The SCRC processing team has had a very busy summer, which means we have a lot of new and updated findings aids to share! All of the following collections are available for use in the Special Collections Research Center and the finding aids are available on our website (or use the links included below).
Collection processed by Meghan Glasbrenner
A single letter sent to the Hon. C. James Faulkner from Gideon G. Westcott, John Robbins, Jr., and James R. Ludlow inviting him to speak at a celebration planned by the Pennsylvania Democrats on September 17, 1856 for the 68th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution. In the letter Westcott, Robbins, and Sudlow, representing the Democrats of the Eastern & Northern Counties of Pennsylvania and the city of Philadelphia, assert that the Democrats are the only party to abide by and defend the Constitution, in contrast to the Republican and Whig parties. The Democratic party is the United States’ oldest existing political party, with its origins tracing back to Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republican party. Most agree that the modern Democratic party emerged with Andrew Jackson’s successful campaign for president in 1828, when he led a group of Democratic-Republicans in splintering to form the Democratic Party. During the years leading up to the Civil War, the party’s ideology stressed states’ rights and low government spending. By 1860 the issue of slavery would come to divide the Democratic party, helping Abraham Lincoln’s newly formed Republican party win the presidency.
Detail from panoramic photograph, C0339
Panoramic photo of women yeomen at the Norfolk, Virginia Navy Yard, C0339
Collection processed by Amanda Menjivar
Sepia panoramic photo of women yeomen at the Norfolk, Virginia Navy Yard, January 30, 1919. Image shows three rows of women posed in uniform for the camera. An inscription reads: “Yeoman [illegible] Industrial Department of Norfolk Navy Yard[,] Norfolk VA[?,] Jan. 30, 1919[.]” According to a label on the glass, the photo was taken by G. L. Hall Optical Co from Norfolk, VA. Yeomen (Female), also as written as “Yeomen (F)”, was an enlisted rank in the United States military during World War I. Thanks to a language loophole in the Naval Act of 1916, women were allowed to officially enlist in the military for the first time. As a result, over 600 women enlisted from March – April 1917, reaching nearly 4000 by July 1919. The Yeomen, also called “Yeomenettes” mostly worked in clerical positions at Naval Yards across the United States, including the Norfolk, Virginia Naval Base.
Collection reprocessed by Amanda Menjivar
Content Warning: Imagery and content related to the Nazi Party during World War II.
This collection contains materials pertaining to Henry O. Lampe’s diverse career as a government employee, transportation planner, and civic activist, as well as his personal interests and lifelong love of theatre. The majority of the materials include programs and playbills from Lampe’s attendance at many theatrical performances, playscripts and publications on theater, as well as records and reports on gerontology, legislation on aging from the Arlington Commission on Aging and the White House Conference on Aging, publications on international affairs, and records on transportation planning in Northern Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area. Also included are materials on Germany and the Nazi Party in World War II.
Henry “Hank” Oscar Lampe was born in Bremen, Germany on April 8, 1927 of American parents, Henry D. and Dorothea Lampe (pronounced Lamp-ee). Lampe grew up in Germany and witnessed the rise of the Nazi Party and World War II. In 1941 the family moved to Arlington, Virginia and Lampe attended American University in Washington, D.C. After serving in the Navy, in 1946 Lampe returned to Germany as an employee of the U.S. Government. After returning to the U.S., Lampe married his first wife Virginia in 1953, who was also active in Virginia politics. Employed as a government worker as well as a stockbroker, Lampe had a long record of civic activities beginning in 1964. A Republican, he was a member of the Northern Virginia Regional Planning Commission and the General Assembly of Virginia, Vice Chair of the Virginia Metropolitan Areas Transportation Study Commission, a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging, a member of the Arlington Commission on Aging, Chair and President of the Northern Virginia Mental Health Association, and served on the Board of Trustees at Arlington Hospital and the George Mason University Board of Visitors.
