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William A. Owens Papers, Part One

  • TxAM-CRS 23
  • Collection
  • 1922-1979

This collection contains papers documenting Owens' teaching and writing career from 1928 to 1979. Items of special interest in the collection include lyrics to many folksongs and recordings made by Owens in the 1930s and 1940s of folksingers as well as recorded readings of Robert Frost, interviews of early oil pioneers of Texas, legal papers for Owens vs. Fawcett Publications, Inc. and David Holland concerning True magazine's plagiarism of Slave Mutiny, and letters of Roy Bedichek, J. Frank Dobie, Walter Prescott Webb, and Mody C. Boatright.

The correspondence is further separated into three areas: personal correspondence; correspondence with Owens' literary agent, Maurice Crain; and correspondence regarding Owens' books. Some overlapping exists between these areas. In the personal correspondence section, letters discussing Owens' books are largely from friends and fans and are nontechnical in nature. The correspondence with Maurice Crain concerns the publication procedures and business aspect of his writings while the boxes of letters specifically concerning the books deal primarily with the writing and development of the books.

The personal correspondence is arranged chronologically from 1932 to 1975. The letters are concerned with associations and societies to which Owens belonged; speaking engagements by Owens; programs in which he was involved; awards presented to Owens; and Owens' teaching career which includes letters to Owens as Director of Folk Festivals at the University of Texas, as an instructor at Texas A&M University, and as Professor and Dean of Summer Sessions at Columbia University. Other letters concern Owens' service as an Intelligence Officer in World War II and his early work with folksongs. In addition to correspondence from Owens' family and friends, there are letters congratulating Owens on his publications and requesting his literary advice. Of special interest are letters from famous persons such as Grant Wood, Eleanor Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Nelson Rockefeller.

Correspondence with Maurice Crain contains letters from 1950 to 1959. The letters discuss publication and promotional plans for Owens' books and short stories. Other subject areas include foreign and domestic contracts for publication, royalty statements, and motion picture plans for several books.

The correspondence concerning books is arranged in chronological order based on the year of the book's publication. Included are letters regarding contracts with publishers, royalty statements, motion picture rights, and lectures on the books. Numerous letters discuss Owens' research and recordings of folksongs for Texas Folk Songs. Additional correspondence with Mrs. Walter B. Sharp, Dudley Sharp, and other oil pioneers refers to the Oral History of Texas Oil Pioneers.

Material concerning Owens' books includes background material, book reviews, typescripts, drafts, and in most cases galley proofs and page proofs. The boxes are arranged chronologically according to the publication date from the earliest to the last. However, the revised edition of Texas Folk Songs which was published in 1976 is included with the papers of the 1950 edition. Labels that Owens used on the papers, such as the numbers of a draft, have been retained, and where there was no designation of a draft number, the typescript is merely labeled typescript, early draft, or manuscript. The papers include both photocopies and ribbon copies and duplicates of typescripts. Typescript and manuscript are used interchangeably as labels.

The evolution of each of Owens' books can be seen through the background material and copies of drafts. In the first folders are Owens' research material and notes, book reviews, advertisements, and other information pertaining to the book in subject matter. Copies of typescripts, from the earliest to the final edited manuscript are next with the last folders containing galley proofs and page proofs. Through the revisions and changes made by Owens in each subsequent draft, the progressive development of notes and a rough outline into a complete and polished publication is revealed. Papers of major interest include a copy of Owens' doctoral dissertation on folksongs for the State University of Iowa (June 1941) with Texas Folk Songs material, the legal papers from the Owens vs. Fawcett Publications, Inc. and David Holland concerning Slave Mutiny, interviews of oil pioneers of Texas with material for Oral History of Texas Oil Pioneers and Walter B. Sharp biography, and the correspondence of Dobie, Bedichek, and Webb revealing their ideas about many varied subjects included with Three Friends material.

Other writings by Owens comprise the next section of the collection. Articles and short stories are filed alphabetically. Book reviews are grouped together in one folder. Speeches are filed last and are labeled with the title or meeting at which they were given and the date if known. Typescripts exist of most of the articles and short stories, and duplicate copies are retained. Some of these writings occur in their published version and are labeled with the title and date of the magazine in which they were printed. The dates of the other stories and articles are unknown. The subjects of Owens' stories and articles cover a wide range of subjects and span the entirety of his writing career. Published excerpts from his books such as This Stubborn Soil and Tales From the Derrick Floor are included in this group as well.

The personal data concerning Owens contains biographical information such as vitae, resumes, publications concerning programs and lectures in which he participated, and material relating to his teaching career. Additional material documents his years at Columbia University and awards presented to him. Newspaper articles and photographs from 1940 to 1974 concern Owens' many interests and involvement in programs as well as his books and teaching career.

The next boxes in the collection contain miscellaneous material kept by Owens. Many oil history photographs and newspapers articles relating to subjects in which Owens was interested are included. Articles by other authors, some signed by the author and some written by friends of Owens, along with magazines and publications collected by Owens are filed in this section. The miscellaneous publications are divided into three categories: literary publications, college publications, and remaining miscellaneous publications. These deal with a wide variety of subjects in which Owens was apparently interested.

The remaining three boxes contain aluminum discs of recordings made by Owens of various folksingers and country people of the South. Note cards listing titles numbered to correspond with the records are filed with the discs. Owens also made recordings of readings by Robert Frost in 1939, and these provide a valuable addition to the collection.

