University of Central Florida Special Collections and University Archives. All rights reserved.
The Democratic Women's Club of Florida, Inc., donated these materials to the University of Central Florida Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives in 2008.
Documents were removed from original folders and placed in acid-free folders. Documents were also removed from metal binders and placed in acid-free folders. Paper (metal) clips were removed and replaced with plastic clips. Photographs were placed in polyester sleeves. One scrapbook was taken apart and each page placed in polyester sleeves. Loose materials in the scrapbooks were removed and placed in acid-free file folders. Three large scrapbooks were wrapped and tied in acid-free paper.
The entire collection is open for research.
Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Democratic Women's Club of Florida, Inc. Collection, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
Other collections concerning women and politics include the
The Democratic Women's Club of Florida, Inc., (DWCF) began in 1956 as an organization for women to cooperate together in electing Democrats to local, state, and federal offices. The DWCF started as a small organization with a handful of members, but experienced large growth in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1972, the DWCF received its charter, qualifying it as a corporation. Today, the organization supports almost forty clubs throughout Florida and has been affiliated with the National Federation of Democratic Women (NFDW) since 1980. Florida is recognized as a Full Member State under the NFDW because it has a statewide Democratic Women's club organization; however, the NFDW does not directly influence the DWCF in its operations.
The DWCF has a Board of Directors consisting of a president, secretary, treasurer, and supporting officers overseeing nine regions. These regions have changed in number and composition over time, but they are led by Councils consisting of a Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary/Treasurer and Immediate Past Chair. These regional councils support the local clubs who campaign for Democratic representatives at all levels of government and encourage voter registration and qualified Democratic women to run for public office. The Clubs elect their own president, secretary, treasurer, and supporting officers.
The collection is arranged in nine series by administrative unit, from state level, to region level, down to club level. The files are arranged alphabetically within each series.
Series I: State, 1957-2006 contains materials on the operations of the Democratic Women's Club of Florida, Inc. The materials include quarterly reports, annual convention information, chronological files detailing the procedures of the club, meeting minutes, club handbooks, photographs, and scrapbooks.
Series II: Region IV, 1983-1985 contains one scrapbook documenting two years of this region's activities.
Series III: Region V, 1974-2002 contains correspondence, bylaws, files of the regional chair, quarterly reports from each individual club in the region, regional reports, "The Democratic Woman" newsletter, meeting minutes, newspaper clippings, and treasury reports.
Series IV: Region VI, 1971-1995 contains club and region quarterly reports, meeting minutes, membership lists, newsletters, correspondence, one president's files, and treasury and secretary files and reports.
Series V: Region VII, 1977-1994 contains materials on the administration of the DWCF, such as the function of its special committees, guidelines for creating budgets and new clubs, and the importance of membership. This series also contains meeting minutes, correspondence, and treasurer's information.
Series VI: Boca-Delray-Boynton Club, 1996-2000 contains convention planning information, a grievance folder, meeting minutes, and the treasurer's report.
Series VII: Charlotte County Club, includes chronological files, minutes and meeting information, photographs, scrapbooks and information on Florida House in Washington D.C., which provides hospitality to Floridians visiting the capital.
Series VIII: Santa Rosa County Club, 1976 holds the club charter from 1976.
Series IX: St. Lucie County Club, 1997-2001 contains meeting minutes and supplemental materials.
Similar records may be found by searching under the following index terms.
The State series of this collection contains materials on the operation of the Democratic Women's Club of Florida, Inc, since it began in 1956. Due to the way in which the creators kept their records, researchers may find additional materials in the folders, beyond those mentioned in the folder title. The Board of Director's guidebook provides information on how the club is organized, including the leadership of its officers, standing committees, and special committees, and serves as guidelines for the organization's Board of Directors. The series contains club and regional quarterly reports, in which each club reports quarterly to its overseeing region; in turn, the region forwards its own report and the reports from the clubs to the state level. The reports document new member information, special activities held during the quarter, and future activities planned.
Chronological files provide an overview of how the club operated from its inception to the present. Researchers should note that the files from the late 1950s to the early 1980s are not complete, and portions of each decade are missing. These files contain meeting minutes, correspondence from all levels of the corporation, treasurer and budget information, bylaws, newsletters, memos from club officers, club and regional reports, campaign information, and membership lists. Of particular interest is a letter from Hillary Rodham Clinton to the president of the DWCF in 1996. The Committees files contain information on the purpose and function of each special committee. Convention information includes chronological files, which detail the planning and organization of each convention from 1959 to 2000. A tribute to the 30th and 50th anniversaries of the DWCF, and the yearly convention programs, which provide an itinerary for each convention, may also be found here. The Executive Committee files contain meeting minutes of the executive committee, comprised of a representative from each region and state officers. The series also contains examples of forms, such as club quarterly reports, scholarship forms, and honorary membership forms. The Grievances file contains the correspondence of the state officers of the DWCF, who contested the outcome of an DWCF election at the convention of 1993.
