Collection Summary
Marquette University. Department of Special Collections and University
Archives.
Anna McGarry, 1894-1978
Anna McGarry papers
1937-1991
1.6 cubic feet (3 boxes)
Papers of a pioneer in the movement
for interracial justice, documenting her service on the staffs of Philadelphia's
Fair Employment Practice's Commission and its successor agency, the Commission on
Human Relations, and her leadership of the Catholic Interracial Council of
Philadelphia.
AM
English
Biography of Anna McGarry
Anna McGarry was born in Philadelphia on March 17, 1894, one of eight children in an
Irish-Catholic family. She married Frank McGarry in 1917, but his death four years
later left her widowed with a young daughter. During the 1920s McGarry became
increasingly aware of racial injustice in Philadelphia, and she devoted the rest of
her life to improving interracial relations.
In 1934 McGarry helped to found the West Philadelphia Interracial Forum. In 1937 she
helped organize the Catholic Intercollegiate Interracial Council, which later became
the Catholic Interracial Council of Philadelphia. In 1945 McGarry retired from her
secretarial job to become the night house mother at a school of nursing, a move
which allowed her to devote her days to lobbying the city for policies that promoted
racial justice. In 1946 McGarry became a part-time field representative of
Philadelphia's new Fair Employment Practices commission. The agency re-formed in
1952 to become the Commission on Human Relations, and McGarry served as a full-time
staff member.
McGarry retired from public service in 1959, but she remained active in the National
Catholic Social Action Conference and the National Catholic Council for Interracial
Justice. She spent her final years living with her daughter in Loveland, Ohio and
died there on January 3, 1978.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
Included in this collection are clippings, correspondence, memoranda, publications,
reports, and audio recordings of talks and an oral history interview.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged into the following series
- 1. Subject Files, 1937-1990, undated
- 2. Audiorecordings of Oral History Interview and Talks, 1955-1976, undated
Restrictions on Access
There are no restrictions on access to this collection.
Restrictions on Use
The archives staff will assist researchers in determining if copyright restrictions
apply, although responsibility for copyright and obtaining necessary permissions
rests with the researcher.
Index Terms
Persons:
McGarry, Anna,
1894-1978--Archives
Organizations:
Catholic Interracial Council
(Philadelphia, Pa.)
Philadelphia, (Pa.) Commission on
Human Relations
Philadelphia, (Pa.) Fair Employment
Practices Commission
Subjects:
African Americans--Civil
Rights--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia
Race
discrimination--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia
Race relations--Religious
aspects--Christianity--Catholic Church
Places:
Philadelphia (Pa.)--Race Relations
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Series Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Anna McGarry
Papers, 1937-1991. Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives. Marquette
University.
Acquisition Information
These papers were received as a gift from Daniel and Mary Kane in 1990.
Accruals
No further accruals expected for this collection.
Detailed Description of the Collection
Series 1: Subject Files,
1937-1990, undated.
0.6 cubic feet.
Catholic Interracial Council of Philadelphia
1
1-5
Correspondence,
1937-1971, undated
1
6
Information,
1937-1964, undated
1
7
News Releases,
1948-1958, undated
1
8
Publications,
1943-1963, undated
1
9
Radio Broadcasts,
1950-1958, undated
1
10-11
Reports,
1937-1966, undated
1
12
Speeches,
1950-1955
Commission on Human Relations
2
1
Correspondence,
1953-1959, undated
2
2
Published Information,
1953-1986, undated
2
3
Reports,
1939-1950, undated
Fair Employment Practices Commission
2
4
Correspondence,
1943-1950
2
5
Published Information,
1948-1951
2
6
Reports,
1939-1950, undated
General
2
7
Articles by Anna McGarry,
1940-1941
1964-1971, undated
2
8
Correspondence,
1938-1982, undated
2
9
Information on Anna McGarry,
1952-ca.1990
2
10
Photographs,
1948-1981, undated
2
11
Reports,
1938-1977, undated
Gesu Parish (Philadelphia)
2
12
Correspondence,
1952-1966, undated
2
13
Information,
1964-1965, undated
2
14
Publications,
1957-1982, undated
2
15
Reports,
1952-1967, undated
National Catholic Conference for Interracial Justice
2
16
Correspondence,
1959-1967
2
17
Reports,
1963-1981, undated
Series 2: Audiorecordings of Oral History Interview and Talks,
1955-1976, undated.
1.0 cubic feet.
1
1
Notes on Oral History Interview,
1976
1
Open-Reel Tapes of Talks and Oral History Interview,
1955,
1959,
1965,
1976, undated