Denise Scammon

Civic Engagement of the Women of Lewiston-Auburn in the late 1800s to early 1900s

By Denise Scammon, Arts & Humanities, University of Southern Maine Lewiston-Auburn College

https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhc4mfrq_104ghvpbrc7

A lot has occurred since the last post. I have processed about one-third of the collection to the best of my abilities. What does that mean? Well, I have had only a brief lesson in what constitutes a collection and how a Finding Aid is created. I have been given guides to processing a collection. I have researched collection processing guides online. There is a lot that goes into processing a collection. Actually, there is a whole science behind collection processing. I am hopeful that my processing is not too far off the mark.

I am also working on the presentation for Thinking Matters regarding this Independent Study project. That takes place at the end of April.

My original intention in beginning this project was to create an open-access digital archive of the Woman’s Literary Union collection of historical documents. The collection includes information about early members of WLU and its affiliated clubs and their community/civic interaction beginning with 1892. I thought that once the digital archive was created, it would be easy to add new research into the digital archive. But I learned that digital collections require a lot of time and a lot of money. And, I also learned that the physical collection should be safely archived regardless of whether or not there is a digital archive of the collection.

At some point in this project, I hope to develop exhibits and programs that examine early club member profiles and promote leadership skills in women and girls. The club members need to be recognized for their contributions to the community.

Along the way, securing grant money to fund capital improvements is important. I would like to have professionals study the building and mechanical systems, monitor the environment of the club house to see if it meets museum quality environment standards, and identify and evaluate improvement strategies.

The main point of the project is to improve access to the WLU history collection. This includes cataloging and entering objects/documents into a collections management software program (PastPerfect seems to be popular).
I think that WLU should form an advisory committee which will be consulted on a policy for accepting additions to the collection once it is finalized. The committee should consist of individuals who specialize in research and managing the WLU history collections or who have attended a workshop on this subject.

Many people know the importance of sustaining cultural heritage. I once heard on an NPR program that every 14 days a language becomes extinct. (Most of those languages are in the Northwest area of Alaska.) I think that the community will benefit from a long-term exhibition and accompanying educational programs that tell the story of early WLU club women and their involvement in community civic affairs. The WLU collection will serve local, state, and national audiences. The collection represents the lives and works of many generations of women, culture in Lewiston-Auburn, records, social history (labor, women, changing social mores). Information in the collection may include major wars, woman’s suffrage, etc.

The collection will enable the WLU to establish itself as an important resource center in the study of local and American history.

Today I spoke with several people about this project, including Janet Roberts at the Maine State Archives re. applying for grants: one for a consultant to assess the collection at the Woman’s Literary Union and another grant for purchasing archival products to store and protect the collection.

I have sent an e-mail to three different consultants to find one who is interested and to determine fees and services provided. I have asked the WLU members to ask the board if there is already a board position that could include the preservation and maintenance of the collection as part of its duties and/or to create a position for that purpose. Perhaps the collection would become part of the secretary’s job duties. If not, perhaps a historian position could be created.

The e-mails I sent to the consultants was similar to this:

Today I spoke with Janet Roberts re. an Independent Study project I am
undertaking as part of my undergraduate work in the Arts & Humanities
program at the University of Southern Maine Lewiston Auburn College.
Professor Eve Raimon is overseeing my project.

Janet offered information to help me in writing a grant for the
Woman’s Literary Union of Androscoggin County, located in Auburn,
which is the focus of my project. I want to process their collection
of historical documents so that the collection is available for all
researchers. Over the years, WLU has had members and others interested
in using these documents but this has never been done in an organized
manner. I would like to change that and set up a permanent archive
with a designated committee or board member to oversee the use and
maintenance of the collection.

