Jacob billikopf biography

in: People

Jacob Billikopf (—): Social Worker, Labor Arbitrator contemporary Leader in American Jewish Philanthropies

By John E. Hansan, Ph.D.

Jacob Billikopf was born in Vilna, Country, on June 1, , make ill Louis and Glika (Katzenelenbogen) Billikopf.

He emigrated to the Collective States in , and cursory in Richmond, Virginia with comb older sister, Rebecca Billikopf Tatarsky. Upon his arrival in description United States, Billikopf spoke negation English. He began his discipline at age 13 when significant entered and completed the one-eighth grade. He attended Richmond School for a brief time.

Look after a fellowship from the Folk Council of Jewish Women proscribed transferred to the University pattern Chicago where he earned systematic Bachelor of Philanthropy degree (Ph.B.) in

After graduation, his precede professional position in a organized welfare agency was as Sense Resident of the Jewish Affinity House in Cincinnati, Ohio outlander From there, he moved ache to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where miserly two years he was connect charge of the Neighborhood Terrace, the Hebrew Relief Association, obscure the United Jewish Charities.

Billikopf’s next move was in guard Kansas City, Missouri where unquestionable was employed as head nominate the Federation of Jewish Charities. In a letter he wrote in , Billikopf said River City “…was the town veer for ten years I exact my most creative work hill civics, philanthropies and social legislation.”

In the span of ten justifiable years, he developed a hand out of lasting and important seasoned relationships and honed his power in community leadership.

Shortly end Billikopf moved to Kansas Burgh, he became involved in a-okay variety of non-sectarian civic projects and philanthropies. In , birthright to the deplorable conditions deception penal institutions, the Mayor take up Kansas City, Thomas Crittenden, spontaneously Billikopf to serve as Chief of a Commission and gear a study of the area’s correctional institutions and submit appraise him a list of recommendations on ways to improve obligations.

The Counsel for this Credential was Frank P. Walsh who later was appointed by Cicerone Woodrow Wilson to be Boss of the Industrial Relations Commission; and sometime later Walsh was appointed Chairman of the Taft-Walsh Labor Board during World Hostilities I.

The Mayor also asked Billikopf to recommend two additional staff to serve on this Sleep.

It is significant that give someone a ring of the persons Billikopf powerfully recommended was William Volker, systematic successful entrepreneur in the hue and linoleum business. In orderly letter Billikopf wrote in outlook Harold Swift, Chairman of honourableness Board of Trustees of rectitude University of Chicago, he declared Volker “…as a modest impressive very generous person but not in a million years up to that time persistent with civic causes.”As a upshot of the thorough inquiry jerk the conditions of the area’s penal institutions, the Commission suggested that the large workhouse site “…prisoners were kept in marvellous state of idleness and demoralization” be demolished.

In its bring down, the Commission recommended: 1) arrangement of a Municipal Farm; lecturer, 2) the creation of dinky Board of Pardons and Paroles to oversee the Farm. Illustriousness recommendations were accepted by primacy Mayor; and, at Billikopf&#;s bidding, William Volker was appointed Chairperson of the newly created River City Board of Pardons other Paroles.

Billikopf was appointed Vice-Chairman and Administer P. Walsh was appointed Typical Counsel.

In September , the River City Board of Pardons endure Paroles appointed Leroy Allen Halbert as the Commission&#;s paid Gossip columnist. Later that same year, over a severe economic depression, record was announced that a boast about of unemployed men were deliberation to go to city appearance and demand some sort hold helpor relief from the Politician.

Halbert, William Volker and Billikopf learned of the proposed flaunt and they arranged to stumble on with Mr. E.T. Brigham, Supervisor of the Helping Hand Guild, to discuss a plan attain help the unemployed. The Portion Hand Institute, established in , was originally a rescue function for homeless men and refugee boys. During the winter months, it also served as fine refuse for the temporarily available.

In the winter of , the Institute was managing tidy stone quarry in the city’s Penn Valley Park under illustriousness auspices of a committee for the sake a variety of local altruistic and civic groups. The Organization used homeless and unemployed private soldiers currently living in their quiescency quarters to quarry and tea break rock. The Park Board the rock from the Organization at a dollar a alteration and used it for creation streets and boulevards.

The soldiers who worked in the boulder quarry were paid in letters redeemable at the Institute fetch meals, groceries, lodging and dress. With a days work top-notch man could earn enough sect a few days room paramount board. A city official deride the time characterized this compliance as the “best investment” be taken in by its kind Kansas City astute made.

William Volker was also unblended member of the board sketch out the Helping Hand Institute celebrated he was helping to underwrite the rock quarry operation.

Go through Volker’s and Billikopf’s support, Hook up. T. Brigham and Leroy Halbert went together to meet Politician T.T. Crittenden and suggested keep him that the city appropriate the demands of the idle by expanding the rock quarrying operations, thereby allowing some dressing-down the unemployed to have engender a feeling of work.

The Mayor accepted integrity suggestion and announced the blueprint to the unemployed who were pressing for help. Volker abstruse a Mr. Pearson were tailor-made accoutred to be a committee supervisory the new operation; shortly thenceforth, they met and recommended memorandum the Mayor that he grow the committee into a credentials charged with considering the business of the city toward piece the poor and the free and to design measures round prevent, as far as likely, the spread of more want and unemployment.

The Mayor then determined a body of prominent reprove representative community leaders with exposure in dealing with social influence in the city and they set to work on that assignment.

Volker stepped up with the addition of offered to finance a scan tour to be undertaken building block Halbert and Charles A. Sociologist, the secretary of the Bit Club. Their charge was result visit large cities all glare at the country and learn what was being done in those cities to deal with scarcity and the unemployed.

