Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Aftermath Club records, 1895-2003
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Aftermath Club
- Title
- Aftermath Club records
- Dates
- 1895-2003 (inclusive)18952003
- Quantity
- 5 linear feet
- Collection Number
- XOE_CPNWS0001aftermath (collection)
- Summary
- The collection documents the activities of the Aftermath Club, a women’s literary and social organization founded in New Whatcom (later Bellingham), Washington, in 1895. Materials include administrative, financial and legal records, yearbooks, and papers relating to Club’s interests and activities.
- Repository
-
Western Washington University, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
Goltz-Murray Archives Building
808 25th St.
Bellingham, WA
98225
Telephone: (360) 650-7534
cpnws@wwu.edu - Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open to the public.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for preparing this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the Washington State Legislature to the Washington Women's History Consortium. Funding for encoding the finding aid was awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Historical NoteReturn to Top
The Aftermath Club was a literary and social organization of women in Bellingham. The club was founded in 1896 as the Aftermath Reading Circle by twelve young women in New Whatcom. Within the first year, the group organized a constitution and by-laws as well as an annual agenda of study and presentations on a wide range of topics. In 1907, the club moved into the Aftermath Building in downtown Bellingham. The club also rented the building to other groups for meetings and events, and eventually the site became a center for social and cultural activity for the city.
Following the sale of the Aftermath Building in 1977, members continued to meet and sponsor programs until the club's dissolution in June 2003. In addition, the club also donated to local agencies and institutions and provided scholarships for Western Washington University students. The records donated to the Center for Pacific Northwest Studies reflect the growth and evolution of the Aftermath Club. They also provide a source for study of the changing roles and concerns of thoughtful, active, urban women in the Pacific Northwest during most of the past century.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Aftermath Club records span the period 1895-2003, and comprise Administrative records, Financial and Legal records, Club Activities, Yearbooks, Club History, and Artifacts. Administrative records span the period 1897-2003, and contain Articles of Incorporation (1904), incoming and outgoing correspondence (1948-1988) and minute books documenting the Club's meetings from 1899 until its disbandment in June 2003. The first volume contains the Constitution and By-Laws of the Aftermath Reading Circle (the original name of the Aftermath Club), as well as the first membership roll. Later volumes include press reports of meetings, printed yearbooks of scheduled activities, and a small number of photographs. Financial and Legal records contain legal material regarding the clubhouse, the treasurer's financial reports, and Member and Dues ledgers dated 1931-1997. The series also contains nine volumes of redeemed and unsold stock certificates sold by the Aftermath Club from 1904-1977.
Club Activities records include annual reports written by the club historian. The first of these histories was written by Mrs. Helen Phillips, the first Aftermath Historian, whose report spans the period 1895 through 1907. The annual histories, presented at the final meeting each year, begin in 1908 and continue through 2003 and include clippings, fliers, letters, and some photographs. The series also includes newspaper clippings and press releases, scrapbooks covering the period from 1990-2003, and papers presented by members to the rest of the club. These are listed as "Presentation Materials," and span the dates 1898-1986. The collection also contains Yearbooks spanning the period from 1898-2003 (with the exception of the yearbook from 1906-1907), which contain a general listing of annual officers, weekly meeting programs, and a listing of active members. Club History records contain papers and an inventory written by Susan Fahey for the members of the Aftermath Club in 1994, as well as Fahey's 1994 Master's thesis. Artifacts comprise the incorporated seal of the Aftermath Club and a hand-painted pin commemorating the centennial of the Club in 1986.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Preferred Citation
Aftermath Club records, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies, Western Libraries Archives & Special Collections, Western Washington University, Bellingham WA 98225-9123.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in accordance with the following series arrangement:
- Series I: Administrative records, 1897-2003
- Series II: Financial and Legal records, 1904-2002
- Series III: Club Activities, 1895-2003
- Series IV: Yearbooks, 1898-2003
- Series V: Club History, 1992-1994
- Series VI: Artifacts,1986, undated.
Custodial History
Members of the Aftermath Club donated records to the Center for Pacific Northwest Studies in 1988 and 2003.
Processing Note
The Aftermath Club records were processed originally by Susan Fahey in 1988, with additional work carried out by David Boyd in 2000. In 2003, Amber Raney re-engineered the entire collection and integrated new materials.
