LOCATION & BETHLEHEM BRANCH HISTORY
Location
From its humble beginnings in 1741 as a Moravian settlement to its modern
status as the heart of the thriving Lehigh Valley, Bethlehem has carefully
preserved its past. It is a city of about 75,000 that shines as brightly as its
huge electrical star atop South Mountain. The Moravian influence remains strong,
but traditions from many lands have joined in making the city a
"melting pot" of cultures.
Bethlehem Branch History
1929 - Officially recognized by AAUW on April 4 with 55 members
1931 - Study groups organized
1934 - Co-founded Children's Theatre; support continues through 2001
1940s - Provided child care nursery during World War II
1946 - Sponsored city-wide art contest
1954 - First scholarship of $300 given to female graduate of Bethlehem High School
1962 - Began one-on-one tutoring program for elementary students
1963 - First annual Book Fair held
1966 - Published a college guide for high school students
1987 - Presented "Women's Work, Women's Worth" lecture series
1988 - Formed inter-branch committee on women's economic issues
1992 - Established program of community grants
1992-99 - Supported Math Con, an annual math fair for middle school girls
1995 - Introduced local educators to Educational Foundation's Gender Equity Model
2001 - Branch has 123 members and offers 8 study groups
2002 - Fortieth annual Book Fair proceeds
continued Branch's support of education
for women and
girls by adding to the $270,000 in scholarship monies awarded
since 1963
Branch History Preserved
Joan Jones’ living room has become a part of history - branch history that is.
Joan served as chair of the yearlong 75th anniversary celebration of the Bethlehem Branch AAUW in 2004. In addition to making the table favors for our spring inter-branch luncheon she volunteered to collect all the news articles, photos, brochures, and certificates and assemble an anniversary album.
As she examined boxes of notebooks, slides, journals, and scrapbooks detailing the long history of our branch, she became increasing concerned about the deteriorating state of the materials. With the board’s encouragement and a reasonable budget, Joan single-handedly began to restore the scrapbooks using museum quality papers, top loading acid-free plastic sheet protectors, and archival mounts. She discovered that the biggest enemies of paper are scotch tape and paper clips.
The staff of The Mail Connection on Route 191 next to Josh Early Candy Store has helped by copying every page of the four scrapbooks Joan has finished to date. Joan then carefully rechecks for accuracy when the pages are returned to her.
Using archival materials guarantees that our AAUW history will survive for decades to come. Joan reports she has only brushed the surface of the restoration project (there are 8 more albums to tackle). If you enjoy scrapbooking and would like to help, please call Joan at 610-867-0151.
