Mary Bye papers 3202 Finding aid prepared by James R. DeWalt.
Last updated on November 09, 2018.
First edition
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
; 2016. Mary Bye papers
Table of Contents
Summary Information...... 3 Biography/History...... 4 Scope and Contents...... 5 Administrative Information...... 6 Related Materials...... 7 Controlled Access Headings...... 7 Collection Inventory...... 9 Activism...... 9 Native Americans...... 11 Peace Activism...... 12 Anti-Nuclear Activism...... 14 Energy...... 18 Environment...... 19 Animal Rights...... 23 Friends/Religion...... 24 Personal...... 25
- Page 2 - Mary Bye papers
Summary Information
Repository Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Creator Bye, Mary, 1913-
Title Mary Bye papers
Call number 3202
Date [bulk] 1974-1991
Date [inclusive] 1969-1992, undated
Extent 5.6 linear feet (; 15 boxes, 4 flat files)
Language English
Abstract Mary Bye (1913-2002) was a Quaker activist who lived in rural Bucks County. She became involved in the anti-war movement during the 1960s. She was also active in causes relating to social justice and the environment. During the 1970s she became involved with anti- nuclear activism, and was a principal opponent of efforts to expand the nuclear facilities at Limerick, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere. Late in life she became increasingly concerned with environmental protection, famously attempting to save a stand of oak trees near her home from destruction. Her other major causes included Native American rights and a continuing devotion to the anti-war movement. She was a Convener of the Friends Environmental Working Group, a leading figure in the Central Bucks Clean Energy Collective and the Movement for a New Society, and a supporter of numerous local and national activist organizations. The Mary Bye papers consist of 5.6 linear feet of textual documents recording Mary Bye’s activist career from 1969-1992 (bulk 1974-1991). The documents in this collection relate primarily to her
- Page 3 - Mary Bye papers activity in opposition to nuclear energy and her efforts and concern for environmental protection. Of particular importance are documents relating to numerous local organizations in the form of newsletters, meeting notes, and correspondence, as well as a significant collection of documents relating to the nuclear facilities at Limerick, Pennsylvania, and the related Point Pleasant Pumping Station, a facility 30 miles to the east designed to bring water as coolant from the Delaware River to the Limerick station. Other topics include the American Indian Movement and the anti-war activities of the Plowshares Eight.
Cite as:
Cite as: [Indicate cited item or series here], Mary Bye papers (Collection 3202), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Biography/History
Mary Bye was born on April 25, 1913 to Mary Maitland DuBois McCarty and Harry Downman McCarty, a prominent Baltimore physician. She graduated from Swarthmore College in 1936, where she studied mathematics and natural sciences, and later attended the School of Horticulture, now part of Temple University, where she studied landscape design. After practicing horticulture for several years, she married the watercolorist Ranulph de Bayeux Bye (1916-2003), known for his paintings of rural Bucks County scenes. They had five children: Dennis Latham (born 1942), Barbara Downman (born 1944), Richard Edwin (March 12, 1951-May 10, 1951), Stephen Gerard (born 1952) and Catherine “Katie” Maitland Castor (born 1955). Originally an Episcopalian, after marrying Ranulph Bye she became a Quaker and moved to rural Bucks County where she remained for the rest of her life. Mary and Ranulph Bye later divorced. Mary Bye became active in the anti-war movement during the Vietnam War. During her years as a peace activist, she was arrested ten times and jailed for civil disobedience after reading the names of war dead on the Capitol steps in Washington, D.C. She was detained by police while protesting a visit by Richard Nixon at Independence Hall, fired on with water hoses while protesting at a munitions plant in New Jersey, and arrested at a demonstration in support of the Harrisburg Seven, a group of anti-war activists led by Father Philip Berrigan, who were being tried in 1972 on several counts of conspiracy. She frequently opened her home to visiting peace activists and hosted community forums in support of
