February 15, 2001, 1 Container, 0.5 (est.) cubic feet, 6 volumes; 3 volumes of scrapbook materials (loose-leaf), 1956-68; 1 volume of yearbook materials (loose-leaf), including constitution, officers, calendar of events, membership, committee, projects, 1962-68; 1 volume of text (mss typescript) & color photographs entitled "Ward 3) Description of Beautification Project," [1960-65]; and 1 volume of records (loose-leaf), including membership, minutes of meetings (1956-68), executive board membership, executive board minutes of meetings (1956-66). Donor: Mary Grier (via Ms. Adele Grier).

No restrictions

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.

Elmhurst Garden Club Records (#807), Special Collections Department, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.

Gift of Mary Grier (via Ms. Adele Grier)

Processed by Katie Shackleford, April 15, 2006
Encoded by Apex Data Services

The now-defunct Elmhurst Garden Club was created on October 11, 1956 in Greenville, North Carolina. Founding members were Mrs. James Grulke (President), Mrs. Howard Wilse (Vice President), Mrs. Robert Masten (Secretary), and Mrs. John Grier (Treasurer). The mission of the club was to stimulate the knowledge and love of gardening among amateurs and to promote active interest in beautification and conservation within the community. Activities of the club included participation in re-landscaping projects, flower shows, community beautification, and state and regional conventions.

The administrative records include a narrative history of the first eight years. This history also includes the constitution, by-laws and a list of the founding members. Also present are general and executive board meeting minutes, attendance records, membership lists and a list indicating shrubs, trees, and flowers protected by North Carolina state law in 1960. The yearbooks document the club for the years 1962-1963, 1965-1966, 1966-1967 and 1967-1968. Included in the yearbooks are member lists with contact information, as well as lists of committees and events.

The club records also include three scrapbooks. Scrapbook One documents the beautification project (began in 1960) for the entrance of The Elmhurst Community. Included is a description of the project, photographs of the entrance during different seasons, newspaper clippings and a map. Scrapbook Two includes club yearbooks for 1956-1957, 1957-1958, 1960-1961 and 1962-1963. Other materials found in this scrapbook consist of newspaper clippings, photographs, letters, brochures, programs for regional and state garden club conventions and various awards. The oversized item from this scrapbook is a plot plan for the 1960 All-State Landscape Contest, returned to the contestants after judging. Scrapbook Three includes similar materials. Among these are a program and three photographs documenting the club's tenth anniversary dinner in 1966. Also included are instructions for preparing suet cakes, instructions for the construction of a bird house and a conservation list of thirty-five plants.

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog.

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