The Milbank Memorial Fund Records span the years 1898-1977 and consist of the minutes and other administrative records of the organization; historical material regarding the fund, and bibliographical papers for fund officers, and miscellaneous material regarding programs. General correspondence and office files were not preserved by the organization, and the manuscript group represents all of the fund's extant records through the early 1970's. The records are organized in three series: GENERAL PAPERS, BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL RECORDS, and BELLEVUE-YORKVILLE PROJECT RECORDS.
Series I, GENERAL PAPERS, is organized in four sections: Administrative Records, Commission and Committee Records, Press Releases, and Miscellany. The Administrative Records consist of minutes, proceedings and other records of the fund's Annual Conferences, Board of Directors and administrative subdivisions. The records are organized alphabetically by subdivision; material for each subdivision is filed chronologically. The records of the Annual Conferences (proceedings, 1943-1946 and 1950-1969), Board of Directors Quarterly Meetings (agenda books, 1954-1977), and Technical Board (minutes, 1922-1977) are the most complete.
The Commission and Committee Records section contains proceedings of the International Macy Conference of the Present State and Future of Public Health (1973) and of the fund-sponsored Commission for the Study of Higher Education for Public Health (1973-1974). The material for the latter conference also contains one box of survey reports which include identifiable personal information on students enrolled in schools of public health; this material is restricted and is not available for research until the year 2049.
The remainder of the Commission and Committee Records is made up of copies of material prepared by the fund for submission to two different Congressional committees investigating tax exempt foundations. The material for both committees includes financial data regarding fund income and expenditures and other information.
The Press Releasessection of Series I contains all of the one hundred and twelve numbered news releases issued by the fund (often in multiple versions) between 1923 and 1956, and sixteen of the original one hundred and forty-seven clipping books maintained by the fund through 1963. Indexes for both the news releases and the clipping books are filed at the beginning of the section.
Series II, BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL RECORDS, is organized in two sections, Biographical Records and Historical Records.The series spans the years 1898 to 1973, although the bulk of the records dates from the 1920's and 1930's. The first section contains a general biographical folder for fund officers (filed at the beginning of the series) and more extensive files for selected officers which are filed alphabetically by personal name. The section contains a variety of documentary material, including biographical sketches, photographs, newsclippings and occasional correspondence. The files for Albert G. Milbank and C.-E.A. Winslow are of special value.
The Historical Recordssection is arranged chronologically and contains a variety of brief histories, historical sketches, and summaries of activities produced by the fund. It also includes occasional documents.
Series III, BELLEVUE-YORKVILLE PROJECT RECORDS, contains reports and print material for one of the three health demonstrations which the Milbank Memorial Fund supported in the early 1920s. The records span the years 1922 to 1934 and are arranged chronologically.
The Milbank Memorial Fund Records were donated to Yale University Library in 1977 and 1978 by the fund. The records are part of the Contemporary Medical Care and Health Policy Collection, and the collection includes the papers of several fund officers, including those of Leroy E. Burney, president from 1971 to 1977 (Ms. Group no. 842).