Manuscript Collections - Robert E. Wood papers

 

ROBERT E. WOOD PAPERS, 1897-1981
29 linear feet, 8 linear inches (65 LGA-S boxes, 5 oversize boxes)
Herbert Hoover Presidential Library

 
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Robert E. Wood was born in Kansas City in 1879. Wood graduated from West Point in 1900. He served with the Third Cavalry during the Philippine-American War and returned to West Point as an instructor in 1903. In 1905 he was assigned to the Panama Canal, serving under General Goethals during the building of the canal. Wood became chief quartermaster in 1912. In 1915 Wood retired with the rank of Major and began his business career. 

Between 1915 and 1917 Wood worked for the General Asphalt Corporation. He served in World War I with the Rainbow Division. After five months he was made Acting Quartermaster General.                 


April 30, 1908 Married Mary Butler Hardwick of Augusta, Georgia. Children: Anne Hardwick, Frances Elkington, Sarah Stires, Robert Whitney II, and Mart Stovall

1918-1919 Colonel and Brigadier General during World War I, acting Quartermaster General

1919-1924 Vice-President., Montgomery Ward and Company

1924-1928 Vice-President, Sears Roebuck and Company

1928-1939 President Sears Roebuck and Company

1933 Advisory Committee, Department of Commerce

1939 Commerce Department advisor to Harry Hopkins and Member War Resources Board
Chairman of the Board, Sears Roebuck and Company

1948-1949 First Hoover Commission, task force on National Security

1953-1955 Second Hoover Commission, chairman of task force on Surplus Property

1954-1957 Chairman of the Finance Committee., Sears Roebuck

1957-1969 Director, Sears Roebuck and Company

November 6, 1969  Died in Lake Forest, Illinois at the age of 90

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
 
The papers contain little material on the early years of his career, his World War I service, and his student days at the Military Academy. The papers do, however, reflect his interest in military affairs and policy, Military Academy. He was a long time member of the Association of Graduates and corresponded with members of the Class of 1900.
 
Other than some printed memorabilia and some letters written in 1915 commending his work, there are no materials from the period when General Wood was actually in Panama. The papers do reflect his interest in the canal. He was active in the efforts of retired employees of the Panama Canal and Panama Railroad company to obtain improved retirement benefits, and wrote many letters to members of Congress on their behalf from the mid-1930's to the mid-1950's. In the late 1950's and early 1960's he became an outspoken advocate of continued United States ownership and control of the canal.
 
After the First World War Wood resigned from the army with the rank of Brigadier General and took a position with Montgomery Ward and Company as Vice-President of Merchandising. Wood became firmly convinced that the future for mail order businesses lay in developing a chain of retail stores. Conflict over this issue led to Wood's resignation from Montgomery Ward in 1924. The Montgomery Ward files in the Papers contain speeches and memoranda from 1919-1924 addressed to other Ward's executives and the sales merchandising force, in which Wood analyzes the Company's policies and profits.
 
Soon after leaving Montgomery Ward, Wood joined Sears, Roebuck and Company as Vice-President of Factories and Retail. In that capacity he led Sears in the new venture of selling through retail stores. He continued increasing the number of retail stores after he became President of the Company in 1928. After guiding Sears through the Depression, Wood stepped up to be Chairman of the Board in 1939, a position he held until 1954. He continued as a Director of the Company until 1968.

The portion of the papers concerning Sears is not large, and consists mostly of memoranda and speeches directed to Sears' managers and executives. Besides revealing sales figures and profits, the files provide some insight into how Sears weathered the Depression, and grew to be the largest retailer in the country. These files also reflect the expansion of Sears into Latin America, the beginnings of the Allstate Insurance Company, and the expansion and administration of the Sears' Profit Sharing Plan.  

The papers reflect not only his business career, but also his interest in the formation of social, economic, and foreign policy from 1933 to the end of his life in 1969. During this period Wood corresponded with a number of well known people on a variety of issues.
 
Wood supported the New Deal in the early 1930's and voted for Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936. He became involved with the Committee for the Nation and its efforts to influence monetary policy. His correspondence with Roosevelt and other administration officials reveals his thinking on the monetary issue. Although Wood became disenchanted with the Roosevelt administration by the late 1930's, he did serve as a governmental advisor in three different areas in 1939. The collection reflects his services on The President's Committee on Civil Service Improvement; as an unpaid advisor to Harry Hopkins in the Commerce Department; and as a member of the War Resources Board.
 
As the United States moved closer to involvement in World War II, Wood joined forces with other Americans who opposed U. S. Intervention in the war. He corresponded with Herbert Hoover, Joseph Kennedy, Charles Lindbergh, Truman Smith, Burton Wheeler, and others opposed to U. S. intervention. He opposed Lend-Lease legislation and became chairman of America First Committee.  The files (1940-1941) in his papers include correspondence, bulletins, press releases, and publicity materials used in the campaign to keep America out of the war.
 
With the attack on Pearl Harbor and the declaration of war, Wood disbanded the 
America First Committee and volunteered his services to the government. He served as advisor to the Army Ordnance Department and the papers contain correspondence, reports, and memoranda on how supply systems could be improved. He was also appointed as an advisor to the Air Corps by General H. H. (Hap) Arnold and made several trips to the Pacific and European theatres to analyze and correct supply problems. These trips are documented in the papers by correspondence, reports, memoranda, diaries, and printed materials.
 
During the 1940's Wood became involved in Republican Party politics. He supported MacArthur for the presidential nomination in 1944 and 1948, and was a Taft supporter in 1952. Wood also supported Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy in the early 1950s.  The papers also document Woods activity with conservative organizations: American Action, For America, National Military-Industrial Complex and Americans for Constitutional Action. 
 
Wood served as a task force member with the two Hoover Commissions on the Reorganization of the Executive Branch. He served on the First Hoover Commission as a member of the task force on National Security and was chairman of the task force on Federal Surplus Property in the Second Commission. He also contributed his extensive knowledge of merchandising and distribution while participating in a 1955 survey of Army Post Exchanges. These services to the government are documents with correspondence, reports, and printed material.
 
