mshm358 Mount Holyoke College War Collection, 1860-present Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by Patricia J. Albright. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections
South Hadley, MA
2008-04-24 Finding aid encoded in NoteTab Pro. Encoded by Patricia J. Albright. 2008-04-24 Finding aid written in English Collection Overview Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College War Collection 1860-present RG 30 LD 7093.8 W3 17 boxes ( 9 linear ft.) Collection is primarily in English, with some correspondence and certificates (1914-1918) in French. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Consists of reports, correspondence, minutes, course descriptions, articles, brochures, manuals, booklets, scrapbooks, newsletters, questionnaires, recollections, announcements, certificates, lists, audio cassettes, and photographs documenting the impact of various wars in the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East on students, faculty, administrators, and alumnae of Mount Holyoke College. Most materials concern World War I (1914-1918), World War II (1939-1945), and the Vietnam War (1961-1975). Historical Note

The Mount Holyoke College War Collection brings together a wide range of materials that show how students, faculty, administrators, and alumnae of the College responded to various wars from the United States Civil War (1861-1865) to the Iraq War (2003-present). Most of the collection consists of records created by College departments, offices, and committees, including the Office of the President, the Appointment Bureau, the News Bureau, the Public Relations Office, and the Alumnae Association. The collection also includes newspaper articles, records of local, national, and international war-related committees, and materials received from alumnae and other donors.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Mount Holyoke College War Collection documents the impact of various wars on Mount Holyoke students, administrators, faculty, and alumnae. Materials date from 1860 to the present and are arranged in nine series for the following conflicts: the United States Civil War (1861-1865), World War I (1914-1918), the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), World War II (1939-1945), the Korean War (1950-1953), the Vietnam War (1961-1973), the Persian Gulf War (1991), the Afghan War (2001-present); and the Iraq War (2003-present).

United States Civil War Materials consist of copies of newspaper articles (1860, 1864) concerning the elections of Abraham Lincoln as United State President and the patriotism of Mount Holyoke students. There are also recollections (1908, 1912) by two alumnae, Sarah Pomeroy Parsons and Anna C. Edwards, about life at the school during that war.

World War I Materials (1914-1919, 1937, 1942, 1944-1945) consist of reports, correspondence, minutes, articles, notices, course descriptions, certificates, and photographs. These materials describe work done by students on the College Farm; the extra-curricular war emergency courses that provided special training to students; measures undertaken to conserve fuel and food; and campaigns to raise money in support of the war efforts. Some documents concern war relief work done by students under the direction of Romance Languages professor Mary Vance Young. These materials include Young's correspondence with members of the Commission for Relief in Belgium and the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief as well as letters (most in French) to Young or Mount Holyoke students from Belgian soldiers and civilians. There are also letters exchanged by Mount Holyoke's Dean, Florence Purington and representatives of the Intercollegiate Committee on Women's War Work Abroad, which was established to collect and classify information regarding the opportunities for War Service Aboard for women college student and alumnae. These letters chi! efly con cern alumnae who served with the American Red Cross and other organizations in France, England, and the Near East. In addition, the collection contains correspondence, course descriptions, articles, and photographs relating to a training course given at Mount Holyoke during the summer of 1918 for health officers serving women who worked in industrial plants,. Materials dating from 1937, 1942, 1944-1945 consist of reports and articles summarizing activities and programs at the College during World War I.

Spanish Civil War Materials consist of an announcement from 1939 for a mass meeting at Mount Holyoke to discuss reasons why the United States embargo on Loyalist Spain should be lifted. The meeting was sponsored by the American Student Union, the Faculty-Student Committee to Aid Republican Spain, and the International Relations Club.

