At the September 24th Fundraiser, money was raised to repair and conserve five scrapbooks and the first book of executive minutes from the Archives of the YWCA of Brooklyn.  Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, repaired the books and constructed protective boxes for each one in Brooklyn College’s Conservation Laboratory, the only conservation lab in CUNY.

The five preserved scrapbooks are a scrapbook from 1898-1915, a scrapbook from 1935-1936, a scrapbook from 1941-1949, a scrapbook from 1960-1963, and a scrapbook documenting the 1970s.

 

Brooklyn YWCA Scrapbook from 1898-1915

Conservation of this Scrapbook was made possible by a generous donation from

Mary Hughes.

This scrapbook dates from 1898 to 1915 and reflects a period of rapid growth for the YWCA. The City of Greater New York was formed in 1898 and the nation itself was well into a reform movement referred to as the Progressive Era. Items within the scrapbook represent the Brooklyn YWCA’s activities regarding social and educational programs geared toward female factory workers and immigrants as well as their tireless advocacy for women’s suffrage and fair working conditions in the city.

This scrapbook was badly damaged. The cloth cover had dry rot, a condition that causes the crumbling and drying out of the cloth itself. Red rot had also started on the leather corners of the cover, which is the deterioration of leather into a reddish powder. Additionally, the individual scrapbook pages were brittle and crumbling due to the acid content of the scrapbook paper threatening the stability of the documents pinned to the pages.

Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, removed each document pinned to the pages of the scrapbook. All the items were then placed into protective Mylar sleeves. These items along with the original scrapbook binding were placed in a hand-made archival box constructed by Mr. Polishchuk.

 

 Brooklyn YWCA Scrapbook from 1935-1936

Conservation of this Scrapbook was made possible by a generous donation from

Dan Allen.

This colorful scrapbook chronicles the activities of the main Brooklyn YWCA building on Third Avenue as well as the activities of the other branches including the Ashland Place, Greenpoint, Eastern District, and Bush Terminal locations. Colorful brochures and flyers promote a myriad of Brooklyn YW activities and services. Of note are the typed captions describing each Brooklyn YWCA location which indicate the average weekly salaries for the women renting a room at a particular branch.

The severely embrittled pages of this scrapbook crumbled into pieces each time a page was turned.  Also the pages had completely separated from the original binding and the items glued to the scrapbook showed signs of damage.

During conservation treatment Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, removed every item from the scrapbook, repaired the documents when necessary, and placed the documents into protective Mylar sleeves.  These documents along with the original scrapbook binding were placed in a hand-made archival box constructed by Mr. Polishchuk.

 

 

Brooklyn YWCA Scrapbook from 1941-1949

Conservation of this Scrapbook was made possible by a generous donation from

Sandra Abramson.

The 1940s was a decade filled with challenges and historic change for the YWCA of Brooklyn. In Brooklyn and all over the U.S. men were called off to war and women entered the workforce in unprecedented numbers.  The YWCA’s mission was to serve the women of Brooklyn – whether a woman was an industrial plant worker or an office worker, a schoolgirl or a homemaker. Programs and activities were offered in the morning for night shift workers and in the evening for day workers.

The YWCA of Brooklyn, while rising to the challenges it faced from without during World War II, also embodied the willingness to face historic change from within. In 1943 the YWCA of Brooklyn was the first YWCA in the United States to racially integrate.

This scrapbook had numerous preservation issues.  Many items were loose and falling from the scrapbook and thus could be easily lost.  On those documents that were taped to the scrapbook pages, markings left by the tape were clearly evident. And throughout the scrapbook many of the documents were folded and had begun to tear along the folds and seams.  During conservation treatment Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, removed every item from the scrapbook, repaired the documents when necessary, and placed the documents into protective Mylar sleeves. These documents along with the original scrapbook binding were placed in a hand-made archival box constructed by Mr. Polishchuk.

 

 

 

 

Brooklyn YWCA Scrapbook from 1960-1963 

Conservation of this Scrapbook was made possible by a generous donation from

Margarette Tropnas.

This scrapbook contains clippings, photographs, and documents which chronicle the activities of the Brooklyn YWCA from January 1960 to March 1963.  Much of the information centers around the YW’s educational programs including their Twilight Classes aimed at women who worked during the day, their high school equivalency classes, and their practical nursing school.   Additionally, there are numerous newspaper articles containing interviews of and information on women who rented rooms at the various Brooklyn YWCA locations including the International Rooming House at 94 Jorelamon Street.

After extensive preservation treatment, Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, was able to keep most of this scrapbook intact.  Loose and damaged documents were placed in protective Mylar sleeves.  The scrapbook and the Mylar items were placed in a hand-made archival box constructed by Mr. Polishchuk.

Brooklyn YWCA Scrapbook from the 1970’s 

Conservation of this Scrapbook was made possible by a generous donation from

David Lee.

The economic downturn and rising crime rates of the 1970’s took its toll on the residents of Brooklyn.  The Brooklyn YWCA faced these issues by providing support services for women who were victims of violence, who were dealing with poverty and unemployment, and for women who needed support during times of stress and anxiety.  This scrapbook shows in great detail not only the multitude of the programs offered by the Brooklyn YWCA but the YW’s extensive effort to reach out to communities all over the Borough.  The pages of this scrapbook are filled with clippings of YWCA advertisements that appeared in local papers such as The Phoenix as well as newsletters from community groups, including the Brownsville Community Development Corporation, which document the numerous neighborhood talks given by YWCA leaders.

The preservation issues facing this scrapbook were numerous and included brittle pages, yellowed newspaper clippings attached to paper backings with harmful glues, metal clips that had rusted into pamphlet covers, and water damage.  The water damage resulted in many photographs becoming stuck to paper items.  Slava Polishchuk, the College’s Conservator, cleaned and stabilized photographs and documents which were damaged by water.  The photographs and pages from this scrapbook were housed in protective Mylar enclosures and were placed in a hand-made archival box constructed by Mr. Polishchuk.

 

For more information on the YWCA of Brooklyn, visit ywcabklyn.org