Wood's extensive interest and participation in service and cultural organizations are also reflected in his papers. He served as President of the Chicago Boys' Clubs of America from 1949 to 1959. He also supported the work of the Boy Scouts, 4-H Clubs, and served on the board of the Cradle Society, a private adoption agency.
 
An extensive name and subject card index has been compiled for this collection arid is available upon request.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

 
Box Contents
1-20

CORRESPONDENCE, 1923-1969
Letters received and carbons of letters sent. Arranged by name of correspondent and thereunder chronologically.

21-64

SUBJECT SERIES, 1906-1969
Speeches, articles, correspondence, clippings, memoranda, and printed materials concerning Wood's business, philanthropic, and civic interests. Arranged alphabetically by subject.

65-69

OVERSIZED MATERIAL, 1913-1969
Photographs, maps, citations, scrapbooks, and photo albums.

70

AUDIO-VISUAL MATERIALS, 1913-1969
Panama Canal photo album, photographs, and sound recording of Douglas MacArthur.

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FOLDER LIST

CORRESPONDENCE
 
Box Contents

1

Abbot, Stephen, 1953-1959
Aberg, Carl P., 1959
Adam, Malcolm, 1952
Adams, A. H., 1967
Ahlen, Gosta, 1953
Aldrich, Winthrop W., 1953
Anderson, John, 1963
Anderson, William D., 1953
Andrews, Avery D., 1954
Arnold, Joe, undated
Artamonoff, George L., 1953
Atkins, William A., 1942-53
Babbitt, Marcella, 1959
Baldwin, Hanson W., 1941
Bale, Henry S., 1959
Ball, John, 1956, 1960
Ballinger, Willis J., 1953
Barbosa, J. V. Ruy, 1955–1967 (4 folders)
Barker, J. M., 1962
Barkhausen, L. H., 1953
Barkley, Alben W., 1937
Barnard, Harry, 1961
Barnes, Harry Elmer, 1943-1954
Barnett, Frank R., 1960-1961
Barnett, John T., 1969
Bath, Marquess of, 1955
Barton, Bruce, 1953-1956
Beadle, George Wells, 1966
Beliard, Jean, 1964
Bell, Don, 1955-1956
Bell, Henry M., 1964
Benton, William, 1942-1965

2

Bilger, L. A., 1924
Bird, Willis H., 1952
Blackson, Walter, 1953
Blaik, Earl H., 1953
Bloeksome, Don, 1968-1969
Blough, Roger M., 1959
Boker, Alexander, 1958-1959
Boldyreff, C. W., 1954-1955 and undated
Bondurant, A. P., 1961
Borah, William E., 1933
Boutwell, John T., 1968
Boyd, Henry W., Jr., 1953
Boyden, Frank L., 1953
Bracken, Brenden, 1937, 1952-1956
Brigham, Elbert S., 1947
Brooks, C. Wayland, 1945-1947
Brooks, E. P., 1953-1956
Brown, Harry, 1968
Browne, Ken, 1968
Buell, Alice, 1955
Bullis, Harry A., 1959
Burke, Edward R., 1940
Burke, Helen, 1949-1955
Burrows, A. C., 1958
Burton, Edgar G., 1966-1967
Busbey, Fred E., 1951
Butler, John M., 1951
Byrd, Harry F., 1950
Byrnes, James F., 1936-1953
Calhoun, Frank A., 1942
Callahan, Dan F., 1945
Campbell, Chesser M., 1955-1956
Capper, Arthur, 1947
Carey, Angela G., 1959
Carlton, Ann Marie, 1959
Carper, Wood B., Jr., 1956, 1966
Carry, Champ, 1960
Carson, Perley A., 1964
Carter, Francis Montgomery, 1959
Case, Otto A., 1942
Caselberry, Guy, 1957-1959
Caselberry, Ora, 1959
Cassady, Thomas G., 1965
Castro, Fidel, 1959
Cavey, Arthur T., 1938-1939
Chamberlin, William Henry, 1950-1959
Chennault, Claire L., 1945
Cherbonnier, E.G., 1952
Cherne, Leo, 1959
Chitty, Arthur, 1968
Church, Marguerite Stitt, 1951
Clark, George E., 1955
Clark, Mark W., 1953-1955
Clark, Mary Jean, 1963-1964
Clay, Lucius D., 1946-65
Clayton, William L., 1936-1945
Close, Upton, 1954-1955

3          Coffman, Edward M., 1960
            Cohn, David L., 1955
            Cole, Al, 1959-1964
            Cole, William Graham, 1963
            Colegrove, Kenneth, 1952-1955
            Collins, Robert S., 1954
            Colmer, William M., 1960
            Connolly, Blanche Caldwell, 1953
            Connor, William D., 1927
            Conrad, Arthur, 1966
            Conway, Carle C., 1956
            Cook, James A., 1962
            Cotton, Joseph P., 1930
            Coulter, Thomas, 1959
            Cowles, Alfred, 1960
            Craig, Malin, 1935-1937
            Croom-Johnson, Judge, 1939
            Crosswhite, William V., 1959
            Crowson, Richard, 1965
            Crowther, Samuel, 1943-1945
            Cullen, H. Roy, 1955
            Cuneo, John F., 1966
            Cushman, A.T.  1966
            Cushman, Ralph E., undated
            Daley, Richard J.  1957-1966
            Damon, R. S., 1953
            Davis, Joseph A., 1964
            Davis, William H., 1940
            Davis, William Rhodes, 1939
            Dawes, Charles G., 1945, 1949
            deButts, John D., 1968
            DeMelo, Francisco A., 1966
            Dennis, Lawrence, 1941-1944, 1951-1952
            Devin-Adair Company, 1954
            Dilling, Elizabeth, 1954           
            Dirksen, Everett M., 1950-1969
            Disque, Brice P., 1940
            Divine, Helen, 1936-1956 (2 folders)

4

Divine, Helen, 1957-1968 (6 folders) 
Dodge, Charles G., 1966
Donnell, Edward S., 1962      
Donovan, William J., 1940-1947
Douglas, L. W., 1962-1969
Douglas, Paul H., 1949-1961
Downing, John F., 1960
Drucker, Peter F., 1952-1953

