Finding Aid for the
Broomstick magazine records, 1972-2005
Processed by Sandra Brasda, December 2012; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by
Arcadia
funds.
UCLA Library Special Collections
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
© 2013
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title:
Broomstick magazine records
Date (inclusive): 1972-2005
Collection number: 1976
Creator:
Broomstick Magazine.
Extent:
56 document boxes (40 linear ft.)
and 8 oversize flat boxes.
Abstract:
Broomstick, founded in 1978 by Maxine Spencer and Polly Taylor in the San Francisco Bay area, is an independent, self-published radical
feminist magazine dedicated to supporting and promoting women and lesbian activism and art for an audience of women over forty.
Its main goals focused on confronting ageism, stereotypes of the disabled, and breaking down gender conventions in publishing.
The magazine ran through 1993 and explores topics related to radical feminist politics, lesbian culture and art, spirituality
of the Crone, women and aging, and feminist coalitions and communities. The collection contains a complete run of the magazine,
organizational records, financial statements, correspondence, submissions and rejections, and many of the plates used for
printing the magazine. The collection also contains Spencer's personal papers documenting her personal experiences with radical
feminism, lesbianism, disability, sexism, and age discrimination.
Language: Finding aid is written in
English.
Language of the Material:
Materials are in English.
Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact UCLA Library Special Collections
for paging information.
Administrative Information
Restrictions on Access
Open for research. STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact UCLA Library
Special Collections for paging information.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UC Regents. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the
creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright
owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Processing Note
Processed by Sandra Brasda in 2012 in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Jillian Cuellar.
The processing of this collection was generously supported by
Arcadia
funds.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item],
Broomstick magazine records (Collection 1976). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
History
Maxine Spencer and Polly Taylor founded
Broomstick in Berkeley, California in 1978. The idea for
Broomstick was born when eight women over forty attended a Crone's Caucus and organized a loose coalition that would support, fund,
and collectively address concerns specific to older women. This peer-led group would also function as a supportive network
for activism. Together, Spencer and Taylor approached a newly formed feminist organization in Berkeley, "OPTIONS for Women
Over Forty." They asked OPTIONS for its endorsement and financial support to create a feminist political journal for and about
women over forty. In exchange, Spencer and Taylor pledged to publicize OPTIONS in the journal and promote their programs.
Though OPTIONS gave initial support and funding,
Broomstick grew into an independently published and funded magazine. Production of
Broomstick ended in 1993 due to fiscal insolvency, as evidenced in their financial statements and annual budget records.
As co-editors, Spencer and Taylor intended to develop and expand the mainstream feminist position in support of a growing
subculture in the lesbian community that promoted a more radical feminist agenda.
Broomstick would provide a unique social and political challenge to the feminist literature of its time. The magazine's staff borrowed
skills learned from their earlier feminist activities in the late 1960s and early 1970s, such as consciousness raising sessions
and feminist networking. Articles explored issues related to disability, lesbianism, ageism, sexism, and class struggle.
Broomstick's editors and contributors hoped that the journal's content would promote a greater understanding of older women's situation.
The magazine sought to honor and rescue the image of the Crone – an old woman, often called witch, historically revered as
healers and for their wisdom – from public derision. The name
Broomstick was chosen to symbolize women's shared skills and labor (homemaking), change and improvement (the new broom sweeps clean),
power (the witch flies on the broom), healing (the witch as ancient healer), and speaking out about what society considers
ugly. The magazine also explores a growing subculture of pagan and Wiccan spirituality, venerating the Crone.
Because the
Broomstick records were largely created and collected by Maxine Spencer, they provide a clear portrait of her life as an active radical
feminist and artist. Born in 1927, Spencer lived most of her adult life in the San Francisco Bay area. She was a life-long
artist, creating sculptures, mosaics, oils, watercolors, and acrylics. In the last decades of her life, Spencer also created
paper paintings using a technique she developed after becoming allergic to her paints. As an activist, she was involved in
civil rights, anti-war and feminist organizations; she often used her creative and artistic abilities in her activist work.
A former housewife, Spencer was married for fifteen years and had two sons. After her husband's death she returned to school
to pursue her PhD in psychology. At the age of forty-seven, she graduated and was unable to find employment, allegedly because
of her age. Her experiences in graduate school and struggles in the job market gave her intimate experience with ageism and
sexism.
Spencer viewed her work on
Broomstick as both personal and political. She closely managed the magazine's business structure, and oversaw its production, organization,
financial health, and public image. As co-editor, she was very selective and protective about the magazine's political messages,
as evidenced in her extensive correspondence with contributors, subscribers, potential authors, businesses, institutions,
and other feminist organizations. Her experiences as a poor, pagan, Jewish, radical feminist are clearly reflected in the
magazine's ideology. Because the journal specifically targeted women over forty, its contents were meticulously screened.
Only women over forty could publish within the periodical, and men were strongly discouraged from submitting material, purchasing
subscriptions, or contributing to the discourse. The magazine's editors were sensitive to material that they felt may send
the wrong political statement or offend its readers.
Broomstick created a unique and important network between editors, authors, and readers. The large, complex community that revolved
around
Broomstick's maintenance and distribution was a self-supported underground rich with resourcefulness, networking, and interaction. Evidence
of the legacy of independent feminist magazines like
Broomstick that existed in the 1980s to the early 1990s may be found in the subsequent feminist zine culture that arose in the mid 1990s.
Scope and Content
Broomstick magazine records document the publication's production process, content, intellectual and political scope, editorial process,
administrative and financial history, and advertising strategies. The collection contains a complete set of the magazine,
event calendars, correspondence, advertisements, promotional material, submissions, financial records, and many of the templates
used for printing the magazine. Included are materials from feminist conferences, talks, poetry, cartoons, and research files.
A hallmark feature of
Broomstick was its principle policy of participatory journalism. Most of
Broomstick's content was written by its readers. Letters, poems, short stories, and articles were actively solicited. These participatory
records, known as Author Files, comprise the majority of the
Broomstick magazine collection. One of the magazine's main goals was to demystify the process of publishing.
Broomstick provided a unique venue for older women to publish their art, poetry, creative and feminist writing, while building and supporting
feminist coalitions and communities. Though it was a small, do-it-yourself publication,
Broomstick often reached a national and international audience, documented by
Broomstick's financial records and invoices.
Broomstick featured recurring themes and columns, such as: "An Apple a Day" (featuring items about the health concerns of women over
forty), "Watchcraft" (a dedicated surveillance column for readers to report ageism in public media and commercial establishments),
"Show and Tell" (designed to develop positive images of midlife and older women), "Caveat Feminia" (legal issues of concern
to women over forty), and "For and About" (a column for women who are not yet forty to discuss their relationships with older
women, share their feelings on aging, and learn about ageism).
Broomstick published issues on special topics of interest to older women, such as an issue dedicated to menopause, which was so popular
that a second printing was necessary to fulfill the demand. The issue furnished information women reported from their own
lives. Theme issues included: ageing, appearance/fat, feminism, allergies and other disabilities, grandmothers and older mothers,
mastectomy, violence, women and computers, and changing lifestyles. In addition, the magazine was at the forefront of exploring
fat phobia and body consciousness issues.
