The Maline McCalla Papers (2 linear feet) span the years 1973 - 1989, with the majority of the materials dating from 1973 - 1976 and 1985 - 1989. The bulk of the collection relates to McCalla’s volunteer work as a self-described -ennial specialist, including her leadership in Austin’s celebrations of the American Bicentennial, the Texas Sesquicentennial, and the Austin Sesquicentennial. Comprised of correspondence, meetings agendas and minutes, committee lists, planning documents, legal and financial records, printed materials (including event programs and calendars, and newspaper and magazine clippings), photographs, and commemorative memorabilia such as stamps and buttons, the papers document the various commissions that were established for the city’s Bicentennial and Sesquicentennial celebrations, performances at the Austin Ballet Theatre, and the re-opening of the Paramount Theatre in 1980.

The Bicentennial series (1973-1977, undated; (1 linear foot) documents McCalla’s involvement as co-chairperson of the Austin Bicentennial Commission as well as her participation in the three committees overseen by the Commission, represented by the Heritage ’76, Festival USA, and Horizons ’76. The Heritage committee subseries discusses the celebration of America’s past, while the Festival USA subseries concerns the coordination of a series of celebrations throughout the bicentennial year. The Horizons committee subseries pertains to the preservation of waterways and the building of creek side trail systems as Austin’s gift to the nation. While the Horizons ’76, Heritage ’76, and Festival USA subseries contain distinctive information about each separate committee, there is some overlap within the overall series, which was maintained to preserve original order. For instance, documents relating to the Horizons committee appear throughout the Bicentennial series, not only in the folder labeled Horizons Committee. Additionally, two folders under the Festival USA subseries — Freedom Train and Guatemala— were created to combine materials from two or more original folders in order to highlight content that is easily disambiguated from the material pertinent to other subjects.

The “Commission” folder in the Bicentennial series contains several documents describing the goals and activities of each committee and the Commission as a whole. In addition to her work with these committees, McCalla corresponded frequently with Beverly Sheffield (head of the City of Austin’s Office of Bicentennial Affairs) and other groups planning bicentennial celebrations. This series illustrates the amount of planning the city of Austin, McCalla, other chairpersons, and members dedicated to the Austin Bicentennial Celebration. Additionally, the community-wide recognition of the Bicentennial and McCalla’s role as co-chairperson of the Commission is evidenced by the number of invitations McCalla received to commemorative ceremonies around town. The West Austin Neighborhood Celebrations folder differs from the others in that it contains materials addressing McCalla as a resident of a particular Austin community, not as a chairperson of the Commission or a committee member. The Retail folder under the Austin Bicentennial Commission subseries is also rather unique, as it contains samples of official commemorative items sent to McCalla so that she could decide which items the Commission should sell to finance Austin’s Bicentennial celebrations.

The 150 Commission series (1987-1989, undated; .5 linear feet) documents McCalla’s activities as co-chairperson of the commission that coordinated Austin’s Sesquicentennial celebration. Meeting agendas and minutes, newspaper clippings and more illustrate the number of financial and logistical issues the city of Austin considered in planning the Sesquicentennial, including the Music and Arts Festival, a competition called Lights Across the Lake (wherein designers submitted their lighting plans for the Congress Avenue Bridge), and the Tour of Texas cycling race. Also included is correspondence with other Austin organizations hosting sesquicentennial events sanctioned by the Commission, as well as documents about the Commission’s finances.

The Texas Sesquicentennial series (1983-1986, undated; .25 linear feet) sheds light on McCalla’s membership of the general commission celebrating the independence of Texas and the success of its revolution in 1836, and her role as chairman of the March 2nd Celebration Committee. Consisting mostly of correspondence, programs, and items related to meetings, this series demonstrates how the state-wide celebration was organized and implemented with the help of citizens like McCalla. The materials relating to McCalla’s chairing of the March 2nd Celebration Committee can be found in the folder with that same title, which describe plans for a week-long celebration of Texas’ Declaration of Independence. The papers relating to McCalla’s involvement with the City of Austin Sesquicentennial Commission are less in-depth than those pertaining to her work on the March 2nd Celebration, and consist mainly of materials from packets distributed to all of the commissioners.

The final series, Performing Arts (1977-1986, undated; .25 linear feet), highlights McCalla’s other volunteer activities and interests, such as her support of and engagement in dance and theater. Materials from the “Austin Ballet and Dance Theatre” folder record McCalla’s roles as dancer, trustee, and donor. Items from the “Paramount Theatre” folder document the planning that culminated in the theater’s renovation and subsequent re-opening in 1980. The collection includes two ceramic tiles accompanied by a note from McCalla explaining that she made [the tiles] for all cast members in the 2nd first opening of the Paramount. The tiles are one of only a few examples of McCalla’s artwork in the collection.