Dates
- 1935-1956
Scope and Content Note
This collection consists of the personal and professional records of Dr. Eugene E. Agger, Professor Emeritus of economics from Rutgers University. The collection is approximately 2 cubic feet in size and consists of five letter size manuscript boxes and spans the period 1935-1956. The bulk of the material dates from 1940-1948.
Subjects documented in the collection include Dr. Agger's personal and professional life, U.S. international economic policy in World War II, housing development in the city of New Brunswick, and the intellectual state of the economics department at Rutgers University.
The collection contains several series: I. General correspondence, II. Subject correspondence, III. Commissioner of banking and insurance, IV. Housing work, V. Economists national committee on monetary policy, VI. Rutgers retirement program, VII. Speeches and articles, and VIII. Biographical files.
The files contain photographs in protective sleeves as well as photocopied newspaper clippings in order to preserve the information. However, all the correspondence, notes and forms are the originals.
Dr. Agger was a very well respected economist; as can be seen by his many leadership positions in well respected private and government associations. It should be noted that in the General Correspondence series in folder R there are several letters written to Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Jr. and his mother Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt requesting that they speak at the New Brunswick high school assembly "New Jersey Meets Her World Neighbors". Dr. Agger was part of the speaker's committee for this assembly and was friendly with the Roosevelts through his work on the Resettlement Administration in Washington, D.C. The two sent return letters with original signatures declining the speaking engagement and citing prior engagements.
It should also be noted that in the Housing Work series in the Housing Authority folder there is wonderful documentation of New Jersey's first Negro housing project. Dr. Agger headed this project and it was the first of its kind in the state. The folder contains details of the project from its inception to the dedication ceremony. The detailed account of Dr. Agger's work here is an excellent account of both New Jersey's urban planning and social history.
Extent
2 Cubic Feet (5 manuscript boxes)
Language of Materials
English.
Abstract
Dr. Eugene E. Agger studied economics at the University of Cincinatti and Columbia University. He taught economics at Columbia before becoming a professor of economics and head of the Economics department at Rutgers University from 1926-1950. Dr. Agger held many prominent positions in the economics and banking communities and authored several books on those subjects.
Biographical Sketch of Eugene Agger
Eugene Agger was born on December 4, 1879 in Cincinatti Ohio. He married May C. Hessler on June 4, 1908. They had two children, Donald (1912-1963) and Carolyn Eugenia (1913- ). Agger received both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the University of Cincinnati in 1901 and 1902 respectively. He received his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University in 1907. He served successively as a lecturer in economics, assistant professor and associate professor at Columbia University from 1907-1926. He moved on to become a full professor of economics and head of the Economics department at Rutgers University from 1926-1950. While at Rutgers he also served as director of the Bureau of Economic and Business Research. He died in 1966.
Dr. Agger's professional positions and accomplishments include:
- Lecturer for the American Institute of Banking from 1917-1942.
- Assistant director of the division of analysis and research on the Federal Reserve Board from 1917-1918.
- Assistant to the president of National City Bank, New York from 1918-1920.
- Associate Director of the Graduate School of Banking and the American Bankers Association from 1935-1950.
- Director of the management division, assistant administrator, and consultant of the Resettlement Administration in Washington, DC from 1935-1937.
- Commissioner of New Jersey State Housing Authority 1936-1945.
- President of the New Jersey Welfare Council 1939-1940.
- Commissioner of Banking and Insurance, New Jersey 1942-1945.
- Member of Board of Education, Tenafly New Jersey 1920-1929.
- Member of American Economic Association and Century Association.
Dr. Agger served as the editor of the American edition of Henry Clay's Economics for the General Reader in 1918. He also authored several books including The Budget in the American Commonwealth (1907), Organized Banking (1918), Banking in New Jersey (1930), Banking and the New Deal (1934), and Money and Banking Today (1941).
Dr. Agger was a Professor Emeritus of economics from Rutgers University when he died in 1966. His community and intellectual contributions are well documented in this collection and are discussed in more detail in the Scope and Content section. (Biography selected from Who's Who in America.)
Arrangement Note
The Papers of Eugene Agger are arranged in eight series:
- I. General Correspondence
- II. Subject Correspondence
- III. Commissioner Of Banking And Insurance
- IV. Housing Work
- V. Economists National Committee On Monetary Policy
- VI. Rutgers Retirement Program
- VII. Speeches and Articles
- VIII. Biographical Files
- Title
- Guide to the Eugene E. Agger Papers, 1935-1956 R-MC 057
- Status
- Edited Full Draft
- Author
- Sharon Kaye
- Date
- May 2002
- Language of description note
- Description is written in: Undetermined, Code for undetermined script script.
Revision Statements
- June 17, 2004: agger converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02.xsl (sy2003-10-15).
Part of the Rutgers University Archives Repository
Rutgers University Libraries
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
169 College Avenue
New Brunswick NJ 08901-1163
848-932-7510
732-932-7012 (Fax)
scua_ref@libraries.rutgers.edu