Special Collections Department
Special Collections Department - Collections - Subject Guides - Legislators
Legislators Collections Guide
Anderson, Joseph H. Papers, 1914-1960, undated.
Extent: 2.57 linear feet.
Number: RS 01/03/51.
Description: Joseph H. Anderson was born on April 12, 1871 in Winnebago County, Iowa. He received his education in the rural schools of his home county, and in Cedar Falls at the Iowa State Teachers College (University of Northern Iowa) where he received a bachelor's degree (1898). Anderson, a Republican, was elected to the Iowa Legislature in 1914, and served continuously in the House of Representatives until 1923. He served as speaker of the House during the 40th and 40th Extra General Assemblies. He was appointed by Governor Turner as a member of the State Board of Education in 1931 and served on the Board of Education for one term from 1931-1937. The collection contains biographical information, materials from the Iowa Board of Education and the Iowa State College Agricultural Foundation. Also included are assorted publications about agriculture and farm management. The only legislative related item in the collection is a panoramic photograph of the Agriculture Committee of Iowa's 39th General Assembly (1921).
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Bedell, Berkley (1921- ). Congressional Papers, 1974-1985.
Extent: 300 linear feet.
Number: RS 21/07/29.
Description: Democratic U.S. Congressman. Berkley Bedell represented Iowa's 6th District in the House of Representatives from 1974 to 1986. Bedell was born on March 5, 1921, in Spirit Lake, Iowa, and graduated from Spirit Lake High School. He attended Iowa State University from 1940 to 1942. Bedell married Elinor Healy in 1943, and the couple had three children. He was a lieutenant in the Army Air Force from 1942-1945. Bedell was the organizer and first president of Iowa Great Lakes Student Loan Fund, Inc., and he served on the board of directors of Morningside College. In Congress he was a member of the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Small Business. Bedell was chair of the Subcommittee on Oversight and the Economy and a member of the Subcommittee on Energy, Environment and Safety Issues Affecting Small Business. Collection includes correspondence, special mailings, constituents' letters, press releases, newspaper clippings, and photographs documenting Bedell's career as a legislator. Files are from his Washington, D.C., and Mason City offices.
Status: Unprocessed.
Finding Aid: Unavailable.
Benda, Kenneth J. (1918-2007). Papers, 1930-2007, undated.
Extent: 19.52 linear feet.
Number: RS 21/07/075.
Description: Kenneth Benda was born November 9, 1918, in Brooklyn, Iowa. Benda was active in Iowa politics, the American Legion, and a number of professional banking organizations. At various times he served as the Poweshiek County (Iowa) Republican chairman, on the Poweshiek County Conservation Board, as the Iowa Department Commander (1956-1957) of the American Legion, and as President (1975-1976) of the Independent Bankers Association of America. Benda was elected to the Iowa State Senate as a Republican in 1962. He resigned his seat in the Senate when he accepted the position as Iowa Commerce Commission Chairman (1969-1971). The collection contains biographical information, photographs, a scrapbook, professional correspondence, and files related to his legislative activities. The files related to his service as an Iowa Senator include information on legislative issues, much of which consists of correspondence, bills, articles, legislation introduced by Benda, speeches given by Benda, and committee materials (Agriculture Rural Committee, Banking Laws Study Committee, Government Fiscal Policy Committee, and Federal Legislation Committee). Correspondence contains a mix of professional and personal letters, such as thank you letters, letters of congratulations on his election, and invitations to dinners and seminars.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Camp, John E. (1915-1988). Papers, 1970-1988.
Extent: 0.42 linear feet (1 document box).
Number: MS-022.
Description: State representative John E. Camp was born on March 5, 1915, on a farm in Clinton County, Iowa. Camp served six terms in the Iowa House of Representatives as a Republican. He was chair of the Appropriations Committee and a member of committees involved with state government and Iowa development. The collection contains biographical information and correspondence. The correspondence is primarily letters written to Camp by his constituents with copies of his replies.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Darrington, William E. (1904-1988). Papers, 1950-1970, undated.
Extent: 2.4 linear feet (5 document boxes).
Number: MS-063.
