Collection Summary
Marquette University. Dept. of Special Collections and University
Archives.
Madonna Center
Madonna Center records
1865-1979, bulk
1920-1960
4.6 cubic feet (14 boxes)
Correspondence, reports, case files,
and related records of a Catholic settlement house in an Italian neighborhood on the
near southwest side of Chicago.
MH
English
Administrative History
In 1898 Mr. and Mrs. William Amberg established a Catholic mission called Guardian
Angel Center in an Italian immigtant neighborhood on the near southwest side of
Chicago. Their daughter, Mary Agnes Amberg (1874-1962), took over operation of the
center in 1912 and transformed it into a settlement house, renaming it the Madonna
Center in 1922. The Madonna Center would serve the local community until its closing
in 1966.
The Madonna Center worked closely with another organization called the Christ Child
Society of Chicago. Its mission was to serve poor and destitute children,
particularly by providing articles of clothing and gifts at Christmastime. The
Christ Child Society had been founded in 1907, and it would outlast the Madonna
Center by little over a decade, disbanding in 1978.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
Included in this collection are correspondence, reports, case files, and related
records. Also included are personal papers of Mary Agnes Amberg, the head resident,
and records of the Christ Child Society of Chicago, with which Madonna Center was
closely associated. Of note is the correspondence between Amberg and her long-time
associate, Marie Plamendon, which reveals their close relationship.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is divided into the following seres:
- 1. Mary Agnes Amberg Papers, 1865-1965, undated
- 2. Subject Files, 1913-1976
- 3. General Correspondence, 1903-1965, undated
- 4. Case Files, 1920-1962
- 5. Christ Child Society of Chicago Records, 1905-1979
Restrictions on Access
Case files are restricted.
Restrictions on Use
The archives staff will assist researchers in determining if copyright restrictions
apply, although responsibility for copyright and obtaining necessary permissions
rests with the researcher.
Index Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in MARQCAT, the online
public access catalog of the Marquette University Libraries. Researchers
desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the
catalog using these headings.
Persons:
Amberg, Mary Agnes,
1874-1962
Organizations:
Madonna Center (Chicago,
Ill.)
Christ Child Society of
Chicago--Archives
Subjects:
Social
settlements--Illinois--Chicago
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Series Number, Box Number, Folder Number (if applicable).
Madonna Center Records, 1865-1979. Dept. of Special Collections and University
Archives. Marquette University.
Acquisition Information
These papers were received as a gift from Joseph P. Donnelly, S.J. in 1966.
Additional records donated by George A. Lane, S.J. in 1985, and Andrea Graham-Nieds
in 2007 Christ Child Society of Chicago records donated by William E. O'Neil, Jr. in
1985
Processing Information
Arranged and described in 2007 by Phil Runkel.
Accruals
No further accruals expected for this collection.
Series 1: Mary Agnes Amberg Papers,
1865-1965, undated.
0.6 cubic feet.
1
1
Amberg, Agnes Ward,
1865-1932
1
2
Amberg, William A.,
1875-1918
1
3
Amberg Family,
1869-1962
Correspondence, Private,
1
4
Agnew, William H., S.J.,
1918-1921,
undated
Family Correspondence,
1
5
Amberg, John B., S.J.,
1933-1956
1
6-8
General Correspondence,
1891-1959
1
9
Pierik, Marie,
1942-1944,
undated
1
10
Quinn, John F., S.J.,
1936-1959
1
11
Diary,
1899
2
1
Financial Records,
1922-1958
2
2
Honors,
1928-1965
2
3
Miscellaneous Records,
1892-1952, undated
2
4
Notebooks,
1901-1910, undated
2
5
Obituaries,
1962
2
6
Photographs,
1892-1928, undated
2
7
Talks by Mary Agnes Amberg,
1917-1939, undated
Series 2: Subject Files,
1913-1976.
1.2 cubic feet.
1
1
Almoner Award,
1958-1966
1
2
Appeals,
1945-1968, undated
1
3
Associates of Madonna Center/Madonna Center
Foundation,
1947-1966
1
4
Athletics,
1923-1938
1
5-6
Board of Directors,
1919-1934,
1953-1955,
1958-1976
1
7
Boy Scouts,
1934-1961
1
8
Catholic Charities of Chicago,
1933-1963
1
9
The Centerite,
1930-1932
1
10
Chicago Association of Commerce and Industry
(Endorsements),
1934-1963
1
11
Chicago Community Trust,
1934-1936,
1955-1965
2
1
Chicago Council of Social Agencies,
1923-1943
2
2
Communion Breakfast Lists,
1942-1964
2
3
Financial and Legal Records,
1913-1963
2
4
Girl Scouts,,
1935-1960, undated
2
5
Kennelly, Martin, Mayor of Chicago,
1942-1949
2
6
Kindergarten,
1951-1960
2
7
Meetings,
1924-1926
1931,
1933,
1954,
1959-1962
2
8
Miscellaneous Records,
1903-1967, undated
2
9
National Federation of Settlements,
1946-1960
2
10
Near West Side Redevelopment,
1948-1963
3
1-4
Photographs,
1903-1950s, undated
3
5
Purpose and Objectives of Madonna Center,
1961
3
6
Red Cross,
1936-1945
3
7
Reports,
1919-1930
4
1-2
Reports,
1931-1960
4
3
Spring Dinner Dance,
1935-1950
4
4
Tag Day,
1934-1935
4
5
Welfare Council of Metropolitan Chicago,
1951-1963
4
6
West Side Community Center Proposal,
1960
Writings about Madonna Center
4
7
Articles,
1910-1967
4
8
Thesis by Margaret A. Galvin,
1951
Series 3: General Correspondence,
1903-1965, undated
0.3 cubic feet.
1
1-6
General Correspondence,
1903-1965, undated
Series 4: Case Files,
1920-1962.
1.3 cubic feet. (RESTRICTED)
1
1-7
A-D,
1921-1956
2
1-8
E-Masi,
1920-1959
3
1-8
Mass-S,
1922-1953
4
1-3
T-Z,
1924-1953
4
4
Cardinal’s Committee on the Spanish Speaking in
Chicago,
1961-1962
4
5
Christ Child Society Recipients,
1930-1946
4
6
Lawless, John Q., Correspondence Concerning Placement of
Delinquent Girl,
1948
4
7
Miscellaneous Correspondence,
1927-1946
Series 5: Christ Child Society of Chicago Records,
1905-1979.
0.8 cubic feet.
1
1
Constitution and Bylaws,
1960
1
2
Correspondence,
1907-1979
1
3-4
Financial Records,
1927-1943,
1966-1978
1
5
Meetings,
1907-1939
2
1
Meetings,
1940-1969
2
2
Photographs,
1909-1910,
1923-1940
2
3
Press Clippings,
1905-1950
2
4-5
Reports,
1909-1950
3
1-2
Reports,
1951-1977
3
3
Talks,
1909,
1911-1912,
1919, undated