Equal Rights Amendment South Carolina Coalition Records - Accession 693

The Equal Rights Amendment South Carolina Coalition Records consist of pamphlets, membership listings, newsletters, bulletins, interstate correspondence, legislation positions, polls, newspaper clippings, article reprints, general correspondence and various memorabilia to the attempt to obtain South Carolina ratification of the passage of Equal Rights Amendment. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal rights for women.

Mary E. Frayser Papers - Accession 1

The Mary E. Frayser Papers consists of correspondence, speeches, reports, clippings, minutes, histories, family histories, constitutions and bylaws, membership lists, program notes, photographs, and other papers, relating to her work with the South Carolina Extension Service (1912-1940) Winthrop College, her involvement with the South Carolina Council for the Common Good (1935-1952), the South Carolina Federation of Women’s Clubs (1926-1952), the South Carolina Status of Women Conference (1945-1952), the South Carolina Division of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) (1929, 1935-1949), the South Carolina Interracial Institute (1938-1942), the South Carolina Division of the Southern Regional Council (1944-1951), and the South Carolina Conference of Social Work (1936-1967). There are also papers relating to Frayser’s efforts to promote social and economic legislation and participation by women in public affairs and her interest in libraries and work in the movement for the support of public libraries in South Carolina (1925-1968). Correspondents included G.H. Aault, Evan Chesterman, Wil Lou Gray, Sarah Hughes, Christine South Gee, and Maude Massey Rogers. This collection is a good source of women’s club activities in the twentieth century. Important areas of research would include the way club activity affected social and economic legislation in the state and the various forces involved in the movement for state tax supported libraries. While the papers do range from 1841 to 1953, the greater bulk of the papers extend from the early 1930s to about 1947. Since the work of the various women's club organizations were so inter-related, a researcher working with the papers of a particular organization for a particular time span should consider the Frayser papers of all other organizations. The related papers for the “Correspondence and Related Papers” series for particular organizations are generally similar and include: memoranda, outlines, reports, resolutions, minutes, etc. Additional Frayser information can be found by referring to the Winthrop University Archives (official records).

Martha Thomas Fitzgerald Papers - Accession 273

The Martha Thomas Fitzgerald Papers consist of biographical data, correspondence, minutes, newspaper clippings, memoranda, reports, and photographs (of particular interest are the many photographs of rural S.C. school houses in the 1920s). The collection pertains to Mrs. Fitzgerald’s work with the South Carolina Department of Education, the South Carolina House of Representatives, and her work with various civic organizations such as the Altrusa Club, the League of Women Voters, the Daughters of American Colonists, United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), Business and Professional Women’s Club (BPW), Delta Kappa Gamma, South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation, and the Salvation Army. There is also information on the Status of Women Commission Council on Aging, agriculture, Queens College, University of South Carolina, Winthrop University, Columbia University, public health, South Carolina history, City of Columbia, South Carolina, and Richland County, South Carolina. Correspondents include Strom Thurmond and three letters from John F. Kennedy when he was senator. Mrs. Fitzgerald was the first woman elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in a general election.