5

Drum, Hugh, 1938-1942
Dubois, Jules, 1959-1964
Dubow, J. A., 1959-1969
Duffield, Hugh K., 1968
Dunigan, E.B., 1956
Dunn, Roger C., 1954
Dyer, R. T., 1966
Ebner, Dodi Joachim, 1968
Edie, Lionel D., 1951-1953
Edison, Charles, 1955-1960
Edwards, R. D., 1957
Eichelberger, R. L., 1947
Eisenhower, Dwight D., 1956-1963
Elbert, Robert G., 1939
Endicott, Bradford M., 1954-1956
Endicott, H. Wendell, 1924-1948
Ettinger, Karl Egmont, 1955
Evans, Charles, Jr., 1965-1966
Evans, Joseph W., 1957-1959
Evans, Lawrence F., 1938
Fain, John M., 1943
Falzone, Lawrence D., 1970
Farish, William S., Jr., 1941
Farish, William S., III, 1966
Farley, James A., 1936-1942, 1962
Favor, Jeanne G., 1949-1967
Favor, Joe, 1951
Fellers, Bonner, 1946
Fennelly, John F., 1968
Fentress, Calvin, 1955-1968
Fentress, Calvin III, 1956-1966
Field, Marshall, 1944
Fifield, James W., 1954
Fitz, Patrick, A.J., 1954-1957
Fleming, Lamar, Jr., 1952
Flinker, Rudy, 1956
Flynn, John T., 1941-1955
Folsom, Marion B., 1952
Forgan, Jim, 1964
Franco, Antonio, 1966

6

Fox, John A., 1955
Frank, Walter H. and Harriet, 1945-1961
Freeman, Fulton, 1962
Fry, Lloyd A., 1960
Fulbright, J. William, 1954
Gabriel, J. Walter, 1966
Gaines, Harry L., 1948-1952
Galitzine, Nicholas, 1949
Gallery, W.O., 1957-1969
Galvin, Eddie, 1951
Ganoe, William Addleman, 1964
Gardner, John, 1965-1968
Garner, John Nance, 1937
Garrett, Van Holt, 1956
Gibson, David H., 1953
Gilpin, Justine, 1964
Gimbel, Bernard F., undated
Gish, Lillian, 1941-1943
Glace, Frank E., 1956
Glynn, Henry R., 1952
Goldwater, Barry, 1959-1966
Goodwin, William J., 1946-1953
Goes, Otto W., 1956
Gorman, C.H., 1961
Graham, G.M., 1959-1960
Graham, William L., 1959
Grauten, Sylvester, 1967
Gregory, Mildred, 1965
Griggs, Benjamin G., 1959
Greunther, Alfred M., 1954, 1966
Grumhaus, Harold F., 1966
Gudeman, Edward and Frances A., 1954-1967
Halfpenny, Harold, 1959
Hall, Ruth A., 1953-1959
Halligan, Robert F., 1959
Hamilton, Fred L., 1952
Hanahan, Alice Elkington, 1938
Handley, W.C., 1943
Hansen, Henrik, 1953
Hardwick, George, 1958-1966
Hardwick, Henry, 1954-1968
Hardwick, McKinne, 1955-1957

7

Hardwick, Virginia, 1965-1967
Harper, Mrs. Joseph H., 1959
Harriman, Averill, 1938
Harris, Albert W., 1940-1956
Harris, Charles U., 1966
Harrison, Pat, 1933
Harriss, Robert M., 1943-1955
Hart, Merwin K., 1945-1956
Haskell, Henry J., 1942
Haskin, Millard L., 1959
Hastings, James B., 1959
Hawkes, Albert W., 1960-1965
Hawkins, James W., 1932
Hazeltine, C.B., 1942-1944
Hebard, R.W. and Family, 1953-1959
Helm, Wilbur, 1965
Henderson, Leon, 1951
Herman, Carolyn W., 1959
Herr, John K., 1950-1953
Herrick, Ray W., 1965
Herter, Christian, 1959
Hess, Wilbur, 1968
Hill, Charles A., 1956-1968
Hirooka, Hyohei, 1966-1967
Hiss, Alger, 1956
Hixon, Marguerite, 1961
Holden, Benedict M., 1935
Holden, Thomas S., 1952
Hollings, Ernest T., 1959
Holt, John Randolph, 1957
Holtzermann, J.D., 1968
Hook, Charles R., 1955
Hoover, Herbert, 1932-1964 (3 folders)
Hoover, Herbert, Jr., 1966
Hopkins, Harry, 1938-1940

8

Howard, John K., 1955
Howard, Roy W., 1940
Houser, Theodore, 1960
Hoy, Charles J., 1969
Hubbard, Bernard R., 1947-1961
Hughes, Charles J., 1956
Hughes, Mabel, 1956
Hull, Cordell, 1939
Humphrey, Hubert, 1966
Hunt, H. L., 1951-1960
Hunt, Leigh H., 1954
Hurja, Emil, 1950
Hurleigh, Robert F., 1953-1954
Hurley, James F., 1956
Hutchins, Robert M., 1965
Hutchinson, B.E., 1953
Ingebretsen, James C., 1956
Ingersoll, James H., 1959
Insull, Samuel, 1959
Inuna, David, 1961
Isham, Henry P., 1949-1954
Jadwin, Edgar, 1929
Jansen, D.E., 1966
Jeran, N.W.,1956
Johansson, Albin, 1956
Johnson, Charles and Ruth, 1944-1957 and undated
Johnson, Hugh S., 1934
Johnson, Louis Arthur, 1939-1950
Johnson, Virgil, 1961-1964
Johnston, Eric, 1945-1952
Jordan, George Racey, 1952
Jung, Harry A., 1946-1953
Just, Bernice, undated
Justi, Margaret and Katharine, 1928
Kargulla, S.M., 1953-1954
Kellstadt, Charles H., 1969
Kelly, Alured, 1942-1943
Kemper, Hathaway G., 1956
Kemper, James S., 1943-1968
Kemper, James S., Jr., 1969
Kemper, R. Crosby, 1961
Kenderdine, R.L., 1966
Kennedy, John F., 1957
Kennedy, Joseph P., 1939-1941
Kennelly, Martin H., 1954, 1955
Kewley, Norma S., 1964
Kile, O. M., 1937
Kimberly, Lewis Robert, 1942
King, Austin, 1969
Kinnear, James W., 1965-1966
Klee, Fred, 1967
Knox, Frank, 1940
Kohler, Herbert V., 1955
Kresl, Carl, 1951-1963

