Nathan H. Kaufman (1910-) is well known throughout the Pittsburgh area for his numerous athletic, professional, and charitable achievements. He was born to Samuel Kaufman and Mary Feldman in Brooklyn, New York on January 2, 1910, the oldest of five children. In 1918, the Kaufmans moved to the Pittsburgh Hill District, an area of large Jewish population at the turn of the century. During difficult economic times, Mary Kaufman earned extra money by peddling linens door-to-door. Mary was such a successful entrepreneur that she was able to help Samuel start his own grocery business on Clark Street. Later, Mary and her youngest son, Saul, opened a toy store in Bloomfield.
Nathan developed an early interest in athletics, particularly swimming. He taught himself to swim at the Irene Kaufmann Settlement (IKS), an important recreational, cultural, and athletic institution located on Centre Avenue on the Hill. At the age of fifteen, Nathan saved a man from drowning at the Oakmont Beach. He passed the Junior Life Saving Examination in 1925 and the Senior Life Saving Examination in 1927. He studied architecture and drafting at Ralston Junior High School, and subsequently attended Fifth Avenue High School on the Hill, but he left without graduating. He held a variety of jobs, both in Pittsburgh and New York City, including travelling with the Ringling Brothers, Barnum Bailey Circus as a pony groomer for two months in 1928. Persistence paid off, and after completing coursework at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Social Work, Nathan was awarded his general equivalency diploma in 1989.
Nathan married Sarah Zapler (-1977) on June 1, 1930. They had four children: Mildred (Schwab), Irene (Leibovitz), Ralph, and Wayne. Nathan and Sarah lived on Wick Street on the Hill until the 1940s, when they joined the general Jewish migration to the East End. They moved to a house on Stanton Avenue, where Nathan still resides. Sarah died on April 16, 1977, and Nathan married Esther Levine (19?-) on December 31, 1977. Ralph Kaufman died in January, 1990.
In 1925, Nathan began his professional association with IKS, serving as junior counselor at the Emma Farm Camp. From 1929 until 1938, he was assistant athletic director and swimming coach at the IKS. Nathan earned a reputation as one of the finest swimming coaches in the Pittsburgh area. During this time, he conceived several aquatic games, publishing Water Games and Stunts in 1935. Nathan also wrote a column, "Splashes," for Pool Age magazine. He continued to participate in athletics by completing nine miles of the marathon swim at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933 and by serving as a faculty member at the Red Cross lifesaving program in Chatauqua, New York. In 1938, Nathan joined the staff of the Allegheny County Department of Parks as program director for the County Fair and recreation supervisor for the county parks (1940-1942). As part of the County Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1938, he staged and directed the "Aqua Ballet" in North Park, the largest amateur water show ever held at that time.
During World War II, Nathan served with the American Red Cross in the China-Burma-India Theatre of Operations, where he organized and managed recreational facilities for enlisted men. He began as program director in 1943, and by 1945 had risen to the position of regional director in charge of all Red Cross clubs along the Ledo-Stilwell Road in India and China. In 1943, he attained the temporary rank of Captain of the United States Army.
When Nathan returned to Pittsburgh after the war, he briefly rejoined the County Parks Department as recreation director (1945-1946). He later served as the community recreation service director for the Honus Wagner Company. In 1947, he became the director of Health and Physical Education Department at the Young Men's and Young Women's Hebrew Association (YMamp;YWHA), a position he held until 1960. During this time, he directed the YMYWHA's summer camp, the Laurel Y Camp. In 1960, he accepted the vice presidency of Top O' the Mount, a proposed resort in Jennerstown, Pennsylvania. The financial backing of the project collapsed in 1961. In 1962, he managed the Bear Rocks Resort, located in the Laurel Mountains. This was followed by a brief stint as manager of the Beau Brummell Club, a now defunct members-only lounge in downtown Pittsburgh.
He rejoined the staff of the YMYWHA in 1963, as the director of the Irvin F. Lehman Health Center. He left the YMYWHA to accept a position as manager of the Chatham Center Health Club in 1966. He retired from Chatham Center in 1977. Throughout his career, he remained active in officiating at Pittsburgh Public School swim and track meets, and administering life saving examinations for the county. In 1960, he was honored with a testimonial dinner. Nathan's athletic achievements have been recognized by several organizations. He is a member of the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the Pennsylvania Swimming Hall of Fame, and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Nathan is perhaps best known for his charitable work in the community, which has focused primarily on underprivileged and disabled youth. Since 1949, he has been involved in the Variety Club, an international organization founded in Pittsburgh in 1927 to help this population. Elected Chief Barker (president) in 1972, he was instrumental in the development of Camp Variety (formerly Camp O'Connell) in Bradfordwoods as a recreational facility for disabled children. Among his many other affiliations are the Masons, Optimist Club of Pittsburgh, Knights of the Pythias, Dapper Dan Club of Pittsburgh, B'nai B'rith, Jewish War Veterans Association, and the United Bessarabians of Pittsburgh. In 1976, his fifty years of charitable activities were recognized by another testimonial dinner. He was awarded the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Outstanding Citizen Award in 1978.
These papers include biographical information, correspondence, personal scrapbooks, organizational files and other sundry material. Because numerous processors have worked on the collection, provenance has on occasion been lost. The topical arrangement imposed by a previous processor has been improved and preserved. The papers relate primarily to Kaufman's professional and voluntary activities, and do not offer much personal or family information. Also lacking in these papers are significant insights into the Pittsburgh Jewish community, apart from the availability of athletic facilities. Material on all aspects of Nate's professional and volunteer activities may be found in both the organizational files in Series II and the personal scrapbooks in Series I. These two types of materials should be used in concert for all examinations of his activities.
Series have been designated for personal papers and organizational materials.
The Nathan H. Kaufman Papers are housed in nine archival boxes.
This collection is open for research.
These materials came in one accession in 1988.
Acc# 1988.72 Gift of Nathan H. Kaufman, (Papers).
Papers of Nathan H. Kaufman, 1925-1990, MSS# 5, Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania
This collection was processed by Keith Parrish in c1988. Papers rearranged and inventory rewritten by Susan J. Illis on March 1, 1993.
Revision and rearrangement for the encoded version of the finding aid provided by Doug MacGregor on June 2, 2001.
Property rights reside with the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permissions to reproduce or publish, please contact the curator of the Archives.
The second series, organizations, is housed in three boxes and arranged in two sub-series: athletic/recreational and civic. Both sub-series are arranged alphabetically by folder title. As was mentioned, these subject files are strengthened by materials contained in Kaufman's scrapbooks, located in the personal series. The first sub-series, on athletic and recreational organizations, contains materials on Allegheny County's Department of Parks, Jewish Community Center, American Red Cross, Irene Kaufmann Settlement, and other organizations. Included are correspondence, meeting notices, minutes of meetings, newspaper clippings and programs, pertaining primarily to special events and programs. These papers are rich in information on amateur athletics and recreational activities in Western Pennsylvania in the middle part of the twentieth century.
The second sub-series, civic organizations, includes materials relating to Nathan's involvement primarily in charitable organizations. This sub-series contains special events materials such as correspondence, minutes of meetings, clippings, and programs. There is a significant body of information documenting his involvement with the Variety Club of Pittsburgh. Of particular interest are ephemeral materials relating to Kaufman's service with the American National Red Cross in the China-Burma-India Theatre during World War II. Also included is a minute book from the Valada Club, a young man's organization for which Nathan served as secretary in the 1920s. Materials for other organizations are not as significant in this sub-series, and the researcher should consult the personal scrapbooks for more information.