Programs
The Woman’s Literary Club of Baltimore had programs printed for each meeting, which they then distributed to all attendees, saving one copy to paste into a large, leather-bound volume for posterity. The programs give a concise overview of what happened at each meeting, listing the date, order of events, titles of works shared, who created those works, who presented them to the Club, and which committee was in charge of organizing the meeting.
Some of these programs have information that cannot be found in the minutes for a given meeting; for instance, the meeting minutes might describe a Club member reading a piece but neglect to include the exact title, which is listed on that meeting’s program. All of this valuable information from the programs can be browsed on this page or viewed/downloaded directly from this link.
The significance of the programs goes beyond the raw data they contain. The materiality of these documents is also something special to behold: each one is printed in the Club’s signature purple, with the WLCB crest at the top. The artful designs of the programs shifted over the course of many years, and some more elaborate Club events demanded more elaborate programs. While it is not possible on this site to reproduce images of the thousand-plus programs the WLCB issued over their existence, the Twelfth Night Festival program exhibit provides an in-depth look at one especially interesting meeting program.