The American Cancer Society was organized in May of 1913, when a small group of physicians met in New York City and organized the American Society for the Control of Cancer. In 1936, the women’s section of the society was organized as the Women’s Field Army. Its purpose was to coordinate medical and lay volunteers across the country to assist the work of the society in education, fund-raising, patient services, and research. Dr. Emma Gay of Biloxi, Mississippi, was appointed state commander of the Women’s Field Army that year, but it was not until April of 1937 that the first meeting of the State Committee for the Control of Cancer was held. The committee was reorganized in 1939 as the State Executive Committee with Dr. Felix Joel Underwood, state health officer, as the new chairman. Dr. Gay continued as state commander of the Women’s Field Army. From that time forward, the development of the state organization mirrored that of the national society.

In May of 1940, the Mississippi State Medical Association passed a resolution pledging its support of the cancer-control program. Also in 1940, the Mississippi State Board of Health endorsed the educational work being done by the State Executive Committee and the Women's Field Army. The first of many health-promotion films, "Choose to Live," was shown around the state to educate the public about the warning signs of cancer and encourage more volunteers to join the organization. The Mississippi State Medical Association formed a cancer committee in 1942. In June of 1944, the national organization shortened its name to the American Cancer Society, and the state chapter became the Mississippi Division of the American Cancer Society. The Women’s Field Army also shortened its name, dropping "women" from its title. With that change, the society began to enlist more businessmen in its efforts. In 1945, forty-one counties organized local chapters and more than $20,000 was raised in the annual campaign. In 1946, the legislature appropriated $40,000 for the State Board of Health to use for cancer control, and a cancer unit was set up in the Division of Preventable Disease Control. In 1947, the federal government also allocated funds to the state. By 1951, every county in the state had organized a chapter of the society.

The state organization continued to grow at all levels by recruiting a dedicated volunteer network and by using conservative fiscal management. Research grants were regularly awarded in the state, principally to the University of Mississippi School of Medicine that led or participated in many studies with the national organization. But by the 1990s, increased competition for research dollars forced streamlining of administrative personnel at national and local levels. In 1996, Mississippi joined with Alabama, Arkansas, and Louisiana to form one division, renamed the Mid-South Division. The total net worth of the new partnership approached thirteen million dollars. The Mid-South Division named as the chairman of its board, Dr. Ralph B. Vance, professor of medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi.

This collection contains one bound volume of the minutes of the executive committee of the Mississippi Division of the American Cancer Society from 1937 to 1946. Also included are reports, pamphlets, correspondence, and agendas from both local and national committee meetings and training seminars.

The minutes reveal the way in which this type of national organization led the country in its systematic community growth, utilizing women leaders, and addressing such formerly taboo health issues as cancer. Some of the minutes also discuss the rationale behind opening the Women’s Field Army to men. Many of the documents show how Dr. Emma Gay led the statewide program to train women for the work of the society in Mississippi.

Another item, a circa 1944 booklet entitled "Officers Manual of the Women’s Field Army," outlines specific instructions for establishing all levels of the organization, including the boards of directors. The minutes of January 16, 1942, reveal that the Mississippi Division had already been effective in organizing advisory boards. Board members represented such groups as the state P.T.A., the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs, and the Business and Professional Women’s Club of Meridian. One influential board member was Susie V. Powell. She was president of the State Women’s Christian Temperance Union and secretary of the State Women’s Committee of Civilian Defense, a committee of the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs, for which Powell was a former state officer. Powell had also worked for the Historical Research Project in Mississippi, part of the Work Projects Administration.

1. Minutes. 1937-1946. 0.12 c.f.