Collection Summary
William Gobitas
Papers 1935-1989
(bulk 1935-1940)
1935-1989
(bulk 1935-1940)
MSS73637
Gobitas, William,
1925-1989
100
items
1 container
0.4 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
Insurance executive and
piano tuner. Correspondence, notes, court documents, newspaper clippings,
printed material, ephemera, and photographs relating to freedom of speech and
legal cases involving Jehovah's Witnesses. Documents the United States Supreme Court
case of Minersville v. Gobitis (sic) concerning the refusal of Gobitas and his
sister Lillian (Gobitas) Klose to salute the American flag in their school in
Minersville, Pennsylvania, in 1935.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Gobitas, William, 1925-1989.
Klose, Lillian.
Organizations
Minersville (Pa.). Board of School Directors.
United States. Supreme Court.
Subjects
Flags--United States.
Freedom of religion.
Freedom of speech.
Jehovah's Witnesses--Legal status, laws, etc.
Occupations
Insurance executives.
Piano technicians.
Provenance
The papers of William H. Gobitas, insurance executive,
piano tuner, and defendant in United States Supreme Court case, were given to
the Library of Congress by the estate of William Gobitas in 1989 via his
sister, Lillian Gobitas Klose, and Alan Nurmi of the United States Information
Agency.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of William
Gobitas is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17,
U.S.C.).
Additional Guides
A description of the Gobitas Papers appears in
Library of Congress Information Bulletin
, 48 (18
September 1989), pp. 321-22.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, William Gobitas Papers, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of William H. Gobitas (1925-1989) span the years 1935-1989, with the
bulk of the material dating from 1935 to 1940. The collection consists of court
documents, photographs, correspondence, notes, ephemera, newspaper clippings,
and other printed matter pertaining to freedom of speech and legal cases
involving Jehovah's Witnesses. The papers document in particular the United
States Supreme Court case, Minersville v.
Gobitis (sic), concerning the refusal of
ten-year-old Billy Gobitas and his twelve-year-old sister, Lillian, to salute
the American flag in their school in Minersville, Pennsylvania, in 1935. The
collection includes letters written by Gobitas and his sister to school
officials explaining the religious basis for their refusal, Walter Gobitas's
notes from the school board meeting at which his children were expelled, and
photographs of the Gobitas children around 1935.
Container List
Box
Contents
1
Jehovah's Witnesses
Background material, 1959,
1982
(2
folders)
Published accounts of treatment
and harassment
Consolation
, 1940
Miscellaneous,
1983-1989
National Geographic
, 1965-1975
United States Marine Corps,
retraction of statement linking the church to communism, 1940
Legal cases
Cantwell v. Connecticut,
1940-1957
Leoles, Dorothy, 1936
Lovell v. City of Griffin,
1936-1938
Minersville v. Gobitis
(sic), 1935-1939, undated
Murdock v. Pennsylvania,
1940-1943, 1986
West
Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette,
1943
Photographs, circa 1935-1940,
1975