League of Women Voters of Nashville newsletters and documents, 1970-1997 (bulk 1980-1988).
(Document/manuscript/pamphlet/archival material)

Organization: Three series I. Nashville; II. Tennessee; III. National;,Arrangement: generally chronological

Materials housed in the Special Collections Division of the Main Library, Nashville Public Library.

In library use only. Available by appointment.

Scope and Content: The collection consists of documents created by local, state and national branches of the League of Women Voters (LWV) in the form of pamphlets, newsletters, handbooks and rosters, magazines, flyers, Nashville school voting districts, and unit discussion materials, dating from 1970 to 1997 with the bulk being from 1980-1988. The collection is organized into three series by league: I. Nashville; II. Tennessee; and III. National. Most of the items appear to have been collected by Mary Glenn Hearne during her participation in the LWV, and therefore, portions of the collection reflect one woman's interests and activities within the local League. Hearne was a librarian and head of the Nashville Room at the Nashville Public Library.

The bulk of the collection is Series I. Nashville. Among the materials are issues of the Nashville Voter newsletter, 1972-1988, which was published nine times a year. Topics include Democratic and Republican primaries at all levels, the Equal RIghts Amendment (ERA), various workshops, programs and supplemental information on issues such as the environment, international relations, transportation and housing; women's political caucaus fundraisers; and National March for Women's Lives. Also included are messages from the local, state and national LWV presidents; voter registration announcements and voting information, local and state government issues including taxation and school budgets; general and primary election candidates; "Know Your General Assembly" and reports from the finance, membership, health care and education committees.

Series I also includes membership handbooks and rosters (1978-1997), which discuss qualifications for voting, voter registration information, when, where and how to vote, absentee voting, the Davidson County Election Commission, district voting locations, Metropolitan Government, issues including transportation, the financing of state government and health care. Also included are membership rosters and calendars of events.

"Know Your Government Officials" brochures are also included in Series I. These were produced by the local League and contain information on all of Davidson County's officials for the year as well as information on council meetings and voter registration requirements. Other booklets in the collection focus on the school board voting districts of Nashville and include candidate information for the 9 different school districts and polling locations based on residence and school attended.

Unit Discussion materials (1970-1980) pertain to local meetings and the discussion topics selected for each meeting. The LWV viewed the discussion unit as the "nucleus of the league." An example of a unit question is "What improvements do you support for Metro schools?". Included in the unit folders are meeting times and places and guidelines for productive discussions among members. According to the materials, "the unit leader acts as a liaison between the local board and the members by passing along to the members any announcements and reports of League activities." Most materials are from the Nashville area but the collection also includes a few examples from an Ohio league.

Series II. Tennessee - includes issues of the Tennessee Voter newsletter, 1986-1988, which covers both national and state government issues. It outlines yearly goals for LWV Tennessee and key issues such as interstate development, water quality, the environment, school desegregation, housing, the Equal Rights Amendment and welfare.

Series III. National - Consists of the national magazine of the League of Women Voters, 1981-1988, which covers such topics as hazardous waste, school busing, the Clean Air Act, public policy on reproductive choices, women and work, arms control, NATO, presidential debates, space age defense, federal tax policy, the financing of Social Security and Medicare, welfare, agriculture and America's housing crisis.

Cite as: League of Women Voters of Nashville newsletters and documents, Special Collections Division, Nashville Public Library

Nashville Public Library does not have intellectual property rights to these materials.

Acquired by library staff;,Acc. RT-175

The League of Women Voters is a grassroots organization that was started in Chicago, Illinois on February 14, 1920 by leaders of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. LWV was founded months before the 19th Amendment was ratified. It was created as a non-partisan organization to help women learn more about the political process and to educate and register voters. The League lobies for legislation at the national, state and local levels. Positions on national issues are decided at biennial national conventions. Members of state and local leagues determine their league's position on state and local issues, consistent with the national positions.

The Tennessee League formed prior to the ratification of the Woman Suffrage Amendment when thirty-five of the required thirty-six states had ratified the amendment. Tennessee suffragists attended the national suffrage convention in February, 1920 and returned home to organize Tennessee's league as the successor to the state suffrage association. Suffragists saw the league as a broad-based educational and political organization made up of women who were active in both political parties. The state founders envisioned the league as a coalition of women's groups that would come to the league for education about government issues and work with the league on specific legislative agendas.

The Nashville League lost momemtum after the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920 and remained dormant until the 1940s when Molly Todd came to Nashville from New York. She resuscitated the organization in 1948. Under her leadership, the League of Women Voters of Nashville mobilized support for a host of public policy issues ranging from birth control to the formation of a family service agency to racial integration. The League published the city's first brochure on voter education, worked to abolish the poll tax, and engaged in efforts to consolidate city and county government services.

In English

Intentionally assembled by the Special Collections Division.

Process;,2006;,Linda Barnickel,removed from Organizations Ephemera Subject Files.

Process;,2023,Evangeline Wurst,reprocessed to incorporate additional materials.

No further accruals are expected.