World War II Materials (1939-1948, 1962-2005) consist of reports, correspondence, minutes, articles, brochures, manuals, course descriptions, newsletters, scrapbooks, lists, notes, certificates, and photographs. Materials dating from before the United States entered the war in December, 1941 primarily concern war preparedness activities at the College and students' support of war relief efforts. There are also documents from December 1940-January 1941 concerning a Federal Bureau of Investigation of four Mount Holyoke faculty members suspected of being Nazi sympathizers. Materials from the war years concern air raid precautions (A.R.P.), changes in the curriculum, farm work done by students, and Red Cross and first aid training. The A.R.P. materials include bulletins, instructions, and other records of the Committee on Public Safety of South Hadley (1941-1944). There are materials relating to special programs held at the College, including an E.S.M.D.T. (Engineering, Science, Management, and Defense Training) summer course in industrial supervision (1942), National Youth Administration Industrial War Training Programs to train young women in the use of meta! l workin g tools (1942, 1943), and an International Service Work Camp through which young women assisted with farm work and child care in local communities (1942). Other correspondence, publications, articles, and photographs concern training programs on the Mount Holyoke campus for WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) and Women Marines from 1942-1944. These materials include issues of Sounding Off, a weekly newspaper edited for the personnel of the Women's Reserve of the Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps in training at the Naval Reserve Midshipmen's School (WR) at Northampton and South Hadley, Massachusetts. Materials dating from during and after the war concern three ships (the U.S.S. Lyon, the S.S. Mary Lyon, and the S.S. Mount Holyoke Victory) used during the war . War-related activities of alumnae are documented by World War II Job Reports (1946) completed by members of the classes of 1879-1946. These questionnaires describe alumnae reactions to their war time jobs and include information about the post-war plans of these women. There are also letters, lists, and articles concerning the Mount Holyoke College group of the Universities Committee on Post-War International Problems, which encouraged faculty members to develop suggestions for dealing with issues such as the nature of the peace settlement and economic reconstruction of countries affected by the war. In addition, notes from 1975 describe cryptology courses given under the strictest confidence by faculty member Roger Holmes during the war.

Materials about the Korean War (1951) consist of correspondence, articles, and press releases. These documents concern discussion of whether the Mount Holyoke would offer a summer session of study for students and the possibility of a volunteer registration program for women to encourage support of work that supported the war effort.

Vietnam War materia! ls (1965 -1972) consist of correspondence, articles, publications, newsletters, announcements, memoranda, and photographs. These materials primarily document opinions about war on the part of students, faculty, administrators, and alumnae. Most of the materials relate to the nationwide students' strike in May, 1970 to protest the war and its extension into Cambodia. These items include copies of Consider These Are The Days, a study prepared by the Five College Research Committee of issues relating to the strike. Other documents concern the Vietnam Moratorium in October, 1969 held to organize community sentiment against the continuation of the war.

Persian Gulf Materials (1991) are comprised of announcements, articles, questionnaires, audio cassettes, and a photograph. These items primarily concern students' reactions to the war and include questionnaires completed by participants in a Gulf Crisis Survey conducted by the Student Government Association. Some materials relate to various Five College programs concerning the conflict, including a Teach-In on the Gulf Crisis held on February 14, 1991. The photograph is of students who were part of a protest march against the war.

Materials relating to the Afghan War (2001-present) and Iraq War (2003-present) consist of newspaper articles discussing responses to those conflicts by members of the Mount Holyoke Community. Many of these articles concern anti-war protests.

Material from this collection is available in an online digital format.

 Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into nine series:

United States Civil War Materials (1860, 1864, 1908, 1912) World War I Materials (1914-1919, 1937, 1942, 1944-1945) Spanish Civil War Materials (1939) World War II Materials (1939-1948, 1962-2005) Korean War Materials (1951) Vietnam War Materials (1965-1972) Persian Gulf Materials (1991) Afghan War Materials (2001-present) Iraq War Materials (2003-present) Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

Unrestricted.

Use of the collection is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.)

 Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Mount Holyoke College War Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, USA

