Catherine "Babe" Gelles, 1937-1981

The papers of Catherine "Babe" Gelles were placed in the Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs in December of 1985 by Mr. Gelles and were opened for research in November of 1988.

Catherine Gelles was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, on December 25, 1907. Her family moved to Denver, Colorado, in 1913, where she attended high school and business college. She came to Detroit in 1926 where she went to work at Bohn Aluminum. After her marriage to co-worker Albert Gelles she left Bohn and became a charter member of Women's Auxiliary 15, serving as president for 3 years. She left Auxiliary 15 to go to her husband's local, forming an auxiliary and serving as its first president. She was secretary treasurer of the UAW Auxiliaries (1939-47), vice president of the CIO National Auxiliaries (1939-1949), and, in 1949 became a full-time international representative with the UAW Women's Auxiliaries Department under the direction of Emil Mazey. Upon her retirement in 1971 the UAW Women's Auxiliaries were transferred to the Women's Department of the UAW. Mrs. Gelles died on October 6, 1985.

The papers of Mrs. Gelles reflect her work with the UAW Women's Auxiliaries and, to a lesser degree, her involvement in community activities and some aspects of her personal life.

Subjects

Battle of the Overpass

Ford Rouge Plant Organizing

War Effort

Women on Civil Rights

Correspondents

George F. Addes

James E. Frazer

Hubert Humphrey

John L. Lewis

Eleanor Roosevelt

G. Mennen Williams

Transferred

Numerous photographs relating to strike activity and UAW Women's Auxiliaries and some 3D items have been placed in the Archives Audio Visual Collection. Several volumes of UAW Women's Auxiliary newsletters and other publications received with this collection are available in the Archives Library.

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Contents

4 manuscript boxes

4 oversized boxes

Series I, General Files, 1937-1981, Boxes 1-2:

Correspondence, minutes, reports, speeches and other materials relating to the activities of the UAW Women's Auxiliaries. Some files relate to organizing of the Ford Rouge Plant.

To Series 1

Series II, Conference Material, 1937-1967, Boxes 3-4:

Minutes, proceedings and programs covering district and local conventions,

International Conventions and National Conferences.

To Series 2

Series III, Oversize Material, 1937-1970, Boxes 5-8:

Clippings, scrapbooks and other material recording important events in the history of the UAW Women's Auxiliaries.

To Series 3

Containers

[Box1] [Box2] [Box3] [Box4] [Box5] [Box6] [Box7] [Box8]

Series 1

General Files, 1937-1981, Boxes 1-2:

Correspondence, minutes, reports, speeches and other materials relating to the activities of the UAW Women's Auxiliaries. Some files relate to organizing of the Ford Rouge Plant.

1-Box

1. Announcements, 1945-70

2. Auxiliary Organizing; guidelines, merger, n.d.

3. Auxiliary #314; reports and records, 1954-62

4. Canadian Auxiliaries: histories, reports, correspondence, programs.

5. Certificates and Citations, 1942-79

6-10. Correspondence, 1939-78

11-16. Executive Council; minutes, 1959-65

17-18. Executive Council; reports, 1961-63

19. Ford Organizing; correspondence and printed material, 1940-41

20. Ford Organizing; history and reports, 1941-66

21. Printed Material; booklets,1943-81

22. Printed Material; leaflets, flyers, programs, 1937-70

2-Box

1-3. Printed Material; Michigan State Auxiliary News, 1962-67

4. Printed Material; newsletters, 1937-55

5. Printed Material; Women in Auto Newsletters, 1937-39

6-7. Printed Material; Women's Auxiliary News, 1941-55

8-9. Radio Broadcast Material, 1941-55

10-13. Reports, 1944-71

14. Speeches, 1941-59

15. Women on Civil Rights Conference, 9 July 1963

Series 2

Conference Material, 1937-1967, Boxes 3-4:

Minutes, proceedings and programs covering district and local conventions,

International Conventions and National Conferences.

3-Box

1. Minutes; district and local conferences, 1937-40

2-6. Minutes; 4th International Conference, 1942

7-15. Minutes; 6th International Conference, 1944

16-22. Minutes; 7th International Conference, 1946

4-Box

1-4. Minutes; 7^th International Conference, 1946

5-16. Minutes; 8^th International Conference, 1947

17. Minutes; 1^st National Conference, 1939

18-19. Minutes; 3^rd National Conference, 1941

20. Proceedings, 1937 and 1941

21. Proceedings, 14th National CIO Auxiliary Convention, 1955

22. Programs; 1940-67

Series 3

Oversize Material, 1937-1970, Boxes 5-8:

Clippings, scrapbooks and other material recording important events in the

history of the UAW Women's Auxiliaries.

5-Box

1.Newsclippings, 1937-40

6-Box

1. Autograph Book, 1937

2. Scrapbook, 1941-42

3. Scrapbook, 1945-49

4. Year, 1949

7-Box

1. Certificates and Citations, 1945-64

2. Scrapbook; 1953-55

3. Scrapbook, 1960-67

8-Box

I. Scrapbook, 1943-44

2. Scrapbook, 1961

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Index

(correspondence is indicated by an asterisk)

*Addes, George F., 1:6

*Anthony, Susan B. II, 1:6

Battle of the Overpass, 1:19-20, 5:1

Canadian Women's Auxiliaries, 1:4

Child Care, 2:14

*Dingell, John D., 1:7

*Edwards, George, 1:8-9

*Ferguson, Homer, 1:7

Ford Rouge Plant Organizing, 1:6, 19-20

*Frazer, James E., 1:6

*Griffiths, Martha W., 1:8-9

*Hart, Phillip, 1:9

*Humphrey, Hubert, 1:10

*Jeffries, Edward J., Jr., 1:6

*Lewis, John L., 1:6

*Moody, Blair, 1:8

*Peterson, Esther, 1:10

*Roosevelt, Eleanor, 1:9

*Sweeney, Florence M., 1:7

Union Label, 2:9

*Vandenburg, Arthur, 1:7

War Effort, 1:6, 2:28

*Williams, G. Mennen, 1:8

*Woolner, Sidney H., 1:8

*Zaremba, John A., 1:6

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Finding Aid end