Details

Inclusive Dates

1896 - 1994

Linear Feet

31.0

Finding Aid Url

Direct Link

The Union Settlement Association Records document a century of the settlement's activities, and provide a unique view of the first wave of the settlement movement in America. They document social conditions, demographic change, political activity, philanthropy and social work in East Harlem with a strong emphasis on the urban renewal period of the 1950s and '60s. The records include: annual reports, board minutes and committee files, headworker and executive director files, program reports, community organization files, and visual materials such as photographs, maps and architectural drawings. The origins and early history of Union Settlement Association are documented by publicity brochures, annual reports, board minutes, and headworker correspondence, included in the "Administration" and "Board of Directors" series. These items are supplemented by photographs and scrapbooks in the "Audio-Visual Materials" series, and by several printed histories filed in "Administration." The impact of public housing development on East Harlem is well documented by records in the "William Kirk Files" and "Administration" series. In addition to records of Union Settlement sponsored programs and activities such as the East Harlem Project and the Franklin Plaza housing co-op, there are extensive files on such community organizations as the East Harlem Schools Committee, Massive Economic Neighborhood Development, Metro-North Association and Metro North East Harlem Housing Society. The "Board of Directors" series contains committee files, reports and correspondence that provide additional insight on the period and the development of settlement programs in response to community change. Additional Union Settlement Association materials are held by the following institutions: The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture of The New York Public Library; Social Welfare History Archives of The University of Minnesota; and Union Theological Seminary.

Sites of Teaching & Learning

These sites of teaching & learning mention the Union Settlement Association Records

Location

• Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University
  Temporary