Arnold and Ophelia Daniels Papers
Scope and Contents
This collection covers Ophelia Daniels’ involvement in various D.C. civic associations, local D.C. politics, as well as her work as a school counselor in the D.C. public school system, primarily focusing on the 1970s-1980s with some materials spanning from the 1940s to the 1990s. Some other family members’ work in education, such as Ophelia’s husband Arnold Daniels, son Danny Daniels, and father William Cope Jr., are featured as well. The collection also includes photographs, letters, personal memorabilia, guidance counselor records, and publications.
Dates
- Creation: 1920s-1990s
Conditions Governing Access
There are no known restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
There are no known restrictions.
Biographical / Historical
Ophelia Daniels worked in a variety of education and school counseling positions in Johnson City, Tennessee and Washington, D.C. before retiring and participating in various civic positions, such as the secretary for the Queens Chapel Civic Association. In 1990, she was honored at a D.C. Federation of Civic Associations meeting for her work on behalf of consumers, lobbying for affordable utility rates and improving medical services for the elderly. She sat on the D.C. Mayor’s Emergency Medical Services Advisory Committee, served as the state chairman of the Washington, D.C. A.M.I. Threshold branch, and represented the District of Columbia in the Georgetown University Community Health Plan Advisory Council.
Arnold Daniels was born in Tennessee, and attended Tennessee State University where he then taught industrial arts for several years. He worked for the Army as a civilian aeronautics mechanic, then served in the Army in Europe during World War II. After returning from the war, Arnold pursued a master's degree from Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State College, which he received in 1953. In 1958, he moved with his wife to Washington to work at the Sharpe Health School, from which he retired in 1979. He was a Mason and a member of the Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity as well as Union Wesley AME Zion Church in Washington. Arnold passed away in 1991 at Washington Hospital Center.
Extent
24 Linear feet (42 boxes, 1 photo box, 2 flat boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
Series 1: Organizations
Sub-Series 1: Queens Chapel Civic Association
Sub-Series 2: Natural Gas Public Service Commission
Sub-Series 3: American Association of Retired Persons, Inc.
Sub-Series 4: Emergency Medical Services Advisory Committee
Sub-Series 5: National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
Sub-Series 6: Advisory Neighborhood Council
Sub-Series 7: Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Sub-Series 8: Area B Community Mental Health Center
Sub-Series 9: Planning and Housing Association
Sub-Series 10: Union Wesley African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Sub-Series 11: Service Area Committees
Sub-Series 12: D.C. Federation of Civic Associations
Sub-Series 13: Washington Teacher’s Union
Sub-Series 14: American Bridge Association
Sub-Series 15: Iona House
Sub-Series 16: Swift Memorial Junior College Reunion Association
Sub-Series 17: Upper Northeast Coordinating Council
Sub-Series 18: Georgetown University Community Health Plan Advisory Council
Series 2: Government and Politics
Sub-Series 1: Politicians and Candidates
Sub-Series 2: Departments
Sub-Series 3: D.C. Offices
Sub-Series 4: Organizations
Sub-Series 5: Political Materials
Series 3: Personal Records
Sub-Series 1: School Counseling and Education
Sub-Series 2: Photographs and Scrapbooks
Sub-Series 3: Correspondence
Sub-Series 4: Calendars, Diaries, and Notebooks
Sub-Series 5: Family Papers
Sub-Series 6: Organizations and Businesses
Sub-Series 7: Printed Materials
Custodial History
Donated to the Library by Ophelia Daniels on January 20, 2000.
Processing Information
The collection was very loosely processed but mostly unorganized when the Library received it in 2000. The processor took an informal inventory of the items of the collection and determined the collection should be arranged in a way that features Ophelia’s work as an active member in multiple D.C. civic associations, a committee member and representative on multiple boards, as well as a school counselor. After determining and locating the major organizations Ophelia participated in, the processor grouped folders of documents together by theme or project and then arranged the items into new folders. Any material pertaining to the Daniels family, D.C., school counseling, education, and civic associations were prioritized as the collection was developed. As each series evolved, materials were often grouped by topic, theme, or format and then placed in chronological or alphabetical order.
- Title
- Arnold and Ophelia Daniels Papers082
- Subtitle
- An inventory of the Arnold and Ophelia Daniels Papers at DC Public Library
- Author
- Finding aid completed by Rachel Hicks
- Date
- 2022
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the The People's Archive, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library Repository