Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Caroline Canafax papers, 1943-2001
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Canafax, Caroline
- Title
- Caroline Canafax papers
- Dates
- 1943-2001 (inclusive)19432001
- Quantity
- 1.21 cubic feet (2 boxes)
- Collection Number
- 5272 (Accession No. 5272-001)
- Summary
- Papers of a Seattle, Washington peace activist
- Repository
-
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu - Access Restrictions
-
Open to all users.
- Languages
- English, Chinese, French
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Caroline Isabel Canafax is a Seattle peace activist. She was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. Her parents, Meyer A. and Jane Dinkelspiel Newberger, were prominent members of the Seattle Jewish community. Canafax received her B.A. in sociology in 1943 and her M.A. in education, with a speciality in early childhood special education, in 1958 from the University of Washington. In the 1960s Canafax was hired to teach in the Head Start Program, and went on to teach elementary education for more than 20 years in the Seattle area. She married Leo Canafax in the late 1940s, and had two children and four granddaughters.
Canafax's strong political convictions caused problems for her budding teaching career when she was blacklisted during the McCarthy witch hunts of the 1950s and 1960s. Undeterred, she participated in several organizations and movements, most notably as a key member of the Seattle Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, for which she served as international vice-president and editor of the Pacific Visionnewsletter. Canafax also rallied support for the Committee to Free Morton Sobell, an organization dedicated to freeing Morton Sobell from his 30-year sentence for atomic espionage in 1953 in collaboration with Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Canafax also participated in Seattle Women Act for Peace and the Abe Keller Peace Education Fund, toured Europe to advocate for peace, and wrote newspaper editorials on the subject.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Papers of Caroline Canafax include correspondence, speeches, newspaper clippings, and two photographs, as well as several editions of the Pacific Visionnewsletter, papers related to the Christians for Disarmament tour of Demark and W. Germany, along with a taped commentary regarding her experiences on the tour; miscellaneous items related to the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; and drafts and notes for the Abe Keller Peace Education Fund. Of particular interest are papers related to the McCarthy-era Rosenberg-Sobell espionage case and the resulting activist movement to free Morton Sobell from prison. These papers include correspondence with both the national and Seattle Committee to Secure Justice for Morton Sobell, press releases, writings, memoranda, reports, resolutions, worksheets, newspaper clippings and a photograph. Other major correspondents in the papers include Helen Sobell and John Caughlan, an attorney and civil rights leader in Seattle.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
Creator's literary rights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
Arranged in 4 series:
- Personal papers, 1943-2000
- Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Seattle Branch records, 1962-2001
- Abe Keller Peace Education Fund records, 1998-1999
- Seattle Committee to Secure Justice for Morton Sobell records, 1952-1988
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Personal Papers, 1943-2000Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/1 | General Correspondence |
1983, 1995, 1997 |
| 1/2 | Speeches and Writings |
1987-2000, undated |
| 1/3-4 | Speeches and Writings of Others
Authors include Dr. Giovanni Costigan and the Honorable John
Main Coffee.
|
1943-1998 |
| 1/5 | Conference Papers: Pacific Networking Conference,
Vancouver, British Columbia |
1994 |
| 1/6 | Newsletters |
1955-1998 |
| 1/7 | Photographs
Contains one photograph of Caroline Canafax, and one printed
color image of Canafax in a group.
|
undated |
Subject Files |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/8 | Koppel, Anci |
2000, undated |
| 1/9 | Kurose, Aki |
1997-2000, undated |
| 1/10 | Shallit, Claire Robinson |
1998, undated |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/11 | Drawing |
|
| 1/12 | Ephemera |
1948-1998, undated |
| 1/13 | Clippings |
1956-1983, undated |
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Seattle Branch Records, 1962-2001Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/14 | General Correspondence |
1983, 1990, 1997 |
| 1/15 | Speeches and Writings |
1983, undated |
Newsletters |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/16-18 |
Pacific Vision
|
1988, 1992-1999, 2001 |
| 1/19 | Women's International League for Peace and
Freedom |
1993-2001 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/20 | Conferences and Conventions |
1999 |
Subject Files |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/21a | Christians for Disarmament Tour of Denmark |
1983 |
| 1/21b | Christians for Disarmament Tour of Denmark--Tape
Recorded Commentary |
1983 |
| 1/22 | Seattle Women Act for Peace |
1962, undated |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/23 | Ephemera |
1983, 1993, undated |
| 1/24 | Clippings |
1996 |
Abe Keller Peace Education Fund Records, 1998-1999Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/25
Contains minutes, correspondence, ephemera, articles of incorporation, writings, committee lists and related material.
Seattle Committee to Secure Justice for Morton Sobell Records, 1952-1988Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
Incoming Letters |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/26 | Alman, David (Committee to Secure Justice for Morton
Sobell) |
1955-1956, undated |
| 1/27 | Bay Area Council of Sobell Committees |
1958, undated |
| 1/28 | Harap, Evelyn |
1962-1969 |
| 1/29 | Jacobs, Theodore |
1955-1961, undated |
| 1/30 | Meeropal, Michael and Robert |
undated |
| 1/31 | National Committee to Reopen the Rosenberg
Case |
1974-1982, undated |
| 1/32-33 | Sobell, Helen |
1955-1969, undated |
| 1/34 | Miscellaneous |
1953-1967 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/35 | Outgoing Letters |
1958-1975 |
| 1/36 | General Correspondence of John Caughlan |
1957-1958 |
| 1/37 | Memoranda |
1954-1967, undated |
| 1/38 | Reports |
1955-1962, undated |
| 1/39-41 | Speeches and Writings of Others |
1953-1966, undated |
| 1/42 | Pamphlets and Reprints |
1956-1964, undated |
| 1/43 | Notes |
undated |
Newsletters |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/44 | Rosenberg-Sobell |
1954-1975 |
| 1/45 | Miscellaneous |
1953-1988 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/46 | Financial Records |
1957-1968 |
| 1/47-48 | Press Releases: Committee to Secure Justice for Morton
Sobell |
1952-1963, undated |
| 1/49 | Petitions |
1958, undated |
| 1/50 | Schedules and Itineraries of Morton and Helen Sobell and
others |
undated |
| 1/51 | Resolutions |
undated |
| 1/52-53 | Court Papers |
1955, undated |
| 1/54 | Worksheets |
1956-1958, undated |
| 1/55 | Photograph
One 8" x 10" photograph of Helen Sobell placing flowers at the
grave of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.
|
undated |
| 2/1-3 | Ephemera |
1953-1978, undated |
| 2/4-5 | Clippings |
1956-1988 |
| 2/6 | Miscellany |
undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Disarmament--Societies, etc
- Pacifists--Washington (State)--Seattle--Archives
Personal Names
- Canafax, Caroline--Archives
- Sobell, Helen
- Sobell, Morton
Form or Genre Terms
- Audiotapes
- Minutes
Occupations
- Pacificists
Other Creators
-
Corporate Names
- Committee to Secure Justice for Morton Sobell (creator)
- Women's International League for Peace and Freedom. Seattle Branch (creator)
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)