Processing Note
About Harmful Language and ContentTo learn more about problematic content in our collections, collection description and teaching tools (including how to provide feedback or request dialogue on this topic), see the following Statement About Potentially Harmful Language and Content
Bibliography
Fahey, Susan A Quiet Region of the Mind: The Aftermath Club of Bellingham, 1896-1990. Western Washington University, MA Thesis, 1994.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
Series I: Administrative records, 1897-2003 Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/1 | 1904 February 8;; 1986 | |
| Oversize Folder | ||
| 1 | Framed Certificate of Incorporation, |
1904 March 12 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/2 | Ballot Returns on "Centennial Givings" (1/10
sampling) |
1995 February 1 |
| 1/3 | Century Corporation Certificate |
2004 March 12 |
| 1/4 | Committee Reports |
1952-1977 |
| 1/5 | Constitution and By-laws |
1925, ; 1987 |
Correspondence
|
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/6 | Incoming |
1948-1988 |
| 1/7 | Outgoing |
1948-1988 |
| 1/8 | Sample club stationery |
undated |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/9 | Corresponding Secretary’s records |
1959-1986 |
| 1/10 | Constitution, By-Laws, and Minutes |
1897-1899 |
| 1/11 | Minutes |
1900-1903 |
| 1/12 | Minutes |
1903-1907 |
| 1/13 | Minutes |
1907-1910 |
| 1/14 | Minutes |
1910-1914 |
| 1/15 | Minutes |
1915-1920 |
| 1/16 | Minutes |
1920-1923 |
| 1/17 | Minutes |
1923-1925 |
| 1/18 | Minutes |
1927-1930 |
| 1/19 | Minutes |
1930-1933 |
| 1/20 | Minutes |
1933-1936 |
| 1/21 | Minutes |
1936-1944 |
| 1/22 | Minutes |
1944-1951 |
| 2/1 | Minutes |
1951-1956 |
| 2/2 | Minutes |
1956-1960 |
| 2/3 | Minutes |
1961-1969 |
| 2/4 | Minutes |
1969-1984 |
| 2/5 | Minutes |
1984-1997 |
| 2/6 | Minutes |
1997-1998 |
| 2/7 | Minutes |
1999-2000 |
| 2/8 | Minutes |
2000-2003 |
| 2/9 | Survey of the Aftermath Club membership re. distribution
of funds upon club’s dissolve; Aftermath Club Survey |
2003 March 3,; 1986 June 2 |
Series II: Financial and Legal records, 1904-2002Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/10 | Check and Deposit Registers |
1974-2000 |
| 2/11 | Materials re. the Aftermath Club Building |
1904-1987 |
| 2/12 | Materials re. status as non-profit
organization |
1980-1997 |
| 3/1 | Membership and Dues Ledgers |
1931-1944 |
| 3/2 | Membership and Dues Ledgers |
1944-1953 |
| 3/3 | Membership and Dues Ledgers |
1954-1977 |
| 3/4 | Membership and Dues Ledgers |
1978-1988 |
| 3/5 | Membership and Dues Ledgers |
1989-1997 |
Stock Books
|
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/6 | #1-200 |
1907-1916 |
| 3/7 | #201-253 |
1917-1921 |
| 3/8 | #254-305 |
1921-1931 |
| 3/9 | #305-354 |
1931-1939 |
| 3/10 | #358-405 |
1944-1948 |
| 3/11 | #406-457 |
1948-1952 |
| 3/12 | #458-507 |
1952-1956 |
| 3/13 | #508-558 |
1956-1961 |
| 3/14 | #559-610 |
1961-1972 |
| 3/15 | #611-631 |
1972-1977 |
Treasurers
Reports
|
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/16 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1946-1948 |
| 3/17 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1965-1970 |
| 3/18 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1970-1978 |
| 3/19 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1978-1987 |
| 3/20 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1987-1990 |
| 4/1 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1990-1994 |
| 4/2 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1994-1998 |
| 4/3 | Treasurer’s Reports – Monthly and Annual |
1998-2001 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 4/4 | Western Washington University Endowment and
Memorials |
1992-2002 |
| 4/5 | Whatcom Community College Foundation Annual Report-
Aftermath Club Scholarship information |
2002-2003 |
Series III: Club Activities, 1895-2003Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 4/5 | 1895-1907 | |
| 4/6 | Historian's Reports |
1908-1922 |
| 4/7 | Historian's Reports |
1923-1927 |
| 4/8 | Historian's Reports |
1927-1935 |
| 4/9 | Historian's Reports |
1935-1955 |
| 4/10 | Historian's Reports |
1958-1971 |
| 4/11 | Historian's Reports |
1972-1973 |
| 4/12 | Historian's Reports |
1900-1981 |
| 4/13 | Historian's Reports |
1975-1982 |
| 4/14 | Historian's Reports |
1995-2003 |
| 4/15 | Newspaper Clippings and Press Releases |
1905-2003 |
| 4/16 | Presentation materials (collected by Mrs H.E.
Hadley) |
1898-1900 |
| 4/17 | Presentation materials |
1905-1986 |
| 4/18 | Programs |
1986-2001 |
| 5/1 | Scrapbook |
1904-2003 ; 1992-2003 |
| 5/2 | Scrapbook |
1904-2003 ; 1992-2003 |
| 5/3 | Scrapbook by Barbara McCollum (Club President from
1990-1992) |
1990-1993 |
| 5/4 | Songbooks |
1939 |
Series IV: Yearbooks, 1898-2003Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 6/1 | Yearbooks |
1898-1913 |
| 6/2 | Yearbooks |
1913-1931 |
| 6/3 | Yearbooks |
1931-1951 |
| 6/4 | Yearbooks |
1951-1970 |
| 6/5 | Yearbooks |
1970-1991 |
| 6/6 | Yearbooks |
1991-2003 |
Series V: Club History, 1992-1994Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 6/7 | Fahey, Susan. “The Aftermath Club of Bellingham:
1896-1990,” written for the members of the Aftermath Club |
1994 |
| 6/8 | Fahey, Susan. “Description and Inventory of the
Aftermath Club Papers,” prepared for the members of the Aftermath Club (used in
thesis); A Quiet Region of the Mind: The Aftermath Club
of Bellingham, 1896-1990 (Western Washington University, MA
Thesis) |
1992; 1994 |
| 6/9 | "100th Birthday of Bellingham - Then and Now - Scenes
from the Northwest Collector's Calendar," with history of the Aftermath Club
|
2004 February |
| 6/10 | List of Active, Associate and Honorary members, 1905-1906 |
undated |
Series VI: Artifacts, 1986 , undatedReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box | ||
| 6 | Incorporated Seal for the Aftermath Club |
undated |
| 6 | Centennial Pin, hand-painted by Mary Blake |
1986 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Literature -- Societies, etc. -- Washington (State) -- Bellingham.
- Women -- Societies and clubs -- Washington (State) -- Bellingham.
Corporate Names
- Aftermath Club -- Bellingham, Wash. -- Archives. (creator)
Finding aid prepared by Amber
Raney.
2003
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
