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Edna P. Amidon Papers, 1924-1979

By Finding aid prepared by Trevor Sandgathe

Collection Overview

Title: Edna P. Amidon Papers, 1924-1979

Predominant Dates: 1938-1966

ID: MSS Amidon

Primary Creator: Amidon, Edna P. (Edna Phyllis) (1895-)

Extent: 2.0 cubic feet. More info below.

Arrangement: The Edna P. Amidon Papers are arranged into four series: I. U.S. Home Economics Education Service, circa 1924-1979; II. International Travel and Activities, 1947-1955; III. Professional Literature, 1930-1963; and IV. Biographical Materials, 1927-1979.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

Abstract

The Edna P. Amidon Papers are comprised of materials relating to Amidon's efforts as an international leader in home economics. Included are materials documenting her work as Regional Agent (1929-1938) and Chief (1938-1964) of the Home Economics Education Service, particularly during the Great Depression and World War II; drafts of speeches and publications given in support of home economics; records of professional activities in Germany (1947), Sweden (1947), and France (1954); professional literature; and biographical materials.

The contents of box-folder 2.9, 4.2, 5.1, and 5.3 in this collection have been digitized and are available upon request.

Scope and Content Notes

The Edna P. Amidon Papers are comprised predominately of materials collected by Amidon during her tenure as Regional Agent (1929-1938) and Chief (1938-1964) of the Home Economics Education Service. Included are administrative records and activity reports; correspondence, publications, and documentation relating to New Deal and World War II-era initiatives; correspondence, reports, and speeches from Service employees; records of outreach and assistance to post-war European home economics educators; professional correspondence; and materials from other conferences and organizations. Included is material generated by Amidon's predecessors, Adelaide S. Baylor and Florence Fallgatter.

The collection also includes materials generated and collected by Amidon during her professional visits to Germany (1947), Sweden (1947), and France (1954). Included are extensive reports, incoming and outgoing correspondence, and supporting materials on the state of home economics education in post-war Germany; records from the 8th International Management Conference held in Sweden; notes, reports, and administrative documents from the International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living, held in France; and literature and photos from India, including images taken at the Literacy House in Lucknow (circa 1955). The collection also contains souvenirs and photographs collected during Amidon's travels and includes postcards, informational brochures and pamphlets, and a series of maps depicting occupied Germany circa 1947.

Other materials include numerous pamphlets, brochures, and published reports relating to issues of home economics and social welfare in the United States, France, and Sweden including several items published by the U.S. Office of Education. Additionally, the collection contains biographical material from Amidon including personal correspondence, award certificates and other acknowledgements, photographs and published images of Amidon, and a series of newsclippings, many of which document the work of war correspondent Ernie Pyle.

The contents of box-folder 2.9, 4.2, 5.1, and 5.3 in this collection have been digitized and are available upon request.

Biographical / Historical Notes

Edna Phyllis Amidon (born 1895) was a leader in 20th century home economics education. After earning her MS in Home Economics from the University of Minnesota in 1927, Amidon joined the Home Economics Education Service of the Federal Board for Vocational Education. There, she worked as a regional agent in the North Atlantic until 1938 when she replaced Florence Fallgatter as chief of the Service. Her tenure spanned the Great Depression, World War II, and the post-war era--periods of growth and reorientation for the field of home economics. During this time she spoke and published actively in support of home economics education and, in 1945, founded the Future Homemakers of America (FHA). Amidon's professional interests were global and, in 1947, she participated in a U.S. War Department mission to assess the state of home economics in U.S.-controlled Germany. She also attended the 8th International Management Conference in Sweden (1947) and the International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living in France (1954).

In addition to numerous papers and articles, Amidon coauthored Learning to Care for Children with Dorothy Bradbury (1943) and served on the Committee on Education convened to produce "American Women: Report of the President's Commission on the Status of Women" (1963). She was also an active member of numerous professional organizations including Phi Upsilon Omicron, the American Vocational Association, and the American Home Economics Association. She received awards for her service from the American Vocational Association, the American Home Economics Association, the Federal Security Agency, and the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.

Amidon retired from the Home Economics Education Service in 1964 and relocated to Eugene, Oregon. She died in 1982.

Administrative Information

More Extent Information: 71 photographs; 7 boxes and 1 map folder

Statement on Access: The collection is open for research.

Acquisition Note: The Edna P. Amidon Papers were transferred from the OSU Human Development and Family Sciences Department to the University Archives in 2007. The materials now reside in the Special Collections & Archives Research Center.

