Willson, Augustus Everett (1846-1931) Papers, 1865-1921

Held by The Filson Historical Society 

Creator:  Willson, Augustus Everett, 1846-1931  

Title:  Papers, 1865-1921 

Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these papers, contact the Collections Department. 

Size of Collection:  13 cubic feet 

Location Number:  Mss. A W742 

Scope and Content Note 

Papers consist of correspondence, speeches, other writings, scrapbooks, and newspaper clippings. Included is official correspondence, 1907-1911, containing letters on the tobacco war and the Night Riders, and Ky. and national politics; letters of congratulation on Willson’s election as governor; speeches, 1892-1919, on the Republican Party in Ky., the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial Building on the Lincoln Farm, the Progressive Republicans, and other subjects; writings, 1912-1920, on William Goebel, the League of Nations, the initiative, referendum and recall, and other subjects; a scrapbook, 1865-1869, kept by Willson at Harvard as a student; and other scrapbooks containing newspaper clippings, additional letters, commissions, invitations, programs, and materials covering Willson’s campaigns and tenure as governor. 

Correspondents include William O. Bradley, John Marshall Harlan, Benjamin Harrison, A. Lawrence Lowell, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Booker T. Washington, and Louis D. Brandeis. 

Biographical Note 

1846: Born in Maysville, Kentucky. 

1869: Graduated from Harvard University. 

1877: Married Mary Elizabeth Elkins. 

1879: Lost a race for the state Senate. 

1884: Lost a race for the U.S. House of Representatives. 

1886: Lost a race for the U.S. House of Representatives. 

1888: Lost a race for the U.S. House of Representatives. 

1892: Lost a race for the U.S. House of Representatives. 

1907-1911: Republican governor of Kentucky. 

1914: Lost the race to become a U.S. senator to J. C. W. Beckham. 

For more information consult the Kentucky Encyclopedia. 

Folder List 

Box 1 

1 Family record.

1a Portrait.

2 General correspondence, 1876.

3 General correspondence, 1880-1883.

4 General correspondence, 1884.

5 General correspondence, 1885.

6 General correspondence, 1888.

7 General correspondence, 1889.

8 General correspondence, 1890.

9 General correspondence, 1892.

10 General correspondence, 1893.

11 General correspondence, 1894.

12 General correspondence, 1895.

13 General correspondence, 1897.

14 General correspondence, 1898-1899.

15 General correspondence, 1900.

16 General correspondence, 1901.

17 General correspondence, 1903 Jan.

18 General correspondence, 1903 Feb.-Mar.

19 General correspondence, 1903 Apr.-June.

20 General correspondence, 1903 July-Aug.

21 General correspondence, 1903 Sept.

22 General correspondence, 1903 Oct.

23 General correspondence, 1903 Nov.-Dec.

24 General correspondence, 1904.

 

Box 2 

25 General correspondence, 1905.

26 General correspondence, 1906.

27 General correspondence, 1907 Jan.-Mar.

28 General correspondence, 1907 Apr.-June.

29 General correspondence, 1907 July-Aug.

30 General correspondence, 1907 Sept.-Dec.

31 General correspondence, 1908.

32 General correspondence, 1909.

33 General correspondence, 1910.

34 General correspondence, 1911.

35 General correspondence, 1912 Jan.-June.

36 General correspondence, 1912 July-Dec.

 

Box 3 

37 General correspondence, 1913.

38 General correspondence, 1914.

39 General correspondence, 1915.

40 General correspondence, 1916 Jan.-Aug.

41 General correspondence, 1916 Sept.

42 General correspondence, 1916 Oct.

43 General correspondence, 1916 Nov.-Dec.

44 General correspondence, 1917.

45 General correspondence, 1918.

46 General correspondence, 1919.

47 General correspondence, 1920.

48 General correspondence, 1921.

49 General correspondence, n.d.

 

Box 4 

50 Official correspondence, 1907 Nov. 1-18.

51 Official correspondence, 1907 Nov. 19.

52 Official correspondence, 1907 Nov. 20-30.

53 Official correspondence, 1907 Dec. 1-10.

54 Official correspondence, 1907 Dec. 11-22.

55 Official correspondence, 1907 Dec. 23-31.

56 Official correspondence, 1908 Jan.

57 Official correspondence, 1908 Feb.-Dec.

58 Official correspondence, 1909.

59 Official correspondence, 1910.

 

Box 5 

60 Official papers, 1907-1908.

61 Official papers, 1910.

62 Official papers, miscellaneous.

63 Message to the General Assembly of Kentucky, 1908. 

64 Message to the General Assembly of Kentucky, 1910 Jan. 4.

65 Message to the General Assembly of Kentucky, 1910 Feb. 14. (It was not sent).

66 Messages to the General Assembly of Kentucky, 1910 Feb. 18 and Mar. 7.

67 Parts of Messages to the General Assembly of Kentucky.

 

Box 6 

68 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Oct.-Dec. 

69 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 7-13. 

70 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec.

71 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 15-16. 

72 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 17-18. 

73 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 19-20. 

74 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 21-26. 

75 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1907 Dec. 27-31. 

 

Box 7 

76 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Jan.

77 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Feb.

78 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Mar. 1-15. 

79 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Mar. 16-25. 

80 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Mar. 26-31. 

81 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Apr.

82 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 May. 

83 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 June.

84 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 July-

Aug. 

85 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Sept.-

Oct. 

86 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Nov.

87 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1908 Dec.

 

Box 8 

88 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1909 Jan.-Oct. 

89 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1909 Nov.

90 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1909 Dec.

91 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 Jan.-

Feb. 

92 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 Mar.-Apr. 

93 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 May. 

94 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 June.

95 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 July.

96 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 Aug.

