Accession 00003 - M. L. Wilson Collection, 1935-1960
Creator: Wilson, M. L. (Milburn Lincoln), 1885-1969
Provenance Note: Original documents and photocopies of material pertaining to the career and activities of M. L. Wilson were compiled by employees of Montana State University in the 1960s to create this artificial research collection. Provenance of much of this material has been lost, but many files were apparently copied from originals held by the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D. C.
Historical Note: Milburn Lincoln Wilson was born in Atlantic, Iowa on 23 October 1885, the son of John Wesley and Mary E. (Magee) Wilson. He received a B.S.A. from Iowa State College, Ames, in 1907 and his M.S. in agricultural economics and rural sociology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 1920. He began his career as a farmer in 1907. He served as Assistant State Agronomist at Montana State College, Bozeman, 1910-12; County Agent in Custer County, Montana, 1912-14; Montana State Extension Agent Leader, 1914-22; and an extension agricultural economist at Montana State College, 1922-24. Between 1924 and 1926 he took charge of the U.S.D.A. division of farm management and cost accounting. During his stint as professor and head of the Department of Agricultural Economics at Montana State College, 1926-33, he provided consultation on large-scale wheat farming in the U.S.S.R., 1929. From May 16 to September 1, 1933, Wilson served as the Chief Wheat Production Secretary in the Agricultural Adjustment Administration and then moved on to the directorship of the Division of Subsistence Homesteads in the Department of the Interior until June 30, 1934. In 1934, Wilson was appointed the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture and in 1937 the Undersecretary of Agriculture until 1 February 1940 when he became the Director of Extension Work at U.S.D.A. While Director, he also filled in as the Chief of Nutrition Programs and in the Production and Marketing Administration between 1943 and 1949. He was a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Farm Economic Association (president, 1925), Epsilon Sigma Phi, Phi Kappa Phi, and Alpha Zeta. He was also a Unitarian and belonged to the Cosmos club. His writings include Farm Relief and the Domestic Allotment Plan (1933) and Democracy Has Roots (1939). Married on December 17, 1913 to Ida Morse from Cromwell, Minnesota, Wilson made his home in Washington, D.C. where he died in October 1969 and is buried in Rock Creek Cemetery.
Content Description Note: This collection includes materials created or collected by M.L. Wilson and in turn collected and arranged by Montana State University. It contains: original copies of Wilson's unofficial correspondence; photoduplicates of original correspondence held by the National Archives and Records Administration documenting Wilson's activities as Undersecretary of Agriculture and Director of Extension; subject files; agricultural history and Thomas Jefferson material; speeches; statements; articles; and materials from his personal files. Topics include: the Agricultural Adjustment Administration; various agricultural bills; domestic allotment; Farm Bureau; various New Deal programs concerning labor, land, rural housing, extension schools, erosion, and subsistence homesteads; agricultural history; Thomas Jefferson; conservation, economics; social sciences; politics; and postwar reconstruction. Photographs have been removed from files marked by an asterisk (*) and placed in Series 16. Large items have been also been removed for separate storage and files from which they have been removed marked by an asterisk (*).
Series 1: Non-official Correspondence, 1935-1960
Letters, memos, and notes pertaining to a wide variety of subjects including extension work, various studies, addresses, travel, foreign aid, United Nations, and Ford Foundation material. This material is very scattered in content and volume, with no personal or family letters included. Wilson's official job related correspondence has been arranged in subsequent series.
- Box 1
- 1-2. Non-official Correspondence 1935
- 3. Non-official Correspondence 1936-37
- 4-5. Non-official Correspondence 1938
- 6 - 9. Non-official Correspondence 1939
- 10-11. Non-official Correspondence 1940
- 12. Non-official Correspondence 1941
- 13-15. Non-official Correspondence 1943-45
- 16-17. Non-official Correspondence 1946
- 18-21. Non-official Correspondence 1947-48
- 22. Non-official Correspondence 1949
- 23-26. Non-official Correspondence 1950
- 27-28. Non-official Correspondence 1951
- 29-34. Non-official Correspondence 1952
- 35-43. Non-official Correspondence 1953
- Box 2
- 1-12. Non-official Correspondence 1953
- 13-22. Non-official Correspondence 1954
- 23-25. Non-official Correspondence 1955-56
- 26-28. Non-official Correspondence 1957
- 29-31. Non-official Correspondence 1958
- 32-33. Non-official Correspondence 1959
- 34. Non-official Correspondence 1960
- 35. Non-official Correspondence [n.d.]