Copies of Owens' books are shelved with the boxed papers. Oversize items including an advertisement for Three Friends: Bedichek, Dobie, Webb, color prints of the Apollo 11 Lunar Mission, and maps and genealogies for A Fair and Happy Land are housed separately in oversize flat storage.

Owens, William A., 1905-1990

William A. Owens Papers, Part Two

  • TxAM-CRS 24
  • Collection
  • 1940-1980

This collection supplements Part One of William A. Owens, in that it emphasizes the years from 1972 to 1980, yet also contains correspondence written prior to 1972. Therefore, it adds much to the first collection.

The collection is divided into seven categories. These are: Personal correspondence 1940-1980 (Series. 1-3), which also includes some printed reviews of Owens' books; Transcripts of the tapes containing the "Oral History of Texas Oil Pioneers" (Series. 4); Research materials, manuscripts and drafts for unpublished books written by Owens (Series. 5-8); Shorter works by Owens (Series. 9); Works written by other authors (Series. 10), and; Miscellaneous materials and drafts collected by Owens (Series. 11-13). Of special interest in this collection is correspondence concerned with Owens' books, letters from World War II, and the various drafts of books by Owens which have not been published.

Owens' personal correspondence files are further divided into three more specific categories. The first covers primarily the period 1972-1980 but also includes papers dating from prior to this period. This correspondence is broken down alphabetically according to a key word in the subject, name, company, or book. Within the letter grouping the papers are filed chronologically. The undated material follows the last dated papers. The compilers of the collection attempted as much as possible to keep the material grouped as Owens himself had had it arranged. This material contains correspondence with friends and fans on the writing and publication of his books, with organizations Owens participated in, on awards won by Owens, about folk songs, on the writing of other authors, and other various topics. To be especially noted about the dramatizations of This Stubborn Soil.

The second division of personal correspondence primarily covers 1940-1965. These letters are broken down by their subject matter and then arranged chronologically. The subjects covered are Owens war letters and letters with Annie Laurie Williams, who was Owens' literary agent.

The third division of the correspondence files covers Owens' tour with the National Humanities Series in 1972 and 1973. The production was entitled "Frontiers: Settling a Nation," and consisted of Owens and a folksinger. The papers include correspondence concerning the itineraries, reviews, and other matters of the tour. The first nine boxes hold this personal correspondence.

Also included in the correspondence files are the printed reviews of books authored by Owens. They are predominantly newspaper reviews although some were printed in journals and magazines. The reviews are broken down by title and arranged chronologically.

Filling the next seven boxes are the transcripts of the "Oral History of Texas Oil Pioneers" tapes. These are filed by the number of the tape. There are transcripts from 218 tapes.

The manuscripts of books written by Owens since 1975 compose the next category of the collection. The five titles of the books are Caves of Arayat, Running in Place, Japanese Soldiers in World War II, Not So Far Away, Not So Long Ago, Special Agent 2142, and the second edition of Texas Folk Songs. Of these books, only Texas Folk Songs, 2nd edition, has been published (1976). The first three works concern World War II, and the fourth is the third volume of Owens' autobiography. There are many drafts of each book, some having different titles. The drafts are filed from earliest to latest. Some of the drafts were not identified and have been filed as accurately as possible. The labels of the drafts include the number of the draft, whether it is typescript or a copy, and whether or not it contains written notes. The labels "manuscript" and "typescript" were used interchangeably.

One may find it interesting to examine the various drafts and trace the development of the books. Not So Far Away, Not So Long Ago, for example, has thirteen drafts and four different titles. The drafts are in good condition and are usually complete.

There are also numerous shorter works written by Owens. These are predominantly articles, essays, and short stories. Most of them appear in printed form, but some were never published. Of interest in an essay written for a Bicentennial essay contest which Owens subsequently used for a lecture.

This collection also contains three boxes of short works by other writers. These include histories of World War II operations in which Owens participated, articles on folklore and ethnic groups, and other topics which interested Owens. There are many works that were sent to Owens by students and friends for him to critique. Of special interest are two biographies of Owens and short stories by J. Frank Dobie.

The final category of the boxed papers contain miscellaneous material collected by Owens which includes magazines, pamphlets, and other material.

Separated from the collection is sixty books which Owens included in the collection. Most pertain to fields which Owens researched such as folksongs, ethnic groups in Texas, history of the oil industry, and others.

Also separated, are oversized materials such as Owens' Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts diplomas from Southern Methodist University, two large prints of an oil gusher, four parts of a copy of an old map of Virginia, and a copy of an 1898 map of Jefferson County, Texas.

Owens, William A., 1905-1990

Hernan Contreras Papers

  • US TxAM-C 25
  • Collection
  • 1852-1993

This collection contains correspondence throughout the life of Hernan H. Contreras, both personal and professional, descriptions of his family home, a warranty deed on property owned by the Contreras family in Starr County, a map of these lots, photographs of family and coworkers in the U.S. Department of Immigration office in Starr County, an autograph book from his public school career, utility bills, receipts, junk mail, and oil and gas leases.