 History of the Collection

Processed by Patricia J. Albright, 1991, 2008

 Search Terms Mount Holyoke College. Mount Holyoke College--Alumni and alumnae. Mount Holyoke College--Students. Mount Holyoke Female Seminary--Student life--1861-1865. Mount Holyoke Female Seminary--Recollections. Women college students--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Women college students--Massachusetts--South Hadley--Political activity. Massachusetts--History--Civil War, 1861-1865. World War, 1914-1918--Massachusetts--South Hadley. World War, 1914-1918-Women. Intercollegiate Committee on Women's War Work Abroad. Spain--History--Civil War, 1936-1939. World War, 1939-1945--Massachusetts--South Hadley. World War, 1939-1945--Women. United States. Naval Reserve. Women's Reserve. United States--Armed Forces--Women. Women marines. Air raid defenses--Massachusetts--South Hadley. War relief--History--Sources. Warships. Universities Committee on Post-War International Problems. Korean War, 1950-1953--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Protest movements--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Student strikes--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Persian Gulf War, 1991--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Afghan War, 2001- -- Massachusetts--South Hadley. Iraq War, 2003- -- Massachusetts--South Hadley. Edwards. Anna C. (Anna Cheney), 1835-1930. Young, Mary Vance, 1866-1946. Parsons, Sarah Pomeroy, 1845-1916. Letters. Minutes. Scrapbooks. Photographs. Audiocassettes. Questionnaires. Newsletters. Certificates. United States Civil War Materials 1860, 1864, 1908, 1912 1 1 Articles, recollections 1860, 1864, 1908, 1912 World War I Materials 1914-1919, 1937, 1942, 1944-1945 1 2 Articles, notices 1917 1 3 Reports, correspondence, articles, notices 1918 1 4 Reports, correspondence, articles, notices 1919 1 5 Report and articles about Mount Holyoke College during World War I 1937, 1942, 1944-1945 1 6 Liberty Loan flag (shelved in Folio) 1919 1 7 Photographs of Armistice Day celebration 1918 2 1 Farm work: committee records, articles 1917-1918 2 2 Farm work: photographs 1917-1918 2 3 Farm work: photographs 1917-1918 2 4 Intercollegiate Committee on Women's War Work Abroad: correspondence 1918 2 5 Intercollegiate Committee on Women's War Work Abroad: correspondence 1918 2 6 Intercollegiate Committee on Women's War Work Abroad: correspondence 1919 2 7 Training Course for Health Officers: correspondence April-June 1918 2 8 Training Course for Health Officers: correspondence July-November 1918 2 9 Training Course for Health Officers: photographs 1918 2 10 War emergency courses: course descriptions 1917-1919 2 11 War emergency courses: photographs 1918 3 1 War relief work: articles, correspondence 1914-1919 3 2 War relief work: Commission for Relief in Belgium 1915 3 3 War relief work: certificates (shelved in Folio) 1915-1916, 1918 3 4 War relief work: correspondence, publications, financial records 1916-1919 3 5 War relief work: photograph of encampment where Christmas parcels sent by Mary Vance Young were received 1917 Spanish Civil War 1939 3 6 Announcement 1939 World War II 1939-1948, 1962-2005 4 1 Reports, correspondence, articles 1939-1941 4 2 Reports, correspondence, articles 1942 4 3 Reports, correspondence, articles 1943 4 4 Reports, correspondence, articles 1944-1947 4 5 Scrapbook compiled by the Alumnae Association of articles concerning war-related activities and events (shelved in Folio) 1939-1935 4 6 Lists of alumnae in the services 1943-1946 4 7 Certificates from United Service Organization (USO) and World Student Service Fund (shelved in Folio) 1946 4 8 Memorandum concerning Cryptology courses at Mount Holyoke College taught by Roger Holmes during World War II and later and article about student life at Mount Holyoke during the war March 13, 1975, July 8, 1985 4 9 Photographs students participating in war relief work, war emergency courses, and wartime conservation activities circa 1942-1948 5 1 Air Raid Precaution (A.R.P.): correspondence, articles, lists 1941 5 2 A.R.P.: instructions, announcements, lists 1942 5 3 A.R.P.: instructions, announcements, lists 1942-1943 5 4 A.R.P.: Notes by Boardman Bump, College Comptroller, compiled while attending the Massachusetts Air Raid Precaution School1941 5 5 A.R.P.: Notes by Boardman Bump, College Comptroller, compiled while attending the Massachusetts A.R.P School for Industry 1941 5 6 A.R.P.: Air Raid Warden Instructors' Manual 1942 5 7 A.R.P.: Committee on Public Safety of South Hadley records 1941 5 8 A.R.P.: Committee on Public Safety of South Hadley records 1942 5 9 A.R.P.: Committee on Public Safety of South Hadley records 1943-1944 5 10 A.R.P.: photographs of students participating in A.R.P. drills 1942 6 1 British War Relief: reports, articles, memoranda 1940-1941 6 2 British War Relief: reports, articles, memoranda, certificate (certificate shelved in Folio) 1942-1945, 1983 6 3 British War Relief: photographs of students engaged in war relief work circa 1940-1945 6 4 Course work/curriculum: articles, course descriptions 1940-1945 6 5 Course work/curriculum: statements by departments describing courses that would equip students to participate in war service work November 1942 6 6 E.S.M.D.T. Course in Industrial Supervision: lists, articles 1942 6 7 Farm work: reports, correspondence, articles 1941-1942 6 8 Farm work: reports, correspondence, articles 1943-1945, 1990 6 9 Farm work: photographs circa 1941-1943 6 10 Farm work: photographs circa 1941-1943 7 1 Industrial War Training Program: reports, articles 1942-1943 7 2 Industrial War Training Program: scrapbook of documents concerning the program at Mount Holyoke College (shelved in Folio) 1942 