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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
Size | About 32,000 items (47.0 linear feet) |
Abstract | Oliver Max Gardner (1882-1947), lawyer of Shelby, N.C., and Washington, D.C.; state senator, 1910-1915, lieutenant governor, 1916-1920, and governor, 1929-1933, of North Carolina. He married Fay Webb (1885-1969), who was active in the Democratic Party and in women's organizations. The collection includes corrrespondence, legal documents, financial records, speeches, press releases, political campaign materials, photographs, college notebooks, and scrapbooks of O. Max Gardner, 1892-1947; of Gardner family members, 1905-1966; of Shelby lawyer, businessman, and politician Odus M. Mull, 1930-1942; and of Shelby educator Isaac C. Griffin, 1917-1918. Included are items relating to Fay Webb Gardner and other family members. Legal papers give insight into adoption, child custody cases, land sales, and estate and debt settlements in Cleveland County, N.C.; into corporate litigation, 1920s-1930s; into the establishment of the Ackland Art Museum; and into legal affairs of the textile, soft drink, and aviation industries. Political papers describe the state State Democratic Executive Committee's organizing efforts, 1908-1915, 1930-1936; state and national political campaigns, 1900s-1950s; and the offices of North Carolina lieutenant governor, 1916-1921, and governor, 1929-1933. Letters comment the New Deal; Democratic Party patronage; the Supreme Court packing controversy of 1937; and economic policy, taxation, and industrial policy. Business papers document Shelby Public Schools during World War I and the operation of family businesses. Personal correspondence, photographs, notebooks, and scrapbooks document the Gardners' courtship; family activities during World War II; the endowment of Gardner-Webb College; administration of North Carolina State College and the University of North Carolina; the role of the political wife; and the activities of women's organizations. Significant correspondents include Graham Anthony, Josiah W. Bailey, William T. Bost, J. Melville Broughton, Cale K. Burgess, Josephus Daniels, Victor Emanuel, William C. Friday, Edwin M. Gill, Ben Gossett, Frank P. Graham, John W. Hanes, Robert M. Hanes, Clyde R. Hoey, H. Wiseman Kendall, Russell Leonard, A. J. Maxwell, Angus McLean, Holt McPherson, Julian S. Miller, Cameron Morrison, Fred W. Morrison, Odus M. Mull, John Parker, D. Hiden Ramsey, Harry Riemer, Franklin D. Roosevelt, George Rogers, W. Kerr Scott, Robert Stevens, Vernon Taylor, Bess Truman, Harry S Truman, William B. Umstead, Lindsay Warren, Lee Weathers, Edwin Y. Webb, James E. Webb, J. Wallace Winborne, and Robert Woodruff. Additions include deeds and other documents relating to real estate transactions in and around Shelby, N.C.; items relating to the death of O. Max Gardner; and family correspondence, particularly of Gardner's sisters, one of whom lived in Alberta, Canada, and his niece, who lived in rural Washington state. |
Creator | Gardner, Oliver Max, 1882-1947. |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English. |
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
Oliver Max Gardner (1882-1947) was a politician, businessman, and lawyer of Shelby, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C. A 1903 graduate of the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, Gardner studied law, 1905-1906, at the University of North Carolina, and, in 1907, opened a law practice in Shelby, N.C., where he also founded the Shelby Cloth Mills (later renamed the Cleveland Cloth Mills), the Gardner Land Company, and other businesses; he also operated a farm.
Active in the Democratic Party, he was elected a North Carolina state senator in 1910 and 1915, lieutenant governor in 1916, and governor in 1929. In 1934, Gardner moved to Washington, D.C., and established Gardner, Morrison & Rogers, a law firm representing the interests of the textile, soft-drink, and aviation industries, among others. He later served as chair of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion's Advisory Board, 1945-1946; as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, 1946; and as ambassador-elect to England, December 1946-February 1947. He was also a director of the Sperry Corporation and a member of the board of trustees of North Carolina State College and the University of North Carolina. With his wife, Fay Gardner, he helped build an endowment for Boiling Springs Junior College (renamed Gardner-Webb College) in Boiling Springs, N.C.
Fay Webb Gardner (1885-1969), civic leader and first lady of North Carolina, married Gardner in 1907. She was active in women's organizations in Shelby, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C., and in the state and national Democratic Party, representing the state twice as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. She also served on the North Carolina State Advisory Board of Paroles, as president of the Gardner Foundation, Inc. (which helped support Gardner-Webb College), and as a trustee of the school.
The Gardners had four children: Margaret Love Gardner Burgess (b. 1908), who married N. E. Burgess; James Webb Gardner (1910-1946), who married Iris Rollins; Ralph Webb Gardner (b. 1912); and O. Max Gardner, Jr. (1922-1961), who married Sara Mull. Ralph Webb Gardner graduated from Yale University Law School and practiced law in Shelby, N.C. Elected a state senator in 1939, he enlisted in the United States Army during World War II. James Webb Gardner was executive vice-president of Cleveland Cloth Mills, 1941-1946. O. Max Gardner, Jr., a graduate of North Carolina State College, was commissioned a lieutenant in the United States Army. After World War II, he helped manage the Cleveland Cloth Mills and was treasurer of Gardner-Webb College.
Odus McCoy Mull (1880-1962), farmer, lawyer, businessman, and politician, was born in Cleveland County, N.C. Holding undergraduate and law degrees from Wake Forest College, Mull practiced law in Shelby, N.C., and became active in Democratic Party politics. He served two terms as state chair of the Party. Elected to the General Assembly, he served as speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1941.
Isaac Cebern Griffin (d. 1940), of Shelby, N.C., was chair of the State Fuel Administration's Local Fuel Committee for Cleveland County, N.C., and superintendentof the Shelby Public Schools during World War I.
Back to TopMore than three-quarters of the collection consists of papers of O. Max Gardner, including political, legal, business, and limited personal papers. The remaining third of the papers are primarily political, business, and personal papers of Fay Webb Gardner and James Webb Gardner, with additional papers belonging to Odus M. Mull, Isaac C. Griffin, and various family members of Shelby, N.C.
The papers are organized into eleven series: Series 1, O. Max Gardner Chronological File; Series 2, O. Max Gardner Political File; Series 3, O. Max Gardner Law Office Files; Series 4, O. Max Gardner Business and Personal Papers; Series 5, Gardner Family Papers; Series 6, Gardner-Webb College Papers; Series 7, Odus M. Mull Papers; Series 8, Isaac C. Griffin Papers; Series 9, Pictures; and Series 10, Notebooks and Scrapbooks. Because of the way this collection was accessioned and processed over the years, there is considerable redundancy across these series. Researchers are therefore advised to become familiar with the types of materials filed in the various series and to be prepared to search several of them for materials on topics of interest.
By far the largest series is Series 1, a chronological file, 1906-1947 (bulk 1933-1947) of legal, business, political, and some personal papers belonging to O. Max Gardner. Many of the early legal papers were kept by Gardner's law partner, Charles A. Burrus. The file comprises mostly correspondence, but also contains legal documents, political campaign materials, and other items. Upon receipt of the papers at the Southern Historical Collection in the early 1960s, they were placed in chronological order, and many items originally attached to each other were separated. For this reason, researchers are encouraged to search all years thought relevant to a particular topic. Items in this chronological file are similar in nature to those found in the other series (Series 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10) that contain papers of O. Max Gardner. Items in Series 2, 3, 4, and 6 reflect the original order in which Gardner kept them.
Series 5, Gardner Family Papers, contains many of the papers belonging to Fay Gardner and her sons. However, additional papers for individual family members can be found elsewhere. Fay Gardner's papers are in Series 5, 6, 9, and 10. Papers of Ralph Webb Gardner are in Series 5, 9, and 10; those for James Webb Gardner are in Series 4 and 5; and those for O. Max Gardner, Jr., are in Series 5, 6, and 9.
Legal papers (Series 1 and 3) give insight into adoption, child custody cases, land sales, estate settlements, and debt settlements in Cleveland County, N.C.; into corporate litigation, 1920s-1930s, in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia; into the William Hayes Ackland estate case, 1940s; and into the legal affairs of industries, especially the textile industry, soft-drink industry, and aviation industry, during the New Deal and World War II. Firms and associations for which there is significant legal correspondence include Kimbrough-Veazy Corporation, Coca-Cola Company, the Cotton Textile Institute, Inc., the Rayon Manufacturers of America, the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce, and the Aviation Corporation.
Political items (Series 1, 2, 5, 7, 9, and 10) describe the North Carolina State Democratic Executive Committee's organizing efforts, 1908-1915, 1930-1936; state and national political campaigns, 1900s-1950s, of O. Max Gardner, Josiah W. Bailey, Clyde R. Hoey, Walter George, and others; and the offices of lieutenant governor, 1916-1921, and governor, 1929-1933, of North Carolina. Many letters comment on Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal; Democratic Party political patronage, including the Supreme Court packing controversy of 1937; and economic policy, taxation, and industrial policy during World War II and in the postwar period.
Business papers (Series 1, 4, 5, 9, and 10) document Cleveland County, N.C., fuel policy, and the Shelby Public Schools during World War I; operations, 1920s-1947 (bulk 1935-1947) and labor strikes, 1930s, at the Cleveland Cloth Mills; and activities of the Gardner Land Company, the Cleveland Realty Company, and the Sperry Corporation.
Personal correspondence (Series 1 and 5), photographs (Series 9), and notebooks and scrapbooks (Series 10) document the Gardners' courtship (including love letters); student life at the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, 1900-1904, the University of North Carolina, 1905-1906, and Yale University Law School, 1937-1939; North Carolina politics and political campaigns; life in the executive mansion in Raleigh, N.C., 1929-1933; summer camp in Asheville, N.C., 1937-1938; United States Army training in World War II (includes soldiers' letters); the endowment of Gardner-Webb College; Gardner family businesses and personal finances; administration of North Carolina State College and the University of North Carolina; the consolidation of the University of North Carolina system; the role of the political wife; the activities of women's organizations in Shelby, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C.; the Men's Bible Class of the First Baptist Church of Shelby; and O. Max Gardner's death and tributes to him.
