The Woman’s Club of Hazlehurst, Mississippi, was founded about 1910. It was one of many women’s civic groups formed during the early twentieth century that were affiliated with the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs. With a strong emphasis on community service, the club raised funds and supplies for arts programs, beautification, health services, and public libraries in Hazlehurst. The club also hosted flower shows and garden pilgrimages, and in 1937, it hosted the sixth district convention of the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs. Officers for the 1936-1937 term were Mariarle Underwood (Mrs. O. L.) Snipes, recording secretary, and Mamie Fairly (Mrs. H. J.) Wilson, parliamentarian. Snipes was the sister of former state health officer Felix J. Underwood, M.D. Mamie Fairly Wilson was elected as president of the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs for the 1937-1938 term.

This collection consists of a scrapbook of the Woman’s Club of Hazlehurst, Mississippi, for the years 1936 and 1937, and it includes extraneous printed material of Mariarle Underwood Snipes. The scrapbook contains a copy of the constitution and bylaws and information on officers and members of the club. It also documents club activities through printed programs and newsclippings. One of the events featured in the newsclippings is the 1936 Copiah County Fair, which was preceded by a countywide beauty contest and parade. Included is a poem composed by Mariarle Underwood Snipes. The poem is written on paper embossed with the logo of the Mississippi Federation of Women’s Clubs. The printed materials are primarily from the Carolinas, where Snipes apparently lived in the 1940s.

1. Scrapbook. 1936-1937. 1 folder.
2. Printed Materials. 1937; 1945-1946; n.d. 1 folder.

   This series contains four items, including two church bulletins. The first, dated September 19, 1937, is the dedication program for the new addition to the First Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in Hazlehurst, Mississippi. On the back of the bulletin is a list of committee members, one of them O. L. Snipes, who raised money for paying off the old debt of the existing church facilities. The second is for Easter Sunday, April 1, 1945, at Trinity Methodist Church, located somewhere in the Carolinas. In the announcements on the back of the bulletin, Mrs. O. L. Snipes is listed as the leader of the Young Adult Fellowship. The next item is a newsclipping, dated September 17, 1946, and annotated "Sumter, South Carolina." The article is entitled "Cub Pack 35 Has Varied Program at Meeting Last Night," and Mrs. O. L. Snipes is listed as a den mother. The last item is a program for a junior high school choir Christmas concert performed at Edmunds High School, also located somewhere in the Carolinas.