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Catalog Data

Donor:
Finley, Harry, 1942-  Search this
Names:
Museum of Menstruation (1994-1998)  Search this
Extent:
7.5 Cubic feet (23 boxes, 1 map folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Cd-roms
Correspondence
Filmstrips
Fliers (printed matter)
Newspaper clippings
Pamphlets
Patents
Photographs
Postcards
Trade literature
Videocassettes
Date:
circa 1890s-2011
Summary:
Collection documents menstruation and menstrual products.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents through advertisements, product packaging, educational materials and pamphlets, correspondence, photographs, and videotapes, one of the most important topics in health experienced by half of the world's population, menstruation. Menstruation products are a worldwide industry with a documented connection to women's rights, pervasive economic, education, and opportunity inequities, and ecological problems. The archival materials document health, business, advertising, and innovation history. Topics found within the collection include freedom, equality, success, ideals of race and gender in advertising, disposable products and innovation, small, woman-owned businesses and DIYers (Do It Yourself) who devised products to keep plastics out of landfills; business and health issues with multinational conglomerates, such as Tambrands, Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, and Scott Paper Company; and period poverty and tampon tax issues. The collection represents US-made and consumed products, both mass-marketed and small business/DIY (Do It Yourself), from around the country. Also represented are products produced in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Japan, Mexico and Italy. All major, corporate US brands (and many multinational brands) are represented, for example: Tampax (now owned by Procter & Gamble), Kotex (Kimberly-Clark and Scott Paper), o.b (Johnson & Johnson, now Edgewell Personal Care). Also represented are a host of small companies, inventors, and DIY (Do It Yourself) products, such as: Women's Choice, Glad Rags, Instead Cup (Ultrafem), the Keeper, and organic cotton products from Natracare.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into five series. Series 1: Museum of Menstruation Materials, 1984-2003 Series 2: Booklets, Pamphlets, and Other Writings, circa 1894-2003 Series 3: Product Inserts and Product Packaging, circa 1890s-2011 Series 4: Advertising and Sales Materials, 1914-2000s Series 5: Ephemera and Other Materials, circa 1896-2005
Biographical:
Harry Finley (1942-) was born in Long Branch, New Jersey to George and Marjorie Finley. He holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Johns Hopkins University and did post graduate work in philosophy and German at the University of Florida. Finley worked as a graphic designer for the Department of the Army in Washington DC and Germany (1971—2004) and also as a painter, illustrator, and cartoonist.
Historical:
The Museum of Menstruation (MUM) was founded by Harry Finley in 1994 and operated as a physical museum until 1998, after which it continued as an extensive website. The Museum was an outgrowth of a collection he started assembling when living in Europe. Finley worked in Germany as a graphic designer for the U.S. government and was researching print ad layouts. Among the print ads he acquired some documented Kotex and other menstrual products which piqued his interest. Finley built the Museum's collection through his own collecting efforts, and through purchasing materials and by writing to researchers and mentrual-product manufacturers.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Harry Finley, October 13, 2022.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Reference copies for audio and moving images materials do not exist. Use of these materials requires special arrangement. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Advertising, magazine -- 20th century  Search this
Birth control  Search this
Contraceptives industry  Search this
Coupons (Retail trade)  Search this
Feminine hygiene products  Search this
Feminine hygiene products industry  Search this
Health education  Search this
Hygiene  Search this
Menstrual cycle  Search this
Menstruation  Search this
Patent medicines  Search this
Pregnancy  Search this
Sanitary napkins  Search this
Tampons  Search this
Sex  Search this
Sex instruction  Search this
Teenagers  Search this
Women -- Health and hygiene  Search this
Zines  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements
CD-ROMs
Correspondence
Filmstrips
Fliers (printed matter)
Newspaper clippings
Pamphlets
Patents
Photographs
Postcards
Trade literature
Videocassettes
Citation:
Museum of Menstruation Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1586
See more items in:
Museum of Menstruation Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8288ee9dc-59d3-4419-9446-a7a7783bd76c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1586