A Guide to New Deal Records at the State
Archives of Florida
Collections by Creator
RG
102 Office of the Governor
 The record group contains the administrative
correspondence and other files of Florida's governors from 1929 through
1971. These series contain
the official correspondences of the Florida governors. The records
reflect the official, constitutional, and political duties of the Office
of the
Governor. The three series consists mainly of incoming and outgoing
correspondence filed by general subject area, agency or organizational
name, or county
name.
S
278 Dave Sholtz correspondence, 1933 – 1937
60.25 cubic ft.
Background:
David Sholtz was born on October 6, 1891, in Brooklyn, New
York. He graduated from Yale University in 1914 and received his law
degree from Stetson
University in 1915. After serving in World War I, he settled in Florida
where he became a lawyer and businessman in Daytona Beach. Sholtz was
elected governor in 1933 during the Great Depression. Known as Florida’s
New Deal governor, Sholtz implemented many Federal relief programs at
the state level, including the CCC, PWA and WPA. He also promoted governmental
reorganization. After leaving office, he practiced law in Miami. He died
in the Florida Keys on March 21, 1953.
Summary:
Arranged by year, then alphabetical by subject. The correspondence
files of 1936 are incomplete -- all files after M are missing.
S
368 Fred Cone correspondence, 1936 – 1941
50.25 cubic ft.
Background:
 Frederick
Preston Cone was born in Benton, Florida, on September 28, 1871. A banker
and a lawyer in Lake City, Florida, Cone was elected
its mayor
for three terms. He later served in the State Senate from 1907-1913,
and was President of the Senate in 1911. In 1936,Cone was elected Florida’s
Governor, where he oversaw the State-sponsored exhibit at the New York
World's Fair, urged the licensing of drivers to collect funds for the
highway patrol, and fought new taxes. Not a fan of the New Deal, Cone
cut back many of its programs and funding. After leaving office he returned
to Lake City where he died on July 18, 1948.
Summary:
Arranged by year, then alphabetical by subject. Correspondence
files of 1939 are incomplete, files for L, the beginning of M, and
Wh-Woo are missing.
S
406 Spessard Holland correspondence, 1940 – 1945
60.50 cubic ft.
Background:
 Spessard
Lindsey Holland was born in Bartow, Florida, on July 10, 1892. After
receiving his law degree from the University of
Florida in 1916,
and practiced law in Bartow, Florida. He served as Polk County Prosecutor
in 1919, and in 1920 was elected Polk County Judge, serving for eight
years. He served in the Florida Senate from 1932 to 1940. Elected as
Governor in 1940, Holland dealt primarily with Florida’s role in
World War II. The New Deal was disbanded during his term. He later served
in the
U.S. Senate for four terms. He retired in January, 1971 and died on November
6, 1971 in Bartow, Florida.
Summary:
Arranged by year, then alphabetical by subject.
RG
155 Division of Historical
Resources
The Division of Historical Resources was created in 1986, assuming some of the functions of the Division of Archives, History,
and Records
Management. The Division is mandated to preserve and protect Florida's
history. The Division includes the Bureau of Historic Preservation,
the Bureau of Archaeological Research, the Museum of Florida History,
and the Florida Folklife programs.
S
1270 Florida State Parks project files, 1933-1942, 1988-1989.
1.0 cubic ft.
Background:
 In November 1989, the Bureau of Construction, Florida Division
of Recreation and Parks, and the Bureau of Historic Preservation completed
a cultural
resources survey of eight Florida State Parks constructed by the Civilian
Conservation Corps between 1933 and 1942. The purpose of the survey was
for eventual placement of the historic properties on the National Register
of Historic Places.
Summary:
This collection contains materials gathered by the Bureau of
Historic Preservation for the production of a survey entitled "Cultural
Resource Survey: New Deal Era Resources in Nine Florida State Parks." The
collection contains materials relating to the construction of the State
Parks (1933-1942) and to
the completion of the survey (1988-1989).
Included are blueprints, building plans and drawings, correspondence, oral
histories, photo inventories, reports, site maps, and unpublished manuscripts.
In addition, there are two cassette tapes of an interview with Allen Altvater
about the Highlands Hammock State Park and a copy of the "Cultural Resource
Survey."
RG
158 Bureau of Florida Folklife Programs
The Bureau of Florida Folklife
Programs operated from 1985 until it was abolished in 1995, the bureau
operated under the Division of Historical
Resources with the mission to identify, preserve, research , and
further develop Florida folk arts and traditions. A part of the bureau
was
the Florida Folklife Archive, originally established in 1976 and
maintained by the bureau as a depository for field notes and research
findings
of the folklife program and the collections of other researchers.
S
1576 Audio recordings of Florida Folk Festival performances and other
folk events, 1935-2001.
