A Guide to the Willimantic Food Co-Op Records

Archives & Special Collections, University of Connecticut Libraries

Summary Information

Repository:
Archives & Special Collections, University of Connecticut Libraries
Creator:
Willimantic Food Co-Op
Title:
A Guide to the Willimantic Food Co-Op Records
ID:
1991.0061
Date [inclusive]:
1972-1994
Physical Description:
6.5 Linear feet
Language of the Material:
English
Abstract:
The Willimantic Food Co-Op (WFC) originated as the Willimantic Buyer's Club (WBC), a private pre-order food buying club, which began operating during the early 1970s [1974/1975?] in the basement of St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Valley Street in Willimantic, CT. In 1991 the WFC moved to its present location at 27 Meadow Street, Willimantic. It is a one-million-dollar-a-year business with a membership of about sixteen hundred. Due to the business decisions made in the mid-1980s, it survived and is the only remaining natural foods co-op in CT. All other co-ops in the state went bankrupt. The WFC continues to provide members and the general public with natural foods at reduced rates.

Preferred Citation

[Item, Folder #], Willimantic Food Co-Op Records. Archives & Special Collections, Thomas J. Dodd Research Center at the University of Connecticut Libraries.

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History

The Willimantic Food Co-op (WFC) originated as the Willimantic Buyer's Club (WBC), a private pre-order food buying club, which began operating during the early 1970s [1974/1975?] in the basement of St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Valley Street in Willimantic, CT. Throughout its existence members have referred to the organization as the Co-op. Members pooled their money, ordered in bulk, and met once a month to distribute food. It was a community-owned business that obtained capital from its members, and its success depended on their cooperation and participation. Lifetime dues were one dollar and an additional one dollar per month deposit was required.

For the first three years the membership remained at about forty families. By 1978 the WBC consisted of eighty households, or approximately one hundred fifty to one hundred seventy individuals, from Willimantic and adjacent towns including Coventry, Columbia, Mansfield, Chaplin, Lebanon, and Ashford. Membership further expanded in 1979 following the 1978 dissolution of the UConn Cooperative Buyer's Club at Storrs.

In March 1979, a VISTA worker was assigned to the WBC for outreach purposes to attract low-income people as members. The goal was to reach the low-income, senior citizen, and Hispanic communities. According to the December 1979 WBC by-laws, the organization was a center from which other cooperative efforts in the larger community could begin. The Co-op was to engage in educational and informational activities for the purpose of spreading knowledge of cooperative principles, theories, and practices as well as other information of interest to consumers. It was also to assist other cooperatives and nonprofit organizations.

The merger of the WBC and the UConn Cooperative Buyer's Club in [1978/79?], limited space at the church, and growing community interest encouraged the membership to establish a storefront and to offer cooperative food buying to nonmembers. The storefront was to have a central location that was close to Eastern Connecticut State University and off-campus housing, and which would enable maximum access for the majority of Willimantic's low-income, senior citizen, and Hispanic communities. In February 1980, the storefront opened at 861 Main Street, Willimantic, and the name of the cooperative was changed to the WFC. It was a member of Connecticut Co-ops, a statewide federation and cooperative food warehouse, and by 1982 the WFC had five ad hoc committees: Outreach, Inventory, Finance/Planning, Phone, and Jobs.

People joined the WBC and the WFC to save money and to gain some control over the type of food available, but getting volunteers to work in exchange for a discount on food became increasingly difficult. By 1982, the WFC had to remove its compulsory work requirement at the store in order to attract more members. It also increased its inventory to bring in more customers. Despite these changes, the store continued to face two problems: it was started without enough capital, and the Co-op tried to stay organized as if it was still a private buyer's club.

After narrowly avoiding bankruptcy, there was a major restructuring of the Co-op's finances and other organizational matters in the mid-1980s. During that period, it also became a member of Northeast Co-ops and presented outreach education services to community groups such as the Lion's Club and the Rotary Club. By the late 1980s there were personnel changes which led to stable staffing and other improvements, and the Co-op acquired much equipment when the New Haven Co-op declared bankruptcy.

