American Philanthropy in the 20th Century: a Sampling of Resources

American Philanthropy, Second Edition
By Robert H. Bremner

This book, by an emeritus professor at Ohio State University,

traces the history of philanthropy in the United States from the 17th century through the 1980s. Includes a timeline of important events in American philanthropy from 1601 to 1987 and a bibliography of suggested readings.

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 5801 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago 60628; (773) 568-1550 or (800) 621-2736; fax (773) 660-2235 or (800) 621-8476; http://www.press.uchicago.edu; 291 pages; $17 plus $3.50 postage and handling; I.S.B.N. 0-226-07325-4.

The Big Foundations
By Waldemar A. Nielsen

A 1972 study of the 33 largest foundations in America by a former Ford Foundation official, this book includes information on their history, financial expenditures, and influence on society.

Publisher: Columbia University Press, 136 South Broadway, Irvington, N.Y. 10533; (914) 591-9111 or (800) 944-8648; fax (914) 591-9201 or (800) 944-1844; http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup; 475 pages; $69; I.S.B.N. 0-231-03665-5.

Effective Fund-Raising Management
By Kathleen S. Kelly

Designed as a textbook for courses on fund raising, this book provides information on techniques, ethics, laws, and other aspects of philanthropy, and explains the academic theories and research that influence the solicitation process. (For a story on the book, see The Chronicle, March 26, 1998.)

Publisher: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers, 10 Industrial Avenue, Mahwah, N.J. 07430-2262; (201) 236-9500 or (800) 926-6579; fax (201) 760-3735; http://www.erlbaum.com; 680 pages; $135 cloth, $49.95 paper; I.S.B.N. 0-8058-1321-7 cloth, 0-8058-2010-8 paper.

Foundations, Private Giving, and Public Policy: Report and Recommendations of the Commission on Foundations and Private Philanthropy
By the Commission on Foundations and Private Philanthropy

Published in 1970, this book discusses the role of philanthropy in society, the needs of non-profit organizations, tax issues for foundations, and other topics. Out of print.

Publisher: University of Chicago; 287 pages; I.S.B.N. 0-226-66286-1.

Fund Raising in the United States: Its Role in America’s Philanthropy
By Scott M. Cutlip

This 1965 book traces the history of fund raising in the United States from the 1600s, emphasizing secular fund raising after 1900.

Publisher: Transaction Publishers, 390 Campus Drive, Somerset, N.J. 08873; (732) 445-1245 or (888) 999-6778; fax (732) 748-9801; http://www.transactionpub.com; 591 pages; $49.95; I.S.B.N. 0-88738-317-3.

Inventing the Nonprofit Sector and Other Essays on Philanthropy, Voluntarism, and Nonprofit Organizations
By Peter Dobkin Hall

This book includes nine essays that explore such issues as the history of charitable organizations in the United States and their often-adversarial relationship with government, the influence of religion on philanthropy, the evolution of trusteeship, conflicts caused by the trend toward greater professionalism in non-profit management, research and teaching about the non-profit world, and the future of philanthropy.

Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2715 North Charles Street, Baltimore 21218-4319; (800) 537-5487; fax (410) 516-6998; http://www.press.jhu.edu; 362 pages; $42.50 plus $4 postage and handling; I.S.B.N. 0-8018-4272-7.

Making the Nonprofit Sector in the United States: A Reader
Edited by David C. Hammack

This book traces how constitutional, economic, and political developments have affected charitable organizations from Colonial times to the present.

Publisher: Indiana University Press, 601 North Morton Street, Bloomington, Ind. 47404-3797; (812) 855-6804 or (800) 842-6796; fax (812) 855-8507; http://www.indiana.edu/~iupress; 592 pages; $39.95 plus $5 postage and handling; I.S.B.N. 0-253-33489-6.

Philanthropy and the Nonprofit Sector in a Changing America
Edited by Charles T. Clotfelter and Thomas Ehrlich

This collection of essays, prepared for a 1998 conference at the Getty Center, examines the state of philanthropy in the United States today. Topics include the history of philanthropy in the United States and the changing roles of foundations.

Publisher: Indiana University Press, 601 North Morton Street, Bloomington, Ind. 47404-3797; (812) 855-6804 or (800) 842-6796; fax (812) 855-8507; http://www.indiana.edu/~iupress; 560 pages; $35 plus $5 postage and handling; I.S.B.N. 0-253-33521-3.

To Profit or Not to Profit: The Commercial Transformation of the Nonprofit Sector
Edited by Burton A. Weisbrod

This collection of essays by scholars examines the conflicts and problems that can arise from charities’ commercial activities and from joint ventures with corporations.

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 110 Midland Avenue, Port Chester, N.Y. 10573-4930; (914) 937-9600 or (800) 872-7423; fax (914) 937-4712; http://www.cup.org; 352 pages; $69.95 cloth; $22.95 paper; I.S.B.N. 0-521-63180-7 cloth, 0-521-78506-5 paper.