Guide to the Vivian Hall Papers

1. National Women's Political Caucus (NWPC)

Scope and Content Note

Primary concerns of the NWPC include encouraging women to run for political office, getting women appointed to public positions, and supporting passage of equal rights legislation. In 1974 Hall helped found the Orange County chapter of the NWPC and served as its first president. In 1975 Hall was elected First Vice Chair of the National Caucus, the first West coast woman to obtain such a position at the national level. Her correspondence highlights the financial and logistical difficulties of working with the heavily East coast-based NWPC. Hall's involvement at the local level is also well represented and illuminates many of the political and feminist issues and activities in Orange County during the 1970s and early 1980s.

The series is subdivided by national, state, and local (Orange County) organizations and is arranged alphabetically by subject thereunder. The bulk of material was produced between 1974-1979 documenting Hall's involvement at the national level. Documents include correspondence, committee papers, NWPC publications, convention materials, and clippings.

Materials related to Hall's 1976 campaign for Congress and references to International Women's Year are also found throughout this series.

2. International Women's Year (IWY)

Scope and Content Note

Activities in the United States observing the International Women's Year culminated with the National Women's Conference in Houston, November 18-21, 1977. The National Commission on the Observance of IWY was created in 1975 and $5,000,000 was allocated by Congress for the national conference and preliminary state meetings. In addition to workshops devoted to women's issues, a focus of the state meetings was the election of delegates and the drafting of resolutions to be taken to the national conference.

Hall served on the Executive Board of the Coordinating Committee for the California state meeting held at USC, June 16-19, 1977. She was elected a delegate to the national conference and served as chair for the Orange County delegation. Her records offer an excellent behind-the-scenes look at the development of the California conference, as well as extensive clippings by which to gauge public reaction to the meetings, both nationally and locally.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject. Materials include national and state conference materials, IWY publications, materials from the California Coordinating Committee, correspondence, and artifacts including pins, pendants, a T-shirt, and the hat worn by Hall to the national conference, as she was pictured in Time magazine.

Materials referring to International Women's Year are also found in Series 1.

3. Congressional Campaign, 1976

Scope and Content Note

In 1976, Hall ran for Congress in California s 40th Congressional District (included large portions of Orange County), the first woman in that district to run for federal office. She won the Democratic primary, garnering twice as many votes as her nearest opponent, but failed to take the heavily Republican district in the final election. Hall received 42% of the vote in a district where only 39% of voters are registered Democrats. Through a grass roots effort, her entire campaign cost less than $27,000.

The series, which is arranged alphabetically by subject, documents the political issues of the day in Orange County and the development of a grass roots Congressional campaign. Materials include correspondence, papers relating to campaign finances and fundraising, campaign ephemera, position papers, research notes, press releases, clippings, and photos.

Materials relating to Hall's Congressional campaign are also found in Series 1. The Department of Special Collections also houses the Congressional papers of Robert Badham, Hall's Republican opponent in 1976.

4. Orange County Women vs. Senator Campbell

Scope and Content Note

California State Senator Bill Campbell (R-El Toro) sponsored an annual non-profit women's conference in southern California from 1983 to 1988. The conferences were very successful and attracted many corporate sponsors; however, the single largest financial contributor and co-sponsor of the conference was the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), a taxpayer-funded Federal agency. The SBA contributed staff time and over $240,000 in printing/postage subsidies from 1985-1988. A coalition of women's groups calling themselves "We Are Women," of which Hall was a leading member, began picketing the conferences in 1986 because they were concerned that Campbell's voting record did not support the interests of women and that he was using the conference for political and financial gain. The group's complaints reached the SBA and led to an inquiry by a U.S. Senate Committee. As a result, the SBA dropped its sponsorship of the conference, revised its policies for sponsoring and subsidizing conferences put on by politicians, and demanded nearly $50,000 in repayment for the 1988 conference. Additionally, investigations by the Fair Political Practices Commission, the State Attorney General's Office, and the U.S. General Accounting Office were begun. Campbell ended his sponsorship of the conference after the 1988 conference, but despite the controversy was able to defeat his 1988 Democratic opponent for the State Senate, Jan Graham.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject and documents the controversy thoroughly. Materials include clippings, conference mailings and registration packets, a copy of the 1987 conference financial report, articles and flyers that were distributed through mailings and picket lines, reports of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business, and an extensive file of largely incoming correspondence from the Orange County Register, the State Attorney General's Office, the U.S. Small Business Administration, corporate sponsors, State Senate candidate Jan Graham, celebrity conference speakers, and local feminist leaders.