Frequent correspondents in O. Max Gardner's papers are Graham Anthony, Josiah W. Bailey, William T. Bost, J. Melville Broughton, Josephus Daniels, Victor Emanuel, Edwin M. Gill, Ben Gossett, Frank P. Graham, John W. Hanes, Robert M. Hanes, Clyde R. Hoey, H. Wiseman Kendall, Russell Leonard, Angus McLean, Holt McPherson, Julian S. Miller, Fred W. Morrison, Odus M. Mull, Judge John Parker, D. Hiden Ramsey, Harry Riemer, Franklin D. Roosevelt, George Rogers, Robert Stevens, Vernon Taylor, Lindsay C. Warren, Lee Weathers, Edwin Y. Webb, James E. Webb, and Robert Woodruff. Correspondents of note in Fay Gardner's papers are Harry S. Truman, Bess Truman, Edwin M. Gill, William C. Friday, and W. Kerr Scott. Family members for whom there are significant letters are Mary Ivey Gardner Beck, James Webb Gardner, O. Max Gardner, Jr., Ralph Webb Gardner, Reca Gardner, Bess Gardner Hoey, and Addie Gardner Farthing. Other correspondents of note in the collection are Cameron Morrison, William B. Umstead, Cale K. Burgess, and A. J. Maxwell.
Back to TopArrangement: chronological.
Papers (bulk dates 1915-1917, 1920, 1933-1946) of O. Max Gardner, primarily documenting his law practice and political career in Washington, D.C. Materials also pertain to Gardner's early practice in Shelby, N.C., and to his business and farm affairs there. The papers comprise mostly political and legal correspondence, with considerable business and very limited personal correspondence; legal documents; financial records; and political campaign materials. Topics include the state and national Democratic Party and government in North Carolina, 1901-1947; Gardner's campaigns for and terms as lieutenant governor and governor of North Carolina; New Deal politics in Washington, D.C.; responses to the National Recovery Act (especially the Wagner Act) and tax legislation by the textile industry, soft-drink industry, aviation industry, and other industries; strikes at the Cleveland Cloth Mills in the 1930s; the 1937 Supreme Court controversy; consolidation of the University of North Carolina; the outbreak of World War II; and United States economic policy.
Researchers, especially those interested in legal cases, should search all years in which relevant documents dated prior to litigation may occur. For additional political papers of O. Max Gardner, see Series 2; for additional legal papers, see Series 3.
Papers, 1906-1911, are letters, legal documents, and miscellaneous items relating to Gardner's law practice in Shelby, N.C.; his work for the State Democratic Executive Committee; and land he and others purchased in Cleveland County, N.C.
Materials, 1915-1917 and 1919-1928, concern Gardner's early political career; his law practice in Shelby, N.C.; and his farming and business interests. Political papers include correspondence, 1916, with administrators at the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts concerning hiring decisions at the school; correspondence, 1916-1917 and 1919-1920, with supporters during his runs for lieutenant governor and governor; correspondence, 1917 and 1919-1920, as lieutenant governor concerning legislation, public works, and political affairs; correspondence, 1917, relating to the Selective Service Legal Advisory Board; office records of Gardner's 1920 campaign headquarters in Shelby, N.C., and Raleigh, N.C.; and scattered letters, 1921-1928, concerning the 1924 gubernatorial race, the National Democratic Convention, the North Carolina State Fair Association, the North Carolina State Board of Agriculture, and Gardner's nomination for governor in 1928. Legal papers include correspondence with clients and colleagues (including law partners J. A. Anthony and Charles A. Burrus), and deeds, depositions, petitions, and other documents. Business papers are mostly receipts and correspondence with suppliers and buyers for Gardner's lumber, textile, real estate, investment, and farming activities in Shelby, N.C. Correspondents of note are S. B. Alexander, Josiah W. Bailey, William T. Bost, W. T. Chambliss, Hugh Chatham, Josephus Daniels, John W. Hanes, Claude Kitchin, Angus McLean, Odus M. Mull, and Robert Reynolds. There are family letters from Gardner's niece, Mary Ivey Gardner Beck of Morton, Wash., mostly discussing her financial difficulties. Of interest is a letter, 19 July 1927, from O. Max Gardner to his father-in-law, James L. Webb, describing a trip to England and Holland.
Papers, 1929-January 1932, are principally Gardner's correspondence as governor. They discuss legislation, political campaigns and political organizing in North Carolina, and as well as Gardner's future plans. A handful of personal letters are from Fay Gardner, Ralph Gardner, and Bess Gardner Hoey, who wrote giving news of family members. Bess Hoey's letters often discuss the financial difficulties of Mary Ivey Gardner Beck. Much of the correspondence in 1932 is that of Edwin M. Gill on behalf of Gardner (see Series 2.4.4 for similar correspondence). Of note among Gardner's correspondents are Josiah W. Bailey, Charles A. Burrus, Josephus Daniels, John W. Hanes, Angus McLean, Cameron Morrison, and Curtis B. Johnson. Filed with the undated material are a few biographical sketches and brochures.
Almost half of the papers, 1933-1943, are pleas received by Gardner for political patronage or favors. The remaining materials comprise correspondence, legal briefs, clippings, and other items relating to Gardner's work as counsel for the Rayon Manufacturers of America, the Cotton Textile Institute, Inc., the Coca-Cola Company, the Aeronautics Chamber of Commerce of America, the Aviation Corporation, and other clients; correspondence with the managers (including James Gardner) of the Cleveland Cloth Mills; and correspondence with politicians, educators, and others concerning North Carolina politics, national politics, consolidation of the University of North Carolina, the endowment and operation of Gardner-Webb College, and World War II economic policy. Frequent correspondents are Graham Anthony, Josiah W. Bailey, William T. Bost, N. E. Burgess, Harry Byrd, W. J. Carter, Norman Cocke, Josephus Daniels, J. C. B. Ehringhaus, Victor Emanuel, James A. Farley, Walter F. George, Edwin M. Gill, Ben Gossett, Frank P. Graham, John W. Hanes, Robert M. Hanes, Clyde R. Hoey, Baxter Jackson, H. Wiseman Kendall, Thurman Kitchin, Russell Leonard, Harold McGuire, Holt McPherson, Julian S. Miller, Fred W. Morrison, Odus M. Mull, Drew Pearson, W. S. Pepperell, Harry Reimer, Robert Reynolds, George Rogers, Seymour Sheriff, Robert Stevens, Vernon Taylor, Zeno Wall, Lindsay Warren, Lee Weathers, Edwin Yates Webb, James E. Webb, and Robert Woodruff. Occasional family letters were exchanged with Ralph Gardner, Fay Gardner, Bess Gardner Hoey, James Gardner, and Gardner's niece, Mary Ivey Gardner Beck, who wrote concerning financial woes and poor state of the lumber industry in Morton, Wash.
Papers, 1944-1946, are mostly correspondence and other papers relating to the business of the Advisory Board of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion, Gardner's work as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, and cases handled by Gardner, Morrison & Rogers. Other correspondence is similar to that for 1933-1943 and includes many of the same correspondents. Letters also discuss many of the same topics, including Gardner-Webb College, consolidation of the University of North Carolina, the William Hayes Ackland estate case, North Carolina politics and national politics, operations at the Cleveland Cloth Mills, and Gardner's other business interests in Shelby, N.C. There are scattered family letters from Ralph Gardner, James Gardner, O. Max Gardner, Jr., and Madge Webb Riley that concern family news, finances, and politics.
Folder 1 |
1906-1909 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/1 |
Letter, 29 July 1909, William H. Taft to Gentlemen (E.Y. Webb, D.E. Finley)Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 2 |
1910-1911 |
Folder 3-26
Folder 3Folder 4Folder 5Folder 6Folder 7Folder 8Folder 9Folder 10Folder 11Folder 12Folder 13Folder 14Folder 15Folder 16Folder 17Folder 18Folder 19Folder 20Folder 21Folder 22Folder 23Folder 24Folder 25Folder 26 |
1915 |
Folder 27-35
Folder 27Folder 28Folder 29Folder 30Folder 31Folder 32Folder 33Folder 34Folder 35 |
1916 |
Folder 36-60
Folder 36Folder 37Folder 38Folder 39Folder 40Folder 41Folder 42Folder 43Folder 44Folder 45Folder 46Folder 47Folder 48Folder 49Folder 50Folder 51Folder 52Folder 53Folder 54Folder 55Folder 56Folder 57Folder 58Folder 59Folder 60 |
1917 |
Folder 61-70
Folder 61Folder 62Folder 63Folder 64Folder 65Folder 66Folder 67Folder 68Folder 69Folder 70 |
1919 |
Folder 71-99
Folder 71Folder 72Folder 73Folder 74Folder 75Folder 76Folder 77Folder 78Folder 79Folder 80Folder 81Folder 82Folder 83Folder 84Folder 85Folder 86Folder 87Folder 88Folder 89Folder 90Folder 91Folder 92Folder 93Folder 94Folder 95Folder 96Folder 97Folder 98Folder 99 |
1920 |
Folder 100 |
1921-1923 |
Folder 101 |
1924 |
Folder 102 |
1925 |
Folder 103-104
Folder 103Folder 104 |
1926 |
Folder 105 |
1927 |
Folder 106-107
Folder 106Folder 107 |
1928 |
Folder 108-111
Folder 108Folder 109Folder 110Folder 111 |
1929 |
Folder 112-113
Folder 112Folder 113 |
1930 |
Folder 114 |
1931 |
Folder 115-117
Folder 115Folder 116Folder 117 |
1931 |
Folder 118-157
Folder 118Folder 119Folder 120Folder 121Folder 122Folder 123Folder 124Folder 125Folder 126Folder 127Folder 128Folder 129Folder 130Folder 131Folder 132Folder 133Folder 134Folder 135Folder 136Folder 137Folder 138Folder 139Folder 140Folder 141Folder 142Folder 143Folder 144Folder 145Folder 146Folder 147Folder 148Folder 149Folder 150Folder 151Folder 152Folder 153Folder 154Folder 155Folder 156Folder 157 |
1933 |
Folder 158-187
