SERIES 1: PERSONAL/POLITICAL Boxes 1 - 169
Browse JHG's Office Files - Part 1, Correspondence, Personal Files and
Political Files
Browse JHG's Office Files - Part 2, Subject Files and
Vice-Presidential Files
This sub-series contains twenty-nine cubic feet of records, dated 1974 through 1998, compiled by Senator Glenn and maintained by his personal secretaries during his four terms in the U.S. Senate. The files are separated by type of record and include correspondence files, personal files, political files, two sets of subject files, and vice-presidential files.
The five cubic feet of correspondence files consist of three sets of filing systems dated 1974 through 1984, 1985 through 1992, and 1993 through 1998. Most of the items found within the correspondence files are letters and memoranda received by Senator Glenn, though intermixed are copies of some responses and other letters written by Senator Glenn. Researchers should be advised that the correspondence files do not include copies of all the letters and memoranda received or sent by Glenn during his four terms in the U.S. Senate. Letters and memoranda not included in the correspondence files are located elsewhere in this sub-series and in a number of other sub-series, most notably the administrative assistant, legislative staff, committee, and Great Lakes Task Force sub-series. Folders in the correspondence files generally are arranged within individual two-year congresses (94th through 105th Congress).
The 1974 through 1984 set of correspondence contains alphabetically arranged general files for the years 1975 and 1978, along with files under the headings "Dear Colleague Letters," "Memoranda from Staff," "Cabinet," "White House," "VIPs," and "Foreign Dignitaries." Items within these later files are arranged in chronological order.
The 1985 through 1992 files contain chronologically arranged files headed "Memoranda from Staff" and "Dear Colleague Letters," along with general files headed "VIPs." The VIP files may include letters from the White House and other administration personnel, foreign officials, Ohio and national political leaders, and corporate executives. Items within the VIP files are arranged alphabetically by the author's last name.
From 1993 through 1998 correspondence was kept only in general files headed "VIPs." Dear Colleague letters from this time period are located within the files of the appropriate staff member in the legislative staff sub-series of the legislative series. Items within the VIP files are arranged in alphabetical order by the author's last name and may include letters from other members of Congress, White House personnel, foreign officials, politicians, and business executives.
The personal files contain three cubic feet of materials, dated 1974 through 1998, pertaining to the charitable and educational organizations, foundations, committees, and other entities Senator Glenn was involved in outside of his Senate duties. Other files pertain to awards and special events given to or in honor of Senator Glenn. Separate files were kept on most individual organizations, but general correspondence files on lesser events and entities also were maintained from 1983 through 1998.
Other files, headed either "Honorary Committees" or "Honorary Memberships," contain letters requesting permission to add Senator Glenn's name to a particular organization on an honorary basis. These files were kept on a yearly basis from 1976 through 1998. Other personal correspondence files include letters written in response to Glenn's retirement from the Senate and letters received in 1987 pertaining to the twenty-fifth anniversary of the flight of the Friendship 7 spacecraft.
Significant organizations include the Mercury 7 Foundation, Give Kids the World, the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, the Space Shuttle Children's Fund, and Muskingum College. Files are arranged alphabetically by subject heading and may contain memoranda, correspondence, reports, meeting minutes, and newspaper clippings.
The political files consist of seven cubic feet of materials, dating from 1968 through 1998, documenting Senator Glenn's relationship with the Ohio Democratic Party and his participation in the activities of the National Democratic Party. The files are arranged in alphabetical order by folder heading and include files on various politicians and political supporters. Most of the individuals represented are officials within Ohio and the National Democratic Party. Files on individuals generally are limited to letters and newspaper clippings.
Other files are headed by the names of organizations within the National Democratic Party in which Senator Glenn participated in varying degrees. Included are folders pertaining to the Democratic Business Council (1984-1988), the Democratic National Committee (1974-1990), and the Democratic Leadership Council (1985-1993). Glenn also had an active role in the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from 1977 through 1992. Items within these party files may include the senator's notes, correspondence, memoranda, and briefing books, along with various reports, bulletins, and miscellaneous items published by the Democratic Party.