5. Subject File

Scope and Content Note

Hall's interests and involvement in politics, women's issues, and education can be seen throughout this series, with extensive coverage of issues at the local level (Orange County). Hall helped organize several of the conferences found in this series; she also helped found two of the local women's groups, Women For: Orange County (chapter) and Women's Network Alert. And in 1978, Hall ran for a seat on the Irvine City Council.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject. File categories are not mutually exclusive, especially where politics and women's issues are concerned. Types of material include correspondence, articles, clippings, conference materials, newsletters, and other ephemera.

6. Teaching Career

Scope and Content Note

This series reflects Hall's career as a professional educator, her affiliations with professional educational associations and unions, and her interest in women's studies.

Hall began teaching in 1964, and taught English and history at Westminster High School from 1968-1983. While there, she initiated courses titled Women in Literature and Women in History; these classes were among the first in women's studies taught at the high school level in the United States. In 1981, Hall founded CARE (Committee Against Racism in Education) and won the 1982 California Youth Authority state award for the most innovative program to combat juvenile delinquency.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject. Materials include correspondence, clippings, student work, course outlines and syllabi, convention materials, bibliographies, and various publications.

7. Personal

Scope and Content Note

This series contains items pertaining to Hall s personal life, including biographical materials, family documents, items documenting her education at and ongoing involvement with Vassar College, personal correspondence, resumi, awards, and photographs.

The series is arranged alphabetically by subject. Materials include correspondence, clippings, photos, manuscripts, and an audiotaped interview. Overall coverage is patchy, and documentation prior to the 1970s is weak.

1. NATIONAL WOMEN'S POLITICAL CAUCUS (NWPC)

Box 1, Folder 1

General

Box 1, Folder 2

Clippings

Box 1, Folder 2

Correspondence

Box 1, Folder 3

General

Box 1, Folder 4

Personal

Box 1, Folder 5

Ephemera

Box 1, Folder 6

Hall for Congress campaign correspondence

Box 1, Folder 6

Issues

Box 1, Folder 7

Female delegate representation at national party conventions

Box 1, Folder 8

Talamantes, Olga

Box 1, Folder 9

Manual for Organizing

Box 1, Folder 10

Women Candidates

Box 1, Folder 10

National Caucus

Box 1, Folder 11

Advisory Board (1977-80)

Box 1, Folder 11

Committees

Box 1, Folder 12

Administrative Committee (1975-77)

Box 1, Folder 13

1977 Convention

Box 1, Folder 14

Correspondence

Box 1, Folder 15

Memos

Box 1, Folder 16

Minutes/Agendas

Box 1, Folder 17

Steering Committee (1975-77)

Box 1, Folder 18

Meeting folder (Jan. 31, 1976)

Box 2, Folder 1

Memos

Box 2, Folder 2

Minutes/Agendas

Box 2, Folder 3

Other standing committees

Box 2, Folder 3

Conferences (other)

Box 2, Folder 4

New York City, Democratic National Convention (1980)

Box 2, Folder 4

Conventions (Biennial)

Box 2, Folder 5

1973 Houston, Texas

Box 2, Folder 6

1974 Wichita, Kansas

Box 2, Folder 7

1977 San Jose, California

Box 2, Folder 8

Bulletins

Box 2, Folder 9

Candidates

Box 2, Folder 10

Correspondence

Box 2, Folder 11

Convention folder & materials

Box 2, Folder 12

Invitations

Box 2, Folder 13

Resolutions

Box 2, Folder 14

Speeches, Hall's introductory notes

Box 2, Folder 19

Audiotaped speeches

Box 2, Folder 15

1979 Cincinnati, Ohio

Box 2, Folder 16

1981 Albuquerque, New Mexico

Box 3, Folder 1

1983 San Antonio, Texas

Box 3, Folder 2

1985 Atlanta, Georgia

Box 3, Folder 3

Correspondence (1975-1976)

Box 3, Folder 4

Democratic Task Force

Box 3, Folder 5

Democratic Conference (Nov. 8-9, 1975)

Box 3, Folder 5

Newsletters

Box 3, Folder 6

Caucus Comments, Iowa Women's Political Caucus

Box 3, Folder 7

NWPC Newsletter (1973-1975)

Box 3, Folder 8

NWPC Quarterly Report

Box 3, Folder 9

Republican Women's Task Force

Box 3, Folder 10

Women's Political Times

Box 3, Folder 11

Position papers

Box 3, Folder 12

California State Caucus

Box 3, Folder 12

Conventions

Box 3, Folder 13

1973 Oakland/Berkeley

Box 3, Folder 14

1976 Newport Beach

Box 3, Folder 15

1977 Concord

Box 4, Folder 1

1978 Fresno

Box 4, Folder 2

1981 Long Beach

Box 4, Folder 3

Correspondence and memos

Box 4, Folder 4

Steering Committee

Box 4, Folder 5

Orange County Chapter

Box 19, Folder 5

Artifacts: pins

Box 4, Folder 6

By-laws

Box 4, Folder 7

Clippings

Box 4, Folder 8

Conferences/Workshops/Luncheons

Box 4, Folder 9

Correspondence (1973-1976)

