Description
Correspondence, documents, photographs, speech notes, newspaper columns, research notes and clippings, and other materials
relating to Gonong's roles as a foreign service officer in the Philippine Consulate General of San Francisco, as a public
speaker in that capacity along the West Coast, as a columnist for the Associated Filipino Press, and as an officer and member
of several Filipino and women's organizations (government, church, and community-based) in Seattle, San Francisco, and Stockton.
Includes some personal papers.
Background
Maxine Gonong (1914-1997) was a Filipina American community leader, activist, writer, and speaker. She came to the United
States from the Philippines on a scholarship from University of Seattle when she was 18. During the mid-1940s, she served
on the Mayor's City Council and President of the Filipino Community of Seattle. She then moved to San Francisco, got a degree
in foreign service from University of San Francisco, and in 1947 got a position as Foreign Service Officer for the Philippine
Consulate General, where she worked for a decade. She held many positions and belonged to many organizations in the Filipino
community in Seattle, San Francisco, and Stockton, including: President of the Filipino Women's Club of San Francisco; President
of the Filipino United Community Organization of America, Inc., San Francisco; Vice President of the Filipino Community of
San Francisco, Inc; President of the Women's Society for Christian Service of the Filipino Methodist Church, the Women's Society
for Christian Service of the Filipino Methodist Church, San Francisco; and officer of the Ligaya Lodge No. 135 of the Legionarios
del Trabajo in America, Inc., a Filipino fraternal organization headquartered in Stockton. Gonong also wrote a column--"News
from the City by the Golden Gate"--for the Associated Filipino Press published in Los Angeles; Gonong was married to Cob (Cab?)
Cubar Cabaltera in 1975. She died in San Francisco on September 22, 1997.
Extent
1 carton, 2 manuscript boxes
(1.8 linear feet)
Restrictions
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the City Archivist. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of the San Francisco Public Library as the owner of the physical items.
Availability
The collection is available for use during San Francisco History Center hours, with photographs available during Photo Desk
hours. Collections that are stored offsite should be requested 48 hours in advance.