Guide to the Chester H. Rowell Papers, 1887-1946
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Note
History --History, California Geographical (By Place) --California History --History, University of California --History, UC Berkeley Social Sciences --Political Science --Public Administration
Guide to the Chester H. Rowell Papers, 1887-1946
Collection number: BANC MSS C-B 401
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Contact Information:
- Processed by:
- The Bancroft Library staff
- Encoded by:
- Brooke Dykman Dockter
© 1997 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Collection Summary
Collection Title: Chester H. Rowell Papers,
Date (inclusive): 1887-1946
Collection Number: BANC MSS C-B 401
Creator: Rowell, Chester H. (Chester Harvey), 1867-1948
Extent:
Number of containers: 10 cartons, 27 boxes and 2 oversize v.
Linear feet: 24.5
Repository: The
Bancroft Library
Berkeley, California 94720-6000
Physical Location: For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Languages Represented:
English
Information for Researchers
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to The Bancroft Library. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts
must be submitted in writing to the Head of Public Services. Permission for publication is given on behalf of The Bancroft
Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which
must also be obtained by the reader.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Chester H. Rowell papers, BANC MSS C-B 401, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Scope and Content
Chester H. Rowell's correspondence, articles, and editorials reflect his wide interest in the political and social problems
of the period. He was an organizer and president of the Lincoln-Roosevelt Republican League, 1907-1911; delegate to a number
of Republican state and national conventions between 1910 and 1936 and Progressive National Committeeman, 1912-1916; unsuccessful
candidate for the Progressive nomination for United States Senator from California, 1914; chairman, Republican State Central
Committee, 1916-1918; member of the California Railroad Commission, 1921-1923; member of the Presidential Emergency Boards
on railroad strikes, 1928-1931; member of American Youth Commission, 1935-1948; and member and officer of numerous other political
and social organizations. He was a strong advocate of United States entry into the League of Nations.
The Rowell collection was given to the Bancroft Library in September, 1948, by his children, Mrs. Cora R. Givens, Mrs. Barbara
R. Laughlin, and Jonathan H. Rowell.
The correspondence is divided into two groups: letters from Rowell arranged chronologically (Boxes 1-7) and letters to Rowell
arranged alphabetically (Boxes 8-27). If there is only one letter from an individual, this letter is filed in the appropriate
miscellany folder. If there are two or more, the letters are filed in folders either under the name of the person or the name
of the organization for which he wrote, depending on the nature of the correspondence. Within each folder, the letters are
arranged chronologically. Names of principal correspondents appear in the manuscripts catalog and shelf list.
Rowell's copies of his editorials in the
Fresno Republican, 1898-1920, are arranged chronologically (Carton 2). The articles and printed material are roughly arranged according to the
nature of the material and the subject matter (Cartons 1, 3-10).
A collection of Rowell's articles in the
San Francisco Chronicle, chiefly 1926-1946, was presented to the Bancroft Library by the
Chronicle in 1950 (C-B 402).
Biography
Chester Harvey Rowell, California journalist and civic leader, was born in Bloomington, Ill., in 1867, son of Jonathan Harvey
and Marie S. (Woods) Rowell. He was educated in Bloomington public schools, received the Ph.B. degree from the University
of Michigan, 1888, and did graduate work at the universities of Halle and Berlin. In 1898 he became editor and publisher of
the
Fresno Republican, a small country newspaper founded by his uncle, Dr. Chester Rowell, and soon made it one of the leading papers of the state.
He sold the
Republican in 1920 to George A. Osborn and Chase S. Osborn, Jr. In 1923 Rowell began a series of syndicated newspaper articles and from
1932-1939 was editor of the
San Francisco Chronicle. He died in 1948.
Autobiographical material can be found in Apr. 23, 1914 letter to Forkner.
Box 1
Letters from Rowell, 1893 -Oct. 1913
Box 2
Letters from Rowell, Nov. 1913 -1915
Box 3
Letters from Rowell, 1916 -Mar. 1918
Box 4
Letters from Rowell, Apr. 1918 -1919
Box 5
Letters from Rowell, 1920 -1925
Box 6
Letters from Rowell, 1926 -1929
Box 7
Letters from Rowell, 1930 -1942
Box 8
Letters to Rowell, A - Aq
Box 9
Letters to Rowell, Ar - Bk
Box 10
Letters to Rowell, Bl - California. University. College of Agriculture
Box 11
Letters to Rowell, California. University. Extension Division - Cn
Box 13
Letters to Rowell, Do - Fk
Box 14
Letters to Rowell, Fl - G
Box 15
Letters to Rowell, H - Hh
Box 16
Letters to Rowell, Hi - I
Box 17
Letters to Rowell, J - Johnson, Hiram W.
Box 18
Letters to Rowell, Johnson, Robert - Lh
Box 19
Letters to Rowell, Li - M (Miscellany)
Box 20
Letters to Rowell, Mac - Mn
Box 21
Letters to Rowell, Mo - O
Box 22
Letters to Rowell, P - Rd
Box 23
Letters to Rowell, Re - Sam
Box 24
Letters to Rowell, San - Stn
Box 25
Letters to Rowell, Sto - U
Box 26
Letters to Rowell, V - Woq
Box 27
Letters to Rowell, Wor - Z
Carton 1
College lecture notes and papers, ca. 1887-1892
Carton 2
Editorials,
Fresno Republican, 1898-1920
Carton 3
Autobiography; miscellaneous writings and speeches re:
Progressive Party - Account of Hugbo's [?] Calif. Campaign, 1916
California Railroad Commission
Debate with Senator Borah on foreign policy
Interviews with Ida Tarbell and Edward F. O'Day
Carton 4
Press clippings (arranged chronologically) of Rowell editorials, 1925-1929 (chiefly from his column "Comment" in the
Chronicle)
oversize volume 1-2
Scrapbooks (formally in Carton 4)
Carton 5
Press clippings (miscellaneous, unarranged; some about Rowell, some by him), 1908-1935
Carton 6
Railroad strike material, 1929
Carton 7
American Council on Education
American Youth Commission. Mimeographed and printed minutes of meetings and reports, 1936-1941
Carton 8
Pamphlets and printed items re:
California health insurance
California Railroad Commission
National Youth Administration
California public utilities
Carton 9
Pamphlets and mimeographed material re:
International relations - Far East (except China)
Carton 10
Pamphlets and mimeographed material re:
International relations - Europe, Far East (China)