Folder 158Folder 159Folder 160Folder 161Folder 162Folder 163Folder 164Folder 165Folder 166Folder 167Folder 168Folder 169Folder 170Folder 171Folder 172Folder 173Folder 174Folder 175Folder 176Folder 177Folder 178Folder 179Folder 180Folder 181Folder 182Folder 183Folder 184Folder 185Folder 186Folder 187 |
1934 |
Folder 188-217
Folder 188Folder 189Folder 190Folder 191Folder 192Folder 193Folder 194Folder 195Folder 196Folder 197Folder 198Folder 199Folder 200Folder 201Folder 202Folder 203Folder 204Folder 205Folder 206Folder 207Folder 208Folder 209Folder 210Folder 211Folder 212Folder 213Folder 214Folder 215Folder 216Folder 217 |
1935 |
Folder 218-243
Folder 218Folder 219Folder 220Folder 221Folder 222Folder 223Folder 224Folder 225Folder 226Folder 227Folder 228Folder 229Folder 230Folder 231Folder 232Folder 233Folder 234Folder 235Folder 236Folder 237Folder 238Folder 239Folder 240Folder 241Folder 242Folder 243 |
1936 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/2 |
Letter, 18 December 1936, Franklin D. Roosevelt to O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 244-287
Folder 244Folder 245Folder 246Folder 247Folder 248Folder 249Folder 250Folder 251Folder 252Folder 253Folder 254Folder 255Folder 256Folder 257Folder 258Folder 259Folder 260Folder 261Folder 262Folder 263Folder 264Folder 265Folder 266Folder 267Folder 268Folder 269Folder 270Folder 271Folder 272Folder 273Folder 274Folder 275Folder 276Folder 277Folder 278Folder 279Folder 280Folder 281Folder 282Folder 283Folder 284Folder 285Folder 286Folder 287 |
1937 |
Folder 288-330
Folder 288Folder 289Folder 290Folder 291Folder 292Folder 293Folder 294Folder 295Folder 296Folder 297Folder 298Folder 299Folder 300Folder 301Folder 302Folder 303Folder 304Folder 305Folder 306Folder 307Folder 308Folder 309Folder 310Folder 311Folder 312Folder 313Folder 314Folder 315Folder 316Folder 317Folder 318Folder 319Folder 320Folder 321Folder 322Folder 323Folder 324Folder 325Folder 326Folder 327Folder 328Folder 329Folder 330 |
1938 |
Folder 331-348
Folder 331Folder 332Folder 333Folder 334Folder 335Folder 336Folder 337Folder 338Folder 339Folder 340Folder 341Folder 342Folder 343Folder 344Folder 345Folder 346Folder 347Folder 348 |
1939 |
Folder 349-365
Folder 349Folder 350Folder 351Folder 352Folder 353Folder 354Folder 355Folder 356Folder 357Folder 358Folder 359Folder 360Folder 361Folder 362Folder 363Folder 364Folder 365 |
1940 |
Folder 366-396
Folder 366Folder 367Folder 368Folder 369Folder 370Folder 371Folder 372Folder 373Folder 374Folder 375Folder 376Folder 377Folder 378Folder 379Folder 380Folder 381Folder 382Folder 383Folder 384Folder 385Folder 386Folder 387Folder 388Folder 389Folder 390Folder 391Folder 392Folder 393Folder 394Folder 395Folder 396 |
1941 |
Folder 397-426
Folder 397Folder 398Folder 399Folder 400Folder 401Folder 402Folder 403Folder 404Folder 405Folder 406Folder 407Folder 408Folder 409Folder 410Folder 411Folder 412Folder 413Folder 414Folder 415Folder 416Folder 417Folder 418Folder 419Folder 420Folder 421Folder 422Folder 423Folder 424Folder 425Folder 426 |
1942 |
Folder 427-474
Folder 427Folder 428Folder 429Folder 430Folder 431Folder 432Folder 433Folder 434Folder 435Folder 436Folder 437Folder 438Folder 439Folder 440Folder 441Folder 442Folder 443Folder 444Folder 445Folder 446Folder 447Folder 448Folder 449Folder 450Folder 451Folder 452Folder 453Folder 454Folder 455Folder 456Folder 457Folder 458Folder 459Folder 460Folder 461Folder 462Folder 463Folder 464Folder 465Folder 466Folder 467Folder 468Folder 469Folder 470Folder 471Folder 472Folder 473Folder 474 |
1943 |
Folder 475-526
Folder 475Folder 476Folder 477Folder 478Folder 479Folder 480Folder 481Folder 482Folder 483Folder 484Folder 485Folder 486Folder 487Folder 488Folder 489Folder 490Folder 491Folder 492Folder 493Folder 494Folder 495Folder 496Folder 497Folder 498Folder 499Folder 500Folder 501Folder 502Folder 503Folder 504Folder 505Folder 506Folder 507Folder 508Folder 509Folder 510Folder 511Folder 512Folder 513Folder 514Folder 515Folder 516Folder 517Folder 518Folder 519Folder 520Folder 521Folder 522Folder 523Folder 524Folder 525Folder 526 |
1944 |
Folder 527-615
Folder 527Folder 528Folder 529Folder 530Folder 531Folder 532Folder 533Folder 534Folder 535Folder 536Folder 537Folder 538Folder 539Folder 540Folder 541Folder 542Folder 543Folder 544Folder 545Folder 546Folder 547Folder 548Folder 549Folder 550Folder 551Folder 552Folder 553Folder 554Folder 555Folder 556Folder 557Folder 558Folder 559Folder 560Folder 561Folder 562Folder 563Folder 564Folder 565Folder 566Folder 567Folder 568Folder 569Folder 570Folder 571Folder 572Folder 573Folder 574Folder 575Folder 576Folder 577Folder 578Folder 579Folder 580Folder 581Folder 582Folder 583Folder 584Folder 585Folder 586Folder 587Folder 588Folder 589Folder 590Folder 591Folder 592Folder 593Folder 594Folder 595Folder 596Folder 597Folder 598Folder 599Folder 600Folder 601Folder 602Folder 603Folder 604Folder 605Folder 606Folder 607Folder 608Folder 609Folder 610Folder 611Folder 612Folder 613Folder 614Folder 615 |
1945 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/3 |
Letter, 6 September 1945, Jack Benny to O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 616-697
Folder 616Folder 617Folder 618Folder 619Folder 620Folder 621Folder 622Folder 623Folder 624Folder 625Folder 626Folder 627Folder 628Folder 629Folder 630Folder 631Folder 632Folder 633Folder 634Folder 635Folder 636Folder 637Folder 638Folder 639Folder 640Folder 641Folder 642Folder 643Folder 644Folder 645Folder 646Folder 647Folder 648Folder 649Folder 650Folder 651Folder 652Folder 653Folder 654Folder 655Folder 656Folder 657Folder 658Folder 659Folder 660Folder 661Folder 662Folder 663Folder 664Folder 665Folder 666Folder 667Folder 668Folder 669Folder 670Folder 671Folder 672Folder 673Folder 674Folder 675Folder 676Folder 677Folder 678Folder 679Folder 680Folder 681Folder 682Folder 683Folder 684Folder 685Folder 686Folder 687Folder 688Folder 689Folder 690Folder 691Folder 692Folder 693Folder 694Folder 695Folder 696Folder 697 |
1946 |
Folder 698-703
Folder 698Folder 699Folder 700Folder 701Folder 702Folder 703 |
1947 |
Arrangement: by type.
Speeches, 1905-1947; publicity items, 1929-1947; correspondence, 1942-1947; and subject files, 1920-1947, pertaining to the political career of O. Max Gardner. Items document most fully Gardner's term as governor of North Carolina and his decision whether or not to run for the United States Senate in 1944. The papers also provide glimpses into his work for the State Democratic Executive Committee, 1908-1915 (Series 2.1); Gardner's thoughts on World War I domestic policies; his term as lieutenant governor, 1916-1920 (Series 2.1); his gubernatorial campaigns, 1920 and 1928 (Series 2.1 and 2.4.4); his work as a lawyer in Washington, D.C., 1933-1942 (Series 2.1, 2.3.1, and 2.4.4); his service as chair of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion's Advisory Board, 1945-1946 (Series 2.3.1 and 2.4.1); his term as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, 1946 (Series 2.3.2 and 2.4.2); and his brief time as ambassador to England, 1946-1947 (Series 2.3.2 and 2.4.3). Other topics include state and national political races; Gardner-Webb College; consolidation of the University of North Carolina; the textile industry; the William Hayes Ackland estate case; Gardner's business and civic affairs in Shelby, N.C.; and United States economic policy. Important correspondents are William T. Bost, J. Melville Broughton, Don Elias, Walter F. George, Edwin M. Gill, Ben Gossett, Clyde R. Hoey, H. Wiseman Kendall, Holt McPherson, Julian S. Miller, Odus M. Mull, D. Hiden Ramsey, Harry Riemer, Lee Weathers, and R. E. Williams.
Arrangement: chronological.
O. Max Gardner's speeches, draft and final, 1905-1947; research materials used in their preparation; and related correspondence, event programs, and clippings. The speeches (campaign and political speeches, commencement and radio addresses, talks to social, business, and professional organizations, and addresses to the North Carolina General Assembly) best document Gardner's term as governor, 1929-1933. They also provide insight into his time as a political organizer for the State Democratic Executive Committee, 1908-1915; as lieutenant governor, 1916-1920; as a gubernatorial candidate, 1920, 1928; as a Washington, D.C., lawyer, 1934-1942; as chair of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion Advisory Board, 1942-1946; and as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, 1946.
Speeches, 1929-1933, were often prepared by Edwin M. Gill or Fred W. Morrison. Early topics are state and national politics; World War I; immigration restriction; prohibition ; highway construction; farm, labor, and education policy; and the United States Federal Reserve. Gubernatorial speeches address Gardner's "Live-at-Home" program, state finances, taxation, state prisons and schools, juvenile delinquency, agriculture and industry, labor strife, highways, and government reform. Post-1934 illuminate Gardner's role as a legal representative of the textile industry, with scattered items pertaining to federal banking and economic policy and the construction of an airport in Shelby, N.C. in 1944. There are commencement addresses for Shelby High School, North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, the University of North Carolina, the North Carolina College for Women, Gardner-Webb College, and High Point College, among others.
Of interest in the background materials are items, June 1930, saved from a writing contest in support of Gardner's "Live-at-Home" program. Included is a copy of the winning essay by an African American student from Windsor Colored High School, Windsor, N.C. (see also 4/P-3613 for photograph of winners). For additional speeches, see Series 2.4.2.