4,713 items
Summary:
 This series consists of audio recordings of performances and
interviews of folk musicians, singers, artists, and storytellers, including
many from the Work Progress Administration (WPA) folklore field
recordings of the1930s and early 1940s. Included are recordings collected
by
Zora
Neale Hurston on which her voice can be heard both speaking and
singing. Together, the recordings document such areas as children's lore,
foodways, religious traditions, Seminole culture, maritime traditions,
ethnic
folk culture, material culture, and occupational lore.
S
1579 Indexes and accession registers to the audio tapes, video tapes,
photos, and slides of the Florida Folklife Archive, 1935 – 2001
6.25
cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains the tape log indexes and the accession
registers for the audio tapes, video tapes, photographs and slides for
the Florida
Folklife Archives from 1935 to 2001. The materials referenced were created
by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930's, as well as
recordings from most if not all of the Florida Folklife Festivals since
1954.
S
1583 WPA Federal Writers Project Florida folklore files, 1935-1943.
1.50
cubic ft.
Background:
 The Federal Writers' Project, under the Works Progress Administration,
was inaugurated September 28, 1935. One goal of the project was the publication
of the "American Guide Series" of guidebooks on each state.
FWP offices were established in the states with the requirement that
90% of the staff were to be from the ranks of the unemployed. From the
beginning of the project, the collection of folk customs and lore was
an integral aspect of the "American Guide Series." Fieldworkers
traveled to communities to gather materials for the guide, researching
in libraries, interviewing people, observing people, architecture, flora,
fauna, etc., and taking notes. The first edition of the WPA Florida guide
was published in 1939, and in 1943 when Congress closed the FWP, only
a caretaker crew remained in the Florida office.
Summary:
This collection consists of copies of research gathered in the
1930s and 1940s by the Federal Writers' Project of Florida. The materials
are transcripts and edited copies of interviews and field notes.
These records
document a broad range of folklife subjects from Florida's Cracker,
Afro-American, Cuban, Seminole, Minorcan, and other ethnic cultures.
Of special interest
are the narratives of former slaves. For related materials, see series
S1585, The Stetson Kennedy Florida Folklife Collection.
S
1584 Stetson Kennedy donation records,1936-1989.
.50 cubic ft.
Background:
Stetson Kennedy of Jacksonville, Florida, has spent most of
his life studying the people of Florida, their lives, and their environment.
Between 1937
and 1942 he headed the Florida Writers' Project unit on folklore,
oral history, and social-ethnic studies for the Works Progress
Administration. He carried a sound recorder with him around the state
to capture
the
songs, tales, and anecdotes of the people of Florida. Kennedy was
a founding member of the Florida Folklore Society in 1982 and its
president
in 1989.
He has written and published many books on Florida and Southern
culture including Palmetto Country and the Jim Crow Guide.
Summary:
This series consists primarily of catalog card copies, but also
contains other lists, records, correspondence, clippings, periodicals,
and
instructional material that pertain to Stetson Kennedy's donation
of his folklore
collection to the Bureau of Florida Folklife Programs in 1988--
Series 1585, Stetson
Kennedy Florida Folklife Collection. (See below.) That collection
includes some of the Florida folklore materials in his possession
as collected
by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) Florida Writers'
Project with the help of Robert Cook, Alton C. Morris, and John Avery
Lomax during
the 1930s and 1940s, as well as such materials from other sources.
S
1585 Stetson Kennedy Florida folklife collection, 1935-1991
7.25 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series consists of originals and copies of materials related
to Florida folklife created and/or maintained by Stetson Kennedy, who
headed
the WPA’s Federal Writers Project in Florida. The series includes
WPA subject files, school readers, manuscripts, and general subject files,
obtained by Kennedy when the Federal Writers' Project folded in 1943.
These files include interview transcripts and other field notes of WPA
writers. It appears that Stetson Kennedy added related materials, such
as newspaper clippings and additional research, to the files over the
years. This series also includes several manuscripts prepared by Stetson
Kennedy and other WPA Florida writers, including Zora Neale Hurston.
Some manuscripts, such as the St. Augustine Guide and "Palmetto
Country," were published; others, such as "Good Neighbors Across
the Tracks" (about the Latin population of Key West and Tampa),
and "History of the Negro in Florida," never were.
S
1629 Ralph Steele Boggs collection, 1935-1941, 1982, 1986
.25 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series is a collection of papers donated to the Florida
Folklife Archive by Ralph Steele Boggs. The series includes folklife
materials
collected by the Federal Writers' Project in the 1930s. The primary
subject matter is the culture and history of the Latin American
community, Ybor
City, in Tampa, Florida. Materials include folk songs, historical
background, and descriptions of family life and culture.