The collection also contains a multitude of papers from Mr. Contreras' wife's family, particularly those of her father, Casamiro Perez Alvares. The contents of these papers include oil and gas leases, utility bills, newspaper articles, correspondence with the U.S. Marshal's office in Galveston, subpoenas, arrest warrants, witness testimonies, receipts, government bulletins, poll tax receipts, land and city tax receipts, family photographs, marriage licenses, wedding invitations, funeral notices, personal letters, business letters, bank statements, checks, deposits, Christmas cards, a pamphlet on communism, a report card, ration sheets from World War I, Letters to the Editor of Newsweek magazine, articles on Estela Contreras' run for political office, and a picture of Estela Contreras from 1993. There is also a collection of reels accompanying all the paper items.

Contreras, Hernan, 1902-197?

James G. Gibson '27 Scrapbook

  • US TxAM-C 2529876
  • Collection
  • circa 1924-1927

This scrapbook contains materials from Gibson's time as a student at A&M College.

Gibson, James G.

William A. Owens Papers, Part Three

  • TxAM-CRS 26
  • Collection
  • 1964-1988

This collection contains the third part of William A. Owens' materials deposited in the Cushing Archives. Materials consist of personal correspondence, from 1964 through 1988, essays, manuscripts, photographs, research for books, and articles.

Included within the series are short stories and articles such as "This Stubborn Soil", "Wildcatter", "Look to the River", "Tell Me a Story", "Sing Me a Song", "Historic Texas", "Eye Deep in Hell", and work by other authors; Cleaver and Witherspoon family genealogy; letters of Roy Bedichek; "Three Friends"; videotapes of Owens's work; and photographs.

Owens, William A., 1905-1990

George B. Quillen '27 Scrapbook

  • US TxAM-C 260
  • Collection
  • 1924-1927

This scrapbook belonged to George B. Quillen and contains materials from his time at A&M college from 1924-1927.

Quillen, George B.

Santa Rosa Ranch Papers

  • TxAM-CRS 27
  • Collection
  • 1890-1910

This collection consists mainly of correspondence, legal documents, a corporate minute book, and handwritten notes recording the litigation connected with ownership of a large tract of land (89,000 acres) in Hidalgo country known as the "Big Santa Rosa Pasture". Actual litigation took place from 1903-1910.

Individuals involved in the case were: Dillard Rucker Fant and his wife, Lucy Fant; Daniel J. Sullivan; J. C. Sullivan; James V. Upson; Wiliam R. Elliott; Conrad A. Goeth; James Webb; J. M. Chittim; Archie Parr; Kate V. Elliott; G. G. Clifford; A. E. Chavez; J. A. Galligher; W. M. Sanford; Fred Kelly; F. A. McGown; F. W. Church; H. R. Wood; F. Groos and his wife, Hulda Groos. Legal counsel involved in the proceedings were: James E. Webb and Conrad A. Goeth of Webb and Goeth, F. A. McGown of Denman, Franklin & McGown, and R. L. Ball, all based in San Antonio, Texas.

At the onset of the difficulties, D. R. Fant had leased the Big Santa Rosa Pasture to the cattle-raising partnership of Chittim and Parr. J. M. Chittim was a large rancher in South Texas and Archie Parr, was a State Senator popularly known as the Duke of Duval. Based on the large annual rent monies Fant had expected to collect from Chittim and Parr, he then also borrowed money from D. Sullivan of D. Sullivan and Company Bankers (founders and owners of the large South Texas Mariposa Ranch) and, using the same collateral, borrowed more money from the competing F. Groos and Company Bankers (later a founder of Wells Fargo Bank).

When it appears, that Chittim and Parr defaulted on their rent payment for the Big Santa Rosa Pasture to Fant, Fant was then forced to default on his own payments to both banking organizations from whom he had borrowed funds. The bankers, in return, sued and foreclosed on the Big Santa Rosa Pasture.

Through the Santa Rosa Ranch Papers extensive set of legal documents, attorneys' memoranda, telegrams, letters, and financial disclosures, the most absorbing story of Texas land politics unfolds.

Notable among the papers is the Santa Rosa Ranch Minute Book, a ledger volume with handwritten entries detailing the Articles of Incorporation, By-laws and minutes of the first stockholders' meeting of the Santa Rosa Ranch Company. Also present is a manuscript plat map in black and red ink on light blue linen, of the 1905 Maria Rodriguez survey, which has been encapsulated and is housed separately in a Map Case Drawer.

Santa Rosa Ranch

Edward Thomas Papers

  • US TxAM-C 275
  • Collection
  • 1902-circa 1965

This collection consists of letters written by or about Edward Thomas, an English author, and one manuscript of a foreword written by his wife, Helen Thomas. The subject of each one varies from Edward Thomas' death, a rejection letter for a short story he later published elsewhere, to general correspondence with a photographer friend, Frederick Evans, and Mrs. Thomas' foreword which was added to a new edition of her then-late husband's children's book, Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds.

The collection came with detailed notes on each item, as well as a transcription of what is written on the original pieces of paper. Thus, it was copied to this finding guide, as a helpful aid to deciphering the handwriting.

Thomas, Edward, 1878-1917

Albert S. Brient Collection

  • US TxAM-C 282
  • Collection

This collection contains an assortment of newspaper clippings, photographs, letters, and a typed 'saga' of Albert S. Brient.

Included are photographs from the 1923 Texas A&M Varsity Basketball team, biographic information on Brient, correspondence concerning his efforts to be declared a member of the "T" Association 44 years after his college days, as well as newspaper articles both about Brient and about his finally being awarded a "T".

Brient, Albert S.

Department of Journalism Records

  • TxAM-CRS 286
  • Collection
  • 1978-2003

Materials include photographs dating from the 1980s to 2003, a 1997 self-survey, and self-accreditation from 1978.

