Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm78021964
Collection material in English
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.
The papers of James Rudolph Garfield, attorney, businessman, politician, conservationist, and secretary of the interior, were received by the Library of Congress in 1953 and were made a gift in 1958 by his heirs, James Abram Garfield, Newell Garfield, Mrs. John N. Garfield, and Mrs. Rudolph Hills Garfield. Subsequent additions have been made by members of the family. A considerable amount of material, including the papers of Mrs. James R. Garfield, was received in 1960. Material received after 1970 was added to the papers in 1997.
The papers of James Rudolph Garfield were arranged and described in 1966 by Kate Stewart. Additional material received after 1970 was incorporated into the papers by Nan Thompson Ernst in 1997.
Family letters seen by James A. Garfield (1831-1881) , father of James Randolph Garfield and twentieth president of the United States, have been transferred and indexed with his papers.
Related papers can also be found in the papers of James Randolph Garfield's mother, Lucretia R. Garfield , and brother, Harry A. Garfield , whose collection includes letterbooks of their joint law firm, Garfield and Garfield and successor firms, 1892-1911
Copyright in the unpublished writings of James Rudolph Garfield in these papers and in other collections of papers in the custody of the Library of Congress has been dedicated to the public.
The papers of James Rudolph Garfield are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, James Rudolph Garfield Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of James Rudolph Garfield (1865-1950) span the years 1879-1950 with the bulk of the material dating from 1890 to 1932. The collection includes a series of diaries , 1880-1948, family papers , general and special correspondence , subject and office files , legal and political papers , business records, and the papers of Garfield's wife, Helen Newell Garfield . It reflects Garfield's business concerns as well as his public service as a member of the United States Civil Service Commission, 1902-1903, commissioner of corporations in the Department of Commerce and Labor, 1903-1907, and secretary of the interior, 1907-1909. Other aspects of Garfield's life documented in the collection include his involvement in the civic and cultural development of Cleveland and Mentor, Ohio, and his association with such organizations as the Roosevelt Memorial Association, the Academy of Political Science, and the National Conservation Association. Business interests in Mexico are recorded in numerous comments in his diaries and in letters on the politics of that country. The papers include correspondence and other material about his father, James A. Garfield (1831-1881), twentieth president of the United States.
Garfield's interest in politics from the time of his election to the Ohio senate in 1896, his only elective office, to his term as chairman of the platform committee for the Republican national convention in 1932 is documented throughout the collection. Although material on the Progressive movement, in which Garfield played a significant part, includes correspondence and speeches, his role is not well documented in his papers. Other series with significant gaps include the Office Files , a numbered series for which there are more than two hundred index cards but only about fifty numbered files of corresponding material. The index cards form a separate series in the collection.
Some of Garfield's frequent correspondents were Newton Diehl Baker, Walter F. Brown, James Bryce, Calvin Coolidge, Warren G. Harding, Frederic Clemson Howe, Gaillard Hunt, J. J. Jusserand, Gifford Pinchot, Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, L. S. Rowe, Woodrow Wilson, and Leonard Wood.
Helen Newell Garfield's papers document the life of a socially prominent wife of a government official and active politician and businessman. They reflect her interest in religious and civic organizations, especially the Episcopal church, her work with the deaf, and war relief for French orphans of World War I.
Papers in the Addition include letters from Garfield to his wife, 1904, 1914, and 1921; general correspondence, 1895-1896, 1938; and newspaper clippings, 1932, 1946.
The collection is arranged in thirteen series:
Arranged chronologically. Loose material has been placed in folders in the container with the diary from which it was removed.
Correspondence with James R. Garfield, his wife and their children.
Arranged chronologically.
Correspondence between Garfield and his wife.
Arranged chronologically.
Correspondence among the Garfield and Newell families.
Arranged chronologically.
Letters sent and received.
Arranged chronologically.
Letters sent and received.
Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent and chronologically thereunder.
Portion of a numerical file kept by clerks in Garfield's office.
Arranged by assigned folder number. See also index filed separately.
Handwritten and typewritten drafts with notes and a few printed copies of speeches and other writings.
Arranged alphabetically by title, subject, or place the speech was given.
Correspondence and related papers.
Arranged alphabetically by subject
Correspondence, drafts, notes, and printed matter.
Arranged chronologically by year and thereunder alphabetically by subject.
Correspondence and legal documents of the law firm Garfield and Garfield and successor firms.
Arranged alphabetically by subject or case name.
Condolence messages, biographical file, memorabilia, scrapbooks, and financial papers.
Arranged by type of material.
Diaries, correspondence, speeches, school records, photographs, newspaper clippings, and genealogical recores.
Arranged chronologically or by type of document.
Alphabetical card index to numerical file in the Office Files series.
Family and general correspondence and miscellaneous newspaper clippings.
Arranged by type of material.