Related Materials: The Oregon State University Libraries holdings include Learning to Care for Children, authored by Amidon and Dorothy Bradbury in 1943 and New Horizon for College Women (1960) with a chapter titled "Toward Successful Family Living" by Amidon. SCARC also holds the Ava Milam Clark Papers (MSS Clark) which include records of Milam's home economics outreach in Asia and the Middle East. Other home economics-related collections include the College of Home Economics and Education Records (RG 141), the Oregon State University Home Economics Alumni Association Records (MSS HomeEcAlumni), the Home Economics Club Records (MSS HomeEcClub), the College of Home Economics Motion Picture Films and Videotapes (FV 044), and the College of Home Economics Oral Histories (OH 011).

Preferred Citation: Edna P. Amidon Papers (MSS Amidon), Oregon State University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Creators

Amidon, Edna P. (Edna Phyllis) (1895-)
Baylor, Adelaide Steele
Fallgatter, Florence (1891-)

People, Places, and Topics

Amidon, Edna P. (Edna Phyllis), 1895-
Home economics--Germany.
Home economics--Handbooks, manuals, etc.
Home economics--International cooperation.
Home economics--Study and teaching (Higher)
Home economics--Study and teaching.
Home economics--United States.
Home Economics Education Association
Reconstruction (1939-1951)--Germany.
United States--Social conditions--1933-1945.
United States. Office of Education. Home Economics Service

Forms of Material

Maps (documents)
Photographic prints.
Scrapbooks.
Transparencies.


Box and Folder Listing

Series 1: U.S. Home Economics Education Service, circa 1924-1979

Series I is comprised of material generated by Amidon, Adelaide Baylor, Florence Fallgatter, and others through their employment with the Home Economics Education Service. Included are administrative records (reports, memos, press releases, and meeting notes); reports on the activities of the Service and its members; files on Service employees; conference materials; professional correspondence; and records from Amidon's membership in the "20 Plus Club," an organization dedicated to recognizing the service of professionals in home economics education. Of note is correspondence and reports relating to cooperative efforts between the Service and several New Deal organizations including the Works Progress Administration, the National Youth Administration, the Farm Security Administration, and the Tennessee Valley Authority and includes materials from the 1939 Rural-Urban Women's Conference. This series also contains drafts of speeches, reports, and publications authored by Amidon, including an annotated typescript of "American Women: Education for Family Living"; a scrapbook of newsclippings about the Service compiled by Amidon; and records from Amidon's retirement in 1964.

The contents of box-folder 2.9 in this series have been digitized and are available upon request.

Box-Folder 1.1: Home Economics Education Service Administrative Records, circa 1924-1963
Box-Folder 1.2: Home Economics Education Service Activity Reports, 1946-1953
Box-Folder 1.3: Home Economics Education Service New Deal Initiatives, 1934-1944
Box-Folder 1.4: Home Economics Education Service Clippings Scrapbooks, 1926-1930
Box-Folder 1.5: Adelaide S. Baylor, circa 1929-1979
Box-Folder 1.6: Beulah I. Coon, 1959-1961
Box-Folder 1.7: Christiane Cossus, 1950-1957
Box-Folder 2.1: Alberta D. Hill, 1963
Box-Folder 2.2: President's Committee on Vocational Education, 1937
Box-Folder 2.3: Aid Program for European Home Economics Education, 1947-1953
Box-Folder 2.4: American Vocational Association Grant for German Home Economics Programs, 1950
Box-Folder 2.5: 9th International Congress on Home Economics, 1958
Box-Folder 2.6: 9th International Congress on Home Economics "Preliminary Reports", 1958
Box-Folder 2.7: American Home Economics Association, 1970-1972
Box-Folder 2.8: Twenty Plus Club, 1952-1982
Box-Folder 2.9: Correspondence, 1929-1963
The contents of this folder have been digitized and are available upon request.
Box-Folder 2.10: "American Women: Education for Family Living," Draft pages 16-154, 1966
Box-Folder 3.1: "American Women: Education for Family Living," Draft pages 155-303, 1966
Box-Folder 3.2: "American Women: Education for Family Living," Correspondence, 1965-1966
Box-Folder 3.3: Publication Manuscripts and Typescripts, 1936-1965
Box-Folder 3.4: Speech and Lecture Typescripts, 1938-1964
Box-Folder 3.5: Amidon Retirement, 1963-1964
Series 2: International Travel and Activities, 1947-1955

Series II is comprised of materials collected by Amidon relating to her international travel on behalf of the Home Economics Education Service. Materials relate predominately to a trip to Germany arranged by the U.S. War Department (1947), attendance at the 8th International Management Conference in Sweden (1947), and the International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living in France (1954). Included are informational materials (itineraries, programs, travel documents, etc.); extensive notes and reports; photographs and a transparency; and correspondence; and travel souvenirs (including five maps depicting post-World War II occupied Germany). Also included is literature and photographs from India, including photographs of Indira Gandhi, Welthy Fisher, and Literacy House in Lucknow.

