Betsy York Collection
Scope and Contents
The Betsy York Collection consists of Print Material containing administrative, financial, and promotional papers from Betsy’s career as a distributor and artist manager, as well as concert posters, personal papers associated with her work in music distribution, and scrapbooks of concerts and festivals. The collection also contains a selection of Betsy’s audiotapes and 45s.
Dates
- Creation: 1974-1988
Biographical Note
Betsy York was born and raised in Whittier, California. She graduated from California High School in 1969 and obtained a degree in Sociology from Pomona College in 1973.
From 1973-1980, Betsy lived in Boston, Massachusetts where she produced a weekly concert and poetry series at lesbian bar, The Saints, providing funds for the Cambridge Women’s Center. After booking Meg Christian for two concerts in 1974, she fell in love with women's music and began her 12-year career in the business.
While earning her MBA from the Simmons Graduate School of Management, Betsy became the Boston distributor for Meg Christian’s 45, which featured Cris Williamson on the other side. After completing her MBA in 1976, she worked a manufacturing job at Procter & Gamble in Quincy, Massachusetts. In 1978 she quit the Procter & Gamble job to work full time in music distribution and promotion. Her distribution company, Hibiscus Records, distributed and promoted women’s music across New England. The company’s name was later changed to the Women’s Music Distribution Company, and finally Horizon.
In 1980, Betsy moved back to Los Angeles and began distributing Women’s Music in Southern California. She hired Trish Karlinski to take over her Boston business so that she could focus on West Coast distribution. Her West Coast company, called WMDC Los Angeles and later Paradigm, grew to include distribution in Arizona and San Diego. Her success opened the door for artists like Holly Near to play major venues.
In 1984 Betsy moved to Berkeley/Oakland, California to work as the National and International Distribution Manager for Redwood Records. To focus on her Redwood work, she sold Horizon to Terry Grant from Goldenrod in Michigan, and sold Paradigm to Karen Merry.
In 1986 Betsy left Redwood to become an Artist Manager providing management and bookings to Linda Tillery along with some support to Hunter Douglas and Adrienne Torf.
Betsy retired from Women’s Music in 1987 and began a new career in non-profit fundraising. She is currently residing in Michigan with her partner, Demetrhea Terrien.
Extent
14.5 Linear Feet (17 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Betsy York Collection contains professional papers of women’s music distributor, Betsy York. In the 70s and 80s, Betsy York ran the Women’s Music Distribution Company in New England and Southern California and distributed music for Olivia records, Redwood records, and other women’s music labels. She was a major part of the women’s music scene and helped establish distribution networks for the community. The collection contains administrative, financial, and promotional papers from Betsy’s career as a distributor and artist manager along with a selection of Betsy’s audiotape and 45s collection.
Arrangement
Series I: Print material Series II: Audiovisual material
Processing Information
The collection was processed by Vera Tykulsker from October to November 2023 under a California State Grant.
Documents in the collection cover a period of time over which Betsy York’s music distribution company changed names and expanded its regional reach. In this finding aid the acronym “WMDC,” which stands for “Women’s Music Distribution Company,” is used as a short-hand for the company’s multiple iterations including “Hibiscus (Boston),” “Horizons (Boston),” and “Paradigm (Southern California and Arizona).”
Some materials were originally donated in binders. This material has been moved into archival boxes or split into archival binders and kept in the original order.
The series Print Material contains several objects including buttons.
T-shirts donated to the collection have been removed and integrated into the Mazer’s t-shirt collection.
An oral history with Betsy York conducted by Director of Communications of the Mazer Archives, Angela Brinskele was added to the collection in 2018 and is available for research at the Mazer.
Topical
- Title
- Betsy York Collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Casey Winkleman
- Date
- October 2023
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives Repository