Citizens' Association of Chicago records,
1874-1964.
Descriptive
Inventory for the Collection at Chicago History Museum, Research Center
By Carole L. Wrubel, 1966; rev. 2007
Please
address questions to:
Chicago History
Museum,
Research Center
1601
North Clark Street
Chicago,
IL 60614-6038
Web-site:
http://www.chicagohistory.org/research
©
Copyright 2007, Chicago Historical Society
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title: Citizens' Association of Chicago records
[manuscript], 1874-1964.
Main entry: Citizens' Association of Chicago
Inclusive dates: 1874-1964
Size:
13 linear ft. (including 62 v.)
1 oversize folder.
Restriction: Research use of this collection is governed
by the standard rules and regulations of the Chicago History Museum Research
Center.
Accession number: M1966.0572+; M1958.0080; M1968.0770.
Provenance statement: .Gift of the Citizens' Association of
Chicago (M1966.0572+), plus ca. 75 items which were received from the
University of Chicago Library in 1957.
Terms governing use: Copyright may be
retained by the creators of items, or their descendents, as stipulated by
United States copyright law, unless otherwise noted.
Please cite this collection as: Citizens' Association of Chicago records
(Chicago History Museum) plus a detailed description, date, and box/folder
number of a specific item.
This descriptive inventory contains the
following sections:
Historical/biographical
note,
Summary
description of the collection,
Description
of some material related to the collection,
List
of online catalog headings about the collection,
Arrangement
of the collection,
Detailed
description of archival series in the collection,
List
of contents of the collection.
Historical/biographical note:
The Citizen'
Association of Chicago, the nation's oldest civic reform organization, was
formed in 1874 (shortly after the major Chicago fire of that year) by a group
of business and professional men, to institute the reforms demanded by insurance
underwriters for increased fire protection in the city. Recognizing the need
for a broad program of reform, the group immediately expanded its scope to that
of a non-partisan, study-action group devoted to investigating and correcting
civic problems and the structure of municipal government. Through the support
of its members the Citizens' Association remained financially independent of other
groups or persons who might dictate its terms of action. From 1874 to 1939, the
Citizens' Association dealt with such diverse matters as drainage, water supply
and sanitation problems; election and civil service frauds; gambling and other
criminal activities; fire protection; and revision of the Chicago City Charter.
Many improvements in municipal government were effected by its direct influence
and actions during these years.
Due to the emergence
between 1900 and 1939 of other organizations devoted to the improvement of city
governmental services, the Citizens' Association began to concentrate on the
evaluation of the City Council. In 1939 it absorbed the Municipal Voters'
League, and carried on that organization's investigation of aldermanic
candidates and publication of its findings. The Municipal Voters' League,
founded in 1896, opposed corruption in municipal government through reports on aldermanic
candidates and active support of honest City Council members until the
financial hardships of the 1930s led to its absorption by the Citizens'
Association. In the early 1940s, the Citizens' Association made an intensive
study of ward-redistricting, which culminated in the redistricting ordinance of
1947.
In 1939, the
Citizens' Association also united with six other better government groups to
form a separate organization, The Joint Civic Committee on Elections, whose fundamental
activity was furnishing poll watchers in wards with a history of election
frauds.
In 1949 The Citizens'
Association launched the Citizens' Community Conference, a self-contained
federation of neighborhood civic organizations, to provide a medium for
collecting and distributing firsthand information on city-wide civic problems. This
was done through periodic conference meetings in which the Citizens' Community
Conference acted as a clearing house for the interchange of ideas and
experience between member groups on neighborhood problems. The relationship of
the Citizens' Community Conference to the Citizens' Association remained
informal, the latter organization providing its facilities and services, until
1955 when the member organizations of the Conference were incorporated into the
Citizens' Association, and the Citizens' Community Conference's program became
the basis of the work carried forward by the Citizens' Association.
Summary description of the collection:
Correspondence,
minutes, account and membership books, aldermanic reports, ward maps,
investigation reports, etc. of the Citizens’ Association of Chicago (CAC:
1876-1964, 46 vols. and other items); plus news clippings, correspondence,
minutes, membership and financial accounting ledgers, and reports of the
Municipal Voters’ League (1896-1939, 16 vols. and other items). The association
dealt with such diverse matters as drainage, water supply and sanitation
problems; election and civil service frauds; gambling and other criminal
activities; fire protection; and revision of the Chicago City Charter; and
advocacy for an Illinois Constitutional Convention (1913-1922). Includes
diaries of Shelby M. Singleton, executive secretary of CAC for 35 years
(1903-1914, 7 vols.).
