Papers of Margery C. Leonard, 1929-1990 (inclusive), 1944-1985 (bulk)

The collection includes correspondence; meeting minutes; annual conference programs; membership records; publications and publicity; and photographs. Many of Leonard's files contain a mix of correspondence and biographical materials or subject research that Leonard maintained, including voluminous letters that she wrote to politicians, both supporting and criticizing actions. The majority of Leonard's letters to politicians centered on attaining political support for the Equal Rights Amendment. Often, she received a standard acknowledgment of her inquiries; she stapled clippings to these single replies and placed these in individual folders. The archivist combined scant files of such letters into folders titled "politicians," arranged alphabetically, highlighting individuals in the folder description. In all other cases, original folder titles were retained. Folder titles for material that arrived loose or unlabeled were created by the archivist and appear in brackets. Most of the photographs in this collection are or will be cataloged in VIA, Harvard University's Visual Information Access database. Others, referred to as "uncataloged" photographs, are not of sufficient research interest to warrant cataloging and are simply treated as part of the documents they accompany; they are marked on the back with an asterisk in square brackets [*].

Series I. PERSONAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL, 1929-1989 (#1.1-3.8), includes address books; clippings; daily planners; membership records; certificates; notebooks; wills; yearbooks; and other biographical materials. Most information in address books and planners appear to document professional contacts, engagements, and events. Notebooks contain to-do lists and random personal notes to self. Clippings and legal documents in this series may pertain to Leonard, her mother, or other members of the Shirley family. This series also contains folders about Leonard's general health, complications that arose from an accident she suffered at home, and legal papers surrounding the accident. Upon retiring from John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, Leonard became a landlord and this series contains leases as well as information about her tenants and experience as a landlord. Year books from both Brown and Boston University include inscriptions from classmates. This series is arranged alphabetically.

Series II. CORRESPONDENCE AND SUBJECT FILES, 1931-1990 (#3.9-17.17, PD.1-PD.5), includes correspondence, clippings, reports, and research for the National Woman's Party that Leonard generated and retained. The bulk of the series contains a mix of correspondence and subject files documenting Leonard's commitment to the passing of the Equal Rights Amendment. In 1958, Leonard was asked by Alice Paul to write a leaflet in support of the Equal Rights Amendment. Paul had hoped that Leonard could frame the leaflet, titled "Questions and Answers," from a legal perspective. The majority of folders in this series relate to research on women's rights; folders containing clippings and correspondence that were likely undertaken for that pamphlet are annotated with [National Woman's Party]. In her correspondence, Leonard described her participation in the National Woman's Party as fraught with conflict and tension, specifically with Marjorie Longwell, whom Leonard believed had forced her out of the National Woman's Party and was undermining Alice Paul's efforts. Correspondence of note pertaining to the National Woman's Party includes Leonard's correspondence with Alice Paul about strategies to promote the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Letters exchanged with Nina Horton Avery (#4.7), Mary Birckhead (#5.1), Esther Cloward (#5.13), Alma Lutz (#11.1-11.2), and Marjorie Longwell (#10.9-10.11) discuss the interpersonal dynamics and perceived cliques within the National Woman's Party.

Additional correspondence documents her work as an attorney and title examiner for the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company and her relationships with family members and friends. Of particular note is the voluminous personal correspondence Leonard exchanged with her mother. Also of note are letters exchanged with Jean Senecal and her family. The Senecals wrote detailed descriptions of their experiences and observations in England, France, Malawi and South Africa. Leonard's responses to letters provide a wealth of detail about Boston culture as well as her observations about African American, Hispanic, and Jewish communities. A longtime proponent of women's rights, Leonard's letters discuss her belief that political legislation guaranteeing equality for women should be prioritized over amendments, such as the civil rights, which legalized racial but not gender equality. Letters exchanged with her cousin, John Major Shirley, provide a detailed look into the family's conservative political and cultural ideals, discussing African Americans and Vietnam War protesters in pejorative terms. Correspondence with John Shirley and Pearl Shirley Wodeson discuss women's rights, health (especially Pearl's multi-year battle with cancer and the effects of chemotherapy and other treatments), current events, and cultural activities in Boston. Correspondence with Winifred ("Wyn") Shirley Berry discuss Shirley family genealogy, grandchildren, and other family members, including John Major Shirley; the defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment; letters from Bonny Berry; difficulties of motherhood; cultural life in Boston; the death of Shirley Leonard (Margery Leonard's brother); life in Puget Sound area, Washington; life in Portland, Oregon; and Strawberry Software, a small business venture which was operated by women for women.

Leonard engaged in a dogged letter-writing campaign to politicians (both Republican and Democrat) and media outlets. Her letters attempted to convince political skeptics of the merits of ERA and praised ERA supporters. After retirement, her letters to newspapers and radio and television stations criticized inaccurate portrayals of the ERA and also criticized myriad other issues such as an individual journalist's poor reporting or grammar. Files containing material regarding her activity in this arena may include a combination of correspondence and subject-based or, in the case of politicians, biographical material; some files may contain only subject-based material. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Series III. OVERSIZED, 1953-1963 (#FD.1, OD.1, SD.1), is the shelf list for oversized material found throughout this collection and listed in previous series.