From its beginning, the WFC had much in common with other organizations that were part of the food co-op movement, which dates back to the 1800s in the United States. In the twentieth-century, food co-ops were popular during the Depression of the 1930s, provided an ideal way of shopping for many youth in the 1960s, and surged with inflation and became a life-style alternative during the 1970s. By the early 1980s, co-ops were largely a middle-class or working-class phenomena but tended to be associated with a young urban counterculture and the back-to-earth movement of the 1960s. The food co-op movement had developed as the result of people's desire and demand to be in control of who supplied goods for their sustenance. It also offered a political alternative to a profit-oriented centralized food industry, where profit precluded good health and nutrition. The WFC was founded as an extension of alternative movements that came out of a tradition of world peace, respect for the earth and all living beings, community involvement, and control of the essentials of our lives. Alternative groups were encouraged to post advertisements, pamphlets, newsletters, and similar materials in the Co-op storefront as long as they were not racist, sexist, militaristic, or otherwise contrary to the principles of peace, justice, environmental responsibility, and respect for others.

In 1991, the WFC moved to its present location at 27 Meadow Street, Willimantic. At that time it was a one-million-dollar-a-year business with a membership of about sixteen hundred. Due to the business decisions made in the mid-1980s, it survived and is the only remaining natural foods co-op in Connecticut. All other co-ops in the state went bankrupt. The WFC continues to provide members and the general public with natural foods at reduced rates.

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Scope and Content

The collection includes minutes, by-laws, correspondence, publications, administrative and financial records, photographs pertaining to the activities and interests of the organization and its members from its founding through 1986 [1979-1985 bulk dates].

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Organization

SERIES I: MINUTES AND BY-LAWS (1979-1985) includes two subseries: Willimantic Buyer's Club and Willimantic Food Co-op. The Willimantic Buyer's Club includes minutes and by-laws. Among the subjects covered in the minutes are dues, orders, fund- raising events, job and work requirements, advertising, finances, the newsletter, and storefront. The by-laws outline the purpose and goals of the Co-op, its membership, executive committee, and finances. Willimantic Food Co-op contains only by-laws. The series is arranged chronologically.

SERIES II: ADMINISTRATIVE FILES (1977- 1985) consists of three subseries: Membership, Alphabetical Files, and Subject Files. Topics covered by this series include the storefront, Nutrition Education Program, VISTA, low-income and senior citizens, and other co-ops. Membership contains index cards with the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of members and the hours they worked at the Co-op. Alphabetical Files includes correspondence, survey forms, membership lists, job descriptions, and other general office files. Subject Files contain background literature on issues being addressed by the Co-op. The series is arranged chronologically.

SERIES III: PUBLICATIONS (1978-1985) has two subseries: Pamphlets and Flyers, and Newsletters. They provide information on the history of the Co-op, its social and fund-raising events, hours, policies, by-laws, board of directors, sales, Co-op orders calendar, recipes, and health and nutrition. Some were printed in Spanish in order to reach the local Hispanic population. The series is arranged chronologically.

SERIES IV: FINANCIAL RECORDS (1976-1985) is arranged in four subseries: Orders and Price Lists, Invoices and Receipts, Financial Statements, and Loans and Funding. The entire series was weeded to reduce its size and to eliminate records of no value.

Orders and Price Lists documents the process of ordering and distributing goods to Co-op members, and provides a comparison between Co-op prices and those at supermarkets. It includes sample order forms for cheese, meat, natural foods, and produce. The subseries is arranged alphabetically and chronologically.

Invoices and Receipts was the only group of records in the collection for which some of the original order had been maintained. Most invoices for 1980 and 1982 were filed alphabetically by product name. Those for 1978 through 1982 which were filed by year were sampled and integrated into the alphabetical arrangement. The invoices selected for retention document the products purchased by the Co-op and the names and addresses of its suppliers. Normand Savoie Whole Sale Food and Produce, Pepperidge Farm Baked Food Products, and Connecticut Co-ops, Inc. were the main suppliers for the years represented by the invoices. The Co-op paid most suppliers of goods and services by check rather than cash. The subseries is arranged alphabetically.

