Collections

This collection contains administrative files, correspondence, newsletters, subject files and meeting minutes from the Capital Area Council of Churches, an organization designed to promote cooperation between different religious institutions in the Albany, N.Y. area.

The Joseph L. Norton Papers include notes, correspondence, memoranda, newsletters, publications, and other materials documenting Norton's work as a SUNY Albany professor, a counselor, a teacher, and an activist in the gay community.

The Pine Hills Fortnightly Club was founded by Miss Mary M. Shaw in 1898 as a woman's literary and social club. According to the Club's earliest Constitution, "Its object shall be the study of history, literature and art and the literary and social entertainment of its members."

The collection documents the history of the YWCA of Albany, which was founded in 1888 by a group of women led by Mrs. Acors Rathbun in order to provide housing and recreational activities for young women searching for work. Through the years, the organization expanded to include classes, childcare, athletics, essay contests, teen issue programs, and an annual awards dinner honoring women. Strengths include the extensive photographic material and meeting minutes from the board of trustees and directors. The collection is weakest at the beginning and end of the YWCA of Albany's existence.