Archief F19 - Brooklin Women's Institute fonds

The Brooklin Women's Institute (WI) was founded in May 1910. This organization was an offshoot of the Whitby WI, which had been operative since 1897. The Brooklin WI was led by a president and a small executive team, including first and second vice presidents and a secretary-treasurer. Roughly 20 individuals maintained annual membership, especially in the organization's early decades.

The WI's goal was to educate women regarding the application of domestic science to homemaking activities. The WI also engaged in lobbying activities, submitting resolutions to municipal and provincial governments. All WI endeavors were orchestrated by standing committees comprising members. Committees organized lectures, prepared resolutions, participated in community activities, and created “Tweedsmuir histories,” or scrapbooks containing narratives about the region. The Brooklin WI’s committees included the following: Resolutions; Agriculture and Canadian Industries; Historical Research and Current Events; Public Relations and Community Activities; Citizenship and Education; and Home Economics and Health.

The Brooklin WI was active in the regional community over the years: it fundraised for the township hall; donated to the Brooklin library; hosted hobby shows, educational programs, and essay prize programs for children; planted trees; and held health clinics, including one in which children were given tonsil operations. To raise funds, the Brooklin WI delivered radio broadcasts and served at fairs, garden parties, banquets, concerts, and dramas.

Like the Whitby WI, the Brooklin WI appears to have focused on the concerns of white, middle-class, Christian women in the region. The organization's Tweedsmuir histories demonstrate this tendency, centering on the region's white European pioneers and their descendants.

The Brooklin WI disbanded in 1997.