Mary "Mollie" Johnstone Eastburn was born in New York City on October 12, 1892. She attended the Horace Mann School, the Moses Brown School in Providence, and Smith College. In August 1916 Eastburn traveled to Turkey with Abram I. Elkus, United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. She served as tutor to his three children: Ethel, Katherine, and James ("Jimmie"). When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Elkus was recalled, and the family returned to the United States in July 1917. Eastburn met her husband, Hugh B. Eastburn, in France where he was serving with an American ambulance unit. On October 12, 1917, she married Eastburn in Cranford, New Jersey; Ethel Elkus, daughter of the ambassador, served as bridal attendant. Hugh B. Eastburn was an attorney, and they lived in the Philadelphia area; they had two daughters. Eastburn was active in the women's suffrage movement and was a founder and former president of the Bucks County League of Women Voters. She was instrumental in founding the preservation organization Historic Fallsington in 1953. In later years Eastburn lived in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, and had a summer home in Sheffield, Massachusetts. She died August 29, 1981, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Collection includes a diary written by Mary Johnstone Eastburn while she was living with Ambassador Abram I. Elkus and his family in Turkey during World War I and the period of the Armenian genocide. Diary entries are dated August 17, 1916 through July 2, 1917, and contain detailed observations of people met, events attended, and places visited. Eastburn describes the ocean voyage to Copenhagen, a stop in Germany, and the train trip through Austria, Serbia, and Bulgaria. She shares observations of the train trip, including visiting a home for injured soldiers in Germany, observing officers and soldiers from different countries on the train, and seeing Romanian prisoners in Bulgaria. She describes Constantinople (now Istanbul), Turkish people and society, and the impressive American embassy; she also mentions the diplomats, Turkish government leaders, and Austrian and German solders she meets. Eastburn discusses relief efforts in Turkey, including efforts to aid Armenians and Jewish people. She was interested in the rights of women in Turkey and writes that she "planted the seeds of rebellion" and empowerment in group of women she met (11/5/1916). Eastburn records the tension which preceded the rupture of diplomatic relations upon the United States' entry into to war, Ambassador Elkus becoming ill with typhoid, and her reluctance to leave Turkey. Finally, the diary recounts the return train trip through Austria and Switzerland, her consideration of staying in France to do war work, and their return voyage to the United States. The diary is handwritten, but sections have been recopied or typed, possibly an attempt to prepare the diary for publication. The collection also contains the published book The Memoirs of Abram Elkus: Lawyer, Ambassador, Statesman (2004), as well as a photograph of an unidentified man.

Gold Medal Hair Products, Inc. was founded in 1942 in the New York City area to provide hair and skin products for Black women. The company sells its products directly to customers through mail-order, catalog, and the internet, and has advertised in newspapers and on television. Products include scalp and hair formulas, hair extensions and wigs, and hair care equipment such as combs and irons. The company's website, viewed in 2022, describes its commitment and philosophy about Black hair: "'Good hair' is not straight hair for the Black woman. Good hair is the natural hair we were born with. It may be difficult to comb. It may frizz up in damp weather. Gold Medal products are designed to bring natural health, and manageable styling back to damaged hair and to keep hair healthy and feeling great." Gold Medal Hair Products also sells skin care treatments and shaping garments. Collection contains seven illustrated advertising circulars and one catalog promoting Gold Medal Hair Products from the 1940s to the1960s. The catalog and circulars include order forms addressed to the company's locations in Brooklyn and Inwood, New York. The circulars promote products including "Be-Gone" skin cream; "Carbonel," a scalp ointment specifically marketed as a treatment for alopecia; and the "Medalo" line of hair tools, including a portable hair care kerosene stove, irons, and wigs and hair extensions. In addition, the collection includes a catalog dated 1967 that features the company's wide range of hair and skin products, as well as wigs and fashion eyeglasses for men and women. Many of the products are touted as "doctor approved" and discuss the health benefits of using the products.