Financial Statements documents the Co-op's financial operations. It consists of bank statements, checks, deposit slips, receipts, account books, operating statements, monthly financial statements, and other materials. The subseries is arranged chronologically.

Loans and Funding contains Co-op loans and information on other funding. It is arranged alphabetically.

SERIES V: UCONN COOPERATIVE BUYER'S CLUB (1976-1978) includes a variety of materials which provide little information on the organization's operations. The UConn Cooperative Buyer's Club was comprised of a natural foods co-op, produce co-op, and bread and cheese co-op. The co-op dissolved in [1978?] and many of its members joined the WBC. The series is arranged alphabetically.

SERIES VI: RESOURCES (1972-1985) contains literature on several organizations and subjects. Some, such as ConnPIRG Channel and Co-op Magazine, were available for reading in the storefront. The series is arranged alphabetically.

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Administrative Information

Publication Statement

Archives & Special Collections, University of Connecticut Libraries July 2002

University of Connecticut Libraries405 Babbidge Road Unit 1205Storrs, Connecticut, 06269-1205860.486.2524archives@uconn.edu

Restrictions on Use

Permission to publish from these Papers must be obtained in writing from both the University of Connecticut Libraries and the owner(s) of the copyright.

Acquisition Information

The Willimantic Food Co-Op Records were donated to the University of Connecticut Libraries in April 1991 by the Co-Op via Ellen Embardo.

Access

The collection is open and available for research.

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Controlled Access Headings

  • Willimantic Food Co-op.
  • Administrative records
  • Connecticut
  • Correspondence
  • Financial Records
  • Food cooperatives
  • Publications
  • Willimantic (Conn.)

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Collection Inventory

SERIES I: MINUTES AND BY-LAWS,, 1979-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances

Subseries A: Willimantic Buyer's Club,, 1979-1981

Title/DescriptionInstances
Minutes,, 1979 March - October
Box 1:1
By-Laws,, 1979 December 16
Box 1:2
Minutes,, 1980 January - December
Box 1:3
Minutes,, 1981 January - December
Box 1:4
Minutes: mandatory meeting,, 1981 March 11
Box 1:5
Minutes: mandatory meeting,, 1981 September 22
Box 1:6
By-Laws,, 1981 October 8
Box 1:7

Subseries B: Willimantic Food Co-op,, 1982-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances
Minutes,, 1982 October - December
Box 1:8
Minutes,, 1983 January - December
Box 1:9
Minutes,, 1984 January - December
Box 1:10
Minutes,, 1985 January - December
Box 1:11

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SERIES II: ADMINISTRATIVE FILES,, 1977-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances

Subseries A: Membership,, 1979-1981

Title/DescriptionInstances
Membership A-K,, 1979-1981 (?)
Box 2:
Membership L-Z and withdrawn,, 1979-1981 (?)
Box 3:

Subseries B: Alphabetical Files,, undated, 1978-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances
Advertising,, 1980-1983
Box 4:12
Advisory Board,, 1979
Box 4:13
Agreement to Purchase: Bill's Number 7 Restaurant,, undated
Box 4:14
Bulletin board,, 1981
Box 4:15
Co-op households. Names and telephone numbers,, undated
Box 4:16
Co-op staff and members' information needs,, undated
Box 4:17
Co-op work schedule,, 1979
Box 4:18
Correspondence: Executive Committee,, 1980-1982
Box 4:19
Correspondence: general,, 1980
Box 4:20
Finance Committee,, 1985
Box 4:21
Food stamps,, undated
Box 4:22
Fundraising,, 1979
Box 4:23
Michael Geigert: reports,, undated, 1985
Box 4:24
Job descriptions,, 1985
Box 4:25
Membership list,, 1978-1982
Box 4:26
Membership list. Members not in good standing, blacklist,, 1981 June - July
Box 4:27
Membership loans,, 1979-1980
Box 4:28
Miscellaneous,, 1979-1981
Box 4:29
Nutrition Education Program: general,, 1979-1981
Box 4:30
Nutrition Education Program: WFC Cookbook,, 1985
Box 4:31
Planning Committee,, 1982
Box 4:32
Policies,, undated, 1981
Box 4:33
Proposed restructuring of Co-op committee,, 1982 June
Box 4:34
Raffle,, 1982
Box 4:35
Staff: WBC and WFC. Names, addresses, telephone #s.,, undated
Box 4:36
Staff: WBC and WFC. Names, addresses, telephone #s.,, undated
Box 4:37
Storefront plans,, 1979
Box 4:38
Survey forms,, 1980, 1983
Box 4:39
Work information form,, 1980
Box 4:40
Workmen's compensation coverage,, 1980-1982
Box 4:41

