Finding aid for the Women's Rights Society of Cleveland Records
Repository: Western Reserve Historical Society
Creator: Women's Rights Society of Cleveland
Title: Women's Rights Society of Cleveland Records
Dates: 1934-1951
Extent: 0.10 linear feet (1 container)
Abstract: The Women's Rights Society of Cleveland, Ohio, was a women's rights group organized in 1946, by Essie J. Young, to open male-dominated government jobs to women and to call attention to discrimination against women in hiring practices. The collection consists of copies of newspaper clippings, a constitution, Essie Young's correspondence, speeches, and a notebook.
MS Number MS 4107
Location: closed stacks
Language: The records are in English

History of the Women's Rights Society of Cleveland

The Women's Rights Society of Cleveland was organized in 1946 by Essie J. Young, an employee of the Cleveland, Ohio, Main Post Office. The object of the organization was to gain employment for women in any government-supported institution not employing women and may have been spurred by the plight of women trying to maintain their war-time jobs even as World War II veterans returned to Cleveland to claim those same positions. Members of the society worked particularly on the local level to elect representatives to the Cleveland City Council who were interested in civil rights for all citizens and to call attention to discrimination against women in hiring practices.

Scope and Content

The Women's Rights Society of Cleveland Records, l934-l951, consist of photocopies of newspaper clippings, a constitution, Essie Young's correspondence, speeches, and a notebook.

These records pertain to the activities of Cleveland, Ohio, women within the context of the early movement for African American and women's civil rights. These records also provide an understanding of the ways in which women banded together after World War II to address their common concerns and improve employment opportunities.

Statement of Arrangement

The collection is arranged alphabetically by document type and then chronologically. It is maintained in one folder.

Restrictions on Access

None.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Sex discrimination in employment -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Women -- Employment -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Women -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Societies and clubs.
Women's Rights Society of Cleveland.
Women's rights -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Societies, etc.

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4107 Women's Rights Society of Cleveland Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Essie J. Young and Judy Askew, 1976.

Processing Information

Processed by Bari Oyler Stith in 1987.