9

LaFollette, Philip F., 1933-1944
LaFollette, Isabel (Mrs. Philip F.), 1944-1945
LaFollette, Robert M., Jr., 1933-1951
Lahm, Frank P. and Gertrude, 1931-1967
Lamont, Robert P., 1929-1930
Lamont, Thomas S., 1954-1959
Landon, Alfred M., 1940-1944
Larkin, William F., 1951
Lasher, E.C.R., 1959-1961
Lathrop, John, 1947
Lawrence, George W., 1968
Lederer, Charles, 1931-1935
Lee, H. Rex, 1966
Lee, J. Bracken, 1961
LeMay, Curtis E., 1965
LeMay, Jeanette M.,1968
Levin, N.W., 1959
Lewis, Mary, 19?-1967
Leyburn, Boyd, 1959
Lichtenstein, Walter, 1936-1949
Lincoln, Edmond E., 1947-1948
Lindbergh, Charles A., 1940-1963 (6 folders)
Livermore, Charles, 1963
Livingston, Homer J., 1962-1963

10

Llaura, Pablode la, 1962
Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1950
Loeb, Ernest G., 1950, 1959
Loeb, William, 1967
Looby, W.E., 1952
Lucas, Scott W., 1949-1950
Ludlow, William E., 1966
Lund, Robert L., 1955
MacArthur, Douglas, 1931-1964 (4 folders)
McBain, Hughston, 1948-1949, 1961
McCall, Chester H., 1936
McCarran, Pat, 1952
McCarthy, Joseph R. and Jean, 1950-1957 (2 folders)
McClatchie, Stanley, 1940-1942
McCormick, Robert R., 1933-1950 (3 folders)

11

McCormick, Robert R., 1951-1954 (2 folders)
McDonald, J. Robert, 1968
McGill, Ralph, 1963
McKellar, Kenneth, 1937
McManus, J. V., 1967
McMillan, Ruth, 1959
McSwain, John J., 1936
Malone, George W., 1956
Manlove, Emma, 1964
Mann, Charles K., 1965
Marden, G. E., 1961
Mardikian, George, 1959
Marks, Bertram, 1966
Martin, Thomas W., 1959
Mason, George Allan, 1966
May, William H., 1927-1959
Mazur, Paul, 1956-1959
Merigeault, Rene J., 1952
Metcalf, Gordon M., 1967
Meyer, Charles A., 1965-1969
Millikin, Eugene, 1950-1954
Mitchell, Samuel K., 1955
Moley, Raymond, 1941-1942
Montgomery, John C., 1942
Moore, Alonzo, 1965
Morgan, W. Forbes, 1936
Morgenthau, Henry J., 1933-1937
Morrow, R.G., 1955-1964
Morton, Sterling, 1941-1959
Moseley, George Van Horn, 1937-1939
Mundt, Karl E., 1942-1963
Murphy, Charles J.V., 1964
Murphy, James L., 1961
Nandadasa, B.V.K., 1964
Neely, Frank H., 1964-1965
Nelson, Donald M., 1944
Nixon, Richard M., 1950-1968
Nolan, Ann, 1965
Oates, James F., Jr., 1957-1962
O'Brian, Robert E., 1942-1947

12

Odlum, Floyd B., 1949-1957
O'Dell, R. L., 1969
O'Hara, Ray, 1955
O'Laughlin, John Callan,1941-1946
Old, Admiral Francis P., 1953-1954
Oldberg, Eric, 1956-1965
O'Neill, J. Vincent, 1955-1960
Ott, John Nash III, 1961
Ottenheimer, Gus, 1954
Overstreet, J. W., 1962
Page, Inga, 1950-1955
Paley, William S., 1954
Parker, Jack, 1957
Patrick, Ted, 1960
Patterson, Edward, 1957-1958
Patterson, J. M., 1941
Patterson, Richard, 1952
Pawley, William Douglas, 1954
Payan, Genaro, 1957
Peacher, Doug, 1968
Peek, George, 1933-1941
Pegler, Westbrook, 1959
Percy, Charles H., 1964-1969
Perkins, George T., 1960-1965
Peter, Marion, 1950
Pettengill, Samuel B., 1954
Pew, J. Howard, 1966
Pew, Joseph N., 1943-1947
Phillips, J. Marquette, 1955
Pinder, A.J., 1964
Pirie, John F., Jr., 1966-1967
Pollak, Robert, 1960
Pollock, Emil J., 1934, 1951-1957
Pope, Henry, 1966
Potter, Edward Jr., 1956-1957
Potter, William C., 1955
Potter, William G., 1933
Prall, B. R., 1951
Pratt, John Lee, 1952
Prentice, H. W., Jr., 1951
Preston, Frederick and Family, 1947-1960
Prince, William Wood, 1957
Prochnow, Herbert V., 1955
Putnam, Rufus, 1959-1964
Putze, Louis, 1961
Quayle, R.H., 1956
Quinn, William F., 1959
Rafferty, Virginia, 1955
Ralston, Byron Brown, 1955
Ranney, George A., 1961
Ranney, Paul T., 1957
Ranney, Thomas P., 1953-1956

13

Rathbun, Spide, 1952
Rayburn, Sam, 1936
Rayens, Charles E., 1948-1953
Redhead, H. Wesley, 1951
Reece, Carroll, 1952-1958
Reed, Latham R., 1944
Reed, Walter J., 1953-1957
Regnery, Henry, 1949-55
Regnery, William H., 1946-1955
Reilly, Henry J., 1931-1963 (4 folders)
Revere, C.T., 1939-1940
Reynolds, Cornelia, 1967
Rice, Harvey M., 1959
Richards, Marc, 1965
Richardson, H. Smith, 1944-1959
Richardson, Harold W., 1956
Richardson, Jennie M., 1947-1958
Richardson, Robert C., 1937-1951
Rickenbacker, Edward V., 1952-1968
Ries, Florence E., 1951-1955
Robinson, Claude, 1952-1958
Robinson, J.P., 1948-1950

