Democratic Party National Committee Papers, 1928-1948 | Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum

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Collection Overview

Title: Democratic Party National Committee Papers, 1928-1948

Primary Creator: National Committee of the Democratic Party (1928-1948)

Extent: 261.45 Cubic Feet

Arrangement: This is a collection in 26 series.

Abstract

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) Papers document the political activities, community organizing, campaign strategies, polling and data analysis, and direct public correspondence of the Democratic Party leadership from 1928 to 1948. The collection holds a significant quantity of FDR's direct correspondence with the general public during his 1932 campaign as the Democratic presidential nominee.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

This collection consists of the records of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), 1928-1948. Materials in this collection are related primarily to the nominations, campaigns and elections of Franklin D. Roosevelt as president of the United States in 1932, 1936, 1940 and 1944. The collection contains correspondence exchanged among Franklin D. Roosevelt, many Democratic Party officials, activists and supporters, and the general public; patronage correspondence related to persons seeking positions in the government; campaign research materials and subject files; campaign literature; newsclipping files and scrapbooks; copies of Roosevelt campaign speeches and press releases.

A small amount of material in this collection pertains to Democratic Party activities following Roosevelt's death in 1945 and to the campaign and election of Harry S. Truman as president in 1948.

For political historians these papers present a rich portrait of a time when campaigns began to adopt a more scientific approach to elections that reflected growing voter registration efforts across the country. Almost half the collection consists of individual files on the 48 states. In addition, the human element is very much on display as there are files on dinner speeches, patronage requests, as well as some 30 boxes of clipping and memoribilia. Two individuals that figure heavily into this collection are DNC Chairman James Farley and his associate Emil Hurja. The latter, an influential political statistian and polling specialist, donated papers to the FDR library.

Researchers should also consult the records of the Women's Division of the DNC, a seperate but related collection that also contains a great deal of FDR's 1932 campaign correspondence and many additional records of the Party's political organizing of the New Deal era.

Administrative Information

Repository: Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum

Access Restrictions: This material is subject to copyright restrictions under Title 17 of the U.S. Code.

Acquisition Source: National Committee of the Democratic Party, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, James Farley, and Lela Stiles

Acquisition Method: The papers were donated to the Library by the National Committee of the Democratic Party, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, James Farley, and Lela Mae Stiles.

Related Materials: Numerous collections in the Library including: President's Official, Personal, and Secretary's Files; Women's Division of the Democratic Party National Committee Papers; Mary Dewson Papers; Stephen T. Early Papers; Harry L. Hopkins Papers; Louis M. Howe Papers; Emil Hurja Papers; National Committee of Independent Voters for Roosevelt; Eleanor Roosevelt Papers

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Correspondence, 1928-1933],
[Series 2: Campaign Materials, 1932],
[Series 3: Library and Research Bureau Papers, 1928-1933],
[Series 4: 1932 Campaign File - Newspaper Clippings [by state]],
[Series 5: Newspaper Clippings [by subject], 1931-1932],
[Series 6: 1932 Campaign Literature Files - Newspaper Clippings],
[Series 7: Patronage Correspondence, 1932-1933],
[Series 8: Patron Correspondence and Records, 1933-1940],
[Series 9: Applications for Positions, 1934-1936],
[Series 10: Democratic National Convention, 1936],
[Series 11: Willkie Index - Speeches and Statements],
[Series 12: Correspondence of James A. Farley, Chairman, 1936],
[Series 13: Election Forecasts, October 1936],
[Series 14: Democratic National Committee Campaign Correspondence, 1940],
[Series 15: 1940 Campaign Correspondence - Publicity Suggestions],
[Series 16: Correspondence with State Leaders (Elections and Newspaper Clippings), 1936-1937, 1940-1948],
[Series 17: Correspondence with Prominent Democratic Leaders, 1941-1948],
[Series 18: Presidential and Federal Appointments],
[Series 19: Campaign of 1942],
[Series 20: Miscellaneous Speech Materials and Speech Drafts],
[Series 21: Campaign of 1944 - Democratic National Convention],
[Series 22: Miscellaneous Papers [general subject files], 1932-1948],
[Series 23: Roosevelt - Speeches and Statements (Clippings)],
[Series 24: Roosevelt - Campaign Speeches],
[Series 25: Roosevelt - Miscellaneous Materials, 1929-1945],
[Series 26: Duplicates Unless Otherwise Noted [press releases]],
[All]

Series 22: Miscellaneous Papers [general subject files], 1932-1948

This series contains general subject files related to a variety of topics and issues spanning several campaign cycles. Included in this series are files pertaining to the Absentee Voters Bureau, radio coverage of Franklin D. Roosevelt's death, complaints, Democratic National Committee subcommittees and policies, gasoline rationing, the Hatch Act, labor unions, primary scheduling, state political organizations, treaties, and war manpower. Arranged alphabetically by subject.