Broomstick provides a portrait of the growth of radical feminism in the late 1970s and 1980s. Its specific focus on disabled, lesbian
women over 40 years old adds to the magazine's unique research value; ageism and disability had not received extensive coverage
at that point in the feminist literature. Because
Broomstick was specifically geared towards women over forty, it may prove to be an important resource for those interested in the generation
gap between second-wave feminists during the 1970s and 1980s. The records also provide evidence of the alternative spiritual
lifestyle active in
Broomstick's underground feminist network.
Broomstick helped establish a spiritual community centered on the venerated image and faith in the Crone.
The
Broomstick records were largely created and collected by Maxine Spencer. The collection contains Spencer's personal papers including
unpublished manuscripts, personal therapy notes, correspondence with other feminist organizations, consciousness raising documents,
and content from courses she attended and taught. Spencer also collected other feminist publications and the work of some
of her contemporaries, specifically Cynthia Rich and Barbara Macdonald.
Broomstick records not only document the history and internal workings of the magazine but they also trace Spencer's personal, political,
and professional life from 1970 to 1995.
Broomstick magazine records are organized into 5 series: Magazine Production, Publicity, Administrative, Author Files, and Personal
Papers. The vast majority of the
Broomstick magazine records are Author Files which includes correspondence to and from subscribers with the editors of
Broomstick, submissions and rejections.
Organization and Arrangement
Collection is arranged in the following series and subseries:
- Series 1: Magazine Production
- Subseries 1.1: Production
- Subseries 1.2: Content and Research
- Subseries 1.3:
Broomstick Magazine Issues
- Series 2: Publicity
- Subseries 2.1: Advertising
- Subseries 2.2: Public Relations
- Series 3: Administrative Records
- Subseries 3.1: Internal Records
- Subseries 3.2: Financial
- Subseries 3.3: Correspondence
- Series 4: Author Files
- Subseries 4.1: Submissions
- Subseries 4.2: Rejections
- Series 5: Personal Papers
- Subseries 5.1: Maxine Spencer
- Subseries 5.2: Other Contributors
Folders are arranged alphabetically. Original order was maintained when available.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Spencer, Maxine --Archives.
Broomstick (Firm) --Archives.
Broomstick.
Lesbian feminism --United States --Periodicals.
Older women --Social conditions --Periodicals.
Related Material
Series 1: Magazine Production.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Series 1, Magazine Production documents the creative and physical production process of
Broomstick from start to finish. This series offers a unique perspective on the process of creating a grassroots, independent magazine.
It contains layouts, typesettings, artwork and cartoons, articles used for research, letters to the Editor, ideas for editorials,
drafts and potential content for magazine columns, promotional contests, as well as a complete set of finished
Broomstick issues, including Indexes – published annually cataloging authors, themes, and published issues – and a self-produced Writer’s
Packet to guide contributors in the submission process. This series is divided into four subseries: Production, Magazine Layout,
Content and Research, and
Broomstick Issues.
Subseries 1.1: Production.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Production is comprised of any physical elements that went into the making of
Broomstick, such as artwork, cartoons, typesettings, indexes, covers, table of contents, and self-published writer’s packets. These
were all recurring or fixed elements of the magazine.
Box 1, Folder 1
Broomstick History.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 3
Production Schedule.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 4
Artwork: 1of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 5
Artwork: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 6
Cartoons: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 7
Cartoons: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 1, Folder 8
Cartoons: Bulbul.
1979-1993.
Box 1, Folder 9
Cartoon Citations.
1978-1993.
Box 2, Folder 5
Index: Typesetting.
1978-1993.
Box 2, Folder 6
Last Issue Original Articles.
1993.
Box 2, Folder 8
Out of Print Back Issues.
1978-1993.
Box 2, Folder 9
Table of Contents.
1981-1990.
Box 2, Folder 10
Table of Contents: Notes.
1993.
Box 2, Folder 11
Typesetting: Advertising.
1978-1993.
Box 2, Folder 12
Typesetting: Editorial Policy.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 1
Typesetting: Fixed Settings.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 2
Typesetting: Masthead.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 3
Typesetting: Note Fillers.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 4
Typesetting: Signatures.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 5
Typesetting: Table of Contents.
1980-1993.
Box 3, Folder 6
Writers' Packet.
1982-1987.
Scope and Content
The Writer's Packet is a set of self-identified and self-published guidelines and methods on how to write for
Broomstick. The editors of
Broomstick evaluated authors and submitted material based on these guidelines. The purchase of a Writer's Packet and subscription to
Broomstick were preliminary requirements for any author or material submitted for publication in
Broomstick.
Subseries 1.2: Magazine Layout.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
This subseries includes internal correspondence concerning the layout and publication process, as well as the physical layout
of the magazine before it went to press. The method of laying out the magazine using hot wax was the inspiration for paper
painting, which opened up a new world of artistic exploration for Mickey from the late 1980’s until her death. This series
is housed in oversized boxes and organized chronologically.
Box 1, Folder 2
Correspondence, Layout.
1980-1993.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 1
Layout: V. I, no. 1.
November 1978.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 1
Layout: V. I-III.
1978-1981.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 2
Layout: V. III, no. 12.
1980.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 3
Layout: V. IV, no. 1.
January-February 1982.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 4
Layout: V. IV, no. 3.
May-June 1982.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 5
Layout: V. IV, no. 4.
July-August 1982.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 6
Layout: V. IV, no. 5.
September-October 1982.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 7
Layout: V. IV, no. 6.
November-December 1982.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 8
Layout: V. V, no. 1.
January-February 1983.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 9
Layout: V. V, no. 2.
March-April 1983.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 10
Layout: V. V, no. 3.
May-June 1983.
Mixed materials 9, Folder 11
Layout: V. V, no. 4.
July-August 1983.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 2
Layout: V. VI, no. 1.
January-February 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 3
Layout: V. VI, no. 2.
March-April 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 4
Layout: V. VI, no. 3.
May-June 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 5
Layout: V. VI, no. 4.
July-August 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 6
Layout: V. VI, no. 5.
September-October 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 7
Layout: V. VI, no. 6.
November-December 1984.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 8
Layout: V. VII, no. 1.
January-February 1985.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 9
Layout: V. VII, no. 2.
March-April 1985.
Mixed materials 8, Folder 10
Layout: V. VII, no. 3-4.
May-July 1985.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 1
Layout: V. VII, no. 5.
September-October 1985.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 2
Layout: V. VII, no. 6.
November-December 1985.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 3
Layout: V. VIII, no. 1.
January-February 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 4
Layout: V. VIII, no. 2.
March-April 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 5
Layout: V. VIII, no. 3.
May-June 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 6
Layout: V. VIII, no. 4.
July-August 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 7
Layout: V. VIII, no. 5.
September-October 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 8
Layout: V. VIII, no. 6.
November-December 1986.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 9
Layout: V. IX, no. 1.
January-February 1987.
Mixed materials 10, Folder 10
Layout: V. IX, no. 2.