14

Robnett, George W., 1951
Robson, E. A., 1957
Rockefeller, Nelson A., 1968
Roebuck, Mrs. A. C., 1966
Rogers, Harriet, 1940
Rogers, Hilda, 1962
Romney, George, 1966-1967
Roosevelt, A. B., 1955-1959
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 1933-1942 (3 folders)
Roper, Daniel C., 1936-1937
Rosenbaum, Arthur, 1966
Rosenwald, Julius and Adelaide R., 1929-1931, 1949
Ross, Robert C., 1957
Ross, Walter G., 1946-1968
Rothgerber, Ira C., Jr., 1956
Rowe, Harley, 1951
Rusk, Dean, 1964
Rumely, Edward A., 1938-1956 (2 folders)
Sandemar, Gosta, 1956
Sanford, William, 1959-1960
Schmidt, Sigrid, 1963
Schulman, Robert, 1952
Schwab, Dorothea J., 1966-1967
Scott, Elmer, 1953
Scott, William Pearson, 1967
Seibert, Herbert D., 1953
Selvage, James P., 1950
Selfridge, Gordon, 1936-1941
Sessler, Vera, 1957-1965
Shafer, Jonathan Stickley, 1954-1955
Shapiro, Eli R., 1956
Shefferman, N.W., 1948-1953

15

Shipley, Ruth, 1928-1966 (2 folders)
Shipnes, Stanley, 1968
Shoemaker, Perry, 1960
Sisler, George F., 1958
Smeeton, Miles, 1955-1957
Smith, C.R., 1966
Smith, Margaret Chase, 1950
Smith, Snell, 1940, undated
Smith, Truman, 1939–1957 (3 folders)
Smoot, Dan, 1955-1961
Smythe, Donald, 1960
Sokolsky, George E., 1942-1952
Somervell, Brehon B., 1942
Somerfield, Arthur, 1952
Spacek, Leonard, 1964
Spalding, Eliot, 1956
Spencer, Lyle, 1954
Spiegel, Edwin J., 1954
Spiegel, Modie J., 1965
Spring, Richard R., 1965
Steele, Walter S., 1950
Steese, James G., 1952-1958

16

Stegeman, H. R., 1960
Stephen, H. R., 1968
Stephens, A.J., 1962
Stern, Edgar and Family, 1945-1965
Stettinius, Edward R., Jr., 1940-1943
Stevens, John F., 1940
Stewart, Joseph L., 1965
Stickle, H. W., 1942
Stires, Ernest, 1963-1969
Stires, Hardwick, 1947-1967
Stout, Harry Howard, 1940-1941
Stratemeyer, George, 1960
Stratton, William G., 1959-1960
Strauss, Lewis, 1958-1959
Strenger, Ruth Robinson, 1957
Struthers, George H., 1965
Stuart, R. Douglas, Jr., 1940-1947, 1958
Stuart, R. Douglas, Sr., 1944
Suarez, Diego, 1952
Summerall, C.P., 1953
Swearington, John, 1966
Swim, Dudley, 1942
Swofford, Jewell, 1966-1967
Symington, W. Stuart, 1937-1963
Taft, Charles P., 1964
Taft, Robert A., 1946-1953
Talbot, Ralph, Jr., 1952-1955
Talbot, Ralph, III, 1952-1954
Talberg, Earl A., 1966
Tankersly, Ruth McCormick, 1955
Taylor, Henry C., 1954-1968
Taylor, J.C., 1953
Taylor, Maxwell, 1966
Thillens, Mel, 1959
Thomajan, Lucille, 1955
Thompson, H. Keith, 1956-1959
Thompson, William G.B., 1938-1962
Thorne, Robert J., 1955
Thurmond, Strom, 1960-1963
Thynne, Christopher, 1956
Timothy, R.W., 1969
Tobin, Edgar, 1943-1954
Todd, H. D., 1966

17

Triebull, Marie, 1966
Trohan, Walter, 1955-1956
Trussell, John C., 1952-1961
Tull, George W., 1957
Tullis, Robert Wood, 1959
Tydings, Millard E., 1950
Uhl, Edwin W., Jr., 1956
Underhill, Henry E., 1959
Upton, Frederick, 1967
Upton, Robert, 1959
Utley, Freda, 1941-1955
Vandenberg, Arthur H., 1943–1948 (2 folders)
Vanderbilt, William H., 1957
Vanderpoel, Robert P., 1953-1954
Vaxelaire, Baron Francois, 1954-1968
Vignoles, C.M., 1957
Volk, Katherine, 1953
Von Braun, Werner, 1959-1966
Walker, Edwin, 1961-1963
Walker, Kirby, 1955
Wall, Markie, 1947–1966 (3 folders)

18

Wall, Markie, 1947–1966 (6 folders)
Wallace, DeWitt, 1959-1965
Wallace, Henry A., 1933-1940
Ward, Harris, 1959
Warren, Avra M., 1948-1954
Watkins, Arthur V., 1954
Waud, Morrison, 1957
Wedemeyer, Albert C., 1951-1954

19

Weinberg, Sidney J., 1933–1959 (2 folders)
Weinrich, William A., 1969
Weir, Ernest T., 1952
Welch, Robert, 1958-1966
Welker, Herman, 1957
Wells, George, 1947-1957
Westervelt, W. I., 1933
Westervelt, Dorothy (Mrs. W.I.), 1956
Westmoreland, W.C., 1960-1967
Wheeler, Burton K., 1940–1958 (3 folders)
White, E.A., 1967
White, Walter, 1943
Wilbur, William H., 1950-1968, undated
Wilcox, Mrs. Robert, 1951
Wiley, Alexander, 1947
Wilkie, Leighton, 1944-1959
Wilkins, Roy, 1964
Williams, Alford J., 1940-1943
Williams, Joseph L., 1959
Williams, Langbourne M., 1954
Williams, S. Clay, 1947
Williamson, Lee H., 1939
Willis, Benjamin C., 1966
Willoughby, Charles A., 1944
Wilson, Robert E., 1963
Wirt, William A., 1933
Wisenbaker, Allan R., 1965-1966

