Summary Information
Jacob Panken Papers
1916-1964
Mss 424; Micro 751
9.0 c.f. (21 archives boxes) and 1 reel of microfilm (35mm)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Papers of Jacob Panken, the first socialist judge elected in New York City who was also known for his controversial decisions on the Domestic Relations Court bench and for his outspoken participation in socialist, labor, and Jewish organizations. Included is biographical material; correspondence; typewritten copies of his speeches; legal documents relating to his career; a subject file including notes, drafts, correspondence, and reviews of his books, The Child Speaks; the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency and Socialism in America; papers on the custody case of Michael and Robert Meeropol, the children of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg; files on his use of bibliotherapy with juvenile delinquents; and microfilmed clippings both by and about Panken.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00424 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Jacob Panken, a colorful and well-known figure on New York City's Lower East Side, was a pioneer and outspoken participant in socialist, labor, and Jewish organizations and activities. He was also the first socialist judge elected in New York City, and later served for twenty years on the Domestic Relations Curt bench where he became well known for his controversial decisions and his work with juvenile delinquents. Panken was born in Kiev, Russia, January 13, 1879. In 1890 his family immigrated to the United States and bought a farm in Vermont. Panken left the farm in 1895 to go to New York City where he attended night school and worked as a pocketbook maker. After being black listed for labor organizing activities he studied law at NYU. Admitted to the bar in 1905, he practiced on the Lower East Side, handling many trade union and civil rights cases.
From 1900 to 1939 Panken ran as a socialist for numerous New York political offices: Assemblyman, 1900; Mayor, 1921; Governor, 1926; Municipal Court Justice, 1917 and 1927; Congressman, 1930; Supreme Court Justice, 1931 and 1939; and Court of Appeals Justice, 1932. His only successful campaign was for Municipal Court Justice in 1917. After losing reelection in a controversial 1927 campaign, Panken returned to private practice. During this period, Panken was also very active in other socialist, labor and Jewish affairs. Known as a fiery orator, he lashed out against Tammany and unfair labor practices from soap boxes on the Lower East Side. Around 1900 he participated in the founding of the Waistmakers Union out of which the International Ladies Garment Workers Union grew. He frequently traveled to speak and lecture on behalf of socialist and labor organizations, attended labor conventions, and was an American Socialist Party delegate in 1923, 1926, 1928, 1931 and 1933 to the congresses of the Labor and Socialist Internationals where he consistently lobbied against the Communists. Panken's activities in the organization and leadership of Jewish organizations include: president of the American ORT (Organization for Rehabilitation Trades); vice president of the People's Relief Committee; vice president and judge of the Jewish Court of Arbitration; president of the Forward Organization; and chairman of the Workman's Council.
Panken associated and corresponded with many of New York's prominent political figures. On- of these, New York City Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, appointed Panken as Justice of the New York Domestic Relations Court in 1934. After this appointment, Panken's interests turned increasingly toward issues related to his court work, especially the causes and prevention of juvenile delinquency and the problems of marriage and divorce. Panken wrote and lectured on he above, and he became a well-known proponent of “bibliotherapy,” the reading of good literature in order to influence and modify behavior of juvenile delinquents. At the same time, he worked for the placement of restrictions on violence and sex in comic books, movies, television, and other media. Panken insisted on meting out “not just technical but human justice.” Consequently, many of his decisions proved to be controversial. Although New York courts had refused to recognize Mexican divorces, Panken did, and he as also the first judge to use the Rh factor blood test to determine paternity.
Panken published numerous articles, letters to newspapers, and two books, Socialism in America (Rand School of Social Science, [1928?]) and The Child Speaks (Henry Holt and Co., 1941). After his retirement from the bench, Panken returned to a limited private practice; in the late 1950's he was chairman of a committee to establish a chair at Brandeis University in honor of Morris Hillquit.
Panken was married in 1910 to Rachal Pallay who was also active in socialist politics and Jewish organizations; they had one daughter. Panken's brother, Irwin, was a prominent New York attorney and a member of the New York state senate. Panken died February 4, 1968 at the age of 89.
