Historical information

The Presidents Fund was created in 1932 by a donation from Legatee Walter W Berry from his late father's estate "to help temporarily embarrassed Melbourne Legatees" towards the end of The Great Depression.
The aim of the fund was the give the President a way to help needy cases with discretion and without having to gain approval from committees. In many cases the money was repaid by the recipient.
The letters record donations from various people, including the Howard and Georgina Berry Benevolent Fund which made donations for many years. Other donations include Mr J D Lobb, Legatee Bill Fry, and Legatee Ron Austin. Ron Austin usually forwarded money from the 'Over 70s' gathering of legatees over the age of 70 who met socially.
This document was in a folder labelled President's Fund Origin and Authorisation with many other documents that included correspondence, receipts of donations and material about when money was given to help appropriate cases.
The folder was marked with H40 which is part of an early archive project from the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Significance

The Presidents Fund was a significant help to legatees and junior legatees who were unable to obtain help from other sources.

Physical description

File letters from Legacy to various donors to acknowledge donations and enclose receipts for donation to the President's Fund.

Inscriptions & markings

Handwritten 'File' on many letters.