Robert Taft, Jr. Papers

A Finding Aid to the Collection in the Library of Congress

Prepared by Kathleen M. Dondanville
with the assistance of Jennifer Barbour, Paul Colton, Andrew Passett, and Al Stein

Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

Washington, D.C.

2009

Contact information: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html

Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Manuscript Division, 2009

Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms009042

Table of Contents

Collection Summary

Selected Search Terms

Personal Names

Organizations

Subjects

Locations

Related Names

Occupations

Administrative Information

Provenance:

Processing History:

Transfers:

Copyright Status:

Security Classified Documents:

Preferred Citation:

Biographical Note

Scope and Content Note

Organization of the Papers

Description of Series

Container List

Collection Summary

Selected Search Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein.

Administrative Information

The papers of Robert Taft, Jr., lawyer, state legislator, and U.S. representative and senator from Ohio, were deposited in the Library of Congress in 1976. Numerous additions were received between 1977 and 1994.

The collection was processed in 1994. The finding aid was revised in 2009.

Motion picture films, sound and video recordings, and photographs have been transferred to the appropriate custodial divisions of the Library where they are identified as part of these papers.

Copyright in the unpublished writings of Robert Taft, Jr., in these papers and in other collections of papers in the custody of the Library of Congress has been dedicated to the public.

Government regulations control the use of security classified items in this collection. Manuscript Division staff can furnish information concerning access to and use of classified material.

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Robert Taft, Jr. Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Biographical Note

Scope and Content Note

The papers of Robert Taft, Jr. (1917-1993) span the years 1897-1993, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the years 1963-1976. The collection is composed primarily of material documenting Taft's legislative work as a member of the United States House of Representatives and Senate. Family papers, personal and professional organizations files, general correspondence, Ohio House of Representatives files, political files, and speeches and writings comprise the remainder of the collection.

Taft was the grandson of William Howard Taft, the nation's twenty-fifth president, and the son of Robert A. Taft, one of the prominent figures in American politics during the 1940s and early 1950s. The Family Papers series, 1897-1993, primarily contains correspondence, material pertaining to his father, and his own personal files. Family correspondence includes letters between Taft and his parents, siblings, and children and between other family members. Correspondence between Taft and his parents while he was a student at Yale University reveals a warmth between him and his mother and a close but more formal relationship with his father. Postcards written by his father to his mother, Helen H. Taft, are dated 1897. Other material pertaining to Robert A. Taft include campaign brochures, financial and legal records, and speeches and writings. Also contained in the series are records documenting Robert Taft, Jr.'s, foreign travels, school reports from the Taft School and Yale University, and naval records from his service in World War II. Genealogical material, newsletters, articles and newspaper clippings pertaining to various Taft family members, and papers relating to the Robert A. Taft Institute of Government and the William Howard Taft Memorial Association comprise the rest of the series.

The Personal and Professional Organizations series, 1946-1993, contains material pertaining to Taft's personal interests and activities and his participation in civic, political, and educational organizations. Files documenting his continuing interest in foreign affairs after leaving public office include correspondence, reports, minutes of meetings and other records pertaining to the Civilian/Military Institute and the Trilateral Commission. Files reflecting his dedication to public service are also represented, and include material relating to the Cincinnati Children's Home, the Cincinnati Institute of Fine Arts, and the American Institute for Public Service.

The General Correspondence series, 1940-1993, consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence between Taft and Ohio and national public officials, business, civic and political organizations, friends, colleagues, and the general public. They relate primarily to political matters, business and personal concerns, and contemporary social issues. The series does not contain Taft's correspondence files dating 1963-1964 and 1967-1976. Letters from these years were organized separately by his secretaries and left in the Personal Office File of the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives series because they pertain primarily to his duties as an elected official.

Frequent correspondents include Stanley Aranoff, George Bush, Carlton S. Dargusch, Everett McKinley Dirksen, Robert J. Dole, Gerald Ford, John Glenn, Herbert T. Hoover, John J. Kelley, Henry Kissinger, Douglas MacArthur, I. Jack Martin, Richard M. Nixon, James A. Rhodes, Elliot L. Richardson, and Carl Bernard Rubin.

The Ohio State House of Representatives series, 1954-1963, contains correspondence, memoranda, and reports documenting Taft's legislative activities as a member of that body. Legislative summaries and voting records are also included.

The United States House of Representatives series, 1963-1970, and the United States Senate series, 1971-1976, contain extensive material documenting Taft's tenure as a representative from Ohio's first district and as a United States senator. Included are correspondence, memoranda, reports, legislative files, printed matter, press releases, newspaper clippings, and other material. Both series are divided into the following subseries: Constituent Services, Legislative File, Personal Office File, and Press File.

The Constituent Services subseries is comprised of grants and projects files, form letters and paragraphs in response to constituent correspondence, and military academy applications. Grants and projects files make up the bulk of the subseries and contain requests from local governments, small businesses, private research groups, and nonprofit social service and community action programs for information and assistance in obtaining federal funds and grants.

The greatest concentration of material in the Taft collection is found in the Legislative File, 1963-1970. Included are bill files, committee files, legislative assistant's files, voting and attendance records, and other material documenting the nature and extent of Taft's participation in the legislative process. Because these files were developed and maintained for Taft's office, they generally contain staff correspondence, memoranda, and notes as well as supporting material, such as printed matter, reports, and background material. However, memoranda and notes written by Taft and material marked with his notations can also be found throughout the Legislative File.

