Overview of the Collection
Wayland-Smith, Prudence
Prudence Wayland-Smith Papers
1925-1994
18 linear feet
Papers of the 20th century social activist, focused on migrant reform, education for migrant children and prison reform. Correspondence, 1925- 1994. Also newspaper clippings, personal notes, and memorabilia including student artwork from migrant schools, photographs and photo boards. Some government documents and publications along with manuscript materials from Wayland-Smith's personal and professional life.
2697344
Most material in
English
, with a few items in
Spanish
Biographical History
Prudence Wayland-Smith (1908-1995) was a social activist dedicated to migrant and prison reform for over 50 years.
Born in 1908, Prudence Wayland-Smith was a descendant of the Oneida Community and a member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). She graduated from Curtis High School on Staten Island in 1925 and went on to the Women's College at Brown University.
In 1934 Wayland-Smith was elected president of the Oneida-Kenwood-Sherrill League of Women Voters. Later, she became chairwoman of the Oneida-Kenwood-Sherrill Migrant Committee. Much of the work that the committee carried out was in response to the needs of migrant workers who came up from Florida and other southern states in the summer months to help plant and harvest crops in Oneida County and Madison County in central New York. Migrant families often lived in horrible conditions in labor camps and their children had little or no education. The migrant committee not only worked for better housing conditions and labor rights in migrant camps, they also established day-care centers and summer schools for migrant children so that they could get a basic education. The committee also established a scholarship fund for migrant children going on to college. Prudence remained an active member of the League and the Migrant Committee until the late 1970s when the committee disbanded due to the fact that agriculture had become more mechanized and labor camps were closing.
Beginning in the late 1970s, Wayland-Smith dedicated most of her time to prison reform in local correctional facilities in Oneida and Madison County. As a church leader she brought together other Quaker women to visit inmates, correspond, coordinate Alternatives to Violence workshops, and establish other education programs for prisoners, while also pushing for reform of the treatment of prisoners and conditions within the prisons themselves. Following the Quaker belief that there was goodness in everyone, Wayland-Smith worked to make sure that inmates would have a way to survive once they returned to society. She worked continually in local prisons up until her death at the age of 86 in 1995.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
The
Prudence Wayland-Smith Papers
reflect the social reform work that Wayland-Smith carried out from the 1940s to the mid-1990s. The collection is divided into four parts: general files, migrant reform, prison reform and miscellaneous reform.
General files
contains material on a variety of non-reform topics, including the Oneida Community Mansion House, Syracuse University, and general news of the day. The majority of the material deals with the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers).
Migrant reform
contains correspondence, notes, photos, and other material related to Wayland-Smith's work with regional and state-level migrant committees and organizations, primarily the Oneida-Kenwood-Sherrill Migrant Committee. Included here is information on summer camps for migrant children, the migrant children's scholarship fund, and other related topics. There are also several scrapbooks and other items of memorabilia from the summer camps.
Prison reform
materials relate to Wayland-Smith's work assisting prisoners directly as well as her efforts to bring about reforms in the prison system as a whole. This series includes inmate correspondence, news and media coverage, and regional and state-level committee materials as well as material relating to specific prisons in central New York.
Miscellaneous reform
covers a range of other areas of reform in which Wayland-Smith was interested, including the peace movement, birth control, human relations, poverty, and non-violence.
Arrangement of the Collection
All series are arranged alphabetically.
Related Material
SCRC has several collections related to prison reform and the Oneida Community. Please refer to the for a complete listing. See in particular
Oneida Community
and
Robert Wayland-Smith Papers
(Prudence's husband).
Separated Material
Some material has been transferred to Rare Books for cataloging, including eight copies of
Migratory Labor Notes
and four other government publications, a pamphlet on Martin Luther King, Jr. Please refer to for a complete listing.
Subject and Genre Headings
New York State
Activism and social reform
Garofalo, James.
Wayland-Smith, Prudence.
Alternatives to Violence Project.
American Friends Service Committee.
Auburn Correctional Facility.
Auburn Prison Friends Meeting (Auburn, N.Y.)
Consumers' League of New York.
Delta Kappa Gamma Society.
League of Women Voters of New York State.
New York State Council of Churches.
New York State Federation of Growers and Processors.
New York State Migrant Child Care Program.
New York (State). Migrant Labor, Interdepartmental Committee on
New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.
Oneida-Kenwood-Sherrill Migrant Committee.
Oneida community.
Quaker Project on Community Conflict of the New York Yearly Meeting.
Quakers -- New York (State)
Quakers -- United States -- Political activity.
Society of Friends.
Children of migrant laborers.
