Call Number:

3497

Repository:

Historical Society of Pennsylvania

Extent:

1.75 linear feet (; 13 boxes)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

Cite as: [Indicate cited item here], Alice Simon Collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (Collection 3497), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

Date:

1975-1985 (bulk) and 1966-1993 (inclusive)

Creator:

Simon, Alice, 1909-1998

Abstract:

The Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (now Sokol USA), was established in 1896 as a non-sectarian fraternal benefit society that offered insurance and social and athletic programs to its members. The Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America, 1966-1993, contains minutes, financial records, newsletters, correspondence, bylaws, printed material, and various objects related to the Slovak Gymnastic Union of America as well as one of the branch sokols: the Byram, Connecticut lodge. A portion of the collection also documents the Sokol Woodlands Summer Camp, a Sokol USA-sponsored summer camp held in Barryville, New York.

In 1862 in the Czech region of Europe, Miroslav Tyrs and his father-in-law founded the Sokol movement. An all-age gymnastics organization based on the Ancient Greek idea "a sound mind in a sound body," Sokols used lectures and outdoor activities to train people physically, morally, and intellectually. Sokols aimed to be apolitical, but they contributed heavily to the development of Czech nationalism. When immigrants from Eastern Europe settled in the United States in the 19th century, several Czech and Slovak immigrant communities opened Sokols as places of moral, physical, and social training and as a way to build community and foster American patriotism. A national organization for the Slovak-based Sokols, the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America (now Sokol USA), was established in 1896 as a non-sectarian fraternal benefit society that offered insurance and social and athletic programs to its members. Its members were organized in local branches called lodges, and each lodge organized activities to engage its members.

Alice Simon, a lifelong resident of Bridgeport, Connecticut and an employee of the Connecticut National Bank (retired in 1974) was a gymnast and officer of the Bridgeport Women's Lodge No. 3W. In addition to her involvement with her local lodge, Alice also was a member of Sokol USA's administration. In 1975, she was chosen to serve as treasurer for the organization's Ways and Means Committee at a time when Sokol USA sought new avenues for raising funds. As treasurer, she helped oversee several fundraising events that the Ways and Means Committee engineered. At some point, Ms. Simon merged her papers with those of Ms. Bessie W. Erhardt, Co-Chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee. Ms. Erhardt’s papers included financial records and correspondence that are mostly intermingled with Ms. Simon’s papers.

Alice Simon passed away in 1998.

The Alice Simon collection on the Slovak Gymnastic Union Sokol of America contains materials related to the Slovak Gymnastic Union of America, now Sokol USA. It also contains materials connected to the Byram lodge in Connecticut and the Sokol Woodlands summer camp in Barryville, New York.

The bulk of the collection relates to the national organization, Sokol USA. Series 1 includes the organization's bylaws, meeting minutes, and convention summaries. Meeting minutes for the Byram lodge are also included in this series. Series 2 contains correspondence to and/or from members of Sokol USA's Ways and Means Committee of which Ms. Simon was Treasurer. The correspondence largely focuses on the organization's fund raising efforts. Series 3 contains both Sokol USA's and Byram lodge's financial records. The financial records for both organizations are incomplete. However, some records of donations made, dues paid, invoices, miscellaneous expenses, and bank account totals are included. Series 4 contains a variety of printed matter that the organization generated including flyers, pamphlets, and booklets that describe events and other activities. Also in this series are travel brochures connected to places where the organization held conventions and events. Series 5 contains information about the organization's slets (exhibition events for members to show off their athletic skills) including rules, scripts, and results. Series 6 contains materials from Sokol Woodlands, a Sokol USA-sponsored summer camp in Barryville, NY that was in use until 2008. Woodlands materials include programming material, minutes, financial notes, pamphlets, newsletters, and ephemera dating from the late 1960s to the 1980s. Finally, Series 7 contains several artifacts including a set of patches and a plaque each from a different slet.

Series I – Minutes and Summaries for Byram District, SOKOL USA, and National Convention

Series 2 – Correspondence

Series 3 – Financial Records and Life Insurance Materials

Series 4 – Printed Matter

Series 5 – Slet Rules, Scripts, Results, and Programs

Series 6 – Sokol Woodlands Summer Camp

Series 7 – Artifacts