7 3 Industrial War Training Program: photographs circa 1942 7 4 Industrial War Training Program: photographs circa 1942 7 5 International Student Service Work Camp: lists, articles 1942 7 6 International Student Service Work Camp: Mount Holyoke Campus Communique newsletter written by camp participants (shelved in Folio) 1942 8 1 Red Cross/First Aid: reports, articles 1940-1944 8 2 Red Cross/First Aid: photographs circa 1940-1944 8 3 Ships - U.S.S. Lyon: correspondence, photograph 1990-1995 8 4 Ships - S.S. Mary Lyon: correspondence, articles, photographs 1943-1957, 1996 8 5 Ships - S.S. Mount Holyoke Victory: correspondence, articles 1945-1948, 1996-1997, 2005 8 6 Ships - S.S. Mount Holyoke Victory: photographs 1945 8 7 Summer schools: reports, correspondence, brochures, articles 1942-1945 8 8 Universities Committee on Post-War International Problems: correspondence 1942-1945 9 1 WAVES: correspondence, articles 1942 9 2 WAVES: reports, correspondence, brochures, articles 1943 9 3 WAVES: correspondence, articles 1944-1946 9 4 WAVES: articles, excerpts from books 1962, 1987, 2000 9 5 WAVES: certificates (shelved in Folio) 1942, 1944 9 6 WAVES: Sounding Of newspaper (shelved in Folio) 1943-1944 9 7 WAVES: photographs 1942-1945 9 8 WAVES: photographs 1942-1945 9 9 WAVES: photographs 1942-1945 10 1 Women Marines: articles 1943, 1997, 2003 10 2 Women Marines: photographs 1943-1944 10 3 Women Marines: photographs 1943-1944 10 4 Women Marines - 25th anniversary celebration: correspondence, articles, lists, certificate (certificate shelved in Folio) 1968 10 5 Women Marines - 25th anniversary celebration: photographs 1968 10 6 Women Marines - 25th anniversary celebration: photographs 1968 11 1 Women's Army Auxiliary Corps: brochures 1942 11 2 Women's Army Auxiliary Corps: photographs circa 1943 11 3 Work-Study Program: brochures, articles 1943 11 4 Work-Study Program: photographs 1943 11 5 World War II (WW II) Job Reports by alumnae: index to reports, notes 1946 11 6 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1879-1895 1946 11 7 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1896-1900 1946 11 8 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1901-1903 1946 11 9 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1904-1905 1946 11 10 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1906 (A-M) 1946 11 11 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1906 (N-Z) 1946 11 12 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1907-1908 1946 11 13 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1909 1946 11 14 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1910-1911 1946 11 15 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1912-1913 1946 11 16 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1914 1946 11 17 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1915 1946 12 1 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1916 1946 12 2 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1917 1946 12 3 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1918 1946 12 4 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1919 1946 12 5 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1920 1946 12 6 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1921 1946 12 7 WWII Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1922 1946 12 8 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1923-1924 1946 12 9 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1925 1946 12 10 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1926 1946 12 11 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1927 1946 12 12 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1928 1946 12 13 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1929 1946 13 1 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1930 1946 13 2 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1931 1946 13 3 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1932 1946 13 4 WWII Jon Reports by alumnae, Class of 1933 1946 13 5 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1934 1946 13 6 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1935 1946 13 7 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1936 1946 13 8 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1937 1946 13 9 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1938 1946 13 10 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1939 1946 13 11 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1940-1941 1946 13 12 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1942 1946 13 13 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Class of 1943 1946 13 14 WW II Job Reports by alumnae, Classes of 1944-1946 1946 Korean War 1951 14 1 Article 1951 Vietnam War 1965-1972 14 2 Correspondence, articles 1965-1969 14 3 Correspondence, articles January-April 1970 14 4 Student strike: correspondence, publications, articles May 1970 14 5 Student strike: correspondence, publications, articles May 1970 14 6 Student strike: newsletters May 1970 14 7 Student strike: correspondence, publications, articles May-December 1970 14 8 Consider These Are The Days (3 copies) May 1970 14 9 Correspondence, articles 1971-1972 14 10 Photographs Persian Gulf War 1991 15 1 Announcements, articles 1991 15 2 Teach-In on the Gulf Crisis: audiocassette tapes February 14, 1991 15 3 Survey of campus opinion circa February 1991 15 4 Photograph of anti-war protesters 1991 Afghan War 2001- 15 5 Articles 2001- Iraq War 2003- 15 6 Articles 2003- 16 Oversize (Folio) material relating to World War I and World War II 1915-1919, 1939-1946, 1968 17 Oversize (Folio) material concerning the Industrial War Training Program and International Student Service Work Camp at Mount Holyoke College 1942