S
1728 Microfilm of Farm Security Administration photographs,1936-1942
6.0
microfilm reels, 35 mm
Background:
From 1935 to 1942, photographers for the Farm Security Administration
(FSA), including such gifted photographers as Dorothea Lange, Arthur
Rothstein, and others, shot over 270,000 photographs documenting
rural conditions, life in urban communities, and the war effort
on the home
front. In 1942, the photographic unit of the FSA was transferred
to the Publications Bureau of the Office of War Information (OWI).
On
January
1, 1944, the entire OWI gphotographic archive, including the FSA
photo collection, was transferred to the Library of Congress, where it
remains today.
Summary:
This series consists of microfilm of selected U.S. Farm Security
Administration photographs, including images documenting conditions
in farming, rural,
and small town communities in Florida. There is no indication
of how or why this microfilm came to be filed with the records
of the Bureau
of Florida Folklife Programs, although Bureau staff may have
used
the photographs for general reference purposes.
RG
191 State Defense Council
 The State Defense Council was created in
November 1940 by Governor Frederick P. Cone to orchestrate efforts
to get Florida in
a state of preparedness
for war. The State Defense Council coordinated local, county,
and regional defense councils. The Council was terminated
by Executive
Order in
1945 with the ending of World War II.
S
419 Subject files,1940-1946
31 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series consists of the subject files of the State Defense
Council from 1940 to 1946 documenting the activities of the Council
and its
officers. Along with letters, publications, reports, resolutions,
maps, and charts
from local, state, and federal agencies the series also contains
records from the Works Projects Administration. Included are reports
and publications
on topics such as African-American recreation, farm labor, cars,
scrap collection, and rationing.
RG
192 State Planning Board
 The State Planning Board was created in 1935
as a requirement by the Federal government before Florida could receive
future relief funds.
It consisted of five members: the Secretary of State, the Chairman
of the State Road Department, and three citizens. The Board created
and adopted a master plan for the physical development of Florida.
It also assembled and studied data pertaining to the state, its citizens,
natural resources, and economic development. The Board advised the
state legislature, state administrative officers, and citizens on
plans for future development. In 1951, the Board was repealed.
S
1653 Florida recreation facilities survey, 1938
1 folder
Summary:
This collection contains the results of a survey of recreational
facilities in the state that was executed by the WPA. Records include
maps of
recreational facilities (e.g. parks, movie theatres and golf courses),
charts, graphs.
Information includes types of facilities costs of maintaining them,
segregated facilities, and the areas lacking such facilities.
S
1655 Tax status and publicly owned land study, 1939-1940
.25 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains information collected and collated for
the State Planning Board by the W.P.A. using the 1939 state and county
tax rolls
to provide a comprehensive picture of the taxation status in Florida
for use in future tax policies. The collection consists of three volumes:
a Manual of Objectives and Procedures that sets forth the goals of
the survey and the operational methods that were established for those
executing
the survey; and two volumes containing statistical schedules for the
counties, which are listed alphabetically starting with Bay county.
(Alachua county is not included) The volume containing Pinellas through
Washington
counties is missing.
RG
198 State Library Board
The State Library Board was created on June
4, 1925 by an act of the Legislature, which replaced the original State
Library, and gave the
new one operating authority under the State Library Board. Governor
John W. Martin appointed the first three-member board in 1927. The
State Library Board was authorized to appoint a State Librarian who
was in charge of both the State Library, and efforts to organize
new libraries and improve already existing ones. During the New Deal,
those
duties also included overseeing several WPA projects. William T.
Cash was selected as the first Secretary and State Librarian, and served
from 1927 until his death in 1951.
S
1505 State Librarian William T. Cash administrative files, 1927-1954
7.0
cubic ft.
Summary:
 This series contains subject files and general correspondence
documenting the administrative duties of State Librarian William Thomas
Cash,
along with the
development of the State Library. Included are records from the Works
Progress Administration and its many programs: the Federal Writers Project,
the
Statewide Library Project, and the Historical Records Survey.
S
1654 Statewide library project papers, 1940-1941
1 folder
Summary:
 This
collection contains instructions for employees on how the WPA program,
the Statewide Library Project will function in Florida.
These instructions
explain the program’s purpose -- to recruit and train workers for
the various libraries that were to be established in the counties served
by the project—along with instructions on carrying out bureaucratic
functions such as reporting, purchasing equipment, and other activities
common to government projects.
RG
200 Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs
The Department of Agriculture
and Consumer Services was created in 1969, but the post of Agricultural
Commissioner was created in 1885. It oversees
agricultural regulations, the forest service, livestock issues, food
inspections, and consumer protection.