My interest in the collection is from a humanities perspective. I am
looking forward to reading the correspondence and handwritten minutes
of meetings that date back to the early days of the non-profit club
which was organized in 1892. Over the years, the WLU has been
instrumental in monumental civic projects such as establishing local
kindergartens, city beautification projects, instructing women in the
use of electric stoves, and so much more. The collection is truly
fascinating, but needs to be preserved for generations to come. I think that once a professional
Finding Aid is created, historians will want to see the collection. I
created a basic Finding Aid and you can see it on my blog at

http://literaryclubs.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/week-7/

WLU is interested in having a consultant with experience in processing
a collection visit WLU to assess its collection and give a workshop in
archival training to the club’s members involved in this project.

We need to know, if you are interested, what your services are and how
much you charge so that we can apply to the Maine State Archives for a
consultant grant.

Stay tuned for more!

Finding Aid

WLU Program Booklets:
1894-95 through 2011
These booklets include a statement of purpose, list of regular meetings, list of executive board meetings, list of executive board members, list of trustees, list of committees and their programs. Separate programs and posters for Holiday events including the Holiday Open House.

Miscellaneous related to Program Booklets:
Three wood blocks used for printing images; one image is Foss house, one image is Edward Little house, and one image is the front door of the Edward Little house

By-Laws Booklets:
These booklets describe the organization, its purpose(2), membership, meetings, voting, order of business, board of directors, officers, committees, dues, and amendments.

Financial:
Check stubs, savings books, check book registers, investment statements, financial correspondence, bank statements, and ledgers.

Membership:
Filled-in application forms.

Miscellaneous:
Published material including Washington DC Album, Annals of the Wing Family of America 1947, Breck bulb catalog 1928, Postcards with personal correspondence.

Book Review Club:
Handwritten meeting minutes, financial records (handwritten).

Garden Club:
Secretary reports (handwritten), correspondence, sheet music, publications from garden magazines, oversize books, financial statements.

Correspondence:
Miscellaneous correspondence still in envelopes.

Meeting minutes:
Handwritten and typed minutes of meetings from executive board meetings and other committees.

File cabinet documents:
Taxes, Foss mansion and its contents, blueprints of Foss mansion.

NOTE: I estimate that the above collection will fill 75 boxes if the boxes are 5 inches wide.

Photographs:
Some are loose, some are in photo albums.

Scrapbooks:
Oversize scrapbooks containing newspaper clippings.

The following is part of my Social Media Campaign for the Woman’s Literary Union project.

This morning WLU had 20 friends on Facebook and then I started a campaign to get more people to like the WLU page by e-mailing a few of my friends at a time. It’s a longer process, but I think the “return on investment” was worth it, as we now have 52 likes. 32 of my friends “liked” our page today. That is so cool. Anyway, let’s see what becomes of these people “liking” our page. I think that using social media will let WLU brand themselves as not only a social club, but also as a civic-minded organization which has been the cause of many improvements in our community.

As part of our strategy to brand WLU in this way, I found some interesting information in the Google News Archive about some monumental civic activities of the club, which I posted on Facebook. Some of the information will be posted at a later date. Two to three posts a day on the page are a good amount to keep the page fresh and “friends” interested in reading our posts. With that in mind, the club should come up with the answers to those “frequently asked questions” that the public often wants to know.

Social Media Campaign

1.Board objectives translated to social media
Define campaign and its activities
Set objectives and goals:
Brand awareness: Establish the club’s history of civic engagement
Member service: Listen to the needs of our members
New member generation: Be seen on various social media networks
Community building: Interaction between club, established members, and others
Justify using social media to meet the board’s goals

2.Organize a social team
Establish social media personalities to establish club’s brand
Part-time contributors add relevant and interesting content

3.Start your social presence small – keep it manageable
Discover brand, similar brands, and topics related to civic engagement
Listen to what others are saying: Are references positive or negative?
What social media is being used by our target audience?

4.Communication strategy
Proactive development of a communication plan to get the right content and keep up a consistent mix
Identify content opportunities to share in social media based on target audience.
Use a calendar to schedule your social media posts.