Box 4, Folder 10

Finances

Box 4, Folder 10

Issues

Box 4, Folder 11

Kaywood, Miriam

Box 4, Folder 12

Manpower Agency

Box 4, Folder 13

Meeting flyers

Box 4, Folder 14

Memos

Box 4, Folder 15

Minutes/Agendas (1973-1974)

Box 4, Folder 16

Newsletters (1973-1983)

Box 4, Folder 17

Press releases

2. INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S YEAR (IWY)

Box 19, Folder 17

Artifacts: T-shirt, pins, pendants, hat, scarf

Box 4, Folder 18

California

Box 4, Folder 19

Coordinating Committee

Box 4, Folder 20

Correspondence (1977)

Box 4, Folder 21

Delegate selection & voting results

Box 4, Folder 22

Executive Board

Box 5, Folder 1

Finances

Box 5, Folder 2

Manual

Box 5, Folder 3

Minutes/Agendas (1977)

Box 5, Folder 4

Notes

Box 5, Folder 5

Rosters

Box 5, Folder 6

Orange County

Box 5, Folder 6

State Meeting, USC (June 16-19, 1977)

Box 5, Folder 7

Meeting folder and materials

Box 5, Folder 8

International Women's Year: California State Meeting. Final Report to the National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year June 1977

Box 5, Folder 9

UCI Mini-Conference (Apr. 27, 1977)

Box 5, Folder 9

Clippings

Box 6, Folder 1

Daily Pilot

Box 6, Folder 2

Los Angeles Times

Box 6, Folder 3

Orange County Register

Box 6, Folder 4

Other newspapers

Box 6, Folder 5

Magazines

Box 6, Folder 6

Continuing Committee of IWY

Box 6, Folder 6

Correspondence (1977)

Box 6, Folder 7

Incoming

Box 6, Folder 8

Outgoing

Box 6, Folder 9

Iowa Coordinating Committee

Box 6, Folder 10

Miscellaneous

Box 6, Folder 11

National Commission on the Observance of IWY

Box 6, Folder 11

National Conference, Houston (Nov. 18, 1977)

Box 6, Folder 12

Conference folder and materials

Box 6, Folder 13

The Spirit of Houston: An Official Report to the President, the Congress and the People of the United States.

Box 6, Folder 14

Las Mujeres. 1977 National Women's Conference

Box 6, Folder 14

Newsletters

Box 7, Folder 1

Commission Agendas

Box 7, Folder 2

Commission Updates

Box 7, Folder 3

Press releases

Box 7, Folder 4

To Form a More Perfect Union: Justice for American Women. Report of the National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year 1976

Box 7, Folder 5-6

Workshop guidelines

Box 7, Folder 7

Protest

Box 7, Folder 8

Publications

Box 7, Folder 9

US Center for IWY

3. CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGN, 1976

Box 19, Folder 9

Artifacts: Stamp, "Pills"

Box 8, Folder 1

Artwork

Box 8, Folder 2

Ballot

Box 8, Folder 3

Calendar

Box 8, Folder 4

Clippings

Box 8, Folder 4

Correspondence

Box 8, Folder 4

Incoming

Box 8, Folder 5-6

Personally addressed to Hall (Feb.-Dec. 1976)

Box 8, Folder 7

Generally addressed (i.e. "Dear Candidate")

Box 8, Folder 8

Outgoing (Mar.-Nov. 1976)

Box 8, Folder 9

Endorsements

Box 9, Folder 1

Ephemera

Box 9, Folder 2

Finances

Box 9, Folder 2

Contributions

Box 9, Folder 3

Correspondence with amount notations

Box 9, Folder 4

Correspondence with unspecified amount notations

Box 9, Folder 5

Lists of contributors and envelopes with amount notations

Box 9, Folder 6

Fundraising

Box 9, Folder 7

Miscellaneous

Box 9, Folder 7

Networking

Box 9, Folder 8

Contact card file

Box 9, Folder 9

Democratic clubs & parties

Box 9, Folder 10

National Organization of Women

Box 10, Folder 1

National Women's Political Caucus

Box 10, Folder 2

Teachers' groups

Box 10, Folder 3

Vassar

Box 10, Folder 4

Photos

Box 10, Folder 5

Position papers

Box 10, Folder 6

Press kit

Box 10, Folder 7

Press releases

Box 10, Folder 8

"Republicans for Hall"