The political files contain a significant amount of materials pertaining to the Ohio Democratic Party that document Glenn's initial rocky relationship with the party and his subsequent rise in stature. Included are two sets of files, arranged chronologically, under the subject headings, "Ohio Politics" and "Ohio Democratic Party." The "Ohio Politics" files date from 1970 through 1977 and relate, for the most part, to Glenn's unsuccessful 1970 primary election bid and his successful campaign for the U.S. Senate in 1974. The "Ohio Democratic Party" files date from 1978 through 1993 and are more general in nature. Materials located within the files include notes, memoranda, correspondence, speeches, statements, reports, and newspaper clippings.
Although the majority of the records on Glenn's senate election campaigns are located with the senate campaign files sub-series, the political files do contain a limited number of campaign records. Outside of the 1970 and 1974 campaigns described above, most of these files relate to Glenn's 1986 re-election campaign. There also are a few files on the consideration of Glenn as the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in the 1976, 1984, and 1988 presidential elections. Other files pertain to speaking engagements Glenn made for various Democratic Party candidates in 1981 and 1982 prior to his bid for the 1984 Democratic Party presidential nomination.
Some materials from Glenn's pre-Senate political activities are found within the political files. Most notable of these are the speeches, notes, correspondence, schedules, and issue briefs compiled from Glenn's participation in Robert F. Kennedy's 1968 presidential campaign. Also included is a file containing Glenn's notes and miscellaneous materials on Kennedy's funeral arrangements. Of note are the files documenting the activities of the Citizens Task Force on Environmental Protection. This task force, formed by Ohio Governor John J. Gilligan and headed by Glenn, investigated a number of environmental issues in Ohio during 1970 and early 1971. The final report published by the task force in June 1971 was an impetus behind the formation of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The subject files consist of thirteen cubic feet of materials equally divided into two sets of dated files. The initial set of subject files was maintained by Kathy Prosser (Belle), Senator Glenn's first personal secretary. It dates from Glenn's first year in office in 1975 to 1984 when Ms. Prosser left the senator's staff. The second set of subject files was maintained by subsequent personal secretaries from 1984 through 1998, Glenn's last year in office. Both sets of files are arranged alphabetically by folder heading and contain a wide variety of topics, including legislative bills, committee matters, foreign countries, Ohio projects, events, and general policy issues. Individual files may include correspondence and memoranda, Glenn's notes, statements, speeches, and op-ed articles, along with reports and briefing materials, talking points, and newspaper clippings. Topics and issues of particular importance or interest to Senator Glenn are divided into multiple folders by sub-headings.
Due to Senator Glenn's membership on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee the 1975 to 1984 set of files includes documentation on such significant foreign relations topics as the sale of AWAC aircraft to Iran and Saudi Arabia, China-Taiwan relations, the MX missile, and the SALT II Treaty. During this time period Senator Glenn also was chairman of the Sub-committee on Energy, Nuclear Proliferation, and Federal Services of the Senate Government Operations Committee (the name was changed to the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee in 1977). The initial set of subject files therefore contain numerous files pertaining to the energy crisis of the 1970s, including the natural gas shortage and oil pricing measures. Also in keeping with Glenn's sub-committee work are the numerous files on nuclear non-proliferation and arms control matters. Of special note are the files on the nuclear freeze movement of the early 1980s, and the sale of nuclear fuel to India and Pakistan.
Significant topics found within the 1984 to 1998 subject files include the investigation and clean-up of the nuclear weapons sites managed by the U.S. Department of Energy, legislation mandating the establishment of departmental inspector generals and chief financial officers to guard against waste, fraud, and abuse in federal spending, nuclear non-proliferation issues, NASA funding and space programs, and weapons procurement by the Department of Defense. As the ranking minority member of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, Glenn also compiled numerous files on the various regulatory reform bills introduced in the U.S. Senate in 1995.
The vice-presidential files consist of one cubic foot of materials pertaining to the potential selection of Senator Glenn as the running mate of Michael Dukakis, the National Democratic Party nominee in the 1988 presidential elections. Included is an extensive questionnaire from the Dukakis campaign, along with various files containing supporting documents, dated 1970 to 1988, that detail Glenn's personal finances, his involvement in past legal affairs, and his consideration as Jimmy Carter's vice-presidential nominee in the 1976 presidential election.
Due to privacy considerations the vice-presidential files are closed to researchers until January 1, 2017.