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Creator
Baum, Morton, 1905-1968
Call number
(S) *MGZMD 349
Physical description
.42 linear feet (1 box)
Preferred Citation

Morton Baum papers, (S) *MGZMD 349. Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library.

Repository
Jerome Robbins Dance Division
Access to materials
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Morton Baum (1905-1968) was a New York tax lawyer who helped to draft legislation that created the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). The Morton Baum papers (1945-1968) contain documents concerning the creation of NYSCA, as well as a small amount of material relating to Baum’s other public service activities.

Biographical/historical information

Morton Baum (1905-1968) was a New York tax lawyer who was active in various arts organizations, notably the New York City Center, of which he was a co-founder. He was a member of the City Center executive committee beginning in 1943, and became chairman in 1966. Baum helped to draft legislation which created the New York State Council on the Arts.

Scope and arrangement

The Morton Baum papers (1945-1968) contain correspondence, clippings, drafts of legislation, notes, and other documents concerning the creation of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). NYSCA materials chiefly date from 1957 to 1963 and include correspondence with Senator MacNeil Mitchell, who introduced the bill creating NYSCA, and John MacFadyen, executive director of NYSCA. A draft of a 1945 bill to create a temporary commission to study state cultural resources, along with notes on the bill and the commission, is also present. The collection holds a small amount of material relating to other organizations with which Baum was involved.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Gift of an unknown donor.

Processing information

Compiled by Kit Fluker, 2014

Original order was maintained.

Using the collection

Location

Jerome Robbins Dance Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

The author/creator retains copyright of materials. For information on obtaining permission to publish, contact the Dance Division at dance@nypl.org.