1762-1994
Guide to the Collection
There are restrictions on the use of this collection. Users must sign an
agreement stating that they understand these restrictions before they will be
given access to the collection.
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| Creator: | Massachusetts Charitable
Society |
| Title: | Massachusetts Charitable
Society records |
| Dates: | 1762-1994 |
| Physical Description: | 10
document boxes, 13 regular vols., 6 extra tall vols., and 1 oversize box.
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| Call Number: | Ms. N-450 |
| Repository: | Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02215
library@masshist.org |
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Abstract:
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This collection consists of the records of the
Massachusetts Charitable Society (formerly the Massachusetts Society), an
organization formed in 1762 to aid widows, orphans, and the poor, 1762-1994.
The collection consists of correspondence, meeting records, financial records,
biographical materials on members, files relating to the Society's bid for
non-profit status, and files concerning real estate held by the
Society.
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The Massachusetts Charitable Society was organized by a group of men in
Boston in 1762 as a society for "mutually aiding and assisting each other,
their families, widows and orphans who may be reduced by the adverse accidents
of life?" (from the 1779 charter). Founded as the "Massachusetts Society," the
organization changed its name to the "Massachusetts Charitable Society" at its
incorporation in 1779. The Society originally met at the Green Dragon Tavern in
Boston, later frequenting the "Bunch of Grapes" and other local landmarks. The
founding members of the Society were John Tileston (a writing school master),
Ephraim Copeland, Barnabas Webb, Habijah Savage, and John Perkins, Jr. The
membership consisted primarily of artisans and tradesmen. The Massachusetts
Charitable Society was the first society of its type to enroll members without
regard to religion, trade, or national derivation.
The Society remains in existence today. The organization continues to fund
needy members and their families, and supplies grants to support education,
community service, historical scholarship, and the arts.
The records date from the Society's founding through 1994, and contain
loose papers and bound volumes. The loose papers include correspondence,
receipts, meeting records, financial statements, payment vouchers, cancelled
checks, bank statements, biographical materials on members, files relating to
the Society's bid for non-profit status, and two files concerning real estate
held by the Society. The bound volumes include six meeting record books with
minutes of meetings, 1762-1994, with three volumes of photocopies of the
earliest records (1762-1857); and ten volumes of financial records covering the
years 1762-1939.
The Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS) holds the following collections
related to the Massachusetts Charitable Society records:
Massachusetts Charitable Society photographs, ca. 1858-1962. Photo. Coll.
159. Finding aid available at:
http://www.masshist.org/findingaids/doc.cfm?fa=fap028.
The collection was deposited by the Massachusetts Charitable Society in
September and October, 1977.
There are restrictions on the use of this collection. Users must sign an
agreement stating that they understand these restrictions before they will be
given access to the collection.
The Massachusetts Charitable Society records have been placed on deposit at
the Historical Society by the Massachusetts Charitable Society.
The Massachusetts Historical Society does not claim
ownership to the literary rights (copyright) to this collection. This
collection contains modern records of charitable contributions to individuals,
including their names and the amounts awarded. Users should be aware that
access to the material does not assume permission to publish. Any requests for
permission to publish should be directed to the board of directors of the
Massachusetts Charitable Society.
Photocopies are for personal use only. Personal
use photocopies may not be donated or deposited in
other libraries or archives, or made available to other researchers without the
written permission of the donor.
The collection is organized into the following series:
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| I. General Records, 1780-1983 |
| II. Members' Records, compiled ca. 1900-1980 |
| III. Vouchers, Cancelled Checks, and Bank Statements, 1830-1965 |
| IV. Miscellaneous Financial Matter, 1883-1906 |
| V. Annotated Printed Matter |
| VI. Volumes, 1762-1994 |
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| Box | Volume | Contents |
| | I. General Records,
1780-1983
Arranged chronologically. This series contains loose records regarding the general workings of the
Society. Among the records are correspondence regarding appeals for aid,
membership, and financial matters; records of votes; committee reports; meeting
announcements; financial statements; bills and receipts; materials related to
the 150th (1912) and 200th (1962) anniversaries of the Society, and other
miscellaneous items. See Also Series VI, Bound Volumes, for other general
records.
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| | | Charter of incorporation,
15 Mar. 1780
Located in Mss. X-Large. |
| Box 1 | | | General records,
1827-1898 |
| Box 2 | | | General records,
1899-1934 |
| Box 3 | | | General records,
1935-1949 |
| Box 4 | | | General records,
1950-1983 |
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| | II. Members' Records, compiled
ca. 1900-1980
Arranged alphabetically. This series contains biographical information gathered about many of its
members, including obituaries and Society memoirs, arranged in alphabetical
order by member. There are also genealogical notes for some members. There are
two files at the beginning of the section that contain various lists of
members.
