Special Collections

Guide to the Edith Lisolette Gordon Papers

Creator: Gordon, Edith Lisolette Oppenheimer
Title: Edith Lisolette Gordon Papers
MSS#: MC 1
Dates: 1917-1989
Quantity: 15 boxes (5.55 cubic feet)

Abstract: The Edith Lisolette Gordon Papers are largely composed of Gordon’s efforts at documenting the early to mid-twentieth century history of Bank Street College of Education. Primarily collecting in the late 1970s, she gathered research materials and primary source documentation–mainly oral histories–that would inform her doctoral dissertation. Gordon donated her collection to the archives in 2006.

Language of Material: English
Location: Bank Street College Archives New York, NY
Preferred Citation: Edith Lisolette Gordon Papers, Box #, Bank Street College Archives, New York, NY

Administrative History

This collection was donated to the Bank Street College Archives by Edith Gordon in 2005. The collection was processed by Kate Kearns and Lindsey Wyckoff in 2006. Original order and series were retained in the processing of this collection.

Series G Interview Transcripts was de-accessioned by Teachers College Special Collections and transferred to Bank Street College Archives in 2008. It is unclear where or when these materials were collected, they were left in the order in which they arrived and a new series was created. It was added to the collection by Lindsey Wyckoff in 2008.

Biographical Note

Edith L. Gordon entered the graduate school of Bank Street College of Education in 1955 as part of an experimental program sponsored by the Ford Foundation in which students began teaching in inner city schools after only one semester of coursework and student teaching.

In 1974 on a professional visit to the Bank Street School for Children Gordon learned from President Francis Roberts that no history of Bank Street existed. Realizing the importance of beginning such a project while so many original Bank Streeters were still active, she began to interview many important figures to compile an oral history of Bank Street. With the help of President Roberts and the guidance of Barbara Biber, Charlotte Biber Winsor and Claudia Lewis, the oral history project officially began in 1975. As the interviews amassed Gordon came to realize that the in order to properly document, corroborate and analyze them she needed to improve her research and writing skills. She matriculated in the graduate history program at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Her work collecting oral histories continued, and became the basis for her doctoral dissertation. Her dissertation Educating the Whole Child: Progressive Education and Bank Street College of Education, 1916-1966 was accepted by the History Department of SUNY Stony Brook in 1988.

Scope and Content Note

This collection consists of materials compiled by Edith Gordon in the course of collecting Bank Street oral histories and writing her dissertation, including research, correspondence, tapes, transcripts, photographs, drafts, and administrative records. Also included are files containing notes and clippings on numerous important figures in the history of the College. The collection is 6.25 linear feet.  The collection consists of the following series:

A – Bank Street Publications
B – Historic Figures
C – Oral Histories
D – Administrative Records
E – Research Notes and Resources
F – Photographs
G – Interview Transcripts

  • Box 1 – Series A – Bank Street Publications

    SERIES A – Bank Street Publications

    BSC Catalogs
    BSC Conferences
    BSC Newsletters
    BSC PR Brochures
    BSC Publications
    BSC Reports
    BSC Research- Annual Reports
    BSC Research Studies
    Cartoon Situations Test
    Cooperative School for Student Teachers Annual Report, 1934-1935
    Personality Test
    Roberts Convocation-Shenker Inauguration
    School for Children

  • Box 2 – Series B – Historic Figures

    SERIES B – Historic Figures

    Antler, Joyce
    Publication Association
    Barbour, Frederica- BSC Board
    Barr, Marilyn
    Bernard, Viola, MD, Psych
    Biber, Barbara (1)
    Biber, Barbara (2)
    Biber, Barbara and Charlotte Winsor-Writings of
    Black, Irma Simonton
    Bliven, Rosie
    Burrows, Lucy
    Buttolph, Edna Gibson
    Cohen, Dorothy
    Cremin, Lawrence A.- T.C. President
    Doak Tarnay, Elizabeth
    Frank, Josette
    Fuller, Virginia
    Franklin, Adele- All Day Nursery Schools
    Fischel, Maxine
    Gilkeson, Elizabeth
    Slocum Goldberg, Rosalie- Writer’s Lab Illustrator 1937
    Harlow, Sue- HJNS Parent/Volunteer
    Hocking, Richard- T.C.
    Hooks, Bill
    Hurd, Edith Thacher- CSST 1933
    Jansen, William- NYC School Supt 1950’s
    Johnson, Harriet M.- Papers