Description: William E. Darrington was born on a farm in Persia, Iowa in Pottawattamie County on May 31, 1904. Darrington served as a State Representative as a Republican for Harrison County for nine terms (1951-1970), except for one term in 1965. In 1959 he was appointed Speaker Pro Tempore of the Iowa House of Representatives. The collection contains Darrington's state representative materials and includes subject files, printed materials on legislative concerns, speeches, drafts and proposals for bills and statutes, correspondence (mainly from constituents), and reports written by Darrington for his constituents (Highlights by Bill). The constituent correspondence includes topics such as bills and statutes, taxes, liquor control, water, roads, drainage, adoption, abortion, and population. The reports written by Darrington to his constituents, Highlights by Bill, appeared in local newspapers and discussed current bills, visitors to the legislature, and other observances or activities. Darrington described the bills which might be of interest to his constituents of Harrison County and what the bill was intended to accomplish.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Dewel, Duane E. (1901-1984). Papers, 1951-1974.
Extent: 0.42 linear feet (1 document box).
Number: MS-046.
Description: Duane E. Dewel was born in Burt, Iowa in 1901. He attended the University of Iowa (1919-1921) and graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism (1924). Dewel was active both as a journalist and state legislator. Dewel served as State Senator in the Iowa General Assembly for two terms (1948-1960) and was leader of the Senate Republican Majority in 1955. In addition to serving as a State Senator, Dewel was state chairman (1962-1963) of Iowans Against the Shaff Plan and in 1968 was chairman of Iowans Opposed to Annual Unlimited [Legislative] Sessions. The collection contains correspondence, articles, newspaper clippings and promotional materials relating to proposals for the reapportionment of the Iowa General Assembly and with the group opposed to annual sessions of the State Legislature. The collection does not contain much material related to his work in the Iowa General Assembly, other than the records related to reapportionment.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Erskine, Alden J. (1901-1991). Papers, 1923-1977, undated.
Extent: 11.76 linear feet (27 document boxes, 2 half-document boxes).
Number: MS-085.
Description: Conservationist and state legislator, Alden J. Erskine was born May 2, 1901 in Ticonic, Iowa. He attended the Nebraska School of Agriculture (1920-1921), and then went into the automotive business in Sioux City, Iowa where he owned and operated the United Motors Automobile Maintenance Company for thirty-nine years. Erskine, a Republican, served as an Iowa State Senator (1966-1972). He was Chair of the Senate's Conservation and Recreation Committee during the 64th General Assembly and Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Natural Resources (circa 1970). Erskine served on the following committees as state senator: Conservation and Recreation, Government Subdivisions, Safety and Law Enforcement, Appropriations, Cities and Towns, Constitutional and Reapportionment, Iowa Development, Ways and Means, and Assistance Grant Programs Study. The collection contains correspondence, reports, financial records, minutes, newspaper clippings, photographs, subject files, copies of bills, and printed materials. The bulk of the collection documents Erskine's involvement with the Izaak Walton League of America and his legislative career. Legislative materials include correspondence, subject files, committee files, conservation materials, reports, bills, news releases, and testimonies.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Evans, Cooper (1924-2005). Congressional Papers, 1980-1986.
Extent: 71.5 linear feet.
Number: RS 21/07/102.
Description: Politician, engineer, farmer, and Republican U.S. Congressman. Cooper Evans represented Iowa's Third District in the House of Representatives from 1980 to 1986. He was born in 1924 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and attended public school in Grundy Center. He attended Iowa State University, receiving his B.S. in mechanical engineering in 1942 and his M.S. in civil engineering in 1949. He graduated from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in 1963. Evans served in the U.S. Army Infantry from 1943-1946, and was a lieutenant colonel in the Corps of Engineers from 1949-1965. He served on the staff of the Atomic Energy Commission from 1956-1958. He was a member of the General Staff at the Pentagon and was director of advanced lunar missions at NASA from 1963-1965. Beginning in 1965, Evans farmed near Grundy Center. He was a member of the Iowa House of Representatives from 1975-1979, then served in the U.S. Congress from 1980-1986. After leaving Congress, Evans was the chair of the Quality Grain Task Force, producing a report, Grain Quality: Positioning Ourselves for the Future, in 1987. Collection contains files from Evans' Congressional office in Washington, D.C., and includes correspondence with constituents, information on various local and national issues, newspaper clippings, and computer disks and tapes.