- 36-41. Personal Correspondence, Dixon Co., Iowa Real Estate
- 42. Alumni Merit Service Award, Iowa State College
Series 2: Undersecretary of Agriculture -- Incoming Correspondence, A-Z -- 1933-1940
Photocopies of original correspondence held by the National Archives. It is a selection of non-official and official correspondence recieved by Wilson while he served as Undersecretary; it does not represent the total volume of that correspondence. Subjects include: AAA, agriculture education, extension, land-grant colleges, agricultural experiments, sociology, science, and international relations. The letters have been arranged alphabetically by the author's name.
- Box 2 (cont.)
- 43-44. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, A - 1934-1940
- Box 3
- 1-6. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, B - 1933-1940
- 7-10. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, C - 1933-1939
- 11-13. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, D - 1934-1940
- 14-15. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, E - 1934-1939
- 16-17. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, F - 1934-1940
- 18-19. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, G - 1934-1940
- 20-24. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, H - 1934-1940
- 25. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, I - 1935-1937
- 26. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, J - 1934-1939
- 27-28. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, K - 1935-1939
- 29-32. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, L - 1934-1940
- 33-38. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, M - 1937-1940
- 39. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, O - 1933-1939
- 40-43. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, P - 1934-1940
- 44-45. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, R - 1933-1940
- Box 4
- 1-3. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, R - 1933-1940
- 4-7. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, S - 1934-1940
- 8-9. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, T - 1934-1940
- 10. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, U - 1938-1939
- 11. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, V - 1935-1938
- 12-14. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, W - 1934-1940
- 15. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, Y - 1935-1939
- 16. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, Z - 1937-1939
Series 3: Director of Extension -- Correspondence, 1940-1953
Photocopies of original correspondence held by the National Archives. It is a selection of non-official and official correspondence recieved by Wilson while he served as the Director of Extension; it does not represent the total volume of that correspondence. There is no correspondence for the years 1944 through 1946. The chronological arrangement, as received, has been retained.
- Box 4 (cont.)
- 17. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1940-41
- 18-20. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1942
- 21-24. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1943
- 25-29. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1947-65
Series 4: Undersecretary of Agriculture and Director of Extension Correspondence, 1932-1948
Photocopies of original correspondence held by the National Archives. It is a selection of non-official and official correspondence sent by Wilson while he served as Undersecretary and the Director of Extension; it does not represent the total volume of that correspondence. These letters may have originally been filed under a subject or name arrangement but were not received in such an arrangement. Some of the letters are duplicates of correspondence found in other parts of this series.
- Box 4 (cont.)
- 30-34. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, 1932-36
- 35-39. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, 1937
- 40-44. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, 1938
- 45-47. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, 1939
- Box 5
- 1-8. Undersecretary of Agriculture Correspondence, 1939
- 9-12. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1940-43
- 13-16. Director of Extension Correspondence, 1944-48
Series 5: Undersecretary of Agriculture, Subject Files
This material includes photoduplicated letters, reports, articles etc. dealing with the various subjects listed for each folder. The subject headings which appeared on the cover envelopes have bee retained.
- Box 5 (cont.)
- 17. Agriculture Adjustment Administration
- 18. Conservation -- Transfer from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Interior
- 19. Cristgau Bill
- 20-21. Decentralization, Cont'd in Folder 21
- 22-28. Domestic Allotment I
- 29-34. Domestic Allotment II
- 35-39. Domestic Allotment III
- 40. Farm Bureau
- 41-43. Farm Labor - Volunteer Land Corps
- 44. Land Planning Committee
- Box 6
- 1. Land Planning Committee
- 2-6. Land Policy Materials
- 7. National Agricultural Conference
- 8. New Deal - Economic Philosophy - Mordecai Ezekial
- 9. Regional Meetings, Spring 1935
- 10. Regional Meetings, Summer 1935
- 11. Regional Meetings, Letters to Colleges
- 12-15. Reports (Miscellaneous)
- 16. Rural Housing
- 17-21. Schools for Extension Workers
- 22. Smith Lever Act
- 23-26. Wind Erosion
Series 6: Division of Subsistence Homesteads, 1933-1935
This contains correspondence and other records of Mr. Wilson as Director of the Division of Subsistence Homesteads within the Department of Interior, 1933-35. Listed as Record Group 96 in the National Archives.