March-April 1987.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 1
Layout: V. IX, no. 3.
May-June 1987.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 2
Layout: V. IX, no. 4.
July-August 1987.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 3
Layout: V. IX, no. 5.
September-October 1987.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 5
Layout: V. X, no. 1.
January-February 1988.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 6
Layout: V. X, no. 2.
March-April 1988.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 7
Layout: V. X, no. 3.
May-June 1988.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 8
Layout: V. X, no. 4.
July-August 1988.
Mixed materials 11, Folder 9
Layout: V. X, no. 5.
September-October 1988.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 1
Layout: V. X, no. 6.
November-December 1988.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 2
Layout: V. XI, no. 1.
January-February 1989.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 3
Layout: V. XI, no. 2.
March-April 1989.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 4
Layout: V. XI, no. 3.
May-June 1989.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 5
Layout: V. XI, no. 4.
July-August 1989.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 6
Layout: V. XI, no. 5.
September-October 1989.
Mixed materials 12, Folder 7
Layout: V. XI, no. 6.
November-December 1989.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 1
Layout: V. XII, no. 1.
January-February 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 2
Layout: V. XII, no. 2.
March-April 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 3
Layout: V. XII, no. 3.
May-June 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 4
Layout: V. XII, no. 4.
July-August 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 5
Layout: V. XII, no. 5.
September-October 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 6
Layout: V. XII, no. 6.
November-December 1990.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 7
Layout: Winter #1, 1991.
1991.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 8
Layout: Spring #2, 1991.
1991.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 9
Layout: Summer #3, 1991.
1991.
Mixed materials 13, Folder 10
Layout: Autumn #4, 1991.
1991.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 1
Layout: Winter #1, 1992.
1992.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 2
Layout: Spring #2, 1992.
1992.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 3
Layout: Summer #3, 1992.
1992.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 4
Layout: Autumn #4, 1992.
1992.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 5
Layout: Winter #1, 1993.
1993.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 6
Layout: Spring #2, 1993.
1993.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 7
Layout: Summer #3, 1993.
1993.
Mixed materials 14, Folder 8
Layout: Autumn #4, 1993.
1993.
Subseries 1.3: Content and Research.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
This subseries consists of materials that were collected and organized into subject files, with intent to create various recurring
themes or sections within
Broomstick magazine, such as: disability, feminism, sexuality, class, the politics of language, racism, ageism, consciousness raising,
activism, and praise/criticism. The subject files contain notes, research, drafts, ideas, and correspondence for various elements
of the magazine. These materials were gathered for various purposes, such as editorials, ideas for potential editorials, letters
to the Editor, columns, book reviews, and a section of the magazine, titled Bazaar. Bazaar was devoted to creating an exclusive
subscriber community that would foster a greater consciousness of issues relevant to the concerns of older women. It also
contains materials from promotional projects aimed toward reader participation and increased publicity. This subseries follows
the original order established by owner/creator Maxine Spencer, tracing her conceptual framework and what she envisioned as
the political objective and intellectual life of
Broomstick magazine.
Box 3, Folder 10
Column: Apple a Day.
1984-1988.
Box 3, Folder 11
Column: Lesbians over 60.
1991.
Box 3, Folder 13
Column: Pass the Word.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 1
Column: Sweep it Away.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 2
Column: Watchcraft.
1986-1988.
Box 4, Folder 3
Editorials: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 4
Editorials: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 5
Ideas for Editorials: Class.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 6
Ideas for Editorials: Criticism.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 7
Ideas for Editorials: Disability.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 8
Ideas for Editorials: Lesbians.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 9
Ideas for Editorials: Miscellaneous.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 10
Ideas for Editorials: Nasty Letters.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 11
Ideas for Editorials: Oppression.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 12
Ideas for Editorials: Politically Correct.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 13
Ideas for Editorials: Politics of Language.
1978-1993.
Box 4, Folder 14
Ideas for Editorials: Racism.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 1
Ideas for Editorials: Retirement Homes.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 2
Ideas for Editorials: Social Responsibility.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 3
Ideas for Editorials: Volunteering.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 4
Ideas for Editorials: Writers.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 5
Letters to the Editor: "Love Letters".
1978-1991.
Box 5, Folder 6
Letters to the Editor: "Love Letters".
1992-1993.
Box 5, Folder 7
Personal Experiences.
1979-1992.
Box 5, Folder 10
Subject Files: Ageism.
1977-1993.
Box 5, Folder 11
Subject Files: Ageism.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 12
Subject Files: Consciousness Raising.
1992.
Box 5, Folder 13
Subject Files: Feminism.
1978-1993.
Box 5, Folder 14
Writing Contest.
1989-1991.
Subseries 1.4:
Broomstick Magazine Issues.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
This subseries contains the complete published run of
Broomstick issues, including Indexes. Magazine issues are organized chronologically.
Box 6, Folder 1
Publisher's Proofs.
November 1978.
Box 6, Folder 2
V. 1: no. 1-12.
1978-1979.
Box 6, Folder 3
V. 2: no. 1-12.
1979-1980.
Box 6, Folder 4
V. 3: no. 1-12.
1980-1981.
Box 15, Folder 4
Broomstick Index.
1978-1993.
Series 2: Publicity.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Series 2, Publicity, covers
Broomstick’s advertising and public outreach strategies. It includes advertisements published in
Broomstick,
Broomstick’s advertisements in other publications, reader requests to advertise within
Broomstick, and requests from other companies and institutions who wished to advertise in the journal. The series also contains general
correspondence with special interest groups, contextualizing
Broomstick’s relationship to other feminist organizations and publications.
Subseries 2.1: Advertising.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Subseries Advertising includes all material on individuals and organizations that wished to advertise in
Broomstick. Companies, institutions, other publications, and individuals that advertised in
Broomstick are filed under “Advertisers” alphabetically. This subseries also includes
Broomstick advertisements in other publications. “Advertising Inquiries” documents correspondence with those seeking to advertise in
Broomstick but may or may not have been accepted by the editors.
Box 16, Folder 1
Advertisers: A.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 2
Advertisers: B.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 3
Advertisers: C: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 4
Advertisers: C: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 5
Advertisers: D.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 6
Advertisers: E-F.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 7
Advertisers: G.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 8
Advertisers: H.
1978-1993.
Box 16, Folder 9
Advertisers: Herspectives, H.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 1
Advertisers: I-K.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 2
Advertisers: L.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 3
Advertisers: M.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 4
Advertisers: N.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 5
Advertisers: O.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 6
Advertisers: P.
1978-1993.
Box 17, Folder 7
Advertisers: R.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 1
Advertisers: S.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 2
Advertisers: Sinister Wisdom.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 3
Advertisers: T.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 4
Advertisers: U-V.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 5
Advertisers: W: 1 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 6
Advertisers: W: 2 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 18, Folder 7
Advertisers: W: 3 of 3.
1978-1993.
