» Rivers and Maybank papers open for research!

Special Collections is pleased to announce the completion of a grant funded by the National Historic Publication and Records Council (NHPRC) awarded to arrange and describe the papers of Senator Burnet R. Maybank  and Congressman L. Mendel Rivers. These collections offer insight into the careers of two powerful politicians and provide a window into the formation and implementation of post-WWII domestic and foreign policy. The papers are now processed and available for public research in Special Collections, and the most historically significant pieces of each collection are digitized and exhibited online through the Lowcountry Digital Library.

The papers of Congressman L. Mendel Rivers encompass two separate collections. While both primarily relate to Rivers’ service in Congress, the first collection (Mss 0198) consists of material on topics including the Cold War, Vietnam War, the Charleston Naval Shipyard, the United States Armed Forces, military pay raises, the draft, and nuclear-powered submarines. The second collection (Mss 0094) encompasses topics such as the Cold War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Bay of Pigs invasion, Civil Rights, public school desegregation, and the United States Armed Services and defense programs. Also included are committee files concerning Rivers’ service as Chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services and his service on the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee. Rivers (1905-1970) was a Democratic United States Representative from South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District from 1941 to 1970.

Complementary materials collected by members of the Rivers family, including correspondence, publications, newspaper clippings, journals, images, scrapbooks, audiovisual material, genealogical material, and personal files, are also now open for research in Special Collections. Materials primarily relate to L. Mendel Rivers’ service in Congress from 1941 to 1970, the writings of his wife Margaret Middleton Rivers, and their three children Margaret Rivers Eastman, Marion Rivers Ravenel Cato, and L. Mendel Rivers, Jr.

The papers of Senator Burnet R. Maybank (Mss 0085) primarily relate to Maybank’s professional life as a United States Senator and consist of his legislative working files and constituent correspondence. Major topics include World War II, civil rights legislation, the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC), the Korean War, the Cold War, labor, price control, the Charleston Navy Yard, the Santee Cooper Hydroelectric and Navigation Project, and the Savannah River Site atomic plant. The collection also incorporates a small amount of personal papers concerning Maybank and his family including personal correspondence, financial material, photographs, property and real estate records, newspaper clippings and scrapbooks, and estate settlements. Burnet Rhett Maybank (1899-1954) was a United States Senator from 1941 to 1954.

Quick Links:

Rivers, L. Mendel (Lucius Mendel) papers, 1876-1990 (bulk 1941-1970)
Call Number: Mss 0198
Catalog Record: http://libcat.cofc.edu/record=b2647495~S12
Finding Aid: http://archives.library.cofc.edu/findingaids/mss0198.html

Rivers, L. Mendel (Lucius Mendel) papers, 1940-1962 (bulk 1957-1962)
Call Number: Mss 0094
Catalog Record: http://libcat.cofc.edu/record=b2647494~S12
Finding Aid:  http://archives.library.cofc.edu/findingaids/mss0094.html
Digital Collection: http://lcdl.library.cofc.edu/content/l-mendel-rivers-papers-1940-1962

Rivers family papers, 1800-2011 (bulk 1920-2007)
Call Number: Mss 0199
Catalog Record:  http://libcat.cofc.edu/record=b2647499~S12
Finding Aid: http://archives.library.cofc.edu/findingaids/mss0199.html

Maybank (Burnet R.) senatorial papers, 1914-1973
Call Number: Mss 0085
Catalog Record: http://libcat.cofc.edu/record=b2665156~S12
Finding Aid: http://archives.library.cofc.edu/findingaids/mss0085.html
Digital Collection: http://lcdl.library.cofc.edu/content/senator-burnet-r-maybank-papers-1914-1973