Search

The records of the League of Women Voters of Albany County (LWVAC), include material produced by the LWVAC as well as material that was produced by the League of Women Voters of New York State and the League of Women Voters of the United States. The most comprehensive series in the collection is the Administrative Files. There are meeting minutes, annual reports, and Board of Directors lists from 1940-2001. A large portion of the LWVAC collection relates to the two main purposes of the organization: voter service and "study and action." Records relating to voter service include pamphlets with information about candidates and citizen voting rights published by the LWVAC and material used to increase voter participation. Records related to "study and action" include material used by the LWVAC to inform citizens about public policy issues locally, statewide, and nationally. A strength of the LWVAC collection is the amount of material related to various public policy issues and how they affected the local community.

Founded in 1920, the League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that informs citizens about government, encourages their participation, and seeks to influence public policy through education and advocacy. One of nearly 60 local leagues in New York State, the League of Women Voters of Saratoga County (formerly the League of Women Voters, Saratoga Springs Area) formed in early 1965. This collection documents the operation and activities of this local league from its founding through 2010.

The Leigh Bienen Papers include the records of the New Jersey Proportionality Review Project, the Illinois Capital Punishment Reform Study Commission, and the academic research papers of legal scholar Leigh Bienen. The New Jersey records contain material from New Jersey Public Defender Homicide Study directed by Bienen in the mid-1980s. The collection also includes the records from Bienen's involvement with the New Jersey Proportionality Review Project headed by Special Master David C. Baldus. Also present is material from Leigh Bienen's tenure on the Illinois Capital Punishment Reform Study Commission which resulted in the abolition of the death penalty in that state in 2011. Finally the collection contains Leigh Bienen's scholarly research material during her career teaching at both Princeton University and Northwestern University. Her research focused on proportionality review, the death penalty's monetary costs, and the role of prosecutor discretion.

Leonard Farbstein was a U.S. Representative from New York. Farbstein was born in New York City on October 12, 1902. He graduated from High School of Commerce, attended City College of New York, attended Hebrew Union Teachers College, and graduated from New York University Law School in 1924. During the World War I, Farbstein served in the United States Coast Guard Reserve and later as vice chairman of the East River Day Camp, a philanthropic organization. Farbstein was a lawyer in private practice. Farbstein served as a member of the New York State Assembly from 1932 through 1956. He was elected as a Democrat to the 85th and the six succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1957-January 3, 1971) before being an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the 92nd Congress in 1970. Farbstein died on November 9, 1993, in New York, NY and his interment is in Cedar Park Cemetery in Paramus, NJ.

This collection documents Leona Train Rienow's professional career as a writer. The papers contain a significant number of drafts of Leona Train Rienow's manuscripts, papers concerning her research for her books and articles, and correspondence files.

The Leo W. O' Brien Papers document O'Brien's service in the House of Representative where he served from 1952-1966 on behalf of Albany, NY. The collection includes subject files, correspondence and various communications materials from his Congressional tenure.

The Libby Post Papers contain political campaign documents, professional correspondences, news clippings, meeting minutes, agendas, document drafts, press releases, news letters, civil activism notes, and other materials that document her involvement securing various LGBT rights and with political organizations, as well as the general LGBT community in Albany, NY.

The Louis C. Jones Papers consist primarily of the circular letters sent by Jones during World War II to former students of the State Teachers College and replies to these letters from service men and women. Jones was employed by the New York State College for Teachers, first as an Instructor (1934-42) and later as an Associate Professor of English (1942-46).

The papers of Lou Ismay document the history of the Environmental Forum at the University at Albany, SUNY, (State University of New York at Albany as it was then known) from 1969-1977, as well as the Environmental Studies Program. The collection contains information on the Environmental Forum, the Protect Your Environment Club, administrative files, student writings, subject files, correspondence, and publications. The student writings are from Ismay's Environmental Forum classes from 1969-1977. This series is restricted from use, along with parts of the Environmental Forum and correspondence series. This course was held under different numbers during its existence, including A&S 201 and Env.250a and b. The strength of the collection lies not in the educational departments that are represented by the collection, but by the overall impression one can gather about the rise of environmental awareness among students at the university. Access to certain student material is restricted. Consult a staff member for details.

This collection contains correspondence and materials related to Ludwig Bachhofer's professional interests in and knowledge about Asian art.