Subseries 2.2: Public Relations.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Public Relations documents
Broomstick’s working relationship with other companies, organizations, and institutions. This subseries traces the creation and dissemination
of
Broomstick’s public image and promotional outreach strategies. It also contains material that offers a unique perspective on how the
magazine was received by its feminist contemporaries and fellow organizations, as well as how feminist networks are created
and maintained. This subseries includes general correspondence with other groups, individuals, publications, companies, institutions,
book stores, and distributors regarding promotional content for
Broomstick magazine. It also contains transcripts of publicity talks, radio interviews, conferences hosted by
Broomstick and conferences attended by Mickey Spencer. Extensive correspondence, subscription exchanges, and mutual advertisements document
Broomstick’s working relationship with their sister organizations, such as OPTIONS for Women Over Forty, and established feminist literary
journals Sinister Wisdom, Herspectives, and Dynamic Years.
Broomstick offered workshops and information for others on how to independently publish, raise money, organize, increase circulation,
and foster support. From 1987 to 1989
Broomstick confronted Frances Lear and her national feminist commercial magazine, Lear’s, for misrepresentation for the title of “First
Feminist Magazine for Women over Forty.”
Broomstick (unsuccessfully) threatened a civil lawsuit against the company. These records are significant for their documentation of
Broomstick’s relationship to a growing subculture of a national radical feminist movement and of how small, independent, upstart grassroots
organizations like
Broomstick came to be.
Box 19, Folder 3
Advertising Inquiries.
1980-1983.
Box 19, Folder 4
Advertising Inquiries.
1991-1993.
Box 19, Folder 5
Advertisements in Other Publications, 1 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 19, Folder 6
Advertisements in Other Publications, 2 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 19, Folder 7
Advertisements in Other Publications, 3 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 21, Folder 2
Best of
Broomstick Conference.
1986.
Box 19, Folder 2
Exchange Advertising Forms.
1978-1993.
Box 20, Folder 6
Exchange Subscriptions.
1978-1993.
Box 20, Folder 5
Frances Lear, Lear's Magazine.
1987-1989.
Box 20, Folder 1
General Correspondence with other Groups.
1978-1993.
Box 19, Folder 1
How to Advertise, Start-up.
1980.
Box 20, Folder 4
Options for Women over 40.
1981-1993.
Box 20, Folder 7
Outreach, Bookstores: 1 of 2.
1978-1983.
Box 20, Folder 8
Outreach, Bookstores: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 20, Folder 9
Outreach, Distributors: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 20, Folder 10
Outreach, Distributors: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 21, Folder 6
Political Action.
1980-1986.
Box 21, Folder 7
Political Action, Wishing Well.
1981-1986.
Box 21, Folder 5
Promotional Material.
1991-1993.
Box 20, Folder 3
Publications, Dynamic Years.
1980-1983.
Box 21, Folder 4
Radio Broadcast.
1979-1993.
Box 20, Folder 2
Relationship with Other Groups.
1978-1993.
Series 3: Administrative Records.
1978-1998.
Scope and Content
The materials in
Broomstick’s Administrative Records series predominantly concern the business side of the operation, with correspondence and reports
relating to circulation, distribution, and financing. This series illustrates the infrastructure behind
Broomstick magazine. It includes meeting minutes, invoices, non-profit status documents, donation and compensation records, financial
advice acquired through public forum meetings, financial statements, and applications for grants. It also contains documents
used in the internal structure and organization of
Broomstick, such as policies and procedures, administrative forms, form letters, schedules, and hiring paperwork. Administrative Records
are organized into three subseries: Internal Records, Financial, and Correspondence.
Subseries 3.1: Internal Records.
1978-1996.
Scope and Content
Internal Records document staff correspondence, administrative policies, infrastructure and organizational strategies. Within
Internal Records are Staff Records, these include correspondence between editors, volunteers, and hired staff. For the majority
of its existence,
Broomstick did not have a fixed headquarters and most operations were performed from Maxine Spencer’s home in Berkeley, CA. When the
magazine did have office space in the Women’s Building in Berkeley, they did not have a phone, so conversations about daily
business and the internal workings of
Broomstick are well documented in these records. These records document the day to day operations of
Broomstick. The contents include meeting minutes, business forms, contracts, personnel records, goals and projected future plans, policies
and procedures, inventory, and staff records. Also included is documentation from
Broomstick’s annual strategic planning meetings which were, open to their readers and supporters; these meetings were used to discuss
Broomstick’s future and to solicit advice. The file “Mazer Records” documents the correspondence, process, and coordination of collecting
and donating Micky Spencer’s personal papers and the
Broomstick magazine records for donation to the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives.
Broomstick’s materials on their policies and procedures are of notable research interest, particularly those which detail
Broomstick’s policy on men because they document Spencer’s separatist ideology. These materials can be found in the folder titled Policies
and Procedures.
Box 24, Folder 4
Advising Meetings.
1980-1983.
Box 28, Folder 1
Back Issue Orders: 1 of 2.
1993-1995.
Box 28, Folder 2
Back Issue Orders: 2 of 2.
1993-1995.
Box 28, Folder 3
Closedown Files.
1993-1995.
Box 21, Folder 11
Collective Work Process.
1978-1993.
Box 24, Folder 7
Filing System.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 3
Forms: Bookstore.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 1
Forms: General: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 2
Forms: General: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 6
Forms: Renewal.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 5
Forms: Submission.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 4
Forms: Subscriber.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 7
Form Letters: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 25, Folder 8
Form Letters: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 24, Folder 8
Mailing Policy.
1978-1993.
Box 15, Folder 7
Mazer Records.
1994-1996.
Box 24, Folder 1
Meeting Minutes.
1978-1979.
Box 24, Folder 2
Meeting Minutes.
1979-1982.
Box 24, Folder 9
Postal Records.
1978-1993.
Box 21, Folder 13
Printing Service.
1978-1993.
Box 24, Folder 5
Procedures and Policies: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Note - Policy on Men. Instructs editors to reject and discourage men from submitting material to
Broomstick.
Box 24, Folder 6
Procedures and Policies: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 26, Folder 2
Staff Records, Elizabeth Keir.
1985-1993.
Box 26, Folder 3
Staff Records, Elizabeth Keir.
1985-1993.
Box 26, Folder 4
Staff Records, Frieda Feen.
1990-1993.
Box 26, Folder 5
Staff Records, Sandra Shepherd.
1988-1990.
Box 26, Folder 6
Staff Records, Carole Morton.
1982-1983.
Box 26, Folder 7
Staff Records, Francoise Le Plat.
1983-1984.
Box 26, Folder 8
Volunteer Staff.
1978-1993.
Box 15, Folder 6
Women's Building.
1986-1993.
Box 24, Folder 3
Yearly Agenda, Notes.
1979-1982.
Subseries 3.2: Financial.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Financial records include documents on fundraising, donations, invoices, subscriptions, budgets, financial statements, nonprofit
status records, grant applications, and financial closedown records. These materials document the financial standing and hardship
the magazine faced in the early 1990s, and provide a more holistic picture of the journal’s reader base. The majority of invoices,
and therefore the primary reader base, were from California, specifically the San Francisco Bay area. However, the invoices
also provide evidence that the magazine had a healthy national audience and a small but growing international audience. International
invoices consist of universities purchasing subscriptions for their respective institutions.
