Historical note:

            Organized in 1927 by Julia Lippitt Mauran, the goal of the club was "to achieve a greater understanding and appreciation of nature's wonders by the pooling of all successes and failures, and sharing these with others." Membership was limited to individuals who actually worked in their own gardens. Men were admitted as members but the few that joined were usually husbands of active members. The work of the club is best seen through the committees they decided to create. The committees included: Roadside Development and Living Memorials; Conservation and Public Relations; Flower Show; Plant and Seed Exchange; Horticultural, Garden Club; Hospital Service; Defense; Community Projects. During World War II the club became active planting Victory Gardens and created a Defense Committee. The club expanded their activities as the years went on and became more involved in the community. They regularly donated funds to organizations such as Save the Bay and the Nature Conservancy and to local inner-city schools for "Grow-boxes." The motto of the club was "To do is to know."

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Inventory:

Box 1, folder 1. Bank check books, 1962-1972

Box 1, folder 2. Bank check books, 1972-1984

Box 1, folder 3. Committee reports, 1938-48, n.d.

Box 1, folder 4. Constitution, 1931, n.d.

Box 1, folder 5. Correspondence, 1940-1949

Box 1, folder 6. History, 1965

Box 1, folder 7. Membership lists, 1929-1948

Box 1, folder 8. Minutes, Jun 1927 - May 1933

Box 1, folder 9. Minutes, May 1933 - May 1938

Box 1, folder 10. Minutes, May 1938 - Apr 1941

Box 1, folder 11 Minutes, May 1941 - Apr 1948

Box 2, folder 1. Minutes, 1960-1966

Box 2, folder 2. Minutes, 1967 - May 1974

Box 2, folder 3. Minutes, Oct 1974 - May 1985

Box 2, folder 4. Minutes, Jun 1985 - May 1989

Box 2, folder 5. Printed material, 1940-1947, n.d.

Box 2, folder 6. Rhode Island Federation of Garden Clubs - Newsletter, 1941-1942

Box 2, folder 7. Roll book, 1941-1943

Box 2, folder 8. Scrapbook, 1927-1939

Box 2, folder 9. Treasurer's correspondence and receipts, 1962-1977

Box 2, folder 10. Treasurer's reports, 1939-1941, 1961-1977

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Subjects:

Flower shows - Rhode Island

Gardening - Societies, etc.

Hattie Ide Chaffee Home (East Providence, RI)

Rhode Island Federation of Garden Clubs

Roadside improvement - Rhode Island

Victory gardens - Rhode Island

World War, 1939-1945 - Food supply

Ely, Ruth (1881-1972)

Mauran, Julia Lippitt (1860-1949)

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RIHS1822