Folder 704 |
1905 |
Folder 705 |
1908 |
Folder 706 |
1916-1921 |
Folder 707 |
ca. 1905-1922 |
Folder 708 |
1926-1927 |
Folder 709 |
1928 |
Folder 710-721
Folder 710Folder 711Folder 712Folder 713Folder 714Folder 715Folder 716Folder 717Folder 718Folder 719Folder 720Folder 721 |
1929 |
Folder 722-733
Folder 722Folder 723Folder 724Folder 725Folder 726Folder 727Folder 728Folder 729Folder 730Folder 731Folder 732Folder 733 |
1930 |
Folder 734-751
Folder 734Folder 735Folder 736Folder 737Folder 738Folder 739Folder 740Folder 741Folder 742Folder 743Folder 744Folder 745Folder 746Folder 747Folder 748Folder 749Folder 750Folder 751 |
1931 |
Folder 752-762
Folder 752Folder 753Folder 754Folder 755Folder 756Folder 757Folder 758Folder 759Folder 760Folder 761Folder 762 |
1932 |
Folder 763-764
Folder 763Folder 764 |
ca. 1930-1932 |
Folder 765-766
Folder 765Folder 766 |
1933 |
Folder 767 |
1934 |
Folder 768-769
Folder 768Folder 769 |
1935 |
Folder 770 |
1936 |
Folder 771-776
Folder 771Folder 772Folder 773Folder 774Folder 775Folder 776 |
1937 |
Folder 777 |
1938 |
Folder 778-779
Folder 778Folder 779 |
1939 |
Folder 780 |
Undated 1930s |
Folder 781 |
1940 |
Folder 782 |
1941 |
Folder 783 |
1942 |
Folder 784-788
Folder 784Folder 785Folder 786Folder 787Folder 788 |
1943 |
Folder 789 |
1944 |
Folder 790 |
1945 |
Folder 791-796
Folder 791Folder 792Folder 793Folder 794Folder 795Folder 796 |
1946 |
Folder 797 |
1947 |
Folder 798-799
Folder 798Folder 799 |
Undated fragments and speech material |
Press releases, 1929-1932, 1937, 1943, 1945, and undated, prepared by Fred W. Morrison; newspaper and magazine articles, 1930, 1932, by O. Max Gardner; transcripts of newspaper and radio interviews with Gardner, 1942-1943, 1946; and drafts of various governor's proclamations, 1931. Most of the press releases summarize Gardner's speeches. Articles are Gardner's "1929 Review of North Carolina" ( Virginian Pilot), "One State Cleans House " ( Saturday Evening Post), and "Economy in State Government" ( The Wharton News). Topics in the interviews are Gardner's gift of scholarships to Boiling Springs Junior College, North Carolina politics, and the United States postwar economy.
Folder 800 |
1928 |
Folder 801-803
Folder 801Folder 802Folder 803 |
1929 |
Folder 804-814
Folder 804Folder 805Folder 806Folder 807Folder 808Folder 809Folder 810Folder 811Folder 812Folder 813Folder 814 |
1930 |
Folder 815-818
Folder 815Folder 816Folder 817Folder 818 |
1931 |
Folder 819-822
Folder 819Folder 820Folder 821Folder 822 |
1932 |
Folder 823 |
1937, 1943, 1945 and undated |
Folder 824 |
Article: "1929 Review of North Carolina," 1930 |
Folder 825 |
Article: "One State Cleans House," 1932 |
Folder 826 |
Article: "Economy in State Government," 1932 |
Folder 827 |
Interview: Scholarships, 4 June 1942 |
Folder 828 |
Interview: North Carolina politics, October 1943 |
Folder 829 |
Interview: Radio, June 1946 |
Folder 830 |
Proclamations, 1931 |
Extensive correspondence, 1942-1945, that O. Max Gardner maintained on North Carolina and national politics, and limited correspondence, 1946-1947 (file incomplete), relating to his service as undersecretary of the United States Treasury and ambassador-elect to England. The principal topic in the wartime file is the possibility of Gardner's running for the United States Senate in 1944. Also discussed are political strategies and assessments of candidates in other state and national political races; Gardner-Webb College; the consolidation of the University of North Carolina; the North Carolina textile industry; the William Hayes Ackland estate case; and United States economic policy.
Journalists who were frequent correspondents include William T. Bost, H. Wiseman Kendall, Holt McPherson, Lee Weathers, Don Elias, D. Hiden Ramsey, Harry Riemer, Julian S. Miller, R. E. Williams, and Jonathan Daniels. Political correspondents include Clyde R. Hoey, J. Melville Broughton, Edwin M. Gill, and Walter F. George. The postwar correspondence, comprising a small section (the letters G, M, and S) of an alphabetical file, is mostly routine office mail.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
A small section (G, M, S) of an alphabetical office file, 1946-1947, that O. Max Gardner maintained as undersecretary of the United States Treasury and as ambassador-elect to England. The letters are mostly routine requests for information or for help expediting business with various governmental agencies. Several letters, especially those with Odus M. Mull and Edwin M. Gill, address politics and civic affairs in Shelby, N.C.; political and economic issues facing North Carolina and the nation; and Gardner's business ventures in Shelby, N.C. Of note is a letter, 16 March 1946, to Odus Mull, in which Gardner describes his job at the United States Treasury.
Folder 885 |
Gill, Edwin |
Folder 886 |
Mull, Odus |
Folder 887-888
Folder 887Folder 888 |
S |
Arrangement: by type.
Subject files maintained by O. Max Gardner as chair of the Advisory Board of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion, 1945-1946; as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, 1946; and as ambassador-elect to England, 1946-1947. There are also miscellaneous political subject files, 1920-1944. Included are meeting minutes and agendas, correspondence, memoranda, reports, clippings and other press items, campaign materials and other political items, and event programs.
Arrangement: alphabetical by type.
Primarily minutes, April 1945-March 1946, of United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion Advisory Board meetings, with scattered agendas, resolutions, correspondence, memoranda, and reports concerning wages, prices, labor, employment, farm production, industry, and taxes.
Folder 889-909
Folder 889Folder 890Folder 891Folder 892Folder 893Folder 894Folder 895Folder 896Folder 897Folder 898Folder 899Folder 900Folder 901Folder 902Folder 903Folder 904Folder 905Folder 906Folder 907Folder 908Folder 909 |
Advisory Board Minutes, 1945-1946 |
Folder 910 |
Advisory Board Meetings: Agendas, 1944-1946 |
Folder 911-912
Folder 911Folder 912 |
Advisory Board Meetings: Miscellaneous, 1945 |
Folder 913-914
Folder 913Folder 914 |
Advisory Board Meetings: Resolutions |
Folder 915 |
Advisory Board Meetings: Wage-Price Policy |
Folder 916 |
Reconversion Section |
Folder 917 |
State Department of Labor: Harry Wolfe |
Arrangement: alphabetical by type.
Mostly letters received in response to Gardner's request for comments on the applicability to the country's economic situation of his ideas, contained in a 1933 speech, on cutting governmental expenditures, and other correspondence and press items relating to Gardner's work as undersecretary of the United States Treasury. Of interest in the press materials are a copy of Gardner's statement upon taking office, two brief biographical sketches of him, and two draft speeches by him.
Folder 918-919
Folder 918Folder 919 |
Comments: 1933 Speeches |
Folder 920 |
Miscellaneous |
Folder 921 |
Press materials |
Mostly correspondence, press releases, clippings from United States and London newspapers, and miscellaneous files relating to Gardner's assumption of the position of ambassador to England and to the staffing and operation of the American Embassy in London. There are a few political files on topics such as Palestine and the United Nations. Of note in the correspondence is a letter, 7 December 1946, from Gardner to Henry R. Luce, describing his economic policy and sharing his thoughts on his new position.
Folder 922 |
Anglo-American Cooperation: Draft |
Folder 923 |
Applications: Embassy positions |
Folder 924-925
Folder 924Folder 925 |
Clippings |
Folder 926 |
Correspondence |
Folder 927 |
Credentials: Presentation to the King |
Folder 928 |
Embassy at London |
Folder 929 |
Embassy: Furnishings |
Folder 930 |
Embassy: Households supplies (including food and liquor) |
Folder 931 |
Embassy: Personnel and employees |
Folder 932 |
International laws |
Folder 933 |
International trade |
Folder 934 |
Medical service for O. Max Gardner |
Folder 935 |
Palestine |
Folder 936 |
Party government in America |
Folder 937 |
Press representatives |
Folder 938 |
Public Law 724: Foreign Service |
Folder 939 |
Public statements: O. Max and Fay Webb Gardner |
Folder 940 |
Stationery |
Folder 941 |
Transportation, shipping facilities, arrangements |
Folder 942 |
Treatment of expenses |
Folder 943 |
United Nations |
Folder 944 |
British universities |
Miscellaneous political subject files, 1920, 1928-1944 (mostly 1929-1933). The files contain correspondence, reports, memoranda, campaign and other political materials, event programs, and scattered clippings. Of particular interest is a small amount of constituent mail Gardner received in 1932 (answered by Edwin M. Gill) and materials from Gardner's 1920 gubernatorial campaign, Walter F. George's 1938 United States Senate campaign, and the North Carolina governor's race and United States Senate race of 1944. A few items also pertain to the United States air mail and to North Carolina prisons and agriculture.
Folder 945 |
Agriculture |
Folder 946 |
Ashurst: Farewell to the Senate |
Folder 947 |
Conference of Governors, 1931 |
Folder 948 |
Constituent mail: Edwin Gill, 1932 |
Folder 949-950
Folder 949Folder 950 |
Event programs, 1931-1938 |
Folder 951 |
Farley, James |
Folder 952 |
Florida Purity League |
Folder 953 |
Foreign Air Mail Service |
Folder 954 |
Gill, Edwin, 1933-1938 |
Folder 955 |
Gill, Edwin: "The Gardner Administration" |
Folder 956 |
Gossett, B. B., 1942-1944 |
Folder 957 |
Governor's race: Gardner, 1920 |
Folder 958 |
Hanes, John W., 1939-1940 |
Folder 959 |
Hohe, H. G., 1937 |
Folder 960 |
Miscellaneous |
Folder 961 |
Morrison, Fred, 1938 |
Folder 962 |
Photo requests, 1941 |
Folder 963-966
Folder 963Folder 964Folder 965Folder 966 |
Politics, 1929-1942 |
Folder 967 |
Gill, Edwin: "The Return of the Native" |
Folder 968 |
Reynolds, Bob, 1937 |
Folder 969 |
Senate and governor's races, 1944 |
Folder 970 |
Walter, George: Senate campaign, 1938 |
Folder 971 |
Tobacco, 1930 |
Arrangement: by firm.
