margaret Hodgen Factory Work for Girls, 1919, 1920
Imogene Ireland The Song Book of the YWCA, 1926
Annie B. Kerr
Candles in the Heart,1939, The Christmas Guest,1944, and Clear Shining After Rain, 1941
So Gracious the Time, 1938, and So Many Pathways, 1940
Wednesdays, 1929
Laura Kerr Lady in the Pulpit, 1951
Winifred Kirkland The Christmas Shrine, 1920, and The Man Who Gave Us Christmas, 1940
Bertha Palmer Lane Lad and Other Story Plays, 1926
Tolman Lee Funds and Friends, 1925
Anne W. Lindsay Group Work Recording, 1952
D. Willard Lyon The Christian Equivalent of War, 1915
Kathleen Macarthur The Bible and Human Rights, 1948
Anne Marion MacLean Cheero!, 1918
Jeannette Marks Courage, 1919
Rhoda McCulloch Little Talks on Large Topics, 1930
Alexander Miller Christian Faith and My Job, 1946
Clelia Duel Mosher Woman's Physical Freedom, 1923
Janet Fowler Nelson Marriages Are Not Made in Heaven, 1939
Elizabeth Ogg Decorating the Small Apartment, 1949
A. Estelle Paddock Overtaking the Centuries, 1916
Margaret Parsons Red Letter Day Plays, 1921, and One Night Stand and Other Plays, 1942
Esther Peck National Costumes of the Slavic Peoples, 1920
Ruth Perkins Magic Casements, 1927, and Program Making and Record Keeping, 1931
Alexander Purdy
Jesus' Way with People, 1926, and Pathways to God, 1922
The Way of Christ, 1918, 1929
Margaret S. Quayle As Told to Business Girls, 1932
Anna V. Rice History of the World's YWCA, 1947
Jean Rich (pseudo. for Helen Frances Thompson) Dos and Don'ts for Business Women, 1922
Richard Roberts
The Ascending Life, 1924
Florence Simms: A Biography, 1926; The Untried Door: An Attempt to Discover the Mind of Jesus for Today, 1921
Duane Robinson Chance to Belong, 1949
Marion Robinson Eight Women of the YWCA, 1966
Matilda Rogers Flower Arrangement: A Hobby for All, 1949
Wilfrid Rowell Patriotism and the Christian Life, 1918
A. Maude Royden
Consider the Days, 1942
Women at the World's Crossroads, 1922
Letty Russell Ferment of Freedom, 1972
Dothory {sic} Sabistan and Margaret Hiller Toward Better Race Relations, 1949
Dorothy Sara Primer for Hostesses, 1950
Mabel Schadt Cafeteria Recipes, 1925
Janie Scott Easy to Make Fashion Accessories, 1953
Roger L. Shinn Beyond This Darkness, 1946
Mary S. Sims and Rhoda E. McCulloch, compilers, Women and Leadership, 1938
Elvira J. Slack A Canticle of the Year, 1920, and Christ in the Poetry of Today (compiled and reassembled from an anthology originated by Martha Foote Crow), 1928
Robert Seneca Smith Fundamentals of Daily Living, 1921, 1922
Clarissa Spencer Saints and Ladies, 1925
Dorothy Gladys Spicer
The Book of Festivals, 1944, and 1947
Folk Festivals and the Foreign Community, 1923, and From an English Oven, 1948
Holiday Parties, 1939, and Parties for Young Americans, 1940
Windows Open to the World, 1947
B.B.T. Youth Searching: The Spiritual Autobiography of a Modern Girl, 1928
Ordway Tead The Case for Democracy and its Meaning for Modern Life, 1938
Helen Thoburn Christian Citizenship, 1924
Harleigh B. Trecker Group Process in Administration, 1946, and Social Group Work: Principles and Practices, 1948
Grace Trine (compiler) Dreams and Voices, 1920
Ruth Wadsworth Charm By Choice, 1928, 1930, 1939 revised
Nora Waln The Street of Precious Pearls, 1925
Louis Wasserman Handbook of Political 'Isms,' 1941
Jane Shaw Ward Tajar Tales, 1947
Helen Webster Shower Parties for All Occasions, 1949
Florence Wells, assembler, Tama: The Diary of a Japanese School Girl, 1920
Eleanor Wembridge Let's Understand Each Other: Psychology for People Who Do Not Understand Themselves - or You, 1940
Yolanda Wilkerson Interracial Programs of Student YWCAs, 1948
Elizabeth Wilson
The Road Ahead, 1918
Through an Indian Counting Glass, 1926
Winnifred Wygal Reflections of the Spirit, 1948
Agavnie Y. Yeghenian The Red Flag at Ararat, 1932
Serials
Bound Preservation copies
Association Monthly
Feb 1907-Jan 1917
Feb 1917-Aug 1922
Womans Press
Sep 1922-Dec 1923
Jan 1924-Dec 1929
Jan 1930-Dec 1936
Jan 1937-Dec 1945
Jan 1946-Dec 1950
YWCA Magazine
Jan 1951-Dec 1962
Jan 1963-Dec 1973
National YWCA Bulletin: News From 600, 1951-62
YWCA Interchange, 1974-98
Unbound copies [incomplete]
Oct 1922-Oct 1923
Nov 1923-Jun 1925
Jul 1925-Oct 1927
Nov 1927-Oct 1929
Nov 1929-Mar 1932
Apr 1932-Sep 1935
Oct 1935-Dec 1937
Jan 1938-Jun 1940
Jul 1940-Aug 1943
Sep 1943-Oct 1946
Nov 1946-Dec 1950
Jan-Dec 1951
Jan 1952-May 1968
Jun 1968-Dec 1973
YWCA Interchange [copy 2], 1974-98