Family and Child Services of Washington, D.C.

An inventory of Family and Child Services of Washington, D.C. Records at The American Catholic History Research Center and University Archives

Historical Note

The late nineteenth century was a transitional period in which the volunteers of charitable and philanthropic societies began, in many instances, to be replaced by paid social workers, marking the emergence of social work as a profession. This trend was especially true in the nation's capital and was reflected in 1881 with the founding of the Associated Charities (AC) of the District of Columbia by concerned citizens. There had been a system of poor relief in place, with activities by organizations such as The Charity Organization Society of Washington and The Provident Aid Society, but their efforts were perceived as lacking in coordination and otherwise confused and chaotic. The objectives of the AC founders included the promotion of cooperation among charitable organizations and private donors, the means of obtaining reliable information regarding the circumstances of applicants, the improvement of the condition of the dependent poor, employment as the basis of relief, and identifying the real causes of vagrancy and pauperism.

There were several organizations that worked closely with the Associated Charities, including The Monday Evening Club. It was founded in 1896 by two Associated Charities members, Sarah Fuller and Louise Skinner, to promote the study and discussion of charity related activities. It was modeled on the pioneering club of the same name founded in Boston in 1888 and was an example of a local social workers club that antedated many national professional organizations. Others include the Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis and the Citizens' Relief Association (CRA) of the District of Columbia. The latter was founded in 1898 and thereafter merged with Associated Charities until CRA's legal dissolution in 1936.

Early successes include the formation of the first local Boys Club in 1901 and the establishment of a Federal Children's Bureau in 1912. The 1920s saw participation with the broad based fund raising Community Chests (later The United Way) and in 1935 a name change of the Associated Charities to the Family Service Association (FSA). Efforts expanded thereafter so that in 1950 the FSA merged with the Children's Protective Association and the Foster Day Care and Counseling Association to become Family and Child Services of Washington, D.C., Incorporated. By the 1960s, there was a senior center with services for the elderly and in 1976 Family and Child Services took over the administration of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program that sponsored volunteers working in community settings. The 1960s also saw the establishment of the first foster home and the 1980s the formation of a Consortium for Child Welfare to coordinate with other organizations planning for children in foster care.

The Board of Managers (changed to Board of Trustees in 1950) was responsible for directing the work of Associated Charities and its later incarnations. It was responsible to the membership as well as the community at large. There were originally 15 members though the numbers expanded thereafter. Among the notables who served on the board were Colonel Archibald Hopkins, Chief Clerk of the U.S. Court of Claims; John Joy Edson, Treasurer of the National Geographic Society; Samuel W. Woodward, co-founder of Woodward and Lothrop; the German born George M. Kober, Dean of Georgetown Medical School; William Henry Baldwin, a former Steel industry executive; and Judge William Henry DeLacy of the Juvenile Court and one of the founders of the National Conference of Catholic Charities (now Catholic Charities USA). There were several women of prominence as well, including three among the original board members: Elizabeth Scott Lamb, Mary Howe Totten, and Julia Louise Langdon Barber.

The work continues in the twenty first century with yet another name change, to Family Matters of Greater Washington (FMGW). Headquartered near Dupont Circle in the District, and with a satellite office in Landover, Prince George's County, Maryland, their ongoing activities include child welfare, youth development, mental health, senior social services, and Bright Futures, a teen mother's program. FMGW also administers Camp Moss Hollow in Markham, Virginia, near Shenandoah National Park. This site provides educational and recreational services for children and youth, ages 7-14, with hiking trails, camping, swimming, fishing and canoeing.

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Scope and Contents

Records of the organization that began in 1882 as Associated Charities (AC), then changed its name in 1935 to the Family Service Association (FSA), and finally as Family and Child Services (FCS) from 1951-1984. Included are financial records, annual reports, scrapbooks, meeting minutes, and monthly reports from agents. Additionally, there are records from organizations that were associated to some degree. Prominent among these was the Citizen’s Relief Association (CRA), 1898-1936.