Subseries C: Subject Files,, 1977-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances
Civic Action Institute: Neighborhood-based Technologies Workshop,, 1979 November 28-30
Box 4:42
Civic Action Institute: Neighborhood-based Technologies Workshop,, 1979
Box 4:43
Connecticut Co-ops, Inc.,, 1979-1981
Box 4:44
Co-op resources,, 1978-1979
Box 4:45
Ronald Cotterill: consultant, agricultural economics,, 1979-1981
Box 4:46
Elderly / senior citizens,, 1978
Box 4:47
Hampton Buyer's Co-op. Hampton, CT,, 1981
Box 4:48
Housing,, 1978-1979
Box 4:49
La Casa De Puerto Rico, Inc.,, 1979
Box 4:50
Low Income,, 1979
Box 4:51
Marketing,, 1980-1981
Box 4:52
Network of Change Oriented Foundations,, 1978
Box 4:53
New England Co-op Congress,, 1981 February 21
Box 4:54
New Haven Food Co-op,, 1978-1982
Box 4:55
Northampton Food Co-op. Northampton, MA,, 1985
Box 4:56
Our Store Cooperative, Inc. Hartford, CT. By-laws,, 1985
Box 4:57
Public Interest Research Group (PIRG). Quarterly report and notes,, 1979
Box 4:58
Public Interest Research Group (PIRG). Quarterly report and notes,, 1977-1979, 1981
Box 4:59
RI Board Training Session, Board Roles, Responsibilities, Finances, and Planning,, 1985 May 20
Box 4:60
Training sessions and tours,, 1981
Box 4:61
VISTA,, 1975, 1981
Box 4:62
VISTA,, 1979-1981
Box 4:63
VISTA Community Jobs: A Journal of Community Change,, 1980 June/July
Box 4:64

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SERIES III: PUBLICATIONS,, 1978-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances

Subseries A: Pamphlets and Flyers,, 1979-1980s

Title/DescriptionInstances
WBC history and storefront,, 1979
Box 5:65
WFC flyers,, 1980s
Box 5:66
WFC pamphlets,, 1980s
Box 5:67

Subseries B: Newsletters,, 1978-1994

Title/DescriptionInstances
Newsy Newsletter. WBC,, 1978 April
Box 5:68
Co-op Mininews. WBC,, 1978 December
Box 5:69
Mariana's newsletter notes,, 1979-1980
Box 5:70
Good News Newsletter. WBC,, 1979
Box 5:71
WBC Newsletter,, 1979 June - November
Box 5:72
The No-Name Newsletter. WFC,, 1980 May
Box 5:73
Mariana's newsletter notes,, 1981
Box 5:74
The Monthly Compost. WFC,, 1981 March, April, September
Box 5:75
Co-op Contact. WFC,, 1981 November-1985 Fall
Box 5:76
Unsorted addition,, 1982-1994
Box 9:

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SERIES IV: FINANCIAL RECORDS,, 1977-1984

Title/DescriptionInstances

Subseries A: Orders and Price Lists,, 1977-1984

Title/DescriptionInstances
Inventory,, 1981-1982
Box 6:77
Inventory,, 1983-1984 (?)
Box 6:78
Order forms: cheese,, 1978-1979
Box 6:79
Order forms: Co-op calendar,, undated
Box 6:80
Order forms: meat,, 1978
Box 6:81
Order forms: natural foods,, 1979
Box 6:82
Order forms: produce,, 1978-1979 (?)
Box 6:83
Orders and weigh sheets,, undated
Box 6:84
Orders and weigh sheets,, 1979 January - February
Box 6:85
Orders and weigh sheets,, 1979 June - July
Box 6:86
Price list: WFC,, undated
Box 6:87
Products and price lists,, 1977-1984
Box 6:88

