Collections of Potential Interest to Students
The following is a list of collections at the Women and Leadership Archives that could be useful for the 2014 Chicago Metro History Fair and National History Day topic “Leadership and Legacy in History.” Finding aids for most of the collections below can be found on the WLA Collections page. For those who cannot arrange a visit to the WLA, check out our digital collections, which contain a substantial amount of material from the collections listed below. If you've found yourself feeling unsure about how to approach primary sources, be sure to explore our primary sources guide for explanations and suggestions as well as exercises to improve your research abilities.
Feminism and Women’s Rights:
In what ways have people and groups advocated for women's rights in a variety of arenas? The WLA's collections include individuals and organizations who worked for the rights of women through education, government, business, religion, journalism, homemaking, and art. Click on the collection titles for more information.
Donna Quinn Papers
Prudence Moylan, BVM Papers
Homemakers Equal Rights Association Records
Mundelein Oral History Collection
Women and Children First Bookstore Records
Social Justice:
How have women advocated for equality and justice in society? Our collections include issues of homelessness, the prison system, oppression in the church, education, civil rights, United Farm Workers, LGBTQ rights, disability rights, and economic justice. Click on the collection titles for more information.
8th Day Center for Justice Records
Mundelein Oral History Collection
Labor Activism:
How have women played a role in labor activism? The WLA's collections include materials about the United Farm Workers Movement, the Chicago Teacher's Union, the Coalition of Labor Union Women, the civil rights movement, the Chicago Federation of Labor, and the Illinois AFL-CIO. Click on the collection titles for more information.
Carol Frances Jegen Papers
Mundelein Oral History Collection
Women in Religion:
Our collections include women who fought oppression in religion, promoted racial and gender equality in the church, and advocated for reproductive choice in the Catholic Church, as well as organizations who actively work for change in the church. Click on the collection titles for more information.
8th Day Center for Social Justice Records
Chicago Catholic Women Records
Massachusetts Women-Church Convergence Records
Mundelein Oral History Collection
Women-Church Convergence Records
Progressivism and Reformers:
The WLA's primary collection concerning progressivism and reformers is the Chicago Woman's Club Records. Founded in 1876, the goal of the club was “mutual sympathy and counsel, and united effort toward the higher civilization of humanity.” The group’s focus ranged from nursing training, temperance, and temperance to charity management and patronizing the arts.