Civil rights movement -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
Migrant agricultural laborers -- Government policy -- New York (State)
Migrant agricultural laborers -- Government policy -- United States.
Migrant agricultural laborers -- Housing -- New York (State)
Migrant agricultural laborers -- United States -- 1930-1960.
Migrant agricultural laborers -- United States -- 1960-1970.
Migrant labor -- Camps.
Migrant labor -- Education -- United States.
Prisons -- Law and legislation -- United States.
Race relations.
Annual reports.
Clippings (information artifacts)
Negatives (photographic)
Photographs.
Slides (photographs)
Correspondence.
Essays.
Financial records.
Government records.
Memorabilia.
Newsletters.
Notes.
Scrapbooks.
Serials (publications)
Prison reformers -- United States.
Access Restrictions
There are no access restrictions on this material.
Use Restrictions
The 1965-1970 Report published by the American Friends Service Committee (Box 4) is not to be quoted or reprinted without express permission of the AFSC. Permission of James Garofalo is required to quote or use any part of 1968 migrant teachers idea booklet (Box 4).
Preferred Citation
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
Prudence Wayland-Smith Papers,
Acquisition Information
Gift of Giles, Robert, and Paul Wayland-Smith, 2003.
Inventory
General files
Date book
1965
1
Delta Kappa Gamma
1
Government documents
1
Negatives
22
Oneida Community Mansion House
1
Personal
1920s-1980s
Includes high school papers and continues with later correspondence
1
Religious Society of Friends
General
1
Friends Journal
1950s
1
1960s
1
1970s-1980s
2
Friends World College
2
Friends World Committee for Consultation
1
Printed material
2
Syracuse University
2
George Arents Research Library
2
Urban Education and Cultural Deprivation
1964
2
World and national news
2
Miscellaneous
2 folders
2
Migrant reform
General correspondence
A-G
2
H-Z
3 folders
3
"Letters from families to whom boxes were sent"
Christmas 1957, Winter 1958-59
3
Migrant letters
3
Government legislation and reform
General
3
Congressional hearings and Senate reports
3
Migratory Labor Notes
by the President's Committee on Migratory Labor
Transferred to Rare Books for cataloging
Printed material
3
Exhibitions on black migration history
1989-1990
3
Financial
4
Housing
4
Newspaper clippings
4
Organizations
American Friends Service Committee
See also
Prison Reform: Organizations: American Friends Service Committee
General
4
1965-1970
Report
4
Permission of AFSC required to quote or use any part of this report.
Garofalo, James
Correspondence
4
1968
Migrant teachers idea booklet
4
Permission of James Garofalo required to quote or use any part of this booklet.
Clinton Migrant Committee
4
Colorado State Department of Education
Report:
Providing Education for Migrant Children
4
Consumers League of New York
includes pamphlet titled
Sweatshops In the Sun
on the findings of a year's study of migrant farm workers in New York State
1952
5
League of Women Voters
Agenda and advocacy
5
Correspondence
5
Finances and fundraising
5
Newspaper clippings
5
Publications
5
Reports
5
Mohawk Valley Meeting (Society of Friends)
5
National Migrant Committee and Ministry
5
National Sharecropper's Fund
5
New York State Committee on Farm and Food Processing Labor
annual reports
5
New York State Council of Churches and "Migrant Ministry"
General correspondence
5
Financial
5
Meetings
5
Policies, legislation and agenda
6
Projects and reports
6
State Council Reporter
publication
6
Training conferences and workshops
6
Miscellaneous
6
New York State Federation of Growers and Processors - New York State Migrant Child Care Program
General correspondence
6
By-laws and program operations
6
Financial
2 folders
6
Meetings and conferences
7
Newsletters
7
Newspaper clippings
7
Summaries and statistics
7
Various local programs
7
Miscellaneous
7
New York State Migrant Education Program
1981
7
New York State Interdepartmental Committee on Migrant Labor
1969-1973
2 folders
7
Oneida-Kenwood-Sherrill Migrant Committee
Annual reports
7
Correspondence
General
8
Committee annual reports
8
George, Anne V., New York State Committee on Farm and Food Processing Labor
8
New York State Education Department
8
Price, Arthur F., New York State Migrant Child Care Program
8
Daily notes of migrant activities
8
Essays/reports on migrant issues and reform
8
Financial
budgets, receipts, fund raising and contributions
8
Journal
8
Lobbying efforts
9
McAllister Summer School/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Central School
9
Migrant camp choir
9
Migrant labor camps
General
9
Photos
