Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Cooper and Levy families papers, 1890-1959
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Cooper family
- Title
- Cooper and Levy families papers
- Dates
- 1890-1959 (inclusive)18901959
- Quantity
- 17.46 cubic feet (42 boxes)
- Collection Number
- 2366 (Accession No. 2366-001)
- Summary
- Papers of two related pioneer Jewish families from Seattle, Washington.
- Repository
-
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu - Access Restrictions
-
The papers are open to all users.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
In 1892 Isaac Cooper and his wife's brother, Louis Levy, formed a partnership and established the firm of Cooper & Levy, a retail and mail order grocery, hardware, and woodenware business. They supplied most of the prospectors during the Alaska-Klondike gold rush and acquired a considerable fortune by the time they sold out ten years later to the Bon Marché department store.
In the same year, 1892, Esther Levy and her daughter, Lizzie Levy Cooper, organized Seattle's first Jewish welfare society, the Ladies' Hebrew Benevolent Society, to provide aid to needy families. Esther Levy became its first president, serving until 1900. Lizzie Levy Cooper was president from 1900 to1915. She was also president of the Seattle Council of Jewish Women, 1903-1906; vice president of the state council during the same period; and president of the Ladies Auxiliary to Temple De Hirsch, 1913-1914. She died in 1915.
Two of Lizzie Levy Cooper's brothers, Aubrey Levy, a lawyer, and Eugene Levy, a motion picture theater promoter, in partnership with Isaac Cooper (Lizzie Levy Cooper's husband) formed the Republic Operating Company and in 1927 built the Republic Building at Third Avenue and Pike Street. All of the income from this building was willed in 1945 and 1959 to three service organizations: the Jewish Welfare Society, the Caroline Kline Galland Home for the Aged, and the Seattle Children's Orthopedic Hospital of Seattle.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The Cooper and Levy families papers are the records of two pioneer Seattle Jewish families and include the records of Isaac Cooper; his wife, Lizzie Levy Cooper; her brothers Louis, Aubrey, and Eugene Levy; and their mother, Esther Levy. The papers contain correspondence, business records, financial records, legal documents, memorabilia, scrapbooks, and some photographs.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
The creators' literary rights have not been transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.
Preferred Citation
Cooper and Levy families papers, Accession No. 2366-001, University of Washington Libraries.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The papers have been arranged into 10 series:
- General family papers
- Isaac Cooper papers
- Lizzie Levy Cooper papers
- Aubrey Levy papers
- Eugene Levy papers
- Republic Operating Company records
- Republic Building records
- Henry Broderick, Inc. records
- Bonham Galland papers
- Visual and other materials
Separated Materials
339 photographs were relocated to the Cooper and Levy Families Photograph Collection, PH Coll. 722, in Special Collections in 1977, 1979, 1982, and 1987.
2 scrapbooks of Eugene Levy relating to theater in Seattle from 1917 to 1920 were relocated to the Special Collections' Pacific Northwest Scrapbook Collection in 1977.
Acquisition Information
Gift of the Levy Memorial Trust, Bank of California, Seattle, November 14, 1974; and of Eugene Levy, Seattle, 1975.
Processing Note
Processing completed circa 1977-1979. Accession Nos. 2366-001 and 2366-002 were merged.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
General family papersReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
1/1-2 | Biographical data |
undated |
1/3-5 | Financial records 3 items
|
1936-1945 |
Legal documents |
||
Box/Folder | ||
1/6 | Congregation Ohaveth
Sholom 1 item
|
undated |
1/7 | Ladies Hebrew Benevolent
Society 1 item
|
undated |
Box/Folder | ||
1/8-9 | Cooper-Levy Company
catalogs 3 items
|
1896, 1897, 1898 |
box-folder-box | ||
2/1-3/15/40 | Photographs |
Isaac Cooper papersReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
5/1 | Incoming letters 12 items
|
1913-1922 |
5/2 | Outgoing letters 1 item
|
undated |
Letterpress copy book of Isaac
Cooper 598 pages
|
1907-1924 | |
Box/Folder | ||
5/3-4 | Financial records |
1918-1946 |
5/5 | Tax records 15 items
|
1939-1941 |
6/1 | Legal documents 7 items
|
1912 |
6/2-4 | Estate of Isaac
Cooper 80 items
|
1945-1946 |
Lizzie Levy Cooper papersReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
6/5 | Biographical material 3 items
|
1915, 1951 |
6/6 | Writing 3 items
|
undated |
6/7-8 | Clippings 130 items
|
1886-1911 |
6/9 | Memorabilia 1 item
|
undated |
Aubrey Levy papersReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
7/1 | Incoming letters 5 items
|
1900-1921 |
Letterpress copy book of Aubrey
Levy 560 pages
|
1907-1914 | |
Box/Folder | ||
7/2 | Miscellaneous financial
records 10 items
|
1916, 1945, 1947 |
7/3 | Tax records 8 items
|
1939-1944 |
7/4 | Speech 1 item
|
undated |
7/5-6 | Legal documents |
undated |
8/1 | Court docket 145 pages
|
1909-1920 |
8/2 | Memorabilia 4 items
|
undated |
8/3-4 | Estate of Aubrey Levy 100 items
|
1945-1946 |
Eugene Levy papersReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
9/1-10/8 | General
correspondence 300 items
|
1905-1959 |
Business correspondence and
related papers This series contains not only the business correspondence of
Eugene Levy, but correspondence concerning his charitable contributions.