Description of some material related to the
collection:
Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include publications cataloged separately and a collection of 114 scrapbooks of news clippings, 1855-1909, compiled by J.C. Ambler for the Citizens' Association and cataloged separately. These volumes are fragile and have been withdrawn from use until they can be microfilmed. Poll watchers' reports (1940-1964) from the Joint Civic Committee on Elections are cataloged with that collection.
List of online catalog headings about the
collection:
Citizens'
Association of Chicago--Archives.
Municipal
Voters League (Chicago, Ill.)--Archives.
Citizens’
Community Conference (Chicago, Ill.)
Committee
of One Hundred (Chicago, Ill.)
Singleton,
Shelby M.--Diaries.
Chicago
(Ill.). City Council.
Joint
Civic Committee on Elections (Chicago, Ill.)
Kenna,
Michael, 1858-1946.
Citizens'
associations--Illinois--Chicago.
Civic
improvement--Illinois--Chicago--19th century.
Civic
improvement--Illinois--Chicago--20th century.
Election
districts--Illinois--Chicago--1st Ward.
Election
districts--Illinois--Chicago--Maps.
Election
monitoring--Illinois--Chicago--20th century.
Municipal
government--Illinois--Chicago.
Political
corruption--Illinois--Chicago.
Chicago
(Ill.)--Politics and government--19th century.
Chicago
(Ill.)--Politics and government--20th century.
Form/genre:
Account
books.
Correspondence.
Diaries.
Maps.
Membership
lists.
Minutes.
Reports.
Added
entries:
Crane,
Richard Teller, 1832-1912.
Singleton,
Shelby M.
Citizens’
Community Conference (Chicago, Ill.)
Committee
of One Hundred (Chicago, Ill.)
Municipal
Voters' League (Chicago, Ill.)
United
States--Illinois--Cook County--Chicago.
Arrangement of the collection:
Series 1. Citizens'
Association volumes, 1874-1949
Series 2.
Chronological files of the Citizens' Association and the Municipal Voters
League, 1875-1964
Series 3. Municipal
Voters' League volumes, 1896-1939
Detailed description of archival series in
the collection:
Series 1. Citizens' Association volumes,
1874-1949
The Citizens'
Association materials include Executive Committee and Board of Directors
minutes (Aug. 21, 1874-Nov. 2, 1942, 7 vols.); ledgers of membership accounts,
annual financial reports, receipts and disbursements (1878-1949, 25 vols.);
diaries of Shelby M. Singleton, Executive Secretary of the Citizens'
Association for 35 years (1903-1914, 7 vols.); plus wage account books
(1922-1937, 7 vols.).
Series 2. Chronological files of the
Citizens' Association and the Municipal Voters League, 1875-1964
The loose papers arrange
chronologically contain correspondence, bulletins, and reports on
organizational matters and sundry civic and governmental problems from both the
Citizens' Association and the Municipal Voters League. Topics include agitation
for an Illinois Constitutional Convention (June 14, 1913-Apr. 28, 1922, 25
items); Chicago sanitary affairs (July 7, 1913-Aug. 9, 1948, 25 items); civil service
reforms (Jan. 1898-Feb. 1907, and Feb.-Apr. 1942, 21 items); the voting machine
controversy (June 1936 and Nov. 1946-Sept. 1948, 21 items); and housing bond
issues (Nov. 1946-Aug. 1956, 37 items). More concentrated areas of the
Citizens' Association's work can be found during its advocacy of better water
supply and drainage (Sept. 8, 1885j-June 8, 1892, 77 items); First Ward
investigation reports on election fraud practices (filed separately in Box 13,
1931-1939, 319 items) plus sundry material on election frauds throughout the
whole collection; formation of the Joint Civic Committee on Elections
(1939-1940, 90 items); and ward reapportionment studies (1943-1944, 73 items).
Aldermanic reports and related material are generally filed under the following
election months: Feb. 1943, Apr. 1943, Sept. 1945, Apr. 1946, and Feb. 1947.
The papers during
1949 deal with the formation of the Citizens' Community Conference and the
Citizens' Association's 75th Anniversary celebration. The material from the
1950s is mainly devoted to membership appeals and the Citizens' Community
Conference's organizational matters, with some material related to Conference
topics. See Mar. 8, 1955, for a program of Conference meetings.
