Finding aid of the Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois Mercer
Papers
Loni Shibuyama
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives
909 West Adams Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90007
Phone: (213) 741-0094
Fax: (213) 741-0220
Email: askone@onearchives.org
URL: http://www.onearchives.org
© 2008
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives. All rights reserved.
Finding aid of the Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois Mercer
Papers
Collection number: Coll2008-038
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives
Los Angeles,
California
- Processed by:
- Loni Shibuyama
- Date Completed:
- June 20, 2008
- Encoded by:
- Loni Shibuyama
© 2008 ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives. All rights reserved.
Processing this collection has been funded by a generous grant
from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois Mercer
papers
Dates: 1914-1988
Collection number: Coll2008-038
Creator:
Putnam, Dorothy C., 1895-1991
Creator:
Mercer, Lois, 1894-1989
Collection Size: 1 archive carton + 1 archive box
+ 1 flat archive carton + 1 trophy. 2.5 linear feet.
Repository:
ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives.
Los Angeles, California 90007
Abstract: Photographs, correspondence, typescripts,
newspaper clippings, a trophy and scrapbooks relating to Dorothy C. Putnam
(1895-1991) and her partner of 50 years, Lois Mercer (1894-1989), bookkeeper
for ONE, Inc. The majority of the materials document Putnam's life and family
from her adolescence as a horseback mail carrier in Oregon; her activities as
the first licensed female chauffeur in California; her wins in economy-run
driving races in the 1920s; and her service in the Women's Ambulance and
Transport Corps of California (W.A.T.C.C.) and U.S. Air Force during World War
II. Materials also document Lois Mercer's service in the U.S. Air Force during
World War II; her contribution to ONE, Inc., from 1953; Putnam and Mercer's
community activism; and their 50 years of life together in Los Angeles.
Languages: Languages represented in the
collection: English
Access
The collection is open to researchers. There are no access
restrictions.
Publication Rights
Researchers wishing to publish materials must obtain permission in
writing from ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives as the physical owner.
Researchers must also obtain clearance from the holder(s) of any copyrights in
the materials. Note that ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives can grant
copyright clearance only for those materials for which we hold the copyright.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain copyright clearance for
all other materials directly from the copyright holder(s).
Preferred Citation
Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois Mercer papers, Coll2008-038, ONE National Gay
and Lesbian Archives, Los Angeles, California.
Acquisition Information
Donation of Dorothy Putnam and Lois Mercer, date unknown.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Loni Shibuyama,
June 20, 2008.
Processing this collection has been funded
by a generous grant from the National Historical Publications and Records
Commission.
Biography
Dorothy "Dot" Crocker Putnam was born in Massachusetts on October 15,
1895, the daughter of Frank Wright Putnam and Elle Crocker Putnam. She is a
descendant of American Revolutionary War General Israel Putnam, and claimed to
be a cousin of Amelia Earhart (although the relationship may have been to
Earhart's husband, George Putnam). As a young woman, Putnam was a horseback
mail carrier in Oregon. She later moved to Los Angeles, where she developed an
interest in automobiles. In 1918, she became the first licensed female
chauffeur in California, her clients including Carole Lombard, Charlie Chaplin
and Clark Gable. In addition, she also won a number of driving contests in Los
Angeles during the 1920s. During World War II, she served in the Women's
Ambulance and Transport Corps of California (W.A.T.C.C.), and later the Air
Force, rising to the rank of First Lieutenant. After retiring from the Air
Force, she became the first female senior truck driver for the Los Angeles
Sheriff's Department.
Lois Mercer was born in California on February 12, 1894. In 1928, she
moved to Los Angeles, where she worked as a bookkeeper for an insurance
company. In the 1930s, she met Dorothy Putnam, who was her partner for over 50
years. During World War II, Mercer, with Putnam, joined the W.A.T.C.C., and
later the Air Force, rising to the rank of Corporal. In 1953, Mercer became
bookkeeper at ONE, Inc., where she continued to work part-time until she
retired in 1986 at the age of 92.
