Guide to the Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. Papers

Jaime Henderson and Lara Michels

The Bancroft Library

2021

The Bancroft Library

University of California

Berkeley, CA 94720-6000

bancref@library.berkeley.edu

URL: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/libraries/bancroft-library

Contributing Institution: The Bancroft Library

Title: Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. papers

Creator: Snyder, Theodore A. , 1932-2018

Creator: Sierra Club North Carolina Chapter

Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 2021/134

Physical Description: 16.25 linear feet (13 cartons)

Date (inclusive): approximately 1967-2011

Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.

Language of Material: English .

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. papers were given to The Bancroft Library by Theodore Allen Snyder III in 2019.

Arrangement

Collection is arranged and described at the series level.

Biographical / Historical

Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. was a lawyer and a conservationist. He practiced law in North Carolina for many years. Snyder joined the Sierra Club in 1966 and in 1968 he founded the Carolinas Group of the Potomac Chapter. He has been referred to as the "John Muir of the Southeast." Snyder served as the first chair of the Club's Joseph LeConte Chapter (North and South Carolina), and in 1971 he organized the Appalachian Regional Conservation Committee. He was elected chair of the National Wilderness Committee in 1974, national treasurer in 1977, and national Sierra Club president in 1978. He also served on the Club's National Outings Committee starting in 1980. Snyder played a key role in establishing the Chattooga River -- the border between Georgia and South Carolina -- as a Wild and Scenic River, and in protecting South Carolina's Congaree Swamp as a national park. In addition, he was involved in the Cohutta and Kilmer-Slick Rock Wilderness designations and the passage of the Eastern Wilderness Act in 1975. Among Snyder's notable achievements was his 35-year successful opposition to the North Shore Road (also known as the "Road to Nowhere") in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. papers, BANC MSS 2021/134, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Processing Information

Before 2021, newly acquired materials from Sierra Club members and leaders were often added to an umbrella collection called the Sierra Club Members papers (BANC MSS 71/295 c). In 2021, the decision was made to freeze the Sierra Club Members papers and no longer add new acquisitions to this umbrella collection. Researchers should be aware that Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. papers that were processed before 2021 are included in the Sierra Club Members papers, Series 63.

Related Materials

Thirteen cartons of Theodore A. Snyder, Jr. papers can also be found in Series 63 of the Sierra Club Members papers (BANC MSS 71/295 c).

Content Description

Materials cover Snyder's environmental work in the Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, including his activities with the Sierra Club, his work with the National Wilderness Committee, his involvement with the designation of the Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness, and his successful opposition to the the construction of North Shore Road through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and his work to negotiate a financial settlement between the citizens of Swain County, North Carolina and the Department of the Interior and the Tennessee Valley Authority once the construction of the road ceased.

Conditions Governing Use

Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Environmentalism -- United States.

Conservationists--United States

Environmentalists--United States

Sierra Club

Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Agency : U.S.)

Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness (N.C. and Tenn.)

carton 1, folder 1-5

Correspondence 1971-1977

carton 1, folder 6-19

Sierra Club approximately 1967-1993

Scope and Contents

Correspondence, reports, memorandums, annual reports.

carton 2

National Wilderness Committee approximately 1974-1984

carton 3

Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness Area approximately 1969-2011

Scope and Contents

Materials cover activities impacting the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness area and work done to designate it a wilderness area. Contains environmental impact statements, petitions, correspondence, affidavits and testimonials.

carton 4

Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness Area approximately 1969-2011

North Shore Road, Great Smoky Mountains approximately 1990-2010

Scope and Contents

Contains materials broadly covering the Great Smoky Mountains including reports; land and fire management plans; and articles on natural features of and conservation efforts in the Great Smoky Mountains. Also comprises materials on the the construction of and Snyder's opposition to the North Shore Road including planning reports, economic impact studies, environmental impact statements, correspondence with legislators, meeting minutes of organizations opposing the construction of the road, and meeting minutes of the Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County.

carton 5