Broomstick’s fundraising documents provide evidence that the magazine was almost solely funded by donations solicited from its subscribers.
Also within
Broomstick’s financial records is what Maxine Spencer labeled Closedown records. Closedown records document the exit strategy of
Broomstick; they contain correspondence between staff, institutions, companies, and invoices paid.
Broomstick struggled with high production costs and a limited subscriber base; ultimately the magazine did not have enough revenue to
cover basic production or growth.
Broomstick’s economic troubles can be traced to several factors, for example,
Broomstick maintained a sliding scale subscription policy - you pay what you can afford. Many of
Broomstick’s readers struggled with financial hardship or fell within the lower economic stratum of society and could not afford to
pay the full subscription price.
Broomstick also compensated many issues for those who requested the magazine could not pay at all. The combination of slow turnaround,
including reader correspondence and financial accountability, coupled with
Broomstick’s limited staff resources, the magazine struggled to stay solvent and was forced to end operations in 1993.
Organization and Arrangement
Invoices are organized numerically by zip code according to
Broomstick’s own filing system.
Box 21, Folder 8
Applications for Grants.
1978-1993.
Box 23, Folder 8
Bookstore Invoices.
1978-1982.
Box 23, Folder 6
Broomstick Invoices Paid.
1990-1995.
Box 27, Folder 17
California Sales Tax.
1991.
Box 27, Folder 15
Compensation Records.
1982-1985.
Box 27, Folder 1
Financial Advice.
1980-1993.
Box 27, Folder 13
Financial Closedown Records.
1993-1995.
Box 27, Folder 14
Financial Notes.
1980-1985.
Box 27, Folder 4
Financial Statements.
1978-1979.
Box 27, Folder 5
Financial Statements.
1980.
Box 27, Folder 6
Financial Statements.
1981.
Box 27, Folder 7
Financial Statements.
1988.
Box 27, Folder 8
Financial Statements.
1989.
Box 27, Folder 9
Financial Statements.
1990.
Box 27, Folder 10
Financial Statements.
1991.
Box 27, Folder 11
Financial Statements.
1992.
Box 27, Folder 12
Financial Statements.
1993.
Box 22, Folder 1
Institution Invoices: 0-1.
1978-1993.
Box 22, Folder 2
Institution Invoices: 2-4.
1978-1993.
Box 22, Folder 3
Institution Invoices: 5.
1978-1993.
Box 22, Folder 4
Institution Invoices: 6-8.
1978-1993.
Box 22, Folder 5
Institution Invoices: 9: 1 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 23, Folder 1
Institution Invoices: 9: 2 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 23, Folder 2
Institution Invoices: 9: 3 of 3.
1978-1993.
Box 23, Folder 3
Institution Invoices: Miscellaneous.
1978-1993.
Box 23, Folder 4
International Subscriptions, Invoices.
1978-1993.
Box 27, Folder 3
Monthly Financial Reports.
1985-1989.
Box 27, Folder 16
Nonprofit Status.
1982-1993.
Box 23, Folder 7
Publishing Invoices.
1978-1993.
Subseries 3.3: Correspondence.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
The final subseries in Administrative records, Correspondence, documents any communication with
Broomstick after the publication’s end. It is composed of miscellaneous internal correspondence, letters to the editor requesting additional
information, promotional material, invitations, or subscription requests.
Box 26, Folder 1
Internal Correspondence.
1991-1993.
Box 28, Folder 4
Out of Business Correspondence: 1 of 2.
1993-1995.
Box 28, Folder 5
Out of Business Correspondence: 2 of 2.
1993-1995.
Box 28, Folder 6
Requests for
Broomstick: 1 of 2.
1993-1995.
Box 28, Folder 7
Requests for
Broomstick: 2 of 2.
1993-1995.
Series 4: Author Files.
1978-1995.
Scope and Content
Series 4, Submissions is composed primarily of correspondence between the editors of
Broomstick and subscribers and/or contributors. This series is divided into two subseries: Author Files, which comprise a significant
portion of the entire collection, and Rejections, which comprise a small subset of material that the editors envisioned as
the beginning of a book project.
Subseries 4.1: Submissions.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
Author Files includes general correspondence, praise and criticism for
Broomstick, and accepted submissions that were published within
Broomstick; however the predominance of submissions were rejected by the editors. This subseries is composed primarily of general correspondence
between subscribers and the editors of
Broomstick. The majority of correspondence is focused on submissions to
Broomstick for consideration of publication in the magazine. Files include detailed correspondence with subscribers and authors describing
why a piece of work was accepted or rejected and follow up correspondence including drafts, revisions, comments, reactions,
ideas, criticisms, and praise. Readers sent in newspaper clippings, notices on community events, and copies of other independent
publications that they felt were relevant to
Broomstick’s audience. This series provides unique insight into the networking process behind a growing subculture of feminist literature
from the late 1970s through the 1980s and into the early 1990s. These records also provide perspective on the political mindset
of many of its subscribers.
Organization and Arrangement
The files follow original order and are organized alphabetically by first name, rather than last name, of the contributor.
In reaction to the common practice of women taking the surname of their husband upon marriage, the
Broomstick staff chose to file by first name in an attempt to maintain female identity. The
Broomstick staff organized these files based on the author’s status: contributing vs non-contributing, active and inactive authors.
There is a loose chronological order to the files; it seems there may have been two filing systems, one for records up to
1985 and one from 1986 to 1993. The files after 1994 are not very well organized. For more information on the organizational
structure of Author Files and how they were filed, please refer to Series 3.1, Box 24, Folder 7: Filing Policy.
Box 29, Folder 1
Author Files: A.
1978-1993.
Box 29, Folder 2
Author Files: Anne Grimm Richardson.
1979-1988.
Box 29, Folder 3
Author Files: A: 1 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 29, Folder 4
Author Files: A: 2 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 29, Folder 6
Author Files: A.
1982-1986.
Box 30, Folder 1
Author Files: A.
1983-1993.
Box 30, Folder 2
Author Files: A.
1987-1993.
Box 30, Folder 3
Author Files: Astra: 1 of 2.
1987-1993.
Box 30, Folder 4
Author Files: Astra: 2 of 2.
1987-1993.
Box 30, Folder 5
Author Files: A.
1988-1993.
Box 31, Folder 1
Author Files: B.
1980-1984.
Box 31, Folder 2
Barbara Mcdonald.
1980-1985.
Box 31, Folder 3
Author Files: B: 1 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 31, Folder 4
Author Files: B: 2 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 31, Folder 5
Author Files: B.
1980-1992.
Box 32, Folder 1
Author Files: B.
1984-1993.
Box 32, Folder 2
Author Files: B.
1984-1994.
Box 32, Folder 3
Author Files: B: 1 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 32, Folder 4
Author Files: B: 2 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 32, Folder 5
Author Files: B.
1987-1992.
Box 32, Folder 6
Charlotte St. John (Evans).
1979-1983.
Box 33, Folder 1
Charlotte St. John (Evans).