Putnam and Mercer lived in Los Angeles throughout their 50-year
partnership. Lois Mercer died on January 6, 1989, Dorothy Putnam in March
1991.
Source: Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois Mercer Papers, Coll2008-038, ONE
National Gay & Lesbian Archives, Los Angeles, California
Scope and Content of Collection
This collection comprises scrapbooks, photographs, typescripts,
clippings, miscellaneous material and a trophy from Dorothy C. Putnam and Lois
Mercer. Each of the scrapbooks includes photographs, clippings, correspondence,
notes and miscellaneous typescripts documenting Putnam and Mercer's lives from
the 1910s through the mid-1980s. Materials document Putnam's ancestry; her
career as the first licensed female chauffeur and mechanic in California and
her subsequent service as an Air Force lieutenant; her participation in driving
contests; Mercer's contribution to ONE, Inc.; her involvement in the Republican
Party; their shared community activism; and their 50-year partnership, which
began in Los Angeles in the 1930s. Also included is a trophy Putnam won in the
Ladies Driving Contest organized by the Motor Car Dealers Association of Los
Angeles in 1922.
Note: Scrapbooks should be handled with care as the glue holding the
photographs to the pages has become brittle and many of the photographs are
loose.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this
collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Lesbians
Mercer, Lois, 1894-1989
ONE, Inc.
ONE Institute
Putnam, Dorothy C.,
1895-1991
United States. Air Force--Officers--Women
Women's Ambulance and Transport Corps
of California, Inc.
Related Material
A VHS videotape of an interview by Dorr Legg with Lois Mercer and Lt.
Dorothy Putnam, April 27, 1986, is currently (June 2008) deposited with the
Outfest Legacy Project at the University of California at Los Angeles.
Collection Contents
Scrapbooks and Photo Albums
Box 1 : 1
Album #1
circa 1910 -
1969
Physical Description: 126 photographs : b&w ,
col.
Box 1 : 2
Album #2
circa 1910 -
1945
Physical Description: 167 photographs : b&w.
Box 1 : 3
Album #3
1914 - 1981
Physical Description: 132 photographs : b&w ,
col.
Box 2 : 1
Album #4
circa 1915 -
1943
Physical Description: 143 photographs : b&w ,
col.
Box 3 : 1
Album #5
1918 - 1946
Physical Description: 31 photographs : b&w.
Box 1 : 4
Album #6
circa 1937 -
1975
Physical Description: 84 photographs : b&w , col.
Box 3 : 2
Album #7
1963 - 1976
Physical Description: 109 photographs : col.
Box 3 : 3
Photo Album of Lois Mercer & Dot Putnam
1975 - 1988
Physical Description: 170 photographs : b&w ,
col.
Box 1 : 5
Album #8
1981 - 1984
Physical Description: 21 photographs : col.
Miscellaneous Photographs
Box 2 : 2
Dorothy Putnam (found loose)
1916 - 1942
Physical Description: 6 photographs : b&w.
Box 2 : 3
Dorothy Putnam Photo and Clipping (framed)
circa 1943
Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w.
Box 2 : 4
Family Photos
circa 1910 -
1920
Physical Description: 2 photographs : b&w.
Box 2 : 5
Family Photos
circa 1982 -
1986
Physical Description: 7 photographs : col.
Box 3 : 4
Frank Wright Putnam
Undated
Physical Description: 1 photograph : b&w.
Box 2 : 7
Correspondence and Related Clipping About Dorothy
Putnam
1983 - 1985
Box 2 : 8
"Motor Pool" Air Force Maywood, California
1943
Box 2 : 9
Newspaper Clippings about Tressa Prisbrey
1982
Box 2 : 10
National Law Enforcement Officers' Memorial Fund Certificate
of Recognition to Lois Mercer
1988
Box 2 : 11
ONE Institute Material
1982 - 1986
Box 2 : 12
Ronald Reagan and Republican Party Memorabilia
1984 - 1986
Item 4
Ladies Driving Contest Trophy from the Motor Car Dealers
Association in Los Angeles
May 1922