Box 10, Folder 9

Research (campaign notes, background information)

Box 10, Folder 10

Speaking engagements

Box 10, Folder 11

"Volunteers for Vivian"

4. ORANGE COUNTY WOMEN VS. SENATOR BILL CAMPBELL

Box 10, Folder 12

Campbell, William, California State Senator

Box 10, Folder 13

Campbell's Conference on Women

Box 10, Folder 14

Clippings

Box 10, Folder 15

Other conferences on women

Box 11, Folder 1

U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business

Box 11, Folder 2

"We Are Women"

Box 11, Folder 3

Articles and flyers for distribution

Box 11, Folder 4

Correspondence (1987-1989)

5. SUBJECT FILE

Box 11, Folder 5

Abortion

Box 11, Folder 6

Aging

Box 11, Folder 7

Carter inauguration and White House

Box 11, Folder 8

Chicago, Judy - The Dinner Party

Box 11, Folder 8

Conferences/Conventions/Seminars

Box 11, Folder 9

1974 Mar. 30. Look Wider Still, Girl Scout Council of Orange County

Box 11, Folder 10

1974 May 11. Salute to Women Leaders of Orange County, Newport Beach

Box 11, Folder 11

1974 Sept. 21. Ballot Power, Southern California Democratic Women's Caucus

Box 11, Folder 12

1975 Aug. Texas Women's Political Caucus annual convention

Box 11, Folder 13

1975 Oct. 24. International Women's Day, Orange Coast College

Box 11, Folder 14

1975 Nov. 9-11. Women In Public Life, Texas

Box 11, Folder 15

1976 Feb. 14. California Conference on the Status of Women in Medicine, UCI

Box 11, Folder 16

1976 May 18. Democratic National Convention, Appendix 1: Recommendations to the Platform Committee

Box 11, Folder 17

1977 May 7. Watering the Grass Roots, UCI

Box 12, Folder 1

1980 Democratic National Convention

Box 12, Folder 2

1980 Mar 15. Southern California Democratic Women's Caucus

Box 12, Folder 3

1980 June-July. White House Conference on Families

Box 12, Folder 4

1982 Apr. 4. Jerry M. Patterson Sponsored Women's Forum

Box 12, Folder 5

1982 Aug. 11. CB&S/Image Works Business Women's Conference

Box 12, Folder 6

1988 Jan. 29. Orange County Democratic Convention, Women's Plank

Box 12, Folder 7

1988 Mar. 8. International Women's Day Celebration, Rancho Santiago College

Box 12, Folder 8

1991 May 6-7. Orange County Women's Conference

Box 12, Folder 9

Other conferences (including undated)

Box 12, Folder 10

Dunbar, Paul Laurence (UCI Extension class)

Box 12, Folder 11

Elect a woman Vice President

Box 12, Folder 12

Equal Rights Amendments

Box 12, Folder 13

ERA Orange County

Box 12, Folder 14

Schlafly, Phyllis

Box 12, Folder 15

Eu, March Fong, California Secretary of State (1974)

Box 12, Folder 16

Friends of California Libraries

Box 12, Folder 17

Irvine City Council campaign (1978)

Box 12, Folder 18

Irvine public library (Friends of...)

Box 12, Folder 19

James, C.L.R.

Box 12, Folder 20

Jane Austen Society of North America

Box 12, Folder 21

Jews/Judaism

Box 12, Folder 22

Latinos

Box 12, Folder 23

League of Women Voters

Box 12, Folder 24

Literature (books and authors)

Box 12, Folder 25

Miscellaneous

Box 12, Folder 26

Nathan, Otto

Box 12, Folder 27

National Organization of Women

Box 12, Folder 28

Newport Harbor Actor's Theatre

Box 12, Folder 29

O'Neill, Cathy (political cartoons signed by Paul Conrad)

Box 19, Folder 29

Film (featuring O'Neill's campaign)

Box 12, Folder 30

Politics

Box 12, Folder 31

Orange County

Box 13, Folder 1

Women in Politics

Box 13, Folder 19

Video: Jim Cooper's Orange County, "The Political Gender Gap" (Hall is a panelist)

Box 13, Folder 2

Roosevelt, Eleanor

Box 13, Folder 3

Sexism in education

Box 13, Folder 4

Equal Rights for Women in Education: An Overview of Federal Court Decisions Affecting Equal Rights for Women in Education

Box 13, Folder 5

Sterilization

Box 13, Folder 6

Tustin public library (Friends of...)

