• Identification00143870
  • TitleDescriptive inventory for the Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago records, 1956-1999, bulk 1985-1998
  • PublisherChicago Historical Society
  • Language
    • English.
    • English
  • RepositoryChicago History Museum Research Center 1601 North Clark Street Chicago, IL 60614-6038
  • OriginationMexican Community Committee of South Chicago Henry H. Martinez Chicago Area Project
  • Date
    • 1956-1999
    • 1985-1998
  • Physical Description33 linear feet (79 boxes)
  • LocationMSS Lot M

Processed with funding provided by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Personnel and client files (boxes 55-68) are closed for seventy-five years from date of creation (until 2069-2073).

All rights owned by the donor, including copyright, were deeded to Chicago Historical Society. Copyright may be retained by the creators of items, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law, unless otherwise noted.

Gift of the Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago (accession #: 2001.0028).

Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago records (Chicago History Museum) plus a detailed description, date, and box/folder number of a specific item.

Administrative materials, financial and legal papers, correspondence, project and research files, newsletters, newspaper clippings, client and personnel files, and other records of the Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago, based on Chicago's southeast side. Materials relate to the MCC's social service projects, including delinquency prevention; homework assistance; individual, family, and work counseling; foster care; the Grove and Crystal Palace residential homes; cultural and recreational activities; literacy programs for adults; job development; and health advocacy. Also included are administrative materials and publications of allied organizations on topics pertaining to the Latino community. Personnel and client files (boxes 55-68) are closed for seventy-five years from date of creation (until 2069-2073).

The Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago (MCC) was founded in 1959 and served primarily Chicago's southeast side neighborhood of South Chicago. An outgrowth of the Russell Square Community Committee, which served the Bush neighborhood of the South Chicago community area, MCC offered social services to Mexican American and Mexican immigrant communities on the southeast side of Chicago. MCC worked to reduce delinquency and provided activities such as Mexican Independence Day dances; homework assistance; individual, family, and work counseling; sports and physical fitness programs; cultural and recreational activities; literacy programs; job development; and health advocacy. From the 1970s until it closed in the early 2000s, MCC was located in the former South Chicago Masonic Lodge at 2939 East 91st Street.

  • Names
    • Martinez, Henry H.
    • Chicago Area Project
    • Mexican Community Committee of South Chicago--Archives
  • Subject
    • Community organization--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Foster home care--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Hispanic Americans--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Immigrants--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Juvenile delinquency--Illinois--Chicago--Prevention--20th century
    • Mexican Americans--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Mexicans--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
    • Social service--Illinois--Chicago--20th century
  • Geographic Coverage
    • 2939 East 91st Street (Chicago, Ill.)
    • Chicago (Ill.)--Social conditions--20th century
    • South Chicago (Chicago, Ill.)
    • Southeast Side (Chicago, Ill.)
    • United States--Illinois--Cook County--Chicago

The collection is arranged in seven series.

Series 1. Administrative material, 1957-1997 (box 1-15)

Series 1 consists of project proposals, financial records, correspondence, legal papers, reports, board meeting minutes and agendas, policies, by-laws, and memos of the MCC. Included are reports, articles, and handouts concerning or related to the Mexican community; topics include housing, statistics, crime, and education. Also present are agreements and correspondence with various city and state agencies.

Series 2. Project files, 1969-1999 (box 16-29)

Series 2 contains reports, correspondence, funded proposals, flyers, and announcements for projects of the MCC. Projects include youth development, tutoring, drug and alcohol prevention, leadership, senior programs, citizenship classes, nutrition, HIV awareness and prevention, alternative high school, partnerships with colleges, job training, health care, adult education, domestic violence, family programs, and Mexican festivals.

Series 3. Other organization files, 1974-1997 (box 30-46)

Series 3 consists of reports, correspondence, and meeting minutes and agendas from partner and allied organizations, as well as elected officials. Included is information about city and state task forces convened around Latino issues, conferences, community development plans, healthcare, immigration, and education. Boxes 44-46 contain information about the Chicago Area Project, of which MCC was an affiliate program.

Series 4. DCFS/foster care files, 1983-1995 (box 47-52)

Series 4 contains correspondence, legal files, memos, meeting minutes, and reports about the foster care initiatives of the MCC. Also present is information regarding two residential homes for foster children: the Grove and Crystal Palace.

Series 5. Newspaper clippings, 1974-1997 (box 53-54)

Series 5 contains newspaper clippings that pertain to the MCC and Chicago's Latino population in general. Also present are clippings used by one-time MCC executive director Henry H. Martinez for his research on the history of Chicago's Southeast Side.

Series 6. Client and personnel files, 1993-1998 (box 55-68)

Series 6 consists of client and personnel files.

Restriction: Boxes 55-56 are CLOSED until 2069; boxes 57-60 are CLOSED until 2070; boxes 61-64 are CLOSED until 2071; boxes 65-66 are CLOSED until 2072; boxes 67-68 are CLOSED until 2073.

Series 7. Reports, publications, and other printed material, 1956-1996 (box 69-79)

Series 7 contains printed matter used by the MCC. Included are reports, publications, and other printed material produced by allied groups and government organizations. Includes some materials produced by the MCC.