- Page 4 - Mary Bye papers the movement. She commuted daily to Philadelphia where she worked for the Peace Committee of the Society of Friends, and was an active member of the anti-war coalition Concerned Citizens of Bucks County. She was a long-term tax resister, refusing to pay a portion of her taxes to the IRS in opposition to American military spending. Her other early causes included support of Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers, and opposition to apartheid in South Africa. She was active in the local group Movement for a New Society and its affiliated organizations. During the 1970s she became increasingly involved with anti-nuclear activism and opposition to nuclear reactor facilities. She participated in demonstrations and other direct actions at the Barnwell, South Carolina facility in 1978, and later became a determined critic and opponent of the nuclear facilities at Peach Bottom and Limerick, Pennsylvania and the related Point Pleasant Pumping Station, a facility designed to bring water as coolant from the Delaware River to Limerick. She participated in demonstrations and other actions aimed at directing attention to the dangers of nuclear energy, and consistently lobbied government officials on behalf of local anti-nuclear organizations such as Central Bucks Clean Energy Collective and Limerick Ecology Action. Concurrent with her opposition to nuclear energy, she became an advocate of energy conservation and supporter of alternative energy sources, notably solar energy, attempting to convert her home to solar photovoltaic cell technology. Later in life, Mary Bye became more broadly concerned with ecology and the environment, natural habitat, clean air and water, and animal rights. She served for several years as Convener of the Friends’ Working Group on Stewardship of the Environment (later Friends Environmental Working Group). She became a celebrity in her Bucks County community and beyond because of her 1988 attempt to save a stand of oak trees from cutting by literally hugging the tallest tree and refusing to leave. Her efforts were unavailing, and the trees were cut down. She continued to be involved in issues of social justice and peace activism, corresponding frequently with imprisoned members of the Plowshares Eight, a group of anti-war activists led by Philip Berrigan and his brother Daniel, who in 1980 damaged nuclear missile components at the General Electric Nuclear Military Facility in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. She suported several civil and human rights organizations, and opposed military intervention in Central America. She became an advocate of the American Indian Movement, supporting activists Dennis Banks, Russell Means and Leonard Peltier. Mary Bye entered a retirement home in Newtown, Bucks County sometime in 1991 or 1992. She died on November 1, 2002.
Scope and Contents
The Mary Bye papers comprise 5.6 linear feet of textual documents with additional flat and object files related to the political, social and environmental activities of Quaker activist Mary Bye, from 1969 to 1992 (bulk 1974-1991). The documents include correspondence, direct action planning documents, informational mailings and solicitations, organizational newsletters, meeting notes, and newspaper clippings. The collection contains documents directly related to Bye, as well as organizational mailings intended for a general readership that Bye kept for her own use, often with personal annotations and comments in the margins. The files are especially useful in documenting the activities of local activist
- Page 5 - Mary Bye papers organizations, many of which appeared as ad hoc groups for specific purposes, some continuing for several years, others later repurposed or defunct. The papers in this collection reflect a general repositioning of Mary Bye’s activist career away from her early efforts in the anti-war movement of the 1960s and early 1970s toward a more concerted activism in support of environmental protection, and in opposition to nuclear energy. Personal and family papers are not well represented in the collection. The collection is divided into nine series: Series 1. Activism, including general topics of social and political activism; Series 2. Native Americans, concerned mostly with Bye’s activities in support of the Native American Movement; Series 3. Peace Activism, including the activities of various Friends and other peace organizations; Series 4. Anti-Nuclear Activism, documenting Bye’s activities with various activist groups, demonstrations and direct actions, especially involving the Limerick Nuclear Reactor; Series 5. Energy, focusing on alternative sources of energy, especially solar; Series 6. Environment, concerned with environmental protection, clean air and clean water; Series 7. Animal Rights, protection of wildlife and the humane treatment of animals; Series 8. Friends/Religion, including documents related specifically to Friends’ religious concerns and spirituality; and Series 9. Personal, a collection of strictly personal letters and documents. Researchers should note that Mary Bye’s name appears in a bewildering confusion of forms, misapplications and misspellings. For the record, her full unmarried name was Mary DuBois McCarty. Her full married name was Mary McCarty Bye (sometimes Mary DuBois McCarty Bye). This collection contains two forms of her printed letterhead, Mary McCarty Bye, and simply Mary Bye.
Administrative Information
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
; 2016. Finding aid prepared by James R. DeWalt.
Access Restrictions Open to researchers without restrictions.
Provenance Gift of Mary Bye.