College of Liberal Arts

John C. White Papers

  • TxAM-CRS 294
  • Collection

This collection is UNPROCESSED.

White, John C.

US Passport of John Livezey and Wife

  • US TxAM-C 296
  • Collection
  • 1846

The US Passport of John Livezey and wife, signed by Secretary of State James Buchanan.

Livezey, John

Robert G. Cherry Collection

  • US TxAM-C 3
  • Collection
  • 1975-1983

This collection contains letters of correspondence from Cherry's years of working in the TAMU Chancellor's office, from 1975 to 1981, receipts, payroll information, copies of checks written out to various people, newspaper articles, letterhead samples, personal notes and lists, photographs, memorandums, thank you cards, gift cards, upcoming campus events and conferences, proof copies of articles, invitations, bank statements, state employee benefits paperwork, and job recommendations.

Cherry, Robert G., 1914 - 2005

Timothy M. Stinnett Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 309
  • Collection
  • 1933-1970

This collection consists of correspondence, speeches, articles, and books from Timothy M. Stinet from when he was an Official of the National Education Association and Professor of Education.

Stinnett, Timothy

E. M. "Buck" Schiwetz Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 312
  • Collection

This collection contains letters, magazine and newspaper articles, magazines, prints, and other materials documenting the work of artist Edward Muegge "Buck" Schiwetz, as both a commercial and fine artist.

His sketches and watercolors are featured in a vast majority of the print material in the collection, from Christmas cards to sketchbooks to fine prints.

Rather than focusing on Schiwetz's life and his time at Texas A&M, the collection pays most attention to his art career and people's opinion of Schiwetz as an artist in the traditional sense of the definition.

Charles Goodnight Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 32
  • Collection
  • 1898-1938

This collection contains over 125 original handwritten letters by Charles Goodnight to M. S. Garretson and others discussing buffalo, Indians, animal husbandry, the origin of and extinction of certain cattle breeds, the Goodnight Ranch, and many other topics.

Goodnight, Charles, 1836-1929

Samuel Erson Asbury Papers

  • TxAM-CRS 33
  • Collection
  • 1872-1960

The Samuel Erson Asbury Papers consist of research materials, correspondence, mainly original contemporary letters and copies of the older historical correspondence, Asbury's writings and copies of state and national documents, held in eight boxes and one map case drawer occupying approximately twelve linear feet of shelf space. Asbury's broad range of interests is reflected in the variety of topics contained in these papers. Foremost among them are the files of correspondence, historical documents, articles and research notes concerning various aspects of Texas history.

Also included in the Asbury papers are articles, short stories, essays, plays, poetry, and a Texas Revolution opera written by Asbury; research notes and correspondence on the cultivation of roses and the growing of plants without soil; articles written about Asbury; correspondence with family members; general correspondence; and photographs of Asbury, his family and friends, and North Carolina A & M College.

Asbury, Samuel E. (Samuel Erson), 1872-1962

H. O. "Cowboy" Kelly Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 35
  • Collection
  • 1948-1979; undated

This collection contains 171 watercolor illustrated letters by H.O. Kelly, written to his close friend and biographer, William "Bill" Weber Johnson, his wife Elizabeth Ann (McMurray) Johnson, Mary Longwell (Lady), and their family between 1948 and 1955. These letters formed the basis for William Weber Johnson's research for Kelly Blue, a biography of Kelly, first published by Doubleday in 1960, with a foreword by Western writer Tom Lea.

A smaller group of fifteen letters by H.O. Kelly, and two in pencil by his wife Jessie (Bowers) Kelly, are addressed to another art collector and friend, Dallas lawyer, Rudolph Johnson. Seventeen additional letters by Rudolph Johnson, typewritten on yellow paper between 1955 and 1958 are included, addressed to Kelly, or, after the artist's death, to his wife, Jess.

Of interest too is a letter to Kelly by Otto Kallir of the Galerie St. Etienne in New York City, requesting some of Kelly's works to be displayed in an exhibition of American primitive artists to be mounted at the Galerie early in 1952. Included is Kelly's letter to Mrs. Daniel Longwell (Lady) asking permission to refer Kallir to her to view the painting she had just purchased from Elizabeth Ann McMurray. Also of note is a letter written by John L. Paxton of Fort Worth, Texas, in reply to Rudolph Johnson soon after Kelly's death in December 1955. Attached to Paxton's reply is a list of all the known owners of Kelly's artwork at that time, whom Paxton has written to in the interest of collecting funds to aid in supporting the then-destitute Jess Kelly.

In Series 2 copies of correspondence between Elizabeth Johnson, J. Wayne Stark, Irene Hoadley, and others relates to the bulk of the letters in this collection, an art exhibit at the Texas A&M University Memorial Student Center, a color slide of the painting "Penning Goats". and plans by Texas A&M University Press to publish an illustrated edition of Kelly Blue.

The tiny colored drawings found on Kelly's letters and cards to friends and family are a foreshadowing of the lovingly detailed scenes in his oil paintings. As a significant primitive artist, Kelly's paintings present a world of rolling, green pastures, tranquil blue skies, and solid farms and farming towns, also populated by a thick dusting of livestock, including wily goats, unpredictable donkeys, fine mules, and lively horses. The robust folk is reminiscent of Kelly's mother's German ancestors in Ohio, similar to those living in Fredericksburg, Texas, a town Kelly often visited for inspiration. As these letters so vividly attest, when Kelly sold a painting, it was the buyer's initiation into a warm friendship with the raconteur artist, not a mere business transaction.

