p1673 GEORGE CERNY: An Inventory of His Papers at the Minnesota Historical Society Finding aid prepared by Deborah M. Kahn Minnesota Historical Society
St. Paul MN.

Manuscripts Collection

 Finding aid encoded by Dennis Meissner June 3, 2004Finding aid written inEnglish August 2008Converted from EAD Version 1.0 to Version 2002 by Monica Manny Ralston, Daniel Sher, and Joyce Chapman. OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION Minnesota Historical Society Cerny, George, 1912-1999. George Cerny papers. 1937-1998. An oral history interview transcript, university term papers, printed articles and booklets, and other materials documenting George Cerny's lengthy career (1930s-1960s) in cooperatives in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and the southern United States and his long-standing interest in cooperative activities. 0.3 cu. ft. (1 box). P1673: See Detailed Description for shelf location. SCOPE AND CONTENTS OF THE PAPERS

The principal item in the papers is the interview transcript, which reflects the entire scope and duration of Cerny's long involvement in cooperative enterprises. The interview transcript is amplified by term papers (1937-1938, 1959) and articles (1960s) by Cerny, booklets (1960s) produced under his direction and published by the Cooperative League of the USA and by the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO), and other items (1960s, 1988, 1998) compiled or written by him.

 RELATED MATERIALS

An audio tape of the oral history interview is part of the Minnesota Historical Society sound and visual collections.

 OTHER FINDING AIDS

A print version of this finding aid is available in the repository; filed as P1673.

 CATALOG HEADINGS

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics: Consumer cooperatives -- Minnesota. Consumer cooperatives -- Wisconsin. Cooperation -- Study and teaching. Cooperative societies -- Middle West. Cooperative societies -- Southern States. Economic assistance, Domestic -- United States. Minorities -- United States -- Economic conditions. Poverty -- United States. Youth -- Societies and clubs. Persons: White, Helen M. (Helen McCann), 1916-. Organizations: Cooperative Services, Inc. Midland Cooperatives, Inc. United States. Office of Economic Opportunity. Document Types: Oral histories. ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. George Cerny Papers. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples

 Accession Information:

Accession number: 10,626; 11,077; 15,509

 Processing Information:

Processed by: Kathryn A. Johnson, March 1989; Deborah M. Kahn, May 2004

Catalog ID number: 001711564

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION P1673 Transcript of oral history interview of George Cerny by Helen M. White, Chicago, Illinois, November 25, 1967. Typescript, 55 pp.

The transcript contains information on Cerny's education at the universities of Minnesota and Wisconsin; his establishment of a Catholic cooperative eating club in Madison near the University of Wisconsin (1936); his association with Cooperative Services, Inc. (late 1930s) and Midland Cooperatives, Inc. (1940s-1960s) in Minnesota and Wisconsin as field organizer and educator, youth camp director, and department manager; his educational endeavors at the Cooperative League of the USA (1960s); and his work implementing an OEO anti-poverty program--the introduction of self-help cooperatives in rural and urban areas of Illinois and the southern United States (1960s). The transcript also provides much detail on cooperative organization and education programs and their relationships with private business enterprises.

The folder also includes biographical information on Cerny found in a January 1998 Cerny letter and in two February 1999 obituaries supplied by the cataloger (all photocopies).

 University term papers on cooperation and cooperatives, 1937-1938, 1959. Cerny, George, "Cooperation in the Midwest in the Granger Era, 1869-1875," Agricultural History, 37:4 (reprint): (October 1963). Cooperative League of the USA, Moving Ahead with Group Action, 1966. Booklet. Cooperative League of the USA and U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity, Moving Ahead with Co-ops, 1966. Booklet. Miscellaneous print and near-print items relating to cooperatives, 1967. Report: "Evaluation of [OEO] Contract #2433 by Cooperative League of the USA, 1/29/68," 1968. Cerny, George, "Buying Clubs: Adult Education in Action," Adult Leadership," 17:6 (December 1968). Photocopy. Cooperative League of the USA and U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity, How to Organize a Co-op, October 1969. Booklet. Promotional item for Family Pastimes (typescript): Cerny, George, and Ann Cerny, "Cooperative Games," October 29, 1988.