|
||
Box/Folder | ||
11/1-4 | Church |
1948-1959 |
11/5-7 | Estate charities 200 items
|
1946-1959 |
12/1-3 | Investments 200 items
|
1945-1959 |
12/4-6 | Jewish Family and Child
Service 300 items
|
1945-1959 |
13/1 | John Carefoot Charity 30 items
|
1950 |
13/2 | Jonas and Bronson 40 items
|
1947-1948 |
13/3 | Preston, Thorgrimson, Horowitz
and Turner 30 items
|
1944-1948 |
13/4 | Price Waterhouse and
Company 20 items
|
1946-1949 |
13/5-8 | Seattle First National
Bank 300 items
|
1945-1959 |
14/1-5 | Terry and Pike
property 400 items
|
1947-1954 |
15/1-3 | Yates, Riley and
MacDonald 200 items
|
1946-1954 |
15/4-5 | 14th and East Madison
property 150 items
|
1948-1955 |
15/6 | 1704 14th Avenue
property 40 items
|
1944-1951 |
16/1-3 | Tax records 150 items
|
1939-1958 |
16/4 | Writings 5 items
|
undated |
16/5 | Radio broadcast
transcripts 30 items
|
1952-1953 |
17/1 | Will of Eugene Levy 1 item
|
1959 |
17/2-10 | Newsletters 100 items
|
1954-1958 |
18/1-19/2 | Cards 200 items
|
1948, undated |
19/3 | Lists 8 items
|
undated |
19/4-20/2 | Memorabilia 40 items
|
1949-1955 |
Box | ||
20 | Scrapbook 1 item
|
1907-1911 |
21 | Scrapbooks |
1912-1933, 1950-1957 |
22 | Appointment, address, autograph
books, and passport 20 items
|
1950-1959 |
Box/Folder | ||
22/1 | Notes 30 items
|
undated |
22/2-23/4 | Clippings 150 items
|
1901-1959 |
23/5-6 | Programs 30 items
|
1899-1918 |
23/-24/1 | Ephemera 100 items
|
undated |
Republic Operating Company recordsReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
24/2-5 | General
correspondence 200 items
|
1922-1943 |
24/6 | Minutes 1 item
|
1926 |
24/7 | Reports 2 items
|
1937, 1939 |
24/8-25/3 | Financial records 200 items
|
1934-1938 |
25/4-7 | Legal documents 40 items
|
1927-1944 |
25/8 | Lease forms 2 items
|
undated |
25/9 | Insurance policies 2 items
|
1926, 1928 |
25/10 | Lists 2 items
|
1936, 1942 |
25/11 | Notes 7 items
|
undated |
25/12 | Miscellany 4 items
|
undated |
Republic Building recordsReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
26/1-2 | General
correspondence 100 items
|
1942-1959 |
26/3 | Financial records 120 items
|
1947-1948, 1959 |
26/4 | Payroll records 14 items
|
1959 |
26/5-7 | Tax records 70 items
|
1948-1959 |
26/8-10 | Agreements 15 items
|
1943-1945 |
26/11 | Vacate notices 10 items
|
1943 |
26/12 | Insurance analysis 32 pages
|
1957 |
26/13 | Lease between Cooper and Levys
and Republic Building Company 80 pages
|
1926 |
26/14 | Mandatory wording and standard
clauses of Republic Building leases 7 items
|
1940, undated |
27/1 | Expired leases 4 items
|
1957-1958 |
27/2 -28/6 | Leases 60 items
|
1945-1959 |
29/1-10 | Newsletters: Building Owners and
Managers Association |
undated |
30/1 -34/5 | Statements 500 items
|
1943-1954, 1956 |
35/1-36/7 | Miscellaneous building management
materials 200 items
|
1950-1959 |
37/1 | Clippings 12 items
|
1909-1929 |
37/2-4 | Ephemera 70 items
|
1955-1957 |
Bonham Galland papersReturn to Top
The Bonham Galland papers are from the disposition of the estate of Bonham Galland. Galland was a Seattle pioneer and well-known Jewish philanthropist whose will established a trust for the construction and maintenance of an orphanage for homeless Jewish children. Isaac Cooper was executor and Aubrey Levy was the attorney for this trust.
The papers, formerly housed in the Republic Building, were willed to the University of Washington by Eugene Levy.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
38/1 | Incoming letters 30 items
|
1915-1918 |
38/2 | Outgoing letters 1 item
|
1915 |
38/3-7 | Financial records 60 items
|
1907-1919 |
38/8-9 | Legal documents 50 items
|
1915-1917 |
38/10 | Clippings 1 item
|
1915 |
Visual and other materialsReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
box:oversize | ||
39 | Photograph of a
banquet |
undated |
39 | Scrapbook of Isaac
Cooper |
undated |
39 | Scrapbook of Eugene
Levy |
undated |
39 | Memorabilia of Eugene
Levy |
undated |
40 | Certificates |
undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Building management--Washington (State)--Seattle
- General stores--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Grocery trade--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Jewish businessmen--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Jewish families--Washington (State)--Seattle--Archives
- Jewish pioneers--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Jews--Charities--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Jews--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)
- Philanthropists--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Real estate investment--Washington (State)--Seattle
Personal Names
- Galland, Bonham
- Levy, Aubrey, 1945
- Levy, Eugene
Corporate Names
- Cooper & Levy (Firm : Seattle, Wash.)
- Henry Broderick, Inc
Family Names
- Cooper family
- Levy family
Geographical Names
- Seattle (Wash.)--Buildings, structures, etc
- Seattle (Wash.)--Economic conditions
Form or Genre Terms
- Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
- Legal documents
- Photographs
- Scrapbooks
- business records
- correspondence
- financial records
- letterpress copybooks
- memorabilia
- property records
- tax records
Other Creators
-
Corporate Names
- Washington State Jewish Archives (University of Washington)
Family Names
- Levy family (creator)