S
1831 Florida Forest Service, program and project photographs, 1931-1941
800
items
Background:
The Florida Forest Service was one of a succession of state
offices responsible for overseeing the commercial, industrial, and natural
resources of Florida's
forests. Established in 1928 under the Florida Board of Forestry, The
Florida Forest Service cooperated with federal and state agencies, counties,
towns, corporations, and individuals in disseminating information about
Florida forests, managing fire prevention and control programs, and enforcing
laws pertaining to forests and woodlands. In 1933, the Civilian Conservation
Corps was created, and the Board of Forestry coordinated all the CCC
projects in Florida. The CCC expanded Florida’s forestry program
with tree planting, establishment of state forests, and fire prevention.
In 1969, the Florida Forest Service became the Division of Forestry within
the new Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Summary:
This series of photographs documents the programs and activities
of the Florida Forest Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps,
including black-and-white images of virgin forests, controlled burnings,
seedling
plantings, turpentining, nurseries, and state parks. Digital copies
of
the Forestry
Collection photographs are available on the State Archives
Florida
Photographic Collection Web site.
RG
293 State Sanitary Livestock Board
The State Livestock Sanitary Board
was created in 1923 and established and enforced regulations to eradicate
and prevent the spread of contagious
diseases among domestic animals; employed the State Veterinarian;
purchased and distributed anti-hog cholera serum; issued permits for
the slaughter,
transportation, and sale of meat-producing animals; and inspected
meat for public sale. In 1953, the Board became the Florida Livestock
Board.
The Board was abolished in 1961, and its duties were absorbed by
the Dept. of Agriculture' Division of Animal Industry.
S
1888 State Veterinarian’s tick eradication records, 1933 – 1951
12
cubic ft.
Background:
One of the major functions of the Board was the eradication
of tick fevers. In the early 1900s, the Texas Tick fever entered Florida
from imported
cattle. By the 1920s, the State Livestock Sanitary Board was requiring
all cattle owners to dip their cows with an arsenic solution every 14
days. The state reimbursed them 3 cents for every head of cattle. In
1935, the tropical tick fever broke resulting in more treatments and
Board-led destruction of thousands of white-tail deer which harbored
the tick. The board regulated not only treatments during its tenure,
but also the importation of livestock into the state.
Summary:
The series consists of records of the state veterinarian documenting
the State Sanitary Livestock Board’s efforts to eradicate tick
fevers from Florida cattle between 1933 to 1951. Records include correspondence,
government reports and forms, surveys, maps, board minutes and yearly
reports. A large part of the records from the 1930s document the involvement
of several New Deal agencies in tick eradication: the FERA, CWA, and
WPA. The records are not complete. Records for the years 1939-1940, 1943,
1945 and 1948 are missing.
S
1935 Florida Historical Records Survey files, 1936-1938
.25 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains a few of the state records surveys of the Florida
Historical Records Survey created between 1936 and 1938. Consisting
of only three folders, the surveys describe the Florida Department of
Agriculture
records that were stored in the State Capitol.
RG
402 Commissioner of Education
The post of Commissioner of Education
was established as the Superintendent of Public Instruction under the
1868 Constitution, and became the Commissioner
of Education under the 1968 Constitution. The Commissioner was one
of the elected Cabinet posts, and oversaw the state’s education
system.
S
1124 Superintendent of Public Instruction William S. Cawthon administrative
files, 1922-1937
3 cubic ft. 
Background:
William Stanmore Cawthon served as the first State High School
Inspector from 1909 to 1922. He then served as Superintendent of Public
Instruction
from 1922 to 1937. Cawthon died in 1963.
Summary:
The series contains the administrative files of Superintendent
of Public Instruction William S. Cawthon from 1922 and 1937.
The records
include
letters, reports,
court documents, and memoranda on a wide variety of topics. Included
is a small amount of material on the FERA activities with public
schools.
RG
440 Board of Regents
 Originally the Board of Control till 1965, the
Board of Regents is a corporate entity holding all the powers of a
body corporate and elects
a corporate secretary. Created in 1905, its Regents are the Commissioner
of Education plus twelve members appointed by the Governor. The Board
of Regents establishes the policies, rules and regulations for the
nine universities in the State University System. The Board monitors
the fiscal matters of the universities; approves instructional and
degree programs; coordinates program development among the state
universities; and plans for the future needs of the State University
System.
S
1 Minutes, 1905-1997
50 v.
Summary:
This series contains the minutes of the regular and special
meetings of the Board of Control Included are a small amount of materials
documenting the activities of the FERA and the PWA at state universities.
RG
450 Florida State University
Florida State University, in Tallahassee,
Florida, was chartered in 1851 and has been state-assisted since 1857.
In 1947, the name was changed
to from Florida State College for Women to Florida State University
and the institution was made coeducational.
S
1360 Doak S. Campbell administrative files,1941-1957
3 cu. Ft
Background:
Doak Sheridan Campbell was President of Florida State College
for Women and Florida State University from 1941 to 1957.