Box 13, Folder 7

W.A.G.E. (We Advocate Gender Equity)

Box 13, Folder 8

Watts Towers (Los Angeles)

Box 13, Folder 9

Women (general)

Box 13, Folder 10

Articles

Box 13, Folder 11

Clippings

Box 13, Folder 12

Magazines (whole issues)

Box 13, Folder 13

Newsletters and pamphlets

Box 13, Folder 14

Getting Clear: Body Work for Women (book)

Box 13, Folder 15

Women For: Orange County

Box 14, Folder 1

Brochures/Meeting announcements

Box 14, Folder 2

Clippings

Box 14, Folder 3

Correspondence (1984-1993)

Box 14, Folder 4

Great American Write-In (includes photos) (1986-1996)

Box 14, Folder 5

Minutes/Agendas (1984)

Box 14, Folder 6

Newsletters (1984-1994)

Box 14, Folder 7

Procedures/By-laws

Box 14, Folder 8

Rosters

Box 14, Folder 9

Women of Achievement Awards

Box 14, Folder 10

Women in television

Box 14, Folder 11

Women in the workplace

Box 14, Folder 12

Women of Achievement Awards, Rancho Santiago College

Box 14, Folder 13

Women's Coalition of Orange County

Box 14, Folder 14

Women's History Library (Friends of...)

Box 14, Folder 15

Women's Network Alert

Box 14, Folder 16

Correspondence (1982-1993)

Box 14, Folder 17

McCarthy, Leo T., Lieutenant Governor of California (1982-1984)

Box 14, Folder 18

Patterson, Jerry M., House Rep. for the 38th Congressional District of California (1982)

Box 14, Folder 19

Freeman, Anna (materials donated by...)

Box 14, Folder 20

Suffrage Day Luncheon

Box 15, Folder 1

1994 (honoring Amy Biehl)

Box 15, Folder 2

Clippings

Box 15, Folder 3

Correspondence (1985-1993)

Box 15, Folder 4

Ephemera (1982-1995)

Box 15, Folder 5

Resumis

6. TEACHING CAREER

Box 15, Folder 6

Associations/Unions

Box 15, Folder 7

California Federation of Teachers

Box 15, Folder 8

Huntington Beach Union High School District

Box 15, Folder 9

GATE Student Conference (Mar. 22, 1982)

Box 15, Folder 10

Westminster High School

Box 15, Folder 11

CARE (Committee Against Racism in Education)

Box 15, Folder 12

Women in History class

Box 15, Folder 13

Women in Literature class

Box 15, Folder 14

Malaga Cove Intermediate School (student work)

Box 16, Folder 1-2

Miscellaneous

Box 16, Folder 3

Women's Studies

Box 16, Folder 4

Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, Vassar

Box 16, Folder 5

Bibliographies

Box 16, Folder 6

College courses (includes syllabi)

Box 16, Folder 7-8

Papers in Women's Studies. Vol. 1, Nos. 1-4. University of Michigan

Box 16, Folder 9

National Women's Studies Association, convention (May 30, 1979)

7. PERSONAL

Box 17, Folder 1

Awards (includes photos)

Box 17, Folder 2

Birth certificate

Box 17, Folder 3

Clippings

Box 17, Folder 4

Correspondence, A-Z

Box 17, Folder 5

Abzug, Bella (1978, n.d.)

Box 17, Folder 6

Hackett, Frances (1959)

Box 17, Folder 7

Marcuse, Herbert (1956)

Box 17, Folder 8

Family

Box 17, Folder 8

Family documents

Box 17, Folder 9

Douglas (son)

Box 17, Folder 10

Benjamin Halpern (father) - includes "A Brief Resumi" (1943)

Box 17, Folder 11

Benedicta Kirschstein Halpern (mother)

Box 17, Folder 12

Autobiography

Box 17, Folder 13

Interview (1995), conducted by Kasra Rowshan, a freshman at the University of California, Irvine (audio tape, 50 min.)

Box 17, Folder 13

Manuscripts:

Box 17, Folder 14

"A History of the Halpern Family in America" (1943)

Box 17, Folder 14

"The Perils of Poldark"

Box 17, Folder 15

Jack London: Superman and Socialist (master's thesis)

Box 18, Folder 1

The Towers of Watts (unpublished book for young adults)

Box 18, Folder 2

Photos

Box 18, Folder 3

Resumi (1995)

Box 18, Folder 4

Vassar

Box 18, Folder 5

Correspondence

Box 18, Folder 6-7

Vassar Quarterly (Hall was the 1944 class correspondent from 1973-1975)

Series Descriptions

Container List