PAN-MACEDONIAN ASSOCIATION

9 ft.

MSS 106

by

Monique Bourque

September 1992

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The Pan-Macedonian Association was established in New York City in 1947.  The organization's purposes included the provision of fraternal benefits and charitable aid to Greek Americans of Macedonian origin, the development and cultivation of "economic, cultural, and spiritual ties between the people of the united States and Canada and the people of Greece," and assistance in the "reconstruction and rehabilitation of Macedonia, Greece so that the health and well being of its inhabitants may be materially improved."  The association currently includes Women's and Youth Chapters.  The organization is open to American and Canadian citizens of Macedonian origin, and to their wives and descendants.

Much of the association's outreach efforts have been concentrated on the dissemination of information to the American public about Macedonian Greece and the distinctions between Greek and Slavic peoples in the region.  Educational efforts have included promoting the self-improvement of Macedonian Greeks through programs such as the American Farm School in Thessaloniki, which teaches Greek and American students modern theories and methods in agriculture.  Since 1948, the organization has published the newspaper Makedonia.

The organization holds an annual banquet each year in addition to annual conventions, and periodically sponsors trips to Greece for its members.

PROVENANCE

The records were donated to the Institute in 1991 by the organization.  The Association plans to transfer records to the Institute at five-year intervals.  The collection was processed by Balch archivist Monique Bourque in 1992.  The majority of the materials are in Greek.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The records of the Pan-Macedonian Association span the entire life of the organization.  While containing little information on membership, the materials provide extensive information on the association's activities, its efforts to present information to the public, and on both the official views of the organization and the opinions of members.  These records present a detailed picture of the Macedonian-American community and its ongoing connection to events in Macedonian Greece.  Photographs have been transferred to a Photo Group.

Series I, Administrative Records, consists primarily of minutes from annual conventions and committees.  These include financial reports, transcripts of speeches, correspondence, and constitutional amendments.  The activities of individual chapters and of policy issues such as the proper scope and direction of educational efforts are well documented, as are internal disagreements over policy, finances and other matters.

Series II, Correspondence, contains the correspondence files of the past Supreme Presidents.  These include incoming and outgoing correspondence, printed materials regarding the activities of the organization such as annual conventions and Association-sponsored trips to Greece, and financial records.  This series is particularly valuable for its illumination of the association's ties to Greece through its educational efforts such as sponsorship of students to the American Farm School and of the organization's viewpoints on political events, particularly in Greece and Macedonia and attempts to influence political opinion in America.  Internal disagreements within the membership are also well-documented.  Materials illustrating the organization's fraternal functions are limited, though some correspondence regarding the payment of death benefits is included.

Series III, Scrapbooks, consists of scrapbooks of materials concerning organization events, primarily annual conventions.  The volumes' contents are almost entirely newspaper clippings, though some programs, tickets and other ephemera are included.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

The records of the Pan-Macedonian Association are divided into three series:  I. Administrative Records; II. Correspondence; III. Scrapbooks.  Arrangement within each series is chronological.

SERIES I: ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS, 1947-1990. 1 ft.

This series contains constitutions and bylaws, and minutes of annual conventions and of meetings of the Supreme Council and some of its subcommittees.

SERIES II: CORRESPONDENCE, 1950-1986. 6 ft.

This series contains incoming and outgoing correspondence files.  These include printed materials such as programs, minutes from meetings of individual branches and annual financial reports, travel-related mailings, and other enclosures.

SERIES III. SCRAPBOOKS, 1951-1968. 2 ft.

This series consists of 2 oversized scrapbooks containing newspaper and magazine clippings, programs, and other ephemera.