Kelly, H.O., 1884-1955

Alexander Thomson Letter

  • US TxAM-C 37
  • Collection
  • 1832-08-05

The Alexander Thomson letter is dated August 5, 1832, from Texas, Austin's Colony. Addressed to "Mr. Wm. D. Thomson, Giles County, Tennessee, Cornerville P.O.," with the salutation "My dear son," and signed "your Aff. Father, Alexs. Thomson."

The text of the letter recounts recent events in Austin's colony which, in retrospect, have a direct bearing on the brewing struggle for independence of the colony from Mexico. Most noteworthy is the account of the early revolt of Anglo-Texas colonists against the Mexican government's steady encroachment on the freedom of colonists to conduct free trade or encourage further immigration into Texas from the United States.

In the letter, Thomson details the build-up of hostilities between Colonel Juan Davis Bradburn, born in Virginia, but in service to Mexico, who was made commander of Fort Anahuac.

Noteworthy also in the letter are the expressions of loyalty and admiration shown toward General Antonio López de Santa Anna by the colonists, who saw him as championing their rights in the condemnation of Bradburn, who was known to be a supporter of the hated General Anastacio Bustamante. Bustamante, who had been the dictator of Mexico since January 1830, was now involved with Santa Anna and his allies in a fierce civil war. (see general note)

As the Thomson letter records vividly, the Texas colonists threw their support to Santa Anna, believing him to favor their freedom to enforce their own laws and maintain their own system of trade and civil courts. The letter records Stephen Austin's whole-hearted support of Santa Anna and Thomson's encomium on Santa Anna as "a true republican ... determined not to lay down his arms until republicanism prevails," rings ironically optimistic in the face of events only a few years later, culminating in the bitter defeat of the colonists by Santa Anna at the Alamo, and the equally bitter final defeat of Santa Anna at San Jacinto, assuring Texas's independence from Mexico.

Accompanying the letter are three other items.
A sepia-toned picture apparently reproduced from an oil painting. The picture is pasted inside a dark brown oval paper matting on a piece of cardboard measuring about 20 cm by 15 cm. The image measures about 13 cm by 7 cm. Though the original painting is as yet unidentified, "Alexander Thomson" is written on the back of the cardboard in pencil.

A sheet of letterhead stationery for the "St. Louis Southwestern Railway Lines, St. Louis 2, Mo.," with the logo for the "Cotton Belt Route," and below that "F. W. Green, President." On this much-folded piece of letterhead is an undated and unsigned biography of Alexander Thomson handwritten in pencil.

A photocopy (circa 1980) of a booklet originally prepared by Ralston P. Haun in Coleman, Tex. around 1936, which includes a transcription of the August 5, 1832 letter, as well as other family letters and papers. According to the copy of an explanatory note appended to the booklet, dated May 1, 1980, and signed Jim Glass of Houston, Tex., one of the three copies made by Haun was given to Ana Gardner Thomson and passed down to her granddaughter Ana Haun Frómen, thence apparently to Gardner Osborn. The booklet includes transcriptions of five other family letters and two memoirs. Though speculated upon in the Glass note, the current disposition of the other letters and papers is still unverified.

Thomson, Alexander, 1785-1863

Francis C. Turner Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 38
  • Collection
  • 1929-1997

This collection represents 68 years of materials authored or collected by Turner. Series 1. through Series 4. include highway engineering reports written for the Bureau of Public Roads, Clay Committee papers dating from the 1950s hearings on the development of a national interstate highway program, and speeches, publications, correspondence, and research notes generated by his career as a federal highway official. The aforementioned inscribed copy of A More Beautiful America by Lyndon Baines Johnson is is included in this material.

Upon his retirement, Turner became a transportation consultant, advising local, national, and international agencies, associations, and companies on transportation issues. The bulk of these post-retirement and consulting materials are found in Series 5 through Series 9. These materials include maps, photographs, research notes and manuscript drafts for a three-year study he and Harmer E. Davis conducted for the International Road Federation. The study, published in 1977 and titled A Comparative Analysis of Urban Transportation Requirements, compares transportation needs in urban areas in fourteen countries, including the United States.

Another large portion of the papers found in Series 7. contains papers related to Turner's membership in various associations. Throughout his lifetime Turner remained devoted to groups such as the Highway Users Federation and the American Association of State Highway Officials. Correspondence, speeches, and conference notes related to these associations reflect his continued involvement in the transportation field almost until the year of his death.

The collection also includes correspondence, transcripts, and drafts of several reports recording the history of the interstate highway, a subject for which Turner was a popular informant. The most extensive project is a study by the Public Works Historical Society, commissioned by the American Public Works Association and the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials.

Turner, Francis, 1908-1999

Alva Mitchell Collection

  • US TxAM-C 6
  • Collection
  • 1892-1956

The collection is an assortment of newspaper clippings, photographs, a typed biography, commencement programs, an Army training certificate and receipt, and contact information for Ralph Howard Mitchell.

Mitchell, Ralph Howard

Gustav Wehrs Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 7
  • Collection
  • 1943-2003

This collection contains correspondence from Gustav Wehrs to David Chapman and Dr. Robert H. Carpenter, regarding the donation of his life's memories as part of the Military collection to Cushing Memorial Library at Texas A&M. Included is a translated account of his experiences during the Battle of the Aegean in 1943, and an account of the early years of his life he had typed in his native German language.

