Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140

RS 9/1/11
James A. "Tama" Wilson (1835-1920)
Papers, 1887-1986


Descriptive summary

creator:

Wilson, James A. "Tama" (1835-1920)

title:

Papers

dates:

1887-1986

extent:

5.8 linear ft. (9 document boxes)

collection number:

RS 9/1/11

repository:

University Archives, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University.

 

Administrative information

access:

Open for research

publication rights:

Consult Head, Special Collections Department

preferred citation:

James A. "Tama" Wilson Papers, RS 9/1/11, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

 

Biographical note

James Wilson (1835-1920) was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, the first of 14 children. The family emigrated to the U.S. in 1851, settling in Connecticut, but moved to a farm near Traer in Tama County, Iowa in 1855. During his early years in Iowa, James attended Grinnell College, began farming, married Esther Wilbur in 1863, and edited the Traer Star-Clipper. He was elected to the Iowa legislature, then to three terms in the U. S. House of Representatives. In Congress he served on the Committee on Agriculture and the Rules Committee, and acquired the nickname "Tama Jim" to distinguish him from Senator James Falconer Wilson ("Jefferson Jim") also from Iowa.

After his congressional career, Tama Jim returned to farming, and wrote for the Iowa Homestead and other farm journals. In 1891 he was appointed Professor of Agriculture and Director of the Experiment Station at Iowa State College where he placed agricultural instruction on a scientific and practical basis. During his six years at ISC he established a very close relationship with George Washington Carver, often discussing the possibility of applying the principles of plant genetics to improving livestock.

From 1897 to 1913 he served as Secretary of Agriculture under three presidents (McKinley, Roosevelt, and Taft). During his supervision the department extended its activities, established experiment stations in all parts of the U.S., inaugurated farm demonstration work in the South, began cooperative extension work in agriculture and home economics, and sent experts and scientists all over the world to gather information for the promotion of agriculture. Also under his tenure, legislation dealing with plant and animal diseases, insect pests, forestry, irrigation, conservation, road building, and agricultural education was enacted.

After retirement from the cabinet he returned home to Tama County and was appointed by the governor to investigate and report on agricultural conditions in Great Britain together with his longtime friend "Uncle" Henry Wallace.

 

Collection description

The collection (1887-1986) contains biographical material, letter press books of private correspondence, addresses, articles, transcripts and tapes of interviews with people who knew Tama Jim, scrapbooks of newspaper clippings, and genealogical material. Correspondence includes letters of recommendation, letters regarding appointments, and letters containing Wilson's opinions regarding professional matters. The letters span Tama Jim's sixteen years as secretary of agriculture. Private correspondents include Henry Wallace, Henry A. Wallace, Henry C. Wallace, Seaman A. Knapp, Raymond Pearson, L.H. Pammel, Marcus Hanna, Charles E. Friley, G.H. Hicks, Andrew Carnegie, William Beardshear, George Washington Carver, Charles Curtiss, W.D. Hoard, General James Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, William Taft, William Loeb, and Ralph Moore.

In addition, this collection includes reports, speeches, articles, and newspaper clippings in the scrapbooks. These track Wilson's promotion of agricultural education and scientific agriculture. They also document his main concern while secretary of agriculture which was to make America self-sufficient agriculturally. To this end he promoted silk production as well as the growth in America, of sugar beets, tobacco, tea, and rice. The newspaper clippings also trace public opinion regarding the secretary of agriculture and the various political battles he fought during his tenure.

This collection also includes information on the Wilson family. It contains various reminiscences about Tama Jim, information on his descendants, miscellaneous material surrounding the construction and opening of Wilson Tower at Iowa State University, and genealogical materials.

 

 

Description of series

Series 1

Biographical Materials

1887-1991, n.d.

extent:

3.42 linear ft.

description:

The series contains biographical information about Secretary Wilson, including diplomas, certificates, news clippings, and articles about him.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

1

1

Biographical Materials

1897-1968, n.d.