Status: Unprocessed.
Finding Aid: Unavailable.
Gaudineer, Lee H. Papers, 1967-1972, undated.
Extent: 1.05 linear feet (2 document boxes and 1 half-document box).
Number: MS-017.
Description: Lee H. Gaudineer, Jr., was born in Des Moines, Iowa, on 10 March 1932. He received his B.A. (1957) from Grinnell College, J.D. (1958) from Drake University, and LL.M. (1967) from Missouri University. Before serving in Iowa government, Gaudineer was an attorney and served as a staff member of the legislative research bureau. After serving one term in the Iowa House, Gaudineer (Democrat) was elected to the Iowa State Senate on November 8, 1966. Two years later he won reelection. After this period Gaudineer did not seek reelection and returned to private law practice. The collection consists of minutes of the committees or sub-committees Gaudineer served on in the Iowa House and Senate. Also included are notes, minutes, correspondence, resolutions and other papers dealing with a challenge to the Iowa delegation to the 1972 Democratic National Convention. This challenge was brought before the Credentials Committee of the Democratic National Committee (1972).
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Gue, Benjamin F. Papers, 1852-1962, undated.
Extent: 2.84 linear feet (2 document boxes and 2 oversized boxes).
Number: RS 1/3/52.
Description: Benjamin Gue was born December 25, 1828 on a farm in Green County, New York. Gue came to Iowa when he was 24 and farmed land in Scott County. In 1856, he became a delegate to the State Convention, which formally organized the Republican Party in Iowa. In 1857, he was elected as the Scott County delegate (1858-1862) to the Iowa State House of Representatives, to the Iowa State Senate (1862-1866) and Lieutenant Governor (1866-1868). He was one of the authors of a bill to establish a state agricultural college and model farm (Iowa State University), which Governor Ralph P. Lowe signed the bill into law on March 22, 1858. He also encouraged the Iowa Legislature to accept the Morrill Act of 1862. An influential figure in the development of the College, Gue served as President (1886) of the Board of Trustees for the Iowa Agricultural College. He also wrote a history of the College, Origin and Early History of Iowa State College. The collection contains biographical material about Benjamin F. Gue, the address he gave at the opening of Iowa State (1869), scrapbooks, and his journals.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Hanson, Arthur C. Papers, 1917-1966.
Extent: 0.42 linear feet (1 document box).
Number: RS 21/07/064.
Description: Arthur C. Hanson (1891-1966) was a livestock farmer and former member of the Iowa State House of Representatives. He was an active member of the Inwood (Iowa) community serving on the Inwood school board, the Lyon County Board of Supervisors, and the local farm bureau chapter. This collection contains biographical information and correspondence relating to Hanson's legislative career. The bulk of the letters are from Lyon County constituents expressing their positions on various House bills, such as legislation to discontinue Iowa's mandatory testing for tuberculosis on cows, to limit the number of county supervisors from five to three, and to reduce taxes.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Hanson, Fred B. Papers, 1961-1970.
Extent: 0.21 linear feet (1 half-document box).
Number: RS 21/07/040.
Description: State representative (Republican) Fred B. Hanson was born in Inwood, Iowa, on November 20, 1888, the son of pioneer parents. He received his education at Lenox College and Iowa State University (1913). Hanson was an extension director for Harrison County, Iowa; a project manager for Granger Homesteads; a school secretary; an agent with Farm Bureau Insurance; and secretary of the Mitchell County [Iowa] Fair. Beginning in 1961 he served four terms in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing Howard and Mitchell counties. Collection includes letters to editors of county papers and to constituents on public issues, and also contains copies of Hanson's legislative newsletters and press releases.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Available in Special Collections.
Harbor, William H. and Floyd H. Millen Papers, 1956-2010, undated.
Extent: 16.59 linear feet (39 document boxes, 3 half-document boxes).
Number: MS-018.
Description: William Harbor (Republican) served as a representative from Mills County in the Iowa House (1955-1957, 1967-1973, 1977-1993) and as a Senator from Mills-Montgomery Counties (1956-1960). In 1967, Harbor returned to the Iowa House and served as Speaker (1969-1971). Harbor also was Chief Clerk of the House (1973-1974). Floyd H. Millen (Republican) served as a Representative in the Iowa House (1963-1981). The collection (1956-2010, undated) contains correspondence, subject files, newsletters, reports, bills, minutes, speeches, resolutions, press releases, invitations, publications, news clippings and calendars. The bulk of the collection contains correspondence and subject files related to Harbor's time in the Iowa Legislature during the years 1964-1981.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Hempel, John G. (1860-1945). Papers, 1881-1948, undated.