1983-1990.
Box 33, Folder 2
Author Files: C: 1 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 33, Folder 3
Author Files: C: 2 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 33, Folder 4
Charlene Baldridge.
1980-1990.
Box 33, Folder 5
Catherine Kidwell.
1981-1984.
Box 33, Folder 6
Author Files: C: 1 of 2.
1982-1992.
Box 33, Folder 7
Author Files: C: 2 of 2.
1982-1992.
Box 34, Folder 1
Author Files: C.
1982-1993.
Box 34, Folder 2
Author Files: C: 1 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 34, Folder 3
Author Files: C: 2 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 34, Folder 4
Author Files: C.
1988-1994.
Box 34, Folder 5
Author Files: C.
1989-1992.
Box 35, Folder 2
Author Files: D.
1980-1984.
Box 35, Folder 4
Author Files: D.
1982-1986.
Box 35, Folder 5
Author Files: D.
1982-1992.
Box 35, Folder 6
Author Files: D.
1984-1992.
Box 35, Folder 7
Author Files: D.
1985-1992.
Box 36, Folder 1
Author Files: D.
1986-1989.
Box 36, Folder 2
Author Files: D.
1986-1992.
Box 36, Folder 3
Author Files: D.
1986-1993.
Box 36, Folder 4
Author Files: D.
1987-1995.
Box 36, Folder 5
Demeter Aries-Pottrov-Aruru.
1988-1990.
Box 36, Folder 6
Author Files: E.
1978-1987.
Box 37, Folder 1
Author Files: E.
1979-1987.
Box 37, Folder 2
Author Files: E.
1981-1984.
Box 37, Folder 3
Author Files: E.
1985-1989.
Box 37, Folder 4
Author Files: E.
1986-1993.
Box 37, Folder 6
Author Files: E.
1992-1995.
Box 38, Folder 1
Author Files: F.
1979-1984.
Box 38, Folder 2
Author Files: F.
1986-1995.
Box 38, Folder 3
Author Files: G.
1980-1993.
Box 38, Folder 4
Author Files: G.
1986-1993.
Box 38, Folder 5
Author Files: H.
1979-1986.
Box 38, Folder 6
Author Files: H.
1979-1987.
Box 38, Folder 7
Author Files: H.
1986-1993.
Box 39, Folder 1
Author Files: I.
1978-1994.
Box 39, Folder 2
Isabelle Lyle.
1982-1987.
Box 39, Folder 3
Isabelle Lyle.
1987-1992.
Box 39, Folder 4
Author Files: J: 1 of 3.
1979-1986.
Box 39, Folder 5
Author Files: J: 2 of 3.
1979-1986.
Box 39, Folder 6
Author Files: J: 3 of 3.
1979-1986.
Box 40, Folder 1
Author Files: J.
1979-1987.
Box 40, Folder 2
Author Files: J.
1980-1992.
Box 40, Folder 3
Author Files: J.
1981-1986.
Box 40, Folder 4
Author Files: J.
1982-1992.
Box 40, Folder 5
Author Files: J.
1983-1992.
Box 40, Folder 6
Author Files: J.
1983-1993.
Box 41, Folder 1
Author Files: J.
1985-1992.
Box 41, Folder 2
Author Files: J: 1 of 2.
1986-1989.
Box 41, Folder 3
Author Files: J: 2 of 2.
1986-1989.
Box 41, Folder 4
Janny MacHarg, Jacqueline Lapidus.
1986-1991.
Box 41, Folder 5
Author Files: J.
1986-1992.
Box 41, Folder 6
Author Files: J.
1986-1993.
Box 42, Folder 1
Author Files: J.
1987-1992.
Box 42, Folder 2
Jessy Luanni Blackburn.
1990-1993.
Box 42, Folder 3
Author Files: J.
1991-1994.
Box 42, Folder 4
Judith M. Bernhard.
1995.
Box 42, Folder 5
Author Files: K.
1979-1985.
Box 42, Folder 6
Author Files: K: 1 of 2.
1980-1992.
Box 42, Folder 7
Author Files: K: 2 of 2.
1980-1992.
Box 42, Folder 8
Author Files: K.
1983-1995.
Box 43, Folder 1
Author Files: K.
1986-1993.
Box 43, Folder 2
Author Files: Kathleen McNamara.
1987-1990.
Box 43, Folder 3
Louise Mattlage.
1978-1991.
Box 43, Folder 4
Author Files: L: 1 of 4.
1979-1986.
Box 43, Folder 5
Author Files: L: 2 of 4.
1979-1986.
Box 43, Folder 6
Author Files: L: 3 of 4.
1979-1986.
Box 43, Folder 7
Author Files: L: 4 of 4.
1979-1986.
Box 44, Folder 1
Author Files: L.
1984-1992.
Box 44, Folder 2
Author Files: L: 1 of 2.
1986-1992.
Box 44, Folder 3
Author Files: L: 2 of 2.
1986-1992.
Box 44, Folder 4
Author Files: L.
1987-1992.
Box 44, Folder 5
Author Files: L.
1987-1993.
Box 44, Folder 6
Author Files: L.
1992-1994.
Box 45, Folder 1
Martha Gresham.
1979-1983.
Box 45, Folder 2
Marge Harburg.
1979-1983.
Box 45, Folder 3
Author Files: M: 1 of 2.
1979-1985.
Box 45, Folder 4
Author Files: M: 2 of 2.
1979-1985.
Box 45, Folder 5
Author Files: M: 1 of 2.
1979-1986.
Box 45, Folder 6
Author Files: M: 2 of 2.
1979-1986.
Box 45, Folder 7
Author Files: M.
1979-1987.
Box 46, Folder 1
Author Files: M.
1979-1992.
Box 46, Folder 2
Marjory Nelson: 1 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 46, Folder 3
Marjory Nelson: 2 of 2.
1980-1986.
Box 46, Folder 4
Author Files: M.
1980-1986.
Box 46, Folder 5
Millie Raskin (Sandy Lewis).
1980-1992.
Box 46, Folder 6
Mary Lou Skinner Ross.
1981-1986.
Box 46, Folder 7
Marilyn Carmen (Alisha Eshe).
1984-1991.
Box 47, Folder 1
Miriam Bradley.
1984-1991.
Box 47, Folder 2
Author Files: M.
1985-1991.
Box 47, Folder 3
Author Files: M: 1 of 3.
1986-1993.
Box 47, Folder 4
Author Files: M: 2 of 3.
1986-1993.
Box 47, Folder 5
Author Files: M: 3 of 3.
1986-1993.
Box 47, Folder 6
Author Files: M: 1 of 2.
1986-1992.
Box 48, Folder 1
Author Files: M: 2 of 2.
1986-1992.
Box 48, Folder 2
Maureen Williams.
1987-1991.
Box 48, Folder 3
Author Files: M: 1 of 3.
1987-1993.
Box 48, Folder 4
Author Files: M: 2 of 3.
1987-1993.
Box 48, Folder 5
Author Files: M: 3 of 3.
1987-1993.
Box 48, Folder 6
Author Files: M.
1989-1993.