Toshiko Nannette Nakahara Kawaguchi was born June 19, 1925, to Masayg Sakanishi and Ikuhei Nakahara in Taft, California. Of Japanese descent, Kawaguchi and her family were incarcerated at the Poston Relocation Center, a concentration camp for Japanese Americans, in May 1942. She attended high school at the camp, graduating from the Poston 1 Senior High School in 1943. Kawaguchi was released October 6, 1945. On November 5, 1945, she married Tusgio Kawaguchi. Kawaguchi died August 24, 2000. Collection contains one photograph album compiled by Toshiko Nannette Nakahara Kawaguchi, a teenaged girl incarcerated at the Poston Relocation Center, a concentration camp in Arizona for Japanese Americans during World War II. There are formal portraits, as well as informal snapshots, of family and friends, taken outside at the camp. Many of the photographs feature small children. One photograph is taken in front of the "Rainbow Mart" at the camp, and many show camp barracks in the background. There are also several photographs of Japanese American soldiers in uniform, and women wearing traditional kimonos as well as graduation gowns and caps. Many photographs are captioned with names, and several are inscribed to Nannette, Toshiko, or Toshi. Some photographs were removed before the album was acquired.

Diane M. Jacobs was born in the City of Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Jacobs attended Radcliffe College (AB Biochemical Sciences, 1961) and Harvard University (PhD Microbiology and Immunology, 1967). From 1967 to 1971, she served as an instructor and lecturer at Hebrew University's Hadassah Medical School in Jerusalem. Jacobs worked as a research associate at the Salk Institute of Biological Studies from 1974-1976, and in 1976, she became an associate professor at the State University of New York, Buffalo, where she later served as a professor of microbiology from 1980 to 1989. From 1989 to 1994, she worked as associate vice chancellor of research, dean of the graduate school, and a professor of biology at East Carolina University. She became a professor of microbiology and molecular biology at the University of Central Florida in 1994, where she also served as vice president for research and graduate studies from 1994 to 1998. Jacobs was recognized as professor emerita at the University of Central Florida in 2016. Collection includes papers related to Diane M. Jacobs's years as a Radcliffe College student. It contains correspondence regarding Jacob's application and admission to Radcliffe, as well as new student information about classes and living on campus. There is also a program and clippings related to the inauguration of Mary Ingraham Bunting as Radcliffe College president (1961), as well as letters from Bunting and Harvard Medical School president Harry Amos regarding Jacobs's science tutorial. In addition, there is material regarding her graduation, including a 1961 Radcliffe College commencement program, congratulatory telegrams, and a card from her parents.

Cyd Jenefsky is Vice Provost for Strategy and Educational Effectiveness and Interim Dean of the Graduate School at the University of the Pacific. She received her MA and PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jenefsky taught at the University of Georgia, where she was one of three founding faculty hired to start the Women's Studies program, and was professor and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at John F. Kennedy University where she directed the Office for Educational Effectiveness and the Hub for Educational Innovation. She has been active in the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, serving on accreditation review teams and committees, co-authoring WASC's "good practice guide" on outcomes-based program review, serving as a workshop leader and mentor for WASC's Educational Programs, and as faculty and mentor for WASC's Assessment Leadership Academy. The Cyd Jenefsky collection on Andrea Dworkin contains audio and video recordings and transcriptions of interviews Jenefsky conducted with Dworkin, mostly for Jenefsky's doctoral thesis, "Confronting Male Power with Integrity: Andrea Dworkin's Rhetoric, Art, and Politics." Also included are Jenefsky's notes on the interviews, biographical information she collected on Dworkin, writings by Dworkin sent to Jenefsky by Dworkin, and a copy of Jenefsky's dissertation.