Selection from 1754 letter from Caygill to Clapham, C0340
Letters from John Caygill to Josias Clapham regarding cargo shipments, C0340
Collection processed by Meghan Glasbrenner
Four letters written by John Caygill of Halifax, West Yorkshire, England to Josias Clapham of Hunting Creek, Fairfax County, Virginia. Each letter covers a different year between 1751-1754 and are dated September 2, 1751, June 8, 1752, January 6, 1753, and February 8, 1754. No responses from Josias Clapham are included, but Caygill makes reference to the content of letters he received from Clapham. The letters all focus on Caygill’s role in receiving cargo shipments, primarily tobacco, from Clapham to be sold in England, with much of the content centering on Caygill’s frustration with Clapham’s management. Tobacco was one of Colonial Virginia’s most successful crops, dating back to the 1600s, eventually forming the basis of the economy. While small planters often sold their crops locally through agents in exchange for manufactured goods, larger planters typically shipped their tobacco back to England. Once in England, a consignment agent sold the tobacco in exchange for a cut of the profits. John Caygill and Josias Clapham likely had such a consignment arrangement, with Clapham shipping his tobacco to England and Caygill, serving the consignment role, selling the goods on his behalf.
Nellie M. Lee music manuscript book, C0411
Collection processed by Amanda Menjivar
A music staff notebook kept by Nellie M. Lee from January 28, 1878 – February 2, 1881. The notebook contains handwritten music, along with lyrics, mostly composed by “E.L. Baker,” likely the American composer Everett L. Baker from Buffalo, New York. The first page is inscribed “Nellie M. Lee Jan. 28th, 1878.” Songs include “Name in the Sand,” “Our own Sweet Thoughts to day,” “Fierce raged the Tempest,” and “The Merry Wanderer,” among others. The notebook was only about half-used, and many of the pages are blank. The Nellie M. Lee who kept this notebook was likely from the Buffalo, New York area, and lived from 1856-1926. As of 1869 Lee worked in the local Buffalo City public school system as an assistant. She may have been married to Elmer E. Lee. Everett L. Baker (1829-1896), often credited as E.L. Baker, was an American composer who resided in Buffalo, New York. Baker was a prominent figure in the area, as both the head music teacher for the local school system, as well as the organist and music director at multiple churches in the area.
Front cover of “Fleischmann’s Recipes” booklet, C0342
“Fleischmann’s Recipes: Excellent Recipes for Baking Raised Breads” booklet, C0342
Collection processed by Meghan Glasbrenner
Recipe booklet published by The Fleischmann Company in 1916 featuring baking tips and recipes using Fleischmann’s yeast. The Fleischmann Company, also known as Fleischmann’s Yeast, was founded by Jewish-Hungarian immigrant brothers Charles and Max Fleischmann. In circa 1868, the brothers arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio and partnered with James Gaff, an American businessman, to build a manufacturing plant where they put Charles’ experience in yeast production to use. Promotional cookbook giveaways were an early marketing strategy, and one already being used successfully by other companies. To distinguish themselves and their product, the Fleischmann brothers focused heavily on branding, including using colorful illustrations and introducing the use of a cartoon mascot, John Dough, in circa 1912. The Fleischmann Company saw great success from these campaigns, controlling over 93% of their market by the late 1920s.
“The Westinghouse Refrigerator Book: Hints, Helps and Recipes” booklet, C0343
Collection processed by Meghan Glasbrenner
Recipe booklet with full color images published by Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company containing recipes that can be stored in a Westinghouse refrigerator, along with helpful tips to assist consumers in using the appliance. The Westinghouse Electric Company was founded by George Westinghouse in 1886, beginning with a small plant in Garrison Alley, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company would change its name to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company in 1889 and later to Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1946. They produced the first electric range in 1917, followed soon by other household electronics including the clothes iron, coffee percolator, and refrigerator. Like many other food and household appliance companies in the later 19th through mid-20th century Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company created and distributed recipe and tip booklets to advertise and assist consumers in using their products. Early versions of these publications were typically simple in design and focused primarily on desserts, but by the 1920s they became colorful, heavily illustrated, and began including more tips on making food preparation faster and easier.
Follow SCRC on Social Media and look out for future posts on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts. To search the collections held at Special Collections Research Center, go to our website and browse the finding aids by subject or title. You may also e-mail us at speccoll@gmu.edu or call 703-993-2220 if you would like to schedule an appointment, request materials, or if you have questions.