Extent: 0.84 linear feet (2 document boxes, 1 map case folder)
Number: MS-680.
Description: John G. Hempel (Republican) was born on December 9, 1860, in Giard township, Clayton County, Iowa. Hempel was involved in the political life of Iowa in a variety of ways. He served as the auditor of Clayton County for eight years (1896-1904), was elected to two terms as a member of the Republican State Central Committee for the Fourth Congressional District, appointed by Governor Albert B. Cummins as a member of the state voting machine commission, and elected as a state Representative in 1923 (serving in the fortieth through forty-second sessions). The collection contains biographical information, correspondence, and political memorabilia. The correspondence consists mostly of letters to and from constituents while Hempel was serving in the Iowa House of Representatives and as Clayton County Auditor, but also includes correspondence received from Iowa Governor and U.S. Senator Albert B. Cummins regarding Hempel's assistance in his political campaigns. The collection also contains programs and materials from various events: the Iowa State Fair, Republican State Conventions, the Republican National Convention, and State of Iowa Inaugural Ceremonies.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Iowa Women Legislators Oral History Project, 1988-1994.
Extent: 2.1 linear feet (5 document boxes).
Number: MS-257.
Description: This collection consists of 53 interviews of Iowa women legislators, conducted by Suzanne O'Dea Schenken. The interviews were used for Schenken's dissertation, Legislators and Politicians: Iowa's Women Legislators (Iowa State University, 1992). The legislators were asked questions about their childhood, family background, education, work experience and legislative careers.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Kehe, Luvern W. (1909-1995). Papers, 1964-1972, undated.
Extent: 0.42 linear feet (1 document box).
Number: MS-043.
Description: Iowa legislator and conservationist, Luvern W. Kehe was born in Black Hawk County, Iowa, in 1909. He received a B.S. (1931) from the University of Iowa in civil engineering. Kehe (Republican) served two terms as an Iowa state representative (1969-1972) and was chair of the Environmental Preservation Committee. The collection (1964-1972, undated) contains correspondence, statements, minutes, and printed materials related to Kehe's service on the Iowa House Environmental Preservation Committee and the Standing [Joint House-Senate] Committee on Environmental Preservation.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Laverty, Charles (1916-1995). Papers, 1965-1974, undated.
Extent: 2.6 linear feet (2 records center cartons).
Number: RS 21/7/69.
Description: Charles Owen Laverty was born in Indianola, Iowa, on April 16, 1916. He attended Indianola schools and Simpson College prior to earning a B.S. (1940) in dairy husbandry from Iowa State College (University). Laverty (Republican) represented Marion, Monroe, and Warren counties in the Iowa State Senate (1969-1972). During his two terms as state senator, he headed two environmental preservation study committees which produced several innovations that were later enacted into state law, including the establishment of the Chemical Technology Review Board, the Department of Environmental Quality, and a soil conservancy measure. Laverty was also a member of the Land Use Policies Study Committee. This collection contains files relating to Charles Laverty's work on environmental issues and land use during his service in the Iowa state legislature. The materials include correspondence, minutes, reports, and background information.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Manatt, Charles T. (1936-2011). Papers, 1971-2011, undated.
Extent: 2.10 linear feet (5 document boxes).
Number: RS 21/7/233.
Description: Charles T. Manatt was a lawyer, politician, and businessman. Born in Chicago and raised in Audubon, Iowa, he received his B.S. (1958) from Iowa State College (University) and his J.D. (1962) from the George Washington University School of Law. He was a cofounder of the Los Angeles law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and also founded First Los Angeles Bank. Manatt served as the state Democratic chairman in California, Democratic National Committee chairman (1981-1985), and co-chairman of Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign. He was named United States Ambassador to the Dominican Republic by President Clinton in 1999. This collection contains materials related primarily to Manatt's tenure as Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, including news clippings from both English and Spanish publications, correspondence, programs, and training materials.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
McCall Family. Papers, 1816-1929, undated.
