The Association later added to its name the word International as an indication of its concern for children throughout the world and its involvement with post-World War II reconstruction in Europe. The headquarters of the Association are presently located in Olney, Maryland.
In 1987 the Association signed an archival deposit agreement with the University of Maryland at College Park and transferred its extensive archival collection, along with 700 volumes of children's books and seminal works relating to childhood education, to the University. ACEI has provided financial support to assist with preserving, housing, and providing reference service for the archives and the book collection. This arrangement has given the research community improved access to these important holdings at a major university campus close to the Library of Congress, the National Archives facility being constructed at College Park, and other major research facilities in the greater Washington, D.C. area.
Description of the Holdings of the Archives:
The ACEI Archives comprise approximately 120 linear shelf feet of office files, personal papers, photographs,
artifacts, and memorabilia. The collection provides continuous documentation of the organization from 1892 to
1986, and although most of the documentation deals with the years 1930 to 1967, the archives also include
important materials generated by the International Kindergarten Union (1892-1930) and the National Council of
Primary Education (19l6-1930).
Over 250 leaders in early childhood education are documented in the personal papers component of the archives. Major figures documented include Winifred Bain, Susan Blow, John Dewey, Mary Leeper, Agnes Snyder, and Lucy Wheelock. The archives also include a reading file of historical materials on such topics in early childhood education as curriculum and the development of preschool education.
Also of interest to researchers is an extensive collection of audio-visual materials, including lantern slides, films, photographs, and audio tapes. In addition, the ACEI archives contain three-dimensional instructional objects such as children's toys and puzzles, workbooks for teachers and students, and pieces from exhibits of Japanese artifacts and Froebelian materials. A complementary book collection, containing 700 rare and semi-rare children's books and landmark works in childhood education, is also available for research use. It contains titles such as Little Women, by Louisa Alcott (1870), McGuffey's Eclectic First Reader, by William H. McGuffey (1848), The School and Society, by John Dewey (1900), Moral Instruction of Children, by Felix Adler (1892), and Education of Man, by Friedrick Froebel (1887).
Access:
The University of Maryland at College Park Libraries provide access to the ACEI archives and book collection,
along with many other archival resources, in a consulting area called the Maryland Room. Hours are 12:00 - 5:00 pm ET,
Monday through Friday. All users are welcome.
A research guide to the ACEI archives, containing a detailed inventory of the contents of the archival collection is available online at http://www.acei.org/ACEI.pdf The guide does not include an inventory of the book collection.
For further information:
Contact Lauren Brown, Curator of Historical Manuscripts and Archivist, University of Maryland at College Park
Libraries, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-7011 (301-405-9058). The university will provide directions to the College Park campus and
information about lodging and other accommodations nearby upon request. The Web address of the University of Maryland Libraries is:
http://www.lib.umd.edu/UMCP/ARCV/histmss/histmss.html
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