The loose papers
(130 items) from the Municipal Voters' League are almost entirely devoted to
organizational matters of the Municipal Voters' League, e.g. by-laws (Nov.
1922), membership list (1925), incorporation certificate (Mar. 1, 1916) and
appeals for funds, with the exception of the Executive Council hearing for
Alderman Oscar F. Nelson with Edward Nockels and Victor Olander present as
witnesses, plus two aldermanic reports (Feb. 28, 1933 and Feb. 26, 1935). Also
includes poll watchers' reports from the 1930s, before the formation of the
Joint Civic Committee on Elections.
Series 3. Municipal Voters' League volumes,
1896-1939
This series is
comprised of minutes (Feb. 1896-Jan. 1932, 3 vols.) of the Committee of One
Hundred, Executive Committee, and board of directors; correspondence,
endorsements of aldermanic candidates and official publications (Feb. 1896-Mar.
1898, 1 vol.); newspaper clippings of published aldermanic reports and related
material (1896-1902 and 1930-1931, 3 vols.); minutes of the United Cities
Conference (Jan. 11-12, 1906, 1 vol.); newspaper clippings, letters, printed
material, investigation reports relevant to aldermanic candidates (Dec.
1925-Feb. 1927, 2 vols.); ledgers listing membership accounts, receipts and
disbursements (1911-1939, 5 vols.).
List of contents of the collection: (Items marked "Shelf" are found next to respective
boxes on the shelf.)
Series 1. Citizens' Association volumes,
1874-1949
Executive Committee minutes,
Box 1
Volumes:
1 (Shelf) Executive Committee minutes, Aug. 21,
1874-June 3, 1889
2 (Shelf) Executive Committee minutes, June 5,
1889-Jan. 28, 1903
3 Executive Committee
minutes, Feb. 24, 1903-Apr. 15, 1913
4 Executive Committee
minutes, May 12 1913-Feb. 14, 1921
5 Executive Committee
minutes, Apr. 26, 1921-May 4, 1929
Box 1A
News clippings (1968.0770
accn.)
Box 2
Volumes:
1 Executive Committee minutes, Oct. 4,
1929-Jan. 9, 1936
2 Executive Committee minutes, Feb. 13,
1936-Nov. 2, 1942
3 Committee on Public Safety minutes, Dec.
2, 1884-Oct. 17, 1885
Box 3 Financial ledgers: memberships, receipts,
disbursements:
Volumes:
1 Oct. 1878-Aug. 1879
2 (Shelf) Nov. 1881-Oct. 1884
3 (Shelf) Oct. 1884-July 1887
4 (Shelf) Oct. 1887-Oct. 1895
5 (Shelf) Oct. 1895-Oct. 1900
6 (Shelf) Oct. 1900-Oct. 1905
7 (Shelf) Oct. 1905-Oct. 1910
8 Oct. 1907-Oct. 1912
9 (Shelf) Oct. 1910-Oct. 1916
10 Oct. 1912-Oct. 1917
11 (Shelf) Oct. 1916-Oct. 1919
12 (Shelf) Oct. 1916-Oct. 1921
13 Oct. 1917-Oct. 1922
14 (Shelf) Oct. 1920-Oct. 1923
15 (Shelf) Oct. 1920-Sept. 1926
16 (Shelf) Oct. 1921-Oct. 1925
17 Oct. 1922-Oct. 1930
18 (Shelf) Oct. 1923-Oct. 1927
19(shelf) Oct. 1925-Oct. 1930
20 (Shelf) Oct. 1926-Oct. 1934
21(Shelf) Oct. 1926-Oct. 1938
22 Oct. 1930-Oct. 1938
23 (Shelf) Oct. 1930-Oct. 1938
24 Oct. 1934-Oct. 1938
25 (Shelf) Oct. 1938-Oct. 1939
Box 4 Wage Account Books for Shelby M. Singleton,
Amelia Ross, H. C. Crane, T. J. Larkin:
Volumes:
1 Oct. 7, 1922-Sept. 27,
1924
2 Oct.4, 1924-Sept. 26, 1925
3 Oct. 3, 1925-Sept. 24,
1927
4 Oct. 8, 1927-Sept. 28,
1929
5 Oct. 5, 1929-Sept. 26,
1931
6 Oct. 3, 1931-Sept. 30,
1933
7 Oct. 5, 1935-Aug. 21, 1937
8 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1903
9 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1904
10 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1905
11 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1906