The lobbying and campaigning portion of the series includes booklets from the government of Florida, as well as campaign items such as bumper stickers and buttons. Newspaper clippings reporting news of the Democratic party, as well as any news briefs about the DWCF, can also be found in this series. The State Historian's files, a collection of materials made from contributions by club members, may also be found here. Eleven unique scrapbooks, containing photographs, newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and newsletters detailing the events of each year, are included, covering the years 1957 to 2000.
The scrapbook contains newspaper clippings, campaign letters, and pamphlets from club activities.
Series III contains information on the activities of the region V and its clubs. Due to the method in which the creators kept records, some of the files contain documents in addition to those described for each file. This series contains correspondence such as mail sent to the chair of Region V, communication from the chair to the club members, and mail received from the state level. The series includes bylaws, documents on how they were created, and amendments proposed to them. The DWCF uses "Robert's Rules of Order" to govern its procedures, and copies of it may be found here. The Chairperson's continuing files contain a variety of information, such as meeting minutes, correspondence, and newsletters. The Chronological file details budgets, minutes, and correspondence from 1993 to 1999.
This series contains the quarterly reports of each club in Region V-- Boca-Delray-Boynton, Hillary Rodham, Martin County, Palm Beach County, and St. Lucie County-- as well as the region reports. The newsletter "The Democratic Woman," written by the president of the DWCF to be distributed to the regions and clubs, may also be found here. Executive Committee meeting minutes and materials, guidelines for forming new clubs, treasurer reports, and membership lists for Region V are also included. Newspaper clippings pertaining to the DWCF and Region V can also be found in this series, as well as information on planning region luncheons.
This series contains the bylaws, minutes from the Executive Committee meetings, membership lists, newsletters, treasurers' files, secretaries' files and incoming and outgoing region chair correspondence for Region VI. The series also contains chronological files, which include correspondence and meeting minutes; some years from the chronological files are incomplete. The quarterly reports for the clubs in the region-- Central Sarasota, Charlotte County, Collier County, Lee County, Manatee County, Sarasota County, and South Sarasota County--are included. Researchers should note that the quarterly reports for these clubs are missing the years 1973 to 1986. The President's files hold correspondence and newsletters sent from the state president to the region. Region chair reports summarized the clubs' quarterly reports and was sent to the clubs in Region VI. The Region Reports were sent to the state level and include reports from other regions.
This series contains organizational materials presumably collected by Region VII to provide information on the functions and purposes of each part of the DWCF. These include information on the purpose of the special committees, forming budgets and new clubs within the region, campaigning, bylaws, fund-raising, membership, and protocol. One file folder contains additional organizational materials, which include, but are not limited to, information on how to hold a meeting, the protocol for having guests, the importance of issuing newsletters, and how to cope with diversity. This series also contains meeting minutes and treasurer's reports.
This series contains information on the activities of the Boca-Delray-Boynton Club of the DWCF. Convention planning documents the planning for the state convention in 2000, which was hosted by this club. A grievance folder explains a grievance filed against the treasurer of the Boca-Delray-Boynton club in 2000. The series also contains meeting minutes and supporting documentation, such as, chair reports, treasurer information, membership lists, and correspondence. The series also contains the treasurer of the region's reports, possibly as copies of the original.
This series contains Chronological files for the Charlotte County Club of the DWCF. These files include, but are not limited to, minutes, newspaper clippings, budget information, correspondence and pamphlets. Of special interest is the information on Florida House, which is an establishment in Washington, D.C., for which the DWCF and Charlotte County lobbied. Meetings and minutes of the club may also be found in this series. Photographs are also included, and of particular interests are photographs of Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senator Bob Graham, Buddy MacKay, and former Vice President Al Gore. Two scrapbooks, containing photographs, newspaper clippings, correspondence, and pamphlets, may also be found here.
This series contains the club charter for Santa Rosa County, Florida, from 1976.
This series contains meeting minutes from St. Lucie County meetings, and also from the Executive Committee meetings. Also in these files are budget and treasury information, and some correspondence.