Summary:
The series contains the administrative files from 1941 to 1957
of President Doak S. Campbell. The records include correspondence,
memoranda, reports,
and budgets. Included are correspondence and other materials
related to WPA activities at the university.
RG
510 Division of Recreation and Parks
 The Division of Recreation and
Parks, under the Dept. of Natural Resources, was created in 1969. It
assumed the duties of the Board of Historic Parks
and Memorials and the Outdoor Recreational Development Council. The Division’s
primary purpose is the overseeing of the Florida Park Service, a New
Deal-inspired program developed in 1935, and built in large part by the
Civilian Conservation Corps.
S
1351 State park surveys, 1934-1935
1.0 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains state park surveys conducted by the Florida
Park Service and the Florida Emergency Relief Administration. Surveys
were conducted at various locations around the State for the purpose
of
finding suitable sites for state parks. The records include copies
of the two
surveys completed in 1934 and 1935; a general explanation of the
project; a copy of the final report; and assorted maps.
S
1352 State park project files, 1936 – 1948
3.0 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains the project files maintained by the Florida
Park Service (FPS) Director from 1936 to 1948. The files document the
Civilian
Conservation Corps’ efforts at Florida Caverns, Fort Clinch, Gold
Head Branch, and Highlands Hammock state parks. Records include correspondence
and memoranda between the FPS project supervisors, the Federal government,
the governor, and the park visitors. There are also work orders, CCC
forms, inventories and time logs.
S
1919 Civilian Conservation Corps museum exhibit oral histories, 1990
.50 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series consists of five 30-minute videotapes of oral histories
by former Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees. The interviews were
conducted by the Florida Park Service in 1990 for a CCC museum exhibit
at Highlands Hammock State Park. Discussing events during the years 1933-1942,
the interviewees included men from CCC camps in Olustee, Niceville, Miami,
Biscayne Bay, and two state parks, Highlands Hammock and Gold Head.
S
1943 Florida Park Service Director Emmet Hill's administrative files,
1936-1959 (bulk 1953-1958)
3.5 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains the administrative files for FPS director Emmet
Hill. While most of the files concern the FPS in the 1950s, there are
some reference files from the 1930s and 1940s, including material on
the Civilian Conservation Corps and the WPA's Park, Parkway, and Recreational
Area Study. Born in 1902, Hill began working for the National Park
Service (NPS) with their CCC state park camps. Following a brief
period in Kansas at Oberlin Sappa State Park, Hill was transferred in
1936 to
the NPS's Central Design Office in Tallahassee. While there, Hill assisted
with the layout and design of Florida Caverns, Highlands Hammock, Fort
Clinch, Hillsborough River and Torreya state parks. In July 1941, he
joined the Florida Park Service as a landscape architect. Following
a brief stint working for the Georgia state park system in 1944, Hill
went
into private business at Kimball Groves in Umatilla until the Board
of Parks and Historic Memorials hired him as director in 1953.
S
1945 Florida Park Service Chief of Education and Information Charles
H. Schaeffer's administrative and reference files, 1936-1959 (bulk 1954-1959)
2.3 cubic ft.
Summary: Created primarily between 1954 and 1959, these records include newspaper
and magazine articles, correspondence relating to publicity and interpretation,
radio scripts, brochures, maps, annual reports, memoranda, post cards,
and photographs. However there are several files created in the 1930s
by Schaeffer and the Civilian Conservation Corps including bird lists,
maps, radio scripts, news releases, and clippings. Schaeffer was the
first FPS director and coordinated the acquisition and construction of
the first state parks with the Civilian Conservation Corps and the National
Park Service. He left in 1937 for an out-of-state job. He returned in
the 1950s and died in 1959.
S
1951 Public relations and historical files, 1934-1964
3 cu.ft.
Summary:
This series contains the public relations and historical files maintained
by the Office of the Director of the Florida Park Service in the 1950s
and early 1960s for use as reference in answering the public's questions.
Many of the historical files were originally active director's office
files created in the 1930s when the Florida Park Service (FPS) was working
alongside the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). In the 1950s, these
files were re-labeled "history files" and placed in this series. There
is also a box of records for the Highlands Hammock Association, a citizens
advisory group that established and helped administer Highlands Hammock
State Park during the New Deal-era.
RG
550 Department of Environmental Protection
 The Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) was created by the Florida Environmental Reorganization
Act of 1993, merging the former Departments
of Natural Resources and Environmental Regulation. The Department's
mission is to protect, conserve, and manage Florida's environment
and natural resources. The Division of Recreation and Parks was now under
DEP.