The first series contains Annual Reports, 1882(1882-1916)1961, boxes 1-3, primarily from the period when the organization was known as Associated Charities, 1882-1934. There are three bound volumes (wrapped in brown paper) covering the years 1882 to 1916, with several years such as 1884, 1886, 1887, and 1890 missing. There are several bound and wrapped duplicate sets as well. Additionally, there is a folder with printed versions of annual reports for 1937-1939, 1946, 1955-1958, and 1960-1961. Also, the reports were written jointly with the Citizen's Relief Association (CRA) from 1899 at least until 1916, the last date we have until 1937 by which time the CRA was defunct.

The second series has Annual Meetings Records, ca. 1912-1952, box 4. These consist primarily of correspondence, minutes, addresses (speeches), and printed material including programs and news clippings. Included are those for ca. 1912 to 1934 for the Associated Charities period, 1935-1950 for the Family Services Association time frame and 1952 for Family and Child Services.

The third series has Board of Trustees Minutes, 1894-1984, boxes 5-17. For the period when their name was Associated Charities there are bound volumes for 1894 to 1909, loose items in folders from 1909 to 1917, and bound volumes again for 1917-1934. The minutes are loose and housed in folders for the Family Services period of 1935 to 1950 as well as for the Family and Child Service time frame of 1951 to 1984.

The fourth series is Record and General Minute Books, 1906(1906-1908)1910, boxes 18-19. These are general administration files, including correspondence and minutes, from the Associated Charities period, and mounted in two bound volumes.

The fifth series is Division and General Agents Monthly and Yearly Reports, 1903-1910, boxes 20-22. These are pre-printed forms with handwritten information added in, collected in seven bound and fragile volumes. The report forms cover the eight divisions that Associated Charities had divided Washington into in this time period. Information includes statistics on the number of people helped, divided by race, or 'white' and 'colored' as they state.

The sixth series is Financial Records, 1910-1969, boxes 22-24. This material includes the Joint Finance Committee Minutes, 1910-1916, made up of loose typescripts in one folder, of the combined Associated Charities and Citizen's Relief Association; Financial Reports, 1917-1923, loose typescripts in one folder, of Associated Charities; Monthly Statements, 1917-1932, loose typescripts in eleven folders, of Associated Charities. The fourth is Annual Statements, 1924-1935, loose typescripts in three folders, of Associated Charities, and include a 1930 report on the history of social service exchange between 1910 and 1928; and Auditor's Reports, 1965-1969, consisting of printed reports from Bobys, Noble, and Brotman for 1965-1967 in two folders and similar reports from Alexander Grant and Co. for 1969 in one folder.

The seventh series is Committees, 1902-1916, 1953-1956, box 24, and consists of three items. There are two items from the Associated Charities period. The first is the Committee on the Improvement of Housing Conditions Minutes, 1902-1907, consisting of a fragile scrapbook volume with a mix of written, typescript, and print materials pasted or pinned therein. The second is the Summer Outings for Camp Pleasant Minutes, 1912-1916, which is primarily typescript material housed in a single folder. The third item, from the Family and Child Services period, is the Summer Outings Committee Minutes, 1953-1956, which is typescript material in one folder.

The eighth series is Organizations merged with Family and Child Services during its history and various names, 1903-1951, boxes 25-27. The first of these is the Citizen's Relief Association (CRA) Record and Minute Books, with related material that includes correspondence. There are two bound 'record' books, dated 1903-1908 and 1909-1917 respectively, containing primarily meeting minutes and related material. There is also a black binder or book of Meeting Minutes for 1926-1931, and two folders with a mix of minutes and related material which include correspondence for 1929-1940. The second organization is the Childrens Protective Association (CPA), founded as the Juvenile Protective Association in 1928 with name change in 1937, and including Board of Directors and Committee Minutes, 1928-1951. Finally, there are Minutes of the Foster Day Care and Counseling Association Board of Trustees, 1944-1951.