20

Wood, Benjamin, 1951-1952
Wood, E. C., 1932-1947 (2 folders)
Wood, J. Howard, 1966
Wood, Julia Francis, 1925–1937, undated
Wood, Robert E., 1961 (no relation)
Wood, Robert E. II, 1966
Wood, Robert W., 1941, 1961
Wood, Stanley, 1958
Woodin, William H., 1933
Woolverton, N.C., 1962
Yarling, M. B., 1938-1961
Yates, Charles R., 1963
Yonge, A. M., 1938-1950
Young, F. M., 1955-1965
Youngberg, Gilbert, 1950-1960
Zaharoff, Basil, 1923-1924
Zeigler, Hadey, 1968
Zelomek, A.W., 1955
Zemurray, Samuel, 1939-1945
 

Top of Page
SUBJECT FILES

21

Air Force Logistical Studies Correspondence, 1941–1943 (12 folders)

22

Air Force Logistical Studies Correspondence, 1944–1946 and undated (3 folders)
Australian Trip

Correspondence, 1942–1944 (3 folders)
Diary – Persons Seen, 1943
Souvenirs, 1943
Miscellaneous, 1943

European Trip (First), 1944

Correspondence, 1944, 1947 and undated

23

Diary – Persons Seen
Miscellaneous

European Trip (Second), 1944-1945
World Trip (First), 1944

Correspondence, 1943–1944 (5 folders)
Diary and Itineraries
Letters of Introduction, People to See
Printed Matter and Miscellaneous

World Trip (Second), 1945

24

Citation for Services Rendered, 1945
Diaries and Travelogue, 1943-1945
Maps
Organization Charts and Directories, 1942-1943 and undated
Reports of the Commanding General of the AAF, 1944-1945
Miscellaneous 

Allstate Insurance Company, 1932, 1959-1967 and undated
America First Committee

Correspondence, 1940-1946, 1956
Correspondence Regarding Disposition of Records, 1941-1942, 1956-57
Bulletins, Jan 1941

25

Bulletins, Feb–Dec 1941 (10 folders)
Chapter Chatter, June-Aug 1941
Press Releases, 1941 and undated
Publicity Materials (3 folders)
Research Bureau Newsletters, 1941 (2 folders)
Washington Newsletter, 1941

American Action, 1945-1848
American British Cowdray Hospital, 1963-1965

27

American Legion, 1941-1944, 1956
American Youth Commission, 1938-1940
Americans for America
                     Correspondence, 1951-1952
                     Printed Material

Art Institute of Chicago 1948-1959, 1965
Association of the United States Army, 1957-1965
Awards and Honors

American Good Government Society – George Washington Award, 1955
Boston Conference on Distribution – Hall of Fame in Distribution, 1953
Boy Scouts of America – Good Scout Award, 1967
Silver Antelope Award, 1956
Silver Buffalo Award, 1961
Boys Clubs of America – Golden Keystone Award, 1956
Chamber of Commerce. Philadelphia – William Penn Award, 1951
Chamber of Commerce. US – Great Living Americans Award, 1959
Chicago Association of Commerce – Man of the Year Award, 1954
Council of Profit Sharing Industries –  Hiram C. Nicholas Award, 1959
(2 folders)

28

Daughters of the American Revolution (Illinois) – Award of Merit, 1955
Distinguished Service Medal, 1928
Forbes Magazine of Business - Citation, 1947
Future Farmers of America –  Honorary American Farmer Degree, 1952
Grandparents of the Year, 1952
International House – Thomas Cunningham Award, 1950
Jesuit Centennial Citation – Chicago's  Outstanding 100 Citizens, 1957
Legion of Honor (French), 1932
Legion of Merit (US), 1945
Lincoln Academy of Illinois – Order of Lincoln, 1967
Lions Club (Chicago): Award of Merit, 1955
Merchandise Mart Hall of Fame

Induction, 1955 (2 folders)
Unveiling of Statue

Mississippi Valley World Trade Conference – Annual Award, 1955
National 4-H Club Camp – Citation, 1956
National Jewish Hospital, Denver – Honor Dinner, 1952
Rotary Club of Chicago – Chicago Merit Awards, 1951

29

Sons of the American Revolution (Illinois) – Patriotic Service Award, 1951
Sons of the American Revolution (NY) – Chauncey Depew Medal, 1951
Tobe Award for American Retailing, 1950 (2 folders)
US Military Academy Association of Graduates Citation, 1960
West Point Society of New York – Illustrious Graduates, 1967-1968
Miscellaneous, 1950-1961 (2 folders)

Boy Scouts of America, 1950-1967
Boys Clubs of America

Correspondence, 1946–1969 and undated (4 folders)
Clippings, 1951-1956
Robert E. Wood Living Memorial Fund, 1954

30

Robert E. Wood Testimonial Dinner, Apr 12, 1954
Robert E. Wood Boys Club Building

Plans and Cornerstone Laying, 1955-1956
Dedication, 1956

Printed Material

Burton, Edgar G., 1968
Cabinet Members, 1952-1958
Cabinet Members – George M. Humphrey, 1952-1957
Caravan of the Americas, 1956
Chicago Club, 1927, 1941, 1948
Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, 1939-1941
Chicago Ordnance District, 1942-1943
Chicago Railroad Terminal Authority, 1959-1966
Chicago Tribune, 1954-1965
Chicago Zoological Society, 1942, 1957-1958
China, 1949-1950

31

The Citadel, 1955–1966 (2 folders)
Civil Service Improvement – President's Committee

Correspondence, 1939-1944
Report, 1941-1943

Coleman Lake Club, 1939-1958, 1969
Commerce Department Advisor, 1939
Committee for the Nation

Correspondence, 1933–1937 (2 folders)