S
1611 Plans for Florida Caverns State Park and other state parks, 1935-1942
38
items Summary:
This series consists primarily of blueprint and blueline print
plans developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps under the National
Park
Service’s supervision for development of the Florida Caverns and
other New Deal-era state parks.
RG
560 Canal Authority of the State of Florida
The Canal Authority was
originally established by the State Legislature to acquire the land and
equipment necessary to build and operate a shipping
canal across the Florida peninsula. Construction began during the New
Deal when the FERA allocated $5 million for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
to begin the canal’s construction in September 1935. However, Congress
refused to allocate additional funds for the project, and construction
halted when funds ran out in June 1936. Congressional support for a cross-Florida
canal grew during World War II, and on July 23, 1942, President Roosevelt
signed federal legislation authorizing construction of a cross-state
lock barge canal. But funding was still lacking, and the project sputtered
along till 1971 when President Richard Nixon halted the project altogether.
S
1726 Right of way acquisition registers, 1935-1938
.50 cubic ft.
Summary:
The collection contains registers, 1935-1938, which were maintained
by Herman Ulmer who was acting as the general counsel for the Canal Authority
of the State of Florida. These registers contain information regarding
the acquisition of tracts of land for the right of way for the cross
peninsular shipping canal that became known as the Cross Florida Barge
Canal.
S
1727 Subject files, 1930-1990
11.0 cubic ft.
Summary:
 This
collection contains records from the Florida Canal Authority primarily documenting
the history of the Cross Florida Barge Canal
from its
beginning to the decision to halt its construction. Included are
court cases,
newspaper clippings, Canal Authority Board minutes, correspondence,
audits, Canal
Authority administrative files, biographies of board members, and
U.S. Corps of Engineer materials.
RG
590 Florida Construction program
The Florida Construction Program
was a public works program administered by the Board of Commissioners
of State Institutions. The program was
established to provide work relief and to increase employment in
the construction trades by expanding or adding new buildings to state
institutions.
The building program was funded in 1935 by state appropriations and
federal grants and loans from the Federal Emergency Administration
of Public Works, commonly called the Public Works Administration
(PWA).
S
44 Construction site photographs, 1936
1.0 volume
Summary:
The series contains construction site photographs for 1936
of the Florida Construction Program. The photographs document the construction
of
several state buildings from the laying of the foundation to the
completion. The buildings pictured include structures at the Florida
School for
the
Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine; the Florida State Hospital
in Chattahoochee; the Florida Farm Colony in Gainesville; the Florida
School for Girls
in Ocala; the Florida State Prison in Raiford; and the Florida
Industrial
School for Boys in Marianna. All of the photographs are 8x10
inches and in black and white.
S
238 Photographs plates, 1933-1938
.50 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series consists of photo plates and proof impressions
of Public Works Administration (PWA) personnel, and buildings constructed
by
the PWA as part
of the Florida Construction Program during the 1930s. Included in the
photographs are Florida and U.S. public officials, such as Governor Sholtz
and President
Franklin Roosevelt. The photographs are in black and white and are of
various sizes.
S
430 Ledger, 1935-1939
1.0 volume
Summary:
This series consists of an account ledger documenting the fiscal
records of the Florida Construction Program from 1935 to 1939. It documents
the accounts kept for each construction project and for the Public
Works
Administration grants and loans.
S
450 Project files, 1933-1942
8.0 cubic ft.
Summary:
The series contains the subject files of the Florida Construction
Program from 1933 to 1940. The records include correspondence, work
orders, estimates, specifications,
photographs, minutes, and resolutions. Most of the records pertain
to work being done at the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, the
Florida State
Hospital in Chattahoochee, and the Florida State Prison in Raiford.
S
546 Publicity Records, 1936 – 1937
.50 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains the publicity records of the Florida Construction
Program, most pertaining to the publication of a special section
about the program in
state newspapers. There are solicitation letters for advertisements and
responses by contractors, financial ledgers, and lists of building
contractors and
sub-contractors. There is also a copy of a finished newspaper section,
complete with articles
about the PWA and photographs.
RG
897 State Welfare Board
The State Board of Welfare was created in
1935, replacing the original 1927 State Board of Public Welfare, which
only dealt with children,
the blind, and aged. This wa sone of the conditions the Federal government
stipulated before Florida could receive further relief funds. The
State Welfare Board administered state and federal funding for social
welfare
services and relief aid through a State Dept. of Public Welfare and
twelve district welfare boards.
S
871 Historical files, 1927-1950
.25 cubic ft.
Summary:
This series contains the historical files from 1927 to 1950
of the State Welfare Board and its predecessors, the State Board of
Social Welfare
and the State Board of Public Welfare. The records include historical
information on welfare assistance, social security, child welfare,
the Adoption Act of 1943, the organization of the Board, and the
first biennial
report of the State Board of Public Welfare. The files include
reports, photographs, and newspaper clippings.
