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American Association for Social Security Records

 Collection
Identifier: 5002

Scope and Contents

Consists of Association correspondence with various individuals, societies and organizations, chiefly concerning unemployment insurance, federal social security, national health insurance, old age benefits, state laws and workmen's compensation. Also subject files which consist of published and unpublished materials having to do with health insurance, old age pensions, federal social security and unemployment relief; a card file of legislative histories of social security bills; a social legislation bibliography; copies of legislative bills; newspaper clippings which chiefly concern federal social security programs, social insurance, social security, and the Social Security Board; and miscellaneous related documents.

Dates

  • 1909-1953

Language of Materials

Collection material in English, French, German

Conditions Governing Access

Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference archivist for access to these materials.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and Procedures for Document Use.

Biographical / Historical

Founded in 1927 by Abraham Epstein, the American Association for Social Security (formerly the American Association for Old Age Security) was dedicated to securing state and federal legislation to ensure adequate old age pensions, as well as unemployment and health insurance for American workers.

In 1927, Abraham Epstein organized the American Association for Old Age Security. The Association name was changed in 1933 to the American Association for Social Security and its goals and activities were widened to include unemployment insurance and health insurance.

Epstein was a reformer, editor, writer, scholar and public speaker, as well as the creative force behind the American Association for Social Security, which he directed for fifteen years as executive secretary. Old age pension legislation was the main objective of the Association.

The American Association for Social Security actively participated in the various state old age pension campaigns. For Epstein, this work with state programs was merely a means of bringing enough pressure to bear on Congress to secure federal legislation. The American Association for Social Security also sought reforms in the existing unemployment system and the enactment of a health insurance program.

Extent

90.5 cubic feet

Abstract

Materials concern the movement to promote government provision of retirement, health, unemployment and other forms of social insurance and progressive social legislation.

Quantity:

90.5 linear ft.

Forms of Material:

Bibliographies, bills (legislative records), clippings (information artifacts), scrapbooks, publications (documents) .

General

Contact Information:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives Martin P. Catherwood Library 227 Ives Hall Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853 (607) 255-3183> kheel_center@cornell.edu http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/library/kheel-center
Compiled by:
Kheel Staff, January 28, 2012
EAD encoding:
Randall Miles, October 19, 2016
Title
American Association for Social Security Records
Status
Completed
Author
Compiled by Kheel Staff
Date
October 19, 2016
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Revision Statements

  • 02/23/2024: This resource was modified by the ArchivesSpace Preprocessor developed by the Harvard Library (https://github.com/harvard-library/archivesspace-preprocessor)

Repository Details

Part of the Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives Repository

Contact:
227 Ives Hall
Ithaca NY 14853