Box 49, Folder 1
Mildred Miller.
1990-1992.
Box 49, Folder 2
Author Files: M.
1990-1995.
Box 49, Folder 3
Author Files: N.
1978-1993.
Box 49, Folder 4
Author Files: N.
1979-1986.
Box 49, Folder 5
Author Files: N.
1980-1992.
Box 49, Folder 7
Author Files: N.
1986-1992.
Box 50, Folder 2
Author Files: N.
1987-1992.
Box 50, Folder 3
Author Files: O.
1979-1992.
Box 50, Folder 5
Author Files: P.
1979-1984.
Box 50, Folder 6
Author Files: P.
1980-1986.
Box 50, Folder 7
Author Files: P.
1983-1992.
Box 51, Folder 1
Author Files: P: 1 of 2.
1985-1992.
Box 51, Folder 2
Author Files: P: 2 of 2.
1985-1992.
Box 51, Folder 3
Author Files: P.
1985-1993.
Box 51, Folder 4
Author Files: P.
1988-1995.
Box 51, Folder 5
Author Files: R.
1978-1987.
Box 51, Folder 6
Author Files: R.
1979-1986.
Box 52, Folder 1
Author Files: R.
1980-1986.
Box 52, Folder 2
Ruth Harriet Jacobs.
1980-1991.
Box 52, Folder 4
Author Files: R: 1 of 2.
1985-1992.
Box 52, Folder 5
Author Files: R: 2 of 2.
1985-1992.
Box 52, Folder 6
Author Files: R.
1986-1993.
Box 53, Folder 1
Author Files: R.
1989-1992.
Box 53, Folder 2
Author Files: R.
1991-1995.
Box 53, Folder 3
Author Files: S.
1978-1986.
Box 53, Folder 4
Author Files: S: 1 of 2.
1979-1986.
Box 53, Folder 5
Author Files: S: 2 of 2.
1979-1986.
Box 53, Folder 6
Sandra Hershkowitz.
1980-1983.
Box 53, Folder 7
Author Files: Susan Faulkner.
1980-1988.
Box 54, Folder 1
Author Files: S.
1984-1992.
Box 54, Folder 2
Author Files: Sue Williams.
1985-1989.
Box 54, Folder 3
Author Files: S: 1 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 54, Folder 4
Author Files: S: 2 of 2.
1986-1993.
Box 54, Folder 5
Author Files: Susan Koppelman.
1986-1991.
Box 54, Folder 6
Author Files: S.
1987-1992.
Box 54, Folder 7
Author Files: S.
1987-1993.
Box 55, Folder 1
Author Files: S.
1990-1993.
Box 55, Folder 2
Author Files: S.
1993-1995.
Box 55, Folder 3
Author Files: T.
1978-1993.
Box 55, Folder 4
Author Files: T.
1979-1992.
Box 55, Folder 5
Author Files: U.
1978-1993.
Box 55, Folder 6
Author Files: V: 1 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 55, Folder 7
Author Files: V: 2 of 2.
1978-1993.
Box 56, Folder 1
Author Files: Virginia Harris.
1982-1993.
Box 56, Folder 2
Author Files: W.
1978-1994.
Box 56, Folder 3
Wilma Elizabeth McDaniels.
1978-1983.
Box 56, Folder 4
Wilma Elizabeth McDaniels.
1984-1986.
Box 56, Folder 5
Wilma Elizabeth McDaniels.
1986-1987.
Box 56, Folder 6
Wilma Elizabeth McDaniels.
1987-1993.
Box 56, Folder 7
Author Files: Y-Z.
1978-1993.
Box 58, Folder 2
Correspondence: Miscellaneous.
1978-1993.
Subseries 4.2: Rejections.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
These files were collected and organized by the co-editors, Mickey Spencer and Polly Taylor, with the intention to write a
book titled,
Specimens. They collected a sampling of the rejected submissions to create a guidebook on common problems when submitting material
for publication. “Specimens” was meant to showcase the rejected submissions to
Broomstick in order to guide potential contributors to
Broomstick in the future. The book never made it to print; however, this collection is an excellent representation of the types of material
submitted, as well as correspondence between authors and
Broomstick. This subseries is important for documenting the political thinking of Maxine Spencer and the consequential tone of
Broomstick. For information on how submitted work was evaluated, please see Series 1, Box 3, Folder 6: Writer’s Packet, for writing
guidelines and Series 3.1, Box 24, Folder 5: Policies and Procedures which details
Broomstick’s internal policy on accepting and rejecting submissions.
Box 57, Folder 1
"Specimens Book": Letters.
1984-1988.
Scope and Content
This file includes a memo from Mickey Spencer explaining the purpose of compiling Specimens.
Box 57, Folder 2
"Specimens Book": Letters.
1989.
Box 57, Folder 3
"Specimens Book": Letters.
1990-1992.
Box 57, Folder 4
"Specimens Book": Letters.
1992.
Box 57, Folder 5
"Specimens Book": Letters: 1 of 2.
1993.
Box 57, Folder 6
"Specimens Book": Letters: 2 of 2.
1993.
Box 57, Folder 7
"Specimens Book": Response Letters, A-J.
1978-1993.
Box 58, Folder 1
"Specimens Book": Response Letters, L-W.
1978-1993.
Series 5: Personal Papers.
1970-1995.
Scope and Content
This series includes the personal papers of Maxine Spencer, Cynthia Rich, Barbara MacDonald and other contributors.
Organization and Arrangement
This Series is organized chronologically.
Subseries 5.1: Maxine Spencer.
1970-1995.
Scope and Content
This subseries provides a more holistic picture of the woman behind
Broomstick and helps the researcher conceptualize Mickey Spencer’s involvement in the radical feminist movement, which coincided and
influenced the direction and scope of
Broomstick magazine. These records document her life as a radical feminist and lesbian from 1969 to 1998. It also documents her personal
interests such as a local Reader’s Theater group, art galleries, and an activist group called Wishing Well.
Spencer’s personal notes on her counseling, radical therapy, and sexuality – including a manual on radical sex practices are
contained here. Documents on Consciousness Raising (CR) that she collected from her personal meetings, as well as material
she helped author and meetings she led are also included. These records provide evidence as to how CR meetings were created,
organized, held, and led during and after the 1970s through educational material, workshops, leadership training, and a list
of CR topics. Spencer’s correspondence details her involvement with other feminist and lesbian publications and organizations
and meetings that she attended, such as the Feminist Perspective on Aging, a peer-led-group, and the Crones Caucus, where
the idea of
Broomstick was originally born. Also included in this subseries is evidence of Spencer’s professional and academic work; it contains
several unpublished manuscripts and her literary works against ageism and stereotypes. There is a heavy concentration of research
material on the formation of feminist thought, and what Spencer deemed as the feminist process. She submitted many of these
essays, art, poetry, and scripts to many other publications; correspondence detailing these submissions is included here.