5.Engagement: Be in the right places at the right time
Determine the best social media channels to use and how often to use them.
Select social media:
Networks: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn
Blog: WordPress, TypePad, Blogger
Video: YouTube
Photos: Flickr
Focus on the strengths of each type of social media and what can be done with each; finally, figure out what the return on investment equals.
Understand the frequency of updates required to maintain and attract followers

6.Measure social media return on investment
Assess:
Activity – produced by member contributions
Reach – Number of potential social impressions
Engagement – Meaningful interaction of audience
Track and communicate progress to WLU board

7.Integrate social media with other processes and systems
Social media is part of a bigger communication mix
Integrate social media with e-mail, websites, and offline events
Use web analytics in conjunction with member relationship management

8.Membership.
The club can gain insight about the community through its own membership in organizations that promote the area.

***

Eleanor Roosevelt visited Woman’s Literary Union, Oct. 29, 1953
by Woman’s Literary Union on Sunday, February 27, 2011 at 7:48am

October 30, 1953, The Lewiston Evening Journal, photo caption:

WLU ENTERTAINS NOTABLES—Maine’s first lady, Mrs. Burton M. Cross, center, talking with Mrs. Sarah Caldwell of Ohio and Mrs. Wallace H. White Jr., widow of the late Senator White, at a reception given, yesterday afternoon, for the executive committee of the Maine Teachers’ Association and distinguished guests at the Woman’s Literary Union.

In the picture on the right, Mrs. Franklin Delano Roosevelt greets Mrs. Thomas E. Delahanty as she goes through the receiving line at the tea. In the center is Mrs. Charles W. Eaton, also in the receiving line.

Preceding her speech at the evening general session of the MTA, Mrs. Roosevelt was the dinner guest of Mr. And Mrs. Delahanty at their home, Delcliff St., Lewiston, as were the directors of the L-A Chamber of Commerce and their wives.

For the full article and photo, visit:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=IT5EXw6i2GUC&dat=19531030&printsec=frontpage

***

The history of the Squire Edward Little house and the WLU
by Woman’s Literary Union on Sunday, February 27, 2011 at 10:16am

Did you know? The Woman’s Literary Union purchased Squire Edward Little’s home in 1929 for their clubhouse prior to moving into their present home, the Foss Mansion, which was bequeathed to WLU by Ella Foss in 1942. Squire Edward Little built his home in 1826 and the “peak of social life centered under the roof of the dignified dwelling,” according to this Lewiston Evening Journal news article, “Mode of Life at Goff’s Corner Before They Called it Auburn,” by Alice Frost Lord, published February 24, 1942. Here are a few snippets from that article:

“Much Work—Little Money

It was a day when money was scarce, but hard work in the fields and at the old brick ovens kept families amply supplied with comfort and provender. In the Little house it was no different, except for more lavish furnishings and hospitality, and an atmosphere of culture that made this spot distinctive.

‘Squire Edward T. Little and his wife, Lucy, wore the choicest of clothes, set up their table for 40 to 50 guests at times, and knew the happiness of having 11 children and their families for Thanksgiving and other festivities.’

In 1842 the Little house was only 16 years old. It was built six years after Maine had become a state. ”

For the full article, visit:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cKg0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=32kFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1921%2C4389506&dq=literary+union&hl=en

For a photo of the Squire Edward Little house on Goff’s Corner, visit this Lewiston Evening Journal page from February 15, 1974:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=5KIgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=oWgFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1142%2C2375531&dq=squire-edward-little&hl=en

And a correction in the Lewiston Evening Journal, dated March 24, 1977, states that Squire Edward Little was a graduate of Dartmouth College, not Bowdoin.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DJBGAAAAIBAJ&sjid=WfMMAAAAIBAJ&pg=5043%2C3356733&dq=squire-edward-little&hl=en

***

I met with the director of archives and special collections at Bates College and the staff of the Muskie Archives today.

The Muskie Archives can be found online here: http://abacus.bates.edu/muskie-archives/

I appreciate the time these archivists took – two and a half hours – to explain the typical processing procedure of a collection.

