Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records CMS.023 Finding Aid Prepared by Olha Della Cava
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Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records CMS.023 Finding aid prepared by Olha Della Cava This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit September 20, 2013 Center for Migration Studies 1977-1978 Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Table of Contents Summary Information ................................................................................................................................. 3 Biographical/Historical note.......................................................................................................................... 4 Scope and Contents note............................................................................................................................... 4 Arrangement note...........................................................................................................................................5 Administrative Information .........................................................................................................................5 Related Materials ........................................................................................................................................ 6 Controlled Access Headings..........................................................................................................................7 Other Finding Aids note................................................................................................................................7 Collection Inventory...................................................................................................................................... 8 Correspondence........................................................................................................................................8 - Page 2 - Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Summary Information Repository Center for Migration Studies Creator National Catholic Welfare Conference. Title National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Date [inclusive] 1920-1970 Extent 51.25 Linear feet in 108 boxes. Language English Language of Materials note The materials are mostly in English, with some Italian, German, Spanish and other languages. Abstract This collection contains the records of the National Catholic Welfare Conference (NCWC), Department of Immigration, from 1920-1970. This collection contains correspondence and other working files of the organization, including clippings, telegrams, memos, speeches, pamphlets, mimeo materials, press releases, reports, minutes, agenda, congressional bills, notes, lists, cross reference sheets, annual reports, photographs, and other material. NCWC, Department of Immigration was established in 1919 to provide aid and welfare, chiefly to incoming Catholic immigrants. Preferred Citation note Center for Migration Studies of New York; National Catholic Welfare Conference Department of Immigration Records (CMS 023); Box; Folder. - Page 3 - Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Biographical/Historical note The National Catholic Welfare Conference (NCWC), Department of Immigration was a bureau/ department of the National Catholic Welfare Conference, established in December 1920 directly under the Executive Department of the the NCWC. The NCWC was founded in 1919 by the bishops of the United States, as an outgrowth of the National Catholic War Council, which coordinated welfare activities of of the United States Catholic Church during World War I. Their aim was to unify, coordinate, and organize Catholic activities in the areas of education, social welfare, immigrant aid, citizenship, family life, and other activities. In 1922, the organization changed its name from the National Catholic Welfare Council to the National Catholic Welfare Conference. Upon the founding of the Bureau of Immigration, the bishops wished to establish a national Catholic immigrant aid organization with the goals augmenting the work already being accomplished by smaller ethnic societies which specialized in helping immigrant co-nationals, paying attention to the religious needs of Catholic immigrants, and serving as a clearinghouse for information regarding immigration and emigration. Their national headquarters were located at 1312 Massachusetts Avenue in Washington DC and open branch offices in New York, El Paso, and Philadelphia. In 1953, the Bureau was raised to the status of Department, under the leadership of Bishop Michael J. Ready as Episcopal Chairman, Bruce M. Mohler as director, and Sarah Weadick, as assistant director. In 1964, Mohler was replaced by John E. McCarthy. Over the course of the NCWC's existence, the Department of Immigration subsumed the work and records of other organizations, including Committee for Catholic Refugees from Germany (became Catholic Committee for Refugees in 1940), the International Catholic Office for Refugee Affairs (subsumed by 1941 by the New York Office) and the War Relief Services (Became Catholic Relief Services in 1955, folded in 1965). In 1968, the NCWC was reorganized and replaced by the United States Catholic Conference and the National Council of Catholic Bishops and in 2001, the USCC and NCCB were replaced by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Scope and Contents note This collection contains the general correspondence files accumulated by the Washington headquarters of the National Catholic Welfare Conference (NCWC) from 1920-1970. This collection contains correspondence and other working files of the organization, including clippings, telegrams, memos, speeches, pamphlets, mimeo materials, press releases, reports, minutes, agenda, congressional bills, notes, lists, cross reference sheets, annual reports, photographs, and other material. Most of this material consists of correspondence with other immigrant aid and welfare organizations, including the National Council of Catholic Women, the National Council of Catholic Men, the American Council of Voluntary - Page 4 - Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Agencies for Foreign Service, and other organizations. Most correspondence is directed to Bruce Mohler, head of the NCWC Department of Immigration. The collection also contains a significant amount of information related to Ellis Island and the NCWC's El Paso office. Material in this collection is organized by subject, this includes material on countries, organizations, people, and other subjects. These files are a combination of correspondence and their own research material on these topics. In addition, there is a significant segment of the collection related to legislation regarding immigrant affairs. Although the organization was chiefly interest in the spiritual and material well being incoming Catholic immigrants, these records represent their work attending to other immigrant problems, including presenting oral argument to the Board of Immigration appeals on behalf of aliens who had been denied admission, ordered to depart, or inadvertently broken law. Other work included carrying on national and international correspondence relating to technical and legal problems of aliens, cooperation with foreign agencies that were engaged in helping the emigration of countrymen to the United States, and monitoring pending immigration and naturalization legislation. The collection also represents the aid provided to American citizens with foreign visa and transportation problems. This collection provides a valuable resource on the different types of methods organizations provided aid to immigrants and refugees in the post war period. NCWC provided aid in many different ways; from providing foodstuffs to refugee communities, to organizing adoptions of orphan children, to raising money for Catholic organizations in war torn areas, to providing aid to new immigrants to the United States, to aid to displaced people in camps, to organizing legislation, among other activities. This collection also demonstrates how the Catholic community worked to aid to immigrants and refugees. Arrangement note Materials are arranged alphabetically. Administrative Information Publication Information Center for Migration Studies 1977-1978 Revision Description Edited by Nicole Greenhouse for DACS compliance. March 1, 2013 - Page 5 - Guide to the National Catholic Welfare Conference, Department of Immigration Records Conditions Governing Access note Open to researchers by appointment. Some materials have been separated and restricted. Conditions Governing Use note Copyright is owned by the Center for Migration Studies. Permission to publish materials must be requested before use. Immediate Source of Acquisition note This collection was transferred to CMS from the Washington headquarters of the United States Conference Division of Migration and Refugee Services. Processing Information note This collection was originally processed in 1978-1979. In 1998, four boxes of National Catholic Welfare Conference Annual Reports were added to the collection. In 2013, This collection was entered into the Archivists' Toolkit and folder descriptions were simplified from the original print finding aid. (The original finding aid is available in print upon request). Folder titles in the container list online may vary from the the physical folder titles. Physical folder titles either do not exist on the folders