Files (bulk 1919-1930) from O. Max Gardner's Shelby, N.C., law firm, and files, 1937, 1941-1946, from his Washington, D.C., practice, Gardner, Morrison & Rogers. The Shelby files are principally those of Gardner's partner, Charles A. Burrus. They document family law, debt collection, and estate settlements in Cleveland County, N.C., and surrounding counties, and litigation of corporate cases in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. The papers include correspondence; research materials; legal documents; and scattered financial records for the firm and for O. Max Gardner, Fay Gardner, and James Gardner (Burrus was a financial representative of the Gardner family). Items relating to Gardner, Morrison & Rogers are primarily billing records and files on the settlement of the William Hayes Ackland estate case. Additional files document litigation relating to the textile industry, railroad industry, utilities industry, and other industries.
Researchers are advised to search all years thought germane to a particular case or individual. Related legal papers are also scattered throughout the chronological files in Series 1.
Arrangement: chronological.
Papers (bulk 1919-1930) of Charles A. Burrus, Gardner's law partner in Shelby, N.C., with scattered business and financial papers that Burrus kept for the Gardner family. Gardner items, 1923-1928, are found only infrequently and comprise mostly stock reports, 1920s, for Gardner & Suttle; papers, 1923-1924, relating to Gardner's construction of an automotive garage in Shelby, N.C.; miscellaneous stock reports for Fay Gardner; and Charles Burrus's correspondence, 1929-1933, with O. Max Gardner and James Gardner documenting the Gardners' financial affairs. Also included, 1927-early 1930s, are items relating to Burrus's work as city attorney for the town of Shelby, N.C.
Legal papers include correspondence, loan agreements, contracts, deeds, adoption papers, divorce and child custody petitions, wills and other estate papers, mortgage and insurance papers, summonses, affidavits, and sales receipts. Items dated 1901, 1911, and 1916-1917, actually pertain to later cases. The firm's client base drew primarily from the Cleveland County, N.C., area. Its reach, however, extended significantly into South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. Corporate clients included the Southern Railway Company; Kimbrough Veazey Company, Appalachee, Ga.; Gaffney Livestock Company, Gaffney, S.C. ; Chero-Cola Bottling Company, Shelby, N.C.; Joseph Ness Art and Advertising, Atlanta, Ga.; and Southern Wood Preserving Company, Atlanta, Ga. Individual clients are mostly military pension petitioners, litigants in child custody and adoption cases, those seeking payment of delinquent accounts, and estate administrators. Miscellaneous papers pertain to problems Charles Burrus experienced with tenants of properties owned by his family and correspondence concerning improvements to his home. Correspondence, 1929-1933, between Gardner and Burrus documents Gardner's financial affairs.
Folder 972 |
1901, 1911, 1916-1919 |
Folder 973-974
Folder 973Folder 974 |
1920 |
Folder 975-978
Folder 975Folder 976Folder 977Folder 978 |
1921 |
Folder 979-981
Folder 979Folder 980Folder 981 |
1922 |
Folder 982-985
Folder 982Folder 983Folder 984Folder 985 |
1923 |
Folder 986-994
Folder 986Folder 987Folder 988Folder 989Folder 990Folder 991Folder 992Folder 993Folder 994 |
1924 |
Folder 995-998
Folder 995Folder 996Folder 997Folder 998 |
1925 |
Folder 999-1003
Folder 999Folder 1000Folder 1001Folder 1002Folder 1003 |
1926 |
Folder 1004-1011
Folder 1004Folder 1005Folder 1006Folder 1007Folder 1008Folder 1009Folder 1010Folder 1011 |
1927 |
Folder 1012-1018
Folder 1012Folder 1013Folder 1014Folder 1015Folder 1016Folder 1017Folder 1018 |
1928 |
Folder 1019-1025
Folder 1019Folder 1020Folder 1021Folder 1022Folder 1023Folder 1024Folder 1025 |
1929 |
Folder 1026-1027
Folder 1026Folder 1027 |
1930 |
Folder 1028 |
1931-1934 |
Folder 1029 |
Undated |
Papers, 1937, 1941-1946, including financial records, of Gardner, Morrison & Rogers, and correspondence, legal documents, and research materials relating to cases handled by the firm. Best documented is the William Hayes Ackland estate case, which gave the University of North Carolina claim to funds provided by Ackland's will to build the present-day Ackland Art Museum. Included are scattered items relating to the Cannon Mills Company, Cone Export and Commission Company, Southern Railway Company , Peerless Oil & Gas Company, and North American Rayon Corporation. Files relating to North Carolina include one on the Boiling Springs Water Works and one on the Cleveland Foundation, Inc. (later the Gardner Foundation).
Folder 1030-1036
Folder 1030Folder 1031Folder 1032Folder 1033Folder 1034Folder 1035Folder 1036 |
William Hayes Ackland estate case, 1937-1945 |
Folder 1037 |
Boiling Springs Water Works Board |
Folder 1038 |
Breyer estate case |
Folder 1039 |
Cannon Mills case, 1940-1942 |
Folder 1040 |
Cleveland Foundation, Inc., 1943 |
Folder 1041 |
Cone Export and Commission Company |
Folder 1042-1046
Folder 1042Folder 1043Folder 1044Folder 1045Folder 1046 |
Client bills and other papers, 1942 |
Folder 1047 |
Correspondence, 1938-1940, 1946 |
Folder 1048 |
Fees collected, 1942 |
Folder 1049 |
Financial statements, 1942 |
Folder 1050 |
Independent Aid, Inc. |
Folder 1051 |
Miscellaneous |
Folder 1052 |
North American Rayon Corporation |
Folder 1053 |
Office |
Folder 1054 |
Peerless Oil & Gas, 1939-1942 |
Folder 1055 |
Pennsylvania Railroad Company |
Folder 1056 |
Mrs. R. J. Reynolds vs. R. J. Reynolds: 1946 |
Folder 1057 |
Sheriff, Seymour, 1942-1943 |
Folder 1058 |
Southern Railway, 1946 |
Folder 1059 |
Stonecutter Mills Company |
Folder 1060 |
Symington, Stuart, 1946 |
Arrangement: by type.
Records, 1935-1947, of the Cleveland Cloth Mills, and a subject file, 1931-1947, and correspondence file, 1945-1947, relating to the business and personal affairs of O. Max Gardner. Mill records, maintained separately by O. Max Gardner and James Gardner, document the mill's financing, operations, management, sales, litigation, and eventual sale in 1946, as well as the activities of its New York sales office and of a possible subsidiary, Carter Fabrics Corporation of Greensboro, N.C. Subject and correspondence files document the personal finances of the Gardner family and the operation of the Gardner Foundation, Inc., the Gardner Land Company, and the Sperry Corporation. There is also some information on the World War II service of O. Max Gardner, Jr., and Ralph Gardner; on Ralph Gardner's political career; on James Gardner's death in 1946; and on O. Max Gardner's appointment as ambassador to England.
Arrangement: by recordkeeper.
Business records, 1935-1948, of the Cleveland Cloth Mills in Shelby, N.C., documenting the mill's financing, daily operations, management, sales, litigation, and eventual sale in 1946, as well the activities of its New York sales office and of a possible subsidiary, Carter Fabrics Corporation of Greensboro, N.C.
Arrangement: chronological.
Business records, 1935-1947, and undated, of the Cleveland Cloth Mills in Shelby, N.C., kept by O. Max Gardner, the mill's owner. The records document the operation and management of the mill; sales by the firm's New York sales office, and the relationship of the mill to a possible subsidiary, Carter Fabrics Corporation of Greensboro, N.C. Almost all correspondence for 1935 and 1936 is with Odus M. Mull, treasurer of the mill. Later correspondence is primarily with James Gardner, N. E. Burgess, Irving Lewin, W. J. Carter, and other mill managers. Additional correspondence comprises interoffice memoranda, letters to stockholders and financiers, and correspondence with colleagues in the textile industry. There are also scattered financial statements and legal papers. Records, 1946 and 1947, pertain mostly to the sale of the mill.
Folder 1061-1063
Folder 1061Folder 1062Folder 1063 |
1935 |
Folder 1064 |
1936 |
Folder 1065-1068
Folder 1065Folder 1066Folder 1067Folder 1068 |
1937 |
Folder 1069 |
1937-1938 |
Folder 1070 |
1938 |
Folder 1071-1076
Folder 1071Folder 1072Folder 1073Folder 1074Folder 1075Folder 1076 |
1939 |
Folder 1077-1081
Folder 1077Folder 1078Folder 1079Folder 1080Folder 1081 |
1940 |
Folder 1082-1084
Folder 1082Folder 1083Folder 1084 |
1941 |
Folder 1085-1089
Folder 1085Folder 1086Folder 1087Folder 1088Folder 1089 |
1942 |
Folder 1090-1093
Folder 1090Folder 1091Folder 1092Folder 1093 |
1943 |
Folder 1094-1095
Folder 1094Folder 1095 |
1945 |
Folder 1096-1098
Folder 1096Folder 1097Folder 1098 |
1946 |
Arrangement: chronological.
Business records, 1941-January 1946, of Cleveland Cloth Mills in Shelby, N.C., kept by the mill's executive vice president, James Gardner. Included are records of the firm's New York sales office and of a possible subsidiary, Carter Fabrics Corporation of Greensboro, N.C. Papers are primarily interoffice memoranda between James Gardner, N. E. Burgess, Aaron B. Quinn, J. E. Bell, Irving Lewin, James Lybrand, W. S. Pepperell, W. J. Carter, and others. There is also correspondence with suppliers and scattered correspondence with stockholders and financiers. A number of letters are addressed to W. J. Carter as president of Carter Fabrics Corporation. Other records are financial statements and legal documents. The records describe mill operations, finances, and management; the procurement of machinery and materials; sales and marketing strategies; and law suits in which Cleveland Cloth Mills was involved.