32

Printed Material, 1933-1935

Congressional Committee Testimony, 1934, 1937–1938, 1941, 1947–1948 (2 folders)
Corporation Securities Company of Chicago, 1932-1948
Council of Economic Advisors, 1949-1950
Cradle Society

Correspondence, 1947-1958
Benefit Fashion Show, 1956
Financial Statements, 1954-1958
Financing and Contributions, 1948-1955
New Director, 1950

33

New Nurses Quarters, 1953–1955 (2 folders)
Prospective parents

Defense Department Reorganization, 1953, 1961
Discussion Group, 1943-1945
Economic Policy, 1936-1948
Eisenhower Dinner, 1955-1956
Encyclopedia Britannica, 1958-1967
Endicott's European Trip Report, 1923
Farish Memorial, Air Force Academy, 1959
Farm Foundation, 1931-1950, 1969
Fin 'n Feather Farm, 1952
Flynn, John T., 1947
For America, 1954–1956 and undated (3 folders)
Foreign Holdings in US, 1947
Fuller Summer Seminary, 1964
Gaither Report, 1957-1958
Gallery, Admiral W. O., 1955
General Aniline and Film Corporation, 1963
Geographic Society of Chicago, 1925, 1958

34

Gold, 1938-1951
Goodwill Industries, 1965
Grandson's Luncheon, 1965-1966
Honigsberg Family, 1938-1949
Honorary Degrees, 1952-1966
Hoover Commission (First)

Correspondence 1948-1949

35

Task Force Report on National Security 1948 (4 folders)
Senate Documents 1949-1953

Hoover Commission (Second)

Correspondence, 1953–1954 (3 folders)

36

Correspondence, 1954–1956, undated (4 folders)
Aircraft Industries Association, 1954
Clippings, 1953, 1956 and undated
Committee of Hoover Commission Task Force Member, 1956-1960
DOD-GSA Surplus Property Proposals,1953-1955 and undated
Navy Surplus Property, 1951-1953
Procurement Task Force Report, 1955
Radio Broadcast, 1956
Scrap Processing by the Armed Services, 1953-1954
Surplus Property Task Force

Correspondence, 1953–1954 (4 folders)
Agenda and Minutes, 1954, undated
Congressional Investigation of Surplus Property Disposal, 1947
Draft Material, 1954
Final Report, 1954
Printed Matter and Miscellaneous 

Horse Association of America 1949

38

Housing: Proposed Information and Statistical Service, 1936
Human Events, 1943-1959
Illinois Central Railroad, 1947, 1961-1967
Inter-American Council of Commerce and Production, 1946-1948
Jewish Welfare Fund, 1939-1947
Kansas City Friends List, undated
Kansas City Star, 1953-1958
Lake Forest Academy, 1947–1957 (6 folders)

39

Lake Forest Academy, 1958–1969 (2 folders)
Lattimore, Owen, 1951
Lindbergh, Charles A., 1936-1954 and undated
Litvinoff, Maxim – Talk, 1941
MacArthur, Douglas

General, 1943–1952 and undated (2 folders)
MacArthur Day in Chicago, 1951
Presidential Candidacy, 1942–1948 (4 folders)

40

Presidential Candidacy, 1950–1953 (2 folders)
Speeches  1951-1952

MacArthur Memorial Foundation  1963-1967
McCarthy, Joseph R., 1952-1958 and undated
McCormick, Robert M., 1955
McGraw Wildlife Foundation, 1962-1966
McNamara, Robert S., undated
Malone, George – Book, 1957 (senator)
Merchandise Mart Hall of Fame, 1953-1954
Merchants and Manufacturers Club, 1937-1939
Mid-American Research Library, 1955-1956
Midwest Research Institute, 1951-1959

41

Military Industrial Conference, 1956-1957
Military Order of the World Wars, 1962
Montgomery Ward, 1919–1924, 1944–1945, 1965, 1971 (6 folders)
Museum of Science and Industry, 1947, 1958
National Industrial Conference Board, 1939-1940, 1962
National Industrial Information Committee, 1940-1942
National Institute of Social Sciences, 1945-1951
National Military-Industrial Conference, 1957-1962
Navy Department – Organization Committee Report, 1954
New York Stock Exchange, 1938–1940 (3 folders)
Newcome Society, 1945-1964
Northwestern Military and Naval Academy, 1955-1967
Northwestern University, 1943–1953, 1963–1968 (2 folders)
Ordnance Department, 1943-1946
Organizations – Miscellaneous

42

Panama Canal

Canal Record, 1908-1914 (4 volumes)

43

Canal Record, 1914 (1 volume)
Canal Record: Consulting Engineer, 1906 (1 volume)
Canal Record: Traffic and Tolls, 1912 (1 volume)

44

Correspondence, 1915
Goethal's Memorial, 1953-1954
Letters from Canal Workers, 1936-1968
Pension Bills, 1927, 1936–1941, 1947–1967 (4 folders)
Printed Material, 1906-1915, 1931, 1960
Speech, 1959
Speech and Book, 1963 (2 folders)

45

Speech and Book, 1963 (2 folders)
US Policy, 1947-1968

Panama Canal Society 1947-1963
Philippine Islands
Photographs, 1947-1967 and undated
Polish Relief – Paderewski Fund, 1940-1941
Politics, 1928, 1943–1964 (5 folders)

46

Politics, 1964–1966 (2 folders)
Politics – Robert Wood

For National Convention Delegate, 1956
For President, 1935-1948
For Secretary of the Treasury, 1933
For Senator, 1940

Population Growth
Post Exchange Survey

Correspondence, 1955–1956 (2 folders)
Printed Matter, 1954-1955 and Undated
Report, 1955

Postwar Advisors: Recommendations, 1946-1947
Quartermaster Association, 1954
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, 1958
Republican Fund Raising in Illinois, 1954–1957 (3 folders)
Rubber, 1942
Rubber Tires Bill, 1943

47

Russia, 1942, 1950
Schnibbe, Harry C., 1942
Sears, Roebuck and Company

General, 1924–1969 (8 folders)
Board of Directors – Leadership Changes,1959-1962
Profit Sharing Plan, 1956-1967
Printed Material, 1953-1961