I learned that digitizing a collection is almost an impossible feat to accomplish even for libraries with established resources and staff with years of experience in conservation procedures. Digitizing is simply not done on an entire collection. What libraries do, instead, is to process collections of texts, photos, and artifacts and create a finding aid so that items in the collection can be found by researchers. The collection is stored in special archival boxes. Each item placed in a box is first placed in special acid-free sleeves and/or folders. The finding aid is published on the archive’s website. A finding aid is basically an index of the collections in an archive. The index is divided into categories and brief descriptions are given for each. Researchers must visit the archive in person to actually access the collections.

Many of the items in the collection at the Woman’s Literary Union are scrapbooks full of newspaper clippings. I learned that this type of scrapbook itself is of little value unless the way the scrapbook was put together is unique or revealing about the person who put it together. Colleges accumulate lots of scrapbooks of newspaper clippings and they are not digitized. The resources are not available to digitize and it is more time consuming than the return on investment. And, since many newspapers have been microfilmed and those microfilms are available at libraries and online, photographing or scanning each page of a scrapbook is prohibitive.

Try searching the Google News Archive yourself and see how far back you can search.

Here’s the general link: http://news.google.com/archivesearch

Try the advanced search feature to find articles about the Woman’s Literary Union. Type in “Lewiston Helen Keller” and the search results should include a photo and caption and a separate article published in The Lewiston Daily Sun and an article published in the Lewiston Evening Journal, both on March 10, 1939, about Keller’s visit to Lewiston, Maine regarding the Androscoggin County Association for the Blind.

In the article in the Sun, titled, “Appearance of Helen Keller Attracts Capacity Audience,” we learn that the Woman’s Literary Union was one of four organizations to send flowers to Keller on the night of her speech:

“During the evening Miss Keller received flowers from four local clubs – the Zonta club, the Musical Literary club, the Lewiston-Auburn College club and the Woman’s Literary Union. Bringing the program to a close she recited a verse of ‘Nearer My God to Thee,’ after which the audience joined her in singing the hymn.”

Because the majority of newspapers can be researched online, digitizing scrapbooks of newspaper clippings is not a priority for many archivists.

You can visit the Woman’s Literary Union website at http://www.womansliteraryunion.org

or find them on Facebook and “Like” their page at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Womans-Literary-Union/193117287379627

The first step in creating a collection that is accessible to researchers, even if only on a limited basis (open to researchers once a week or once a month versus five days a week) is to assemble the collection into groups of related materials, which the club members have already done. Then, the finding aid can be created from those groups of materials; finally, the materials can be stored in archival boxes.

We spoke about where to purchase archival and conservation products. These are a few suppliers:

Gaylord Bros., Inc. http://www.gaylord.com/

Hollinger Metal Edge http://www.hollingermetaledge.com/

I was also warned to make sure purchases are archival quality, acid-free, as not all items meet those standards.

We also spoke about grants and funding for this part of my Independent Study. It is recommended to try for a basic grant with a rolling deadline. This grant can cover the fee of a professional archivist to assess the collection and report on his/her findings about the best way to process the collection so that it is available to researchers, even if it is available only for limited time periods (as I mentioned above).

I was given a few forms that can be used whenever a researcher wants to access the collection. One form is a Reference Worksheet which keeps track of the name, date and contact information of the researcher and what materials he/she accessed (or called/e-mailed and asked about). When a photocopy machine is not available in a research library, the researcher is allowed to take digital photos with his/her own camera.

The other form is a Researcher Registration Form which outlines the rules and guidelines for using the collections. These rules include the fact that materials do not leave the premises of the clubhouse; every researcher must register before first visit and then inform librarian of changes to contact information before subsequent visits; all visitors must sign in and out at each visit.

The form lists what can and cannot be brought in the Reading Room: laptops – yes, laptop bags – no. Handling of materials is explained. Restrictions are placed on fragile items or those being indexed. Copying of materials is allowed under certain conditions and must not violate copyright. Permission to use materials does not convey the permission to publish, exhibit, quote beyond fair use, or otherwise reproduce materials in full or in part.

