Incarceration and Reform (Archives and Special Collections)

PRISONS AND INCARCERATION

Kenneth Enkel papers, 1947-1958. Papers consist of legal briefs, documents, and correspondence relating to deportation proceedings taken in the McCarthy Era against seven people affiliated with the Communist Party. Mr. Enkel undertook these cases at the behest of the Minnesota Committee for the Protection of the Foreign Born.

US Immigration and Naturalization Service records. Microfilm. Files of note include:

• Part 1: Asian Immigration and Exclusion records:  Records include files on Chinese and Chinese-American arrests and detention by the US government.
• Files 71-42: Topics include deportation proceedings against radicals, anarchists, and communists, especially during the Palmer Raids of 1919-1920. Correspondence includes records related to the cases of Carlo Tresca, Vincenzo Vacirca, and Pietro Allegro, as well as correspondence by J. Edgar Hoover.

INCARCERATION OF JAPANESE AMERICANS AMERICANS DURING WORLD WAR II

International Institute of Boston records, 1924-1955. Box 18, folders 189 and 190 document the work of the Boston Hospitality Committee for Japanese-American Resettlement from 1943-1945.

Tometaro Kitagawa papers, 1918-2004. Diaries 1942-1945 include entries mentioning the upheaval caused by the incarceration of Japanese Americans, with 1942 being the most prolific.

To specifically contact the IHRCA, please:

• Email: ihrca@umn.edu
• Phone: 612-625-4800

PRISON AND INCARCERATION

Family Service Association of America records, 1908-1988 (bulk 1920-1970). Records of a national social service organization that promoted, set standards for, and served as a vehicle for communication among social work agencies that provide casework, counseling, and related services for families and individuals. Files of note include:

• Subcommittee on Relations with Prisoners (1937-1941). Box 17, Folder 10.
• Subcommittee on Relations with Prisoners reports (1938-1939). Box 17, Folder 11.
• Note: these files are more likely to be about social services for prisoners or social work with prisoners, but may tangentially discuss prison conditions or populations.

Fred K. Hoehler papers, 1917-1965. The collection contains information on corrections in the Chicago area and the House of Correction of the City of Chicago in the mid-20th century.

Paul U. Kellogg papers, 1891-1952. Paul Kellogg was the editor of Survey magazine and was connected with many important figures in reform and social work in the early 20th century. Files of note include:

• Charities and the Commons (1907-1909). Includes a proposed investigation of county jails, in cooperation with the National Prison Association. ["Proposed" indicates that the study was not conducted or that the results are not in this file]. Box 11, Folder 104.
• Pennsylvania Series (1914-1915). Correspondence and papers regarding "Social Legislation in the Keystone State," a series of articles by Florence Sanville, the first of which was published in Survey, vol. 33, February 6, 1915. Records include material about prison labor and welfare, as well as copies of American Federation of Labor (AFL) resolutions on prison labor, 1897-1914. Box 24, Folder 216.

Minnesota Citizens Council on Crime and Justice records, 1957-1998. The Council was established in 1957 as the Minnesota Prisoners Aid Society with a focus on "Serving the prisoner, his family and community ... the improvement of correctional policies and practices ... public education in corrections ... correctional research ... crime prevention." Most of the documents date from the 1970s-1990s and reflect the Council’s later focus on the victim as well as the offender, and the entire criminal justice system rather than just corrections.

National Assessment of Juvenile Corrections records, 1972-1976.  Records include the reference files of a University of Michigan research project to analyze the effectiveness of correctional programs for juvenile offenders in the fifty states. The files consist of reports and other documents from state agencies with an emphasis on quantifiable data.

Survey Associates records, 1891-1952: The Survey Associates records include correspondence with numerous reformers and social workers. Files with information on prisons and prison reform include:

• Hastings H. Hart (1918-1932). Hart directed the Russell Sage Foundation's child-helping department and was a consultant on delinquency and penology. Material on child welfare, probation, and prison. Box 80, Folder 603.
• Winthrop D. Lane (1914-1947). Files include correspondence arising from his work as a Survey staff member and contributor, where he was the publication’s authority on prisons and prison reform. Material on military pensions, suffragette pickets, and conditions in District of Columbia prisons. Boxes 90-91, Folders 679-683.
• Adolph Lewisohn (1915-1938). Lewisohn was a founder of the Survey Graphic. Material on prisons and prison labor. Box 93, Folder 703.

INCARCERATION OF JAPANESE AMERICANS DURING WORLD WAR II

Family Service Association of America records, 1908-1988 (bulk 1920-1970). Japanese Relocation (1942-1945). Box 37, Folder 12.

National Association of Social Workers records, 1917-1970. Japanese Resettlement (1942-1944). Box 51, Folder 554. Note: material regarding medical social work participation in resettlement and programs for Japanese in relocation centers.

Survey Associates records, 1891-1952. Taylor, Paul S. (1934-1945). Box 169, Folder 1297. The file contains correspondence about censorship of an article on internment camps. We can also provide the article for you to use.

United Neighborhood Houses of New York records, 1898-1990. Race Relations (1945, 1950-1951). Box 74, Folder 4. Note: records include material on Japanese­ Americans who were interned during World War II.

INSTITUTIONAL CARE OF CHILDREN AND OF PERSON WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES, DISABLING CONDITIONS, AND MENTAL ILLNESS

Child Welfare League of America records, 1900-2003. Records of a national social service agency dedicated to research, advocacy, policy legislation, and standards in the field of child welfare. Includes information on institutional care of children.

National Conference of Charities and Corrections/National Conference on Social Welfare proceedings. The proceedings date from 1874 to 1982 and are full text searchable online. The Conference was a meeting of reformers, educators, prison and institution officials, social workers (and their early counterparts), members of various civic, religious and charitable groups, academics, and others interested in welfare, reform, and corrections.

Physical Facilities for the Group Care of Children Project records, 1964-1971. The project, conducted by the University of Chicago's Center for Urban Studies in 1965-1968, surveyed and analyzed 200 institutional child care facilities throughout the U.S. The records of the project include files on each of the facilities included in the survey.

The Social Welfare History Archives also has records from children’s institutions and social agencies serving children, including:

• The Children’s Home Society of Minnesota
• The Orphan Asylum Society of the City of Brooklyn
• The Sheltering Arms Orphanage (Minnesota)

To contact the SWHA specifically, please: 

• Email: swharef@umn.edu
• Phone: 612-624-6394