MAP

CASE

Certificate – Phi Kappa Phi, Iowa State College

1913

MAP

CASE

Certificate – State of Iowa Agricultural Study Delegate

1913

MAP

CASE

Certificate – USDA, Agricultural Study Delegate

1913

MAP

CASE

Certificate of membership – Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland

1913

1

4

County Tax Receipts

1887-1914

MAP

CASE

Diploma

1902

MAP

CASE

Diploma – Honorary Doctorate, Iowa State College

1914

MAP

CASE

Diploma – International Exposition of Industry and Labor

1911

1

5

Governor's Proclamations for James "Tama Jim" Wilson Day

1991

1

7

Gridiron Club Dinner Program

1902

1

6

Guest List for Dinner in Honor of President and Mrs. Roosevelt

n.d.

1

8

Invitations

1898

1

9

Letters Regarding Commemorative Bust of James Wilson

1913

1

10

Materials Relating to Wilson Memorial Arch

1934

MAP

CASE

Memorial Resolution – USDA

1920 ca

1

2

News Clippings

1899-1989, n.d.

1

11

President Taft's Recommendations

1909

1

12

Proclamation on Bleached Flour

1910

1

13

Programs

1897

1

14

Resolutions of Respect in Memory of Esther Wilson

1892

1

15

Royal Agricultural Society of England

1913

1

3

Tama Jim, by Earley Vernon Wilcox in collaboration with Flora Wilson (typescript copy)

n.d.

1

16

Ticket for Passage on the "Anchor Line"

1913

 

Description of series

Series 2

Letters and Correspondence

1894-1992

extent:

2.52 linear ft.

description:

This series consists of letterpress books and correspondence between Secretary Wilson and his contemporaries. The series also contains an index to the letterpress books.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

1

17

Cumulative Index to Letterpress Books

1992

1

18

James Wilson, Private Book No. 1

1897

1

19

James Wilson, Private Book No. 2

1897-1898

2

1

James Wilson, Private Book No. 3

1898

2

2

James Wilson, Private Book No. 4

1898

2

3

James Wilson, Private Book No. 5

1898-1899

2

4

James Wilson, Private Book No. 6

1899

3

1

James Wilson, Private Book No. 7

1900

3

2

James Wilson, Private Book No. 8

1900-1901

3

3

James Wilson, Private Book No. 9

1901-1902

3

4

James Wilson, Private Book No. 10

1902-1903

4

1

James Wilson, Private Book No. 11

1903-1905

4

2

James Wilson, Private Book No. 12

1905-1906

4

3

James Wilson, Private Book No. 13

1916-1911

4

4

James Wilson, Private Book No. 14

1911-1913

5

1

Correspondence from James Wilson to Family Members

1901-1920

5

2

Correspondence from Seaman A. Knapp

1989-1904

5

3

Correspondence from Henry Wallace

1900-1920, n.d.

5

4

Correspondence from Henry Wallace

1900-1920, n.d.

5

5

Correspondence from Henry C. Wallace

1901-1911

5

6

Personal Correspondence, A-L:
Amos, William
Armour, J. Ogden
Bingham, Theodore A.
Cameron, Zenneban
Carpenter, Frank
Collins, P. V.
Columbia Typographical Union
Courtelyou, George B.
Darlington, J. G.
Dubney, Charles
Durley, George
Evans, Frederick
Finch, G. B.
Finley, W. W.
Foster, Rudolph
Hicks, G. H.
Hilles, Charles D.
Hopkins, E. N.
Jesse, R. H.
Jones, Aaron
Jones, H. D.
Kephart, Cyrus J.
King, William F.
Knapp, Herman
Knapp, S. Arthur
Knapp, Seaman A. (III)
Knight, Chas.
Laughlin, J. E.
Lamb, William
Lawrence, M.
Leahy, M. A.
Leavitt, John H.
Leighton, F. A.
Littlefield, Charles
Loeb, William
Long, P. C.