    Kandell, Florence
    Kerlin, Sally
    Killian, Ailenn Voight ’34
    Klopf, Gordon
    Kraber, Willie
    Lewis, Claudia
    Lincoln, Dr. Edith M.
    McIntosh, Millicent
    Mead, Margaret
    Minuchin, Patricia- Research
    Mitchell, John M.
    Mitchell, L.S. and W.C.- ELG Musings
    Mitchell, Lucy Sprague- Quotes
    Mitchell, Lucy Sprague- Research, Papers, etc.
    Mitchell, Arnold
    Mitchell, Wesley Clair- A Personal Sketch by LSM
    Niemeyer, John
    Niemeyer, John- incomplete

  • Box 3 – Series B Continued

    SERIES B Continued

    Niemeyer, John- Interview II
    Niemeyer, John- Interview III
    Niemeyer Era- 60’s material
    Obituaries, BSC
    Palmer, Alice Freeman- 1903 Tribute- Boston Globe
    Parker, Virginia
    Pemberton, Priscilla
    Perry, Charlotte
    Phelps, Mary
    Pine, Tillie
    Polier, Justine
    Powell, Alice Mendham
    Reece. Ellen Steel
    Reich/Brussel, Eleanor
    Roberts, Francis J. (1)
    Roberts, Francis J. (2)
    Rolfe, Howard and Polly
    Russell, Virginia
    Schonborg, Virginia
    Seaver-Helfman, Elizabeth
    Shapiro, Edna
    Stanton, Jessie
    Winsor, Charlotte
    Woodcock, Louise- Why, Because, If
    Yeomans, Edward- N.S. History

  • Box 3 – Series C – Oral Histories

    SERIES C – Oral Histories

    Oral History- California Trip Plans, Journal, Notes
    Oral History Interview Notes
    Frederica Barach Barbour
    Marilyn Barr
    Viola Bernard Tape 1
    Viola Bernard Tape 2
    Evie [Evelyn] Beyer Tape 1
    Evelyn Beyer Tape 3
    Barbara Biber Tape 1
    Barbara Biber Tape 2
    Barbara Biber Tape 3
    Barbara Biber Tape 2
    Barbara Biber Tape 3 Original
    Barbara Biber Tape 3 / Rank Smith
    Barbara Biber Tape 1
    Barbara Biber Tape 2
    James Black
    Rose Bliven
    Eleanor Reich Brussel
    Julia Keasbey Clarke Tape 1
    Julia Keasbey Clarke Tape 2 / Claudia Lewis Tape 2
    Dorothy Cohen Tape 1
    Dorothy Cohen Second Interview Tape 1
    Maxine Fischel
    Josette Frank
    Marjorie Franklin
    Virginia Fuller Tape 1
    Virginia Fuller Tape 2
    Mary Ellen Bauman Gilder
    Elizabeth Gilkeson Tape 1
    Elizabeth Gilkeson Tape 2
    Rosalie Slocum Goldberg
    Ronnie Gordon on J. Stanton Copy Tape
    Sue Harlow
    Betsy Hiteshew
    Richard Hooking / Beyer Tape 2
    Edith Hurd Tape 1
    Florence Kandell Tape 1
    Florence Kandell Tape 2
    Anita Kaplan / Betsey Hiteshew
    Sally Kerlin Tape 1
    Sally Kerlin Tape 2
    Aileen Voigt Killian Tape 1 copy
    Aileen Voigt Killian Tape 2
    Aileen Voigt Killian Tape 1 / Barbara Martin Tape 2
    Wilhemina Kraber Tape 2
    Ursula Krainock
    Bill Hooks
    Elizabeth Lamb Tape 1
    Elizabeth Lamb Tape 2
    Alita Letwin / Lois Ellenstein
    Claudia Lewis Tape 1
    Claudia Lewis Tape 2 Copy
    Millicent McIntosh
    Alice Mendham Powell Tape 1
    Alice Mendham Powell Tape 2
    Jan Miller / Elaine Blumberg
    Patricia Minuchin Tape 1 Original
    Patricia Minuchin Tape 2
    Arnold Mitchell
    John Mitchell
    Sprague Mitchell
    Manuel Navas
    Jack Niemeyer Tape 1
    Jack Niemeyer Tape 2
    Jack Niemeyer Tape 1
    Jack Niemeyer Tape 2
    Jack Niemeyer Interview 3 Tape 1
    Jack Niemeyer Interview 3 Tape 2
    Virginia Parker
    Priscilla Pemberton
    Charlotte Perry Tape 1
    Charlotte Perry Tape 2
    Mary Phelps
    Tillie Pine
    Ellen Steele Reese
    Dr. Francis Roberts Tape 1 Original
    Dr. Francis Roberts Tape 2 Original
    Polly & Howard Rolfe Tape 1
    Polly & Howard Rolfe Tape 2
    Virginia Russell
    Sheila Sadler Interview 2 tape 1
    Sheila Sadler Tape 2
    Sheila Sadler Tape 3 / Willie Kraber
    Peter Sauer
    Virginia Schonborg Tape 2
    Virginia Schonborg Tape 3
    Virginia Schonberg Original Tape 3
    Marilyn Schwartz
    E. Schwartzchild / Pearl Lock
    Annette Shapiro Original
    Edna Shapiro
    Leo Shapiro
    Roz Sherman
    Randolph Smith Tape 1 Original
    Randolph Smith Tape 2 Copy
    Elizabeth Doak Tarnay tape 1
    Elizabeth Doak Tarnay tape 2
    Charlotte Winsor tape 1
    Charlotte Winsor tape 2
    Charlotte Winsor tape 3
    Charlotte Winsor tape 4
    Charlotte Winsor
    Billie Woodward / Edith Hurd
    Card File

