Ruth G. Babcock WAC Mothers' Association Collection

Finding aid created by Glendale Central Library History Room staff using RecordEXPRESS
Glendale Library, Arts and Culture. Glendale Central Library History Room
222 E. Harvard Street
Glendale, California 91205
(818) 548-3749
libraryinfo@glendaleca.gov
http://www.glendalepubliclibrary.org/
2021


Descriptive Summary

Title: Ruth G. Babcock WAC Mothers' Association Collection
Dates: 1943-1945, 1968
Collection Number: RGB
Creator/Collector: Babcock, Ruth G. United States. Army. Women's Army Corps
Extent: 0.21 linear feet, 1 box
Repository: Glendale Library, Arts and Culture. Glendale Central Library History Room
Glendale, California 91205
Abstract: Ruth G. Babcock was a resident of Glendale, California and the founder and president of Chapter 71 of the WAC Mothers' Association, an organization established to aid members of the Women's Army Corps wherever they served during World War II. The Ruth G. Babcock WAC Mothers' Association Collection primarily consists of administrative correspondence, reports, procedural documents, newsletters and news clippings, as well as WAC recruitment materials. Two items, one a group photograph, document the enlistment of Ruth's daughter Virginia. Another item documents the imprisonment of Ruth's son-in-law, Sherwin L. Barton in a German prisoner of war camp.
Language of Material: English

Access

The collection is open for research use.

Publication Rights

Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of this collection has not been transferred to Glendale Central Library. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred Citation

Ruth G. Babcock WAC Mothers' Association Collection. Glendale Library, Arts and Culture. Glendale Central Library History Room

Acquisition Information

Ubknown

Scope and Content of Collection

The Ruth G. Babcock WAC Mothers' Association Collection consists of administrative papers and correspondence of Chapter 71 of the WAC Mothers' Association. The Collection documents the proceedings and programs of the organization, and includes its constitution and by-laws, reports of the organization's activities, lists of chapters with member names and addresses, copies of the newsletter, News and Views To and From the WAC, as well as WAC brochures and booklets. In addition, the collection includes administrative papers and correspondence of the Women's Army Corps of Southern California, Civilian Advisory Committee, an organization headed by Helen H. Garretson. The Committee worked in collaboration with the WAC Mothers' Association to help with WAC recruitment, and the two groups also organized at least one memorial service together. Two of Ruth's daughters, Virginia and Dorothy, enlisted as WACs. Dorothy’s activities are not represented in the collection. However, a few items from Virginia's service are present, including the collection's only photograph, a group portrait of Company 15, 3rd Regiment. On the photograph's verso, Virginia noted the names of several officers and others. Another item of interest in the collection is a photocopied page of a card documenting the imprisonment of Ruth's son-in-law, Sherwin L. Barton in a German prisoner of war camp. Barton's WW II diaries are held in the archives of Pennsylvania State University.

Indexing Terms

World War, 1939-1945--Women
Women's history
United States. Army. Women's Army Auxiliary Corps
Babcock, Ruth G., 1894-1992
Babcock, Virginia Andrews, 1920-2010
Garretson, Helen H., 1894-1997
Babcock, Henry Andrews, 1891-1975
Barton, Sherwin L. (Sherwin Lemmon), 1918-1995
Women's Army Corps of Southern California. Civilian Advisory Committee
United States. Army. Women's Army Corps
Glendale (Calif.)
Los Angeles County (Calif.)
Paper Records
Photographic Materials

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