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Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America
The Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (now Sokol USA), was established in 1896 as a non-sectarian fraternal benefit society that offered insurance and social and athletic programs to its members. The Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America, 1934-1987, undated (bul...
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| Collection: | Alice Simon Collection On the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America |
| Collection Number: | 3497 |
| Format: | Manuscript |
| Language: | English |
| Subjects and Genres: | |
| Online Access: | Link to finding aid |
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| LEADER | 07431ntc a2200301 u 4500 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 001 | ead-3497 | ||
| 008 | 230412i xx eng d | ||
| 040 | |e dacs | ||
| 041 | 0 | |a eng | |
| 099 | |a 3497 | ||
| 100 | 1 | |a Simon, Alice |d 1909-1998 |e creator | |
| 245 | 1 | |a Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America |f 1934-1987, undated (bulk 1975-1985) | |
| 300 | |a 2.21 Linear feet |f ; 6 boxes, 7 volumes | ||
| 351 | |b Series I – Minutes and Summaries for Byram District, SOKOL USA, and National Convention Series II – Correspondence Series III – Financial Records and Life Insurance Materials Series IV – Printed Matter Series V – Slet Rules, Scripts, Results, and Programs Series VI – Sokol Woodlands Summer Camp Series VII – Artifacts | ||
| 506 | |a The collection is open for research. | ||
| 520 | |a The Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (now Sokol USA), was established in 1896 as a non-sectarian fraternal benefit society that offered insurance and social and athletic programs to its members. The Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America, 1934-1987, undated (bulk 1975-1985), contains minutes, financial records, newsletters, correspondence, bylaws, printed material, and various objects related to the Slovak Gymnastic Union of America as well as one of the branch sokols: the Byram, Connecticut lodge. A portion of the collection also documents the Sokol Woodlands, a Sokol USA-sponsored summer camp held in Barryville, New York. | ||
| 520 | |a The Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America contains materials related to the Slovak Gymnastic Union of America, now Sokol USA. It also includes materials connected to the Byram lodge in Connecticut and the Sokol Woodlands summer camp in Barryville, New York. At some point, Ms. Simon merged her papers with those of Ms. Bessie W. Erhardt, Co-Chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee for Sokol USA. Ms. Erhardt’s papers included financial records and correspondence that are mostly intermingled with Ms. Simon’s papers. The bulk of the collection relates to the national organization, Sokol USA. Series I includes the organization's bylaws, meeting minutes, and convention summaries. Meeting minutes for the Byram lodge are also included in this series. Series II contains correspondence to and/or from members of Sokol USA's Ways and Means Committee of which Ms. Simon was Treasurer. The correspondence largely focuses on the organization's fund raising efforts. Series III contains both Sokol USA's and Byram lodge's financial records. The financial records for both organizations are incomplete. However, some records of donations made, dues paid, invoices, miscellaneous expenses, and bank account totals are included. Series IV contains a variety of printed matter that the organization generated including flyers, pamphlets, and booklets that describe events and other activities. Also in this series are travel brochures connected to places where the organization held conventions and events. Series V contains information about the organization's slets (exhibition events for members to show off their athletic skills) including rules, scripts, and results. Series VI contains materials from Sokol Woodlands, a Sokol USA-sponsored summer camp in Barryville, NY that was in use from 1964 until 2008. Woodlands materials include programming material, minutes, financial notes, pamphlets, newsletters, and ephemera dating from the late 1970s to the 1980s. Finally, Series VII contains several artifacts including a set of patches and a plaque each from a different slet. | ||
| 524 | 8 | |a Cite as: [Indicate cited item here], Alice Simon Collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (Collection 3497), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania. | |
| 541 | 1 | |a Gift of Alice Simon, 1996. | |
| 544 | |a Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol Lodges No. 93 and No. 66W (Bethlehem, Pa.) printed matter and photographs, 1922-1976 (bulk 1965-1975), collection 4087 Slovak Catholic Sokol, Assemblies No. 61 and No. 173 (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records, collection 3499 Slovak Catholic Sokol Band Records, collection MSS098 Slovak Catholic Sokol 23rd National Convention Program, collection SC185 Junior Slovak Catholic Sokol Certificates, collection SC231 Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol Lodges No. 93 and No. 66W, collection D0302 Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol Lodge No. 56 (Philadelphia, Pa.) Photographs, collection PG042 Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol Assembly No. 56 (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records, collection MSS094 Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol Women's Lodge No. 19 (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records, collection MSS097 Slovak Gymastic Union Sokol Junior Branch No. 41 Assembly 108 (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records, collection MSS099 | ||
| 545 | |a In 1862 in the Czech region of Europe, Miroslav Tyrs and his father-in-law founded the Sokol movement. An all-age gymnastics organization based on the Ancient Greek idea "a sound mind in a sound body," Sokols used lectures and outdoor activities to train people physically, morally, and intellectually. Sokols aimed to be apolitical, but they contributed heavily to the development of Czech nationalism. When immigrants from Eastern Europe settled in the United States in the 19th century, several Czech and Slovak immigrant communities opened Sokols as places of moral, physical, and social training and as a way to build community and foster American patriotism. A national organization for the Slovak-based Sokols, the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (now Sokol USA), was established in 1896 as a non-sectarian fraternal benefit society that offered insurance and social and athletic programs to its members. Its members were organized in local branches called lodges, and each lodge organized activities to engage its members. Alice Simon, a lifelong resident of Bridgeport, Connecticut and an employee of the Connecticut National Bank (retired in 1974) was a gymnast and officer of the Bridgeport Women's Lodge No. 3W. In addition to her involvement with her local lodge, Alice also was a member of Sokol USA's administration. In 1975, she was chosen to serve as treasurer for the organization's Ways and Means Committee at a time when Sokol USA sought new avenues for raising funds. As treasurer, she helped oversee several fundraising events that the Ways and Means Committee engineered. At some point, Ms. Simon merged her papers with those of Ms. Bessie W. Erhardt, Co-Chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee. Ms. Erhardt’s papers included financial records and correspondence that are mostly intermingled with Ms. Simon’s papers. Ms. Simon also was involved in Sokol Woodlands, a Sokol USA-sponsored summer camp in Barryville, NY that was in operation from 1964 until 2008. Alice Simon passed away in 1998. | ||
| 555 | |a Finding Aid Available Online: | ||
| 546 | |a All materials pertaining to Sokol USA are in English. An exercise book and a few newspaper articles are in Slovak or Czech. | ||
| 610 | 2 | 7 | |a Sokol U.S.A. |2 MANX_db |
| 650 | 0 | |a Slovak Americans--Societies, etc. | |
| 650 | 0 | |a Women gymnasts--United States. | |
| 852 | |a The Historical Society of Pennsylvania |b Alice Simon Collection On the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America |l 3497 | ||
| 856 | 4 | 2 | |y Link to finding aid |u http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/s/SimonSlovakGymnastic3497.html |