Folder 1099-1140
Folder 1099Folder 1100Folder 1101Folder 1102Folder 1103Folder 1104Folder 1105Folder 1106Folder 1107Folder 1108Folder 1109Folder 1110Folder 1111Folder 1112Folder 1113Folder 1114Folder 1115Folder 1116Folder 1117Folder 1118Folder 1119Folder 1120Folder 1121Folder 1122Folder 1123Folder 1124Folder 1125Folder 1126Folder 1127Folder 1128Folder 1129Folder 1130Folder 1131Folder 1132Folder 1133Folder 1134Folder 1135Folder 1136Folder 1137Folder 1138Folder 1139Folder 1140 |
1941 |
Folder 1141-1163
Folder 1141Folder 1142Folder 1143Folder 1144Folder 1145Folder 1146Folder 1147Folder 1148Folder 1149Folder 1150Folder 1151Folder 1152Folder 1153Folder 1154Folder 1155Folder 1156Folder 1157Folder 1158Folder 1159Folder 1160Folder 1161Folder 1162Folder 1163 |
1942 |
Folder 1164-1189
Folder 1164Folder 1165Folder 1166Folder 1167Folder 1168Folder 1169Folder 1170Folder 1171Folder 1172Folder 1173Folder 1174Folder 1175Folder 1176Folder 1177Folder 1178Folder 1179Folder 1180Folder 1181Folder 1182Folder 1183Folder 1184Folder 1185Folder 1186Folder 1187Folder 1188Folder 1189 |
1943 |
Folder 1190-1205
Folder 1190Folder 1191Folder 1192Folder 1193Folder 1194Folder 1195Folder 1196Folder 1197Folder 1198Folder 1199Folder 1200Folder 1201Folder 1202Folder 1203Folder 1204Folder 1205 |
1944 |
Folder 1206-1220
Folder 1206Folder 1207Folder 1208Folder 1209Folder 1210Folder 1211Folder 1212Folder 1213Folder 1214Folder 1215Folder 1216Folder 1217Folder 1218Folder 1219Folder 1220 |
1945 |
Subject files, 1931, 1933-1947, maintained by O. Max Gardner, on the personal finances and business affairs of the Gardner family. Included are letters, stock lists, bank and tax records, and legal documents of O. Max Gardner, Fay Gardner, Madge Webb Riley , Margaret Love Gardner Burgess, Ralph Gardner, and O. Max Gardner, Jr. Files also document the Gardner Foundation, Inc., the Gardner Land Company, and the Sperry Corporation. A small amount of correspondence discusses O. Max Gardner, Jr.'s, World War II experiences at Fort Benning, Ga., 1943; Ralph Gardner's World War II service at Fort Bragg, N.C., 1943; and Ralph Gardner's political career, 1939-1940. Items of interest are wills for O. Max Gardner and Fay Gardner; a copy of a deed, 25 March 1942, granting land for an African American cemetery in Shelby, N.C.; and correspondence with Odus M. Mull (see Gardner Land Company).
Folder 1221 |
Biographical sketches: O. Max Gardner |
Folder 1222 |
Burgess, Margaret Love |
Folder 1223 |
Christmas cards, 1938 |
Folder 1224-1235
Folder 1224Folder 1225Folder 1226Folder 1227Folder 1228Folder 1229Folder 1230Folder 1231Folder 1232Folder 1233Folder 1234Folder 1235 |
Financial, 1935-1947 |
Folder 1236 |
Gardner, Fay Webb |
Folder 1237 |
Gardner Foundation |
Folder 1238 |
Gardner, James Webb, 1940, 1945 |
Folder 1239-1240
Folder 1239Folder 1240 |
Gardner Land Company, 1939-1946 |
Folder 1241-1243
Folder 1241Folder 1242Folder 1243 |
Gardner, O. Max, Jr., 1943-1947 |
Folder 1244-1245
Folder 1244Folder 1245 |
Gardner, O. Max: Last Will and Testament |
Folder 1246-1253
Folder 1246Folder 1247Folder 1248Folder 1249Folder 1250Folder 1251Folder 1252Folder 1253 |
Gardner, O. Max: Personal, 1936-1945 |
Folder 1254-1256
Folder 1254Folder 1255Folder 1256 |
Gardner, Ralph Webb, 1939-1943 |
Folder 1257 |
Insurance |
Folder 1258 |
Personal: Miscellaneous, Undated |
Folder 1259-1267
Folder 1259Folder 1260Folder 1261Folder 1262Folder 1263Folder 1264Folder 1265Folder 1266Folder 1267 |
Sperry Corporation, 1936-1946 |
Folder 1268 |
University of North Carolina, 1931, 1941, 1945-1946 |
Folder 1269 |
Webb-Gardner property, 1946 |
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Personal correspondence, almost all 1946-1947, of O. Max Gardner, received at the law offices of Gardner, Morrison & Rogers and forwarded to his office at the United States Treasury. Correspondence is primarily with friends, including many long-time political colleagues and journalists. Topics include Gardner's business affairs, the death of James Gardner, Gardner's appointment as ambassador to England, help needed in expediting political matters, O. Max Gardner, Jr.'s World War II military career, and Gardner's views on economics. There are also a few personal requests for legal opinions. Although letters with H. Wiseman Kendall discuss John Snyder's appointment as secretary of the United States Treasury, few others discuss politics in any detail. Of note is the text for an article, "The Challenge of Peacetime Abundance," that Gardner prepared for Look magazine. One letter, filed under A, has an attached biographical sketch of O. Max Gardner.
Folder 1270 |
A |
Folder 1271 |
B |
Folder 1272 |
C |
Folder 1273 |
D |
Folder 1274 |
E |
Folder 1275 |
F |
Folder 1276 |
G |
Folder 1277 |
H |
Folder 1278 |
Invitations |
Folder 1279 |
J |
Folder 1280 |
K |
Folder 1281 |
L |
Folder 1282 |
M |
Folder 1283 |
N |
Folder 1284 |
P |
Folder 1285 |
R |
Folder 1286 |
S |
Folder 1287 |
T |
Folder 1288 |
U |
Folder 1289 |
V |
Folder 1290 |
W |
Arrangement: by individual.
Correspondence and miscellaneous papers (event programs, clippings, etc.), 1905-1959, of Fay Webb Gardner, with scattered correspondence and miscellaneous papers, 1923-1948, of her sons Ralph Gardner, James Webb Gardner, and O. Max Gardner, Jr. Fay Gardner's papers, mostly correspondence, document her role as a political wife; her work with women's organizations in Shelby, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C.; her relationships with friends and Gardner and Webb family members in Shelby, N.C., and across North Carolina and in Lousana, Alberta, Canada; O. Max Gardner's political career; tributes to O. Max Gardner; and Fay Gardner's political and civic activities after his death. Other topics in the letters are courtship and marriage; student life at the University of North Carolina and at Yale University Law School; the State Democratic Executive Committee; life in the executive mansion in Raleigh, N.C.; summer camp in Asheville, N.C.; Washington, D.C., politics; the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt; and Ralph Gardner's election to the North Carolina General Assembly, 1939.
A few letters are addressed to Fay's mother, Kansas Webb (Mrs. James L. Webb) and to her aunt, Madge Webb Riley, in Shelby, N.C., from friends and relatives. The papers of Ralph Gardner, James Gardner, and O. Max Gardner, Jr., describe Gardner family events; United States Army training in World War II; North Carolina politics; Gardner-Webb College; the Cleveland Cloth Mills; the Gardner Land Company; and the Cleveland Realty Company.
Arrangement: by type.
Mostly family personal, and political correspondence, 1905-1961; invitations and visiting cards, ca. 1929-1938; and sympathy letter files, 1947, of Fay Gardner, primarily documenting her role as a political wife, her participation in women's organizations, and her political and civic activities. There is also information also on her courtship and marriage, events in her children's lives and careers, her relationships with friends and relatives, O. Max Gardner's career, and responses to his death.
Arrangement: chronological.
Correspondence, 1905-1947, documenting Fay Gardner's role as a political wife; her work with women's organizations in Shelby, N.C., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, D.C.; her children's lives and careers; her relationships with friends and Webb and Gardner family members in Shelby, N.C., and across North Carolina and in Lousana, Alberta, Canada; O. Max Gardner's political career; correspondence and miscellaneous items, 1947-1966, documenting her political and civic activities; and tributes to O. Max Gardner. Letters from social and political acquaintances outnumber those with family and friends, but the latter are richer in detail. Most of the correspondence comprises letters received (only about 20 are written by Fay Gardner). A few letters are addressed to Kansas Webb (Mrs. James L. Webb) and to Madge Webb Riley in Shelby, N.C.
With one exception, all 1905 and 1907-1908 letters are from O. Max Gardner. He addressed love letters to Fay in school at Athens, Ga., and visiting in Gaffney, S.C., while he studied law at the University of North Carolina, 1905, and later practiced law in Shelby, N.C., 1907. The 1908 letters to Fay in Shelby describe receptions given his speeches as he traveled as an organizer for the Democratic Party; included are two broadsides for his appearances. One letter, May 1907, is to Fay from Buck Harris in Raleigh congratulating her on her upcoming marriage. There are no letters dated 1906 or 1909-1914.
Letters, 1915-1928, to Fay in Shelby are from personal and political friends and family members. They describe her activities in social organizations, including the Woman's Club of Shelby, the Woman's Missionary Union, and the Daughters of the American Revolution (see especially letters from her aunt Willie Webb). Of note are letters, 1915-1916, from Max's doctor and one from Max discussing a train wreck that left him hospitalized. Letters in late 1928 are mostly congratulatory notes on Max's election as governor, including two intimate letters from his sister, Addie Gardner Farthing of Lousana, Alberta, Canada, expressing pride in his achievements.
Correspondence, 1929-January 1933 (some undated), chiefly relates to Fay's role as first lady of North Carolina and includes letters from politicians, educators, journalists, other political wives, and friends. Also included is Gardner family correspondence. Political letters pertain to Fay Gardner's engagements and discuss the activities of women's organizations, especially the United Daughters of the Confederacy. Family correspondence comprises letters, 1929, 1932 and undated, from O. Max Gardner; letters, 1929-1932, Fay exchanged with her mother, Kansas Webb; letters, 1929-1931, from Addie Farthing; letters, 1929-1933 and undated, from her sister-in-law, Bess Gardner Hoey; and letters, 1930-1933, from Gardner, Webb, and Hoey family members in Shelby, N.C., Gastonia, N.C., Charlotte, N.C., and Canton, N.C., and in Lousana, Alberta, Canada. These letters especially illuminate the life of a governor's wife. They also give family news and express sympathy over the death of Fay's father, James L. Webb in 1930. Of particular interest are several letters Fay wrote to her mother in 1929 describing in detail her family's life in the executive mansion and a July governor's conference, where she met Franklin D. Roosevelt. Addie Farthing's letters discuss the effects of the Great Depression in Alberta, Canada, and the response of Canadian farmers, including an African-American immigrant, to Gardner's farm policies A few letters, 1930-1933, addressed to Kansas Webb and Madge Riley, are from family members, including Edwin Yates Webb. They discuss family, finances, and politics.
