GADS HILL CENTER

Gads Hill Center records, 1898-1969, bulk 1914-1963

Finding Aid for the Collection at Chicago History Museum, Research Center

By Janet Cotter, 1967; rev. 2008

Please address questions to:

Chicago History Museum, Research Center

1601 North Clark Street

Chicago, IL 60614-6038

Web-site: http://www.chicagohistory.org/research

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Title: Gads Hill Center records, 1898-1969, bulk 1914-1963

Main entry: Gads Hill Center (Chicago, Ill.)

Inclusive dates: 1898-1969, bulk 1914-1963

Size:

11 linear ft.

Restriction: In order to consult old card files in box 22-27, researchers must sign the form "Request for Research Access to Confidential Files."

Restriction: Boxes 28-53 are unprocessed. This unprocessed portion of the collection has been assessed for access and can be requested except for noted restrictions. Researchers using this collection will need to sign the Access to Unprocessed Collections form.

Provenance statement: Most of the collection was a gift of Gads Hill Center (M1966.0630). Later donation has not been processed yet (1996.0044).

Terms governing use: This description does not include recent additions to the collection. Copyright may be retained by the creators of items, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law, unless otherwise noted.

Please cite this collection as: Gads Hill Center records (Chicago History Museum) plus a detailed description, date, and box/folder number of a specific item.

This descriptive inventory contains the following sections:

Biographical/Historical note,

Summary description of the collection,

Description of some material related to the collection,

List of online catalog headings about the collection,

List of contents of the collection.

Biographical/Historical note:

Gads Hill Social Settlement was established in 1898 at 869 West 22nd Street, in an area then predominantly inhabited by Polish Americans, German Americans, and Czech Americans. It changed its name to Gads Hill Center in 1916 and moved to a new building at 1919 West 20th Street, later 1919 West Cullerton Street. The organization's goals have been to serve as a neighborhood center, and to encourage better social, economic, and moral conditions for the people of the area. Miss Ruth Austin served as head resident from 1914 to 1923 and from 1926 to 1946. Miss Meta K. Schwiebert was head resident during the 1950s and 1960s. Over the years, many Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and African Americans moved into the neighborhood.

Summary description of the collection:

The collection is composed of correspondence, minutes of meetings of the board of directors of the Gads Hill settlement house, various reports, financial and attendance records, newsclippings, articles, and other sundry papers. Topics include recreational, educational, and social programs and facilities of Gads Hill Center, and living conditions within the Lower West Side community of Chicago. Includes the nursery school; various clubs and groups of children, youths, and adults; the House Council; unemployment relief during 1914-1915 and the Great Depression of the 1930s; the Center's new building in 1916; and the neighborhood during World War I and World War II. Persons representated by correspondence include head residents, Ruth Austin and Meta K. Schwiebert.

Description of some material related to the collection:

Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the Gads Hill Center photograph collection (1980.0164).

List of online catalog headings about the collection:

The following headings for this collection have been placed in the online catalog:

Subjects:

1919 West Cullerton Street (Chicago, Ill.)

Gads Hill Center (Chicago, Ill.)--Archives

Austin, Ruth--Correspondence.

Martin, Leila Moss, 1873-1966.

Schwiebert, Meta K.--Correspondence.

Depressions--1929--Illinois--Chicago

Polish Americans--Illinois--Chicago.

Social settlements--Illinois--Chicago.

Women in charitable work--Illinois--Chicago.

World War, 1914-1918--Illinois--Chicago.

World War, 1939-1945--Illinois--Chicago.

Chicago (Ill.)--Economic conditions.

Chicago (Ill.)--Social conditions.

Lower West Side (Chicago, Ill.)

Form/genre:

Case files.

Correspondence.

Financial records.

Lists.

Minutes.

Reports.

Added entries:

Austin, Ruth.

Dilworth, Brockie.

Schwiebert, Meta K.

United States--Illinois--Cook County--Chicago.

Arrangement of the collection:

The collection is arranged in three series:

Series 1. Administration files,

Series 2. General files,

Series 3. Old card files, etc. [Restricted].

Detailed description of archival series in the collection:

Series 1. Administration files, contains minutes of meetings of the board of directors, 1898-1961 (box 1), and information on various clubs and groups formed within the settlement, including reports of meetings of child, youth, and adult groups, and annual reports of groups meeting at the Center (box 2-4). House Council minutes (1919-1946) are in box 5.

Series 2. General files, in box 6-21, include correspondence, financial records, and related materials, 1901-1963. Much of this material is routine administrative and operational in nature, including a good deal of correspondence between the head resident and members of the board of directors; and correspondence relative to medical, recreational, and employment needs of the people in the area (unemployment relief materials are found for 1914-1915 and during the 1930s). Also present are materials (1912-1916) on fund-raising and acquisition of real estate for construction of the new building at 1919 West Cullerton Street and information on the influence of the World War I and World War II on the organization’s programs and on the neighborhood.

Series 3. Old card files [Restricted], contains old index cards on people who registered at Gads Hill Center. Index cards are filed alphabetically in box 22-25; and box 26-27 contain old attendance records of members of various activities/groups at the settlement house. Because this material contains names of people, researchers must sign the form "Request for Research Access to Confidential Files" in order to consult this material.

List of contents of the collection:

Series 1. Administration files

Box 1

Minutes, 1898-1969 & information on Mrs. Leila A. Martin’s role in the establishment of Gads Hill Center.

Box 2

Club information, 1908-1932

Box 3

Club information, 1933-1954

Box 4

Club reports, 1940-1947

Box 5

House Council, 1919-1946

Series 2. General files

Box 6

General records, 1901-1914

Box 7

General records, 1915-1919

Box 8

General records, 1920-1927

Box 9

General records, 1928-1933

Box 10

General records, 1934-1937

Box 11

General records, Jan. 1938-June 1939

Box 12

General records, July 1939-Dec. 1940

Box 13

General records, Jan. 1941-May 1942

Box 14

General records, June 1942-Oct. 1943

Box 15

General records, Nov. 1943-Dec. 1944

Box 16

General records, 1945-1946

Box 17

General records, Jan. 1947-Feb. 1949

Box 18

General records, Mar. 1949-Dec. 1951

Box 19

General records, Jan. 1952-June 1954

Box 20

General records, July 1954-Dec. 1955

Box 21

General records, 1956-1963 & undated

Series 3. Old card files, etc.

Restriction: In order to consult box 22-27, researchers must sign the form "Request for Research Access to Confidential Files."

Box 22 [Restricted]

Record cards, A-F

Box 23 [Restricted]

Record cards, G-L

Box 24 [Restricted]

Record cards, M-R

Box 25 [Restricted]

Record cards, S-Z

Box 26 [Restricted]

Attendance records

Box 27 [Restricted]

Attendance records