The bill file in the House series is organized by topic rather than by individual bill and contains printed copies of legislation, correspondence, memoranda, reports, and background material pertaining to various legislation sponsored or cosponsored by Taft. The Senate bill file, developed and maintained by staff to preserve a record of specific legislation sponsored or cosponsored by Taft, is organized by individual bill and primarily contain printed copies of legislation, related correspondence, and some background material.

The committee files pertain to Taft's work on various committees and subcommittees in the House and Senate. The most substantive House committee files include memoranda, copies of bills, and reports documenting his work on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Topics include the Vietnam War, the Middle East situation, and world population control. Files documenting his committee work in the Senate include material pertaining to the committees on Labor and Public Welfare, Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, and Armed Services. Labor and Public Welfare files illustrate Taft's moderate approach to social issues and include files relating to the Occupational Safety and Health Act, emergency dispute legislation, and his assistance in extending the National Labor Relations Act to cover health care workers.

The Legislative Assistant's files in the Senate series are extensive and contain correspondence, memoranda, reports, and related items documenting Taft's general legislative interests as well as the development of his staff's policy positions and legislative initiatives. Files covering issues such as agriculture, energy, interior and insular affairs, and public works are well represented. Judiciary files contain topics of special interest. Included also are correspondence, memoranda, notes, and newspaper clippings pertaining to Taft's efforts to provide Vietnam War draft evaders with conditional amnesty, investigations into the shooting of Kent State University students by national guardsmen in 1970, and the Watergate Affair hearings and impeachment proceedings.

Floor statements given by Taft and clipped from the Congressional Record, correspondence and itineraries relating to foreign fact-finding missions, daily floor schedules, voting and attendance records, work summaries, weekly notices prepared by the Senate Republican Policy Committee, and whip notices comprise the remainder of the Legislative File in the House and Senate papers.

The Personal Office File in both the House and Senate series contains caucus/political files, correspondence, and files maintained by Taft's Senate administrative assistant. Caucus/political files, while mostly pertaining to national political issues of interest to Taft and the Republican party, also provide glimpses into Ohio politics on the local level. Notable in the Senate series is material pertaining to the Ohio Republican State Central and Executive Committee. Taft ran for the Hamilton County chairman seat in 1972 in order to change county politics to "reflect all segments of our party and not just the views of a narrow group." More extensive caucus/political files are found in the House series, primarily containing correspondence, agendas and minutes of meetings, background material, and task force reports relating to Taft's work on the House Republican Research Committee and the Republican Coordinating Committee.

Both the House and Senate series include incoming and outgoing correspondence between Taft and congressional colleagues, public officials, Ohio businesses, civic and political leaders and organizations, staff members, constituents and personal friends pertaining to Taft's legislative interests, contemporary social and political issues, and personal matters. Frequent correspondents not mentioned previously include Spiro T. Agnew, Frances Payne Bingham Bolton, Edward W. Brooke, Barry Goldwater, Hubert H. Humphrey, Jacob K. Javits, Charles H. Percy, and Hugh A. Scott.

The administrative assistant's files in the Senate series are topical in nature and document Taft's legislative, political, and personal activities. Included are correspondence, memoranda, and notes relating to legislative issues of interest to Taft, parties and receptions he attended, and some of his political colleagues. Other material in the personal office files in the House and Senate series include appointment books, letters of recommendation, schedules and itineraries, and files pertaining to various commissions on which Taft served.

The final subseries in the House and Senate series consists of press files. Collected or originated by Taft's press staff, these files are comprised of press releases, newspaper clippings, and reference files documenting Taft's entire legislative career.

The Political File series, 1956-1993, contains correspondence, reports, campaign memorabilia, handbooks, manuals, and other material relating to Taft's House and Senate campaigns, his participation in the 1972 presidential campaign of Richard Nixon, and his experiences as a delegate to several Republican national conventions. Also included in the series is correspondence of the Taft '71 Committee, created to cover campaign debts incurred during the 1970 Senate race. Files of special interest include material pertaining to the recount Taft demanded in his failed 1964 Senate race, transcripts of debates with Howard Metzenbaum during his 1970 Senate campaign, and records relating to the 1972 Presidential campaign in which Taft served as one of Nixon's aides.

The Speeches and Writings series, 1952-1993, is comprised of Taft's published articles, papers, and speeches. Articles and papers reflect his interest in Ohio history, Taft family history, foreign affairs, and political and social issues. The speech file, the most extensive segment of the series, contains correspondence, notes and outlines, research material, and texts of speeches given by Taft from the beginning of his public service career to the last years of his life. Speeches made during his terms in the House and Senate pertain primarily to contemporary political issues, while speeches made after he left public service are more general in nature. Many of the prepared texts are annotated by Taft. Indexes to articles and speeches, transcripts of interviews, radio and television broadcasts, and a position paper on defense complete the series.

The Computer Tapes series is made up of electronic backup tapes created in 1976. Although they were made to backup some of Taft's Senate files, their specific content in unknown because the technology necessary to read them is currently unavailable.

Organization of the Papers

The collection is arranged in twelve series:

• Family Papers, 1897-1993
• Personal and Professional Organizations, 1946-1993
• General Correspondence, 1940-1993
• Ohio State House of Representatives, 1954-1963
• United States House of Representatives, 1963-1970
• United States Senate, 1971-1976
• Political File, 1956-1993
• Speeches and Writings, 1952-1993
• Computer Tapes, 1976
• Oversize, 1954-1964
• Classified, 1966-1975
• Top Secret, 1974

Description of Series

Container List