Historical note:

The Junior League of Rhode Island, Inc. (JLRI) is an organization of women whose mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training. It was founded as the Junior League of Providence, Inc. (JLP) in 1921. Circa 1992, the organization officially changed the name to the Junior League of Rhode Island, Inc. to reflect their growing, state-wide efforts. 

The first Junior League in the U.S. was founded in 1901 in New York City as the Junior League for the Promotion of the Settlement Movement. The Settlement Movement came out of the poor socio-economic situation of immigrants in the U.S. between 1890 and 1910, when more than 12 million Europeans immigrated to the country. Its founder was then 19-year-old Barnard College student Mary Harriman Rumsey, sister of future Governor of New York W. Averell Harriman and daughter of railroad executive Edward H. Harriman. The Junior League for the Promotion of the Settlement Movement inspired the creation of other Junior Leagues in Boston and Providence. 

The Junior League of Providence was started by a 24-year-old woman by the name of Katherine Herrick Metcalf (1897-1993) and a group of her societal friends, all who shared a passion to improve their community at large. The first meeting on June 9th, 1921 was held at her home at 108 Prospect Street which she shared with her husband Houghton P. Metcalf (1891-1958) and their three young children.

The Charter Members, were all between 21 and 28 years-of-age, present at the meeting were:

President Mrs. Katherine (Herrick) Metcalf (1897-1993)

Vice President Mrs. Prudence Cleveland (Sterry) Smith (1896-1965), married to George Watson Hall Smith (1896-1968), they lived on Benefit St. 

Secretary Mrs. Mary Lippitt (Hunter) Doolittle (1893-1989), married to Lytton Warnick Doolittle (1889-1986) they lived at 199 Hope St, the other location the early meetings were held at. 

Treasurer* Miss Mary Tillinghast Gladding (1896-1945) married Donald S. Babcock before 1930, they lived on Grotto Ave. 

Mrs. Mary Holley (Brooks) Wall (1894-1965) *voted treasurer next meeting, Miss Gladding resigned, married to Ashbel Tingley Wall, they lived on Blackstone Blvd. 

Mrs. _ Duncan

Miss Dorothy Hackney (1900-1978) later married Stanley Howard Smith Jr (1907-1953), they lived on Waterman Ave and were neighbors with the Wall Family before the Walls moved to Blackstone Blvd.

Miss Marion Amcotts Hunter (1900-1974) married Frank Mauran Jr (1900-1974), they also lived on Grotto Ave. next door to the Babcocks, Marion was the little sister of Mary (Hunter) Doolittle 

Charter Members not present: 

Miss Mary May Blumer (1892-1962), she was the daughter of G. Alder Blumer the director of Butler Hospital, and would go on to run the committee that reopened the Hospital after it was closed in the 1950s. 

Mrs. Adelaide Maybury (Brown) Viall (1896-1982), married Richmond Viall, they lived on Medway Ave 

“The Purpose of The League is to organize volunteer work among the girls of Providence” 

The issues the League voted to focus on in the first year were: Child Welfare, Industrial [conditions], Schools, Overseer of the Poor, Courts, Housing, Recreation, Immunization and Health. By the start of their second year the following committees had been organized, chaired and populated by the members: District Nurses Committee, Settlement House Committee, Hospital Committee, Motor Corps Committee, Entertainment Committee, Educational Committee, Membership Committee, City Editor, Girl Scouts Committee. The Motor Corps Committee was formed to provide the service of taking District Nurses and their patients to the new City Hospital when needed and the transport of infantile paralysis patients to R.I. Hospital. 

Over the years as membership changed and presidents came and went, the Junior League remained focused on its original purpose of providing educated, skilled women volunteers to the benefit of Providence and then expanded to cover all of Rhode Island. The fundraising efforts to raise funds to support the programs they offered changed overtime as well, early entertainment of plays, musicals, and balls along with a second-hand shop run by the League, evolved into yearly fashion shows, antique shows, and auctions. 

