Finding Aid for the Congressman Michael J. Kirwan Archives 1937-1970
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Finding Aid for the Congressman Michael J. Kirwan Archives 1937-1970 Record Group No. RG 77/13 University Archives & Special Collections William F. Maag, Jr. Library Youngstown State University Youngstown, OH 44555 PH: 330-941-3487 FAX: 330-941-3734 www.maag.ysu.edu/archives 1 Descriptive Summary Title: Congressman Michael J. Kirwan Archives, 1937-1970 Creator: Ohio Congressman Michael J. Kirwan (Democrat - 19th District) during his time in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1937 to 1970. Extent: 91 boxes, 82.638 linear feet Abstract: Michael J. Kirwan represented the 19th Congressional District from 1937 to his death in office in 1970. This collection consists of his official papers as well as some artifacts relating to his long political career. Administrative Information Provenance: Office of Congressman Michael J. Kirwan, Washington, DC and Youngstown, Ohio. Preferred Citation: Congressman Michael J. Kirwan Archives, RG 77/13, Archives & Special Collections, William F. Maag, Jr. Library, Youngstown State University,Youngstown, Ohio. Restrictions: Limited, due to the presence of Social Security numbers in some of Rep. Kirwan’s constituent correspondence. .Please check with the Archives & Special Collections staff when seeking to use this collection. Processing: Processed by Brian K. Brennan, March 2009 – June 2018. Finding Aid: Written by Brian K. Brennan Historical Background Michael Joseph (Mike) Kirwan was born in the coal mining town of Plains, Pennsylvania, near Wilkes-Barre, on December 2, 1886. At the age of nine, Kirwan left school and took a job in a coal mine to help feed his family. The work was back-breaking and hazardous. Eventually, Kirwan left the mines and roamed the country, trying his hand at different jobs. Settling in Youngstown, 2 Ohio, Kirwan went to work for a steel company’s railroad. He served with the U.S. Army in World War One. After the Armistice was signed in 1918, Kirwan returned to Youngstown. In 1919, Kirwan took part in a wildcat strike with local steel workers. Though not taken back initially, Kirwan was rehired to serve as the plant’s railroad yardmaster; however, in 1930, he was terminated as the Great Depression worsened. Out of a job, Kirwan ran for Youngstown City Council in 1931 and won—the only Democrat to be seated on the Republican-dominated body. In 1936, Kirwan ran for Congress and was elected, thanks to his working-class background, the support of organized labor, and the popularity of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal. During his thirty-three years as a congressman, Kirwan experienced great legislative success. In the 1930s and 1940s, Kirwan was able to acquire Federal backing for various public works projects. He secured funding for the country’s first public housing project, the Westlake Housing Village (later known as Westlake Terraces). As time progressed, however, Kirwan’s name became synonymous with water conservation and flood-control projects. As World War Two approached, Kirwan supported FDR’s policies that favored Great Britain in its war against Germany. In 1941, Kirwan had the singular honor of delivering the Lend-Lease Bill to the White House for the president’s signature. In the wake of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into the war, both of the congressman’s sons served in the armed forces. In 1948, Kirwan was unanimously chosen as chairman of the National Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, a post he would hold until 1969. Kirwan was so successful in this role that he has been credited for much of the Democratic Party’s victories in congressional elections in the immediate postwar years. Kirwan’s greatest dream was the construction of a canal linking Lake Erie with the Ohio River. The “Lake-to-River Waterway” was to provide cheap transportation for iron ore and steel. Though he had his backers, Kirwan also had his detractors, such as the railroads, who saw their monopoly on industrial transportation threatened by “Big Mike’s Big Ditch.” The project was effectively killed when Governor Raymond P. Shafer of Pennsylvania denied a right-of-way passage through his state. Kirwan was married to the former Alice Kane. In addition to their two sons (John and Michael), they had a daughter (Mary Alice). 3 In 1968, after being elected to his seventeenth term in Congress, Kirwan announced that he would retire upon its completion. In 1970, Kirwan died in office due to failing health and complications from a fall. He is buried in Youngstown, Ohio. Sources: Aley, Howard C. The Bicentennial History of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley. Youngstown, OH: The Bicentennial Commission of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, 1975. Kirwan, Michael J. and Robert G. Nixon. The Kirwan Story: From Breaker Boy to Congress Leader. An Autobiography of Congressman Michael J. Kirwan of Ohio. Unpublished Manuscript. 19?? “Michael J. Kirwan.” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_J._Kirwan Scope and Content The materials in this collection cover Rep. Kirwan’s career in the U.S. House of Representatives (1937-1970) and are arranged by series. The vast bulk of the collection consists of correspondence and has been divided into seven sub-series. The first of these sub-series (Constituent Services) is the largest section of the collection and is arranged alphabetically by the surname of each correspondent. Alphabetization remains localized per box; it is not extended throughout the sub- series. Very oversized, bound items dealing with the Lake-to-River Waterway are not boxed, due to the size of each piece. These have been placed on the shelf close to the main part of the collection and have been labeled with acid-free paper strips placed inside each items. Additional items, such as publications, newspaper clippings, and other items have been placed into acid-free containers and arranged according to their appropriate series. Both the technical drawings (Series VI) and topographic maps (Series VII) were used in the planning for the proposed Lake-to-River Waterway and are arranged in their original order as donated. The drawings have been rolled and placed into prism-shaped cartons, while the maps have been preserved flat, in large boxes. Colophon After being redacted by Rep. Kirwan’s longtime administrative assistant, Roberta Messerly, the Kirwan correspondence and items dealing with the proposed Lake-to-River Waterway were donated to Youngstown State University a short time after the congressman’s death. At first, they were deposited with the YSU History Department. Housed in a relatively unsecured state in filing cabinets within the department’s office, students and faculty went through the Kirwan papers at will. As a result, many documents disappeared. In the late 1970s, the Kirwan papers were transferred to a locked storage room in Maag Library. Former university librarian Richard Owen was made University Archivist and assigned the task of processing the Kirwan papers. Unfortunately, Mr. Owen suffered a debilitating stroke which led to his retirement. Librarian Carol Wall took up the task, but other duties forced her to abandon the project. With the creation of the new Archives & Special Collections section of Maag Library, the Kirwan materials finally had a secure home and formal processing began in 2009 by archivist Brian Brennan. Additional items 4 were donated in 2016 by Bridget Kirwan, granddaughter of the congressman. The project was finally completed in 2018. Series Description SERIES I: Correspondence SERIES II: News SERIES III: Publications SERIES IV: Reports SERIES V: Subject Files SERIES VI: Technical Drawings SERIES VII: Topographic Maps SERIES VIII: Oversized Reports SERIES IX: Scrapbooks Index Terms Canals - Ohio Conservation Projects (Natural Resources) – United States Democratic Party – United States Depression – 1929 – United States Draft – Law and Legislation – United States Kirwan, Michael J. (Michael Joseph), 1886-1970 Lake Erie to Ohio River Waterway Legislators – United States Mahoning River Valley (Ohio and Pa.) – Irish-Americans - History Messerly, Roberta Michael J. Kirwan Reservoir (Ravenna, Ohio) Public Housing – United States – Westlake Terraces (Youngstown, Ohio) United States – Emigration and Immigration - Government Policy – History Vietnam War, 1961-1975 West Branch State Park (Ravenna, Ohio) World War, 1939-1945 – United States Youngstown (Ohio) Youngstown (Ohio) – Irish-Americans – History Youngstown (Ohio) – Politics and Government BOX 1 5 SERIES I: Correspondence Subseries A: Constituent Correspondence Folder No. Description 1 Abood, Sam Joseph, 1937-1938 2 Adams, William J., 1940 3 Albaugh, Wendell, 1939 4 Amon, Charles M., 1938 5 Aurilio, Anthony, 1940 6 Bailey, Richard F., 1940-1941 7 Bakos, John G., 1940 8 Bannon, Jack A., 1937 9 Bannon, Charles O., 1937 10 Bardon, Frederick, 1938 11 Bartinsky, Thomas, 1940 12 Battagliero, Annibalo, 1938 13 Becker, William A., 1938 14 Bennett, Daisy Rebecca, 1939 15 Bernstein, Isasdore, 1938-1939 16 Bertch, Frank J., 1939 17 Best, John W., 1940 18 Booth, Lloyd, 1940 19 Borak, John J., 1937-1940 20 Bott, Harry, 1940 21 Boucherle, Paul, 1939 22 Bova, Lulu, 1937 23 Bowers, Marion E., 1939-1940 24 Brazel, John, 1939 25 Bricker, G.A., 1939-1940 26 Bruce, Edward A., 1940 27 Burke, Margaret G., 1939 28 Burnham, H., 1940 29 Bycraft, Andrew J., 1938 30 Byrns, Joseph W., 1939 31 Cabrere, Victor M., 1939 32 Caffazzo, Mike, 1940 33 Callan, Bernard J., 1937 34 Callen, Eugene, 1937 6 35 Campbell, Nellie, 1940 36 Cannon, James W., 1937-1940 37 Carney, Michael, Jr., 1939 38 Carroll, Harry Spence, 1939 39 Castiglioni, Salvatore, 1940 40 Cervone, Anthony, 1940 41 Chapman, Ralph, III, 1940 42 Chaney High School, Youngstown, 1937-1940 43 Chomo, Eugenia A., 1937 44 Cleveland, Grover, 1938 45 Clokey, F.C., 1938 46 Cobley, Harry T., 1937-1938 47 Colbert, Jesse J., 1940 48 Collette, Elmer E., 1939 49 Connor, P.O., et al., 1940 50 Conricode, Ed, 1939 51 Conroy, Michael, 1939-1940 52 Conti, Josephine, 1940 53 Conti, Martin E., 1938 54 Cook, Mrs.