S
367 Minutes, 1927-1969
7.50 cubic ft.
Summary:
 The series contains the minutes of the State Welfare Board and
its predecessors, the State Board of Public Welfare and the State Board
of Social Welfare.
The minutes document topics of discussion, decisions made, and
actions taken by the Board. Many New Deal programs were administered
through
this board, and are reflected in the minutes. There is some overlapping
of date spans between the volumes because the Board maintained
two sets of books. One set of books contains the official minutes, and
the other
set contains the backup materials to the minutes. There is a gap
in the minutes from July, 1935 to August, 1936.
RG
80000 Local Government Records
This record group consists of public records generated by local government
agencies throughout Florida. While the State Archives of Florida
does not actively collect local government records, it does accept
historically significant local records that are in imminent danger
of destruction or that complement other items already in the Archives.
The record group includes records such as probate, voting, tax, and
commission records of different city, town and county agencies.
L
47 Zangara case files, 1933
.25 cubic ft. Background:
Joseph Zangara (alias Guissepi Zangara) was an Italian immigrant
who attempted to assassinate president-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt. Zangara
had a strong hatred towards all persons in positions of authority. On
February 15, 1933, Zangara attended a speech given by Roosevelt at
Bayfront Park in Miami, Florida. When Roosevelt had finished
his talk and was preparing to leave, Zangara pulled out a pistol and
opened fire. A bystander deflected the assassin's aim by pushing
his arm into the air. Zangara wounded five people who had been
near the president-elect, two of them seriously. Most critically
injured was Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, who was struck by the bullet
in the chest which then lodged in his spine. Zangara was immediately
charged with four counts of attempted murder. He was not charged
initially with the wounding of Cermak, as authorities waited to see
if the mayor's wounds would prove fatal. The State charged Zangara
for attempting to murder Franklin Roosevelt, Russell Caldwell, Margaret
Kruise, and William Sinnott. Zangara was found guilty on each
count and sentenced to four consecutive twenty-year terms.
On March 6, Mayor Cermak died from complications stemming from the shooting. The
same day, Zangara was indicted by a grand jury and charged with first
degree murder in the death of Cermak. His trial began on March
9 and ended on March 11 with a guilty verdict and a death sentence. The
prisoner was transported to the Florida State Prison at Raiford, where
he was executed on March 20, 1933.
Summary:
This series contains the case files, dated 1933, of Joseph Zangara,
alias Guissepi Zangara, maintained by the Criminal Court of Record of
Dade
County, Florida. The case files #2262-2265 reflect the trial
of Zangara, who killed one person and wounded four others in his attempt
to assassinate president-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt. This collection
deals with the four counts of attempted murder that Zangara was charged
with and subsequently found guilty. The four victims Zangara
was charged with include Franklin D. Roosevelt, Russell Caldwell, Margaret
Kruise, and William Sinnott.
M82-7 George Asbell Papers, 1914-1967
1.50 cubic ft.
Background:
George H. Asbell was born in Thomas County, Georgia in 1889.
He served in the Florida National Guard, 1914-1918, as a Master Engineer,
Junior
Grade. After
the service, George Asbell became a building contractor, working at various
times in Panama City and Blountstown, Florida; La Guaira, Venezuela;
and San Juan, Puerto Rico. From 1945 to 1947, he served as the Director
of the Motor
Vehicle Commission in Florida.
Summary:
This collection contains the papers of George H. Asbell. The
records include correspondence, photographs, construction project log
books,
military service
records, and various publications. Of particular interest in the
correspondence and photographs are those records dealing with the Public
Works Administration's
operations in Florida during the Great Depression and the Florida
highway construction projects of the 1940s and 1950s.
M83-24 Legal Case files against Dave Sholtz
1.0 folder
Background:
Originally from Brooklyn, NY, Sholtz was elected Governor
in 1933 during the Great Depression. Known as the Florida’s New
Deal governor, Sholtz implemented at the state level many of the Federal
government’s
relief programs, including the CCC, PWA, and WPA. He also promoted governmental
reorganization. After leaving office, he practiced law in Miami and spent
time in New York City. He died in the Florida Keys on March 21, 1953.
Summary:
This collection contains copies of various cases filed in the
Seventh Judicial Circuit of Florida, Volusia County, against David
Sholtz. The suits were all filed before Sholtz became Governor in 1933.
The
collection
also includes copies of Sholtz's birth certificate and a statement
by the Deputy Tax Collector for Volusia County.
M87-9 Camp Roosevelt Project records, 1936-1942
.25 cubic ft.
Background:
The "Camp Roosevelt Project" was an adult education
extension program jointly operated in Ocala, Florida, by the University
of Florida
and the Works Progress Administration. The project began in 1936. It
is unclear when the project closed, although the last piece of correspondence
dates form 1942. Its location had formerly been a United States Corps
of Engineer Camp.