Ruth Sattler Schwartz, daughter of Benjamin and Kate Sattler, was born March 31, 1916, in the Bronx, New York. She received a BA in biology from Hunter College. Following graduation, she worked as a biologist for the New York City Health Department. In the late 1950s, she earned a teaching degree and worked as a substitute teacher. In 1944, she married Hyman Schwartz, a chemist. They had two children, Ben (born 1946) and Eileen (born 1949). Schwartz died March 25, 1997, of Lewy Body Dementia. The correspondence of Ruth Sattler Schwartz includes letters to Schwartz from family and friends and letters Schwartz wrote to her family. Letters from family and friends document social life in the Bronx, New York, and contain mentions of vacations in the Catskills and at the beach. Also included are letters from Schwartz's boyfriend Jacob "Jack" M. Yablonowitz expressing his love for her; recounting his experiences studying zoology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and medicine at the Royal College of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh; and documenting the end of his relationship with Schwartz due to his infidelity. Letters from Ruth to her family document a vacation she took to Miami Beach, Florida, describing Miami Beach and commenting on the lack of social activities except for gambling.

Mardelle "Mardi" Elaine Springer Dean, daughter of Burdell Leonard and Marjorie Lucile Cuthbertson Springer, was born September 17, 1942, in Washington, DC. She attended the University of Tampa and Strayer University. An active member of La Leche League, Dean taught classes, lectured, and lead workshops on parenting and breastfeeding. She was married to Jonathan C. Dean; they had three sons. She died November 4, 2021. The La Leche League collection of Mardelle Springer Dean contains correspondence, programs, and educational materials from local La Leche League conferences and trainings featuring educational sessions administered by Dean; programs from local and national La Leche League conferences and events Dean attended; La Leche League leadership training materials and other printed materials collected by Dean; and La Leche League jewelry collected by Dean.

Photographer and lesbian rights activist Elaine Wessel was born in 1947 and was raised in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. She graduated from Roosevelt University and worked there as an audiovisual technician. As a teenager, she was active in the civil rights movement and in the 1970s, she became active in the women's rights movement. From 1970 to 1977, she was a member of the Chicago Women's Liberation Union (CWLU) and wrote articles and took photographs for CWLU publications including CWLU News and Blazing Star. Wessel was also active in several lesbian rights organizations including the Illinois Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Metropolitan Chicago, and Chicago Lesbian Liberation. She also contributed articles and photographs to the periodical Lavender Woman. The photograph collection of Elaine Wessel contains photographic prints and contact sheets of images Wessel took in the 1970s, mainly featuring the Chicago Women's Liberation Union (CWLU). Photographs document CWLU members socializing, attending CWLU meetings, and participating in community events. Several photographs document a 1973 tour CWLU members took of Foshan in the Guangdong Province of China and include images of sculptors, a factory, and rice fields. Also included are photographs Wessel took of a Chicago performance by the Alive and Trucking Theater Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and photographs of Wessel taken by others.

