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English Literary Club Records

Collection, Ms B95

after 1896
Fairfield Museum
The English Literary Club was organized in Bridgeport in 1879 by a small group of women. The object of the club is intellectual culture and literary pursuits. The twenty-five members meet weekly between October and May, when they hold an annual meeting. The hostess of each meeting serves as president and is responsible for the program. The club is still active and will continue to add to these records. The membership voted in November 1997 to deposit their records at the Historical Society for preservation and access.
The collection of the English Literary Club, which Carolyn Blish had organized chronologically and placed in acid-free folders prior to donation of the records, consists primarily of annual programs, treasurers' reports, minutes, and annual reports by the secretary, treasurer, and parliamentarian from 1896 to the present. Additional materials include the constitution and later revisions, newspaper articles and obituaries of members, correspondence, photographs, and several bills. Duplicate programs, constitution revisions and photographs are arranged by subject at the end of the collection. The first treasurer's report appears for 1934-1935 and the first minutes date from 1934-1936.

There are two significant gaps in the collection. No records exist from the earliest years of the organization, 1879-1896, of for the years 1901-1914. Smaller gaps exist between 1915-1919, and 1925-1927.
Contents list:

Box 1: 1896-1958
Box 2: 1958-1989
Box 3: 1989-2008
Box 4: 2008-2015
Box 5: Folder A (English Literary Club Constitution),
Folder B (Photographs, Anniversary booklets, Annual programs-duplicates)
Box 6: 2018-2019
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