The organization began in 1961 as the McLean County Home Economists in Homemaking. They became an affiliate of the American Home Economics Association and the Illinois Home Economics Association on November 1st of the same year. As the name suggests, homemaking, recipes, fashion, and decorating were topics of speakers at monthly meetings until 1975. The name was then changed to Professional Home Economists of McLean County. The monthly meeting topics started to include education, children and retirement. Women were beginning to be referred to by their first names rather than “Mrs. John XXX.” In 2000 the organization name changed to Family and Consumer Sciences Professionals of McLean County. They had evolved to include topics such as cancer, partner violence, and historic preservation.
This collection includes a 4 page history plus 3 scrap books with photos and newspaper articles of 40 years from 1961 to 2001. Also included are the Annual Booklets from each year through 2013 which list officers, members, and monthly meeting topics for each year.