Processing note The Mary Bye papers originally consisted of ten linear feet of documents. The majority of these were housed in rough folders or envelopes gathered together by general topic, some obviously by Mary Bye herself, others probably not. They included direct mailings and solicitations from a number of
- Page 6 - Mary Bye papers organizations of every type, many of them unopened, requesting donations and including in their mailings newsletters, information brochures, photocopied news clippings, and petitions. Most of this material was duplicated many times over. A sampling of the direct mailing was kept with the collection, either in a miscellaneous file by series, or when appropriate with the organization file concerned. Informational material from the direct mailings was sometimes extracted by Bye and kept in a separate file, often with annotations added in the margins. These have been maintained in the arrangement in which they were found. Duplicated and repetitive mailings have been discarded, including most national newsletters and magazines. All documents concerning Mary Bye or any of the organizations or direct actions in which she was involved have been kept, including newsletters, as well as all documents connected in any way with local organizations and Friends groups.
Related Materials
Related materials At other institutions:
Mary Bye papers (Collection RG5/024), Friends Historical Collection of Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
Controlled Access Headings
Corporate Name(s)
• Barnwell Nuclear Fuel Plant. • Bucks County Conservancy. • Central Bucks Clean Energy Collective. • Clean Air Council. • Creation Spirituality. • Critical Mass Energy Project (U.S.). • EcoJustice Working Group. • Friends Committee on Unity with Nature. • Friends Environmental Working Group. • Limerick Atomic Power Station (Pa.). • Limerick Ecology Action.
- Page 7 - Mary Bye papers • Mobilization for Survival (Organization). • Movement for a New Society. • Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station (Pa.). • Philadelphia Quaker Women's Workshop. • Plowshares Eight (Group). • Point Pleasant Pumping Station (Pa.). • Sierra Club. • Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant (Pa.).
Personal Name(s)
• Banks, Dennis • Fox, Matthew, 1940- • Heinz, John, 1938-1991 • Kabat, Carl • Kostmayer, Peter H. • Massey, Marshall • Means, Russell, 1939-2012 • Peltier, Leonard • Redding, Stephen • Schuchardt, John • Silkwood, Karen, 1946-1974 • Specter, Arlen
Subject(s)
• Animal rights. • Antinuclear movement. • Disarmament. • Ecology. • Energy conservation. • Environmental protection. • Native Americans. • Nuclear power plants. • Pacifism. • Peace--Societies, etc. • Quaker women. • Quakers--Pennsylvania • Social justice. • Solar energy.
- Page 8 - Mary Bye papers Series 1. . Activism
Collection Inventory
Series 1. . Activism, 1969-1991, undated. Scope and content note
The Activism series contains files devoted to general social justice and organizations that embraced several aspects of activism. It is not unusual for groups such as the Christic Institute or the Friends Committee on National Legislation to be devoted to anti-war activism, environmental protection, alternative energy, feminism, etc., at the same time. Some of the files in this series are essentially collections of mass mailings kept and sometimes annotated by Mary Bye. Files related to the Greensboro Five and the migrant farm workers contain more Bye original content. The Movement for a New Society was a network of social activist collectives that grew out of a group originally called A Quaker Action Group, but that was no longer exclusively a Friends organization. It was active locally and was related to two projects that Bye was closely involved with: Turning Point Life Center Community and Wonderful Older Women. Moon Ark, or Moon Ark Ecology House, though not well represented, seems to have been a local organization supported by Bye that initially espoused ecological concerns but later became more general in focus. Mobilization for Survival, also with local affiliation, was an activist group that embraced several causes and encouraged direct action. The Bucks County Free Library file relates to efforts by Bye to amend the policy of the library in determining what material was permitted to be posted by outside groups at library facilities. The political correspondence files, notably with Congressman Peter H. Kostmayer and Senator Arlen Specter, are files that Bye maintained in their present condition; subject matter varies and complements topics in other series of the collection, which also contains correspondence with these and other government officials.
Box Folder
American Civil Liberties Union, 1987-1990, undated. 1 1
Bucks County Free Library-bulletin board policy, 1969, 1976-1978, 1 2 undated.
Center for Constitutional Rights, 1988-1990, undated. 1 3
- Page 9 - Mary Bye papers Series 1. . Activism
Christic Institute, 1985-1991. 1 4
Christic Institute-miscellaneous papers and news reports, 1986-1990, 1 5 undated.
