Collection is open for research.
Donated to the Whitman College and Northwest Archives by Mrs. Walter H. Brattain in 1979 and by Mrs. K. C. Welson and Mrs. R. H. Allen in 1985. The accession number is retro-0019.
The League of Women Voters, a national organization committed to the political education of all American citizens, was founded in 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt. The League is a non-partisan group that strives to assist voters in making informed decisions at the polls. A grassroots organization, the League works at the national, state, and local level.
The League of Women Voters of Walla Walla County appears to have been founded as a provisional league in 1949. The Walla Walla League achieved full League membership status in 1953. Its first president was Mrs. W. A. Story. The governance structure of the League included a President, Secretary, Treasurer, and First and Second Vice Presidents. The League's board of directors was not a policy making board. Rather, members set priorities and made decisions, and the board carried them out. Membership was originally open to women only; between the 1970s and early 1980s, membership was opened to men.
The League was very active in local and state government. It hosted candidate forums, held information sessions on ballot initiatives, conducted studies of schools and government at the city and county level, and campaigned for state legislative redistricting. The League also wrote reports on a number of local issues, created educational brochures for the citizens of Walla Walla, and participated in local debates on issues ranging from water use to juvenile protection. Local issues of particular importance include the campaign to institute a council-manager form of government in the city of Walla Walla and the effort to move the Walla Walla fire station.
In the 1980s, the Walla Walla League of Women Voters experienced difficulties in recruiting members with the time and willingness to serve the organization. While membership remained relatively strong, active membership declined precipitously. It appears that the organization ceased to exist in 1988.
The collection documents both the history of the League of Women Voters as an organization and the political history of the city and county of Walla Walla. It therefore provides a wealth of information about both women's political activity in the Walla Walla Valley and important political and social issues for the citizens of the City and County of Walla Walla. The Scrapbook and Minutes series contain the most information about the League itself, while the Publications and Miscellaneous have more content relating to political life in the Walla Walla Valley.
Primarily consist of newspaper clippings concerning League news and state, regional, and local political news. Topics covered include water resources, urban development, child care, education, population growth, juvenile protection, city and county government financing, and state and local elections.
This series contains minutes of several types of meetings. The minutes of Board Meetings contain information on activities of the organization, such as updates on projects, committee reports, and summaries of correspondence received by the board. Files also include meeting agendas, membership lists, and treasurer's reports. Annual Meeting minutes document the annual expenditures of the Walla Walla League and the election of League leaders. These files also include meeting agendas and reports (Researchers should note that the 1953 annual meeting minutes are filed with the board minutes). The minutes of the Morning Unit Group seems to document the activities of leading members of the Walla Walla Provisional League of Women Voters.
The majority of this series consists of the Walla Walla League of Women Voters newsletter (1953-1988). Its name changed many times over its run: from "Bulletin" to "Walla Walla Voter" to "Voter" to "Bulletin" to "Walla Walla Voter" again. White papers, reports, pamphlets, and other Walla Walla League publications may be found in this series as well. The series is rounded out by an assorted collection of Washington State and National League of Women Voters reports and publications, as well as a selection of white papers, reports, and ephemera pertaining to Walla Walla and the state of Washington.
This series includes: clippings, State and National Annual Reports, financial information, membership information, a subject file on Council-Manager city governance in Walla Walla (includes an oral history interview with transcript), Congressional correspondence primarily between the Walla Walla LWV and members of US Congress such as Henry M. Jackson, Warren G. Magnuson, and Catherine May, a subject file on the Fire Station Move (includes a copy of the lawsuit files against the city of Walla Walla), and two sound recordings ("A message from Ruth Clusen for all League members" appealing for donations to the League's ERA Special Fund and Miss Babara Ward: "Economic Policy for a Free World," Mrs. Phillips, Secretary Wirtz' formal address, President Johnson complete address). Walla Walla LWV activities such as hosting forums and other programs are also documented in the files. In addition, several files include reference information on local, state, and national topics of interest to the Walla Walla LWV.