The contents of box-folder 4.2, 5.1, and 5.3 in this series have been digitized and are available upon request.

Box-Folder 3.6: U.S. War Department Travel Orders, Germany, 1947
Box-Folder 3.7: Convention for Homemaking Education, Wiesbaden, Germany, 1947-1948
Box-Folder 3.8: Home Economics Education in Germany, 1947
Box-Folder 4.1: Home Economics Education in Germany, 1947-1948
Box-Folder 4.2: Travel Souvenirs, Germany, 1947
The contents of this folder have been digitized and are available upon request.
Box-Folder 4.3: 8th International Management Conference, Sweden, Informational Materials, 1947
Box-Folder 4.4: 8th International Management Conference, Sweden, Notes, 1947
Box-Folder 4.5: Travel Souvenirs, Denmark, 1947
Box-Folder 4.6: Travel Souvenirs, Sweden, 1947
Box-Folder 5.1: Travel Diary Typescript, Europe, 1947
The contents of this folder have been digitized and are available upon request.
Box-Folder 5.2: Travel Photographs, Europe, 1947
Box-Folder 5.3: Correspondence, Europe, 1947-1951
The contents of this folder have been digitized and are available upon request.
Box-Folder 5.4: International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living, France, Informational Materials, 1954
Box-Folder 5.5: International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living, France, Correspondence, 1954-1956
Box-Folder 5.6: International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living, France, Notes, 1954
Box-Folder 5.7: International Seminar on Education and the Problems of Daily Living, France, Housing Committee Records, 1954
Box-Folder 5.8: Travel Souvenirs, France, 1952-1954
Box-Folder 5.9: Travel Souvenirs, France, 1954
Box-Folder 6.1: Travel Souvenirs, France, 1954
Box-Folder 6.2: Travel Souvenirs, Italy, 1954
Box-Folder 6.3: Travel Photographs, France, 1954
Box-Folder 6.4: Travel from Europe to the United States, 1954
Box-Folder 6.5: Travel Souvenirs, India, 1950-1955
Box-Folder 6.6: Travel Photographs, India, circa 1955
Map-Folder 8: Maps of Germany, Sweden, and India
Series 3: Professional Literature, 1930-1963
Series III is comprised of home economics literature collected by Amidon. Included are pamphlets and booklets from the U.S. Office of Education ("School Children and the War" and "Family Saving and Spending in Wartime"); U.S. home economics programs ("Measuring Home Management" and "The History of Home Economics"); France ("Feminine Work and Work at Home" and "Rational Construction of a Home"); and Sweden ("The Postwar Programme of Swedish Labour" and "Social Benefits in Sweden").
Box-Folder 6.7: U.S. Office of Education Literature, 1930-1950
Box-Folder 6.8: Home Economics Literature, United States, 1945-1963
Box-Folder 7.1: Home Economics Literature, France, 1954-1957
Box-Folder 7.2: Education and Social Welfare Literature, Sweden, 1930-1947
Box-Folder 7.3: Other informational materials, 1938-1961
Series 4: Biographical Materials, 1927-1979
Series IV is comprised of biographical and personal materials collected by Amidon. Included is a small collection of personal correspondence; a typescript of Amidon's 1927 master's thesis, "The Development of a Method of Evaluating Ability in Meal Preparation"; numerous awards and recognitions for her professional achievements from Phi Upsilon Omicron, the U.S. government, the American Vocational Association, and other organizations; and numerous photographs and publications featuring images of Amidon and others including John F. Kennedy and Eleanor Roosevelt. Also included is a file of newsclippings comprised predominately of articles by and about war correspondent Ernie Pyle and a collection of miscellaneous ephemera, pamphlets, and publications.
Box-Folder 7.4: Amidon Personal Correspondence, 1978-1979
Box-Folder 7.5: Amidon MS Thesis: The Development of a Method of Evaluating Ability in Meal Preparation", 1927
Box-Folder 7.6: Awards and Recognition, 1927-1972
Box-Folder 7.7: Newsclippings, 1938-1965
Box-Folder 7.8: Photographs and Published Images, 1953-1966
Box-Folder 7.9: Collected Personal Materials, 1944-1975

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