ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202

GRAND FORKS LIONS CLUB RECORDS

COLLECTION:OGL# 1180

DATES:1923 - 1985

SIZE: 3 linear feet, 3 photographs

INTRODUCTION

ACQUISITION: The Grand Forks Lions Club Records were deposited in the Orin G. Libby Manuscript Collection as a gift of John Fleur, January 13, 1989,(Accession# 89-1638)

ACCESSION: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.

HISTORICAL SKETCH

The Grand Forks Lions Club was organized in the fall of 1921, when a Mr. Thomasson, an organizer from Chicago for Lions International called on local businessmen to organize a Lions Club in Grand Forks. The club was organized February 9, 1922.

The charter night was held in May 1922, at St. Mary's Church Auditorium.

The International Association of Lions Clubs came into being in 1917. Melvin Jones was the founder of "Lionism" and he started the movement as a means of organizing community men's clubs into a strong and directed community resource. Lions Clubs are composed of the leading business and professional men of the community, whose purpose is to furnish organized leadership for community development by recognizing community needs, and by discovering, and effecting remedies for existing needs. Since its formation in 1917, the Lions movement has spread to tens of thousands of communities all over the world.

The Grand Forks Lions Club has been active in community support ever since its inception. Over the years the club has sponsored Boys State and Girls State in North Dakota. The club has helped to organize new Lions Clubs in various communities throughout North Dakota, has provided financial and material support to Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and other youth groups in North Dakota, has donated funds to help build the Memorial Stadium at the University of North Dakota; and built a hockey rink for youth hockey teams. It has taken an active interest in the North Dakota School for the Blind and was instrumental in getting the school moved from Bathgate to Grand Forks. Historically the club has provided leadership within District 5, North Dakota, South Dakota, Saskatchewan, and also at the international level. The Grand Forks Lions Club has been an active and vital part of community development in Grand Forks and the surrounding area.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Grand Forks Lions Club Records contains club records starting in 1923. The records from the club's first year are missing. The collection contains correspondence dating from 1942 to 1985. Club records from 1923 to 1936 were kept in bound journals. From 1936, the records were on membership report and attendance record forms. There are club rosters from 1930 to 1985, but they are incomplete. There is a complete list of Officers and Board of Directors from 1936 to 1962. The collection also contains miscellaneous financial records, supply orders and statements, convention materials, and projects in which the club participated. Newspaper clippings of the club's projects and award certificates and plaques are also included.

The records are incomplete and only give a fragmentary view of the Grand Forks Lions Club history.

Three photographs are included in the collection. Two are of the 1925 club membership and the third is from 1983. These photographs have been separated and placed in the Orin G. Libby Photographic Collection.

BOX AND FOLDER INVENTORY

Box 1
Folder

  1. Constitution and By-Laws of the Grand Forks Lions Club, 1920s.
  2. Correspondence, 1942 - 1949.
  3. Correspondence, 1950 - 1952.
  4. Correspondence, 1953 - 1959.
  5. Correspondence, 1960 - 1968.
  6. Correspondence, 1971 - 1985.
  7. Board of Directors minutes, 1936 - 1964.
  8. Club Secretary's record book, 1923 - 1930.
  9. Club Secretary's record book, 1930 - 1936.
  10. Club Secretary's files, 1979 - 1985.
  11. Club rosters, 1930, 1942, 1946 - 1957.
  12. Club rosters, 1961, 1963, 1965 - 1967, 1970 - 1973, 1976 - 1985.
  13. Club attendance records; 1936 - 1968, miscellaneous-1979,1981,1982.
  14. Membership reports, July 1939 - January 1941.
  15. Membership reports, June 1945 - June 1950.
  16. Membership reports, July 1950 - December 1958.
  17. . Membership reports, January 1959 - June 1973.
  18. Membership reports, July 1973 - June 1981.
  19. Membership reports, July 1981 - June 1987.
  20. Officers and Board of Directors, 1936 - 1962.
  21. Officers annual reports, 1949 - 1952.

Box 2
Folder

  1. Financial statements; miscellaneous-1940s,1950s, 1970s,1980s.
  2. Members debit/credit records, 1940s.
  3. Bank deposit receipts, 1941 - 1953.
  4. Conventions; 1936, 1958, 1960, 1962, 1965-1968, 1982.
  5. Thirteenth Annual Convention, District 5-N, 5-S, 5-C, Lions International, June 15-17, 1949, Grand Forks.
  6. 25th, 40th, and 50th Anniversary dinner programs.
  7. Initiation ceremony material.
  8. "The Lions Din", club newsletter, 1947 - 1983.
  9. Lioness Club, women's auxiliary.
  10. Guest book, 1976 - 1984.
  11. Members transfer forms - 1940s, 1950s, 1970s.
  12. Leader Dogs for the Blind program.
  13. Lions Club Swim Meet - 1946, 1947, Grand Forks.
  14. State School for the Blind project, 1950.
  15. North Dakota State Basketball Tournament, 1961.
  16. Lions Club Housing Committee.
  17. Thank You cards and letters.
  18. Nomination for membership applications(misc.).
  19. Supply orders and statements; 1949, 1954-1955, 1961-1962, 1978-1985.
  20. Award applications.
  21. Club certificates, forms, and posters(blank).
  22. Miscellaneous pamphlets.
  23. Miscellaneous material.
  24. Newspaper clippings and newspapers; 1949, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1965, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, undated.
  25. Award certificates presented to club.

Box 3
Plaques

  1. United States Air Force Hospital-Grand Forks to Grand Forks Lions Club, February 19, 1969 - February 19, 1987.
  2. Grand Forks Public Schools to Grand Forks Lions Club, 1986.
  3. Grand Forks Education Association to Grand Forks Lions Club, February 1984.
  4. University of North Dakota to Grand Forks Lions Club, 1986.
  5. "Bike-A-Thon" Champion, Lions State Convention, 1986.

Return to: Grand Forks History
Return to: Organizational Records

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