Evanston history in scrapbooks

Could this photo of Frances Willard show her making scrapbooks? (Frances Willard House Museum)

As I was putting together my talk for the Northwestern University exhibit on scrapbooks coming up Wednesday, November 13, 4 pm, I realized that two of the women whose scrapbooks I’d written about had lived in Evanston. Women’s rights activist, writer, and speaker Elizabeth Boynton Harbert,and Women’s Christian Temperance Union leader Frances Willard were both great makers and users of strategic scrapbooks,  so of course I’ll talk about them. I’m hoping to get in to see the Frances Willard House, but so far haven’t heard back from the volunteers there.  I’ll be speaking as well on Nov 14, at 12:30 — a somewhat different talk.

Past, Paper, Scissors exhibit in Chicago

Special Collections at Northwestern University  has put up what looks like a terrific exhibit of scrapbooks from their collection, including of course college students’ scrapbooks. I’m looking forward to seeing it in the flesh, though they have generously scanned and posted many online.

Northwestern U Scrapbook exhibit

I’ll be speaking at the exhibit on Nov. 13 at 4pm at University Library’s Forum Room (“Reading the Remnants: American Scrapbook History”) and then Nov 14 at a lunchtime seminar for Rhetoric and Public Culture, at 12:30 in Kresge (“Strategic Scrapbooks: Nineteenth Century Activists Remake the Newspaper for African American History and Women’s Rights”). Both talks are free and open to the public. Let Chicago friends know!