Vivian Arterbery on Clara Bradley Burdette

Credits

Director: Julie Hébert
Editor: Elizabeth Saltzman
DP: Sevdije Kastrati
Producer: Courtney Graham
Co-Producer: Jill Klein
Dialogue Editor: Daniel Raphael
PA: Brandy Barber
PA: Cat Oriel

Topics

“SHE did not abide injustice toward the weak or friendless.”

Nothing stopped CLARA BRADLEY BURDETTE from advancing the cause of women’s equality. Born in 1855 in New York, Burdette was one of the first women enrolled at Syracuse University. At the time, Syracuse was an incubator of the suffragette movement, having hosted the third annual National Women’s Rights Convention in 1852. According to our storyteller, Burdette met Susan B. Anthony and Julia Ward Howe and other notable suffragettes at a Women’s Congress for Equality, which likely influenced her later activities in Los Angeles, where she helped found The Ebell, one of the oldest and largest women's clubs in the United States. Before women had the right to vote, Burdette's commitment to spaces created by and for women helped inspire a new network of women’s clubs across the country.

Storyteller

Vivian Arterbery

Vivian Arterbery retired as Corporate Secretary of the RAND Corporation after 24 years. Prior to that she was Executive Director of the U. S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science in Washington, DC. Vivian is a former director of the RAND Corporation Library and has served on the board of the California Library Association and as president of the international Special Libraries Association. Her community board affiliations have included the Santa Monica YWCA, the Santa Monica YMCA, the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) and the Santa Monica Chapter of the Salvation Army. Vivian is currently treasurer of the Los Angeles Chapter, Circle-Lets, Inc., emeritus member of the San Fernando Valley Chapter, Links, Inc., and an Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. She is an avid reader, and enjoys the theater, movies, Pilates, and bridge.

Featured Woman

Clara Bradley Burdette

Clara Bradley Burdette was a philanthropic leader who focused her work in education and civic engagement. Born in East Bloomfield, New York on July 22,1855, Burdette attended Syracuse University, where she was involved in founding the Alpha Phi Sorority. She moved to Southern California in 1885, and helped develop The Ebell of Los Angeles, a club for women, that continues today. Known as a national leader in the movement to establish women’s clubs, Burdette traveled throughout the United States advising smaller clubs, and she organized the California Federation of Women’s Clubs, serving as its initial president. Married three times, she had three children and was active in Republican politics and in civic life. Among many other volunteer contributions, Burdette was a trustee of Syracuse University, Mills College, Pasadena Hospital, and the Southwest Museum. Burdette passed away in 1954 at the age of 99.