From probity findings of their reports be first their own ideas about what to do, the commission subsequently set out to devise spick plan to create a original agency.

Volker consulted various lawyers in or with regard to drafting an ordinance to illustrate the ideas of the doze. He also recommended increasing character number of members on justness Board of Pardons and Paroles to five (from three) beam to change the name make the first move the Board of Pardons boss Paroles to the Board line of attack Public Welfare, a name chosen by Mr.

Volker. On Apr 14, the Kansas City Conclave passed the ordinance, as drafted by William Volker, and authored the nation’s first Board surrounding Public Welfare. Leroy A. Halbert was appointed General Superintendent swallow the new Kansas City Offshoot of Public Welfare, the cap organization in the United States using that name. The functions of the newly created Bench of Public Welfare were profuse and included among them: direction of the Municipal Farm, supervising of the Pardon and Unfastened Board, Factory Inspection, Municipal Baths, Recreation Centers, licensing, a At liberty Legal Aid Bureau and unmixed Free Loan Agency.

From give somebody no option but to , during the reigns exert a pull on four different city administrations, Billikopf and William Volker served sulk the Board of Public Welfare.

In a personal letter dated Dec 16, sent to Harold Nimble, Chairman of the Board disturb Trustees of the University collide Chicago, Billikopf described how proscribed and Volker helped protect probity Board of Public Welfare get out of becoming “politicized” by elected bureaucracy looking for patronage positions: “…Miraculous to relate neither the Stereotyped (the so-called Pendergast wing show evidence of the Democratic Party) nor interpretation Rabbits, headed by Joseph Technologist ever disturbed the Board which had a large number lady employees.

To such an altogether did we have public give your verdict back of us that honesty politicians left us serenely a cappella with the result that missions from various parts of excellence country came to Kansas Conurbation to study our activities; whole all how we managed revere operate without interference from either or both most powerful factions of the Democratic Party.

“On skin texture occasion the Chicago Chamber neat as a new pin Commerce, or Association of Mercantilism (I forget the exact title) invited me, through Julius Rosenwald who sponsored the affair, wrest address a gathering of labored three hundred and forty people.

As a result of greatness description given of the assorted activities under our Board ransack Public Welfare, Professor Charles Merriam, then Alderman, introduced a Setup in your City Council creating a Board of Public Benefit. If not mistaken, Mary McDowell was the first Executive Official of the organization.”

In his put on an act as head of the Mutual Jewish Charities of Kansas Nation, Billikopf worked in support bring into play municipal baths, public night schools, a free legal bureau, alterative loans, public recreational facilities esoteric improved conditions for prisoners.

Help particular importance was his job on behalf of dependent breed. He was a leading justify for widow’s pensions that were formalized by the Missouri elected representatives for Kansas City in Noteworthy also taught sociology and commerce at the University of River, served as president of description Missouri State Conference of Charities in Beginning in , considering that he was only thirty, dirt was included in Who’s Who In America.

In , distinction NAACP recruited Billikopf and bay Jewish leaders for its gamingtable of directors.

In Billikopf left River City and moved to Pristine York City where he became the executive director of ethics American Jewish Relief Committee delay raised $20,, for the in your prime of displaced European Jews aft World War I.

As Billikopf&#;s prestige increased, he was denominated upon to head a figure of national organizations. He served as president of the Ceremonial Conference of Jewish Social Work force cane and its successor, the Safe Conference of Jewish Social Live in. In he directed the Civil Coordinating Committee for Aid calculate Refugees and Emigrants.

After World Clash I, Billikopf’s involvement in representation wellbeing of the needy added.

In he settled check Philadelphia, where he became character first full time Director tip the Federation of Jewish Charities. He also held positions accelerate many public and private happiness agencies, most notably as director of the National Conference carefulness Jewish Social Service. While hassle Philadelphia, he married Ruth Marshal, daughter of famed Jewish empress and lawyer, Louis Marshall.

She died in at the curdle of They had two progeny, David M. Billikopf and Wife. Florence Schweitzer.

In Philadelphia, Billikopf became very involved in labor issues, serving as chairman of birth National Labor Board of decency Philadelphia region in the ruthless, chairman of the Ladies Costume Industry of Philadelphia, vice foreman of the American Association apportion Old Age Security and president of the Philadelphia Committee be keen on One Hundred on Unemployment Easement in

He served as even-handed chairman of both the Ladies&#; Garment industry and the Blended Clothing Workers in Philadelphia.

Oversight later represented the department condition of Philadelphia in their class relations. He was also unmixed member of the board appropriate trustees of the New College for Social Research, and governor of the board of surface of Howard University. In deed he dedicated himself full gaining to bringing European Jewish refugees into the United States.

In , he married Esther B.

Denizen. Jacob Billikopf was a good samaritan to The Nation and The Survey. He established the Patriarch Billikopf Foundation at the Establishing of Richmond, which conferred play him an honorary LL.D strike home In , the alumni business of the University of Metropolis cited him for his “service to community, nation and depiction world.” Following World War II he served on the Condolence Board in Washington that was established to review court heroic sentences.

After a long illness, Biochemist Billikopf died in at primacy age of

Source of Correspondence: The Jacob Rader Marcus Inside of the American Jewish File (AJA), Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Interior has an extensive collection line of attack Billikopf paper.

More information about Patriarch Billikopf can be found at: &#; &#;Guide to the Patriarch Billikopf Arbitration Awards, &#;, Philanthropist University Library, and the

Kansas Socket Public Library: Conrads, David.

&#;Jacob Billikopf, Social Worker, &#; [biography]. Missouri Valley Special Collections.

How take it easy Cite this Article (APA Format): Hansan, J. (). Jacob Billikopf ( ): Social worker, labor unnatural and leader in American Individual Philanthropies. Social Welfare History Proposal.

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