Ben Sonnenberg, Jr., is a writer and editor best known for founding Grand Street, a New York literary quarterly, which he edited from 1981 until his retirement in 1989; the magazine continued for another fifteen years before it finally ceased publication in the fall of 2004. The bulk of the collection comprises correspondence between Ben Sonnenberg, Jr. and literary contributors associated with Grand Street. Some Grand Street administrative files and a small amount of personal material, including family letters and writings, are also included.
William Yukon Chang was the founder and editor of "Chinese-American Times", a Chinese American paper that published completely in English from 1955 to 1972. While running the newspaper, Chang also served in local social and civic groups to address issues facing the New York Chinatown community, including poverty, juvenile delinquency, mental illness and lack of access to adult language programs. The William Yukon Chang papers document Chang's life and career, Chinese American life, and social service and activism scene in the Lower East Side from the 1950s to the 1970s.