The Arthur Dunham papers are a valuable source for the study of the evolution of social work theory and practice, particularly in the area of community development and organization. In addition, the collection details Dunham's experience as a World War I conscientious objector, as well as including much information on the Ann Arbor Friends Meeting.
Arthur Dunham was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on August 3, 1893. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 1914, and obtained an M.A. in political science from the University of Illinois in 1917. Dunham started as a social worker in 1915 at a neighborhood center in St. Louis. Later in 1917, he became a family case worker for the St. Louis Provident Association.
Dunham's career was interrupted in 1918 as a result of America's entry into World War I. Dunham was a religious pacifist and refused service when drafted in July 1918. Incarcerated at Fort Riley until his court-martial on November 12, 1918, Dunham was sentenced to 25 years of hard labor. He remained in prison at Fort Leavenworth until his sentence was overturned on January 27, 1919. On May 31, 1919, Dunham married Esther Schneider, who had strongly influenced him to take his stand as a conscientious objector.
From September 1919 to May 1923, Dunham worked as secretary of the Philadelphia Social Service Exchange. From 1923 to 1925, he was secretary of the Newton (Massachusetts) Central Council, an organization of social agencies. In 1925 he became secretary of the Child Welfare Division of the Public Charities Association of Pennsylvania. He remained in this position until 1935. He also held temporary positions during this period with the Pittsburgh Child Welfare Study, the Family Welfare Association, and the Pennsylvania State Emergency Relief Board.
Dunham was appointed professor of community organization at the University of Michigan in 1935, holding this post until his retirement in 1963. At the university, Dunham taught courses in community organization and social welfare administration. From 1962 to 1972 he held posts as a visiting professor at a number of universities. In 1956 he made a trip through Europe and Asia, spending three months in India where he studied their community development programs. Dunham also made a trip to Northern Ireland in 1971 to serve as a consultant to the Northern Ireland Community Relations Commission.
Arthur and Esther Dunham joined the Society of Friends in 1923. In 1935 they were instrumental in founding the Ann Arbor Friends Meeting. They remained very active in the Meeting, and in 1975 Dunham wrote a history of its first forty years.
Dunham died September 1, 1980.
