Debating Club Records, 1928-1940 *JMU Records*

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Descriptive Summary

 

Repository: Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University

Title: Debating Club Records, 1928-1940

Collection No.: UA 0031
Creator: Unknown

Extent: 2 folders; .12 cubic feet

Language: English

Abstract: The Debating Club Records is comprised of a record book and papers containing meeting minutes, membership lists, and attendance records, documenting club activities from its founding in 1928 until 1940.

 

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions: Collection open to research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the James Madison University Special Collections Library to use this collection.

Use Restrictions: Copyright for Official University records is held by James Madison University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk (library-special@jmu.edu).

Preferred Citation: [identification of item], [box #, folder #], Debating Club Records, 1928-1940, UA 0031, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.

Acquisition Information: Items were in the cage at the time of founding.
Alternate Formats: Selected portions of the record book have been digitized. They include the Constitution and Bylaws Draft 1, Constitution and Bylaws Draft 2, and Pledge with Signatures.
Processing Information: Items were minimally processed, originally located in SU 93-0331, Minutes and Scrapbooks.

Bio/Historical Note:

The State Teachers College Debating Club formed in 1927 with 15 original members, with the goal to "train its members in the art of debate and oratory and foster intercollegiate debating and oratory." Between 1927 and the early 1940s, members of the Debating Club competed against students from Bridgewater College, State Teachers College at Farmville, Randolph Macon Women's College, Waynesboro College, King College, and Shepherdstown College, among other colleges. The club was discontinued by 1942, though other debate and forensics organizations formed in subsequent years.

Scope and Content:

The Debating Club Records is comprised of a record book and papers containing meeting minutes, membership lists, and attendance records that document club activities from its founding in 1928 until 1940. Meeting topics include the election of officers, debate topics, and logistical discussions about upcoming competitions.

Papers found interleaved in the record book include a copy of the Debating Club Constitution and By-Laws, meeting minutes, membership lists, and debate preparation materials.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged chronologically.

Bibliography:

Dingledine, Raymond C. "Madison College, the First Fifty Years, 1908-1958." Harrisonburg, VA: Madison College, 1959.

"Debating Club is organized here." The Breeze, January 7, 1928. Accessed February 13, 2018. http://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1348&context=i19221929

Contents:

Folder Title
Box : Folder
Meeting Minutes, 1928-1940
1:1
Loose Inserts, 1928-1940
1:2

Compiled by: Sarah Roth-Mullet, February 2018