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| Box 5 | | | Members' records, A-Q |
| Box 6 | | | Members' records, R-Z |
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| | III. Vouchers, Cancelled Checks, and Bank Statements,
1830-1965
Arranged chronologically. This series contains payment vouchers for donations, 1930-1914, 1928-1951,
1964-1965; cancelled checks for donations and other payments, 1926-1951; bank
statements, 1938-1951; and bank books for 1948-1957 (Franklin Savings Bank) and
1959-1963 (Suffolk Franklin Savings Bank). See also Series VI, Bound Volumes,
for bound financial records.
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| Box 6 | | | Vouchers, cancelled checks, bank statements,
1830-1878 |
| Box 7 | | | Vouchers, cancelled checks, bank statements,
1879-1934 |
| Box 8 | | | Vouchers, cancelled checks, bank statements,
1935-1946 |
| Box 9 | | | Vouchers, cancelled checks, bank statements,
1947-1965 |
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| | IV. Miscellaneous Financial Matter,
1883-1906
This series contains a large file of materials concerning the Society's
failed bid for non-profit status, between 1934 and 1940. There is also one
folder of papers concerning the Society's Glen Road Estate (1893-1904) and one
folder concerning the Palmer Estate (1883-1906).
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| Box 9 | | | Income tax case,
1934-1940 |
| Box 9 | | | Glen Road Estate,
1893-1904 |
| Box 9 | | | Palmer Estate,
1883-1906 |
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| Box 10 | | V. Annotated Printed Matter
This series contains printed items about the Massachusetts Charitable
Society that were annotated by Society members or officers:
Charter and By-Laws of the Massachusetts Charitable
Society of Boston? (Boston, 1907) two copies of the
By-Laws of the Massachusetts Charitable Society?
(Boston, 1931), and three copies of the Charter and By-Laws of the
Massachusetts Charitable Society? (Cambridge, 1962). Also, a 1962 pamphlet (not
annotated) by Katharine D. Hardwick, As Long as Charity
Shall Be a Virtue: Boston Private Charities from 1657 to 1800.
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| | VI. Volumes,
1762-1994
Arranged in two sections: Meeting records (vols. 1-9), and Treasurers'
records (vols. 10-19).There are 19 bound volumes of records of the Massachusetts Charitable
Society, all concerning their meetings and finances. These include six volumes
of meeting records (minutes), 1762-1994, with three volumes of photocopies of
the earliest records (1762-1857); three general account books (1814-1939), two
receipt books (1762-1895); two cash books (1762-1881); two "members'
assessments" books (accounts of money collected from members), 1809-1887; one
volume of grants and donations (1815-1861) and 4 volumes of photocopied
records, all made from the earliest record book, 1762-1857.
Note: Researchers should use photocopies (vols.
7-9) of the earliest records of the Society.
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| Vol. 1 | | Records of meetings,
1762-1857 Includes charter and by-laws of the Society.
Use photocopies, vols. 7-9.
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| Vol. 2 (XT) | | Records of meetings,
1857-1916
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 3 (XT) | | Records of meetings,
1917-1959
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 4 (XT) | | Records of meetings,
1960-1976
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 5 | | Records of meetings,
1976-1984 |
| Vol. 6 | | Records of meetings,
1984-1994 |
| Vol. 7 (XT) | | Photocopy of early meeting records,
1762-1796
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 8 (XT) | | Photocopy of early meeting records,
1796-1825
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 9 (XT) | | Photocopy of early meeting records,
1825-1857
Extra Tall |
| Vol. 10 | | Treasurers' account book,
1814-1847 |
| Vol. 11 | | Treasurers' account book,
1847-1896 |
| Vol. 12 | | Treasurers' account book,
1896-1939 |
| Vol. 13 | | Treasurers' receipt book,
1762-1862 |
| Vol. 14 | | Treasurers' receipt book,
1862-1895 |
| Vol. 15 | | Treasurers' cash book,
1762-1858 |
| Vol. 16 | | Treasurers' cash book,
1859-1881 |
| Vol. 17 | | Accounts of money collected from members,
1809-1857 |
| Vol. 18 | | Accounts of money collected from members,
1857-1887 |
| Vol. 19 | | Grants and donations,
1815-1861 |
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| Oversize Box | | Oversize Material
Oversize items removed from the series arrangement and stored in oversize
box
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Massachusetts Charitable Society records, Massachusetts Historical
Society.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in
ABIGAIL,
the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Researchers
desiring materials about related persons, organizations, or subjects should
search the catalog using these headings.
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| Subjects: |
| | Charities--Massachusetts--Societies, etc. |
| | Philanthropists--Massachusetts.
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Photographs from this collection have been removed to the Massachusetts
Charitable Society photographs, ca. 1858-1962. Photo. Coll. 159.
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