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Inventory of the National Council of Jewish Women Charleston Section Records, 1906-2012
Inventory of the National Council of Jewish Women Charleston Section Records, 1906-2012
Descriptive Summary
| Abstract: | The collection consists of the records of the Charleston Section of the National Council of Jewish Women. A substantial portion of the collection documents the Charleston Section's fundraising activities, charitable and educational programs, membership events, and 100th anniversary celebration through photographs, printed matter, newspaper clippings, and other materials. Also included are materials documenting its administrative and financial activities and early history. |
| Title: | National Council of Jewish Women Charleston Section records |
| Creator: | National Council of Jewish Women. Charleston Section |
| Date(s): | 1906-2012 |
| Extent: | 4.25 linear feet (8 document boxes, 1 flat box) |
| Repository: | Jewish Heritage Collection, Special Collections, College of Charleston Libraries 66 George Street Charleston, SC 29424 Phone: (843) 953-8016 Fax: (843) 953-6319 URL: http://archives.library.cofc.edu |
| Call Number: | Mss 1038 |
| Language of Material: | Materials in English |
Historical Note
Founded in Chicago in 1893 by Hannah G. Solomon, the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a national membership organization dedicated to religious, philanthropic, and educational endeavors. Rebecca O. Cohen, who also served as the Section's first president, organized the Charleston Section in 1906. NCJW's early volunteerism focused on assisting Eastern European immigrants and improving the lives of women, children, and families by offering vocational classes to teach job skills, providing public health services, supplying aid at home and abroad during World War I and II, and campaigning for social legislation regarding child labor, women's rights, and civil rights. The Charleston Section operated in the tri-county area of Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester Counties. Revenues used to support events and programs were acquired through admission fees, annual dues, fund raising activities, and contributions. In recent years the Charleston Section has sponsored projects to promote women's reproductive freedom and combat domestic violence, notably an annual 5k Walk Against Domestic Violence.
Collection Overview
The collection consists of the records of the Charleston Section of the National Council of Jewish Women. A substantial portion of the collection documents the Charleston Section's fundraising activities, charitable and educational programs, membership events, and 100th anniversary celebration through photographs, printed matter, newspaper clippings, and other materials. The collection also includes administrative records containing bylaws and mission statement; minutes; membership rosters; assorted resources distributed by NCJW national to local sections; correspondence; and clippings. Minutes from 1906 to 1950 and addendums and motions are photocopies of originals held by the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives (AJA), on the Cincinnati Campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, while minutes from 1997 to 2010 consist of original typed and handwritten minutes. Also included is a small amount of financial materials consisting of several cashbooks recording deposits for membership and expenditures, financial statements, budget materials, and assorted publications including annuals and anniversary programs and newsletters. Two unbound scrapbooks containing photographs, clippings, correspondence, hand-drawn artwork and other ephemera document the history of the organization and its early activities.
Collection Arrangement
| 1. | Administrative records, 1906-2011 |
| 2. | Financial records, 1934-2010 |
| 3. | Publications, 1912-2010 |
| 4. | Fundraisers, programs, and events, 1931-2012 |
| 5. | Scrapbooks, 1906-1996 |
Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person, family, or organization, by topical subject, by place, and by types of material.Names
- National Council of Jewish Women. Charleston Section
Subjects
- Jews--South Carolina--Charleston--Societies, etc.
- Jewish women--South Carolina--Charleston--Charities
- Fund raising--South Carolina--Charleston
Places
- Charleston (S.C.)
Types of Material
- Minutes
- Photocopies
- Color photographs
- Black-and-white photographs
- Photo CDs
- Fliers (printed matter)
- Promotional materials
- Clippings (information artifacts)
- Newsletters
- Rosters
- Correspondence
- Cashbooks
- Financial statements
- DVDs
- Scrapbooks
Related Resources
Related Material
Related materials in Special Collections include the pamphlets The Sixtieth Anniversary of the Charleston Section, National Council of Jewish Women program, Monday, February 21, 1966; Bulletin: Charleston Section, National Council of Jewish Women; 100 Years of Service: 100th Anniversary, 1906-2006; and the publications Proceedings of the First Convention of the National Council of Jewish Women Held at New York, November 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19, 1896 by the National Council of Jewish Women; Gone to Another Meeting: The National Council of Jewish Women, 1893-1993 by Faith Rogrow; A Book of Favorite Recipes by the National Council of Jewish Women, Greater Houston Section, Career Branch, West Houston; Windows on Daycare: A Report on the Findings of Members of the National Council of Jewish Women on Daycare Needs and Services in Their Communities by Mary Dublin Keyserling; and The First Fifty Years: A History of the National Council of Jewish Women, 1893-1943 by Monroe Campbell.