- Box 6 (cont.)
- 27-28. Division of Subsistence Homesteads
Series 7: Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Office of Farm Management, 1924-1925
Records of the Office of Farm Management within the Bureau of Agricultural Economics, 1924-25. H.R. Tolley, Head. Includes those records relating to M.L. Wilson. Listed as Record Group 83 in the National Archives.
- Box 6 (cont.)
- 30-34. Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Office of Farm Management
Series 8: Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and Agricultural Engineering, 1934-1941
Bureau Chief's Correspondence, 1934-41, F.D. Richey and E.C. Auchter, Heads of Bureau. (Records relating to M.L. Wilson) Listed as Record Group 54 in the National Archives.
- Box 6 (cont.)
- 35-37. Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and Agricultural Engineering
Series 9: Mordecai Ezekial, Domestic Allotment Plan, 1929-1933
Material from the files of Mordecai Ezekial, Economist, U.S. Department of Agriculture, on the Domestic Allotment Plan. This material consists of photoduplicated copies of material from the National Archives.
- Box 6 (cont.)
- 38. Domestic Allotment Plan - J.D. Black, 1929
- 39-42. Domestic Allotment Correspondence, 1932
- Box 7
- 1-4. Domestic Allotment Correspondence, 1932
- 5-7. Domestic Allotment Correspondence, 1933
- 8. Condensed Summary of Events, 1932-33
Series 10: Chester C. Davis Material
Recollections and correspondence donated by Mr. Davis for inclusion in the Wilson file. Contains information about M.L. Wilson, Gov. Joe Dixon, Newspapers - Miles City Star, Avant Courier, Montana Farmer, Non-Partisan League.
- Box 7 (cont.)
- 9. Chester C. Davis Material
Series 11: Agricultural History and Thomas Jefferson Material
This material includes speeches, articles, notes, clippings and correspondence on the subjects of Thomas Jefferson and agricultural history. Included are materials from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents, a proposed Agricultural Hall of Fame and agricultural museums. Much of the material is devoted to the Jefferson Bicentennial.
- Box 7 (cont.)
- 10.* Agricultural History - Miscellaneous Material
- 11-16. Agricultural History - Miscellaneous Material
- 17-19. History of the Plow
- 20-23. M.L. Wilson, "Thomas Jefferson and Modern Scientific, Agriculture," 1949
- 24-29. Jefferson Bicentennial -- Copies of letters and memoranda
- 30. Jefferson Bicentennial -- minutes of meetings - conference on plans
- 31. Jefferson Bicentennial -- Publication - Clippings
- 32-34. Jefferson Bicentennial Committee -- minutes of meetings, membership, correspondence
- 35-36. Jefferson Bicentennial Committee -- Land Grant College and Extension participation
- 37-40. Jefferson Bicentennial Committee -- Miscellaneous correspondence, articles, clippings
- Box 8
- 1-10. Jefferson Bicentennial Committee -- Miscellaneous correspondence, articles, clippings
- 11-20. Thomas Jefferson -- Bibliographies and Quotations
- 21-22. Jefferson and Agriculture -- Sourcebook by Everett E. Edwards
- 23-27. Thomas Jefferson -- Pamphlet and Journal Material
- 28.* Thomas Jefferson -- Photographs used in connection with the Bicentennial
Series 12: Speeches, Statements, Articles, 1932-1956
This material represents mostly the product of Mr. Wilson himself, or articles about him. Those which were attributed to others but retained by Mr. Wilson are so designated on the chronological listing attached to this inventory as Folder 36.
- Box 8 (cont.)