97 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1910 Sept.-Dec. 

98 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1911 Jan.-Feb. 

99 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1911 Mar.

100 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, 1911 Apr.-Dec. 

101 Official correspondence about the tobacco war and the night riders, n.d.

102 Newspaper clippings about the tobacco war and the night riders.

102 Letters, affidavits, and petition for a pardon in the case of Henry Wilson who was indicted in Caldwell Circuit Court, 1908 June, for manslaughter in killing Orbie Nabb, 1908-1911. 

 

Box 9 

103 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (A).

104 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (B).

105 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (C).

106 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (D).

107 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (E-F).

108 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (G).

109 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (H).

110 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (I-J).

111 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (K).

112 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (L).

113 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (M).

114 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (N-O).

115 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (P).

116 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (R).

117 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (S).

118 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (T).

119 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (U-V).

120 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (W).

121 Correspondence: Congratulations on election as governor of Ky., 1907 (Y).

 

Box 10 

122 Address at the Republican rally at the Wonderland, Louisville, Ky., 1892 Nov.5.

123 Addresses, 1899-1904. 

123a Speech at Maysville, 1907 Aug. 20.

124 1911 memorandum for speech at the close of his administration.

125 Address, 1911 Nov. 9, at the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial Building at the Lincoln Farm. 

126 Addresses, 1912.

127 Address, 1912 Feb. 28, in memory of Justice John Marshall Harlan.

128 Addresses, 1913.

129 Addresses, 1914.

130 Addresses, 1916.

131 Addresses, 1919.

132 Addresses, n.d.

132a Draft of portions of Willson’s message to the General Assembly, 1910 Jan. 28. 

132b Draft of portions of Willson’s message to the General Assembly, 1910 Feb. 24. 

132c Draft of portions of Willson’s messages to the General Assembly, 1910. 

132d Statement of the governor’s objections to House Bill no. 250 granting pensions to disabled indigent Confederate soldiers, sailors, and their widows, 1910 Mar. 17. 

133 The initiative, referendum, and recall, ca. 1912. 

134 Memorial notice of Frank Davis Millet, 1912.

135 Writings, 1913.

136 Writings, 1917.

137 Article on the League of Nations, 1920. 

138 Writings, n.d.

 

Box 11 

139 Patents, 1905.Facsimile of a patent application of Abraham Lincoln, 1849 Mar. 10.

140 Registration certificates, 1905-1919.

141 Diploma as Doctor of Laws from Berea College, 1908 June 3.

142 Commission as a delegate to represent Ky. at the National Conference of Charities and Corrections, 1913 May 14.

143 Record of expenses of his campaign for the U.S. Senate, 1914.

144 Miscellaneous papers. 

145 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1874-1912.

146 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1913-1915.

147 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1916.

148 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1917.

149 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1918.

150 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., 1919-1930.

151 Printed matter: invitations, programs, etc., n.d.

152 Campaign posters.

 

Box 12 

153 Newspaper clippings, 1862-1872.

154 Newspaper clippings, 1884.

155 Newspaper clippings, 1890.

156 Newspaper clippings, 1907.

157 Newspaper clippings, 1908.

158 Newspaper clippings, 1910-1911.

159 Newspaper clippings, 1912.

160 Newspaper clippings, 1914.

161 Newspaper clippings, 1915.

161a Newspaper clippings, 1916 Feb. 13, from the Courier-Journal about George Montgomery Davie.

162 Newspaper clippings, 1917.

162aNewspaper clippings, 1917.

163 Newspaper clippings, 1918.

164 Newspaper clippings, 1919.

165 Newspaper clippings, 1920.

166 Newspaper clippings, n.d.

167 Pictures.

 

Box 13 

168 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University, 1897-1904. 

169 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University, 1912-1915. 

170 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University, 1916. 

171 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University, 1917. 

172 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University, 1919. 

173 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University. Announcements of deaths of members of the class of 1869. 

174 Printed matter concerning Willson’s relations with Harvard University. Memorial notices of members of the class of 1869. 

 

pkg. 1 Scrapbook, 1873-1886. 

pkg. 2 Scrapbook, 1886-1888. 

pkg. 3 Scrapbook, 1888 May-Dec. 

pkg. 4 Scrapbook, 1888-1891. 

pkg. 5 Scrapbook, 1880 containing copies of political addresses, 1880 and 1892. 

pkg. 6 Scrapbook, 1892-1895. 

pkg. 7 Scrapbook, 1899-1901. 

pkg. 8 Scrapbook, 1901-1904. 

pkg. 9 Scrapbook, 1904 Apr.-1907 June. 

pkg. 10 Scrapbook, 1907 May-Oct. 

pkg. 11 Scrapbook, 1907 June-Aug. 

pkg. 11a Scrapbook of newspaper clippings accompanied by loose clippings and miscellaneous notes by Willson on his campaign for governor in 1907 and the municipal election in Louisville in 1905. 

pkg. 12 Scrapbook, 1907 Aug.-1908 Jan. 

pkg. 13 Scrapbook, 1907 Dec.-1908 Jan. 

pkg. 14 Scrapbook, 1908 July-1909 Jan. 

pkg. 15 Scrapbook, 1908 Jan.-June. 

pkg. 16 Scrapbook, 1909 Feb.-1910 Apr. 

pkg. 17 Scrapbook, 1910 Apr.-1911 Apr. 

pkg. 18 Scrapbook, 1911 Apr.-Nov. 

pkg. 19 Scrapbook, 1911 Nov.-1913 Dec. 

pkg. 20 Scrapbook, 1914 Jan.-Nov. 

pkg. 21 Scrapbook, 1914 Nov.-1917 Jan. 

pkg. 22 Scrapbook, 11865-1869, kept while a student at Harvard.