12 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1909
13 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1910
14 Shelby M. Singleton diaries, 1917
Series 2. Chronological files of the
Citizens' Association and the Municipal Voters League, 1875-1964
Box 5
1 Chronological files, 1875-1887
2 Chronological files, 1888-1890
3 Chronological files, 1891-1905
Box 6
1 Chronological files, 1906-1914
2 Chronological files, 1915-1921
3 Chronological files, 1922-1926
4 Chronological files, 1927-1930
5 Chronological files, 1931-1938
6 Chronological files, Jan.-June 1939
Box 7
1 Chronological files, July-Dec. 1939
2 Chronological files, Jan.-Mar. 1940
3 Chronological files, Apr.-Aug. 1940
4 Chronological files, Sept.-Oct. 1940
5 Chronological files, Nov.-Dec. 1940
6 Chronological files, Jan.-Sept. 1941
7 Chronological files, Oct.-Dec. 1941
Box 8
1 Chronological files, Jan.-June 1942
2 Chronological files, July-Dec. 1942
3 Chronological files, Jan.-Feb. 15,
1943
4 Chronological files, Feb. 16-28, 1943
5 Chronological files, Mar.-May 1943
6 Chronological files, June-Dec. 1943
7 Chronological files, Undated 1943
Box 9
1 Chronological files, Jan.-Mar. 1944
2 Chronological files, Apr. 1944
3 Chronological files, May 1944
4 Chronological files, June-Oct. 1944
5 Chronological files, Nov.-Dec. 1944
6 Chronological files, Jan.-Aug. 1945
7 Chronological files, Sept.-Dec. 1945
Box 10
1 Chronological files, Jan.-June 1946
2 Chronological files, July-Nov. 28.
1946
3 Chronological files, Nov. 29-Dec. 1946
4 Chronological files, Jan.-Apr. 1947
5 Chronological files, May-Oct. 1947
6 Chronological files, Nov. 1947
Box 11
1 Chronological files, Dec. 1947
2 Chronological files, Jan.-June 1948
3 Chronological files, July-Dec. 1948
4 Chronological files, Jan.-Feb. 1949
5 Chronological files, Mar.-June 1949
6 Chronological files, July-Sept. 1949
Box 12
1 Chronological files, Oct. 1949
2 Chronological files, Nov.-Dec. 1949
Chronological files, Undated 1949
3 Chronological files, Jan.-Apr. 1950
4 Chronological files, May-Dec. 1950
Box 13
1 Chronological files, Jan.-May 1951
2 Chronological files, June-Dec. 1951
3 Chronological files, Jan.-Apr. 1952
4 Chronological files, May-Sept. 1952
5 Chronological files, Oct. 1922(?) 1952?
6 Chronological files, Nov.-Dec. 1922
(1952?)
Box 14
1 Chronological files, Jan.-Aug. 1953
2 Chronological files, Sept.-Oct. 1953
3 Chronological files, Nov.-Dec. 1953
4 Chronological files, 1954
5 Chronological files, Jan.-Dec. 1953
Box 15
1 Chronological files, Undated 1955
2 Chronological files, Jan.-July 1956
3 Chronological files, Aug.-Dec. 1956
4 Chronological files, Jan.-Sept. 1957
5 Chronological files, Oct.-Dec. 1957
Box 16
1 Chronological files, Undated 1957
2 Chronological files, Jan.-Mar. 1958
3 Chronological files, Apr.-Aug. 1958
4 Chronological files, Sept.-Dec. 1958
5 1959
Box 17
1 Chronological files, 1960
2 Chronological files, 1961-1964
Chronological files, Undated
3 Citizens' Community Conference, membership
files & notes, 1947-1956
4 Citizens' Community Conference, Executive
Committee minutes & papers, 1947-1953
5 Citizens' Community Conference,
meeting transcript, Nov. 29, 1950
6 Citizens' Community Conference, meeting
transcript, Apr. 9, 1951
7 Citizens' Community Conference, meeting
transcript, May 14, 1951
Box 18 (pre-Joint
Civic Committee on Elections):
1 Poll watchers' reports, 1931-Apr. 10,