  • Box 3 – Series D – Administrative Records

    SERIES D – Administrative Records

    Agreement: BSC/E.L. Gordon
    Bank Street Business
    BSC History Project- OH Interviewees
    Bank Street Grant Applications
    Bank Street Oral History Date Books
    Bank Street Oral History Expenses
    Conferences Attended
    Correspondence (1)
    Correspondence (2)
    Correspondence (3)
    Correspondence
    Correspondence
    Correspondence
    Correspondence
    Correspondence- Thank You Responses
    National Endowment for the Humanities Grant Application
    Bibliographies re: BSC Personnel
    Bibliographies
    Bibliographies- Dissertation
    Oral History Consent Form
    Oral History Papers
    Signed Releases- Copies

  • Box 4 – Series E – Research Notes and Resources

    SERIES E – Research Notes and Resources

    19th Century Education
    Alison, David- Searchlight: An Expose of NYC Schools
    Arthurdale: Experiment in Community Living by Bruce Beezer
    Articles and Reviews- Relevant Ideas to BSC History
    Appraisal of Teacher Competency Ed. Research Bulletin
    Articles about BSC and Its Works
    Authority and Freedom in the Education of Children by Sidonie Matzner Gruenberg
    Ayers, William- Early Childhood Article- Male Perspective
    Bank Street College Class Notes
    Bank Street College Publications 1917-1958
    Bank Street Finances
    Biography of BEE- LSM unpublished
    BEE Enrollment Statistics
    BEE Publications
    Chapter Outline- BSC History
    Child Care- U.S.
    Child Life in Schools, Articles
    Child Study Association
    Childhood Education
    Citizen’s Committee for Children of New York
    City and Country School- 12th Street
    Cohen, Sol- The History of the History of American Education 1900-1976
    Cooperative School for Student Teachers
    Cooperative School for Student Teachers- Draft
    Day Care, Nursery School Articles- Historical
    Dewey, John
    Dissertation Defense Notes/Editorial Suggestions
    Dissertation Thoughts and Organization
    Drawings
    Experimentalism and American Education by John L. Childs
    Feminism as Life-Process: The Life and Career of Lucy Sprague Mitchell by Joyce Antler
    Innovation of Propositions by Ernest R. House
    Innovations in Teacher Training: A History of the Cooperative School for Student Teachers, Bureau of Educational Experiments, 1929-1934
    Keeping Faith with Democracy by Agnes Snyder
    Leeds, Caroll- A Scale for Measuring Teacher, Pupil Attitudes and Teacher Pupil Rapport
    Let Us Show Them That We Love Them by the Staff of the Harriet Johnson Nursery School
    Little Red School House
    Lucy Sprague Mitchell Oral Memoir (Copied from Arnold Mitchell)
    The Meaning of Progressive Education by John A. Hockett
    Mental Hygiene in a Teacher Training Program by Caroline B. Zachary
    NEA Articles
    Notes
    Notes for Bibliography
    The Nursery School of the BEE 1919 to 1954- Draft (1)
    The Nursery School of the BEE 1919 to 1954- Draft (2)
    Nursery School Printed Matter
    NYC Scene- Draft
    Open/Basic Education
    Open Education
    Organized Teachers and Educational Reform During the Progressive Era 1890-1920 by Wayne Urban
    Personality Aspects of Teaching- BSC Monograph
    Progressive Education
    Progressive Education
    Progressive Education
    The Progressive Educator and the Depression by C.A. Bowers
    Progressive Educators-Articles and Obituaries
    The Progressive Educator Movement and the Question of Women by Sari Knopp Biklen
    The Project Method by William H. Kirkpatrick
    Public School Treatment of Low Income Children by Mary R. Harvey
    Publications- BSC Related
    Reforming Teacher Education in the 1970’s by Francesco Cordasco
    Schaab, Marcia Stecker- Masters Thesis on Jessie Stanton
    Summaries and Chronologies- BSC
    Teacher Selection Project- NYT
    Teacher Selection- Stan ford Meeting