Wehrs, Gustav, 1915

William Cruse McMurrey Collection

  • US TxAM-C 8
  • Collection
  • 1944; 2003-2006; Undated

This collection contains an assortment of articles of family history, correspondence between members of the McMurrey family, and Wen Jiang, a Chinese documentary film-maker, photographs of his funeral in 1944 in Tatangtzu, China and of modern-day China.

The collection is an assortment of letters, newspaper clippings, photographs, articles written by the McMurrey sisters, copies of programs, a war casualty list, a poem, photocopies from a book about Southwest China, and a pin.

Hyde, Barbara McMurrey

Cavitt Family Papers

  • US TxAM-C 805
  • Collection
  • circa 1870s-post 1900s

The collection consists of personal correspondence and documents of J. F. Cavitt and other documents of significant importance. Included is the correspondence of and articles about Ann Cavitt Armstrong, that sheds a light on the early settlement period of Texas. Financial documents also shed a light on the early history of Texas, including court documents and receipts of slave purchases.

Cavitt, Joseph Franklin

Citizens' Fellowship Papers Collection

  • TxAM-CRS 85
  • Collection
  • 1951-1967; 1994; Undated

This collection predominantly dates from 1958 to 1961 and includes correspondence to and from members of the Citizens' Fellowship, notes, minutes from meetings, and newspaper clippings. There are items regarding the integration of public schools, including the A&M Consolidated Independent School District. The collection contains information regarding the issue of African American employment and community programs sponsored by the Citizens' Fellowship.

Fenner, James H.

George and Nell Armstrong Papers

  • US TxAM-C 93
  • Collection
  • 1913-1920

The Papers consist chiefly of personal correspondence (1913-1920) between George Armstrong and Nell Floss Steel, later Nell Steel Armstrong, over the course of their courtship and marriage, both before and during World War I (1914-1918).

The correspondence is unusual in that both George Armstrong and his sweetheart, later wife, Nell Floss Steel, both served on the front during World War I, either in Europe, or at home in hospitals or camps in the United States. Life as a U. S. Armyinfantry officer in charge of recruits, or a Red Cross nurse is therefore vividly depicted in their letters to each other.

The Armstrong correspondence is also unusual for war-time, since Nell Floss Steel was the first of the two sent overseas in September 1914 to serve in a military hospital in Serbia, while her future husband was serving in army military camps in Texas City, Texas, at El Paso, Texas and Columbus, Ohio. In turnabout, George was later sent to France (September?-November 1918), while, as a result of her recent marriage to George, Nell had to remain in the United States, despite her eagerness to return to active war duty.

During this time George Armstrong served primarily with a U. S. Army General Services Infantry Recruit Depot, training recruits, and was stationed periodically at Ft. Benjamin Harrison, Indiana and at Camp Sherman, Ohio, eventually serving with the 83rd Infantry Division in France (September?-November 1918).

Nell Floss Steel served six months as a Red Cross nurse in a military hospital in Serbia (1914-1915) and as part of "The Texas Ten" group of nurses in a military camp at Eagle Pass, Texas (August 1916-March 1917), before marrying George Armstrong 21 August 1917. She spent the rest of the war mainly working in hospitals and sanitariums in the Columbus, Ohio area.

Details of daily life in the military camps, or in Red Cross service are many, and recorded by both the Armstrongs in delightfully intimate and detailed letters. Subjects mentioned in the correspondence include domestic and international politics, housing issues, income, social customs in different cultures, such as Greek nationals encountered both in the United States as well as in their homeland, or Austrian soldiers, both as officers and an hospital orderlies, politics, sports, and the lives of both a professional soldier and a professional nurse.

As a career nurse during wartime, Nell Floss Steel faced typoid and typhus epidemics, patients with unimaginable wounds, along with the difficulty and challenge of learning to understand Greek and German. Mail is forever delayed, obstructed or censored, the nurses never venture outside the hospital area after dark, and the availability of serum to innoculate the nurses before they face sufferers of contagious diseases is not certain. Over the course of the correspondence a very plucky and independent Nell Floss Steel records such moving scenes as a child dying of typhus, a young soldier dying of lockjaw, and a young military wife whom Nell Steel Armstrong aids when she miscarries.

Nell Floss Steel is invigorated by these challenges, however, and keeps a keen eye on the socio-political interactions manifested by relations between, for example, Austrian orderlies who are prisoners-of-war and an Austrian officer, who though a countryman and dying patient, is abused as a result of his former tyranny to underlings. Her letters present a finely detailed and atmospheric portrait of life as a World War IRed Cross nurse in occupied territory far from home. The contrasts inherent in World War I are shown by the delightful sightseeing Nell enjoys in Athens, just a short journey from the horrors of a Serbian hospital.

Nell Steel Armstrong is also approvingly aware of the political struggles of the "suffrage ladies," and extremely disappointed after 1917 that her married status prevents her from returning to war work in Europe, although she rejects the option of "divorcing for the war."