1934
2 Poll watchers' reports, Nov. 6, 1934
3 Poll watchers' reports, Apr. 14, 1936
(Wards 1-26)
4 Poll watchers' reports, Apr. 14, 1936
(Wards 27-42)
5 Poll watchers' reports, Apr. 14, 1936
(Wards 42-50)
6 Poll watchers' reports, Nov. 3, 1936
Poll watchers' reports, Nov. 8, 1938
Oversize folder:
1949 Mayor's proclamation
Series 3. Municipal Voters' League volumes,
1896-1939
Box 19
Volumes:
1 Minutes, Feb.-Apr. 12, 1896
2 Minutes, Feb. 1896-Mar. 1899
3 Minutes, Dec. 30, 1904-May 19, 1915
4 Minutes, May 19, 1915-Jan. 2, 1931
Box 20
Volumes:
1 Letters, Feb. 25, 1896-Feb. 22, 1897
2 Letters, Feb. 22, 1897-Mar. 1898
Box 21
Letters re:
aldermanic elections, Wards 1-19, Dec. 1925-Feb. 1927
Box 22
Letters re:
aldermanic elections, Wards 20-50, Dec. 1925-Feb. 1927
Box 23
Volumes:
1 News clippings, Mar. 4, 1896-Mar. 2,
1902
2 News clippings, Mar. 22, 1902-Nov. 1,
1902
3 News clippings, May 27-July 8, 1930
4 News clippings, July 8, 1930-Jan. 2
1931
5 News clippings, Jan. 2-Feb. 28, 1931
Box 24
Volumes:
1 Financial and membership ledgers, Jan.
1911-Apr. 1916
2 Financial and membership ledgers, Apr.
1916-Aug. 1921
3 Financial and membership ledgers, 1914-1916
4 Financial and membership ledgers, 1921-1931
5 Financial and membership ledgers, 1931-1937
6 Financial and membership ledgers, 1937-1939
List of card catalog entries made for this
collection:
1. Chicago. City
Council.
2. Chicago. Civic
Improvement.
3. Chicago.
Communities.
4. Chicago. Drainage
Canal.
5. Politics and
Government.
6. Chicago. Sanitary
Affairs.
7. Chicago. Wards.
8. Chicago. Water
Supply.
9. Civil Service.
Chicago.
10. Elections.
Chicago.
11. Elections.
Corrupt Practices. Chicago.
12. Housing.
Chicago.
13. Illinois and
Mississippi (Hennepin) Canal.
14. Illinois.
Constitutional Convention, 1920-1922.
15. Joint Civic
Committee on Elections.
16. Kenna, Michael,
1858-1946.
i. Blair, William
McCormick, 1884-
ii. Citizens'
Community Conference.
iii. Crane, Richard
Teller, 1832-1912.
iv. Deneen, Charles
Samuel, 1863-1940.
v. Donnelley, Thomas
Elliott, 1867-1955.
vi. Douglas, Paul
Howard, 1892-
vii. Green, Dwight
Herbert, 1897-1958.
viii. Insull,
Samuel, 1900-
ix. Kelly,. Edward
Joseph, 1876-1952.
x. Kennelly, Martin
H. 1887-1961
xi. McCormick, Cyrus
Hall, 1890-
xii. McCormick,
Katharine Dexter, 1875-
xiii. Municipal
Voters' League.
xiv. Nelson, Oscar
F. 1884-
xv. Nockels, Edward
Nicholas, 1869-1937.
xvi. Olander, Victor
xvii. Roche, John A.
1844-1904.
xviii. Taylor,
Graham, 1851-1938.
xix. United Cities
Conference.
Description of the J.C. Ambler for the
Citizens' Association:
These volumes
contain mostly newspaper clippings, pertaining chiefly to Chicago affairs.
CONTENTS . v. 1-42 Politics
and elections . v. 43-50. Chicago city administration – v. 51-54. Chicago City
Council—v. 55-57. Chicago transportation—v. 58-62. Chicago parks, boulevards,
Lake front – v. 65-68. Public works: streets, street obstructions, nuisances—v.
69-70. Chicago Dept. of Health: smoke sanitation – v. 71. Smoke – v. 72-75. Chicago
Board of Trade—v. 76. Labor—77-78. Law reform—v. 79-81. Cook County affairs—v.
82-87. National affairs—v. 88-95. Strikes and labor; v. 96-101. Pertains
chiefly to waterways, sewerage and drainage problem, and affairs of the Chicago
Sanitary district for the period 1887-1893—v. 102-104. Covers the 1903 session
of the Illinois General Assembly.