(WLU could include this adaptation of the form for its own purposes.)
A separate request for permission to publish is required. The researcher assumes full responsibility for securing permission to publish from any and all owners of literary, copyright, and publication rights. [Woman's Literary Union] makes no claim to be the owner of these intellectual property rights unless such rights were explicitly transferred with the material.

Please use the following citation: The Woman’s Literary Union Archives and Special Collections Library.

There is space for the researcher to sign and date the form.

Specific grant and contact information was shared and that will be my next step in this project. The next time I visit the WLU clubhouse, rather than spend my time taking photos, I will create a catalog of the collection. I am checking out some of the website resources and contacting the grant person. So excited!

I have submitted my final abstract to Thinking Matters. I can now create a PowerPoint presentation to generate interest in this Independent Study project.

One of the exciting events of the past week is that a Facebook page has been created for the Woman’s Literary Union. This is a big deal to the members in the sense that many members do not use computers for socializing or getting their news. The potential to generate interest in the club’s work is important enough to these members for them to put their trust in the few members who do use the Internet on a fairly regular basis. I, along with the webmaster of the WLU’s website, spent part of Saturday, February 19, carefully building a Facebook page.

Unfortunately, Facebook is undergoing some upgrades to the features offered and the “share this page with your friends” feature is unavailable. I have posted the Facebook link on my own personal Facebook wall, but it’s not as convenient as someone receiving a notification that allows one-click “Like” this page. We have 12 friends after three days. I think that when the “share” feature is fixed, we will have lots of likes. Plus, by that time, we will have some interesting posts about the type of information we are finding in the collection of texts and photos some of which date to the early days of the club – 1892 is the founding date.

My current marketing campaign is to post this comment on the Facebook pages of national agencies related to humanities, digital collections, museums, libraries, and historical societies: The Woman’s Literary Union is on Facebook now. We are working on creating a digital archive of our collection of documents that date back to the founding of the club in 1892. We look forward to sharing that info with you and other researchers.

This project is going to have several phases, including:
Preservation
1.Identify and preserve the records of the Woman’s Literary Union
2.Create and manage club archives
3.Use a professional repository to preserve and make records publicly accessible for researchers
4.Inform the public of club’s records in a media campaign
5.Participate in American Archives Month activities in October / Preservation Month in May
Share WLU history
1.Submit club history to various archives
2.Create oral histories
3.Write biographies of early membership
Service projects
1.Inventory and cataloging
2.Rehouse materials
3.Virtual volunteers of archives
Women’s History Month – March
1.Adopt a school
2.Sponsor educational speakers
3.Celebrate local women of significance
Publicize club’s project

I’ve e-communicated with an archivist at the local college about this project and I am meeting with her tomorrow to discuss methods of archiving and preserving the collection. I am very excited about that.

I have also e-communicated with a librarian and a historian. I have found these communications to lead to more resources. What I need to focus on is getting a grant to fund the archiving materials needed to store the collection.

I have been working on an abstract to submit to the Thinking Matters conference to be held at USM on April 29, 2011. The conference gives scholars an opportunity to present their research studies. I hope that my presentation garners interest from other scholars and researchers. I am not completely satisfied with the abstract as it is written and intend to consider it further.

Here is my abstract:

In the late 1800s, women’s clubs were a source of education and power, gave a sense of solidarity, and promoted civic engagement. Over time, as women have gained more equality, access to higher education, and better pay, membership in these clubs has dropped. Utilizing the historical collection of one such club’s documents and photos, this study examines the value of female citizenship and the cultural contributions made by the Woman’s Literary Union to its local and global communities. The approach is interdisciplinary, drawing on theories of interpretive community, female citizenship, media communications, and cultural studies. The study includes cataloging, digitizing, and archiving WLU’s collection and making it accessible to members, researchers, and scholars. Acquiring funds through grants for the creation of a digital collection, museum exhibits, and scholarly texts for public education is part of this study. The use of social networks and traditional media will be incorporated in a campaign to raise awareness of the club, its collection, and its civic engagement. The results of increased club advocacy will reveal whether club membership is positively affected.

