Congressional Papers Roundtable NEWSLETTER Society of American Archivists July 2004 From the Chair Association of Centers for the Study of L. Rebecca Johnson Melvin Congress 2nd Annual Meeting Appropriate for a Roundtable, here Thirty-five members of The DVD explores various themes like are some circular thoughts: I am Association of Centers for the Study popular sovereignty, federalism, always appreciative of the work of of Congress (ACSC) met May 5 - 6 representative government, etc., our great communicators, Katie at the Woodrow Wilson Center in using multiple perspectives and Senft and Glenn Gray. Not only do Washington, DC for their second formats and encourages students they edit and distribute the meeting. Lee Hamilton gave a lively to explore the themes, research the newsletter, they maintain the keynote address on the topic of the issues, and then write about them. membership e-mail list and use it "problems of Congress." Nancy Beck There also were demonstrations of to relay interim news and queries Young, author of a biography on the Senate’s OnBase document for our Roundtable. In recent Wright Patman and who is management system and of the months, we’ve been notified of a currently working on a history of Muskie Legislative Record, a relevant book review of Women Congress during WW II, stressed research tool created by the Transforming Congress the central role that archival sources Muskie Foundation aimed at high (Congressional Studies Series. play in her research. Lawrence C. school and college students. The Norman: Univ. of Oklahoma Press, Dodd, author of Congress group adopted by-laws and elected 2002), surveyed about availability Reconsidered, enumerated several officers. Next year’s conference is of travel funds to support things that Centers could do to scheduled to be held at the Center congressional research, EVited to a assist political science research. for Legislative Archives, and the tour at the Moakley archive, and Chief among these was to capture Dodd Center at the University of solicited for contributions to this documentation on how members Connecticut has offered to host the newsletter. In the absence of SAA interact with constituents, stressing 2006 conference. The Association supporting an “official” e-mail list that big changes often begin at the hopes to attract new members and for us (because we are not a local level. Sessions on the Archival developed criteria for admittance. Section), please remember that you Mission of Centers and Guidelines Karen Paul can ask Senft & Gray to distribute for Congressional Repositories relevant news and queries to CPR For the full minutes of the meeting, see provided concrete advice and members. And, if you want to page 8. For transcriptions of talks given models. A Foundations of Freedom share responses to anything at the conference, see the ACSC web site learning model was shown. The communicated that way please at http://www.congresscenters.org/ remember to REPLY ALL. That conference2004.htm. keeps us well rounded. The other steady leg of our communication In This Issue: tripod is Sarah Keen, who ACSC 2nd Annual Meeting............1 SAA Meeting in Boston...................7 maintains our Web site and From the Chair .................................1 Political Scientists: Strangers in a welcomes your input for content. Institutional News ...........................2 Wonderland (Scott Frisch & Scott Continued on page 2 Kelly)..................................................5 Chair (cont. from page 1) Richard Hunt, who he met at the ACSC meeting in Keen recently added Jim Cartwright’s bibliographic May. essay on Reference Works for Congressional Papers Repositories and Jean Bischoff’s good list of institutions ACSC is one of “our” acronyms, as Karen Paul will that sponsor travel and research grants to use report in this newsletter (see page 1). Working in congressional collections in their repositories. Bischoff concentric circles with us, the Association of Centers caught the list idea punted to the Roundtable by our for the Study of Congress promotes the study of new best team mate in the wild game of congressional Congress, the collection of archival sources supporting research, political scientist Sean Kelly, who will the study of Congress, and the development of introduce us to a whole new set of professional educational initiatives and public programs related to acronyms, beginning with an article on page 5 of this Congress. The program part of our Roundtable meeting newsletter. Kelly (Niagara University) and his in Boston will include a panel discussing the archival colleague Scott Frisch (California State University, benefits of building a research center identity. Please Channel Islands) have reached across their discipline join us on Thursday, August 5 at 5:30 p.m. and begun an exciting dialogue with us about the untapped data to be found in congressional collections And if your travel plans suit, please join a Wednesday, – what political scientists should know about potential August 4, afternoon tour of the Joe Moakley papers sources and how archivists can help find them. This is hosted by Beth Bower at Suffolk University Law an exciting outreach opportunity as well as an School. Thank you, Jan Zastrow, for volunteering to set educational one for us to talk directly with a user group up this “unofficial” event for us. I know chair-elect to find out what they are looking for in our collections. Naomi Nelson will welcome more volunteers to Imagine how this can improve our archival work in participate and plan for New Orleans 2005 and beyond description, appraisal, and even acquisition. Kelly is – with task forces, projects, Web sources, news, another already passing more balls for us to catch, initiatives for tour?, and session proposals. Thanks to Jeff Suchanek Congressional Archival Research in Political Science: a for compiling this year’s steering committee slate. I’ll session on archival research at the Northeastern have his job next year, so help me to help you find Political Science Association meeting in Boston in something to do with the Roundtable – get in touch. November, and perhaps an APSA Short Course at their August 2005 meeting in D.C. Kelly is working on that See you ’round, LRJM idea with Center for Legislative Archives Director Institutional News University of South Carolina, South Graham collection, which documents Graham's service Caroliniana Library in Congress and particularly his work on the House Judiciary Committee. The University of South Carolina's South Caroliniana Library has inaugurated a new summer archival Modern Political Collections also recently received the internship program, with stipends. The Library's papers of Congressman Floyd Spence, who represented Modern Political Collections division recently hosted intern Barbara Heck, from North Carolina State South Carolina's Second District from 1971 until his University, who assisted with processing invitations death in 2001. Spence was instrumental in the and scheduling files from the collection of United States development of the modern Republican Party in the state and rose to national prominence as the three-term Senator (formerly Congressman) Lindsey Graham (R- chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. SC). The invitations series, which originally comprised Approximately 170 linear feet of materials have been 27.5 linear feet of materials, has been weeded, received. arranged, and rehoused, and now stands at 16.5 linear Dorothy Hazelrigg feet. Processing continues on other portions of the 2 Center for Legislative Archives Georgia. Initially, materials and information gathered Hunt Selected as Director for the project will enrich the Library’s exhibition Richard H. Hunt was selected as the new Director of the content. Subsequently, much of this material and Center for Legislative Archives, effective May 16, 2004. information will become a resource for students and Hunt began his archival career at the Center for researchers in the Library. The documentation strategy Legislative Archives in 1989 and has served as assistant for the project includes identification of material director, congressional outreach specialist, and archivist. already deposited in archival repositories, as well as Before coming to the National Archives in 1989, Hunt material still held by private individuals and was a lecturer and visiting assistant professor for five organizations. The chief emphasis employed by the years at the University of California, San Diego and at Russell in locating material held privately has been to Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he work closely with electrical membership cooperatives taught courses in United States history and modern in the state, many of which have retained historically European history. significant records. To complement these records, the Russell Library has also developed and distributed a Hunt had been acting director of the Center after series of questionnaires designed to gather individual Michael L. Gillette left the position in June 2003. Gillette, memories and perspectives from people who who had been Director since 1991, took a position as experienced the transition from life without electricity Executive Director of the Texas Council for the to life with electricity. Humanities. The impetus for the project is twofold. Senator Russell, Congressional Collections at Archival Institutions the library’s namesake, was a strong supporter of REA The Center for Legislative Archives added a new feature early