1996.281.014

This is a very large scrapbook containing newspaper clippings from 1919 to 1937 all regarding the French community in and around Lawrence, some of them even written in French. Particular events, such as the opening of St. Anne’s school and orphanage, as well as other social events in the parish like parties and contests, make up most of the content early in the book. Clippings about a “Bowlers Banquet” or the “Parish Whist” party are scattered across the first dozen or so pages, however, near the middle of the book this focus shifts. Political clippings, surrounding a multitude of American and French post-war concerns, litter the rest of the book, with Lawrence community clippings, like the ones regarding St. Anne’s, interspersed between them. Of these political subjects the most prevalent are ones regarding post-war debt, a new influx of European tourism from U.S. citizens as well as odd, pro-fascist, pro-Mussolini propaganda coming from local religious leaders. A large, dramatized photo of Mussolini was even given as a gift to the cities of Boston and Lawrence, and a copy of that photo is in this book, as part of a newspaper story on the event. Many clippings also depict comedic drawings of these political events created by the 1920s cartoonist, J. R. Williams. In general, however, a good portion of this scrapbook is concerned with Catholicism in Lawrence and the discussions surrounding religion at the time. Discussions such as the death of religious community leaders, community get-togethers at several parishes in Lawrence as well as Methuen, and even a few weddings. The most written about, prevalent people in this scrapbook are tagged on this database entry, but many, many more people related to both the French and Catholic community from this time period are also mentioned but not tagged here.

Very large, green, hardcover scrapbook.

Some clippings falling out when pages are moved.