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Jerome Davis papers

 Collection
Identifier: Ax 022

Scope and Contents

The papers include manuscripts of and correspondence relating to 17 books, manuscripts of articles and reviews, speeches, diaries for 1915 and 1942, and correspondence concerning lectures and course notes.

The collection is organized into the following series: Correspondence, Manuscripts, Lectures, Critical Correspondence, Miscellaneous.

The manuscripts series is divided into book, articles, newspaper articles (1943-1944), speeches (1919-1955), prayer and sermon sections. The book-length manuscript section is organized alphabetically by title of work and each entry may include notes, correspondence, research, drafts, reviews and publicity files. The articles are also filed alphabetically by title.

The lectures series includes correspondence and debate, symposia and conference documents, 1918-1954.

The miscellaneous series includes biographical material, course and lecture notes, Russian posters, publications, diaries (1915; 1942) and an address book.

The photographs included in the collection concern personal and professional subjects including images of Gandhi during his vigil for his wife, the Central Executive Committee of the Communist Party of Great Britain, cooperative shops in Scandinavia, and an extensive series of lantern slides that were used to illustrate a lecture on Russia.

The correspondence series is organized alphabetically by person or organization and the critical correspondence series covers the years 1918-1937.

Major correspondents are: American Federation of Teachers, American Friends Service Committee, American Sociological Society, Connecticut Federation of Churches, Maurice N. Eisendrath, Farrar & Rinehart (publishers), William Grenfell, Julius Hecker, Reinhold Niebuhr, Franklin D. and Eleanor Roosevelt.

There are also files of correspondence and documents relating to the Brightwater cooperative project, Bath, Maine (1925-1932); the Connecticut Legislative Commission on jails (1916-1938); Davis vs. Curtis Publishing Company (1939-1950); the Langrock Clothing Company arbitration case, New Haven, Conneticut (1933-1934); Promoting Enduring Peace, Inc. (19471959); the Sacco-Vanzetti case (1927); the Toledo, Ohio, vice investigation (1933-1934); Yale University (1922-1936); the Y.M.C.A. International Committee for Work with Prisoners of War (1916- 1918) ; the Y.M.C.A. World's Committee on Prisoners of War (1941-1944).

Dates

  • 1914-1963

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time. Glass plate negatives and lantern slides are restricted due to the fragility of the format. All decisions regarding use will be at the discretion of the curator for visual materials.

Conditions Governing Use

Property rights reside with Special Collections and University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries. Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs. All requests for permission to publish collection materials must be submitted to Special Collections and University Archives. The reader must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.

Biographical / Historical

Jerome Davis (1891-1979) was born in Kyoto, Japan to Jerome Dean Davis and Frances Hooper Davis, both missionaries. Davis married Mildred Rood in 1920 and had three children. Davis attended Oberlin College, Columbia University, and the Union Theological Seminary.

Davis worked on the world's committee of the YMCA in Russia from 1916-1918. He worked again for the YMCA in Canada where he was the director of POW camps, 1940-1943. He was also a visiting professor and lecturer at Japanese universities.

Davis became an international activist for peace and social reform, labor organizer, and sociologist, teaching at Dartmouth and Yale Divinity School. He was denied tenure in a controversial case related to his Socialism and relationships with Bolshevik leaders.

Extent

20 linear feet (18 containers)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Jerome Davis (1891-1979) was an international activist for peace and social reform, labor organizer, and sociologist, who taught at Dartmouth and Yale Divinity School. The collection contains manuscripts of and correspondence relating to 17 books, manuscripts of articles and reviews, speeches, diaries for 1915 and 1942, and correspondence concerning lectures and course notes.

Arrangement

Collection is organized into the following series: Correspondence, Manuscripts, Lectures, Critical Correspondence, and Miscellaneous.

Other Finding Aids

Paper finding aid with additional information is available in Special Collections and University Archives.

Physical Description

11 record storage boxes, 1 manuscript box; 5 photo boxes, 1 oversize photograph folder

Processing Information

Collection processed by staff, 1968.

This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.

Title
Guide to the Jerome Davis Papers
Status
Complete Description
Author
Finding aid prepared by University of Oregon Libraries, Archivists' Toolkit Project Team and Tanya Parlet.
Date
2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.
Sponsor
Funding for production of this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Repository Details

Part of the University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives Repository

Contact:
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene OR 97403-1299 USA