HomeFinding Aids#9008 Clio Book Club Minutes

#9008 Clio Book Club Minutes

Clio Book Club Minutes

MSS#9008

April 1995

Abstract: Minutes of the Clio Book Club of Salisbury, N.C. (1937-1960). A woman's club designed "to provide diversion, promote social relationship, and encourage mental growth." Minutes note program topics, books read, reviewers' comments, and refreshments served. Also present are a number of clippings about the club from the Salisbury Post.

Online catalog terms:

Book clubs--North Carolina--Salisbury

Clio Book Club (Salisbury, N.C.)

Women--North Carolina--Salisbury--History

Women--North Carolina--Salisbury--Societies and clubs

Size: Less than one linear foot (708 leaves).

Provenance: Given by the Clio Book Club.

Kathleen Hughes, Secretary
B114 Spanish Arms Apt.
Salisbury, NC 28144
Before 1995

Access: No restriction.

Copyright: Retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Introduction: The Clio Book Club of Salisbury, N.C. was founded in 1920 and was reorganized in 1937. As of the writing of this document, it continues to meet. A copy of the club's constitution from the 1940's states that the object of the club is threefold: to provide diversion, promote social relationship, and encourage mental growth. During the time covered by these materials, the club met every other week, beginning on the second Tuesday in September and ending on the fourth Tuesday in May. It did not meet in the Summers. The Club met in individual member's home with hostess responsibilities rotating alphabetically through the membership list. Meetings generally consisted of a short business session, a program, refreshments, and a book review, sometimes called the literary hour. The minutes were read, membership matters decided, and finances taken care of during the business session. Dues were also collected then. In 1948, the club charged its members a dime per meeting with a fine of a nickel for absences unless "providentially hindered." In 1941, a member could also be fined, if she failed to use the given name of another member to whom she was speaking. The fine for this breach was a penny. Travel talks from members about their vacations were a favorite program topic. Other programs touched upon domestic, patriotic, and cultural themes, ranging from a certified "gemologist's" presentation on the history of the diamond market, to a member's discussion of the importance of a beautiful home, and another's exploration of the impact of unskilled laborers on inflation in the nation's economy. Refreshments were left to the discretion of each meeting's hostess, but the constitution suggested that these snacks be kept simple. The minutes almost always list the fare provided and the table decorations. Coconut cake, mixed nuts, hot ham biscuits, sandwiches, ice cream, various salads and other similar dishes seem to have been popular foodstuffs for members of the Clio. African violets, mixtures of spring flowers, chrysanthemums, carnations, and figurines are often mentioned as table decorations. At the beginning of each year, a book committee would choose the works to be read by the Club that year. As the year progressed, the books would be read and circulated, with one member having responsibility for presenting the book to the other members. This often seems to have involved discussing the author's background, his other works, as well as the opinions of the members. A wide range of books were read with North Carolina and Southern authors receiving special attention. In 1954-1955, the Club read Thompson's Not As a Stranger, Keyes' The Royal Box, Du Maurier's Mary Ann, Hendrickson's Seven Steeples, Patton's Good Morning Miss Dove, Lofts' Bless This House, Carroll's One White Star, Slaughter's The Song of Ruth, and White's They Called Him Stonewall.

Series Descriptions

Series I. Minutes

1937-1960

Arrangement: chronological

Minutes of the Clio Book Club. These materials record the activities of the club. The first four years (1937-1941) were held in a spiral notebook that had fallen to pieces. The covers of this notebook have been kept with the other pages but the remaining hardware has been discarded. The other minutes had been separated into "dated" stacks at some point prior to processing by the library. For the most part, this dating was maintained except for a few circumstances where all of the minutes for one year had been placed together, ignoring the fact that the club's year actually spans a two year period (Fall of one year through the Spring of the following year.) The club unfortunately rarely dated the minutes at the time of their recording, but much of the material seems to fit the current chronological arrangement. Most of the confusion with dates lies in those minutes from the early 1950's.

Folder List:

Folder 1. Minutes 1937-1941

Folder 2. Minutes 1941-1944

Folder 3. Minutes 1944-1948

Folder 4. Minutes 1949-1950

Folder 5. Minutes 1950-1951

Folder 6. Minutes 1951-1952

Folder 7. Minutes 1952-1953

Folder 8. Minutes 1953-1954

Folder 9. Minutes 1954-1955

Folder 10. Minutes 1955-1956

Folder 11. Minutes 1956-1957

Folder 12. Minutes 1957-1958

Folder 13. Minutes 1958-1959

Folder 14. Minutes 1959-1960

Series II. Constitution

1941?

Taken from the front of the1941 minute book are two copies of the constitution and bylaws. One is marked "secretary's copy." There are annotations to these documents.

Folder List:

Folder 15. Constitution

Series III. Miscellaneous

Primarily, undated notes and one list of books.

Folder List:

Folder 16. Miscellaneous