Series II, Individual Correspondence, contains primarily correspondence, but also reports, lists, draft revisions of essays, and printed matter like article reprints, newspaper clippings, and pamphlets. The body of correspondence in Series II covers more individuals and is over twice as large as the correspondence of the International Executive Committee found in Part A of Series I. Series II also consists of correspondence, especially in the organization's formative years, for WILPF members who did not serve on the International Executive Committee. Roughly 60-75% of the items in Series II are in English,with most of the remainder in French and German.
The correspondence in these files documents multiple aspects of the work of the League's international office: its handling of routine matters like ordering office supplies and acknowledging receipt of contributions and membership dues; its initiation and coordination of peace activities among individual members and national sections; and its stances on issues of international significance like the perilous situation in Europe and the Far East in the 1930s and the post-World War II nuclear arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union. Therefore, unlike Part A of Series I, this correspondence does not deal exclusively with International Executive Committee business.
The correspondence in Series II is in chronological order by year (or, sometimes, set of years), and then in alphabetical order within each year (or set of years). Until the mid-1930s, the files within a year are in alphabetical order by last name of each correspondent, with individual files on more frequent correspondents coming after that letter of the alphabet. After the mid-1930s, the files for each year are simply arranged in alphabetical order by last name of the correspondent. For each correspondent in the files for a particular year, the items are in chronological order by month and day.
Even though there is correspondence of rank-and-file members of WILPF in Series II, the majority of the correspondence in these files is that of women who were active in international WILPF and who at some time served on the International Executive Committee. Among the correspondents found in Series II are Jane Addams, Gertrude Baer (who added the "e" to her first name around 1941), Adelaide Baker, Emily Greene Balch, Louie Bennett, Gertrude Bussey, Marcelle Capy, Madeleine Doty, Camille Drevet, Gabrielle Duchene, Vilma Gliicklich, Yella Hertzka, Lida Gustava Heymann, Kathleen Innes, Andree Jouve, Marie Lous-Mohr, Chrystal Macmillan, Rosa Manus, Catherine Marshall, Anna Nilsson, Edith Pye, Clara Ragaz, Cor Ramondt-Hirschmann, Naima Sahlbom, Rosika Schwimmer, Mary Sheepshanks, Emily Parker Simon, Agnes Stapledon, Helena Swanwick, Elizabeth Tapper, and Else Zeuthen.
The researcher should especially note that Series II contains far more than correspondence of the individuals noted in the file headings. For some of the larger files of well-known WILPF leaders like Gertrude Baer, Edith Pye, and Emily Greene Balch, there are essays, reports, draft revisions, rough notes, and newspaper clippings and other printed matter on a variety of topics that concerned that individual. The best examples of how wide-ranging these files can be occur in the post-World War II files of Gertrude Baer, which consist of the above types of material, as well as United Nations reports and press releases.
Because of the abundance of printed matter in this series, only the first page of newspaper clippings, article reprints, and pamphlets (unless they were generated by WILPF) were microfilmed. This will allow the researcher to be aware both of issues of concern to the League, and of where to find further information on WILPF and the international peace movement.