In its first one hundred years over 16,000 Rhode Island women participated as JLRI members and contributed over 2.2 million hours to community service. The organization has partnered with over 250 community agencies and through its efforts have directly contributed over $2.5 million to community partners. Issues they target include early childhood education, alcoholism, domestic violence, venereal diseases, AIDS, parenting programs, autism awareness, environmental concerns, obesity, and youth who are aging out of foster care. JLRI has been a foundational part of the work of the Ronald McDonald House of Providence, Amos House, St. Mary’s Home for Children, Crossroads, and Foster Forward. As of 2025, the JLRI was headquartered at 24 Meeting Street in Providence.

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Scope and content:

The manuscripts material in this collection is arranged into the following series: 

Series I: Secretary’s Reports, 1921-1991 

Series II: Accounts and Financial Reports, 1921-1990s 

Series III: Children’s Plays, 1930-1938 

Series IV: Correspondence, Etc., 1921-2022 

Series V: Board Meetings and Reports, 1920-1990s 

Series VI: Newspaper Clippings, 1920s-1990s

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Provenance:

The materials in this collection were donated to the RIHS by the Junior League of Rhode Island, Inc. in April 2024.

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Processing note:

This collection was originally organized into envelopes by year, some scrapbooks and loose volumes of published reports, minutes and reports. The scrapbooks were scanned to keep their original order in a PDF file for each scrapbook. The photographs, ephemera, and printed materials were separated from the manuscript materials. The manuscripts are cataloged under Mss 1232, the photographs and ephemera are cataloged under G 1232 and housed in the Graphics Collection, the printed materials will be item level cataloged as part of the printed collection. The only exception to this arrangement is the printed annual reports that are heavily annotated by the secretary, those are part of the manuscript collection.

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Inventory:

Series I: Secretary’s Reports, 1921-1991

Thirty-three bound volumes containing hand written and typed minutes from meetings of the Junior League of Providence and later the Junior League of Rhode Island. Two folders of loose notebook pages, one from the 1930s and the other with undated pages. The meetings included in the Secretary Reports and the Minutes are: League meetings, Executive meetings, Board meetings and Membership meetings. 

*There is no bound volume for 1930-1933, "Volume 4" has been reserved for it should it be found and donated.

Series II: Accounts and Financial Reports, 1921-1990s

Accounts of the Junior League of Providence and one folder of accounts of the Junior League of Rhode Island. The gap in years in the accounts and treasurer’s reports from 1941 to 1990s, may be found in the bound secretary’s reports in Series I.

Series III: Children’s Plays, 1930-1938

This series contains the typescript plays performed by volunteers of the Junior League of Providence for the entertainment of children.

Series IV: Correspondence, etc., 1921-2022

Correspondence to and from the Junior League and its Committees, press releases, and other loose papers that do not fall under the purview of the previous series.

Series V: Board Meetings and Reports, 1921-1990s

Papers relating to board meetings of the Junior League and reports presented to them, including a Membership Diversification report that details the diversity of their membership.

Series VI: Newspaper Clippings

The newspaper clippings from the scrapbooks and envelopes were photocopied onto archival 100% cotton rag paper for preservation and filed by decade.

Box 3

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Subjects:

Alcohol Recovery.

Blumer, Mary May (1892-1962)

Children’s Health.

Doolittle, Mary Lippitt (Hunter), (1893-1989)

Entertainments.

Fund Raising.

Girls Clubs -- Rhode Island.

Gladding, Mary Tillinghast, (1896-1945)

Hospitals -- Rhode Island.

Irrepressible Society.

Junior League of Providence, Inc.

Junior League of Rhode Island, Inc.

Juvenile Courts -- Rhode Island.

Mauran, Marion Amcotts (Hunter), (1900-1974)

Mental Health.

Metcalf, Katherine (Herrick), (1897-1993)

Office management.

Parenting.

Smith, Dorothy (Hackney), (1900-1978)

Smith, Prudence Cleveland (Sterry), (1896-1965)

Viall, Adelaide Maybury (Brown), (1896-1982)

Volunteers -- Rhode Island.

Volunteers In Action (Providence, R.I.)

Wall, Mary Holley (Brooks), (1894-1965)

Women’s Clubs -- Rhode Island.

Women’s Health.

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RIHS1822