Subseries B: Invoices and Receipts,, undated, 1976-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances
Agway: pet food,, undated
Box 6:89
Bread: Good Bakery,, undated
Box 6:90
Bread: Pepperidge Farms,, undated
Box 6:91
Canned Goods,, undated
Box 6:92
Cheese,, undated
Box 6:93
City Fish,, undated
Box 6:94
Country Barn: sprouts,, undated
Box 6:95
Crooke Orchards: cider, apples,, undated
Box 6:96
Dairy: Willard J. Stearns and Sons / Mountain Dairy,, undated
Box 6:97
Dari Farms,, undated
Box 6:98
Dessie's Organic Farm,, undated
Box 6:99
Dubinsky and Sons Produce,, undated
Box 6:100
Eggs: Jack Sherman,, undated
Box 6:101
Food Learning Center,, undated
Box 6:102
Frontier Cooperative Herbs,, undated
Box 6:103
Home Pride,, undated
Box 6:104
Hosmer Mountain Bottling Company,, undated
Box 6:105
J and D Seafood,, undated
Box 6:106
Kupris Bread,, undated
Box 6:107
Llama Trading Company,, undated
Box 6:108
Long River Trading Company,, undated
Box 6:109
Milk bills paid,, 1979
Box 6:110
Miscellaneous,, 1976-1985
Box 6:111-118
Mitilsky's Eggs,, undated
Box 6:119
Mitilsky's Eggs,, 1980
Box 6:120
Monthly payables: electric, telephone, and rent,, 1982
Box 6:121
Mushrooms: Ralston Purina,, undated
Box 6:122
Natural foods: CT Co-ops,, undated
Box 6:123
Natural foods: Cornucopia,, undated
Box 6:124
Natural foods: Kenbar,, undated
Box 6:125
Paper supplies,, undated
Box 6:126
Printing advertising,, undated
Box 6:127
Produce, exotic: Gotay Tropical,, undated
Box 6:128
Produce: home gardens,, undated
Box 6:129
Produce: New Acres,, undated
Box 6:130
Produce: Normand Savoie,, undated
Box 6:131
Pepe Farms: produce,, undated
Box 6:132
VISTA,, 1979
Box 6:133
Vitamins,, undated
Box 6:134

Subseries C: Financial Statements,, 1976-1986

Title/DescriptionInstances
Reconciliation of weekly distribution,, 1976-1979
Box 6:135
Bank statements, checks, deposit slips, and receipts,, 1979
Box 6:136
Members account books,, 1979
Box 6:137
Monthly financial statements,, 1979
Box 6:138
Cash disbursements,, 1979-1980
Box 6:139
Cash receipts,, 1979-1980
Box 6:140
Monthly financial statements ,, 1980
Box 6:141-142
Monthly financial statements ,, 1981
Box 6:143
Record of floating capital,, 1982 January - May
Box 6:144
Cost of goods and payable inventory,, 1982-1983
Box 6:145
Financial worksheets,, 1984
Box 6:146
Supplies and services accounts,, 1984-1986
Box 6:147
Operating statement,, 1985
Box 6:148
Operating statement,, 1986
Box 6:149

Subseries D: Loans and Funding,, 1979-1983

Title/DescriptionInstances
Cooperative Fund of New England,, 1979-1983
Box 6:150-152
Co-op Funding,, 1979
Box 6:153
National Consumer Cooperative Bank,, 1979-1981
Box 6:154
Willimantic Trust Company,, 1980-1983
Box 6:155

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SERIES V: UCONN COOPERATIVE BUYYER'S CLUB,, undated, 1976-1978

