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Richard F. Harless Papers

 Collection
Identifier: MSS-166

Scope and Content Note

The Richard F. Harless Papers consist of 11 boxes of correspondence, newspaper articles, photographs, and documents showing Harless' political career and family life. The collection has been divided into two series: Series I: Personal and Series II: Scrapbook Contents and Political Materials.

Series I: Personal is divided into three sub-series. Sub-Series A: Correspondence houses 3.5 boxes of Harless' personal and political correspondence, speeches, and telegrams arranged by date from 1941 to 1954. Sub-Series B: Harless Family Memorabilia consists of 0.5 boxes of genealogical publications documenting the Harless family. Sub-Series C: Photographs and Personal Papers is composed of 1.5 boxes of personal photographs, photographs taken during Congressional tours of Europe and the U.S., personal papers, and business documents arranged by date from 1946 to 1956.

Series II: Scrapbook Contents and Political Materials is divided into three sub-series. Sub-Series A: Scrapbook Contents consists of 3.5 boxes of newspaper articles, correspondence, photographs, and other materials taken primarily from scrapbooks documenting Harless' political career. The majority of this sub-series is composed of newspaper articles concerning some of the major issues related Harless' activities in Congress, including water rights, labor issues, Navajo Indian issues, and German POW escapes at Papago Park. Also included are articles showing Harless' 1948 campaign for Governor of Arizona, his re-election campaigns for Congress, and his unsuccessful Congressional campaigns in 1954 and 1960. Sub-Series B: Political Documents and Materials consists of 2 boxes of memorabilia showing Harless' campaign for Governor of Arizona, Congressional campaign reports and documents, and miscellaneous political reports. Sub-Series C: Miscellaneous Documents and Records is composed of 0.5 boxes of publications, reports, and personal effects.

Dates

  • Creation: 1932-1984

Language of Materials

Material in English

Access Restrictions

To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Monday through Friday. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.

Copyright

The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of the Arizona State University Library. Requests to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.

Biographical Note

Richard Fielding Harless was born in Kelsey, Upshur County, Texas on August 6, 1905. The Harless family moved from Texas to Thatcher, Arizona in 1917 where Richard Harless attended grade and high schools and graduated from the University of Arizona at Tucson in 1928. Harless moved to Marana, Arizona where he taught school and coached sports until he graduated from law school at the University of Arizona in 1933. He was admitted to the Arizona Bar in the same year and moved to Phoenix to commence the practice of law.

In Phoenix, Harless served as Assistant City Attorney and was elected Assistant Attorney General of Arizona in 1936. This election began a twenty-year career in Arizona politics. Harless served as Maricopa County Attorney from 1938 to 1942 and was elected to the United States Congress as a Representative in 1943. He served continuously until 1949.

While a member of Congress, Harless served on the House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee, participated in a tour of post-World War II American military facilities in Europe, worked closely with Senator Carl Hayden and other members of the Arizona Congressional delegation to obtain a contract with the U.S. Department of the Interior for the Central Arizona Project, and helped secure the right to vote for Native Americans with the 1947 Indian Voting Act. In 1948, Harless refused the Democratic Party's nomination for another term in Congress in order to run for the office of Governor of Arizona. Harless lost the 1948 election, was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for Congress in 1954, and lost the Congressional election of 1960.

Harless returned to Phoenix in 1960, where he practiced law and participated in local Democratic party activities until his death on November 24, 1970 at the age of 53.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774 to Present. http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=H000212

Full extent

11 Box(es)

Full extent

8.5 Linear Feet

Abstract

The Richard F. Harless Papers consist of 11 boxes of correspondence, newspaper articles, photographs, and documents showing Harless' political career and family life.

Arrangement

This collection consists of eleven boxes divided into two series:

  1. Series I: Personal
  2. Series II: Scrapbook Contents and Political Materials

Provenance

The bulk of the Richard F. Harless papers were received between 1994 and 1997 as documented in ACC #1994-1448, ACC #1995-1556, ACC #1996-1725. Additional materials were transferred from the Meredith Harless Papers as documented in ACC# 1997-1820.

Related Materials

MSS-167: Meredith Harless Papers, 1925-1970 houses the personal, social, and professional papers of Meredith (Mrs. Richard F.) Harless.

Title
Richard F. Harless Papers
Status
Completed
Author
Processed by Michael Lotstein in June 2002; machine-readable finding guide created by Michael Lotstein in June 2004.
Date
2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding guide encoded in English.

Repository details

Part of the Greater Arizona Collection Repository

Contact

Arizona State University
P.O. Box 871006
Tempe AZ 85287-1006 United States
(480) 965-4932