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Wyckoff (Florence R.) Papers
MS.096
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Contributing Institution:
University of California, Santa Cruz
Title: Florence Richardson Wyckoff papers
Creator:
Wyckoff, Florence, 1905-1983
source:
Wyckoff, Florence,
1905-1983
Identifier/Call Number: MS.096
Physical Description:
25.7 Linear Feet
55 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1938-2000
Abstract: This collection documents the advocacy
work of Florence Richardson Wyckoff during the 20th century, whose work advocated for the
rights for migrant farmworkers in California and throughout the United States. Her advocacy
ranged from issues of health, housing, social work, and education, all focusing on the
welfare of migrant farmworkers and their families. The collection includes records from her
involvement in organizations and committees in non-profit and governmental sectors,
including Migrant and Adaptation in the Americas (MAIA), Farm Labor Housing Advisory
Committee, Corralitos Valley Community Council, Coastal Resource Management Project,
California Advisory Board on Children and Youth, Governor's Advisory Committee on Children
and Youth, California Board of Public Health, and California Citizens Committee on
Adoptions. Types of materials include reports, government publications, periodicals, files,
correspondence, and research materials.
Language of Material:
English .
This collection guide contains harmful language which was used by either the original
creators or the prior stewards of the materials in this collection. Library staff made the
decision to retain and repurpose this description because it may provide important context
about its creators, custodial history, and/or source. We are committed to describing
materials in a manner that respects those who create, are represented in, and interact with
the collections we steward, as well as preserving the original context of collection
materials. Ethically managing archival description is an ongoing and iterative practice, and
we welcome your feedback and questions at speccoll@library.ucsc.edu.
Collection is open for research.
Copyright for the items in this collection is owned by the creators and their heirs.
Reproduction or distribution of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair
use requires permission from the copyright owner. It is the responsibility of the user to
determine whether a use is fair use, and to obtain any necessary permissions. For more
information see UCSC Special Collections and Archives policy on Reproduction and Use.
Florence Richardson Wyckoff papers, MS 96, Special Collections, University Library,
University of California, Santa Cruz.
Gift of Florence Richardson Wyckoff, 1984.
Florence Richardson Wyckoff (1905-2000) was a social activist based in Watsonville,
California who dedicated her life to advocating for the health and upward mobility of
migrant farmworkers and their families at local, state, and national levels. Throughout her
career, she was involved in grassroots, legislative, non-profit, and community-building
organizations such as the California Advisory Board on Children and Youth, the Governor's
Advisory Committee on Children and Youth, the California Board of Public Health, the
Corralitos Valley Community Council, the Coastal Resource Management Project, the Farm Labor
Housing Advisory Committee, and the California Citizens Committee on Adoptions. A career
milestone was Wyckoff's involvement in the passage of the California Migrant Health Act and
subsequent Federal Migrant Health Act in 1962, which established health clinics for families
of migrant farmworkers throughout the country. Florence Wyckoff passed away in 2000 at the
age of 94.
Born in 1905, Florence Richardson was one of four children and the daughter of a professor
and a stay at home mother who was deaf. As a child, she frequented the University of
California, Berkeley with her father and eventually became involved with the Berkeley Music
Association. This led to her attending UC Berkeley, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Art in
1926. With intentions of becoming an artist, her career trajectory shifted as she began to
experience the world, as the Great Depression took hold of the country, and as she became
involved in labor organizing. She married attorney Hubert Coke Wyckoff, Jr. in 1931.
Wyckoff was appointed to the Governor's Advisory Committee on Children and Youth in 1948 by
California Governor Earl Warren, and she continued on the advisory committee under four
governors. As part of this committee, Wyckoff co-organized five Conferences on Families Who
Follow the Crops during the late 1950s and early 1960s. She had an interdisciplinary focus
in helping to organize these conferences, bringing together migrant farmworkers, social
workers, migrant ministers, teachers, public health workers, labor officials, and members of
rural county governments to cultivate the well-being of migrant families.
Wyckoff's advocacy helped pass the California Migrant Health Act and the subsequent Federal
Migrant Health Act in 1962. Both acts supported the health of migrant families who followed
the crops, with the 1962 act establishing critical clinics for families across the United
States. Once the legislation was passed, Wyckoff's advocacy turned to ensuring that budget
appropriations for the migrant health programs continued.
This collection documents the advocacy work of Florence Richardson Wyckoff during the 20th
century, whose work advocated for the rights for migrant farmworkers in California and
throughout the United States. Her advocacy ranged from issues of health, housing, social
work, and education, all focusing on the welfare of migrant farmworkers and their families.
The collection includes records from her involvement in organizations and committees in
non-profit and governmental sectors, including Migrant and Adaptation in the Americas
(MAIA), Farm Labor Housing Advisory Committee, Corralitos Valley Community Council, Coastal
Resource Management Project, California Advisory Board on Children and Youth, Governor's
Advisory Committee on Children and Youth, California Board of Public Health, and California
Citizens Committee on Adoptions. Types of materials include reports, government
publications, periodicals, files, correspondence, and research materials. A small amount of
Wyckoff's personal files and biographical information are included in the collection.
This collection is arranged in four series:
- Series 1: Health papers
- Series 2: Rural and housing papers
- Series 3: General papers
- Series 4: Committee and non-profit papers
The first accrual of this collection, which comprises the first three series, was received
in 1984 and processed in 1999 by Paul Machlis and the OAC Processing Unit. The second
accrual of the collection (Series 4) was processed by Brittney Jimenez with assistance from
Alix Norton in the Center for Archival Research and Training (CART), 2022-2023. Most titles
in this collection were derived from the original folder titles as received from the
donor.
The oral history of Florence Richardson Wyckoff,
Fifty Years of Grassroots Social
Activism
, was published in 1987 by the Regional History Project, UCSC Library.
Call number CT275.W93A3 1987. Available online at
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4k92172s
A selection of published works may be found in the UCSC Library by searching "Wyckoff,
Florence" in the Author/creator field in UCSC Library Search.
Additional personal and professional materials are available at Florence Richardson Wyckoff
Papers, BANC MSS 78/55 c, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Santa Cruz County (Calif.) -- Cultural policy
Social work with youth --
California
Community development, Urban -- California
-- Santa Cruz County
Migrant agricultural laborers --
California
Public health personnel -- Education --
California
Health education -- California
Rural health services --
California
Health services administration --
California
Visiting nurses -- California -- Santa Cruz
County
Public housing -- California
Health planning -- California
California -- Politics and government --
1850-1950
Cranston, Alan, 1914-2000
Olson, Culbert L. (Culbert Levy),
1876-1962
California. Governor's Advisory Committee
on Children and Youth. Subcommittee on the Migrant Child
Wyckoff, Florence,
1905-1983
Wyckoff, Hubert C. (Hubert Coke), 1901-1979