Sioux County Women's Chorus (Iowa) records

Collection — Folder: 1

Identifier: IWA0363

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Sioux County Women's Chorus collection consists of a scrapbook about and a handwritten reminiscence of the chorus's trip to the New York World's Fair in 1939 and measures 1 linear inch. The scrapbook includes newspaper and journal articles about the trip to New York. It also includes newspaper articles about the 1955 Festival Chorus at the Iowa State Fair, plus photographs, memorabilia, and other records. The handwritten history is an undated, first-person account describing many events during the trip to and from the1939 World's Fair.

Dates

Creation: 1938-1955

Creator

Sioux County Women's Chorus (Iowa) (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

The records are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.

However, copyright status for some collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge the Iowa Women’s Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/

Biographical / Historical

The Iowa State College Cooperative Extension Service and the Iowa Farm Bureau organized the County Women's Chorus program in 1937 to provide social and cultural opportunities for rural women. Choruses met two to four times a month to practice under a volunteer director. They performed at various functions throughout the year, culminating in a statewide festival performance and competition at the Iowa State Fair. The Sioux County Women's Chorus was organized in 1938 under the leadership of Mrs. Roggen. That year, it was rated one of the top four choruses of the state's sixty-four women's choruses. In 1939, the Sioux County Women's Chorus was invited to represent Iowa at the New York World's Fair. The chorus raised funds for the trip from various County Farm Bureau offices and extension services across the state, as well as many Sioux County businesses. The chorus women went to New York, sang on a nationally broadcast radio program, and sang on stage at the world's fair before Eleanor Roosevelt gave the keynote address for the Rural Women's Day on May 23, 1939. The chorus continued to perform at the local and state level until the County Women's Chorus program was phased out in 1993.