Patriotic and convivial, George Armstrong is both an avid football player and horseback rider, a passion he shares with Nell Steel Armstrong. He recounts incidents of heat-exhuastion after a 16-mile march in Texas heat, resulting in the death of two soldiers, as well as other accidents and wounds. He voices doubts, however, about the advisability of the United States becoming involved in the political upheavals of Europe or Mexico. Much comment about political developments of the day are included. President Woodrow Wilson and former President Teddy Roosevelt are mentioned. George Armstrong also describes the early military training of Pancho Villa, and comments on Texas/Mexico border activities of the Texas Rangers with great admiration. Nell Steel Armstrong describes former President Taft speaking to a group of nurses including herself.

Military camaraderie is evident in George Armstrong's high spirited description of pistol matches, parades, training exercise, mule and horse training, as well as life among soldiers living in often makeshift army training camps. For example, life in tents on the dusty fields at Texas City, Texas is enlivened by socializing with the population of Irish soldiers, most of them "fresh from the old sod."

Also present are letters from Nell Steel Armstrong to her mother, Mrs. James G. Steel, or sisters, Jane Steel, Margaret Steel, and Ethel Withgott; official correspondence regarding Nell Steel Armstrong's nursing service and George Armstrong'smilitary service; family correspondence to the married couple; George Armstrong's diary for 1914; an American Civil War letter (1862) by William Steel to his brother James G. Steel (Nell's father), with two poems (1863) collected by William Steel, newspaper clippings, a few programs and Christmas cards; one box of photographs [some negatives lacking photographic prints] of George Armstrong and Nell Steel Armstrong, either separately, together, or in groups; one flat storage box of oversize diplomas and photographs.

Items separated include five drawings of Platoon Plans of Attack[missing as of 10/2002], and one map of the northeast of France for bicycle and automobile touring.

  • “Partially processed. Might not be available to patrons. Please contact the Cushing Library’s Reading Room for more information.”

Armstrong, George, 1884-1964

John Henry Bliler Diary

  • US TxAM-C 97
  • Collection
  • 1862-1875

This diary serves as John Henry Bliler's account of the Civil War. It was kept in the Bliler family, in some form since the Civil War, up until it was acquired by the repository.

It looks that Bliler copied over his original diary several times himself, and this last copy occupies all but a few leaves of the five exercise tablets. As noted in the description of Series 1, these first five exercise books could not possibly have contained a copy made any earlier than 1890. The only exception seems to be a portion of the last tablet, which is filled by entries copied over in pencil in 1944 by one of Bliler's descendants, Ardath Bliler Kelly, reportedly since the family copy had become quite damaged by then.

Thus, according to p. 56 of the typewritten transcript of the diary entries in the five exercise books, "[John Henry] Bliler copied his account of the Civil War three times during his lifetime. The last copy was made shortly before his death in 1924." On page number 116 in pencil in the fifth exercise book, an entry from March 31, 1944, made in different handwriting reads "The following copied from by [sic.] originally by Ardath Bliler Kelly, granddaughter of the narrator [sic.]. The original is ragged and yellowed and crumbling." Entries which are thus copied on p. 116-123 of this last exercise book are out of order, dated June 24, [1865] - June 29, 1865, followed by a note in Ardath Bliler Kelly's hand, "A portion of the original omitted in the copy," then the dates January 24 - January 31, 1865.

The typed transcript and index were probably made by Roy K. Bliler later than 1944, and not too long previous to when it was received by the repository. This transcript preserves the original order of John Henry Bliler's diary entries.

Bliler, John Henry, 1844-1924

George R.R. Martin Collection

  • US TxAM-C C000004
  • Collection

This collection consists of the personal papers, manuscripts, memorabilia, and other associational material of science fiction and fantasy author George R.R. Martin.

Martin has also deposited as part of his collection a growing assortment of books, including his own work in various editions and translations, as well as works that he has edited or to which he has contributed. A bibliography of these books is available from the Reading Room upon request and items from that list are available for consultation.

Martin, George R.R.

Chad Oliver Collection

  • TxAM-CRS C000008
  • Collection

This collection consists of Oliver's manuscripts, notes, and correspondence, published books, magazine appearances, books collecting his stories, foreign-language editions, clippings, and other related material. Chronologically, the collection ranges from the mid-1950s through the mid-1990s.

Oliver, Chad, 1928-1993

Eldridge Cleaver Archives

  • US TxAM-C C000011
  • Collection
  • 1959-1981

Eldridge Cleaver, a founding member of the Black Panther Party, was also an author, Black power activist, who in his later life became a patriot and Mormon.

The Eldridge Cleaver Archives contains over 1000 individual items of his writings and letters from his prison stints from 1959 to 1966 after he published his seminal work, “Soul on Ice;” BPP writings, his exile in Cuba, Algiers, Paris and other writings; newspapers and other publications. The collection contains rare and unique items from founding members and insider within one of the most notorious and progressive organizations this country has ever witnessed.

There is extensive correspondence from his wife Kathleen that includes correspondence written by and to her, writings to and correspondence from journalists, activists, and from friends.

Cleaver, Eldridge, 1935-1998

Alex Haley Collection

  • US TxAM-C C000012
  • Collection
  • 1949-1965, 1967, 1991

This collection consists of one box of material that includes heavily edited and complete manuscript pages from the Autobiography of Malcolm X, his writings on Mahalia Jackson, Wilma Rudolph, the story Queenie, a follow-up to Roots, and other writings. Also included are his notes regarding the re-run of the mini-series Roots. He mentions a meeting he had with Warren Beatty where they discussed Roots. The notes are titled "Re: Roots Re-Run for TV Guide. Between the Covers acquired the collection from a bookseller who bought it directly from the estate of Virginia Hannon. A group of early letters from Alex Haley it's seven letters sent between 1949-1954 (one from 1967) to close family friend, Virginia Hannon. The letters present Haley, then a journalist in the Coast Guard, trying to get his writing career started and relating thoughts about his working habits, carious siblings, and plans for the future. All letters are written light, optimistic, and sometimes flirtatious style. Accompanying them are several related photographs, including one of Hannon in uniform, and a copy of Haley's posthumous novel Queen inscribed to her by his brother, George.