Scope and Content Note
Panken's papers reflect his interest and involvement in socialist, labor, and Jewish matters, his career as a judge, and his private life. The papers incidentally reflect important events of the times, such as the Depression and World War II. Unfortunately, Panken's earliest activities are not represented by the collection, for a fire in 1930 destroyed many of his early papers. The vast majority of the papers date from Panken's appointment to the Domestic Relations Court in 1934, although there is a fair amount of material dating from the early 1920's. The collection is divided into six series: Biographical Materials; Correspondence; Addresses, Essays, Lectures; Legal Documents; Subject File; and Clippings. The basic arrangement of the collection and the folder titles generally reflect Panken's own filing systems.
The BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIALS, 1932-1964, consist of papers Panken collected and wrote for a planned autobiography and materials which reveal his personal life, career, and interest. This latter group includes short pieces written for biographical dictionaries, and probably for campaign purposes, as well as a few resumes, testimonials, and related materials from affairs in Panken's honor. Also included are photos, information about Panken's health and in-come, and his will.
Panken's CORRESPONDENCE, 1916-1964, is extensive. Although his correspondents were often quite prominent, much--although by no means all--of the correspondence relating to socialist, labor, and Jewish affairs is disappointingly mundane. (Panken's correspondents in these areas are generally the same as those found in the Morris Hillquit Papers.) Following Panken's own system of arrangement, there are two subseries: 1) a subject file for persons with whom Panken frequently corresponded or for persons or institutions which Panken considered of particular interest or importance, and 2) a general file for all others.
From 1928 to 1964 the General Correspondence file is arranged in five year chronological units and thereunder in alphabetical order. Corporate addressee takes precedence unless the individual is of particular interest and letters about a person are usually filed under that person's name. Correspondents of interest relating to Panken's socialist, labor, and Jewish concerns include: Association for the Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies, Paul Blanchard, Abraham Cahan, Nathan Chanin, August Claessens, A.S. Coolidge, Debs Young Circle, Julius Gerber, Louis Hendin, Morris Hillquit, Daniel Hoan, International Ladies Garment Workers Union, International Pocket-book Workers, Joint Distribution Committee, Louise Kautsky, Algernon Lee, Marx Lewis, Meyer London, Judah Magnes, New Leader, ORT, People's Tool Campaign, Martin Plettl, Rand School of Social Science, Toni Sender, Clarence Senior, Socialist Party, Norman Thomas, United Hebrew Trades, and numerous others. Correspondence with city, state, and federal officials and departments includes letters to and from Robert Ingersoll, New York City Mayors Vincent R. Impelliteri and William O'Dwyer, New York City public librarians, Governor Herbert H. Lehman, Senator Robert Wagner, Presidents Harry S. Truman and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, War Department, WPA, NRA, and many others. Much of this correspondence consists of letters written by Panken seeking action or offering his opinions or advice and the responses. Correspondence to and from Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia and some city departments have separate files in the Subject Correspondence. There is also considerable correspondence with Panken from individuals seeking help, letters relating to his court cases and methods of correction, and exchanges with noted psychologists, authors, publishers, representatives of mass media, and religious leaders and organizations. Names of interest include: Alfred Adler, Blue Network, Father Divine, A.A. Gross, Bishop Thomas Molloy, Motion Picture Distributors, Mutual Broadcasting Network, and Irving Stone.
Each file under Subject Correspondence is arranged in chronological order. This group primarily contains correspondence with New York City departments and officials while Panken was a domestic court judge. Most of the Subject Correspondence concerns particular cases, the functions of the court, and related matters. Of particular note is the extensive correspondence with Fiorello La Guardia, the correspondence concerning the unsuccessful attempt to save European socialists R. Breitscheid and R. Hilferding from Nazi persecution, the letters to and from Jenny Grimm, the wife of European socialist Robert Grimm, the congratulations on his fiftieth birthday which include letters from notable European socialists, correspondence with Jewish publications, and the voluminous correspondence with children. This last group consists of letters to and from children who passed through Panken's court. Many of the letters are the children's explanation of how and why they got into trouble, some are pleas for leniency or help, and others are letters of appreciation or thanks. The files entitled “Invitations” are requests for Panken to speak at or attend various functions and his replies.
