Accountants Club of America records
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
The Accountants Club of America, based in New York City and incorporated in 1927, provides programs of interest to professionals in accounting and related fields. The records in the collection date primarily from 1985 to 2010 and hold minutes of the organization's Board of Governors and lists of the officers, advisors and members. Originals of draft constitutions of a 1906 predecessor organization are in the collection as are photocopies of some other organizational documents.
Biographical / Historical
The Accountants Club of America (ACA) traces its roots to about 1897 when accountants Charles Waldo Haskins and Elijah Watt Sells (of the firm Haskins and Sells, which later became part of the firm known by 2018 as Deloitte) advocated for informal gatherings of professional accountants. Such meetings were held in the ensuing decades culminating in 1927 with the incorporation of the ACA to provide an ongoing vehicle for organizing the meetings. Although centered in New York City, "of America" was included in the name to give it national stature. The purpose of the Club, as stated in its by-laws, is "to provide an environment in which professional colleagues in the accounting profession and related fields can meet in a comfortable social setting to exchange ideas, thoughts and information of interest on topics of personal, business, social and professional issues." The organization runs various programs for its members, including speakers, roundtable discussions and social gatherings for networking.
Accountants Forum, Inc. (AFI) was formed in 1941 and is an affiliate of ACA. It is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that provides financial support for ACA's programs. ACA and AFI share by-laws, officers, and other governance matters.
Arrangement
The collection is organized by type of document.
Content Description
The Accountants Club of America (ACA) records are comprised of four lists of officers, governors, advisors, and members from years 1989, 1995, 2001, and 2009; minutes of Board of Governors and Advisory Board meetings from 1985-2005, 2007, and 2010; event publicity flyers from 1984 to about 2017; original correspondence and draft constitutions from 1906 related to ACA's predecessor organization, Public Accountants Club; and photocopies of various state filings and by-laws. The filings date primarily from 1973, though there is a photocopy of Accountants Foundation Inc's filing for incorporation from 1927-28.
The minutes primarily concern programming, financial matters, and membership. Minutes of the early 1990s also include reference to long term planning concerning the mission of the organization and foundation funding. Most of the minutes are those of Accountants Club of America Board meetings; but a small number are those of Accountants Forum.
Subjects
Organizations
Genres
Access Restrictions
Open to qualified researchers.
Conditions Governing Use
Photocopying undertaken by staff only. Limited to 20 exposures of stable, unbound material per day. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.
Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as Accountants Club of America records, MS 3065, The New-York Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Accountants Club of America and of Accountants Forum, Inc., August 2018.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Collection processed by archivist Larry Weimer, August 2018.
Repository
View Inventory
Annual Booklets Listing Officers, Governors, Advisors and Members, 1989, 1995, 2001, 2009, inclusive
Minutes of the Meetings of the Board of Governors and Advisory Board (9 folders), 1985-2005, 2007, 2010, inclusive
Prominent Past Events, 1984-2004, 2007, 2017, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Publicity flyers for events with featured speakers, such as sports figures Marvin Powell and Marty Glickman, authors Bryan Burroughs and James B. Stewart, international figures Leopoldo Villar Borda and Bryan Cassidy, TV/radio personalities John Gambling and Garrick Utley, political figures Geraldine Ferraro and Rick Lazio, business/financial figures Alan Greenberg and Richard Parsons, and others. Also, the invitation/program for the 80th anniversary reception (2007).
Founding Documents: Public Accountants Club (originals), 1906, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds four letters from George Wilkinson and Francis How in connection with the formation of the Public Accountants Club, a predecessor to the ACA; an early, heavily marked-up draft of a constitution and by-laws; a later draft of same; and an application for membership for Thomas Cullen Roberts (possibly the first member other than the founders). All documents in this folder are originals, dating to 1906.
Founding Documents. Public Accountants Club (photocopies), 1906, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds photocopies of most of the 1906 documents found in the preceding folder, plus a couple of letters not found in the original.
Certificate of Incorporation of Accountants Foundation, Inc. (photocopy), 1927-1928, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds a late 20th century photocopy of the 1927-28 certificate and the consent from the New York State Education Department.
Organizational Documents: Accountants Club of America, 1960-1997, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds photocopies of two filings with New York State: a certificate of type of not-for-profit corporation and a certificate of amendment of the certificate of incorporation. Holds copies of ACA's by-laws, revised as of 20 April 1960, 29 September 1970, and 25 September 1997.
Organizational Documents: Accountants Forum Inc., 1973, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds photocopies of filings with New York State related to the incorporation of Accountants Forum in 1973, including by-laws and certificate of incorporation. Also includes another photocopy of the 1927-28 filing by Accountants Foundation (identical to the copy above; transmitted by outside counsel in 1992).
Historical Sketches, 1933, circa 1987-2007, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Holds four brief histories of the club, two reproductions of images of early meeting places, and a photocopy of the 1933 newsletter "Work Sheet" with organizational status notes.