migrant labor camps, migrant child-care centers and summer schools
9
Photos, oversize
3
Newspaper clippings
9
Personal notes
9
The Readers' News
9
Scholarship program
Correspondence
Brown family general files
9
Brown, Alfred
10
Brown, Anthony
10
Brown, Betty
10
Brown, James
10
Brown, Larry
10
Edwards, Cora
10
Freeman, Mary
10
Holloway, Janie
10
Williams family
11
Funding
11
Memorabilia
11
Memorabilia, oversize
3
Miscellaneous
11
Sherrill Child Care Center
part of the New York State Migrant Child Care Program
11
Special Milk Program
11
Workshops/conferences on migrant education
11
Miscellaneous
11
Oneida-Madison Migrant Committee
11
State-level migrant groups in New York
11
Syracuse Monthly Meeting of Friends
12
Utica Area Migrant Committee
12
World Council of Churches
publication:
Migration today: current problems and Christian responsibility
12
Miscellaneous conferences, committees, programs and workshops
12
Photographs
3 folders
12
Printed material
12
School memorabilia
5 folders
13
School memorabilia, oversize
3
Scrapbook
14
Scrapbooks, oversize
2
Slides
23
Slides
24
Miscellaneous
14
Prison reform
Advocacy and outreach
coalitions, workshops, projects, legislation
14
General correspondence
14
Inmate correspondence
Ford, Glen (Ted)
Mid-Orange, Wallkill, Auburn and Elmira correctional facilities
2 folders
14
Johnson, Mel
Auburn Correctional Facility
14
Maloney, Robert
14
Montgomery, Michael
Eastern New York, Mohawk and Auburn correctional facilities
2 folders
14
Moseley, Winston
Auburn Correctional Facility
15
Sims, Bill
Auburn Correctional Facility
See also
Prison Reform: Organizations: Auburn Prison Friends
15
Swanson, John
Auburn Correctional Facility
15
Miscellaneous
2 folders
15
News and media coverage
15
Organizations
American Friends Service Committee
15
See also
Migrant Reform: Organizations: American Friends Service Committee
Attica Friends Meeting
15
Auburn Correctional Facility
General correspondence
15
Auburn Hospitality Association
15
Contraband: Poetry from Prison and Other Ghettos of the Mind
16
Auburn Prison Friends
General correspondence
2 folders
16
Correspondence
Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP)
16
New York State Department of Correctional Facilities
16
Schmidt, Mattie
mostly financial
16
Auburn International Peace Petition
16
Meeting of Oversight Committee
1975-1982
5 folders
16
1983-1994
9 folders
17
Undated
17
Miscellaneous
17
Central Intelligence Agency
17
Chautauqua County Rural Ministry
17
Church Women United of Oneida
17
Clinton Correctional Facility
17
Department of American Studies
counseling, therapy, and crisis intervention
17
Friends Committee on National Legislation
17
Idyllic Foundation
for troubled young people
17
Land Trust Committee of the New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
17
Madison County Correctional Facility
17
Madison County bail fund
2 folders
17
Mohawk Meeting (Society of Friends)
18
New York State Coalition for Criminal Justice
18
New York State Council of Churches
See also
Migrant Reform: Organizations: New York State Council of Churches
18
New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends - Alternatives to Violence Project (NYYM/AVP)
Correspondence
18
Meetings and minutes
18
Newsletters and reports
18
Policies, by-laws and finance
18
Printed material
18
Prisons Committee
18
Training and workshops
18
Offender Aid and Restoration (OAR)
19
Syracuse Meeting (Society of Friends)
19
Women's Prison Project
19
Miscellaneous
19
Printed material
19
Training and coursework
19
Miscellaneous
19
Miscellaneous reform
Birth control - Planned Parenthood
19
Civil rights movement
General correspondence
19
The Fellowship of Reconciliation
19
Magazine clippings
19
Martin Luther King, Jr.
19
New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (NYYM)
race relations
1968
19
Newspaper clippings
19
Printed material
20
Runnymede Corporation against segregated housing
20
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
20
Miscellaneous
20
Discrimination in housing - Housing and Home Finance Agency, Washington DC
1957
20
Human relations - National Conference of Christians and Jews
20
Low-income family aid
20
Missions work
20
Peace and community nonviolence
General files
20
Quaker Project on Community Conflict
20
Peace movement
20
American Friends Service Committee
20
See also
Migrant Reform: Organizations: American Friends Service Committee
and
Prison Reform: Organizations: American Friends Service Committee
Disarmament
20
New York Telephone Federal Tax Protest
20
Peacemaker
publication
20
Peace walks and vigils
20
Publications and newsletters
21
Vietnam and draft law
21
Women's peace movements
21
Poverty
21
Miscellaneous
21