Postmasters--Selection and appointment

Letter from Charles A. Culberson to Thomas Henry Carter

In regards to the proposed inquiry by the subcommittee considering the nomination of Benjamin F. Barnes to be postmaster, Senator Culberson asks Senator Carter to obtain a written statement from Barnes or to have Barnes appear before the subcommittee to address questions and concerns, particularly regarding the “Mrs. Minor Morris incident” at the White House.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-20

Letter from Thomas Collier Platt to Theodore Roosevelt

Senator Platt finds the appointment of General John A. Merritt as collector at Niagara Falls agreeable to him. However, Platt is not pleased with the appointment of Benjamin F. Barnes as postmaster at Washington, D.C. He believes that the appointment will be criticized.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-02

Letter from William Emlen Roosevelt to Theodore Roosevelt

William Emlen Roosevelt returns letters from the United States War Department to Theodore Roosevelt and includes a letter from James Alexander Scrymser. Roosevelt does not see a problem with Scrymser’s proposal as long as the cable is used for war related transmissions. Roosevelt asks President Roosevelt to consider a suggestion for the position of postmaster in New Caanan.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-03-26

Letter from Jacob Edward Borah to Theodore Roosevelt

Jacob Edward Borah, hunting trip guide, writes to President Roosevelt, describing a recent hunting trip. Borah also asks Roosevelt if he can support his friend’s application for Postmaster General in Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-01-06

Roosevelt’s latest

The writer criticizes Theodore Roosevelt’s recent selections for postmaster and judge in Washington, D.C., and states both men are “Romanists.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1906-04-22

Letter from R. E. Miller to Ethan Allen Hitchcock

R. E. Miller asks for Secretary Hitchcock’s suggestions in dealing with Jake L. Hammon, who is determined to control the post office and appoint the postmaster.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-10-02

Letter from Leslie M. Shaw to Theodore Roosevelt

Leslie M. Shaw writes to President Roosevelt to discuss the appointment of a new postmaster in Yonkers, New York. Shaw believes it is bad practice for any special agent at ports to feel beholden for their appointment. He claims this encourages fraud and political deception. However, Shaw states that this is a matter of principle and does not apply in this specific instance.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-09-20

Letter from Booker T. Washington to William Loeb

Booker T. Washington sends William Loeb a press clipping from a local paper to let President Roosevelt see how the people of Greensboro, Alabama, perceive the character of the recent appointee for postmaster.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-02-21

Letter from Lucius Nathan Littauer to Theodore Roosevelt

Representative Littauer endorses the candidacy of Marcus M. Marks for Postmaster of New York City. He believes that Marks’s appointment would positively effect the political campaigns that are ongoing there. Although the campaign in New York has been hard-fought, Littauer assures President Roosevelt of their ultimate success. 

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-29

Memorandum from Charles A. Conrard to Robert J. Wynne

A complex case regarding the appointment of a postmaster in Natchitoches, Louisiana. Benjamin F. Ford was recommended but failed confirmation. Johnson was recommended by Clarke and Williams, but political condemnation by US Representative from Louisiana Phanor Breazeale caused the withdrawal of that recommendation. Edwina C. Suddath, who had previously served in the position was recommended, but withdrew from the running, leading to the nomination of Ford. Rep. Breazeale objects to his appointment, and claims many of his constituents do as well. It is claimed that both Ford and Johnson are unacceptable due to their “relations” with “colored women.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-24

Letter from F. Norton Goddard to Theodore Roosevelt

F. Norton Goddard has heard of the recent death of New York Postmaster Cornelius Van Cott. At the risk of going against good taste, he advocates to President Roosevelt for the appointment of Marcus M. Marks as Van Cott’s successor, and relates the various positive traits that Marks possesses, as well as the endorsements that he has received from a variety of people.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-25

Memorandum from Charles A. Conrard to Robert John Wynne

The commission of Albany, Georgia postmaster Benjamin F. Brimberry has expired and he is up for reappointment, but is charged by his enemies with involvement in a case of adultery. Brimberry is said to have written love letters for an illiterate Black man, Fred Crapps, to a married woman, Lucy Vandergrift. Brimberry did write the letters, but knew neither party and did not know Vandergrift was married. Brimberry’s friends and colleagues praise him.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-26

Letter from Helen Dortch Longstreet to Theodore Roosevelt

Helen Dortch Longstreet thanks President Roosevelt for appointing her Postmaster at Gainesville, Georgia, and promises to turn all her efforts to doing a good job.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-26

Letter from F. Norton Goddard to Theodore Roosevelt

F. Norton Goddard received William Loeb’s telegram advising Goddard that President Roosevelt would like Goddard to go see Frank Wayland Higgins. Higgins is in favor of the appointment of Marcus M. Marks as Postmaster of New York, but does not want to openly recommend him for fear of displeasing Benjamin B. Odell. There is some hesitation among Republicans to nominate Marks due to his being Jewish. Goddard asks for the intervention of Roosevelt into this matter by entering into the conversation via telegram, and discusses the possible involvement of Jacob H. Schiff and Thomas Collier Platt as well. He believes the appointment of Marks would be politically beneficial to the Republican Party.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-27

Letter from William E. Chandler to Theodore Roosevelt

President of the Spanish Treaty Claims Commission William E. Chandler thanks President Roosevelt for his appointment of Robert John Wynne as Postmaster General. Chandler expresses his confidence that Roosevelt will win the 1904 election.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-11

Telegram from Francis C. Travers to Theodore Roosevelt

Francis C. Travers expresses joy to President Roosevelt over the appointment of Postmaster General Robert John Wynne.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-11

Telegram from Francis C. Travers to William Loeb

Francis C. Travers asks William Loeb to show the telegram about former Postmaster General Henry C. Payne to the newly appointed Postmaster General Robert John Wynne and says the “outlook has improved fifty per cent.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-11

Letter from Augustus Peabody Gardner to Theodore Roosevelt

Representative Gardner protests to President Roosevelt about an upcoming appointment of the postmaster in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Traditionally, Gardner writes, Republican Congressmen have had control of the recommendations of postmasters in their districts, but he is now being asked to give up this privilege in favor of a recommendation by Attorney General William H. Moody. Gardner explains his position and why he would like to nominate Charles M. Hoyt as postmaster in Haverhill rather than continuing the postmastership of Horace Irving Pinkham, who Moody favors.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-13

Letter from Henry Robinson to Theodore Roosevelt

Henry Robinson would like to be appointed postmaster of the city of Washington. He lists his accomplishments and hopes for “at least a word of encouragement or advice” from President Roosevelt.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-08-08

Letter from F. Norton Goddard to Theodore Roosevelt

F. Norton Goddard informs President Roosevelt that he has spoken with a number of people about the potential appointment of Marcus M. Marks to a position with the post office. Many people are in favor of Marks’s appointment, and Goddard believes it would be “a splendid political move.” Goddard believes that making this appointment prior to the election would strengthen the Republican ticket in New York through the support it would engender, and offers to have Marks come visit Roosevelt in Washington, D.C.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-10-27