Extent: 8.22 linear feet (14 document boxes, 1 half-document box, 1 oversize box).
Number: MS-001.
Description: The McCall Family Papers document the McCall family for a little over one hundred years (1816-1929, undated). One member of the family, Thomas Clifton McCall (T.C. McCall), came to Polk County, Iowa, in 1846. McCall was a leader in Story County Republican circles and served as a state legislator in the 9th (1862), 19th (1882), and 20th (1884) general assemblies; he also served as a state senator in the 24th general assembly (1892). In addition, he was a member of the State Central Committee which attempted to further the interests of the Republican Party. The collection contains correspondence written while McCall served as state legislator and senator. The correspondence includes letters between T. C. McCall and his wife, Mary A. B. McCall, and son, John, while T. C. McCall was serving in the state legislature in 1862. Other political correspondence includes letters concerning the Republican presidential campaign in 1860, candidates for Governor in 1867, and a set of letters from J. W. Watts in 1883 concerning T. C. McCall's political potential.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
McCartney, Ralph F. (1924-2009). Papers, 1967-2009, undated.
Extent: 4.3 linear feet (7 document boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 map case folder).
Number: MS-418.
Description: Ralph Farnham McCartney was born December 11, 1924 in Charles City, Iowa. McCartney (Republican) represented Floyd County in the Iowa House of Representatives during the 62nd and 63rd General Assemblies (1967-1970) and served as House Majority Leader during his second term. He subsequently served as a member (1970-1972) of the Iowa Board of Regents prior to serving in the Iowa Senate during the 65th General Assembly (1973-1974). The collection contains correspondence, speeches, newsletters, bills, news clippings, and legislative reports.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Messerly, Francis L. (1915-1994). Papers, 1967-1984, undated.
Extent: 1.05 linear feet (2 document boxes and 1 half-document box).
Number: MS-143.
Description: Francis L. Messerly was born on April 21, 1915 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He attended public school in Cedar Falls and graduated from high school in Finchford, Iowa. Messerly was a member of both the Iowa General Assembly's House (1961-1964) and Senate (1965-1972), serving as chairman of the Appropriations Committee and vice chairman of the Budget and Financial Control Committee. Messerly (Republican) was a leader in the reform of Iowa's criminal justice system by introducing legislation that allowed work release for county jail prisoners and a reformed meal system. Messerly also became involved with the Iowa universities during the campus unrest years of the Vietnam War era (circa 1967-1971), the Edward Hoffmans affair at the University of Northern Iowa (Hoffmans was against the student draft), and the reorganization of the School of Journalism at the University of Iowa. Messerly was critical of the student riots, campus "radicals," university employees sympathetic to the student unrest, and the universities' use of public funds. The collection contains correspondence, publications, reports, articles, news clippings, speeches and biographical information. The majority of the collection contains records related to Iowa universities.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Miller, Leroy S. (1914-1982). Papers, 1959-1970, undated.
Extent: 5.25 linear feet (12 document boxes and 1 half document box).
Number: MS-009.
Description: Leroy Miller was born on November 28, 1914, and raised on a farm near Clarinda. For thirteen years he operated a farm, and then became involved as a farm implement dealer in Shenandoah. Miller (Republican) began his first term as the Page County representative to the Iowa State Legislature in 1962 served as a representative for a total of eight years. He was placed on numerous committees and sub-committees including the Transportation Committee, the Roads and Highways Committee, and the Sub-Committee on Appropriations for Social Services. On each of these committees Miller served as chairman.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Mullins, Sue. Papers, ca.1978-1988.
Extent: 2.81 linear feet (3 records center cartons, 1 half-document box).
Number: RS 21/07/220.
Description: Sue Mullins was born in Denver, Colorado on June 18, 1936 and graduated with a B.S. from Iowa State University (1967). Mullins (Republican) served as a Representative in Iowa's state legislature (1979-1988). The collection includes campaign materials, correspondence, notebooks, and photographs.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Murray, John Stevenson. Papers, 1971-1983, undated.
Extent: 14.91 linear feet (35 document boxes, 1 half-document box).
Number: MS-154.
