Parks Council records, 1920s-1979, bulk 1925-1979

Summary Information

Abstract

The Parks Council (renamed in 2002 as New Yorkers for Parks) is a non-profit advocacy organization that promotes the development, use, and maintenance of parks, playgrounds, community gardens, and open space in New York City. This collection includes office papers, correspondence, grant applications, reports, exhibitions materials, photographs, printed materials, maps, and scrapbooks related to the work and interests of the Parks Council in New York City from the 1920s through the 1970s.

At a Glance

Arrangement

• Series I: Administrative Records
• Internal/Committees 1940s, civic groups, miscellany. Some materials from 1920s
• Miscellany, 1960s. Internal Governance, 1950s.
• Internal Governance Materials 1960s.
• Internal Materials, 1950s-1960s. Clips, documents, lawsuit – 1930s. Chronological files, 1960s. Projects/Proposals, 1960s.
• Internal Materials, 1930s. Awards/Correspondence/Budget, 1930s. Miscellany, 1930s-1950s. Internal Material, 1940s.
• Newsclips, 1940s. Internal, 1940s. Water Pollution, 1948. Major Deegan. Vandalism, 1939-1943.
• Internal/Financial/Celebrations, 1930s-1940s. Theatre Benefits, 1950s.
• Miscellaneous, 1960 and earlier. E.g.: Breezy Point, Ruppert Greening, TBTA, Federal Land and Water Conservation.
• Minutes, Board of Directors, 1967-1972. Matching Program, 1976, 1970s (Notebooks).
• Miscellaneous/Recreation 1960s.
• Parks, 1960s and Earlier
• General, 1960's and earlier. Bottle Bill.
• General, 1960's. Ruppert; vest-pocket parks.
• [Ledger Books]
• Series II: Individual Park Files
• Individual Parks, 1940s. Alphabetical a-z, 1930s.
• Individual Parks, 1960s. Alphabetical 1940s-1960s. Individual Parks, 1930s-1960s
• Individual Parks, 1930s -1950s. Manhattan Playgrounds, same period.
• [Scrapbook]
• Series III: Park Council Tours
• Series IV: Events
• Series V: Volunteers
• Series VI: New York State Council on the Arts and Other Fundraising
• Series VII: Photographs and Slides
• Series VIII: Pamphlets

Description

Summary

This collection includes office papers, correspondence, grant applications, reports, exhibitions materials, photographs, printed materials, maps, and scrapbooks related to the work and interests of the Parks Council in New York City.

Folder titles and subseries names are maintained from the Park Council's original filing system. The series names and groupings were supplied by the archivist. There collection is divided into 8 series.

• Series I: Administrative Records

• Series II: Individual Park Files

• Series III: Park Council Tours

• Series IV: Events

• Series V: Volunteers

• Series VI: New York State Council on the Arts and Other Fundraising

• Series VII: Photographs and Slides

• Series VIII: Pamphlets

Using the Collection

Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library

Restrictions on Access

This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information and to make an appointment, please email avery-drawings@library.columbia.edu.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Columbia University is providing access to the materials in the Library's collections solely for noncommercial educational and research purposes. The unauthorized use, including, but not limited to, publication of the materials without the prior written permission of Columbia University is strictly prohibited. All inquiries regarding permission to publish should be submitted in writing to the Director, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. In addition to permission from Columbia University, permission of the copyright owner (if not Columbia University) and/or any holder of other rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) may also be required for reproduction, publication, distributions, and other uses. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of any item and securing any necessary permissions rests with the persons desiring to publish the item. Columbia University makes no warranties as to the accuracy of the materials or their fitness for a particular purpose.

Preferred Citation

Parks Council records. Located in the Dept. of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Source of acquisition--Gift of the Parks Council. Accession number--1989.002.

About the Finding Aid / Processing Information

Columbia University Libraries, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library

Processing Information

This ArchivesSpace finding aid was restructured from a legacy finding aid and converted into EAD by Shelley Hayreh (Avery Archivist) in 2020.

Subject Headings

The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches at Columbia University through the Archival Collections Portal and through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, as well as ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.

All links open new windows.

Genre/Form

Subject

History / Biographical Note

Biographical / Historical

The Parks Council (renamed in 2002 as New Yorkers for Parks) is a non-profit advocacy organization that promotes the development, use, and maintenance of parks, playgrounds, community gardens, and open space in New York City.

The earliest iteration of the council was the 1908 Parks and Playgrounds Association of the City of New York. In 1928, the association merged with the Battery Park Association and the Central Park Association and became the Park Association of New York City. In 1970, the Park Association merged with the Council for Parks and Playgrounds to become The Parks Council.