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Papers of Emily Wilding Davison comprising personal papers (1909-1913), including employment papers (1913), personal correspondence (1909-1913), writings (1911-1913), papers related to membership of Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) (1912-1913) and to her death (1913-15); papers of Rose and Tom Lamartine Yates related to the Davison inquest; WSPU papers (1905-1914), and papers of other suffrage organisations (1910-1914); papers of the Suffragette Fellowship and the Women's Record Room (1936-1940); photographs (1908-1914), miscellaneous items including 'Justice Tea' teabags, revolving picture of 'elusive Christabel', newspapers and cuttings (1910-1988); posters and illustrations (1908-1914); papers related to the Cat and Mouse Act (1913); artefacts; additional papers (1980s).

The archive consists of letters from Charlotte Despard to Charles Wilson (1920-1932) ; photograph of Mrs Wilson (c. 1920); and a diary of a trip to the USSR (1930).

The letters cover the periods 1920-1922 and 1930-1932, and were written to Mr Charles Wilson of Willington, County Durham, Mr Wilson was a political activist who worked with the Durham miners, and Mrs Despard lectured to his students in 1921 and 1930. In the letters Mrs Despard refers to Mr Wilson's poetry; she also sent him a poem that she had written. She refers to her own political activities, in Ireland, lecturing for the Labour Party against British Policy in India. She also mentions several of the illnesses that were beginning to restrict severely such activities.

The collection contains the following: letters from Beatrice Webb to Miss M Lees (1908) on the treatment of infants in Oldham; Sidney Webb to Lady Strachey (1911) on model standing orders form; Beatrice Webb to Cavendish Bentinck (undated), Sidney Webb to CB (1912) on his role as suffragist, his wife's changing attitudes to the question and the Fabian Society; Sidney Webb to Cavendish Bentinck (1913); Ray Strachey to Sidney Webb (1919) asking permission to include name on advisory council with reply written on setting out position via women as 'blackleg' workers; Beatrice Webb to Miss Moore (undated.) on forms for committee membership sent out; card from Sidney Webb to Ray Strachey (1929) to say the copy of the requested publication is on its way and requesting payment); BW to 'Ruth' [Cavendish Bentinck] can't come to stay as too busy with BBC talk.

Over 3,000 periodical titles are held dating from 1745, some in single issues, but many in complete or representative runs. The Periodicals Collection brings together academic, popular and campaigning women's journals in one location and gives a unique insight into periodicals published about, for and by women. Titles range from commercially-produced popular magazines (Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan), to academic quarterlies (Gender and History, Feminist Review), organisational journals (One Parent Families, National Association of Women Pharmacists), special interest publications (Executive Black Woman), and older titles such as the English Woman's Journal. Many of these titles are not held in other research collections. The non-commercial nature of many of these periodicals with limited self-published print runs, resulted in periodicals that were issued irregularly, on poor quality paper and often only selectively deposited with the main copyright libraries.

COMMERCIALLY PUBLISHED

The Library's collection of commercially published magazines, a key resource for research into social history and popular culture, begins with the Ladies' Almanack of the 1740s and documents women's fashion and domestic concerns from runs of the Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine, The Queen, Ladies' Magazine, Ladies Monthly Magazine and Lady, Gentlewoman, in the 19th century; Home Chat, Woman's Weekly, Woman, Woman's Own, Honey,, Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire in the 20th century; Grazia, Glamour and Easy Living of more recent years. Also included are some magazines aimed at girls and young women such as The Girls' Own Paper, Petticoat, Just 17 and Jackie.

FEMINIST AND CAMPAIGNING

At the heart of the Periodical Collection are the women's campaigning journals and feminist periodicals. The collection of feminist periodicals at The Women's Library is unrivalled in its extent and breadth. It begins with the English Woman's Journal of the mid-19th century, and continues with titles such as The Young Women and includes complete runs of titles such as The Women's Penny Paper, the Woman's Herald, Victoria Magazine, the Woman's Signal, the Woman's Leader, Englishwoman's Review, Englishwoman, Freewoman, Time and Tide, Woman's Gazette, and Shafts all of which were key to the development of feminist theory and progressive ideas.