I want to add something about the types of civic engagement that the women engaged in because they did some pretty amazing things in the early 1900s considering that they were marginalized based on gender. The clubwomen promoted education and municipal housekeeping and those two items should be in the abstract.

I have written an essay on the way digital technologies have become pervasive in almost every aspect of communication, creating a global digital culture. I researched this topic to examine the importance of using digital technologies to disseminate information about one’s work. My intention is not to replace traditional methods of communicating – face to face, phone, snail mail – but to use digital technologies to enhance and broaden one’s reach to audiences unavailable through traditional methods of communication.
On February 3, I met with the director of a local library who gave me the names of three resources: an archivist at a local college, a local historian, and a link to www.idea.org which explores ways to share large amounts of information in formats that require brief reading and viewing. The site has an interactive online museum and researched information intended to help others set up their own online museums. In looking at different pages on the site, I came across its policy on copyright. The site recommends using Creative Commons with Some Rights Reserved.

This is the link: http://www.webexhibits.org/about/legal.html

Basically, the information on the site is free to use for non-commercial purposes. It is recommended that the user look at each article for variations in permission.

Here is an example of the Creative Commons copyright and usage philosophy:
http://creativecommons.org/choose/

I have looked at the Davis Foundation grant submission guidelines and discovered that the deadlines for submitting grant applications are February 10, May 10, August 10 and November 10. This foundation’s site is at http://www.davisfoundations.org/site/application_family.asp

These criteria must be met:

My organization is a 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(1) or (2) organization as determined by the IRS.
My organization is not a private foundation.
My organization is located in New England.

This foundation has given grants for building reconstruction, renovation, and repairs. The foundation supports “Cultural/Arts Organizations: organizations whose customary and primary activity is to promote music, theater, drama, history, literature, the arts or other similar cultural activities.”

Someone suggested the Muskie Foundation as a possible source of grants and I have looked at its site, but do not see where the foundation would make a grant to WLU.
http://www.muskiefoundation.org

A friend, who spent a good amount of time in her career writing grants for a non-profit, suggested that I follow the information found at http://www.foundationcenter.org
The site offers a wealth of information, training, and links to foundations.

I have stressed the importance of registering the club with grants.gov as soon as possible to be able to take advantage of federal grants. That will be discussed among the members of the executive board this week. Also, setting up a Facebook page will be recommended as another way to disseminate information about the club.

I have enjoyed learning a little bit more about the culture of the Woman’s Literary Club with each of my visits. Last Saturday, I photographed 220 pages from a Book Review Club minutes notebook for the years 1940 to 1951. I think that the kind of information found within this book is valuable and should be made available to researchers and scholars.

This past Saturday, February 5, I picked through the collection of documents and photos and chose items to photograph that contain historical information that reveal the culture and community in which the WLU operated.

Once again, the club members searched for access to the lighting behind the stained glass windows. We didn’t find it, but we did find the blueprints for the house. Unfortunately, although the blueprints were very interesting, they did not reveal any information on the window lights. I will check with Auburn City Hall and see if they have records on the house from when it was built.

Club members are searching for a framed photo of the original house that was on the lot before the Foss mansion was built. A photocopy of the actual photo has been located, but not the actual photo.

I discovered a master’s thesis done by a University of Southern Maine student in 2000 on the very same topic that I am pursuing, mainly the civic engagement of the Woman’s Literary Union examined in a cultural context including biographies and oral histories. The thesis looks thorough, but the work does not appear to have continued once the student’s project was finished. I searched the USM library online, but the thesis did not appear in the database. I am hoping to create a foundation for my project to be incorporated in to the club’s structure and updated as an ongoing project. This may mean creating a position in the club for an overseer who will maintain the club’s collection and solicit help from the local colleges.

Members of the club have expressed an interest in documents pertaining to Horatio Foss, but I have not come across any documents or photos.

Club members are busy working on the 11th annual Mother-Daughter-Doll Tea Open House scheduled for April 30.

Visit the Woman’s Literary Union website at www.womansliteraryunion.org