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Emergency Shelter records

Call Number

MS 199

Date

1928-1988 (bulk, 1929-1975), inclusive

Creator

Emergency Shelter, Inc.

Extent

6.5 Linear feet (13 archival boxes and one oversize box)

Language of Materials

The documents in this collection are in English.

Abstract

The collection documents the history of a men's homeless shelter that existed in Manhattan from 1929-1990. It includes photographs, slides, brochures, flyers, scrapbooks, letters, articles, and reports.

Chronology

Aug. 1929 The Greater New York Gospel Mission is started by businessmen, including Walter Britt, to help homeless and unemployed men regardless of their religious beliefs. The Mission is located on 36 E. 8th Street, near Fifth Avenue.
Oct. 1929 The stock market crashes. The Mission provides food and shelter to the unemployed.
1931 The Mission moves to 257-261 Greene Street, rented from Sailors' Snug Harbor.
1932 The Greater New York Gospel Mission becomes Emergency Shelter, Inc. Walter Britt is named Director, Charles L. Lawrance Treasurer, and James J. Moore, Secretary.
1933 The Shelter purchases property near Middle Island on Long Island, called Spring Brook. The property provides an opportunity for men to get out of the city and has as a farm, a store, and a gas station for work opportunities. The Shelter also has a program in which underpriviledged children from New York City reside at Spring Brook.
1936 Emergency Shelter moves to 69 St. Mark's Place, where it remains until it closes 54 years later.
1940-1950 The Shelter's services are mostly used by single men who are aging or suffering from emotional problems.
1950 The property on Middle Island is sold and nine acres of land and a small house are purchased in Yorktown Heights, New York. The new property, called Shelter Rock, has accommodations for forty men and is used to train men for rural employment.
1956 Founder Walter Britt retires from the Emergency Shelter and is succeeded by Major Leon B. deGarmo.
1960 Maj. Leon B. deGarmo leaves the Emergency Shelter and the Executive Director position is filled by J. Boyce Mooney.
1962 The property known as Shelter Rock is reclaimed by New York State under eminent domain to reroute the Taconic State Parkway.
1963 Realizing that no organization provides for homeless teenagers, the Emergency Shelter begins a program for boys ages of 16 and 20 years of age. The Shelter provides counseling, tutoring, vocational training, and recreational activities for the young men. The Rev. Leonard A. Schneider becomes the Executive Director.
1967 As the number of older men seeking assistance continues to drop, the Shelter begins focusing primarily on young men between 16-20 years of age.
1985 The Shelter opens a small facility for young women between the ages of 16 and 20 in Elmhurst, Queens.
1987 Emergency Shelter, Inc. leases apartments and rents them out to graduates of the Shelter. Both young men and women participate in this transitional and independent living program.
1990 The Emergency Shelter is absorbed into Leake and Watts, a New York City child care agency.

Arrangement

The collection is organized in eleven series:

Series 1: Histories of the Emergency Shelter, 1932-1987

Series 2: Information on Residents of the Shelter (RESTRICTED FOR 75 YEARS FROM DATE OF CREATION), 1931-1960

Series 3: Fund-raising Material, 1930-1989

Series 4: Financial Records, 1929-1947

Series 5: Photographs, 1930-1989

Series 6: Slides 1930-1975, undated

Series 7: Films, 1930-1939, undated

Series 8: Materials Relating to Walter D. Britt, 1927-1950, undated

Series 9: Newspaper Articles, 1928-1985

Series 10: Conferences and Studies on Homelessness and Homelessness Issues, 1929-1934

Series 11: Real Estate Documentation, 1969

Most of the collection is arranged by type of material. The majority of the material is then arranged chronologically.

Scope and Contents

The Emergency Shelter collection documents 60 years of efforts to help homeless men and boys (and eventually girls) in New York City. It is arranged according to subject matter or type of material and is housed in 12 archival boxes and 1 oversize box. The collection contains photographs, brochures, flyers, scrapbooks, letters, articles, reports, slides, and films.

The collection includes information on the changing needs of the homeless male population from 1929-1990. It consists of fund-rasing materials, photographs, slides, financial statements, and articles. The materials document a shift in Shelter residents from middle-aged, unemployed men to teenage boys that also reflects the changing nature of the homeless population in New York City.

The collection contains a large amount of brochures and appeal letters mailed for fund-raising purposes. Besides asking for contributions, the materials sent out for fund-raising describe the needs of the homeless men and the programs that the Shelter offers. Likewise, the large number of photographs in the collection depict the men who used the Shelter's services and their differing needs. For instance, the photographs show homeless men during the Depression receiving suits and job assistance while the boys who resided at the Shelter during the 1970's are depicted partaking in counseling and tutoring sessions. Personal information and religious writings by Walter Britt, the Shelter's founder and director for 25 years, are also included in the collection.

There is little correspondence or administrative information on the day-to-day running of the Shelter in the collection. Although a small number of case histories of homeless men are included, they only exist for 1931 and the 1950's. Only a small amount of promotional material exists on the Emergency Shelter's women's shelter in Queens.

Access Restrictions

Two folders of resident case histories are restricted for 75 years from the date of creation. The scrapbooks in box 13 are restricted due to the poor condition of the materials. The rest of the collection is open to qualified researchers.

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as the Emergency Shelter Records, MS 199, The New-York Historical Society.

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donation by Daniel Spiwack of the Emergency Shelter, 1990.

Collection processed by

Maurita Baldock

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:48:15 -0400.
Language: Description is in English.

Edition of this Guide

Thisversion was derived from emshelter01mb.xml

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024