Christic Institute- Convergence, 1987-1991. 1 6
Death penalty, 1990. 1 7
Friends Committee on National Legislation, 1988-1990. 1 8
Friends-Testimonies and Concerns Committee, 1984-1986, 1989, undated. 1 9
Greensboro Five, 1983-1985, undated. 1 10
Migrant farm workers, 1975-1988, undated. 1 11
Mobilization for Survival, 1977-1990, undated. 2 1
Mobilization for Survival- The Mobilizer, 1978, 1986. 2 2
Mobilization for Survival-Survival Summer, 1980, undated. 2 3
Moon Ark, 1981, undated. 2 4
Movement for a New Society, 1979, undated. 2 5
Political correspondence-John Heinz, 1977, 1985-1986. 2 6
Political correspondence-Peter H. Kostmayer, 1976-1977, undated. 2 7
Political correspondence-Peter H. Kostmayer, 1983-1988, undated. 2 8
Political correspondence-Peter H. Kostmayer, 1989. 2 9
- Page 10 - Mary Bye papers Series 2. . Native Americans
Political correspondence-Arlen Specter, 1981-1990, undated. 2 10
Political correspondence-miscellaneous, 1976-1977. 2 11
Poverty, 1983, undated. 2 12
Simple Living Movement, undated. 2 13
Socialist Party, U.S.A., 1987, 1989, undated. 2 14
The Socialist, 1988-1989. 2 15
South Africa, 1979, 1989. 2 16
Southern Poverty Law Center, 1986-1989, undated. 3 1
Southern Poverty Law Center- Law Report, 1987-1990. 3 2
Turning Point-Life Center community, 1979-1980, undated. 3 3
W.O.W.-Wonderful Older Women, 1978-1979, undated. 3 4
Miscellaneous groups and newsletters, 1979, 1985, 1989-1990, undated. 3 5
Miscellaneous direct mailing, undated. 3 6
Series 2. . Native Americans, 1978-1990, undated. Scope and content note
The Native Americans series is primarily concerned with Bye’s efforts on behalf of the American Indian Movement, cofounded by Dennis Banks, and supported by activist and Native American actor Russell Means. One file concerns support for Leonard Peltier, a Native American activist who was convicted and
- Page 11 - Mary Bye papers Series 3. . Peace Activism
sentenced to prison in the shooting deaths of two FBI agents in what was known as the 1977 Pine Ridge conflict. Other files relate to local Native American organizations.
Box Folder
Dennis Banks, 1983-1984, undated. 3 7
Friends' concerns, 1978-1990. 3 8
Lenni Lenape Historical Society, 1988-1989, undated. 3 9
Russell Means, 1978, 1983-1984, undated. 3 10
Native Spirit, 1988, undated. 3 11
Leonard Peltier, 1979, 1984-1985, 1990, undated. 3 12
Miscellaneous, 1979-1990, undated. 3 13
Miscellaneous direct mailing, 1990, undated. 3 14
Series 3. . Peace Activism, 1975-1991, undated. Scope and content note
Mary Bye continued to be active in the anti-war movement after the Vietnam War, but her concern shifted to American military activity in general, especially in relation to Central America. The organizations represented here frequently support several causes, but peace activism is their focus as represented in this series. Friends groups and concerns are well represented. Jonah House was a pacifist organization based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Plowshares Eight were a group of activists, including Father Philip Berrigan of the Harrisburg Seven and his brother, Father Daniel Berrigan, who were convicted of destroying two nuclear warheads in 1980 at a General Electric facility in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Mary Bye corresponded extensively with John Schuchardt and also with Father Carl Kabat, two of the convicted activists, however, there is no personal correspondence in this collection with Fathers Philip or Daniel Berrigan. This series also contains a record of Mary Bye’s resistance to
- Page 12 - Mary Bye papers Series 3. . Peace Activism
paying federal income tax in opposition to American military activity. This resistance spanned many years prior to the files in this collection, here restricted mainly to her activities from 1980 to 1982.
Box Folder
Central America, 1982, 1984-1985, 1988, undated. 4 1
Fellowship of Reconciliation, 1983, 1990, undated. 4 2
Friends-American Friends Service Committee-National Action/Research on 4 3 the Military Industrial Complex, 1977-1984, undated.