She also kept course notes, syllabi, reading lists, and essays from classes that she attended at Berkeley and the East Bay
Socialist School. Spencer designed and taught her own feminist courses taught at local community colleges; included are her
syllabi, class roster, lectures, and notes. After
Broomstick ceased publication, she continued her radical feminist work and wrote for several publications, specifically authoring a
special article/chapter for Sinister Wisdom’s book, Old Lesbians and Dykes. Maxine Spencer’s papers also include other journal
publications, pamphlets, books, essays, and manuscripts by her feminist contemporaries that she collected and believed pertinent
to the scope of her own work.
Box 64, Folder 4
Book: We Speak for Peace, Anthology.
1993.
Box 64, Folder 1
The Invisible Minority: Aging and Lesbianism.
1982.
Box 15, Folder 8
Journals: A-H.
1973-1993.
Scope and Content
Amazon Quarterly: Vol. 2, Issue 2, 1973 Encore, A Bi-Monthly Magazine Celebrating the Return of the Crone: Vol. 1, Issue 5,
1993 The Feminist Writers Guild, 1986 Directory Hikane, The Capable Womon: Disabled Wimmin's Magazine for Lesbians & Our Wimmin
Friends: Issue 7, Summer 1992 Humpty Dumpty Report: February/March 1983, Issue 4
Box 15, Folder 9
Journals: Heresies: no. 12, Sex Issue.
1981.
Box 64, Folder 2
Journals: O-W.
1969-1986.
Scope and Content
On Our Backs, Entertainment for the Adventurous Lesbian: Vol. 3, No. 2, Fall 1986 The Review of Radical Political Economics,
The Political Economy of Women: Vol. 4, No. 3, July 1972 "Sister," Los Angeles Feminist Newspaper: Vol. 5, No. 6, September
1974 Tooth and Nail, Published by members of Women's Liberation: Vol. 1 No. 1, September 16, 1969 Woman's Way, The Path of
Empowerment: Vol. 1, No. 1, June 1993 Women Writing Pamphlet
Box 64, Folder 3
Journals: Sinister Wisdom.
1991-1994.
Scope and Content
Sinister Wisdom: 43/44, Summer 1991: The 15th Anniversary Retrospective Sinister Wisdom: 53, Summer/Fall 1994: Old Lesbians/Dykes
Box 58, Folder 3
Notes: "Ageist uses of the word 'Mother'".
1994-1995.
Box 58, Folder 4
Essay: "Ageist uses of the word 'Mother'".
1995.
Box 58, Folder 5
Notes: "The Syndrome...".
1995.
Box 58, Folder 6
Artist's Statements.
1989-1996.
Box 59, Folder 2
Radical Therapy.
1970-1974.
Box 59, Folder 3
Consciousness Raising.
1970-1991.
Box 59, Folder 4
Consciousness Raising Topics.
1970-1993.
Box 59, Folder 5
Consciousness Raising Handbook.
1974.
Box 59, Folder 6
Radical Sex Manual.
1972.
Box 59, Folder 7
Research Study Group.
1974.
Box 59, Folder 8
Crones Caucus.
1976-1978.
Box 59, Folder 12
Feminist Perspectives on Aging Group.
1984-1995.
Box 59, Folder 13
Miscellaneous.
1978-1993.
Box 60, Folder 1
Manuscript: "Feminist Process," Notes.
1974.
Box 60, Folder 2
Manuscript: "Feminist Process," Draft.
1974.
Box 60, Folder 3
Manuscript: "Feminist Process," Finished Work.
1974.
Box 60, Folder 4
Marxism and Feminism Course.
1975.
Box 60, Folder 5
Marxism and Feminism Course, Notes.
1975.
Box 60, Folder 6
Mother-Daughter Essay.
1975-1978.
Box 60, Folder 7
Mother-Daughter Essay: Drafts.
1975-1981.
Box 60, Folder 8
Mother-Daughter Course: Drafts.
1976-1977.
Box 60, Folder 9
Mother-Daughter Course: Discussions.
1976-1977.
Box 61, Folder 1
Mother-Daughter Course: Completed Work.
1977.
Box 61, Folder 4
Submissions to Publications.
1975-1978.
Box 61, Folder 5
Submissions to Publications.
1985-1989.
Box 61, Folder 6
Correspondence: "Society on Trial," Draft.
1977-1981.
Box 61, Folder 7
Essay: Women in the U.S., Status Report.
1978.
Box 61, Folder 8
Sinister Wisdom, Old Lesbians and Dykes.
1994.
Subseries 5.2: Other Contributors.
1978-1993.
Scope and Content
This subseries contains the papers of Cynthia Rich and Barbara Anne (Charles) MacDonald, in addition to a small group of papers
by other contributors. These documents include papers, talks, articles, books, pictures, and correspondence. Several important
conferences are documented within these files, including the First West Coast Conference of Old Lesbians.
Barbara Macdonald, social worker, lesbian feminist activist, and author, was born on September 11, 1913. Cynthia Rich, teacher,
author, and a lifelong progressive political activist in the lesbian community, was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on March
12, 1933. Rich and Macdonald were domestic partners for 26 years. Both Rich and Macdonald's work appeared frequently in lesbian
and feminist publications such as Equal Times, Lesbian Ethics, Ms., New Directions, New Women's Times, Sinister Wisdom, Sojourner,
and
Broomstick. Macdonald received national recognition for her writings. In 1983, along with Rich, Macdonald co-authored Look Me in the
Eye: Old Women, Aging and Ageism. The book, which appeared in two expanded editions (1991, 2001), combined her personal experiences
of ageism with ground-breaking lesbian feminist theory, and was named by Ms. magazine as one of 35 classics of the second
wave of feminism. It also was widely anthologized for women's studies courses and was translated into Japanese in 1995. Her
work was the inspiration for the First West Coast Conference of Old Lesbians in 1987. Macdonald died June 15, 2000, of Alzheimer's
disease.
Organization and Arrangement
Folder titles reflect the original titles created by Macdonald or Rich and are organized chronologically.
Box 62, Folder 1
Barbara Macdonald: Articles.
1979-1984.
Box 62, Folder 2
Barbara Macdonald: Articles.
1985.
Box 62, Folder 3
Barbara Macdonald: Articles.
1985-1991.
Box 62, Folder 4
Barbara Macdonald: Spinsters Ink.
1983-1989.
Box 62, Folder 5
Barbara Macdonald Talks.
1984-1994.
Box 62, Folder 6
Lesbian and Feminist Conferences.
1983-1990.
Box 62, Folder 7
Lesbian and Feminist Conferences.
1988-1989.
Box 63, Folder 1
Dissertation: The Politics of Women's Liberation, by Jo Freeman: Part 1 of 2.
1973.
Box 63, Folder 2
Dissertation: The Politics of Women's Liberation, by Jo Freeman: Part 2 of 2.
1973.
Box 63, Folder 3
Cynthia Rich: Articles.
1972-1992.
Box 63, Folder 4
Cynthia Rich: Articles.
1979-1980.
Box 63, Folder 5
Cynthia Rich: Articles.
1979-1988.
Box 63, Folder 6
Cynthia Rich: Articles.
1980-1984.
Box 63, Folder 8
West Coast Conference of Old Lesbians.
1986-1987.
