Lois Rosen papers

Descriptive Summary

Repository: Chicago History Museum

Research Center

1601 North Clark Street

Chicago, IL 60614-6038
Creator: Lois A. Rosen, Harold Washington, Chicago (Ill.). Commission on Human Relations, Chicago Commission on Women, Chicago (Ill.). Mayor's Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs, Chicago (Ill.). Mayor's Advisory Commission on Women's Affairs, Chicago (Ill.). Mayor's Commission on Latino Affairs, Chicago Mural Group, Chicago Newspaper Guild, Chicago Public Art Group, Chicago Tourism Council, Coalition of Labor Union Women (U.S.). Chicago Chapter, Southwest Community Congress (Chicago, Ill.), Southwest Parish and Neighborhood Federation (Chicago, Ill.)
Bib number: 00143880
Title: Lois Rosen papers
Dates: 1963-1995
Quantity: 14 linear ft. (35 boxes)
Call number: MSS Lot R
Language: English

Restriction(s)

This collection is open for research use.

Terms governing use

All rights owned by the donor, including copyright, were deeded to Chicago Historical Society. Copyright may be retained by the creators of items, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law, unless otherwise noted.

Provenance statement

Materials were a gift of Frank Rosen (accession #: 1999.0037).

Please cite this collection as

Lois Rosen papers (Chicago History Museum) plus a detailed description, date, and box/folder number of a specific item.

Collection Summary

Correspondence, meeting minutes, press releases, newsletters, committee reports, legal and financial documents, newspaper clippings, fliers, and other papers of Lois Rosen, a Chicago political activist and labor union advocate, who was a leader in several civic and social service organizations from the 1960s-1990s. Most of the collection relates to Rosen's work within the Mayor's Commission on Women's Affairs, which became the Chicago Commission on Women; work with the Southwest Community Congress on neighborhood housing and development issues; and Rosen's personal subject files. Also present are materials on the Chicago Newspaper Guild and the Chicago Tourism Council. Collection includes text of a speech by Mayor Washington about the Commission on Women and a few photographs.

Biographical/historical note

Lois Anne Rosen was a Chicago political activist who promoted social justice, civil liberties, labor unionization, and the advancement of women. Rosen led several organizations in the 1960s-1990s, including the Chicago Newspaper Guild, Chicago Tourism Council, and the Southwest Community Congress (SCC). In 1984, Mayor Harold Washington appointed Rosen to the Mayor's Commission on Women's Affairs, which became the Chicago Commission on Women in 1987. Rosen was also active in the Labor Coalition on Public Utilities, Chicago Mural Group, Coalition of Labor Union Women, and the Illinois Committee on Health Security.

Related material

Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the Chicago Mural Group records and the Coalition of Labor Union Women Chicago Chapter records.

Other Finding Aids

Finding aid also submitted to the Explore Chicago Collections portal.

Indexed Terms

Organization and Arrangement of Collection

The collection is arranged in four series.

Series 1. Chicago Commission on Women files, 1984-1990 (box 1-6)

Series 1 consists of meeting minutes, conference notes, committee reports, CCW newsletters, newspaper clippings, correspondence, press releases, publications, legal documents, and other records of the Chicago Commission on Women (CCW) of which Lois Rosen was an Executive Board member and chairwoman of the Employment Committee. Also included are brochures on women's history and the CCW, a transcript of a 1984 speech given by Harold Washington regarding CCW, materials regarding CCW events, and Rosen's resume. Publications and correspondence from the Latino Affairs Commission are present also.

Series 2. Chicago Newspaper Guild and Chicago Tourism Council files, 1984-1995 (box 7-8)

Series 2 contains meeting minutes, correspondence, publications, financial records, and periodicals from the Chicago Newspaper Guild and the Chicago Tourism Council, both of which Lois Rosen was a member. Also included are Health Guides, a Human Rights update, and the Chicago Newspaper Guild's constitution.

Series 3. Southwest Community Congress files, 1969-1990 (box 9-19)

Series 3 consists of meeting minutes, correspondence, committee reports, press releases, newspaper clippings, and other materials regarding the Southwest Community Congress (SCC) of which Rosen was an Executive Board member and chairwoman of several committees. Also included is a history of SCC, membership listings, the SCC constitution, financial records, and materials regarding SCC events.

Series 4. Subject files, 1963-1995 (box 20-35)

Series 4 contains newspaper clippings, correspondence, publications, and fliers compiled by Rosen. Topics include housing, education, women's rights, labor organizations, civil liberty organizations, health organizations, and art groups. Also present are several black and white photographs, including several from a trip to the Soviet Union and one of Rosen with Harold Washington.

Detailed list of contents of the collection

Series 1. Chicago Commission on Women files

1984-1990

Box 1-6

Title: Chicago Commission on Women files
Dates: 1984-1990

Series 2: Chicago Newspaper Guild and Chicago Tourism Council files

1984-1995

Box 7-8

Title: Chicago Newspaper Guild and Chicago Tourism Council files
Dates: 1984-1995

Series 3: Southwest Community Congress files

1969-1990

Box 9-19

Title: Southwest Community Congress files
Dates: 1969-1990

Series 4: Subject files

1963-1995

Box 20-35

Title: Subject files
Dates: 1963-1995

Contents

Collection Access