Emma Octavia Lundberg (October 8, 1881 – November 17, 1954) was a Swedish-American child welfare advocate.

Biography

Emma Octavia Lundberg was born in Tranegärdet, Humle Socken,

Västergötland Västergötland (), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden. Väs ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

on October 26, 1881 to Frans Vilhelm Lundberg and Anna Kajsa Johanson. Her family emigrated to

Rockford, Illinois Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, located in the far northern part of the state. Situated on the banks of the Rock River, Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County (a small portion of the city is located in Ogle County). ...

in 1884 where Lundberg went to attend Rockford High School, graduating in 1901. Lundberg then completed both a bachelor's in 1907 and a master's degree in 1908 from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

before going to work studying the living conditions of immigrant families in cities. She worked for a number of organisations including the Associated Charities in Madison, Wisconsin, and Milwaukee, the United Charities of Chicago and the United States Immigration Commission. By 1913 Lundberg was a deputy at the Wisconsin Industrial Commission before she moved to

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

to take over as the first Director of the

Social Services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

Division of the

United States Children's Bureau The United States Children's Bureau is a federal agency organized under the United States Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families. Today, the bureau's operations involve improving child abuse prevention, ...

. Katherine F. Lenroot joined the bureau shortly after and the two produced a number of publications together. Lundberg joined the

Child Welfare League of America The Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that coordinates efforts for child welfare in the United States, and provides direct support to agencies that serve children and families. The organization's visio ...

in 1925, resigning from her position in D.C. and became their Director of the Department of Institutional Care and then Director of Studies and Surveys. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

Lundberg worked for Governor

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

as Director of Research and Statistics at the New York Temporary Emergency Relief Administration as well as working as a consultant for a variety of other public agencies. In 1935 Lundberg returned to the Children's Bureau. Lenroot was now Chief of the Bureau. Lundberg took up the position of Assistant Director of the Child Welfare Division from then until 1942. From that point on she acted as a consultant for social services and in 1945 she retired due to ill health. During her time in positions of influence Lundberg had created the ground work for the children welfare provisions under the

Social Security Act The Social Security Act of 1935 is a law enacted by the 74th United States Congress and signed into law by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The law created the Social Security program as well as insurance against unemployment. The law was pa ...

of 1937 and taken part as research secretary to the White House Conference on Child Health and Protection and assistant secretary of White House Conference on Children in a Democracy (1940). When Lenroot retired, she and Lundberg lived together in Hartsdale, New York where Lundberg died on November 17, 1954.

Bibliography

* Illegitimacy as a Child Welfare Problem (1920, 1922) * Juvenile Courts at Work (1925) * Children Deprived of Parental Care (1926) * Public Aid to Mothers with Dependent Children (1926) * Child Dependency in the United States (1933) * Unto the Least of These: Social Services for Children (1947)

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lundberg, Emma Octavia 1881 births 1954 deaths People from Västergötland People from Rockford, Illinois People from Hartsdale, New York University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Swedish emigrants to the United States