48

Printed Material, 1965-1968, undated
Resignation from Board, 1968 (3 folders)
Retirement, 1953-1954 (4 folders)
Ten Years at Sears, 1936-1945 (see oversize box 66)

49

Smear Tactics
Society of the Cincinnati (New York State), 1949-1950
Southern Freight Rates, 1939-1940
Southern Research Institute, 1945-1952, 1969
Southwest Research Institute, 1949
Speeches and Articles, 1930–Aug 1948 (9 folders)

50

Speeches and Articles, Sep 1948–1966 and undated (7 folders)

51

Subscription TV, 1955-1958
Taft, Robert A., Memorial Foundation, 1954-1961
Taxes on Foreign Investments and Tariff Policy,1953
Tennessee Valley Authority, 1935, 1940
Third U.S. Cavalry Veterans Association, 1935-1941
Thirty-Hour Work Week, 1935-1937
Tobe and Associates, Inc., 1951-1957
Trips

Alaska, 1930, 1935, 1939 (3 folders)
Alberta, 1934–1935, 1938 (3 folders)
Australia, 1966
British Columbia, 1937 (2 folders)

52

British Columbia, 1937
Central America, 1966
Central and South America, 1947
England, 1936
Europe, 1951, 1954 (2 folders)
Florida, 1941–1942 (2 folders)
Mexico, 1962
Montana, 1940
Ontario, 1929, 1936 (2 folders)
Orient, 1958
Panama, 1939
Saskatchewan, 1955
South America, 1962
Miscellaneous 

United States Military Academy

Class reports and student records of Wood, 1897-1900
Correspondence, 1926-69
Association of Graduates, 1926–68 (2 folders)

53

Class of 1900, 1924–1961 and undated (7 folders)
Class of 1900 – Miscellaneous (including 1900 Yearbook)

United States News and World Report, 1939-1966
University Club, 1924-1950
Utley, Freda, 1942, 1949
War Department Manual Investigation, 1946
War Resources Board

Correspondence, 1939

54

Correspondence, 1939–1947 (3 folders)
Clippings, 1939
Minutes, 1939
Offers of Services
Reports and Studies, 1939 and undated

West Point
West Point Douglas MacArthur Memorial, 1965-1969
West Point Society of Chicago, 1951-1952, 1969
Wood, Mary Hardwick

Ancestry and Family
Birthday Book Drafts, 1981 and undated
Oral Histories, 1976-1981

55

Oral History Transcripts, 1981-1984
Jane Fort, 1984
Jane Norlander, 1984
Marilyn Gould, 1984
Elene Herbert, 1984
Mary Hardwick Wood, 1981-1982 (3 folders)
A Century in the Life of Mary Hardwick Wood, 1984

56

Wood, Robert E.

Appointment Books, 1923–1937

57

Appointment Books, 1938–1952

58

Appointment Books, 1953-1958
Articles and Speeches About, 1938–1979 and undated (3 folders)
Biographical Correspondence, 1952-1958

59

Biographical Sketches, 1929-1965
Birthday, 1959 (2 bound volumes)

60

Birthday, 1963–1969 (5 folders)
Clippings, 1905-1964 (7 folders)
Death, 1969 (2 folders)

61

Family History

Historical sketch of Wood family, undated
Memories of Old Litchfield, 1923
Letters from James Wood, 1853
Letters from Robert W. Wood, 1858-1865 (2 folders)

Memorabilia
Memorial Resolutions, 1969
Oral Histories – Interviews with Frank S. Cellier, 1967
Oral Histories – Columbia University, 1959-1966
Passports
Personal
Philippine Letters (Wood to family), 1901
Poetry, undated
Profit Sharing (Sears retirment), undated
World War I – Quartermaster

Correspondence, 1915-1919
Letters from Stanley Wood, 1915-1916
Statistical Reports, 1915-1918 (2 folders)
Quartermaster Corps Reunion, 1941-1951

62

World War II

Correspondence, 1941-1942
Sedition trial, 1948
United States entry, 1939-1960
Miscellaneous, undated
Photographs and Albums
Boys’ Club, 1948 (2 folders)
Chicago Tribune Award, 1965
Merchandise Mart Hall of Fame, 1954-1955 (2 folders)
Sears in Minneapolis, 1951

63

South America, undated
West Point, 1962-1965 (3 folders)

Wood citations and certificates

Illinois Central Railroad, 1938
National Association of Manufacturers, 1969
Sears, 1968

Wood photographs

MacArthur, Douglas, circa 1955 (portrait inscribed to Wood)
Panama Canal Zone, 1913-1915
Panama Canal Zone, circa 1960
Panama Sears Store, 1956-1965
Wood and Others, 1948-1961 (candid)
Wood portraits, 1920-1965                                  

64

Printed Materials (2011 accession)

Panama Canal books

Isthmian Canal Hearings, 1907-1908
Society of the Chagres Yearbook, 1912
William Tragsdorf, Real Builders of Panama Canal (autographs)
Richard Whitehead, Our Faith Moved Mountains, 1944

US Military Academy, West Point Books

West Point Life Illustrated, 1866 (missing title page)
West Point Songs, 1921

65

Oversized Materials and Scrapbooks

Alberta Canada Hunting Trip, 1938 (includes photos)
Columbia South America Trip – Sears, 1962 (photos)
Frankfort, Germany Trip – Sears, circa 1956 (photos)
Honolulu, Hawaii Trip – Sears, 1958 (photos)
Wood Photo Portraits, 1925-1965

66

Ten Years at Sears, 1936-1945 (2 volumes of clippings)

67

Scrapbooks on Wood, 1928-1945 (2 volumes, 1 folder)
Scrapbook – Sears Retirement, 1954

68

Forbes Award to 50 Businessmen, 1947 (includes Wood)
Tobe Award to Wood, 1950
Georgia Future Farmers of America Bull Breeding, 1952-1953
Wood Anniversary Letter and Poster, 1958
Wood Certificates and Photo Portraits, 1920-1960

69

World Trip for Air Force, 1945 (includes photos)
Scrapbook on Wood’s Life, 1969

                    
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