Title/DescriptionInstances
Background literature,, 1977-1978
Box 7:156
Co-op by-lines,, 1977
Box 7:157
Correspondence,, 1978
Box 7:158
Fiscal agents,, 1976
Box 7:159
Income statement,, 1977-1978
Box 7:160
Jobs,, undated
Box 7:161
Membership list,, undated
Box 7:162
Minutes,, 1977 June 23 - 1978 March 6
Box 7:163
Newsletter,, 1976 November 8
Box 7:164
Order forms,, undated
Box 7:165
Orders and hours,, 1977 September - 1978 June
Box 7:166
Procedures,, undated
Box 7:167

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SERIES VI: RESOURCES,, 1972-1985

Title/DescriptionInstances
Action,, 1974 December
Box 8:168
Building rehabilitation,, 1978
Box 8:169
Business cards,, undated
Box 8:170
Charas. New York, NY,, 1977-1978
Box 8:171
Citizens Party,, 1981
Box 8:172
Communities: Journal of Cooperative Living. Communities Publications Cooperative, Louisa, VA,, 1982 February/March
Box 8:173
ConnPIRG Channel. Hartford, CT,, 1978-1979
Box 8:174
Co-op Bank Notes. National Consumer Cooperative Bank, Washington, D.C., 1980-1981
Box 8:175
Co-op Directory 1980. Co-op Directory Association, Albuquerque, NM,, 1980
Box 8:176
Cooperative extension in NY state,, undated
Box 8:177
Cooperative extension in NY state,, 1979-1985
Box 8:178
Co-op Magazine. (NASCO),, 1979-1980
Box 8:179
Coops in the Northeast,, 1980s
Box 8:180
Dairies,, 1979-1983
Box 8:181
Dimension. ECSU. Art and literary magazine.,, 1981 Spring
Box 8:182
"Directory of Useful Organizations," VISTA Currents. Washington, D.C.,, 1980s
Box 8:183
Drugs,, 1979-1981
Box 8:184
Energy Education Center. UMass, Amherst,, 1981
Box 8:185
Food Coops for Small Groups, by Tony Vellela, NY, NY,, 1975
Box 8:186
"How Stores Manipulate You," Washington Consumer Checkbook, , Washington, D.C.,, undated
Box 8:187
ICC Education Project Report,, 1980 April 12
Box 8:188
"The Impact of Firm Conglomeration on Market Structure: Evidence for the Food Retailing Industry," The Antitrust Bulletin,, 1980 Fall
Box 8:189
Insurance redlining,, 1974, 1977-1978
Box 8:190
Journal of the New Harbinger: A Journal of the Cooperative Movement. (NASCO),, 1972-1979
Box 8:191-92
Legal Help Program. Willimantic, CT,, undated
Box 8:193
A List of Federal Consumer Publications in Spanish. Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, CO,, 1978-1979
Box 8:194
Nestle Boycott,, undated
Box 8:195
New Roots. Northeast Appropriate Technology Network, Inc., Greenfield, MA,, 1981 July/August
Box 8:196
North American Students of Cooperation (NASCO), Ann Arbor, MI,, 1973, 1980s
Box 8:197
Perception House 10th Anniversary Celebration. Willimantic, CT,, 1981
Box 8:198
Produce,, 1980, 1983
Box 8:199
Publications,, undated
Box 8:200
Recipes,, 1979
Box 8:201
The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Centers. Greenfield, MA,, undated
Box 8:202
Self-Reliance. Institute for Local Self-Reliance, Washington, D.C.,, 1981
Box 8:203
The Supermarket Tour: A Handbook for Education and Action,, undated
Box 8:204
"Ten Stages of Group Development- When to Help, When Not to," VISTA Currents. Washington, D.C.,, undated
Box 8:205
Tomatoes,, undated
Box 8:206
United States Department of Agriculture Reports,, 1972, 1978
Box 8:207
The Wall Street Action of the Manhattan Project. New York, NY,, 1979 October 29
Box 8:208
Willimantic Business Association Newsletter. Willimantic, CT,, 1981 April
Box 8:209
Women,, 1976
Box 8:210
You and Radiation Safety. General Dynamics, Electric Boat Division,, 1979 May
Box 8:211
Your World, Your Environment. EPA,, 1979 March
Box 8:212

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