Mendelsund, Henoch. Interview by E. Finn.

Founded in 1900 by local union delegates representing about 2,000 members in cities in the northeastern United States, the ILGWU grew in geographical scope, membership size, political influence to become one of the most powerful forces in American organized labor by mid-century. Representing workers in the women's garment industry, the ILGWU worked to improve working and living conditions of its members through collective bargaining agreements, training programs, health care facilities, cooperative housing, educational opportunities, and other efforts. In 1995, the ILGWU merged with the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU) to form the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE).

Henoch Mendelsund was born on March 26 (or 23), 1911. Active in the Jewish labor movement in his native Poland, he worked as a mechanic and attended Warsaw University. Mendelsund arrived in the U.S. in 1941 as one of 1,500 labor leaders and intellectuals rescued from the Nazis through the efforts of the ILGWU and other groups under special visas authorized by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He joined the ILGWU as a machine operator, and while working in the shop during the day, he attended the New School for Social Research at night, earning a master's degree in economics and sociology.



In addition to his work in cloak shops, during the war, Mendelsund was a member of the National Coat and Suit Recovery Board staff. Mendelsund held many positions during his tenure with the ILGWU. In 1949, he became the secretary of Cloak Finishers' Local 9 and in 1953 became the assistant general manager of the New York Cloak Joint Board under Isadore Nagler. After Nagler's death in September 1959, Mendelsund became general manager, a post he held until 1973. He also served the union as a vice president, and was the director of the International Relations Department from 1968-1980.



On April 2, 1973 Mendelsund's recommendation to provide initial funding for the establishment of the ILGWU Archives was approved by the New York Cloak Joint Board. Mendelsund assumed directorship of the newly created archives, and served as director until his retirement on March 31, 1986. It was through Mendelsund's untiring efforts that led to the creation of the archives, its professional and prosperous status, and its oral history program. He died on September 22, 1994.