SUFFRAGE

The Library's extensive collection of suffrage periodicals is central to the study of women's rights in the 20th century, titles including Votes for Women, Common Cause, Woman's Dreadnought, The Vote, the Women's Suffrage Journal, Women's Franchise, the Suffragette Newssheet, the Independent Suffragette, Britannia, and the Suffragette as well as titles such as the Anti-Suffrage Review.

WOMEN'S LIBERATION MOVEMENT

The collection of journals documenting 'second-wave' feminism in the UK includes complete runs of titles such as Spare Rib and Trouble and Strife and near complete runs of other liberation titles such as Red Rag, Shrew, WIRES, Outwrite and the London Women's Liberation Newsletter. Regional involvement was an integral part of the movement and this is charted through a number of regional titles including Brighton and Hove Women's Liberation Group, Edinburgh Women's Liberation newsletter, Leeds Women's Liberation newsletter, Leicester Women's Liberation newsletter, Manchester Women's Liberation newsletter and Norwich Women's Centre newsletter.

CONTEMPORARY FEMINISTS

The periodical holdings continue to document the development of contemporary feminism, sometimes referred to as 'third wave', with titles including Verve and Subtext. Additional contemporary feminist publications can be found within our 'zine' collection (dating from 2002).

WOMEN'S ORGANISATIONS

Periodicals created by women's organisations, networks and campaigns. These can include weekly or monthly newsletters and magazines aimed at members, quarterly and annual journals aimed at members and a wider academic audience, and annual reports aimed at a wider audience. Given the short life of many campaigning organisations, their newsletters and bulletins often provide the main record of their activities. Few of these publications are held elsewhere, and they are only selectively deposited with national collections, organisations include: the Fawcett Society, National Council of Women, The National Federation of Women's Institutes (Home and Country), Townswomen's Guilds (The Townswoman), UK Federation of Business and Professional Women, Girls' Friendly Society, Executive Black Woman, Catholic Citizen and National Association of Women Pharmacists document women's efforts to come together to improve the quality of their lives.

SPECIALIST INTEREST

Whilst retaining the collecting focus of women's lives in the UK, there are a number of subject specialist interest areas including:

• The Arts - titles such as Feminist Arts News, Heresies: a feminist publication on art and politics, n.paradoxa: international feminist art journal, Vogue and Women's Art Magazine.

• Domestic Violence - titles such as Rights of Women Bulletin, Violence Against Women: an international interdisciplinary journal and Women at War: preventing gun violence, WAVAV - Women Against Violence Against Women.

• Education - titles such as Gender and Education, The Woman Teacher, Gen: an anti-Sexist Education Journal, British Federation of University Women, and The Parents' Review.

• Employment - titles such as Work and Leisure, Women's Union Journal, Labour Woman, Women's Trade Union Review, Equality Now: magazine of the Equal Opportunities Commission, Executive Woman, the Woman Worker, The Woman Engineer: journal of the Woman's Engineering Society and Double shift: working women's newsletter.

• Family and the home - titles such as Women's Weekly, Woman's Own, Family Planning Today and New Home economics.

• Feminist Theory - titles such as Feminist Studies, Feminist Economics, Feminist Theory, and the International Journal of Feminist Studies.

• Health - titles such as Women and Health, Top Sante, London Black Women's Health Action project newsletter and Mental Health.

• Law - titles such as ALRA newsletter: Campaigning for a Woman's Right to Choose on Abortion, Family Law, Individualist: monthly journal of personal rights, Lesbian Employment Rights, and Rights of Women Bulletin, National Abortion Campaign.

• Literature - titles such as Mslexia, Silver Moon Quarterly and Writing Women.

• Media - titles such as Feminist Media Studies, The Woman Journalist and Women's Media Action Bulletin.