Correspondence, April 1933-February 1947, received at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., comprises mostly notes and letters from friends and relatives in Shelby, N.C., and Raleigh, N.C. Family correspondence includes letters, 1942, 1945, from O. Max Gardner, concerning his sister Bess Hoey's death and Washington, D.C., politics after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt; letters, 1936-1938, from O. Max Gardner, Jr., describing life in Shelby, N.C., and summer camp in Asheville, N.C.; letters Fay exchanged, 1937-1939, 1942, with Ralph Gardner, who was at Yale University Law School and at Fort Bragg, N.C., about family, exams, and his election to the North Carolina General Assembly; sympathy letters Fay received upon the deaths of her mother in 1934 and her son James in 1946; and many letters, December 1946-February 1947, congratulating her on Max's being named ambassador to England and sympathy notes upon his sudden death. Included is the funeral eulogy written by Zeno Wall.
Correspondence (mostly letters received) and miscellaneous items, March 1947-1966, relate to Fay Gardner's political career and civic activities and to the legacy of O. Max Gardner. They mention her service as a delegate-at-large to the Democratic National Convention, as chair of the Jefferson Jackson Dinner, and as a member of the North Carolina State Advisory Board of Paroles. Many also document her role as a benefactor to Gardner-Webb College, and a few mention the political activities of her sons, Ralph Gardner and O. Max Gardner, Jr. Items in 1961 are letters, programs, photographs, and a speech by Fay Gardner at the University of North Carolina. Letters in 1965 pertain to the writing of a history of the Young Democratic Clubs of America. Correspondents of note are Harry S. Truman, Bess Truman , William C. Friday, Edwin M. Gill, Clyde R. Hoey, J. Melville Broughton, R. Gregg Cherry, and W. Kerr Scott.
Folder 1291 |
1905, 1907-1908 |
Folder 1292 |
1915-1927 |
Folder 1293 |
1928 |
Folder 1294-1296
Folder 1294Folder 1295Folder 1296 |
1929 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/4 |
Letter, 22 October 1929, Franklin D. Roosevelt to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1297-1299
Folder 1297Folder 1298Folder 1299 |
1930 |
Folder 1300 |
1931 |
Folder 1301-1306
Folder 1301Folder 1302Folder 1303Folder 1304Folder 1305Folder 1306 |
1932 |
Folder 1307-1311
Folder 1307Folder 1308Folder 1309Folder 1310Folder 1311 |
Undated 1929-January 1933 |
Folder 1312-1313
Folder 1312Folder 1313 |
1933-1935 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/5 |
Letter, 25 January 1933, Eleanor Roosevelt to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1314 |
1936-1938 |
Folder 1315 |
1939-1942, 1945-1946 |
Folder 1316 |
Undated 1934-1946 |
Folder 1317 |
Bon Voyage, December 1946-6 February 1947 |
Folder 1318 |
February-August 1947 |
Folder 1319 |
1948 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/6 |
Letter, 5 November 1948, Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/7 |
Letter, 8 November 1948, Franklin D. Roosevelt to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/8 |
Letter, 18 November 1948,Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1320 |
1949 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/9 |
Letter, 27 October 1949, Bess Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1321 |
1950 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/10 |
Letter, 28 May 1950, Bess Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1322 |
1952-1954 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/11 |
Letter, 16 June 1953, Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1323 |
1955-1959 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/12 |
Letter, 11 May 1955, Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1324 |
1961 |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/13 |
Letter, 19 September 1961, Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1325 |
1962 |
Folder 1326 |
1963 |
Folder 1327 |
1964 |
Folder 1328 |
1965 |
Folder 1329 |
1966 |
Folder 1330 |
Undated |
Arrangement: chronological.
Invitations and visiting cards, 1929-January 1933, received by Fay Gardner while first lady of North Carolina, and February 1933-1938, while she lived at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. The invitations give a picture of the political and social circles in which the Gardners traveled and of Fay Gardner's role in helping to build her husband's political career.
Folder 1331-1338
Folder 1331Folder 1332Folder 1333Folder 1334Folder 1335Folder 1336Folder 1337Folder 1338 |
1929-1938 |
Arrangement: alphabetical by file.
Sympathy letter files organized by Fay Gardner after O. Max Gardner's death in February 1947. File I, arranged alphabetically, contains letters from officials in the United States and Britain and from Washington, D.C., friends. File II, arranged alphabetically by city, contains letters from officials in North Carolina and from friends and relatives across the state. File III, arranged alphabetically by state, contains letters from friends and relatives outside North Carolina. This file also contains letters received by Ralph Gardner and O. Max Gardner, Jr. Of note are several letters to Fay from Harry S. Truman and Bess Truman.
Folder 1339-1367
Folder 1339Folder 1340Folder 1341Folder 1342Folder 1343Folder 1344Folder 1345Folder 1346Folder 1347Folder 1348Folder 1349Folder 1350Folder 1351Folder 1352Folder 1353Folder 1354Folder 1355Folder 1356Folder 1357Folder 1358Folder 1359Folder 1360Folder 1361Folder 1362Folder 1363Folder 1364Folder 1365Folder 1366Folder 1367 |
File I |
Separated Folder SEP-3613/14 |
Letter, 27 March 1947, Harry S. Truman to Mrs. O. Max GardnerRestriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options. |
Folder 1368-1452
Folder 1368Folder 1369Folder 1370Folder 1371Folder 1372Folder 1373Folder 1374Folder 1375Folder 1376Folder 1377Folder 1378Folder 1379Folder 1380Folder 1381Folder 1382Folder 1383Folder 1384Folder 1385Folder 1386Folder 1387Folder 1388Folder 1389Folder 1390Folder 1391Folder 1392Folder 1393Folder 1394Folder 1395Folder 1396Folder 1397Folder 1398Folder 1399Folder 1400Folder 1401Folder 1402Folder 1403Folder 1404Folder 1405Folder 1406Folder 1407Folder 1408Folder 1409Folder 1410Folder 1411Folder 1412Folder 1413Folder 1414Folder 1415Folder 1416Folder 1417Folder 1418Folder 1419Folder 1420Folder 1421Folder 1422Folder 1423Folder 1424Folder 1425Folder 1426Folder 1427Folder 1428Folder 1429Folder 1430Folder 1431Folder 1432Folder 1433Folder 1434Folder 1435Folder 1436Folder 1437Folder 1438Folder 1439Folder 1440Folder 1441Folder 1442Folder 1443Folder 1444Folder 1445Folder 1446Folder 1447Folder 1448Folder 1449Folder 1450Folder 1451Folder 1452 |
File II |
Folder 1453-1488
Folder 1453Folder 1454Folder 1455Folder 1456Folder 1457Folder 1458Folder 1459Folder 1460Folder 1461Folder 1462Folder 1463Folder 1464Folder 1465Folder 1466Folder 1467Folder 1468Folder 1469Folder 1470Folder 1471Folder 1472Folder 1473Folder 1474Folder 1475Folder 1476Folder 1477Folder 1478Folder 1479Folder 1480Folder 1481Folder 1482Folder 1483Folder 1484Folder 1485Folder 1486Folder 1487Folder 1488 |
File III |
Arrangement: chronological.
Mostly correspondence, articles, and tributes Ralph Gardner kept that relate to O. Max Gardner's death and legacy, with additional miscellaneous North Carolina campaign materials (1948 Broughton-Umstead Senate race, Charles Johnson's gubernatorial campaign, and Ralph Gardner's 1956 Senate campaign), and correspondence, 1965, with Stephany Joy concerning the history of the Young Democratic Clubs of America. Items of note are a eulogy of O. Max Gardner by James E. Webb; a fifth-grade speech by Ralph Gardner; and a letter, 18 April 1934, to Ralph Gardner from O. Max Gardner, congratulating him on his induction into Phi Beta Kappa. Other items include brochures on Cleveland Cloth Mills, Gardner-Webb College, politics, and education.
Folder 1489 |
1923-1934 |
Folder 1490 |
1946-1947 |
Folder 1491 |
1948 |
Folder 1492 |
1951, 1954, 1965 and undated |
Arrangement: chronological.
Letters, 1941-1946, nearly all exchanged by James Webb Gardner in Shelby, N.C., and his younger brother, O. Max Gardner, Jr., while the latter was a student at North Carolina State College and in the United States Army. Max wrote from Fort Bragg, N.C.; Fort Wolters, Tex.; the Army Specialized Training Program in Raleigh, N.C.; Fort Benning, Ga.; Fort Ord, Calif.; and en route to Japan, describing United States Army training and camp life and discussing his marriage and career ambitions. James Gardner's letters discuss the operations and finances of the Cleveland Cloth Mills, Gardner-Webb College, and a Shelby, N.C., farm owned by O. Max Gardner, Jr.; offer brotherly advice; and give family news. Also included are a letter, 10 July 1956, from S. S. Royster, concerning management of the Cleveland Cloth Mills; letters, 29 October 1941 and 16 January 1946, from O. Max Gardner discussing overcrowding in Washington, D.C., and Gardner-Webb College; and a letter, 7 December 1945, from Ralph Gardner in New Delhi, India, detailing his homecoming plans. A letter, 20 June 1942, from James to Ralph, discusses Ralph's military career, Cleveland Cloth Mills, and their brother Max.
Folder 1493 |
1941-1944 |
Folder 1494 |
1945-1946 |
Arrangement: chronological.
Letters, 1945-1946, that O. Max Gardner, Jr., of Shelby, N.C., exchanged with O. Max Gardner in Washington, D.C.; letters, October 1946, from Fay Gardner; scattered letters from others; and clippings and financial papers, 1943-1961. The letters and papers concern Cleveland Cloth Mills and other family businesses, Gardner-Webb College, politics, family news, and the death of and tributes to O. Max Gardner.
