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National League of American Pen Women (NLAPW) Indianapolis collection, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library

Literary rights, including copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their legal heirs and assigns. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts. The publisher must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.

The Indianapolis Branch of the National League of American Pen Women was organized in 1923 when Grace Porterfield Polk, of Greenwood, who was a member of the National Board, invited some prominent women to meet at the late Ayres Tea Room. Mrs. O.C. Fenton, of Logansport, author and journalist, was elected president; Mrs. Felix T. McWhirter, of Indianapolis, editor and journalist, vice-president; Mrs. Blanche Foster Boruff, of Bedford, feature writer, secretary; and Mrs. Ethel Arnold Tilden, of Greencastle, poet and essayist, treasurer. The name was changed in 1944 from the Indiana Branch to the Indianapolis Branch when members from Muncie organized their own group. Later, Bloomington women organized a Bloomington Branch in 1957.Booth Tarkington's sister, Mrs. Ovid Butler Jameson, a writer, was president from 1930-1932. Mrs. Emma Sangernebo, sculptor, made the cast of the bronze plaque which honored Indiana's first pioneer woman writer, Sarah Tittle Bolton. The cast was unveiled on October 18, 1941 in the rotunda of the State House. Another distinguished member was Senator Arcada Stark Balz, who was the first woman member of the Indiana Legislature. Grace Golden, a member, was the dedicated director of the Children's Museum for many years. The Pen Women motto is: "One for All and All for One."

The National League of American Pen Women (NLAPW) was founded in 1897 by a group of women journalists excluded from the all-male Washington Press Club in Washington D.C. The arts organization is headquartered in the Pen Arts Building and Art Museum in the DuPont Circle of Washington D.C. The Mission of the League, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) corporation, is to encourage, recognize, and promote the production of creative work of professional standard in art, letters, and music, and through outreach activities providing educational, creative, and professional support to members and non-members in these disciplines. The core values of the NLAPW are respect, knowledge, creation and preservation of the arts.Today, the NLAPW has 81 branches in 35 states and many members-at-large. There are over 1,600 professional women artists, writers, composers, and choreographer members of the League. Source:National League of American Pen Women website: http://www.nlapw.org/about/

This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as donations from Jill Chambers on 2013/12/18; Marian O'Haver on 2000/09/16; Julia S. Fangmeier on 1997/04/23 and Corinne Walker on 1982/07/26.

Further additions are expected.