The ADDRESSES, ESSAYS, LECTURES are almost all undated, but most of the type-written manuscripts, which comprise the greater portion of this series, can be dated between 1934 and 1955 when Panken had secretarial help; most of the handwritten manuscripts are probably pre-1934. These writings, which are arranged by subject, include lectures, speeches, newspaper releases, and essays submitted to various publications, especially those of socialist, labor, and Jewish organizations. Although campaign speeches which Panken had labelled as “campaign materials” have been filed in the Subject File under Political Campaigns, it is possible that some of the items in the present series, under New York and Depression especially, may also be campaign speeches. Others may be drafts for works which Panken planned to publish but did not (see Correspondence - General, 1938, Harpers). Some subjects such as Socialism, Labor, and Jews necessarily overlap, and users may wish to consult all possibly relevant files. Generally, the content of a piece and not the occasion for delivery dictates filing procedure. Thus, a speech about socialism delivered at a United Hebrew Trades convention would be found under Socialism. Miscellany includes manuscripts on a wide variety of topics, such as the South, chain stores, World War I, Lingbergh and racism, two brief attempts at fiction, the KKK, non-conformism, several versions of a long essay titled “Social Aspects of Individual Psychology,” and others.
The series LEGAL DOCUMENTS, 1920-1955, contains jury charges, opinions, memoranda, and other legal documents which Panken kept from his career in the Municipal and Domestic Relations courts. Most of the documents, which are filed alphabetically according to the name of defendant, are memoranda and opinions from the Domestic Relations Court, and they deal with divorces, delinquency petitions, paternity suits, support hearings, etc. Panken may have kept many of the cases for reference purposes for his writings. The Municipal Court cases are primarily concerned with landlord-tenant disputes and personal injury suits; there is one pertaining to a charge of racism.
The SUBJECT FILE, circa 1921-1959, includes a wide variety of materials. The subject titles are for the most part Panken's own. Book Reviews by Children are the result of Panken's application of bibliotherapy. Panken wrote responses, sometimes lengthy, to every child who wrote a review. His publications include notes, drafts, correspondence, galley and reviews for The Child Speaks; The Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (H. Holt and Co., 1941) which was based on Panken's experiences in court and his use of bibliotherapy The galleys for Panken's earlier book, Socialism for America (The Rand School of Social Science, 1928?) are also in the collection. There are also research materials, correspondence, drafts, and notes for subjects about which Panken wrote articles. Other files of interest contain materials related to Panken's campaigns and testimonial publications which include contributions by Panken. The files on the Ethel and Julius Rosenberg children, who were in Panken's court when the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children charged the Abel Meeropols with using the children for fund raising purposes, are of interest. The incident received international attention, and there are numerous petitions from Europe, especially France, regarding the case. Panken's notes, reports, transcripts and other materials collected at the 1933 Labor and Socialist International are also noteworthy. The Miscellany subject file includes a 1908 Bar Association recommendation that American universities not participate in the Heidelberg Jubilee.
CLIPPINGS, 1920-1964, consist primarily of newspaper articles and photos about Panken and articles written by Panken. The former usually concern speeches he gave, cases he decided, and events he attended. Manuscripts for some of the articles can be found in the series Addresses, Essays, Lectures. The clippings are mostly from 1929 to 1948 with a high concentration from the early 1930's. They supplement the other materials in the collection and provide information about Panken's wife not found elsewhere in the papers. The newspapers themselves are almost all from New York, and many of them are published by socialist, labor, or Jewish organizations. The clippings are arranged by subject and thereunder chronologically. All clippings in Yiddish are filed under “Jewish Affairs and Yiddish Clippings” regardless of subject. Also, there is necessarily some overlap between subjects such as “Campaigns” and “Socialism;” researchers should consult all possibly relevant subjects.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Jacob Panken, Yonkers, New York, 1964. Accession Number: M64-371
Processed by Kathryn Stallard and Joanne Hohler, June 1979.