Letters Max wrote his father provide rich detail on Cleveland Cloth Mills and Gardner-Webb College and on his educational, family, and career plans and civic activities. They mention family businesses, such as the Cleveland Realty Company and the Gardner Land Company. O. Max Gardner's letters provide encouragement and advice. Of note is a letter from O. Max Gardner to Ralph (attached to a 25 April 1945 letter to O. Max Gardner, Jr.), giving his views on Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman. Fay Gardner's letters describe a workers' strike at the Mayflower Hotel and the Gardners' trips to football games and family visits. Items dated after 1946 include correspondence, programs, and clippings that pertain mostly to tributes and memorials to O. Max Gardner. A few items are connected to O. Max Gardner, Jr.'s, United States Senate campaign, 1950-1951; his service on the University of North Carolina Board of Trustees; and business that he transacted for his father and his father's estate. Of interest is a letter, 7 April 1947, from O. Max Gardner, Jr., to Odus M. Mull, concerning his candidacy for membership in the Gardner-Webb College Board of Trustees.
Folder 1495-1496
Folder 1495Folder 1496 |
1943-1946 |
Folder 1497 |
1947 |
Folder 1498 |
1948 |
Folder 1499 |
1949-1950 |
Folder 1500 |
1952-1953 |
Folder 1501 |
1954-1961 |
Arrangement: chronological.
Papers, 1940-1947 and undated, maintained by O. Max Gardner in his capacity as a benefactor and trustee of Gardner-Webb College in Boiling Springs, N.C. (formerly Boiling Springs Junior College), and scattered papers, 1947-1961 and undated, of O. Max Gardner, Jr., and Fay Gardner concerning the school.
The bulk of the papers are O. Max Gardner's correspondence with school supporters and administrators discussing fundraising efforts and, to some extent, staffing decisions and construction and maintenance projects. Letters, along with scattered financial records, including audits and contributors' lists, shed light on the early endowment of Gardner-Webb and on O. Max Gardner's pivotal role in developing it. Additional items include a few legal papers documenting the beginnings of the school, clippings, school bulletins, committee reports, and programs from school events.
Post-1947 items include a few letters of O. Max Gardner, Jr., and Fay Gardner concerning financial support of the college; a handful of school event programs and clippings; and a few items pertaining to the dedication of the O. Max Gardner Memorial Student Building in 1948.
Folder 1502-1503
Folder 1502Folder 1503 |
1940-1942 |
Folder 1504-1510
Folder 1504Folder 1505Folder 1506Folder 1507Folder 1508Folder 1509Folder 1510 |
1943 |
Folder 1511-1517
Folder 1511Folder 1512Folder 1513Folder 1514Folder 1515Folder 1516Folder 1517 |
1944 |
Folder 1518-1522
Folder 1518Folder 1519Folder 1520Folder 1521Folder 1522 |
1945 |
Folder 1523-1525
Folder 1523Folder 1524Folder 1525 |
1946 |
Folder 1526 |
1947-1961 |
Folder 1527 |
Undated 1940s-1960s |
Arrangement: chronological.
Political and business correspondence and scattered financial records, 1930-1931, 1936-1938, 1940, 1942, and undated, of Odus M. Mull of Shelby, N.C. Most items, 1930-1936, pertain to Mull's work with the State Democratic Executive Committee, of which he twice served as chair. Letters after 1936, though having some political content, primarily relate to Mull's interests in the Cleveland Cloth Mills and the Cleveland Realty Company in Shelby, N.C.
Mull's political correspondents include members of the State Democratic Executive Committee, state and federal Democratic Party representatives, and other North Carolina political figures, including Cameron Morrison, Clyde R. Hoey, William B. Umstead, J. Wallace Winborne, W. Kerr Scott, Cale K. Burgess, Robert M. Hanes, O. Max Gardner, and A. J. Maxwell. Topics are State Democratic Executive Committee business and finances; State Democratic Executive Committee organizing efforts; political campaigns, especially that of Clyde R. Hoey for North Carolina governor in 1936; and road and highway improvements. Of particular interest is a series of letters, October 1930, from D. F. Batts, a field organizer, written to Committee Secretary W. P. Horton, reporting Batts's work on getting out the vote for the 1930 North Carolina Congressional elections. Scattered items (mostly bank books, purchase orders, and financial reports by Mull) pertain to the Committee's finances. Also of interest is a 1938 speech on the effect of the liquor question on the Democratic Party.
Mull's business correspondence, late 1936-1942, much of it with O. Max Gardner, discusses the operation of the Cleveland Cloth Mills and the Cleveland Realty Company in Shelby.
Folder 1528-1531
Folder 1528Folder 1529Folder 1530Folder 1531 |
1930 |
Folder 1532 |
1931 |
Folder 1533-1535
Folder 1533Folder 1534Folder 1535 |
1936 |
Folder 1536 |
1937 |
Folder 1537 |
1938 |
Folder 1538 |
Undated 1930s |
Folder 1539 |
1940 |
Folder 1540 |
1942 |
Arrangement: chronological.
Correspondence and miscellaneous papers of Isaac C. Griffin of Shelby, N.C., generated in his capacity as chair of the North Carolina State Fuel Administration's Local Fuel Committee for Cleveland County, N.C., and as superintendent of the Shelby Public Schools. Early papers, January 1917-May 1918, pertain to Griffin's wartime service as county fuel committee chair and include correspondence with businessmen and state and town officials, scattered circulars and pamphlets, fuel surveys, fuel supplier reports, and press releases. Papers, June-November 1918, document the operation, staffing, funding, and maintenance of the Shelby Public Schools and include limited correspondence with students and faculty members, textbook publishers, service providers, and state educational officials. A few letters and other items in 1918 relate to programs given by the Men's Bible Class of the First Baptist Church of Shelby.
Folder 1541-1542
Folder 1541Folder 1542 |
1917 |
Folder 1543 |
1917-1918 |
Folder 1544-1550
Folder 1544Folder 1545Folder 1546Folder 1547Folder 1548Folder 1549Folder 1550 |
1918 |
Arrangement: chronological.
Two picture albums, 1927 and 1928-1933, compiled by Fay Webb Gardner; 168 photographs, 1892-1949 and undated, almost all black and white, including snapshots, portraits, and team, group, and individual photographs; one colored pencil sketch, 1931; and two undated color postcards. The albums document a trip to Germany and England taken by O. Max Gardner and Fay Gardner and Gardner's years as governor of North Carolina. The bulk of the photographs are from 1900-1906, 1929-1939, and 1946. Most of the early photographs are from O. Max Gardner's college years. They document his participation in football, dramatic arts, and academic pursuits at the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts and the University of North Carolina. The remainder of the photographs pertain to his political and legal career as lieutenant governor and governor of North Carolina, as a lawyer in Washington, D.C., as a member of the Advisory Board of the United States Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion, as undersecretary of the United States Treasury, and as ambassador-elect to England. Gardner family items are scattered throughout.
Note that many other photographs may be found in scrapbooks compiled by Fay Gardner (Series 10).
Arrangement: chronological.
Notebooks, 1900-1924, kept by O. Max Gardner as an undergraduate, 1900-1903, at the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts; as a law student, 1905-1906, at the University of North Carolina; and during his early political career, 1907-1924. Also included are scrapbooks kept by Fay Gardner that chiefly document O. Max Gardner's political career, the Gardner family, O. Max Gardner's death, and tributes to him.
Extra Oversize Paper Folder XOPF-3613/1 |
Extra oversize papers |
1907-1953.
Deeds and other documents relating to several real estate transactions involving O. Max Gardner in and around Shelby, N.C. There is also correspondence, mostly between O. Max Gardner and his wife, Fay Webb Gardner. There are also letters from Clyde Hoey, as well as other members of the Gardner family. The letters primarily discuss day-to-day matters and family issues. In particular, there is a letter from Clyde Hoey to O. Max Gardner in which he affirms his intention not to remarry in the wake of the death of his wife, Bess Gardner Hoey (O. Max Gardner's sister). There are also letters sent to Fay Webb Gardner expressing condolences over death of her husband and thanking her for work she did for the Democratic Party in North Carolina, as well as several memorial items relating to O. Max Gardner, including a memorial folder from his funeral, a card detailing his military service during the Spanish-American War, and the text of a speech delivered by Howard Odum at a dinner in O. Max Gardner's honor held in Greensboro, N.C., in 1953.
Folder 1569 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1904-1906 |
Folder 1570 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1910-1911 |
Folder 1571 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1912-1914 |
Folder 1572 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1918 |
Folder 1573-1574
Folder 1573Folder 1574 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1919 |
Folder 1575 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1921-1922 |
Folder 1576 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1923-1925 |
Folder 1577 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1926 |
Folder 1578 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1927-1928 |
Folder 1579 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1929-1930 |
Folder 1580 |
Deeds and Indentures, 1942 and undated |
Folder 1581 |
Correspondence, 1907 |
Folder 1582 |
Correspondence, 1934-1939 |
Folder 1583 |
Correspondence, 1940 |
Folder 1584 |
Correspondence, 1941-1947 |
Folder 1585 |
Correspondence, 1948-1949 |
Folder 1586 |
Correspondence, 1950 |
Folder 1587 |
Correspondence, 1951-1953 |
Folder 1588 |
Correspondence, undated |
Folder 1589 |
Memorial items, 1953 and undated |
1920-1949.
Mostly correspondence between various relatives of O. Max Gardner, especially Adelaide Gardner Farthing and Bess Gardner Hoey (his sisters) and Mary Ivey Gardner Beck (his niece). These letters discuss various aspects of everyday life in rural Washington state, where Mary Ivey Gardner Beck lived, and Alberta, Canada, where Adelaide Gardner Farthing then resided. Also included are a program from a banquet given by former students of Adelaide Gardner Farthing when she briefly returned from Canada in 1925 and a photograph of Oliver Max Gardner's five sisters.
Folder 1590 |
Correspondence and related items, 1920-1929 |
Folder 1591 |
Correspondence and related items, 1930 |
Folder 1592-1596
Folder 1592Folder 1593Folder 1594Folder 1595Folder 1596 |
Correspondence and related items, 1931 |
Folder 1597 |
Correspondence and related items, 1932-1934 |
Folder 1598 |
Correspondence and related items, 1937-1938 |
Folder 1599 |
Correspondence and related items, 1941-1942 |
Folder 1600 |
Correspondence and related items, 1946-1948 |
Items separated include photograph albums (PA-3613/1-2); pictures (PF-3613/1-18; OP-PF-3613/1-4); oversize papers (XOPF-3613/1); oversize volumes (SV-3613/8-24, 26-32); and separated folders (SEP-3613/1-35).
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