The Woman's Relief Corps was one of three auxiliary organizations of the Grand Army of the Republic (the other two being the Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Sons of Veterans.) The national organization was formed in 1882, and by 1896 had 140,305 national members.
The Missoula Corps, corps number seven, was founded in 1903. Membership in the Woman's Relief Corps was open to all loyal women who had the desire to assist in perpetuating the principles of the group, who had never given aid or comfort to enemies of the Union, and who were at least 16 years of age. The corps had many goals, some of which were to perpetuate the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and all those who fought in the Civil War, to imbue the public mind with patriotism and conservatism, and to give relief, not only to relatives of Civil War veterans, but to any who needed it.
This collection spans the dates of 1904 to 1950. It includes general correspondence and personal letters, secretary and financial quarterly reports, monthly meeting minutes from 1930 to 1947, publications from the national organization and publications from the state of Montana organization.
The collection is divided into five series.
Series I: General Correspondence, 4 items, 1946-1950
Series II: Quarterly and Monthly Reports, 20 items, 1946-1950
Series III: Minutes, 3 notebooks, 1930-1947
Series IV: National Organization, 1 folder, undated
Series V: State Organization, 1 folder, undated
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana--Missoula.
Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Copyright not transferred to The University of Montana.
[Name of document or photograph number], Women's Relief Corps (U.S.). Fred Winthrop Relief Corps, No. 7 (Missoula, Mont.) Records, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana-Missoula.
Source of acquisition unknown.
The collection was originally arranged in six series: general correspondence, financial records, minutes, organization, reports and miscellaneous. The processor slightly changed the organization. The second series was changed from financial records to quarterly reports, the fourth series was changed from organization to national organization, and the fifth series was changed from reports to state organization. The miscellaneous series was removed, and the items in this series were placed with the papers from the national organization and state organization. Everything is in chronological order.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
This series contains four letters obtained by the Woman's Relief Corps of Missoula. The first letter is a thank you letter for Christmas gifts sent. The second letter is about the 1948 national conference. The third discusses the option of the Woman's Relief Corps and the Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic holding their department convention together, and the fourth, dated 5-7-50, stated that the department meeting will be held in Butte in June. These letters are arranged in chronological order.
This series contains quarterly reports from the secretary and quarterly and monthly reports from the treasurer of the Missoula Woman's Relief Corps. The first three reports are from the secretary. These reports state the number of members in good standing, number of members lost and gained for the quarter, and the number of persons assisted in a quarter. The remaining reports are those of the treasurer. The first two are quarterly financial reports, and the remaining are monthly financial reports. These reports state the fund balance of the group, incoming monies, and how corps money was disbursed during the quarter and month. Both the secretary and treasurer reports are arranged in chronological order, starting with the secretary reports, moving to the quarterly financial reports and ending with the monthly financial reports.
This series contains the minutes from the monthly meetings of the Missoula Woman's Relief Corps meetings.
This series contains various publications of the National Woman's Relief Corps organization. Included is two Corps Services booklets, dated 1904 and 1937, and a Ritual booklet, dated 1941. The 1941 version of the National Woman's Relief Corps Constitution is next in the collection. Following are seven General Orders from the national organization, dating between 1947 and 1950. Following are eight publications from the National Headquarters, including a Department Delegate's Card, The Freedom Pledge, The American's Creed, the National Salute to the Flag, a copy of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, and a pamphlet sharing how to display and respect the American Flag. Finally, there is a completed application for membership.
This series contains two reports, dated 1947 and 1948, of the Montana state convention of the Woman's Relief Corps. Next is a report informing of the upcoming 1954 state convention. Following is a Memorial Day Blank used to report the Corps activities for each Memorial Day. The series ends with two Montana State Rosters, dated 1946 and 1950.