  • Box 4 – Series F – Photographs

    SERIES F – Photographs

    Negatives
    Photographs (1)
    Photographs (2)

  • Box 5 – Series G – Interview Transcripts

    SERIES G – Interview Transcripts

    Release forms for Edith Gordon interviews
    Frederica Barach Barbour
    Marilyn Barr
    Viola Bernard
    Viola Bernard – correspondence and supplemental material
    Evelyn Beyer
    Barbara Biber
    Irma Simonton Black
    Rosie Bliven
    Eleanor Reich Brussel
    Lodema Burrows
    Julia Keasby Clarke
    Dorothy Cohen
    Josette Frank
    Marjorie Bodansky Franklin
    Florence Friend – written reminisence
    Virginia Fuller
    Mary Ellen Bowman Gilder
    Elizabeth Gilkeson
    Sue Harlow
    Eleanor Bowman Hogan
    Edith Thacher Hurd
    Florence Kandell
    Sally Kerlin
    Aileen Voight Killam
    Margaret Churchill Labowitz (interview by Cynthia White)
    Elizabeth (Boots) Lamb
    Claudia Lewis
    Millicent McIntosh
    Jan Miller
    Patricia Minuchin
    Arnold Mitchell
    John Mitchell
    Sprague Mitchell
    Manuel Navas
    Virginia Parker
    Charlotte Perry
    Tillie Pine
    Ellen Steele Reece
    Howard and Polly Rolfe
    Fran Roberts
    Virginia Russell
    Sheila Sadler
    Peter Sauer
    Virginia Schonberg
    Leo Shapiro
    Edna Shapiro
    Annette Frank Shapiro
    Rosalyn Sherman
    Randolph Smith
    Betty Doak Tarnay
    Charlotte Winsor – corrected transcript
    Charlotte Winsor – uncorrected transcript

Controlled Access Headings

  • Corporate Name(s)
    • Bank Street College of Education — History
    • New York, N.Y. Bureau of Educational Experiments — History
    • Stony Brook University
  • Genre(s)
    • Audio visual materials
    • Interviews (sound recordings)
    • Oral histories (document genre)
    • School Records
    • Transcripts
  • Geographic Name(s)
    • New York (N.Y.)
    • United States
  • Personal Name(s)
    • Biber, Barbara, 1903-
    • Gordon, Edith Lisolette Oppenheimer — Research
    • Lewis, Claudia Louise, 1907-
    • Mitchell, Lucy Sprague, 1878-1967
    • Niemeyer, John H.
    • Roberts, Francis J.
    • Winsor, Charlotte Biber
  • Subjects
    • Progressive education
    • Educators
    • Researchers
    • Teachers colleges – Curricula  – New York (State)
    • Teachers colleges – New York (State)
    • Teachers – Training of – History
    • Teachers – Training of – New York (State) – New York