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Creator
American Fund for French Wounded
Call number
MssCol 73
Physical description
.83 linear feet (2 boxes)
Language
Some correspondence is in French
Preferred Citation

American Fund for French Wounded records, Manuscripts and Archives Division, The New York Public Library

Repository
Manuscripts and Archives Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

The American Fund for French Wounded was founded by American women living abroad to provide relief to wounded soldiers in France during World War I. The collection consists of correspondence, administrative records, reports, circular letters, pamphlets, bulletins, and a few clippings and photographs. Much of the correspondence is between Mrs. Schuyler van Rensselaer, the New York president of the AFFW, and Anna Vail, the treasurer of the Paris Depot. There is additional correspondence of other members and volunteers. Most of these documents, along with circular letters, report on the delivery of supplies to French hospitals, often describing in detail the physical conditions of hospitals and other locations and the individual conditions of the wounded, and including lists of needed materials. There are some letters, mostly in French, from hospitals and other organizations thanking the AFFW for its services.

Biographical/historical information

The American Fund for French Wounded was founded by American women living abroad, to provide relief to small hospitals in France. The organization was initially established under the auspices of a British organization, the London Committee of the French Emergency Fund, but became independent in December 1915. Committees in eighty United States municipalities raised funds for the organization, which worked closely with several similar organizations, notably the American Committee for Devastated France and the American Red Cross. The Fund's mission was to provide medical assistance for wounded French soldiers and civilians, and other forms of support for refugees.

Scope and arrangement

The collection consists of correspondence, administrative records, reports, circular letters, pamphlets, bulletins, and a few clippings and photographs. Much of the correspondences between Mrs. Schuyler van Rensselaer, the New York president of the AFFW, and Anna Vail, the treasurer of the Paris Depot. There is additional correspondence of other members and volunteers. Most of these documents, along with circular letters, report on the delivery of supplies to French hospitals, often describing in detail the physical conditions of hospitals and other locations and the individual conditions of the wounded, and including lists of needed materials. There are some letters, mostly in French, from hospitals and French organizations thanking the AFFW for its services.

Arrangement

The collection is grouped according two the two major periods of accession. Material received in the period 1917-1926 is in the first box, with chronologically-arranged correspondence preceding published and related materials. The second box consists of materials transferred from the State Historical Society of Wisconsin in 2000, and consists primarily of circular letters chronologically arranged, followed by files pertaining to related organizations, and pamphlets and related materials.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Charles Fairchild, 1917; Mrs. Schuyler van Rensselaer and Anna Vail, 1925, 1926; State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 2000

Processing information

Julia Todd, November 1985

Revised June 2001, M. Bowling

Using the collection

Location

Manuscripts and Archives Division
Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, New York, NY 10018-2788
Brooke Russell Astor Reading Room, Third Floor, Room 328