The July 2015 addendum includes an archive of seven Typed Letters Signed from Alex Haley sent between 1949-1954 (with one from 1967) to a close family friend, along with related photographs and the first edition of Queen Inscribed by his brother George Haley. The letters are overall near fine with typical folds from being mailing and light toning, with their original mailing envelopes that show wear including are nick, tears, and chip, but all are present; the photos are fine. The book is fine in a fine dustwrapper.

The letters, which are signed both as "Alex" and "Palmer," his middle name, were written to Virginia Hannon, a woman who taught Alex Haley French at Alcorn College before he left to join the Coast Guard. The letters begin after he's become a journalist writing for Coast Guard Magazine, and it seems, after an absence from Hannon. The letters are very familiar and playful with references to her French class, updates on his brothers George and Julius, and although married, some flirtatious comments about her breasts, "they were not as you say, spinsterly," and his faraway demeanor in class, "believe me, love, I was not, when you observed me, thinking about any damned touchdowns." There is also lots of talk about Haley's writing career. The early letters from 1949 included his thoughts on his drive to be a writer: "I'm trying pretty hard and have thus far had some minor successes," as well as his bad habits: "I'm essentially lazy, but I love to write once I get started." It's during an extended hospital stay for the treatment of a pilonidal cyst in 1953 that he seems to really make headway: "I never had so much time on end to write in my life. I have to stand up to type, to be sure, but - boy, am I turning out the words! Things I've wanted to work on for ages." In a letter the next year he excitedly describes what was his first big career break: "The prime accomplishment to date, a milestone in my life, I guess, was the sale two weeks ago, of 'The Harlem that Nobody Knows,' a 4,000-word piece, to Reader's Digest ... As a result, I, last week, got taken in the stable of Ruth Aley, probably one of the top 5 literary agents in the country. I am working like a bastard, to put it bluntly." The job led to a series of articles in the magazine and an assignment with Playboy interviewing many of the most important African-Americans of the day. The final letter from 1967 takes the form of two short but sweet holograph notes to Hannon written on the margins of a form letter and a photocopied travel article. They show a busy, successful writer still trying to keep in touch with an old friend.

The letters are accompanied by a black and white photograph of a young Hannon in a military uniform (possibly Red Cross), along with two later color photos of George with Wynelle [Hannon's sister] and George with President Bill Clinton. Plus, there is a copy of Haley's book Queen, published posthumously, and warmly Inscribed by George: "To my dear sister, Virginia Rose Hannon With love, respect and appreciation Your brother George Haley - and all the rest of the Haley Family 12 June 1993." An interesting and intimate collection of early correspondence from one of the most influential African-American writers of the 20th Century.

Haley, Alex

William Wallace Burns Papers

  • US TxAM-C C000023
  • Collection
  • 1848-1910

This collection consists mainly of correspondence (1858-1888) in which Brigadier General William Wallace Burns, of the United States Army, gives detailed accounts of Civil War battles fought during the Peninsular Campaign (March-August 1862), particularly the Seven Days Battles (June 25 - July 1, 1862 ), including Peach Orchard, Allen's Farm, Savage Station, Glendale, Nelson's Farm, and Malvern Hill. Burns discusses topics such as military strategy, troop movements, military surgeons, weather conditions during battles, building pontoon bridges, building defense works and, and capturing Confederate works. One letter is present from the Mexican-American War (1846-1848).

Also included is personal correspondence with high-ranking officials such as President Abraham Lincoln, U. S. Secretary of War Charles Stanton, General Henry W. Halleck, General Winfield Scott Hancock, General George McClellan, General William Starke Rosecrans, and Major General Edwin Vose Sumner, as well as Emil Schalk who was a war journalist. The latter correspondence concerns political viewpoints on the causes of the war, primarily slavery, as well as the conduct and outcome of the war.

Some correspondence (1888-1904) was written just before and after Burns' death among family members, notably his grandchildren Lloyd Burns Magruder, who was a cadet at the United States Military Academy, and Pauline Magruder, as well as William Wallace Burns' sister Mabelle Burns, usually called "Mab." A substantial group of letters to Mabelle Burns is from her suitor for marriage, B. L. Prince. A few of the family letters from Pauline Magruder to her Aunt Mabelle Burns are written in French from Paris, France.

Also present is a substantial group of copies of military orders and official reports focused on Burns' thwarted ambitions to become Major General, and lead a Division in the Army of the Cumberland under the command of General Rosecrans. Apparently Burns believed political maneuverings of high governmental officials obstructed his promotion to Major General and precipitated his resignation as Brigadier General in 1863.

A few financial records and documents from legal proceedings are included concerning disputed rights to the "Sibley Tent," an invention whose patent royalties were eventually shared by Burns with Henry Hastings Sibley. Also present are a few documents concerning Texas real estate transactions.

Burns, William Wallace, 1825-1892

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