- 29. Material for M.L. Wilson Speeches
- 30-32. Library of Congress references in connection with the preparation of speeches
- 33-33a. Material on Science Lecture
- 34-35. List of M.L. Wilson addresses, articles, etc. prepared in the office of Extension, U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Box 9
- 1-5. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1932-37
- 6-9. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1938-39
- 10-18. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1940
- 19-27. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-June 1941
- 28-32. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. June-Oct 1941
- 33-40. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Oct-Dec 1941
- 41-43. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-Aug 1942
- Box 10
- 1-2. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-Aug 1942
- 3-6. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Sept-Dec 1942
- 7-18. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-June 1943
- 19-32. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. June-Dec 1943
- 33-40. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-Apr 1944
- 41-46. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Apr-Dec 1944
- Box 11
- 1-4. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Apr-Dec 1944
- 5-14. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-Aug 1945
- 15-21. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Sept-Dec 1945
- 22-30. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-Aug 1946
- 31.* Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Aug-Dec 1946
- 32-33. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Aug-Dec 1946
- 34-38. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Dec 1946
- 39-42. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-May 1947
- 43-47. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. June-Dec 1947
- Box 12
- 1-4. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jan-May 1948
- 5-11. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. Jun-Dec 1948
- 12-16. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1949
- 17-19. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1950
- 20-25. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. 1951-56
- 26-29. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. [n.d.]
- 30-38. Speeches, Statements, Articles, etc. (misc)
Series 13: General and Miscellaneous Material
Subject files relating to the New Deal, agriculture, extension, economics, education, nutrition, etc.
- Box 12 (cont.)
- 39-41. AAA -- New Deal Material
- 42-43. Agriculture -- Miscellaneous
- Box 13
- 1-11. Agriculture -- Miscellaneous
- 12. Agriculture -- Land-Grant Universities and Colleges
- 13. Agriculture -- Radio Talks
- 14-20. Agricultural Extension
- 21-22. Agricultural Extension*
- 22-34. Agricultural Extension
- Box 14
- 1-2. Agricultural Extension
- 3-11. American Philosophical Society
- 12.* Conservation
- 13. Conservation
- 14-16. Economics
- 17.* Education, Sociology, Political Science
- 18-20. Education, Sociology, Political Science
- 21.* Education, Sociology, Political Science
- 22-27. Education, Sociology, Political Science
- 28-30. Foreign Aid
- 31. Homestead Material
- 32-33. India -- Provincial Extension Directors, 1952
- 34. Labor
- 35-39. Nutrition
- Box 15
- 1. Nutrition
- 2-4. Politics -- Miscellaneous
- 5-11. Politics -- Campaign of 1936
- 12-18. Rural America
- 19. Science History -- Discussion
- 20-23. Soviet Union
- 24-26. United Nations and Subordinate Organizations
- 27-32. War and Reconstruction
- 33-37. War and Reconstruction, "Democracy in the Present Crisis"
- 38. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1930
- 39. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1932
- Box 16
- 1. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1933
- 2. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1934
- 3. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1935
- 4. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1936
- 5. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture, 1937
Series 14: M.L. Wilson Personal Files, 1914-1955
Series 14 consists of materials from the personal files of M.L. Wilson forwarded with some comments by Dr. P.L. Slagsvold. Some of this material was drawn from the files of the Agricultural Economics Department, Montana State College, but has been retained in this series as a file kept separately by Wilson.
- Box 16 (cont.)
- 6. Correspondence, 1914-1920
- 7-13. Projects, Montana Agricultural Experiment Station
- 14-16. Agricultural Outlook Material
- 17. Allin, Bushrod, "Collective Economics of John R. Commons"
- 18. Farm Problems, Pamphlets 1927-32
- 19-20. Agriculture Situation, 1930-33
- 21. Ezekial, Mordecai, "Farm Problems," 1932
- 22. Wallace, Henry A.
