Political History Resources
Executive, Legislative, Judicial and General
Special Collections and Archives contains material of particular interest to researchers studying the history of American politics. Covering both the 19th and 20th centuries, some relate to Maine politics, while others concern politics on the national or international level.
This guide will outline those manuscript collections with substantial political components, as well as several collections of clippings, pamphlets and other printed materials. They are divided according to the branch of government involved, with cross-references where necessary. Collections too general to be so classified, involving the political process rather than an elected office, or concerning specific political issues or events are identified separately.
Principal among the collections listed in this guide are the papers of Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, Senator Ralph Owen Brewster and Speaker of the House Thomas Brackett Reed.
Some collections or items, such as the Henry Clay Frick Autograph Albums (one on Lincoln; the other of Presidential autographs) or the Melville Weston Fuller diaries (1879, 1880 and 1882), may involve politicians or government officials but, since they do not contain much political material, they are not included herein.
Although a few archives collections are politically related enough to be of general interest, most of those are of a narrow scope (for example those records concerning the debates in the Massachusetts General Court on founding the College, dealing with the land grants received by the College in its early years, or involving issues of interest to past Bowdoin presidents). Because they are so specialized, they are not included herein.
The list will be updated as new items are acquired or identified. Some of the manuscript collections have web-based guides or finding aids; links are provided where available. Please check back or inquire for further information.
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email: scaref@bowdoin.edu / telephone: (207) 725-3288
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