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3. Provenance 5. Inventory 6. Subjects |
Amalgamated Lace Operatives of America Records Trade union Records, 1919-1994 Size: 4.5 ft. Catalog number: MSS 1114 Processed by: Rick Stattler, March 2003 ©Rhode Island Historical Society Manuscripts Division |
Historical note:
The Amalgamated Lace Operatives of America were founded in 1892. The parent body was divided into the Lever Section and the Curtain Section. The offices of the parent body or "Amalgamation" were in Philadelphia from at least 1947 through 1984. John Newton served as the Secretary-Treasurer from 1952 to 1984. In 1984, he was replaced by Frank Peltier of Cumberland, R.I., who moved the Amalgamated administration to his home.
The Curtain Section by 1987 had two branches, in Philadelphia and Scranton, Pennsylvania, with a total of sixteen working members.
The members of the Lever Section worked on labor-intensive machinery that had been perfected in 1813 by John Leavers in England. The section was divided into several branches, which operated like the locals of most other unions. As of 1975, the following branches were active in the Lever Section:
Branch 6: Pawtucket, R.I. -- Seekonk Lace Co., which closed on December 31 1991. Last branch in the Lever Section.
Branch 7: West Warwick, R.I. -- Washington Lace, the last union shop in the Pawtuxet River valley. Dissolved in 1981.
Branch 11: Port Jefferson, Long Island, N.Y. -- Thomas Wilson Lace Co. On strike for two weeks in July of 1982. Dissolved 1986.
Branch 16: West Barrington, R.I. -- Rhode Island Lace Works. Dissolved 1990.
The membership of the ALOA aged as the industry shrank in the 1970s and 1980s. Members with 25 years of service retired at age 65, and their dues from that point onward were covered by their section. Retired members with less than 25 years of service needed to continue paying dues to qualify for union benefits. By 1983, there were only 165 active members of the national union, with 430 "levy" members on the retired list. The death fund, which paid a $500 death benefit, ran short of funds in 1983. When Branch 6 dissolved, the Lever Section voted to dissolve on January 3 1992. Its 337 surviving levy members received their $500 death benefit as a final payout.
Scope and content:
These records all appear to be from the Lever Section of the ALOA, except as noted. They are arranged into seven series: Administrative, Financial, Funds, Membership, Branch Records, Miscellaneous, and Parent Body Records. The Administrative series consists mainly of correspondence to the Financial Secretary from 1979 to 1994, detailed conference reports, and a scattering of executive board minutes. The Financial series includes nearly complete account books, audits, and union staff personnel records from 1968 to 1993. The Fund series includes record books from the union's various special funds, particularly the insurance, pension, and sick funds, with some records dating from as early as 1924. The Membership series includes two membership registers covering both Lever and Curtain Section members from 1919 to 1984; membership cards dating back to 1925; and other detailed records from 1931 to 1991.
Provenance:
After the union disbanded in 1992, the records were donated to the Slater Mill Historic Site in 1994 and 1996. The entire collection was deaccessioned by the Slater Mill Historic Site in 2002, and donated to the Rhode Island Historical Society.
Processing note:
Inventory:
Series 1: Administrative (Lever Section)
Series 1, subseries 1: Correspondence
Correspondence ranges from large-scale administrative issues to long discussions of specific membership and dues issues.
Box 1, folder 1. Corresponding Secretary Lauretto Marcello, 1988-1993
Box 1, folder 2. Financial Secretary Richard Champagne, 1979-1980
Box 1, folder 3. Financial Secretary Richard Champagne, 1981-1982
Box 1, folder 4. Financial Secretary Richard Champagne, 1983-1985
Box 1, folder 5. Financial Secretary Alfred J. Tente, 1985-1986
Box 1, folder 6. Financial Secretary Alfred J. Tente, 1987-1989
Box 1, folder 7. Financial Secretary Alfred J. Tente, 1990-1994
Series 1, subseries 2: Reports and minutes
Box 1, folder 8. Annual reports to the Department of Labor, 1980-1982
Box 1, folder 9. Conference reports, 1979-1981
Box 1, folder 10. Conference reports, 1983-1986
Box 1, folder 11. Conference reports, 1987-1991
Box 1, folder 12. Constitutions, 1970 and 1980 (revised to 1987)
Box 1, folder 13. Executive Board minutes, 1979-1992 (incomplete?)