Box 582

Absentee Voters Bureau, 1932-1938
Francis W. H. Adams New York Finance Director
Agricultural measures of Congress Since World War I
Answers to 1944 After Election Forum re: Organization Work, 1944
Appointment Complaints (Washington, S. Dakota, Oregon, Neb., Kansas, Iowa), 1943
Baldwin-Benson Meeting, 1945
Business and Professional Men's League
CBS Radio Coverage of FDR's Death
Check on State Organization Lists, 1946
Complaints Records, by States, 1941
Congratulations to Newspapers - Election, 1944
Congressional Elections - Percent of majority on Republican & Democratic Nominees, 1944
Counsel, Public Utilities Commission, District of Columbia
County Chairman's Reports - Campaign (Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Nebraska, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas), 1940
County Chairman's Survey, 1943

Box 583

Davis Research - Peace and Foreign Nations - [Tom Davis: "This is the cream of the pertinent information . . . On the President's peace and foreign policy, together with other information on the stand of the isolationists."], 1941
Defeated Candidates Senate and House, 1944-1945
Delegates, 1940
Democratic National Campaign Fund, 1940
Democratic National Committee Defense Activities, December, 1941
Democratic National Committee Patronage Policies, 1940
Democratic National Committee "Strategists", 1946
Democratic National Convention Information, 1948
Dollar A Year Men
Election Analysis "Post Mortem", 1938
Election Information, 1943
Election Polls by Staff
Ewing Questionnaire - re: Administration Policies, 1943
Farm Campaign, 1943
Finance Directors, 1944
Fiscal Operations Memo, 1946
Flynn Conference: Mayflower Move (Newspaperman), 1941
Flynn, Jim - Report on State Committee Leaders, 1940
Forms set-up by Chairman Farley for Campaign Correspondence, 1940
Form Letters - Inaugural, 1940
Gas for Election Workers, hannegan-Spanglor Correspondence, 1944
Gasoline Rationing Report, Michelson to F.D.R., 1941
Governmental Charts
Governor's Meeting, White House F.D.R., 1945
Halsey Office - Preferential and State Primaries, 1944
Hannegan Material

Box 584

Hatch Act - Voting
Inaugural Plans, White House, 1945-1949
Interventionist Report (Pre-Pearl Harbor) Office of Public Opinion Research, Princeton University
Labor Union Correspondence, 1944
Legislative Leaders - New York
List of Delegates to Democratic National Convention, 1940
Littell Clips and Letters
Long, Breckenridge - Bill for Immigrants
Memos Concerning Registration Figures, 1944
Minnesota
Newspaper Clippings re: Pauley Nomination and "Hopkins Letter" Scandal
New York Regional Meeting, August 30, 1944-September 1, 1944

Box 585

Office of Price Administration, 1942
Oklahoma - Special Election, March 28, 1944
Organization - County and State Committees
Organization - Democratic National Committee
Organization of Party
Organization Plans
Pegler, Westbrook - "Fair Enough", 1944
Photograph Requests
Precinct Meetings, October 5, 1944
Primary Calendar - Preferential - Presidential and Regular
Ramspeck Act
Resolutions - FDR and 1942 Term, 1942
Reynolds, Ed - Research
Room Assignments - Campaign - Hotel Biltmore, 1944

Box 586

Secretaries of State - also: Lieutenant Governors, Attorney General, 1939-1945; 1945
Small Business - Bibliography and information re:
State Finance Director
State Organization Check, November, 1946
State Political Constitution - Minnesota
State Survey of Complaints - Chairman Walker - Senate & Congress, 1943
Summary: Political Situation
Summary: Fund Raising 48 States, 1942
Treaty, United States - Mexico
Tydings Committee Report
Vice President - Letters re: Candidate, 1944
Victory Dinner - Roosevelt, Truman, Wagner, February 17, 1945
Walker, Spangler - (Fourth Term) Controversy
War Manpower Ruling on Democratic National Committee Employment, 1945
White House Governor's Reception, January 1944
Writer's War Board - Publicity Department, 1944