Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1922-2010 (Creation)
Extent
3.6 cubic feet
Name of creator
Biographical history
Lucretia Rose Shearouse Thomason (1937-2001), American United Methodist layperson, was born to Herbert Samuel and Eula Mary Bennett Shearouse in Brooks County, Georgia, on March 2, 1937. She lived and worked in Georgia, Florida and in Virginia. During her career in education, she taught students from the elementary through the graduate level. Thomason earned degrees in English (B.A. 1958) and Education (M.A.T. 1973) from Emory University and the University of Florida (Ed.D. 1979). Thomason is the author of professional and other articles, poetry, fiction, and a memoir.
Thomason was an active layperson in the general, jurisdiction, annual conference and local church levels. When she volunteered to serve on the many different boards, agencies and various ministries confronting the church it was a time of great social change, especially the Women’s Movement. It is in this area that Thomason found her voice for change within the United Methodist Church. Thomason served as an officer on both the General Commission on the Status of Women (COSROW) and United Methodist Women Caucus(UMWC). Her stint at COSROW lasted from 1976-1980 where she served as vice-president, Chair of the Task Force for Women and Planning Committee and member on both the Nominating and Legislative Committees. It was during this time that Thomason developed a close, lifelong relationship with then General Secretary Nancy Grissom Self.
Thomason, with Judy Leaming-Elmer created and organized the United Methodist Women’s Caucus (UMWC) in 1971 as a result feeling frustrated at their standing as both women and clergy spouses within the denomination. As a result of their meeting and close friendship, a formidable force for women’s rights crashed upon the shores of United Methodism. By 1972, the United Methodist Women’s Caucus was organized which pushed and resulted in major role changes for women’s roles within the denomination on all levels. This was accomplished through the various levels of the United Methodist Connection which is made manifest in the legislative changes adopted by various General Conferences of this time period. As an effect of her work with COSROW and UMWC, Thomason was invited in 1978 to serve on the Board of Higher Education and Ministries’ Commission to Study the Itineracy in order to speak on the issues facing contemporary clergy wives’ concerns and frustrations dealing with the appointment process that required many moves and larger parsonage related matters.
Rose was married for forty-two years and, with her husband, the Reverend Robert Thomason. They have two sons, Mark and Bryan, and seven grandchildren. Rose Thomason died on April 8, 2001.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
The Rose Thomason papers document her work as a church leader, educator and writer. Here the researcher will find evidence of her efforts on women’s issues as well as her personal struggles with career, illness, and relationships which can be found in her writings.
In the COSROW series there are a number of areas covered in a variety of genres which include: Equal Rights Movement, women’s liberation, inclusive language, women being fairly represented in the church, minutes, correspondence, legislation for General Conference, regional training events, etc. One item of provenance note is an oversized working notebook of COSROW related documents which are broken up into multiple file folders while the original order is maintained. The contents reveal and encapsulate the breath and scope of Rose’s work which include topics such as national issues, correspondence, supporting documents for publications, petitions to General Conference, dialogue with the Council of Bishops, regional work in the form of events notes, caucuses, as well as annual conference activism in the Florida Annual Conference on the themes of advocacy, language, monitoring agencies, etc.
The UMWC series one will find similar issues as those in the COSROW series in the forms of minutes, correspondence, the Caucus’ newsletter entitled “The Flyer” which deals with the issues such as ordination of homosexuals, Equal Rights Amendment, sex roles in the denomination to name just a few items. The documents reveal how the Caucus partnered with Women’s Division of the General Board of Global Ministry, General Commission on the Status and Role of Women and Pew Women brought great change in the way women were treated and perceived as persons and leaders. The caucus and Pew Women were the grass roots, boots on the ground part of the above-mentioned quadrilateral. Officers of the caucus, like Rose, also became leaders in the two general agencies.
The Study Commissions series have a number of standard record types that include news releases, minutes, reports and manuscript papers. If one area stands above all others in this series, it would be documents related to the Itineracy Study. These files are loaded with resources that range from articles to resource papers by various authors. This section is worth researching if you are looking for historical materials related to the questions of handling clergy couples, spouses with careers outside the church, hardships caused by the itineracy on families, etc.
In the Writing Series you will find a large collection of Thomason’s poems, speeches, manuscripts in both published formats or personal unpublished manuscripts. It should be noted that there are unfinished works as well. The fan letters’ folder contains a number of correspondences between Rose and her close friends, people inspired by her writings - especially "Shoring Up My Soul, A Year with Cancer", as she only has days and hours left to live. Robert, her husband, sent emails to a number of her friends and fans on a daily basis giving updates to Rose’s condition during her last moments. He also sent emails out announcing her death. The letters are testimonials to those who were personally touched by her life and work. The manuscripts of poems and stories illustrate her struggles with health, social issues and relationships. These documents show who Rose is and why she did the work deemed important to her on all levels of her life. A number of the poems and stories reflect filial relationships.
The Education series contains elements of Thomason’s life as a student along with her teaching career as a Reading Comprehension and English teacher on both a secondary and college. There is an oral history done by Mary Elizabeth Moore for the Program for Women in Theology and Ministry at Candler School of Theology, Emory University, which features both Rose Thomason and Nancy Grissom Self in dialogue about their shared experience and continued friendship on women’s fight against institutional sexism and racism during the last half of the twentieth century. Many of the essays in the Student and Professional Papers date from Thomason’s higher education.
The Family series primarily contains documents created by Thomason, her husband Robert and their children, Mark and Bryan.
System of arrangement
This collection is arranged by series.
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
There are no restrictions regarding this collection.
Physical access
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
Detailed use restrictions relating to our collections can be requested from the office of the archivist at the General Commission on Archives and History. Photocopying is handled by the staff and may be limited in certain instances. Before using any material for publication from this collection a formal request for permission to publish is expected and required.
Languages of the material
- English
Scripts of the material
Language and script notes
Finding aids
Acquisition and appraisal elements
Custodial history
Immediate source of acquisition
2011-052, Robert Troy, November 14, 2011
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information
Accruals
Related materials elements
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related archival materials
General Commission on the Status and Role of Women Collection
Related descriptions
Notes element
General note
When citing material from this collection please use the following format: Direct reference to the item or its file folder, Rose Thomason Papers, United Methodist Church Archives - GCAH, Madison, New Jersey. Do not make use of the item's call number as that is not a stable descriptor.
Specialized notes
Alternative identifier(s)
Description control element
Rules or conventions
Sources used
Archivist's note
Disposed 0.88 cubic feet of records. MCS 9/17/2013.
Archivist's note
Prepared by Mark C. Shenise, Associate Archivist
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- United Methodist Church (U.S.). General Commission on the Status and Role of Women (Subject)
- United Methodist Church (U.S.). United Methodist Women's Caucus (Subject)
- Barbour, Claude Marie (Subject)
- Christ, Carol P. (Subject)
- Doyle, Patricia Martin (Subject)
- Farians, Elizabeth (Subject)
- Krasner, Barbara R. (Subject)
- Raymond, Janice (Subject)
- Long, Cecilia M. (Subject)
- Thomason, Bryan D. (Subject)
- Thomason, Mark J. (Subject)
- Thomason, Ropbert T. (Subject)
- Boddy, Michael P. (Subject)