Series 2: Financial (Lever Section)
Series 2, subseries 1. Audits and statements
Box 1, folder 14. Audits, 1979-1992 (complete)
Box 1, folder 15. Monthly financial statements, 1979-1983
Box 1, folder 16. Monthly financial statements, 1984-1992
Series 2, subseries 2. Account books
Volume 1. General fund cash book, 1972-1982
Volume 2. General fund cash book, 1983-1993
Box 1, folder 17. Ledger, 1969-1993
Box 1, folder 18. Closing bank statement, 1994
Series 2, subseries 3: Personnel (union officers)
Box 1, folder 19. Payroll, 1968-1980
Box 1, folder 20. Payroll, 1981-1992
Box 1, folder 21. Unemployment benefits, 1992-1993
Series 3: Funds (Lever Section)
Series 3, subseries 1. Death Fund
Box 1, folder 22. Death fund insurance certificate, 1948
Series 3, subseries 2. Distress Fund / Special Fund
Box 1, folder 23. Income and expense books, 1928-1957, 1980-1991
Series 3, subseries 3. Insurance Fund
Box 1, folder 24. Ledger, 1972-1985
Box 1, folder 25. Minutes, 1949-1979
Box 1, folder 26. Final distribution, 1985
Series 3, subseries 4. Joint Pension Fund
Box 2, folder 1. Annual reports, 1980-1990
Box 2, folder 2. Audits, 1979, 1985-1991
Box 2, folder 3. Correspondence, 1980-1992
Box 2, folder 4. Monthly fund statements, 1979-1991
Box 2, folder 5. Reports, 1986-1991
Box 2, folder 6. Trustee's minutes, 1981-1990
Series 3, subseries 5. Sick Fund
Box 2, folder 7. Income and expense book, 1924-1938
Box 2, folder 8. Income and expense book, 1939-1950
Box 2, folder 9. Income and expense book, 1951-1956
Box 2, folder 10. Income and expense book, 1957-1963
Box 2, folder 11. Income and expense book, 1964-1986
Box 2, folder 12. Income and expense book, 1987-1992
Box 2, folder 13. Certificates of illness, 1979-1985
Box 2, folder 14. Certificates of illness, 1986-1992
Series 3, subseries 6. Special Fund
Box 2, folder 15. Income and expense book, 1926-1948
Box 2, folder 16. Income and expense book, 1949-1979
Series 4: Membership (Lever Section)
Box 2, folder 17. Correspondence, 1979-1980
Box 2, folder 18. Correspondence, 1981
Box 2, folder 19. Correspondence, 1982-1984
Box 2, folder 20. Correspondence, 1985-1988
Box 2, folder 21. Correspondence, 1989-1991
Box 2, folder 22. Correspondence, 1992 re final payout [some letters include short reminiscences about the lace industry]
Box 3, folder 1. Dues book, 1983-1988
Box 3, folder 2. Dues ledger, 1976-1982
Box 3, folder 3. Dues ledger, 1983-1987
Box 3, folder 4. Dues ledger, 1988-1992
Box 3, folder 5. Levy member cards, 1970s-1980s
Box 5. Member cards circa 1925-1991: Active members as of 1991
Box 5. Member cards circa 1925-1991: Members deceased as of 1991
Box 6. Member cards, circa 1925-1991: Members dropped from union before 1991
Box 3, folder 6. Member cards, 1992 - signed cards re final payout
Box 3, folder 7. Monthly statements, 1931-1962
Box 3, folder 8. Monthly statements, 1962-1970
Box 3, folder 9. Monthly statements, 1971-1980
Box 3, folder 10. Monthly statements, 1981-1991
Box 3, folder 11. Monthly statements, Lever Auxiliary section, 1959-1969
Box 3, folder 12. Monthly trade reports, 1985-1991
Box 3, folder 13. Register, 1919-1937 (also includes Curtain Section members)
Box 3, folder 14. Register, 1937-1984 (also includes Curtain Section members)
Box 3, folder 15. Retired levy lists, 1960-1980
Box 4, folder 1. Retired levy lists, 1981-1992
Series 5: Branch records (Lever Section)
Box 4, folder 2. Branch 6 - Seekonk Lace contract, 1991
Box 4, folder 3. Branch 7 - Bylaws, 1959 and undated
Box 4, folder 4. Branch 11 - Contracts with Leavers Lace Manufacturers Assn., 1984-1990
Box 4, folder 5. Branch 11 - Supplementary retirement fund accounts, 1975-1977
Series 6: Miscellaneous
Box 4, folder 6. Apprentice training program booklet, undated
Box 4, folder 7. Blank membership cards and forms
Box 4, folder 8. Newspaper clippings, 1950-1990
Box 4, folder 9. Price cards and lists, 1934-1989
Series 7: Parent body records
Box 4, folder 10. Amalgamation Committee minutes, 1958-1971
Box 4, folder 11. Audits, 1947-1961 (no 1954, 1956)
Box 4, folder 12. Audits, 1968-1984 (no 1977)
Box 4, folder 13. Audits, 1985-1992
Box 4, folder 14. Conference report, 1984
Box 4, folder 15. Constitutions, 1937, 1961, 1985
Subjects:
Barrington (R.I. : Town) - Commerce.
Champagne, Richard.
Labor unions - Textile workers - Rhode Island.
Lace makers - Rhode Island.
Pawtucket (R.I.) - Commerce.
Port Jefferson (N.Y.) - Commerce.
Rhode Island Lace Works (Barrington, R.I.)
Seekonk Lace Company (Pawtucket, R.I.)
Tente, Alfred J.
Textile workers - Rhode Island.
Thomas Wilson Lace Company (Port Jefferson, N.Y.)
Washington Lace Company (West Warwick, R.I.)
West Warwick (R.I. : Town) - Commerce.
End of finding aid - return to top
RIHS1822