Forms part of the YWCA of the U.S.A. Records--Record Group 6. Program.

NOTE: For the most part, the Microfilmed Records and the Original Format Records do not duplicate each other and both should be consulted. This description covers materials in both formats. See the Contents List for a folder-level inventory of the Original Format Records. See the Microfilmed Records Reel Lists for a detailed inventory of the microfilm.

The records in this series include Publications Department minutes, correspondence, reports, catalogs, and advertising. They document the work of those making decisions about the general interest publications, coordinating and scheduling all of the publications, and overseeing production. There are significant gaps in the minutes and only a few years of records of the production side of the operation, yet what survives provides significant insight into this aspect of the National program.

The series also includes some of the voluminous output of publications. Those that are filed with this series are the main Association-wide serials, the general interest books, and gift and keepsake items, such as engagement calendars. Other publications are filed with related records in other Series and Record Groups throughout the Records. For example, play scripts are in Pageantry and Drama, and the serial Foreign Born is in Immigration and Foreign Communities.

The National Board Library at YWCA headquarters in New York kept copies of many of the publications. That collection was transferred to the Sophia Smith Collection with the rest of the records. It is difficult to say for certain whether the collection, which consists of approximately 1700 books, pamphlets, scripts, serials, and other types of publications is complete. There are some projects mentioned in the minutes, for instance, that may not ultimately have been published, or may have been published under a different title.

Many publications were microfilmed. These were mainly the "technical" items and only rarely the hard-cover books.

For general information about the National Association and Community Associations, the Association Monthly/Womans Press/YWCA Magazine is an unparalleled source. In addition to the articles and columns, details of Association history can be traced through such things as staff and committee rosters, "secretarial changes," conference schedules, news from Community Associations, and conference and convention reports.

When the YWCA Records were transferred to the Sophia Smith Collection, they included multiple copies of many publications. The processing staff took advantage of this bounty, to file duplicates in multiple places where applicable-for instance, booklets about training Girl Reserve workers could be filed both in Training and Teenage Program.

Microfilmed Records, 1907-71

[see Microfilmed Records Reel List]

In addition to Committee records listed below, many YWCA publications were microfilmed with other records related to their subject or department. They are usually located in the "Miscellaneous" section at the end of each Subject in the Subject Files. The main serials were not microfilmed.

Records relating to YWCA publishing efforts can be found on the microfilm under:

• Minutes and Reports
  • Communications Committee
  • Publications Services Committee
  • Publication Department and Woman's Press Committee
  • Publications, Committee on Correlation of
  • Woman's Press Committee
• Subject Files
  • Copyrights
  • Publications Services
  • Reprint Privilege
  • Woman's Press [reel lost]

Original Format Records, 1907-98, n.d., circa 20 linear feet

[see Original Format Records folder list]

The Departmental office files in the Original Format Records include hard copy of the minutes and reports that are also on the microfilm; Womans Press and other publications catalogs; advertising; a few "Schedules" forms for proposed publications and reprints from the 1930s; and card file title indexes to YWCA publications.

Publications filed with this series include the main Association-wide serials, the hard-cover "general interest" books, and gift and keepsake publications such as engagement calendars.

The Association's main serial, The Association Monthly/Womans Press/YWCA Magazine is an excellent source for tracing the history of the YWCA publishing through its articles, but also through the advertising and publications announcements.

Related Materials

"Technical" publications can be found throughout the records, usually in the Publications section within a series or subseries.

In other Series in this Record Group

The Publications Department was sometimes under the administrative supervision of other departments or divisions, usually the "program"-related departments. Additional information can be found in the department/division minutes in SERIES I. DEPARTMENT, STAFF, AND COMMITTEES.

In other Record Groups

In later years, the Publications were the responsibility of the Publicity staff, Additional information can be found in SERIES VI. PUBLICITY of RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE.

Records about the sale of the Woman's Press general interest titles in 1952 are in SERIES III. FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT under Comptroller's Office in RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICE.

Legal files with information about publications copyrights are in SERIES I. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION of RECORD GROUP 3. NATIONAL ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICE.

A major part of the mission of the Publications Department was responsibility for Convention and Conference publications filed in RECORD GROUP 4. NATIONAL CONVENTIONS AND CONFERENCES.