• Medicine - titles such as Women in Medicine: newsletter of the Medical Women's Federation and National Association of Women Pharmacists newsletter.

• Motherhood - titles such as Home and Family: journal of the Mother's Union, Journal of Marriage and Family, Maternity Alliance, Gingerbread, One Parent Families, World Congress of Mothers News and Information.

• Sexuality - titles such as Sappho, Sex Roles: a journal of research, Journal of the history of sexuality, Chroma, Diva, Arena Three and Dykelife.

• Women and peace - titles such as Woman today, Greenham Newsletter, Peace and Freedom News: journal of the British Section of Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Sellafield Women's Peace Camp Newsletter, Women for a Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific Newsletter and WoMenwith Hill: Women's Peace Camp Newsletter.

• Politics - titles such as Equal Opportunities International, Gender and Society and the NAWO e-bulletin (National Alliance of Women's Organisations).

• Prostitution - titles such as The Shield: to promote the repeal of Contagious Diseases Act, Network: news from the English Collective of Prostitutes and WHISPER: Women hurt in systems of prostitution engaged in revolt.

• Ethnicity - titles such as Pride, Race Today and Manushi.

• Religion - titles such as Church Militant, Jewish Women's Review, Catholic Citizen, Newsheet/Women Living Under Muslim Laws International Solidarity Network, and Movement for the Ordination of Women.

• Science and Technology are The Woman Engineer, Science for People, Women Chemists Newsletter and Forum: Journal of the Association for Women in Science and Engineering.

• Sport - titles such as Poise: the Health and beauty magazine, Ladies' Alpine Club, The Dyke: Lesbian Walkers' Magazine, Women in Sport: the Voice of Women's Sport and Outdoor Women.

The Women's Library continues to document the development of feminism in the UK, and examples of '3rd wave' activity can be found within our Zine Collection. The Zine Collection began with a donation of 50 zines by Ladyfest London in 2002. This Collection comprises self-published magazines reflecting contemporary feminism and the attitudes and concerns of young women in the UK today. It currently includes over 150 indexed zines on topics ranging from music, feminism, art, fashion, food, politics, sexuality, gender, ethnicity, popular culture, travelling, relationships, parenting and much more. The Women's Library aims to collect and preserve women's zines from the 1970s to the present day.

The archive consists of manuscripts and typescripts of books and articles written by Amelia Scott including:

• Periodicals relating to the women's suffrage campaign and other women's issues - inc. Family Welfare Association (Passing of a Great Dread was serialised in three volumes of this periodical), 4 volumes Liberal Woman's Review.

Pamphlets and Ephemera - inc. National Union of Women Workers, inc Soldiers' Central Laundry and photographs thereof, National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies, National Council of Women, Woman's Leader and Common Cause

• Minute books - Committee meetings of Working Girls Club (including reports of the Leisure Hour Club), Christian Social Union, and Christian Social Crusade.

• Speeches - for election campaigns, on women's suffrage

• Papers relating to her work in Tunbridge Wells including material relating standing for election in Tunbridge Wells and election as a guardian for Tonbridge Union, and papers concerning a number of welfare projects she was involved in including the establishment of a Maternity Home and various housing projects.

• Personal and family papers including publications belonging to Amelia Scott, inc. her father's will, general papers and family photographs.

• Correspondence - approximately 150 letters to Amelia Scott; including photocopies of some originals from well-known individuals which were auctioned for charity, correspondents include Eleanor Rathbone and Beatrice Webb. Also letters to Amelia's sister Louise.

• Objects consist of a decoration and presentation book concerning her work during the First World War and the assisting of Belgian refugees and a bag with Kentish Pilgrims Way and red, white and green ribbons sewn on.

The archive consists of correspondence, press cuttings, copies of speeches and articles by Shena Simon relating to education and her work as a local councillor in Manchester. It includes a biography of Lady Simon by her daughter-in-law Joan Simon, with background biographical notes.