New York State War Council Office of Physical Fitness Director's Program Administration Subject Files

Alphabetical by topic.

This series contains correspondence, form letters, expense account forms, address lists, manuals, minutes, annual and monthly reports, and field reports documenting the activities of the Office of Physical Fitness and the director's administration of its various programs. While some of the records document office routine (office expenses or expenses for outside help, time schedules), the bulk relates to its programs encouraging physical fitness.

Materials found include: meeting minutes of the Office of Physical Fitness, staff conferences, the finance committee, or the War Council; correspondence with related agencies about fitness and health; reports from field representatives; annual reports for the office from 1940-1944; correspondence and reports from regional supervisors; press releases describing program initiatives or appointments; form letters to or about schools and principals, certificate requisition, directors of physical fitness programs, physical fitness films, equipment acquisition and program changes, and state agencies in war programs; and certificate cards for various activities (obstacle course, swimming, etc.).

The field representatives' reports provide: city or county; date; field representative's name; agency; names and titles (if any) of persons interviewed; number of children participating, divided by gender and sometimes age; number of persons involved in the program; reason for the field trip; and observations (in supplemental field reports): number of playgrounds, number of supervisors, source(s) of financing, number of teams and types of activities.

Also found are program manuals, either in manuscript form, final printed form, or both, entitled: A Program for the Conservation of Muscular Energy; Can You Take It?; Combative Activities and Sports for Young Men; Competitive Team Sports for Boys and Young Men; Fitness First, A Manual for Preregistered Boys; Gymnastic Apparatus and Tumbling Activities for Boys and Young Men; One Hundred Yard Obstacle Course, A Commando-Ranger Training Course for Boys and Young Men; Physical Fitness for Girls and Women; Swimming and Water Safety; and The Making of an American, A Manual for War-Industry Workers.

A4368Series A4368, Field Representatives' Reports and Support Materials, and

A4371Series A4371, Director's Office Administration Files, contain additional field reports.

This series was originally accessioned as boxes 197-200 of old collection #77, accession -71.

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of the material.