Detailed Description of the Collection
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1. Administrative records, 1906-2011
Executive board and meeting minutes from 1906 to 1950 and addendums and motions are photocopies of originals held by the
Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives (AJA), on the Cincinnati Campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute
of Religion. Materials may not be duplicated or published without explicit permission from the American Jewish Archives.
Minutes pertain to clothing aid for San Francisco earthquake victims; suggestions for philanthropic work; immigrant assistance programs; and fund raising.
Minutes pertain to immigration and naturalization programs and policies; religious education; kindergarten programs; adult and child literacy; Jewish social issues; the publication of Secular and Religious Works of Penina Moïse: With Brief Sketch of Her Life; the distribution of Penina Moïse poems to all NCJW sections; World War I aid programs such as the Red Cross and sale of relief stamps; women's suffrage; and collaborations with Christian organizations.
Minutes pertain to immigrant assistance programs and policies; religious education; adult and child literacy; and Jewish social issues.
Minutes pertain to new programs addressing such health issues as tuberculosis and hygiene; women's suffrage and rights; immigrant assistance programs; literacy programs; adult and child religious education; and fundraising.
Minutes pertain to programs for orphans, Girl Scouts, and the League for the Hard of Hearing.
Minutes pertain to new programs including a Rummage Sale; outreach to rural Jewish women titled Farm and Rural Work; a women's exhibit at the 1933 World's Fair; Diabetes Tag Day fundraiser; and endorsements of legislation including the Copeland Bill, a predecessor to the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1934
Minutes pertain to Charleston city beautification and the use of a casino night to raise money; new programs aiding the U.S.O.; entertaining U.S. soldiers at Stark Hospital, Charleston; supporting the March of Dimes; and endorsing a testimonial for NCJW founder Hannah Solomon upon news of her death.
Minutes pertain to the Section's continuing support for equal rights, notably for racial integration of the Charleston Police Department; aid to the Pinehaven Tuberculosis Sanitarium; the Ship-a-Box program for at-risk children in Israel; unrestricted Jewish immigration to Palestine; creation of a Walterboro sub-section; establishment of a Mental Hygiene clinic, a precursor to sex education; and a declaration opposing Eugene McCarthy and congressional inquiries into "un-American activities" (the Second Red Scare) as a threat to democracy.
Minutes pertain to religious education programs; adult and child literacy; senior citizens programs; voter registration; domestic violence aid and prevention; female reproductive freedom; Charleston's Crisis Ministries soup kitchen; and Hello Israel, a program designed to introduce elementary school children to Israel and Israeli customs.
Minutes pertain to senior citizen's programs; domestic violence programs; Charleston's Crisis Ministries soup kitchen; education programs; the Hello Israel program; and assorted fundraising events. Minutes also detail the planning and implementation of 100th Anniversary commemoration.
Minutes pertain to the Section's continued support for activities to combat domestic violence, including the Goodwill program and 5k run, and efforts to promote women's reproductive freedom (the NCJW Plan A program), Charleston's Crisis Ministries, and Hello Israel. Minutes also detail the planning and implementation of 100th Anniversary commemoration.
2. Financial records, 1934-2010
Also includes checks stubs and a typed Happy Workers budget for 1948 to 1949.
3. Publications, 1912-2010
4. Fundraisers, programs, and events, 1931-2012
Bound book of congratulatory telegrams and letters from national and regional NCJW sections and local Jewish women's organizations.
Debate between candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives.
5. Scrapbooks, 1906-1967
Contains a retrospective history of the organization through lists of past presidents and charter members; annual reports; project and program information; clippings; memorials; photographs of officers and of the 50th anniversary; awards and certificates; section projects; and publications. Materials have been removed from original housing.
Contains assorted black and white photographs, clippings, and schedules related to the You, Your Child, and Tomorrow and The Face of Poverty seminars. Materials have been removed from original housing.
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research but has use restrictions. Please consult inventory or contact Special Collections at the College of Charleston Libraries for more information.
Copyright Notice
The nature of the College of Charleston's archival holdings means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. Special Collections claims only physical ownership of most archival materials.
The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], National Council of Jewish Women Charleston Section records, College of Charleston Libraries, Charleston, SC, USA.
Acquisitions Information
Materials were donated in 1996, 2000, 2009, and 2012 by Jaclyn Berlinsky, Frances Halio, and Sandra Archambault.
Processing Information
Processed by Colleen O' Connor and Joshua Minor, October 2012.
Encoded by Joshua Minor, October 2012.
Reviewed and uploaded by Martha McTear, February 2013.
Funding from the Council on Library and Information Resources supported the processing of this collection and encoding of the finding aid.