- 23-25. Wilson, M.L., Land Utilization Speech and discussions, 1932-33
- 26-27. Farm Relief Bills, 1932-33
- 28. Anderson, Sydney, Agricultural Relief Plan
- 29. Farm Relief -- California Plan, 1933
- 30. Black, John D., The Agricultural Situation, January 1933
- 31. Rodgers, R.R., Farm Problems and Solutions, 1933
- 32. American Bakers Association, Farm Relief Problems and Plans, 1932-33
- 33. Tugwell, Rexford, "Agricultural Planning," 1934
- 34. Agricultural Planning Suggestions, 1933-35
- Note: Domestic Allotment Draft Bill, Box 20, Folder 1
- 35-36. Domestic Allotment, Notes and correspondence on Roosevelt's Topeka Farm Speech
- 37-41. Wilson, M.L., Domestic Allotment and Farm Relief -- speeches, 1933-34
- Note: M.L. Wilson -- Misc. is in Box 20, Folder 2.
- 42. Food Research Institute, Domestic Allotment -- Analysis, 1932
- Box 17
- 1-3. Domestic Allotment and Farm Problems -- Correspondence, 1932-33
- 4-5. Domestic Allotment -- Notes and Discussions
- 6. Domestic Allotment and other suggested farm plans -- analysis
- 7-10. Millers' National Federation, Domestic Allotment -- Criticisms
- 11. Lippmann, Walter, Domestic Allotment Plan -- Clippings
- 12. Decentralization of Industry
- 13. Agricultural Adjustment [partial text of speech]
- 14-16. Agricultural Planning -- Miscellaneous Material, 1936-38
- 17-21. Wilson, M.L. -- General Correspondence, 1953
- 22-24. Wilson, M.L. -- General Correspondence, 1954
- 25-27. Wilson, M.L. -- Ford Foundation Correspondence, 1953
- 28-29. Wilson, M.L. -- Ford Foundation Correspondence, 1954
- 30-32. Wilson, M.L. -- Ford Foundation Expenses, Fees, etc., 1954-55
- 33-35. Miscellaneous Pamphlets
- 36. Association of Land Grant Universities and Colleges
- 37-38. American Farm Bureau Federation
- 39. Geologic Map of Western United States
Series 15: Miscellaneous Notebooks and Scrapbooks, 1916-1956
- Box 18
- 1*-3.* Farmers' Bureau, 1916-19
- 4-14. Weekly Letters to State Directors of Extension, 1945
- Note: the Weekly Letters are arranged according to the original arrangement found in M.L. Wilson's ring binder.
- 15-27. Weekly Letters to State Directors of Extension, 1946
- 28-40. Weekly Letters to State Directors of Extension, 1947
- Includes Table of Contents for 1947
- Box 19
- 1-3. Weekly Letters to State Directors of Extension, 1947
- 4-18. Weekly Letters to State Directors of Extension, 1948
- Table of Contents for 1948
- 19-25. Press Clippings, Nationwide Judging Tour, 1956 Community Service Contest
- 26-30. Miscellaneous House and Senate Bills and Resolutions with suggested changes, related letters, etc.
- 31-33. Missoula County Farm Bureau Organization
- Note: "Scrapbook -- General Agricultural Newspaper clippings and articles" to Box 21.
- "Scrapbook -- Farmers' Bureau" to Box 21.
- Box 20
- 1. Domestic Allotment Draft Bill
- 2. Wilson, M.L. -- Miscellaneous
Series 16: Photographs
This series includes photographs removed from various folders throughout the collection.
- Box 20 (cont.)
- 3. Photographs #1-5
- 4. Photographs #6-10
- 5. Photographs #11-15
- 6. Photographs #15-20
- 7. Photographs #21-27
- 8. Photographs #28-32
- Box 21 Oversize items transferred from Series 15 to this flat box.
- 1. Scrapbook -- General Agricultural Newspaper clippings and articles
- 2. Scrapbook -- Farmers' Bureau
- Oversize storage
- "Data Regarding Subject Matter Specialists Agricultural Section" (2 sheets)
- "Data Regarding Subject Matter Specialists Home Economics Section" (1 sheet)
- "Farmers' Institute" [poster]
- "Mr. Taxpayer . . ." [announcement for short course]
- "Lower Madison Community Fair and Labor Day Picnic" [poster]
- "Farmers Hear" [poster]
- "Farmers' War Meeting" [poster]
- "Dry Farming Exhibit for Triangle Farmers" [poster]
- "Official Bulletin of the Dairymen's League," September 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, October 5, 10
Updated: 4/30/09