Lee Family Association collection

Collection

Identifier: 2004.053

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The materials in this collection mainly consist of paper documents, objects, and photographs. The majority of the paper documents are administrative and financial in nature, regarding both the New York Lee Family Association and the New York Lee Federal Credit Union. There are also a few journals and brochures from other local Chinese associations and some newspaper clippings. Most of the objects are items used by the Association and/or the Federal Credit Union, such as a desk, a print block, and a membership pin. The photographs are mostly likely of members of the New York Lee Family Association at various gatherings or celebrations. There are very few materials dated prior to 1966 and after 1990, although there are a few journals from the mid-1990s and a few documents from 2000. Objects are also searchable via PastPerfect Online System at http://mocanyc.pastperfectonline.com/randomimages.

Dates

Creation: Majority of material found in 1966-1990

Language of Materials

Some materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Some materials in the second and third series are restricted, due to their sensitive financial and legal nature.

Conditions Governing Use

For reference use only; not for reproduction, distribution, or deposit in another collection. Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the Director of Collections. If publishing, cite: Lee Family Association Collection, Museum of Chinese in America.

Biographical / Historical

The New York Lee Family Association was established around 1900. Its original building was in Chinatown, at 69 Mott Street, under the name "The Association of the Lee Co., Inc." In 1977, it purchased the building at 41 Mott Street and renovated the top two floors for the Eastern Regional Headquarters for the Lee Family Associations. The Lee Family Association holds national conventions, with the first one held in 1927 in San Francisco, which is the location of the national headquarters. The New York Lee Family Association also oversaw the New York Lee Federal Credit Union, which was eventually liquidated in 2000.

Extent

8 Linear Feet (4 boxes (3 standard and one oversize) plus a desk) : 8 linear feet of paper documents, journals, objects, and photographs

Additional Description

Arrangement

Arranged into 6 series alphabetically: [1] Administrative materials; [2] Correspondence; [3] Financial documents; [4] Objects; [5] Photographs; and [6] Printed material.

General

This finding aid was created with grant support from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Processing Information

The Association's name is listed in various ways throughout the collection's materials, such as "Lee's Family Association" and the "Lee Family Association." According to the Association's website (http://www.leecu.com), in 1927, at the first national convention, one of the resolutions passed called for all Lee organizations to change their names to "Lee Family Association," thus, the name used for the finding aid and all descriptions of the collection.