Missoula Women for Peace Records on the Jeanette Rankin Statue

Missoula Women for Peace Records on the Jeanette Rankin Statue, 1983-1988

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Missoula Women for Peace
Title: Missoula Women for Peace Records on the Jeanette Rankin Statue
Dates: 1983-1988 (inclusive)
19831988
Quantity: 0.1 linear feet
Collection Number: Mss 497
Summary: Missoula Women for Peace is a Missoula, Montana, peace group formed in 1970. This collection consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence regarding Missoula Women for Peace’s involvement in the commission and dedication of the Jeanette Rankin statue in the U.S Capitol building, May 1, 1985.
Repository: University of Montana, Mansfield Library, Archives and Special Collections
Archives and Special Collections
Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library
University of Montana
32 Campus Dr. #9936
59812-9936
Missoula, MT
Telephone: 406-243-2053
library.archives@umontana.edu
Access Restrictions: Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana--Missoula.
Languages: English
Sponsor: Funding for creating this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historic Publications and Records Commission. Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Missoula Women for Peace was founded in 1970 by a group of women, mostly mothers, who were concerned about escalating U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The group actively campaigned to end the military draft and against U.S. war policy. Missoula Women for Peace became a branch of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom in 1981. Three years later the organization proposed a bill to the Montana State Legislature calling for a statue of Jeannette Rankin to accompany that of Charles M. Russell in the U.S. Capitol Statuary Hall. Despite contentious legislative debate over Ms. Rankin’s wartime votes, the bill passed both houses and was signed by Governor Ted Schwinden. Missoula Women for Peace continued its involvement throughout the process of organizing the statue dedication ceremonies. The organization is also known for multiple donations to the Missoula Children’s Library and an annual April 15th bake sale intended to inform the public about the proportion of tax dollars dedicated to military expenditures and international espionage.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

This collection consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence regarding Missoula Women for Peace’s involvement in the commission and dedication of the Jeannette Rankin statue in the U.S Capitol building, May 1, 1985. Also included is one letter from 1988 regarding efforts by Montana groups and U.S. Representative Pat Williams to secure a suitable, long-term location in the Capitol for the Rankin statue.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Copyright not transferred to The University of Montana.

Preferred Citation

[Name of document or photograph number], Missoula Women for Peace Records on the Jeanette Rankin Statue, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana--Missoula.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Gift of Constance Skousen, 1988.

Processing Note

The actions of the original processors are unknown. In 2003, the collection was re-described. In 2007 the title was changed from Missoula Women for Peace Records to Missoula Women for Peace Records on the Jeanette Rankin Statue to better reflect the contents of the collection.

Separated Materials

Constance Skousen donated additional materials about Jeannette Rankin, Terry Mimnaugh (the artist who sculpted the Rankin statues that now stand in the Montana State and U.S. Capitol buildings), and newspaper clippings regarding the statue unveiling. At an unknown date these materials were separated from the Missoula Women for Peace Papers and processed into the Mansfield Library Special Collections Pamphlet Files.

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