Friends-Committee on the United Nations, 1985-1987, undated. 4 4
Friends- Peace and Service Newsletter, 1984-1991, undated. 4 5
Friends Peace Committee, 1982, 1986, 1988, undated. 4 6
Friends-miscellaneous, 1984, 1988. 4 7
Jonah House- Year One, 1980-1989, undated. 4 8
Newsletter of LEPOCO Lehigh-Pocono Committee of Concern, 1977-1978, 4 9 1987, 1989.
Nuclear weapons, 1985-1986, undated. 4 10
Plowshares Eight, 1981-1990, undated. 4 11
Plowshares Eight-correspondence, 1978-1988, undated. 4 12
Tax resistance, 1975, 1980-1982, undated. 4 13
Miscellaneous groups, 1980-1990, undated. 4 14
- Page 13 - Mary Bye papers Series 4. . Anti-Nuclear Activism
Miscellaneous newsletters, 1976, 1978, 1983, 1990, undated. 4 15
Miscellaneous papers, 1976, 1980, 1986, 1988-1989, undated. 4 16
Miscellaneous direct mailing, 1989-1990. 4 17
Box Folder
Posters and ephemera, 1982-1983, undated. Flat file 1
Series 4. . Anti-Nuclear Activism, 1975-1991, undated. Scope and content note
The Anti-Nuclear Activism series includes files related to Mary Bye’s efforts to draw awareness to the hazards of nuclear energy and nuclear waste. It includes important documentation of direct action and political lobbying through local groups such as Central Bucks Clean Energy Collective, as well as files dealing with nuclear hazards in general. This series is especially useful in documenting how local and national groups conducted political and direct action. The Barnwell, South Carolina rally file demonstrates how an operation of this nature was carried out in 1978. The greater portion of this series is relates to local efforts to stop or curtail further development of the nuclear facility at Limerick, Pennsylvania and its related facility at the Point Pleasant Pumping Station. Several rallies and vigils are documented, along with ongoing correspondence intended to apply political pressure. One file records a court case ( Mary Bye v. Philadelphia Electric Company) which involved Bye as a complainant and her decision to withhold a portion of her electric bill that she considered relative to the generating capacity of Limerick. The Point Pleasant Pumping Station conflict relates to concerns involving environmental pollution as well as nuclear energy. There are also files relating to the Peach Bottom nuclear facility, and others such as Three Mile Island. Several large files contain general mailings and related information from large national organizations such as Union of Concerned Scientists and Public Citizen-Critical Mass Energy Project, to which Bye offered her services. Local groups include Limerick Ecology Action and CLEAR (Citizens’ League for Environmental Awareness Resources). Another local organization, though not well represented, was the Silkwood Reactors, in which Bye was an active participant.
- Page 14 - Mary Bye papers Series 4. . Anti-Nuclear Activism
Box Folder
Citizen's Clearinghouse for Hazardous Wastes, Inc.-newsletters, 1985-1987. 5 1
Citizens Energy Council, 1981, 1984-1985, 1990, undated. 5 2
Citizerns for Environmental Rights, 1987, undated. 5 3
CLEAR-Citizens' League for Energy Awareness Resources, 1988-1990, 5 4 undated.
Friends' concerns, 1975, 1984-1987, undated. 5 5
National Day of Nuclear Protest-rally May 24, 1986, 1986, undated. 5 6
Nuclear energy, 1974, 1984-1988, undated. 5 7
Nuclear Information and Resource Service, 1984, 1986-1991, undated. 5 8
Nuclear reactor safety, 1983-1988, undated. 5 9
Nuclear reactors-Barnwell-rally and direct action, April 29-May 1, 1978, 5 10 1977-1979, undated.
Nuclear reactors-Chernobyl, 1986, 1991, undated. 5 11
Nuclear reactors-Limerick, 1983-1988, undated. 6 1
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-evacuation plans, 1983-1987, undated. 6 2
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-evacuation drill-July 25, 1984, 1984-1985, 6 3 undated.
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-evacuation drill-April 3, 1986, 1986, undated. 6 4
- Page 15 - Mary Bye papers Series 4. . Anti-Nuclear Activism
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-Limerick Ecology Action, 1983-1985, 1989, 6 5 undated.
Nuclear reactors-Limerick- Mary Bye v. Philadelphia Electric Company, 6 6 1985-1987, undated.
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-PECO rate hikes, 1983-1986, 1989-1990, 6 7 undated.