Description: John Stevenson Murray, State Republican Senator of Iowa, represented district twenty-one for ten years in the Iowa General Assembly (1973-1983). The collection contains correspondence, reports, committee files, speeches, legislation, tax information, appropriation files, news clippings and subject files related to his time as a legislator. The bulk of the collection is correspondence, committee files, and documents related to tax issues.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Rae, George. Papers, 1861-1907.
Extent: 0.21 linear feet (1 half-document box).
Number: MS-002.
Description: George Rae was a Scottish immigrant who settled in Maine in 1861. Four years later, he traveled west with the intention of finding land for farming. He moved to Dow City, Iowa, where he lived until his death in 1907. Rae (Republican) served in the Iowa General Assembly from 1876-1878. The collection includes letters from Rae's relatives in Scotland, recommendation letters from peers, family records, tax records, receipts, obituaries and two diaries.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Reichardt, William J. (1930-2004). Papers, 1961-1970, undated.
Extent: 2.52 linear feet (6 document boxes).
Number: MS-008.
Description: Born on June 24, 1930, William "Bill" Reichardt attended Iowa City public schools until his graduation in 1948 and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics (1952) at the University of Iowa. The collection includes correspondence, research material/subject guides, and newspaper clippings concerning Reichardt's (Democrat) four-year tenure as a state Senator (1966-1970). The newspaper clippings include material sent to Reichardt by his constituency, his colleagues, or saved by his staff, and they cover both political and personal topics.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Scott, George L. (1887-1975). Papers, 1960-1967, undated.
Extent: 0.42 linear feet (1 document box).
Number: MS-041.
Description: George L. Scott was born on July 21, 1887 in Fayette County, Iowa, and lived his entire life in that area. Scott (Republican) was elected to the Iowa House of Representatives in 1935 and was reelected five times. He was appointed to the Iowa Liquor Commission, but in 1953 he returned to the Iowa legislature, being elected to the Senate and serving three terms there. The collection primarily contains correspondence with his constituents (arranged in subject files) and also contains speeches, personal correspondence, and a letter to the editor. A few of the subject files contain copies of bills, newspaper clippings and resolutions from city or county officials.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.
Stuart, William C. Papers, 1957-1971, undated.
Extent: 1.26 linear feet (3 document boxes).
Number: RS 21/07/045.
Description: William Corwin Stuart was born on April 28, 1920, and graduated from Iowa State College (University) with a B.A. (1941). In 1942, Stuart received his J.D. degree and was admitted to the Iowa Bar Association. His political career began in 1946, when he was named city attorney for Chariton. He served in this capacity until 1947, and in 1953, Stuart (Republican) was elected to the Iowa State Senate (1953-1957) and was re-elected (1957-1961). Stuart was then an associate justice (1961-1971) on the Iowa Supreme Court and on November 1, 1971, was named U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Iowa. This collection contains materials collected by Mr. Stuart during his legislative career, including files on the economy, education, a contest election, legislative reform, reapportionment, and taxes. Also included is a series of committee records as well as correspondence and notes related to an article written by Stuart on Iowa court congestion.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Available in Special Collections.
Wilson, James A. "Tama Jim" (1835-1920). Papers, 1887-1986.
Extent: 5.8 linear feet (9 document boxes).
Number: RS 09/01/11.
Description: James Wilson (1835-1920) was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, the first of fourteen children. The family emigrated to the U.S. in 1851, settling in Connecticut, but moved to a farm near Traer in Tama County, Iowa in 1855. During his early years in Iowa, James attended Grinnell College, began farming, married Esther Wilbur in 1863, and edited the Traer Star-Clipper. Wilson (Republican) was elected to the Iowa legislature (1867-1871), then to approximately three terms (the last one was contested) in the U. S. House of Representatives (1873-1877; 1882-1885). In Congress he served on the Committee on Agriculture and the Rules Committee, and acquired the nickname "Tama Jim" to distinguish him from Senator James Falconer Wilson ("Jefferson Jim"), also from Iowa. The collection contains biographical material, correspondence, addresses, articles, transcripts and tapes of interviews with people who knew Tama Jim, scrapbooks of newspaper clippings, and genealogical material. Correspondence includes letters of recommendation, letters regarding appointments, and letters containing Wilson's opinions regarding professional matters.
Status: Processed.
Finding Aid: Online.