The ninth series is Scrapbooks and Memorabilia, 1934-1939, (oversize) box 28. There are two fragile scrapbooks of news clippings, including one that is oversized, plus a small blue register containing guest's signatures.

The tenth series is the Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis Annual Reports, 1908-1920, box 29. There are two small and fragile bound volumes.

The eleventh series is the Washington Monday Evening Club Constitution, Officers, Members, Annual Reports, and Minutes handwritten in two fragile notebooks, 1896-1907, in box 29.

The twelfth and final series is Miscellaneous Publications, 1897-1942, boxes 29-31. There are three fragile bound volumes wrapped in brown paper described as The Survey of The Charity Organization Society for October 1909 to March 1910, the Senate Joint Select Committee to Investigate the Charity and Reforming Institutions in the District of Columbia of 1897-1898, and The Official Organ of The Charity Organizing Society of the City of New York for July-December 1902. There are also numerous loose publications in mostly soft cover booklet format. Among those included are the 1902 conference paper by Charles Frederick Weller titled Relief Work and Preventive Philanthropies as Related to Charity Organization, two Russell Sage publications by Margaret F. Byington dated 1912 and 1919 respectively, the 1935 Report of Mayor La Guardia's Committee on Unemployment Relief, and the 1941 Annual Report of The Family Welfare Association of Baltimore.

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Arrangement

The Family and Child Services of Washington, D.C. Records consists of 12 series:

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

None stated

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Administrative Information

Acquisition Information

This collection was initially secured for the CUA Archives by social work professor Dorothy Mohler. She had inspected their records on site for research she was doing for an eventual article about one of their defunct affiliates, the Monday Evening Club. She exchanged several letters with Family and Child Services officials in 1972 regarding the initial accession of records which were received October 30, 1972. She says in these letters that she hopes to also use the records for some of her classes. In particular, she was interested in a 1910 self study in which one of the participants was CUA's own William J. Kerby. Additional accessions (or accretions) were received on June 9, 1975, August 10, 1976, and November 19, 1985.

Initial processing in 1981-1984 by Ann Crowley and Anthony Zito. Additional processing and EAD markup completed in 2010-2011 by William John Shepherd.

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Related Material

The American Catholic History Research Center and University Archives also has:

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, DC

Catholic Charities USA Records

Christ Society Records

Kerby, William Joseph. Papers

Kerby (William Joseph) Foundation. Collection

Mohler, Dorothy Abts. Papers

Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP), Archdiocese of Washington, DC. Records

Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP), National Council of the United States

Marquette University, Special Collections and University Archives has:

The Catholic Social Action Collection

The University of Minnesota has:

the Social Welfare History Archives

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Index Terms

Persons:

Organizations:

Places:

Subjects:

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Bibliography

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Detailed Description of the Collection

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Descriptive Summary

Historical Note

Scope and Contents

Arrangement

Restrictions

Administrative Information

Related Material

Index Terms

Bibliography

Detailed Description of the Collection

Series 1: Associated Charities/Citizen's Relief Association/Family Service Association/Family and Child Services Annual Reports, 1882(1882-1916)1961

Series 2: Associated Charities/Family Service Association/Family and Child Services Annual Meeting Records, ca. 1912-1952

Series 3: Associated Charities/Family Service Association/Family and Child Services Board of Managers/Trustees Minutes, 1894-1984

Series 4: Associated Charities Record and General Minute Books, 1906(1906-1908)1910

Series 5: Associated Charities Division and General Agents Monthly and Yearly Reports, 1903-1910

Series 6: Financial Records, 1910-1969

Series 7: Associated Charities/Family and Child Services Committees, 1902-1916, 1953-1956

Series 8: Organizations Merged with Associate Charities/Family Service Association/Family and Child Services, 1903-1951

Series 9: Scrapbooks and Memorabilia, 1934-1939

Series 10: Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis Annual Reports, 1908-1920

Series 11: Washington Monday Evening Club, 1896-1907

Series 12: Miscellaneous Publications, ca. 1897-1942