Archives West Finding Aid

The Daughters of the American Colonists papers (1937-1996) were donated to the University of Utah libraries in 1978. The records begin with material from the founding meeting in 1937 and run through 1976, although not all portions of the record are complete for every year.

Divided into four sections, the papers contain a variety of information and materials about the local and national groups. The first section consists of papers dealing with the Utah Society. Official minutes and reports have been separated by type of item and arranged chronologically. The regular minutes and Executive Board minutes from October 1937 to May 1951 are contained in a large, bound volume. Those from June 1951 to February 1974, written on loose-leaf paper, have been placed into acid-free folders. Also found in the minute book are some auditors' reports and remarks about the tree planting project on the lawns of the State Capitol. A brief history of the state organization written in 1941 by Edith Louise Wire has been included with the collection. Resolutions made on issues of importance to Utah and the nation in 1956 is found in a separate folder.

The second large portion of the official Utah Society records is separated into Financial and Treasurers' Reports, and Yearly Reports. Spanning the years 1950 to 1975, the Financial and Treasurers' reports are arranged chronologically. Some of these reports are for monthly expenditures while others cover yearly credits and debits. The Yearly Reports include summaries from club officers, reports on special projects, committee reports, and lists of officers for the years 1940 to 1976.

Utah Society Yearbooks date from 1937 to 1972. The run seems incomplete as not all years are represented. However, it is possible that the group did not publish the yearbook annually. Yearbooks contain lists of officers and members, committee membership, the scheduled yearly program, and in 1937, 1939, and 1953, the society's by-laws. The small amount of correspondence donated with the collection ranges in date from 1940 to 1963 with some undated letters. The majority of the correspondence is with the National Society and concerns Yearly activities and projects.

Sixteen folders labeled "Genealogy" contain family lineage records, biographical sketches, genealogical essays, Stories about colonial history and ancestors, and other miscellaneous records. These were presented to the society as proofs of eligibility for membership or as points of interest. In some cases these were sent on to the National Society as a part of the permanent lineage records.

Memorials written as eulogies to Mattie Bracken Prosser (1951) and Edith Louise Wire (1973) are followed by newspaper clippings. The Clippings span the years 1960 to 1970, although most are undated. Speeches about Colonial American history given at regular society meetings and texts of radio speeches on patriotic subjects sponsored by the Utah Society have been included with the collection.

Other Miscellaneous material has been donated with the papers. Included with the Utah items are notes about possible new members, pamphlets about correct use and display of the United States flag, and information on volunteer service with the Veterans Administration. A Spanish flag included was possibly used for a celebration of the Utah Society's annual Escalante Day. A book on the United States Constitution given to organizing regent, Edith Louise Wire, at the organizational meeting, and information on the restoration of Tyron's Palace in North Carolina are a part of the collection. Two partially used World War II ration books, issued to Florence Kimball complete the miscellaneous materials.

The Second section of the collection consists of materials related to the National Society. Beginning with the eighth year-book for 1936 there are only four missing volumes through 1964. These twenty-five national yearbooks include lists of national and state officers, national officers' reports, and yearly summaries for the state organizations. There is also one yearbook form 1950 which lists members and bylaws of the National Officers' Club of the Daughters of American Colonists.

The minutes of the national board are from the years 1941 to 1973. There are mimeographed copies for scattered years in that time period. Information pamphlets for 1944 and 1946 compiled by the National Society explain the objects and projects of the society as well as the functions of officers and committees. Resolutions and information bulletins issued by the national society and proposed amendments to the National Society Constitution and bylaws are also included. Colonial Courier, the national magazine, was issued four times yearly. Some copies of the magazine for the years 1957 to 1962 form the final portion of the National Society records.

Section three consists of pieces of miscellaneous information from four other patriotic groups. Edith L. Wire organized the National Society of Children of the American Colonists in 1939 with ten Utah children as charter members. This group was a division of the Daughters of American Colonists. The members could apply to membership in the DAC when they reached the age of eighteen. Some national minutes from 1957 to 1962, four yearbooks and few miscellaneous notices are all that is included for this group. Comprising the record for the Arizona State Society, Daughters of American Colonists is a yearbook form 1944-1945. The Colonial Dames of the XVII Century, a chapter of which was organized in Utah by Edith L. wire in 1949, is represented by the National Board of Management minutes. Finally, the quarterly bulletins from 1957 to 1961 of the Crossnore School in North Carolina represent the Daughters of the American Revolution, which helped support this institution.

The final section of the collection consists of four oversize scrapbooks that are dated between 1936 and 1948. The books contain newspaper clippings, magazine articles, typed articles, programs, and speeches about colonial history, historical figures, and the State and National Societies. There are also reports and numerous photographs from the Utah Society contained in the four scrapbooks.