During its operation classes were taught in a wide variety
of subjects, some of which included: art, art appreciation, drama,
English, history,
aviation,
journalism, meteorology, photography, relief model construction, stenography,
speech, radio, woodworking, leatherworking, and weaving. In addition, various
conferences were held at the camp for public and private officials.
Summary:
The series consists of administrative records, correspondence,
and photographs related to the adult education project at Camp Roosevelt.
The administrative
records contain
primarily financial information and materials relating to the various
classes offered. Correspondence dates from 1936 to 1942 and involves
University
of Florida officials. The photographs include views of buildings at Camp
Roosevelt,
as well as classroom or workroom scenes of students and their activities.
Also included are a large number of photographs of the University of
Florida campus
and of architectural models of the school made at the camp.
M87-12 Architectural drawings of Capital enlargement, 1936 – 1937
100
items; 1.0 microfilm reel
Background:
The Florida State Capitol’ enlargement in 1936-1937
was a joint project between the Florida Construction Program and the
Public Works
Administration. M. Leo Elliott, Architect, of Tampa, Florida, was responsible
for the architectural drawings and plans for the Capitol project.
Summary:
The collection consists of architectural drawings of M. Leo
Elliott from 1936-1937 for the enlargement of the Florida State Capitol.
It includes
floor plans, elevations, and electrical and heating systems. The
collection contains original plans and 24 sheets of revisions.
M95-2 Biographical records on Mary McLeod Bethune, 1890-1960.
1.25 cubic ft.
Background:
Mary McLeod Bethune was born on July 10, 1875 in Mayesville,
South Carolina. She moved to Daytona Beach in 1904 to begin her own school.
Her one room
school became the Daytona Normal and Industrial School for Negro Girls,
which later merged with the Cookman Institute to Bethune-Cookman, located
in Daytona Beach. Bethune was active in the fight against racism and
served under President Roosevelt as a member of the unofficial African
American "brain trust." In 1936 Roosevelt Bethune as the director
of the National Youth Administration's Division of Negro Affairs. She
also founded the National Council of Negro Women and was an active member
of the National Association of Colored Women. Bethune died in May 1955.
David M. Williams, a newspaper reporter, planned to write a biography
of Mary McLeod Bethune and accumulated photographs, publications and
newspaper clippings
for the book. He conducted several interviews with Ms. Bethune in the summer
of 1946 though the biography was never completed. Williams died in 1969.
Summary:
The series consists of transcripts of interviews with Bethune,
letters, and drafts of sections of the biography. The records document
the
Daytona School
and Bethune-Cookman College as well as Bethune's involvement with the
National Council for Negro Women. Also included are thirty photographs,
which depict
Bethune, her Daytona Beach schools, and Bethune-Cookman College.
M97-7 Commissioners minutes and ordinances, 1821-1899, 1915
4.40 cubic ft.
Background:
Originally organized in 1935 as part of the Federal Writers
Project of the WPA the Historical Records Survey documented resources
for
research into American History. It later became a unit of the Research
and Records
Program in 1939. The HRS was responsible for creating the soundex
indexes of the federal census which genealogists today have come
to rely so
heavily
on. The HRS also compiled indexes of vital statistics, cemetery
interments, school records, military records, maps, newspapers, and the
list went on and on.
Summary:
This collection contains transcriptions of the minutes of the
commissioners of some Florida counties done by the Works Progress Administration
as part of the Historical Records Survey. The WPA hired workers
to transcribe
by hand and then typewrite the minutes kept by various governing
bodies in Florida. There is also a folder containing some WPA
administrative narrative concerning the project. (See also RG 198)
M97-8 Judicial organization information, 1845-1935
1.0 folder
Background:
See M97-7
Summary:
This series was also the result of the
Works Projects Administration's Historical Records Survey that took
place from 1935 to 1941. The
collection contains typescripts of Florida circuit court records.
(See also RG
198).
Florida Photographic Collection
 The
Florida Photographic Collection is a nationally recognized component
of the Florida State Archives and
contains more than 850,000 photographs,
and approximately 2,500 movies and video tapes. The collection forms
the most complete portrait of Florida available. While one may visit
the archives to see the photos, over 135,000 of the photographs have
been scanned and placed on the Florida
Photographic Collection Web site.
Photos include governors and other political leaders, CCC camps, New
Deal projects, state buildings, Farm Security photographs, sharecroppers,
citrus pickers, cigar workers, and other Florida residents from the 1930s.
The
scanned photographs are searchable on the through an online search
engine. Search guides are also available on the web. The textual records
are arranged
alphabetically by topic and subject. Copies can be made.
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