Contents List
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Mss 424
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Series: Biographical Materials
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Box
1
Folder
1
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General
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Box
1
Folder
2
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75th birthday, 1954
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Box
1
Folder
3
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85th birthday, 1964
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Box
1
Folder
4
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Income tax, 1939-1940
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Box
1
Folder
5-6
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Notes and mss. for planned autobiography
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Box
1
Folder
7
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Testimonials and honors, circa 1934-1954
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Series: Correspondence
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General
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Box
1
Folder
8-11
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, 1916; 1925; 1928-1933 (A-L)
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Box
2
Folder
1-11
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, 1928-1933 (M-Z); , 1934-1939 (A-Z); , 1940-1944 (A-D)
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Box
3
Folder
1-11
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, 1940-1944 (E-Z); , 1945-1949 (A-Z)
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Box
4
Folder
1-6
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, 1950-1955 (A-Z); , 1956-1964 (A-Z)
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Subject
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Box
4
Folder
7
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Breitscheid, R. and Hilferding, R., 1936-1941
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Children, 1937-1954
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Box
4
Folder
8-10
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A-F
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Box
5
Folder
1-7
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G-Z
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Box
5
Folder
8
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Children's families and acquaintances, 1938-1954 (A-Z)
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Congratulations
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Box
6
Folder
1
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Fiftieth birthday, 1930
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Box
6
Folder
2-3
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Domestic Court appointment, 1934; 1945
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Box
6
Folder
4
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Correctional institutions, 1936-1954
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Box
6
Folder
5
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Dewey, Thomas E., 1943-1954
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Box
6
Folder
6
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Family, 1927-1961
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Box
6
Folder
7
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Forward, The Jewish Daily, 1929-1956
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Box
6
Folder
8
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Greeting card responses, 1938-1952
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Box
6
Folder
9
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Grimm, Jenny, 1931-1947
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Invitations
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Box
6
Folder
10-12
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1928-1939
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Box
7
Folder
1-2
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1940-1955
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Box
7
Folder
3
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Jewish Newsletter, 1954-1959
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Box
7
Folder
4
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Labor, Department of, 1944-1954
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Box
7
Folder
5
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La Guardia, Fiorello, 1929, 1931, 1934-1945, 1947
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Box
7
Folder
6
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Levy, M., 1936, 1937, 1940
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New York City
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Box
7
Folder
7
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Bellvue Hospital, 1936-1943, 1951
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Box
7
Folder
8-9
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Board of Education, 1936-1955
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Domestic Relations Court
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Box
7
Folder
10
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General, 1935-1954
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Box
7
Folder
11
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Presiding judge, 1934-1954
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Box
8
Folder
1
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Licenses, Department of, 1936-1938, 1946
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Box
8
Folder
2-4
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Police, Department of, 1938-1954
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Box
8
Folder
5
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Probation, Department of, 1932-1954
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Box
8
Folder
6-7
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Welfare, Department of, 1936, 1938-1954
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Box
8
Folder
8
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New York County Lawyers Association, 1932-1934
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Box
8
Folder
9
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New York Times, 1928, 1933, 1941-1955
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Box
9
Folder
1
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Roosevelt, F.D., 1937-1941, 1945, 1950
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Box
9
Folder
2
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Veterans' Administration, 1948-1950
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Series: Addresses, Essays, Lectures
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Box
9
Folder
3
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Affairs in Panken's honor
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Box
9
Folder
4-8
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Children, juvenile delinquency
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Box
9
Folder
9
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Depression, the Great
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Box
9
Folder
10
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Eulogies
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Box
10
Folder
1-2
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Immigration
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Box
10
Folder
3
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Jews
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Box
10
Folder
4-5
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Labor
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Box
10
Folder
6
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Law and the courts
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Box
10
Folder
7
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New York
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Box
11
Folder
1
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Patriotic issues
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Box
11
Folder
2
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Russia
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Box
11
Folder
3-4
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Sex, marriage and divorce
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Box
11
Folder
5-6
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Socialism
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Box
11
Folder
7
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Welfare
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Box
11
Folder
8
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World War II
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Box
12
Folder
1
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World War II, continued
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Box
12
Folder
2
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Miscellany
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Series: Legal Documents
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Municipal Court
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Box
12
Folder
3
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Jury Charges, 1922-1927 (A-Z)
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Box
12
Folder
4
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Opinions, 1920-1927 (A-Z)