Avarani "Rani" Thomas was the daughter of Charles Thomas and Bijou "Dolly" Thomas and lived in Dehra Dun, Northern India, during the 1920s and 1930s. Thomas and her sister Probhabala "Probha" attended the Girls High School in Dedhra Dun, where she met an American Presbyterian missionary, Ruth E. Bergevin, who served as principal of the school. Bergevin published a memoir, One of Us: Adventures in India (1980), which documents her experiences in India, including her friendship with the Thomas family. According to the memoir, Charles Thomas was a judicial officer for the Dehra Dun City and District and a member and chairman of the high school's governing board. Bijou Thomas was the member of a large Bengali family. Bergevin considered herself a close friend to Rani and Prohabala. After graduation, the sisters attended Kinnaird College in Lahore, and later Rani received a degree in education at the Isabella Thoburn College in Lucknow. Prohabala attended library training in the United States and returned to India to become a librarian at the Agricultural Institute in Allahabad. In her memoir, Bergevin states that she viewed herself as a mentor to Rani. Ruth E. Bergevin, daughter of Lillie Heppe and Louis Bergevin, was born April 28, 1893, in Markleeville, California. In 1909, Bergevin moved to Berkeley, California, to live with her sister and attend high school. After graduation, she enrolled in a business course and worked for the Fisk Teacher's Agency of Berkeley. Bergevin also attended Bible study and programs at the First Presbyterian Church. In 1915, she was baptized and moved to Los Angeles to study at the Bible Institute. Bergevin later traveled to New York, where she met with the Presbyterian Church Board of Foreign Missions. In 1917, she traveled to India, where she served for 41 years as a missionary. She was principal of the Girls High School in Dehra Dun, and later worked as a hospital administrator at the Frances Newton Hospital in Ferozepore, India. Bergevin frequently traveled to the United States to give talks at Presbyterian churches. Upon her retirement in 1958, she returned to live in the United States, visiting India in 1960 to assist with the building of a hospital in Ferozepore and again in 1973 in celebration of her 80th birthday. Bergevin died December 25, 1984, in Los Angeles, California. Collection contains letters from Ruth E. Bergevin to Avarani "Rani" Thomas, probably written while Rani attended college away from home. The letters describe Bergavin's romantic feelings of love and devotion to Rani, and mention missing her and longing to see her. The letters also include news from home, and recount Ruth's interactions with Rani's family and mutual friends. The collection also contains letters from others to Thomas, including her parents Charles and Bijou, and sister Probhabala. These letters contain news of home, family and friends.

Lynne O'Neill was born Elaine Jose Nolan in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 8, 1918, to Allan and Josephine Nolan. The family moved to Evanston, Illinois, where O'Neill graduated Evanston Township High School in 1935. During World War II, O'Neill performed as an entertainer for the United Service Organizations (USO). O'Neill worked as a model and a dancer under the stage name Lynne O'Neill, and began performing in Chicago as burlesque dancer, where she developed a routine featuring her garters. She became known as "The Original Garter Girl." O'Neill traveled throughout the United States and Mexico, and had minor roles in musicals, movies, and radio shows. She moved to Lynbrook, New York, in the 1950s, where she continued her burlesque career. O'Neill was arrested in March 1960 for possessing and distributing nude photographs of herself, later serving four days in prison. She had a role in the movie "Secrets of an Uncover Model" and also wrote a column "Burlesque Backstage" for the men's magazine Man to Man. In 1972, O'Neill and her mother Josephine Nolan moved to Hempstead, New York, and opened a real estate brokerage office. O'Neill, working under her given name Elaine Nolan, also served on the board of the Hempstead Chamber of Commerce and was the president of the Country Club Estates Civic Association. She died on August 5, 2010. Collection contains one album of photographs featuring model and burlesque dancer Lynne O'Neill. O'Neill is depicted wearing fashionable clothing, burlesque-style costumes, and bathing suits. There are several nude portraits. In some, O'Neill is depicted dancing and stripping; she is also shown posing in a pinup style. Some photographs are taken outdoors at a beach. The album also includes two promotional cards for O'Neill's shows at the Village Paradise and Tony Pastor's in New York City.

Sculptor and inventor Harriet Goodhue Hosmer was a native of Watertown, Massachusetts, the daughter of Dr. Hiram and Sarah (Grant) Hosmer. She studied anatomy, and spent much of her life in Rome, where she was at first the pupil of the English sculptor, John Gibson. Her works were exhibited and purchased in England and the United States. Collection includes a handwritten letter from Harriet Goodhue Hosmer to her friend, writer Lydia Maria Child, regarding her sculpture of Thomas Hart Benton, and her plans to travel to St. Louis in the near future, and Child's written accounts of Hosmer's sculpture Zenobia. Hosmer mentions a "Mrs. Vaughn" who is interested in Child's writing about Zenobia. In addition, there is a brief note signed by Hosmer in 1895 on stationery from The Ledge in Bar Harbor, Maine.