Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia records
Collection Scope and Content
The collection of records from the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia cover the years 1951 to 1994. These records are contained in two boxes in the Special Collections Department of the George Washington University library. The boxes hold a number of folders, arranged in chronological order. The collection consists of newsletters, meeting minutes, correspondence, member directories, program booklets, field trip records, maps, news clippings, and announcements of organizational events. One folder contains miscellaneous materials, mostly newsletters from other Civil War Round Tables across the country. The bulk of the contents can be found from 1951 to 1959.
Newsletters make up the bulk of the contents starting in 1968. Occasionally the folders will contain large numbers of meeting minutes. Also beginning around 1968, most of the folders contain nearly complete runs of newsletters; the closer the dates approach to the present, the more complete the newsletters become.
Several copies and revisions of the Round Table's Constitution and By-Laws exist among the contents of the collection, as well as numerous program booklets from Gold Medal Award Dinners held by the Round Table.
An archived version of the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia website was added to the collection in 2023.
Overall, the contents of this collection are in good condition. The majority of the newsletters are intact and have not been subjected to severe wear and tear. The staples have not rusted too much nor contaminated the papers.
Dates
- 1951-1994
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Restrictions on Use
Some material may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections.
Historical or Biographical Note
The original Civil War Round Table was founded in 1935 by four men who had an interest in the Civil War and wanted to interest others as well. The four founding members were Joseph Mills Hanson, Garret Jex, James Turner, and William Webb. In 1952 the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia on which this collection is based was founded.
The Round Table was actively involved in the preservation of Civil War and Civil War era historical sites in the Washington DC area. The Round Table helped established the National Civil War Centennial Commission. Every fall and spring field trips were organized to Civil War battlefields. These trips were led by members of the Round Table who focused certain topics of the Civil War or by other local Civil War specialists. At the Round Table's annual dinners, known as Gold Medal Award Ceremonies, the Gold Medal of the Civil War Round Table was awarded to persons who had made outstanding achievements in the field of Civil War history. The Constitution and By-Laws of the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia were revised and updated on September 18, 1951 and again on February 20, 1962.
The Round Table held meetings every second Tuesday of the month, September through June. Originally meetings were held in the homes of the members, but as membership increased meetings were moved to the Army and Navy Club in Washington D.C. During the years 1961 to 1965, the Centennial of the Civil War, membership rose to over five hundred members. This increase in membership moved the meetings to the Ballroom of the National Press Club in Washington D.C. Meetings were later moved to the Fort Lesley J. McNair Officer's Club in Washington D.C., the final meeting place of the Round Table, as far as the collection shows. After the increase in membership during the Centennial, membership dropped sharply but has recently begun to increase.
Extent
1 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Records consist of newsletters, meeting minutes, correspondence, member directories, program booklets, field trip records, maps, news clippings, and announcements of organizational events. One folder contains miscellaneous materials, mostly newsletters from other Civil War Round Tables across the countryfrom the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia cover the years 1951 to 1994. An archived version of the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia website was added to the collection in 2023. The bulk of the contents can be found from 1951 to 1959.
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Physical Location
Materials are stored off-site, and will require additional retrieval time. Please contact the Special Collections Research Center for more information.
Acquisition Information
Acquisition data is unknown
Processing Information
This finding aid was revised in 2022 to address outdated descriptive language. During that revision staff edited the description in the Biographical/Historical note. To see the description prior to revisions, please view the previous version of Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia records finding aid.
- By-laws Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia
- Hanson, Joseph Mills
- Jex, Garnet W.
- Maps Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Military maps Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Turner, James
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Washington (D.C.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Webb, William
- Title
- Guide to the Civil War Round Table of the District of Columbia records, 1951-1994
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University
- Date
- 2005
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University Repository
