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Kindergarten funds collection

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Creator:

Perkins School for the Blind

Date Range:

1895-1928

Call Number:

AG72

Abstract:

The collection contains original subscription books, account ledgers, checkbooks, and correspondence relating to the Ladies Auxiliary Society for the Kindergarten fundraising efforts. Collection also includes a facsimile of correspondence sent to Perkins legal advisor regarding funds bequeathed to the Kindergarten for the Blind.

Extent:

.5 linear feet

Language:

English

Processed by:

Amanda Landis, 2014. 

Processing Note:

This collection was processed with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Division of Preservation and Access, Washington, D.C., 2012-2015.

Biographical/Historical notes:

The United States’ first-ever Kindergarten for the Blind was established in Jamaica Plain, MA in 1887, in large part due to the tireless work of Perkins School for the Blind director, Michael Anagnos. The school, though separate from Perkins, was a success from the start. The first class consisted of only 10 pupils; by 1895, over 70 children were enrolled.

Upon opening the Kindergarten, the Board of Trustees appointed a Ladies Visiting Committee. The committee, consisting of 12 women, visited the school on a monthly basis, conferring with the school matron and advising the students. The Visiting Committee was also responsible for fundraising events and workshops.

In 1888, the Ladies Visiting Committee established the Ladies Auxiliary Society – a separate aid society to raise funds to benefit the Kindergarten for the Blind. Isabella Stewart Gardner served as the inaugural Treasurer of the Ladies Auxiliary Society. Sarah E. Lane, a librarian at Perkins School for the Blind, also served as Treasurer from 1895 to 1909. Successful in their fundraising efforts, the Ladies Auxiliary Society managed annual subscriptions donating funds to the Kindergarten.

The Kindergarten for the Blind was integrated into Perkins School in 1913 with the move to Watertown, MA. Although the Ladies Visiting Committee for the Kindergarten continued their philanthropic efforts through the 1950s, the Ladies Auxiliary ceased managing subscriptions by 1938.

Sources of information:

Annual Report of the Trustees of Perkins Institution and Massachusetts School for the Blind, 1887, 1889

Restrictions:

None

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Perkins School for the Blind, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Credit line/Citation:

AG72 Kindergarten Funds Collection. Perkins School for the Blind Archives, Watertown, MA.

Scope/Contents:

Contains subscription books, account ledgers, checkbooks, and correspondence relating to the Ladies Auxiliary Society for the Kindergarten fundraising efforts. Collection also includes a facsimile of correspondence sent to Perkins legal advisor regarding funds bequeathed to the Kindergarten for the Blind.

Arrangement:

1 box

  • Series 1: Ladies Auxiliary Society to the Kindergarten for the Blind Fundraising, 1895-1912
  • Series 2: Record of Wills, 1928

AG58 Kindergarten for the Blind Correspondence Collection. Perkins School for the Blind Archives, Watertown, MA.

AG38 Sarah Lane Collection. Perkins School for the Blind Archives, Watertown, MA.

Container List:

Series 1: Ladies Auxiliary Society to the Kindergarten Fundraising 1895-1912

This series contains checkbooks itemizing amounts made payable to the Kindergarten for the Blind on behalf of the Ladies Auxiliary; account ledgers; subscription books detailing annual donations; and correspondence relating to the Ladies Auxiliary Society to the Kindergarten’s fundraising efforts.

  • B1:F1: Letter to Sarah E. Lane, Treasurer, 1908 (Note: from 1908 Mattapan Trust account book)
  • B1:F2: Subscription Books, 1895-1896, 1896-1898
  • B1:F3: Subscription Books, 1899-1901, 1902-1903
  • B1:F4: Small file label (“1895-1910 inclusive”); Subscription Books, 1904-1905, 1906-1910
  • B1:F5: Account Books, 1895-1900 and 1900-1910 (Note: maintained by Sarah E. Lane, Treasurer)
  • B1:F6: Account Books, 1908 (Note: maintained by Sarah E. Lane) and 1909-1911 (Note: maintained by Sarah A. Stover)
  • B1:F7: Checkbooks, 1895-1910 (maroon) and 1908-1912 (green)

Series 2: Record of Wills, 1928

This series contains a duplicate copy of a correspondence packet sent to Albert Thorndike Esq. from the law firm of Gaston, Snow, Saltonstall, and Hunt regarding re-appropriating funds bequeathed to the Kindergarten for the Blind to the general Perkins fund. In addition to an explanatory letter, the series also contains copies of pertinent information redacted from wills. These papers were kept in a Lockarch Transfer Case; the original label and envelope addressed to Anna Gardner Fish are included.

  • B1:F8: Original File Holder for papers on Kindergarten Funds, 1928.
  • B1:F9: Envelope for papers on Kindergarten Funds, 1928
  • B1:F10: Letter from Gaston, Snow, Saltonstall, and Hunt regarding Kindergarten Funds, 1928
  • B1:F11-18: Record of Wills, 1928

Provenance:

Unknown

Subject headings:

  • Perkins School for the Blind.
  • Perkins School for the Blind–History.
  • Blind– Education.
  • Blind—Education—Massachusetts.
  • Kindergarten.

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