Foundation History:
A Resource List

The Catalog of Nonprofit Literature contains hundreds of citations for resources documenting the history of foundations, philanthropy, and voluntarism, as well as the histories of individual foundations. Search under the subject headings Foundations--history, Philanthropy--history, or Voluntarism--history to review relevant citations. Histories of specific foundations can be located by searching Catalog of Nonprofit Literature with the name of the foundation as your subject, or by using the subject heading Foundations--institutional histories.

Bibliographies

Kiger, Joseph C. Historiographic Review of Foundation Literature: Motivations and Perceptions. New York: The Foundation Center, 1987.

Provides a chronological narrative review of book-length works about independent foundations, (such as histories and biographies of philanthropists), as well as publications from pertinent government agencies, and works published by privately organized bodies.

Layton, Daphne Niobe. Philanthropy and Voluntarism: An Annotated Bibliography. New York: The Foundation Center, 1987.

Includes references to both monographs and periodical literature. Pages 75-131 deal with foundations, bequests, and corporate philanthropy; pages 133-142 cover volunteering. Includes 1,614 citations, of which 244 have abstracts.

Works on the History of Foundations, Philanthropy, and Voluntary Giving

Andrews, F. Emerson. Philanthropy in the United States: History and Structure. New York: The Foundation Center, 1978.

Pamphlet presents a brief history of private foundations and philanthropy, emphasizing the structure and dimensions of the philanthropic world in the 1970s.

Bremner, Robert H. American Philanthropy. 2nd ed. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1988.

In this second edition of Bremner's pioneering and classic work, the author traces the development of American philanthropy from the time of the Pilgrims to the 1980s. He examines the peculiarly American circumstances that gave rise to different expressions of philanthropy, such as voluntary poverty relief, social work and social services, foundations, and government programs. Includes a timeline of important dates and an annotated bibliography. Indexed.

Brilliant, Eleanor L. Private Charity and Public Inquiry: A History of the Filer and Peterson Commissions. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2000.

Based on archival evidence, provides a thorough history of the Commission on Foundations and Private Philanthropy (the Peterson Commission) and the Commission on Private Philanthropy and Public Needs (the Filer Commission). The former existed between 1969-70, while the latter was active from 1973-77. Appendices provide complete lists and biographical notes on commission members, staff, and advisors, texts of final reports, and extensive notes. Indexed.

Bremner, Robert H. Giving: Charity and Philanthropy in History. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 1994.

Reviews attitudes toward philanthropy from the ancient world through the Middle Ages and into modern times, in comparative contexts.

Holcombe, Randall G. Writing Off Ideas: Taxation, Foundations, and Philanthropy in America. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers. 2000. x, 284 p.

The author posits that unlike the government and business sectors, foundations are accountable to no one. He notes that in recent times, foundations have funded analysis of public policy issues and ideas, rather than maintain the grantmaking modes of the earlier part of the twentieth century. Chapters are devoted to the history of foundations, the impact of various federal tax regulations over time, donor intent, trends in foundation giving, and the role of foundations in the economy, among other issues.

Ilchman, Warren F., Stanley N. Katz, and Edward L. Queen II, eds. Philanthropy in the World's Traditions. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1998.

Defining philanthropy as giving and sharing beyond the family, various specialists analyze different cultures within historical contexts. Focus includes geographical areas of Africa, North America, India, China, Japan, Russian, and Latin America and the traditions of the Buddhist, Islam, Native American, Confucian, Jewish, Christian, and Hindu religions.

Keele, Harold M. and Joseph C. Kiger. Foundations. Westport, CN: Greenwood Press, 1984.

Provides histories of the nation's 230 largest foundations (ca. 1981-82).

Kiger, Joseph C. Philanthropic Foundations in the Twentieth Century. Westport, CN: Greenwood Press. 2000. viii, 222 p.

A comprehensive treatment of the growth of foundations in modern times, with a narrative of the worldwide historical antecedents to their growth. Details the numerous investigations of the field, including the Walsh Commission in 1915, the Cox Committee in 1952, the Patman Investigation that began in 1961, and the Filer Commission, whose results were published in 1977. Discusses the expansion of the field, the characteristics of governance and personnel, supervision by governmental bodies, international activities, and the development of the third sector abroad.

Lagemann, Ellen Condliffe (ed.) Philanthropic Foundations: New Scholarship, New Possibilities. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. 1999. xviii, 420 p.

Chapters contributed by various specialists. Part I: Foundations as Organizations. Part II: Case Studies in Early-Twentieth-Century Foundation Philanthropy. Part III: Foundations and Recent Social Movements. Part IV: Writing the History of Foundations.

Magat, Richard. "A Very Short History of Foundation Histories." Foundation News & Commentary, September-October 2001, p. 47.

An excerpt from Magat's speech on the practice of foundation history, given at a seminar in 2000.

Schneewind, J. B. (ed.) Giving: Western Ideas of Philanthropy. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1996.

Contributing historians of antiquity, the Middle Ages, early modern thought, and the Victorian era discuss the evolution of thinking about, and practice of, voluntary giving.

History of Company-Sponsored Foundations

Andrews, F. Emerson. Corporation Giving. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 1993.

This reprint of the original 1952 classic, published by the Russell Sage Foundation, provides a concise history of corporate foundations in chapter 6.

Fremont-Smith, Marion R. Philanthropy and the Business Corporation. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation, 1972.

Chapter 2 includes a statistical analysis of growth of company-sponsored foundations.

Muirhead, Sophia A. Corporate Contributions: The View from 50 Years. New York, NY: Conference Board, 1999.

Provides a history of corporate philanthropy in the U.S. from the time when it was considered illegal to the present, dividing the growth into four developmental periods: "Prelegalization" (1870s to 1930s), "Innovation and Legalization" (1940s to 1950s), "Growth and Expansion" (mid-1950s to mid-1980s), and "Diversification and Globalization" (late 1980s to the present). Also suggests some of the challenges for the field in the coming decade. Details the history of matching gifts programs and in-kind giving. With bibliographic references.

History of Community Foundations