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Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the Club Records #4699, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information

Received from the estate of Mildred Cherry Hill in June 1994 (Acc. 94082).

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The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

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• Chapel Hill (N.C.)--Social life and customs.
• Club (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
• Women--North Carolina--Social life and customs.
• Women--Societies and clubs--History--20th century.

The Club, a women's social group in Chapel Hill, N.C., function from 1932 to 1982. The first entry in the Club's minute books documents the organizational meeting and is quoted at length below. This entry sets forth the purpose and mode of operation of the Club, which changed little over its fifty-year existence:

On September 28, 1932, a group of faculty wives consisting of Mrs. Fessler, Mrs. Munch, Mrs. Hudson, Mrs. Peacock, Mrs. MacCarthy, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Bailey and Mrs. Sharpe met at Mrs. Fessler's home to discuss the forming of a small club for social purposes, the members to become better acquainted with each other over their mending bags and baskets.

With Mrs. Miller acting as Chairman, a Constitution proposed by Mrs. Fessler was considered and the following articles were discussed and adopted:

I.The main purpose of the club shall be social, but a short program of some interest and intellectual value shall be given by the members in turn, at each meeting....

II.The name of the club shall be -- [an official name was never adopted].

III.The officers of the club shall consist of president, vice-president and secretary-treasurer. ..

IV.The membership shall be limited to twelve. New members shall be elected once each year ... by a unanimous vote of the members, by secret ballot. ... At least half of the new members ... shall be comparatively new (one to four years) in Chapel Hill. Absolute secrecy by every member, at all times, in regard to any name suggested for membership or voted upon, shall be regarded with utmost care. ... This one rule, the only thing of secret character about the club, is merely to prevent any unhappiness or unpleasant feeling ..

V.The club shall meet regularly every two weeks. ... The meetings shall be held at the homes of the members in turn, at 3:30 promptly. The hostess shall serve refreshments consisting of not more than two items, except upon rare occasions ..

VI.[The program committee shall make up an annual schedule of meetings.] The programs shall last, with exceptions, from half to three quarters of an hour. Mending is easy to do when listening to an interesting review of some recent book, good music, a play, etc. [Once a year, the club shall entertain husbands at a dinner or evening party, and there shall also be an annual picnic.]

VII.Dues shall be decided upon when the need arises.

Minute books, 1932-1982, usually school notebooks of 50-100 pages, of the Club, with records of bi-monthly meetings chiefly written by the secretary-treasurer. Entries chronicle the Club's activities and sometimes contain information about other activities of Club members. Dramatic readings, dinners, garden parties, and picnics are documented, as well as discussions of books, music, current events, travel, decorating, feminism, and the arts in general. Some of the women read from their own work or displayed art of their own making. When no program was prepared, the members engaged in "informal conversation." Also included is some information about members' families, especially in the later years, when illnesses and grandchildren became frequent topics. Also included are some Club-related letters, lists of officers, and several versions of the Club's constitution.