The collection is primarily composed of materials created or collected by Janet Stofferan during her employment with the Simplicity Pattern Company between 1968 and 1971. Materials document the daily operations of company field staff and fashion promotion activities, including correspondence, promotional publications, newspaper clippings, insurance information, travel policies, routing schedules, payment records, and stylist scheduling and promotional materials. Specific programs and initiatives represented include The Designer Touch, Holiday Glamor Show, Know Your Pattern Size, Modern Miss Extra, and related routing and stylist documentation.
The collection also includes a small body of materials relating to Adaline Henrietta Snellman Hsia, records concerning the history of home economics at South Dakota State University, course syllabi from the 1960s, and judging materials for the Little International Agricultural Exposition at South Dakota State University.
This collection documents the fashion industry field operations and promotional practices of the Simplicity Pattern Company in the late twentieth century. It also offers contextual material on home economics education at South Dakota State University and student and alumni involvement in Little International, contributing to the historical record of academic and extracurricular programs connected to apparel, textiles, and agricultural education.