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Domestic Relations Court
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Box
12
Folder
5-7
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, 1934-1939 (A-Z); , 1940-1944 (A-L)
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Box
13
Folder
1-7
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, 1940-1944 (M-Z); , 1945-1949 (A-Z)
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Box
14
Folder
1-5
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, 1950-1955 (A-Z)
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Box
14
Folder
6
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Marriage ceremonies and certificates, 1942-1954
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Box
14
Folder
7
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Miscellany, circa 1930-1951
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Series: Subject File
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Box
15
Folder
1
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American Forum of the Air, “Relief Can Mean Ruin,” 1951
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Box
15
Folder
2
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Booklists for children
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Book reviews by children
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Box
15
Folder
3-10
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, 1934-1939 (A-Z); , 1940-1944 (A-E)
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Box
16
Folder
1-8
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, 1940-1944 (F-Z)
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Box
17
Folder
1-8
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, 1945-1949 (A-Z); , 1950-1955 (A-N)
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Box
18
Folder
1-2
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, 1950-1955 (O-Z)
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The Child Speaks
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Box
18
Folder
3
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Correspondence, 1940-1942
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Box
18
Folder
4-5
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Notes and first draft
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Box
18
Folder
6-7
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Second draft
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Box
18
Folder
8
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Drawings
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Box
18
Folder
9
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Galley
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Box
18
Folder
10
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Reviews
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Box
19
Folder
1
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Domestic Relations Court (reports, manual, misc.), 1936-1954
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Box
19
Folder
2
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Hillquit (Morris) Memorial Committee, 1957-1959
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Box
19
Folder
3-5
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Influence of motion pictures, TV, radio, and comics on children
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Box
19
Folder
6
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Jewish concerns, miscellany
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Box
19
Folder
7
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Juvenile delinquency, miscellaneous notes and research materials
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Box
20
Folder
1
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Labor and socialist concerns, miscellany
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Box
20
Folder
2
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Labor and Socialist International, 1933
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Box
20
Folder
3
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New York Times, “The Real Delinquent--the Parent,” 1946-1947
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Political campaigns
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Box
20
Folder
4
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Mayor, 1921
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Box
20
Folder
5
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Governor, 1926
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Box
20
Folder
6
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Municipal Court, 1927
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Box
20
Folder
7
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Congress, 1930
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Box
20
Folder
8
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New York Supreme Court, 1931
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Box
20
Folder
9
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Court of Appeals, 1932
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Box
20
Folder
10
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New York Supreme Court, 1939
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Box
20
Folder
11
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Puerto Rico, “A Solution for the Puerto Rican Situation,” 1953
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Readers Digest
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Box
20
Folder
12
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“Relief Can Mean Ruin,” 1951-1952
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Box
20
Folder
13
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Correspondence, notes, and research materials for an article on juvenile delinquency, 1959
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Rosenberg (Ethel and Julius) children, 1954
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Box
21
Folder
1
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Newspaper interview and clippings
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Box
21
Folder
2
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Official correspondence and legal documents
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Box
21
Folder
3
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Petitions, letters, etc. to Panken about case
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Saturday Evening Post, “Relief Is Ruining Families”
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Box
21
Folder
4
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Correspondence with Post, 1950-1951
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Box
21
Folder
5-6
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Correspondence to and from readers, 1950-1951
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Box
21
Folder
7
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Notes and research materials
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Box
21
Folder
8
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Sex, marriage and divorce: miscellaneous notes and research materials
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Box
21
Folder
9
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Socialism for America, galley, [1928?]
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Box
21
Folder
10
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Testimonials by Panken
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Box
21
Folder
11
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Miscellany
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Micro 751
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Series: Clippings
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Reel
1
Segment
1
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Affairs in Panken's honor
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Reel
1
Segment
2
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Campaigns
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Reel
1
Segment
3
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Children, juvenile delinquency
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Reel
1
Segment
3.5
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Divine, Father
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Reel
1
Segment
4
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Jewish affairs and Yiddish clippings
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Reel
1
Segment
5
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Labor
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Reel
1
Segment
6
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Law and the courts
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Reel
1
Segment
7
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Leibowitz, Samuel S.
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Reel
1
Segment
8
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Sex, marriage, and divorce.
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Reel
1
Segment
9
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Miscellany
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Reel
1
Segment
10
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Socialism
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Reel
1
Segment
11
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World War II
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