Civic Club of Philadelphia records

The Civic Club of Philadelphia, organized in 1894, consisted of prominent Philadelphia women who sought to promote "by education and active cooperation a higher public spirit and better public order." Initially the club was organized into four departments, Municipal Government, Education,...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Corporate Author: Civic Club of Philadelphia (Creator)
Collection:Civic Club of Philadelphia Records
Collection Number:1813
Format: Manuscript
Language:English
Subjects and Genres:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Physical Description: 8.0 Linear feet 8 linear feet, 1 box, 61 volumes
Summary: The Civic Club of Philadelphia, organized in 1894, consisted of prominent Philadelphia women who sought to promote "by education and active cooperation a higher public spirit and better public order." Initially the club was organized into four departments, Municipal Government, Education, Social Service, and Art, each of which operated somewhat autonomously and created its own committees or task forces. The Education Department had committees on public schools, free libraries, and free kindergartens and the Municipal Government Department included committees on sanitation, civil service reform, and police patrons. Despite its interest in social and political reform, the club refused on several occasions to take part as "disfranchised citizens" in meetings of the Anti-Spoils League and the National Civil Service Reform Convention. By the 1920's, after the passage on the suffrage amendment, the club structure changed, the Departments were abandoned, and the committees reduced in number and given new, more limited charges. In 1959, the membership voted the Club out of existence and transferred its assets to other civic organizations. Included in the records are: director's minutes, 1899-1959; minutes of the general meetings, 1893-1948, 1959, primarily recording addresses to the membership; and minutes of the Art Department, 1894-1903, reflecting interest in free art exhibitions at Philadelphia museums, summer and community concerts, as well as parks and playgrounds. There are also published annual reports, 1894-1935, including the constitution, by-laws, lists of officers and members, and financial summaries. Published bulletins and calendars, 1907-1959, give summaries, often monthly, of club activities. Also included are pamphlets and publications, 1894-1948; clippings, 1894-1903; a fiftieth anniversary volume, including lists of officers, 1944; and a volume containing four memorial addresses for distinguished members: Alice Lippincott, Anna Hallowell, Mary Channing Wister (Mrs. Owen Wister), and Sarah Yorke Stevenson (Mrs. Cornelius Stevenson).