National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis: South St. Louis County Chapter records

The National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis was founded by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as a national successor to the Warm Springs Foundation President Roosevelt established in 1927. The purpose of the foundation was to provide funds for polio research, education, and patient aid. It was supported by private donations to what was throughout the 1950s an annual fund-raising drive called the March of Dimes. By the mid 1950s most large cities held televised twenty-four-hour telethons in which celebrities would urge viewers to give. The telethons were augmented by door-to-door collections performed by individuals and community groups. Between 1937 and 1957 the March of Dimes collected approximately $500 million, and 1956 alone the March of Dimes raised $52 million. In 1958, the war against polio largely won, the organization changed its name to the National Foundation and broadened its interests. Over the years, the name "March of Dimes" became synonymous with that of the charity and was officially adopted in 1979. March of Dimes is an American health charity whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality.

The March of Dimes Minnesota Chapter has evolved over the decades, and it now has regional divisions. The South St. Louis County Chapter is now part of the Northland Minnesota Division at 130 W. Superior Street, Suite 100, in Duluth.