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-political correspondence, 1984-1986, undated. 6 8
Nuclear reactors-Limerick-Vigil, September 14, 1984-Central Bucks Clean 6 9 Energy Collective, 1984, undated.
Nuclear reactors-Oyster Creek, 1984. 6 10
Nuclear reactors-Peach Bottom, 1986-1989, undated. 6 11
Nuclear reactors-Three Mile Island, 1979, 1982-1986, undated. 6 12
Nuclear reactors-miscellaneous reactor accidents and shutdowns, 6 13 1984-1986, undated.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 1980-1981, 1985-1990, undated. 7 1
Nuclear Times, 1986-1988. 7 2
Point Pleasant Pumping Station, 1983-1989, undated. 7 3
Point Pleasant Pumping Station-Judge Isaac Garb, 1983, 1987. 7 4
Point Pleasant Pumping Station-National Pollutant Discharge Elimination 7 5 System Permit, 1988, undated.
- Page 16 - Mary Bye papers Series 4. . Anti-Nuclear Activism
Political correspondence, 1978, 1983-1989, undated. 7 6
Public Citizen-Critical Mass Energy Project, 1985-1988. 7 7
Public Citizen-Critical Mass Energy Project, undated. 7 8
Radiation/irradiation, 1978-1990, undated. 8 1
Radioactive emissions-Dauphin County ordinance, 1983-1984, undated. 8 2
Radioactive waste, 1984, 1987-1990, undated. 8 3
Radioactive Waste Campaign, 1985, 1987-1990, undated. 8 4
Royersford laundromat contamination, 1984-1985. 8 5
Karen Silkwood/Silkwood Reactors, 1978, 1983-1984, undated. 8 6
Swarthmore College, 1987, undated. 8 7
Union of Concerned Scientists- Nucleus, 1984, 1986-1990, undated. 8 8
Miscellaneous groups, 1986-1990, undated. 8 9
Miscellaneous newsletters, 1984-1985, 1988, 1990. 8 10
Posters and ephemera, undated. 15
Box Folder
Posters and ephemera, 1984, undated. Flat file 2
- Page 17 - Mary Bye papers Series 5. . Energy
Series 5. . Energy, 1973-1991, undated (Bulk, 1978-1991) . Scope and content note
The Energy series contains files related to alternative sources of energy, especially solar, as well as files pertaining to local organizations, utilities and regulatory agencies. The Philadelphia Electric Company file, in addition to energy matters, contains documents relating to PECO’s efforts toward environmental protection in building a fish ladder at the Conowingo Dam in Maryland. Several files relate to the efforts of Mary Bye to convert her house to solar energy with support from the local organization Moon Ark Ecology House.
Box Folder
Alternative energy resources, 1973-1974, 1979, 1989-1990, undated. 8 11
Citizens Coalition for Energy Efficiency- Energy Report, 1989-1990. 8 12
Congressional Research Service-information packet, 1983-1985. 8 13
Electricity, 1981, undated. 9 1
Electricity-power line risks, 1989-1990, undated. 9 2
Energy efficient appliances, 1980, 1985-1987, undated. 9 3
Pennsylvania Energy Center, 1984, 1986-1991, undated. 9 4
Pennsylvania Power and Light Company, 1982, 1987-1988, undated. 9 5
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 1986-1989, undated. 9 6
Philadelphia Electric Company, 1989, undated. 9 7
Political correspondence and newsletters, 1973, 1978, 1979, undated. 9 8
- Page 18 - Mary Bye papers Series 6. . Environment
Solar energy, 1984-1988, 1991, undated. 9 9
Solar energy-Bye house conversion, 1978-1980, undated. 9 10
Solar energy-Bye house demonstration project, 1987-1989, undated. 9 11
Solar energy-GRASP The Grass Roots Alliance for a Solar Pennsylvania, 9 12 1989, undated.
