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American National CattleWomen Records, 1951-2016

Overview of the Collection

Creator
American National CattleWomen
Title
American National CattleWomen Records
Dates
1951-2016 (inclusive)
Quantity
Collection Number
05552
Summary
Records of this national organization to promote the welfare of the livestock industry.
Repository
American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming
American Heritage Center
University of Wyoming
1000 E. University Ave.
Dept. 3924
Laramie, WY
82071
Telephone: 3077663756
ahcref@uwyo.edu
Access Restrictions
Restrictions on Access

There are no access restrictions on the materials for research purposes, and the collection is open to the public.

Languages
English
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Historical Note

A group of fifteen women met at the home of Mattie Cowan of Douglas, Arizona, at the Four Bar Ranch on 17 October 1939 to form the Cow Belles, an organization to help promote the beef industry and friendship among cattle people. A group from Wyoming asked to join and the Wyoming State Cowbelles, the first state organization, was formed in June 1940. By 1951 ten other state-wide organizations had been formed, leading to the development of a national organization. At the annual American National Cattlemen's Association convention in San Francisco in January 1951, Mary Louise Lynam was elected organizing chair and during the ANCA's 1952 convention in Fort Worth, Texas, the American National Cowbelles were incorporated on 7 January 1952. Lynam was elected president for 1952. The aim of the ANCB was to assist the ANCA in its efforts to promote the welfare of the livestock industry, and to sustain and increase its membership.

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Historical Note

By June 1954, Cowbelle organizations were active in nineteen states, had seventeen state organizations and a national membership of 1500. Several beef promotion projects were started beginning in 1954, including the publication of an all-beef cookbook entitled Beef Cookery. Other promotions include "Beef for Father's Day," "Father of the Year," several cookbooks and sponsoring a Human Interest Story Contest. Concerned with finding another means of promoting beef, a national cooking event was discussed as a public relations effort in the late 1960s. In May 1969 a "National Cook-Out for Men Only" was held in Garden City, Kansas. The first National Beef Cook-Off was held in Denver, Colorado, in October 1974 with thirteen contestants and has become a yearly event.

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Historical Note

The organization changed its name to the American National CattleWomen on 28 January 1986 to provide national leadership and coordinate promotion, education and legislative activities for the women in the cattle industry. The Cowbelles and the CattleWomen have remained as an autonomous, affiliated organization of the American National Cattlemen's Association and the National Cattlemen's Association.

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Content Description

The collection documents the activities of the American National Cowbelles and the American National CattleWomen in promoting the beef industry and consumer education from 1951-1995. The collection includes extensive correspondence between the organization's presidents and other officers with members regarding the organization of the ANCB, and with officials in the beef industry regarding the promotion and marketing of beef to increase consumption by consumers. The collection contains articles of incorporation, executive and financial committee materials, general council meeting minutes and other historical materials of the American National Cowbelles.

The promotional activities of the organization, especially the National Beef Cook-Off contest, are especially well-documented. The National Beef Cook-Off materials includes budgets, clippings, contestant entry forms, materials relating to the promotion of the cookbooks, photographs and negatives of the events, and contestant recipes.

The collection also contains materials relating to the organization's service to its members, including membership indexes and rosters, extensive correspondence, minutes and reports with state members and chairs, and information on its affiliate and associated members.

The collection's general files includes account books, agendas, scrapbooks, yearbooks and memorial books, newsclippings, photographs, articles of incorporation and bylaws, minutes, budgets, correspondence and reports. The materials relates to its annual conventions, executive committee, beef education and promotion, histories of state and local cowbelles, the golden spur award, legislative committee, mid-year meetings, the publishing of cookbook, and state and local officers and its various promotional activities, including agriculture day, Beef for Father's Day, Father of the Year, and the National 4-H Beef Ambassador Program. The collection also includes the papers of the ANCW's former presidents Mary Louise Lynam (d. 1969), Azile Garrison, Viola Gouldlin, Gerda Hyde and Dolores Finney; executive secretary Lynne Selig; and National Cattlemen's president Jo Ann Smith.

The collection also contains materials relating to the Mary Louise Lynam Scholarship, which was established in 1964 in honor of the organization's first president to assist individuals in advanced meat studies.

There are also pins, plaques, aprons, tote bags and other artifacts from conventions and Beef Cook-Off contests, as well as eight 16mm films, eleven vhs and one 3/4 inch video tapes, one phonograph record, five reel-to-reel tapes and three audiocasettes tapes of Board of director's meetings, National Beef Cook-Off contests and other promotional activities.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Related Materials

There are no known other archival collections created by the American National CattleWomen at the date of processing.

Preferred Citation

Preferred Citation

Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, American National CattleWomen, Collection Number 05552, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

Alternative Forms Available

Existence and Location of Copies

Digital reproductions of select material from this collection are available at https://digitalcollections.uwyo.edu/luna/servlet/uwydbuwy~137~137.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into eight series.

Series I. Correspondence

Series II. National Beef Cook-Off Materials

Series III. National Beef Ambassador Materials

Series IV. Membership Services

Series V. American National CowBelle Records

Series VI. General Administrative Files

Series VII. Oversized Materials

Series VIII. Artifacts

Series IX. Audio-Visual Materials

Processing Note

Processing Information

The collection was processed by Jody Evans in September 1996 and updated by Jamie Greene in September 2016.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Beef industry -- Promotion -- United States
  • Beef indystry -- United States
  • Cookery (Beef)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Artifacts
  • Audio tapes
  • Born digital
  • Cookbooks
  • Motion pictures
  • Photographs
  • Scrapbooks
  • Videotapes

Other Creators

  • Personal Names

    • Lyman, Mary D.

Processed by Jody Evans.
2006

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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