Miscellneous organizations, 1978, 1988-1990, undated. 9 13
Series 6. . Environment, 1975-1991, undated. Scope and content note
The Environment series contains files related to environmental protection, air and water pollution, greenhouse effect, recycling, rainforests, and habitat restoration. The Friends Environmental Working Group (FEWG), originally the Working Group on Stewardship of the Environment, for which Bye was a Convener, is especially well represented. FEWG worked closely with the Pacific Yearly Meeting’s Friends Committee on Unity with Nature and activist Marshall Massey. Many local environmental groups are represented; among the more significant are the Bucks County Conservancy and the Clean Air Council (Delaware Valley Citizens’ Council for Clean Air). National groups include the Sierra Club, with its local affiliates, and EcoJustice Working Group, an interdenominational activist group sponsored by the National Council of Churches. Of special interest is an effort by Mary Bye to protect a stand of oak trees in Buckingham Township, Bucks County, from being cut down in 1988. Bye coordinated with local activists in rallying support for the trees. She was arrested on one occasion for trespassing while literally hugging one of the trees. The oaks were eventually cut down, but not before Bye became a local celebrity, drawing attention to the need for habitat preservation. Bye’s efforts were well documented in local media; published articles include insights into her personal life and activist career. A similar action documented here relates to efforts by activist Stephen Redding to protect a stand of trees in Chalfont, Bucks County. Another file relates to the “Celebration of Water,” an event held at Mary Bye’s home in 1979.
- Page 19 - Mary Bye papers Series 6. . Environment
Box Folder
Acid rain, 1981-1986, undated. 10 1
American Farmland Trust, 1986, undated. 10 2
American Farmland Trust- American Farmland, 1985-1990. 10 3
Bucks County Conservancy, 1988-1990, undated. 10 4
Bucks County Conservancy-Pennsylvania Scenic Rivers Program, 10 5 1978-1988, undated.
Clean air-Clean Air Council, 1979, 1984-1991, undated. 10 6
Clean air-Clean Air Task Force-Dauphin County Board of Commissioners, 10 7 1984, undated.
Clean air-National Clean Air Coalition, 1986, undated. 10 8
Clean air-ozone, 1989, undated. 10 9
Delaware Valley Land Trust Association, 1986, undated. 10 10
Delaware Valley Whole Earth Coalition, undated. 10 11
Food and pesticides, 1978-1979, 1981, 1990, undated. 10 12
Food and pesticides-CO-OP Community Organization for Organic Produce, 10 13 1987-1988, undated.
Friends Committee on Unity with Nature-Pacific Yearly Meeting-Marshall 11 1 Massey, 1985, undated.
- Page 20 - Mary Bye papers Series 6. . Environment
Friends Committee on Unity with Nature-Pacific Yearly Meeting-newsletter, 11 2 1985-1991, undated.
Friends Environmental Working Group-meeting mintes, 1984-1991, 11 3 undated.
Friends Environmental Working Group-correspondence and misc. papers, 11 4 1985-1991, undated.
Friends-miscellaneous environmental concerns, 1973, 1985-1986, undated. 11 5
Greenhouse effect/global warming, 1987-1989, undated. 11 6
Greenpeace, 1984-1985, 1988-1990, undated. 11 7
Local activism-miscellaneous, 1985-1990, undated. 11 8
National Council of Churches-EcoJustice Working Group, 1976, 1979, 11 9 1984-1985, undated.
Natural Resources Defense Council, 1985-1990, undated. 11 10
Natural Resources Defense Council-newsletters, 1975, 1985, 1987-1988, 11 11 1990-1991.
Oil spills, 1989, 1991, undated. 11 12
Open Spaces Initiative, 1986, 1988, undated. 11 13
Open Space Initiative-San Francisco Greenbelt, 1985, undated. 11 14
Penn Accord/Philadelphia Electric Company, 1988-1989, undated. 12 1
Population control, 1984, 1990. 12 2
- Page 21 - Mary Bye papers Series 6. . Environment
Rainforests, 1986-1990, undated. 12 3
Rainforests- Extinction or Preservation-readings, 1978, 1980, undated. 12 4
Rainforests-Guanacaste National Park, 1986, undated. 12 5
Recycling, 1987-1988. 12 6
Riverbend Environmental Education Center, 1985, undated. 12 7
Sierra Club, 1985-1991, undated. 12 8
Sierra Club-local affiliates, 1986, 1988, undated. 12 9
Toxic waste, 1983-1984, undated. 12 10
Toxic waste-Delaware Valley Toxics Coalition, 1987, 1990. 12 11
Trees, 1975, 1986, 1988-1989, undated. 12 12
Trees-Buckingham Township. Bucks Co./Mary Bye Activism, 1988-1989, 12 13 undated.
Trees-Forest Park, Chalfont, Bucks Co./Stephen Redding Activism, 1988, 12 14 undated.
Trees-"Tree Portraits"-exhibition, 1989-1990, undated. 12 15
Trees-tree registry, 1989-1990, undated. 12 16
Water, 1977-1979, 1984-1985, undated. 13 1
Water-"Celebration of Water", 1979, undated. 13 2
Miscellaneous correspondence and draft manuscripts, 1982, 1988, undated. 13 3
- Page 22 - Mary Bye papers Series 7. . Animal Rights
Miscellaneous printed material, 1984-1987, undated. 13 4
Miscellaneous direct mailing, 1989-1990, undated. 13 5
Box Folder
Poster and newspapers, 1988, undated. Flat file 3
Series 7. . Animal Rights, 1977-1991, undated. Scope and content note
Mary Bye received and collected an enormous amount of documentation related to wildlife and animal protection. It seems that her activity in this area was limited largely to donations to various societies and causes. She was somewhat more active in her concern for seals, in particular the North Pacific fur seal. She was the official protector of a Humpback whale named “Tassle.” Most of the documents in this series are limited to general mailings and related publications.
Box Folder
Bucks County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 1987, 1991, 13 6 undated.
Defenders of Wildlife, 1985, undated. 13 7
Elephants, 1980, undated. 13 8
Horses, 1980, undated. 13 9
Humane Society of the United States, 1985-1989, undated. 13 10
Political correspondence, 1977-1987, undated. 13 11
Sea otters, 1980, 1987, undated. 13 12
- Page 23 - Mary Bye papers Series 8. . Friends/Religion
Sea turtles, 1980, undated. 13 13
Seals, 1981, undated. 13 14
Seals-North Pacific fur seals, 1980-1984, undated. 13 15
Whales and dolphins, 1980-1987, undated. 14 1
Miscellaneous organizations and papers, 1988-1990, undated. 14 2
Miscellaneous direct mailing, 1990-1991, undated. 14 3
Series 8. . Friends/Religion, 1974-1991, undated. Scope and content note
This series relates to the general and spiritual activity of Quakers and other religious groups. The Philadelphia Quaker Women’s Workshop file represents the earliest documentation (1974) in this collection related to Mary Bye. She and a group of Quaker women were expressing their concern and support for a group of Episcopal women priests whose ordination had been declared invalid by the Episcopal House of Bishops. A large file concerns a movement called Creation Spirituality, developed by Matthew Fox, a Dominican priest who had been expelled from his order in 1993 for disobedience, denying the doctrine of original sin. Creation Spirituality was influenced by the teachings of medieval Catholic visionaries, and came to espouse a message that was strongly in support of ecological and environmental activism.
Box Folder
Clearness Committee, 1976, 1980, undated. 14 4
Creation Spirituality/Matthew Fox, 1988-1990, undated. 14 5
Friends direct mailing, 1990. 14 6
- Page 24 - Mary Bye papers Series 9. . Personal
Friends Journal, 1982, 1986, 1988. 14 7
Spirituality, undated. 14 8
Philadelphia Quaker Women's Workshop, 1974, undated. 14 9
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting News, 1984-1985, 1987-1988, 1990-1991. 14 10
Miscellaneous papers, 1980-1986, undated. 14 11
Miscellaneous newsletters, 1988, 1991. 14 12
Miscellaneous non-Friends newsletters and publications, 1980, 1982, 1991. 14 13
Series 9. . Personal, 1979-1992, undated. Scope and content note
This brief series contains items related to Mary Bye of a personal nature, papers unrelated in any way to topics in other series, and some notes and writings of an indeterminate nature. A newspaper article (Shultes, Anne, “Still an Activist” in The Intelligencer/The Record [Doylestown, Pa.] 12 November 1992) is the last reference to Mary Bye in this collection, a personal portrait written after she had moved to a retirement home in Newtown. Included in this series are papers related to Bye’s activity as an alumna of Swarthmore and Temple University.
Box Folder
Miscellaneous papers and articles, 1979-1992, undated. 14 14
Alumni activity, 1979, 1989-1991, undated. 14 15
Box Folder
Poster-"Brown Bag-it with the Arts", 1988. Flat file 4
- Page 25 -