1894-1917

5

7

Personal Correspondence M – Z:
McCabe, George
McCarthy, George
McCormack, James
MacKenzie, Murdo
McPherson, Smith
McRae, Milton
Magid, Louis B.
Mason, Joseph A.
Mills, William A.
Moore, R. H.
Murphy, D. H.
Myrick, Herbert
New York Herald
Pammel, L. H.
Pearson, Raymond
Porter, J. A.
Reese, R. M.
Scott, N. B.
Simpson, F. M.
Tait, Galen
Tedford, Howard
Tounge, Thomas
Van Hise, Charles R.
Van Winckle, William
Van Wyck, Robert
Van der Lick, F. A.
Wadsworth, James
Walker, John A.
Wallace, Robert
Warren, Francis
Waters, H. J.
Watson, P. P.
Webster, Clyde
Weems, J. B.
Wetmore, George Peabody
Wetzel, Nat
Wheeler, Hiram
Wiley, H. W.
Wilson, John G.

1898-1913, n.d.

5

8

85th Birthday Greetings

1920

5

9

Telegrams of Condolence

1920

5

10

Letters of Condolence

1920, n.d.

5

11

Cards from Funeral Flowers

1920

5

12

Letters to George Washington Carver (photocopies from letterpress books)

1897-1911

 

Description of series

Series 3

Speeches and Articles

1890s-1913, n.d.

extent:

0.84 linear ft.

description:

The series contains speeches and articles written by Secretary Wilson. Subjects covered pertain mostly to agriculture, such as corn, beets, potatoes, farmers and farming, and agricultural education. Several of the speeches were given while he was Secretary of Agriculture.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

6

1

Address of James Wilson, Secretary of Agriculture at Lincoln, Nebraska

1911

6

2

Address of the Secretary of Agriculture at the International Dairy Show

1911

6

3

Address of the Secretary of Agriculture at the Southern Commercial Congress

1911

6

4

Address of the Secretary of Agriculture before the Board of Commerce of Detroit

1911

6

5

"Agricultural Conditions in Great Britain and Ireland" by James Wilson and Henry Wallace

1913, n.d.

6

6

"Agricultural Education"

n.d

6

7

"Agricultural Education in the United States"

n.d.

6

8

"Agriculture in Our Industries"

n.d.

6

9

"Blaming the Farmer"

n.d.

6

10

"Country School-Houses and Grounds"

n.d.

6

11

"Dairy"

n.d.

6

12

"Division of Publications"

n.d.

6

13

"Education"

n.d.

6

14

"Education for the Farmer"

n.d.

6

15

"Education of the American Farmer"

n.d.

6

16

"Education of the Farmer"

n.d.

6

17

"Farm Conservation"

n.d.

6

18

"Fertility of Cornfields"

n.d.

6

19

"The Horse"

n.d.

6

20

"Irrigation Investigations Made by the USDA"

n.d.

6

21

"Leather Scarcity"

n.d.

6

22

"Mill Feed Sold, Cheese Bought"

n.d.

6

23

Open Letter to the Legislative Committee, National Grange

1911

6

24

"Our Exports of Grains"

n.d.

6

25

"Our Wasted Waters and Water as a Factor in Farming Operations"

1908

6

26

"Potash"

n.d.

6

27

"The Potato Crop"

n.d.

6

28

"The Present Food Crisis"

1910

6

29

"Prospective Price of Iowa Land"

n.d.

6

30

"Real Education"

n.d.

6

31

Remarks of the Secretary of Agriculture at the International Brewer's Congress and Barley Hops Exposition

1911

6

32

Remarks of the Secretary of Agriculture to the Prize-Winning Boys of the Southern States

1910

6

33

Remarks of the Secretary of Agriculture on Canadian
Reciprocity

1911

6

34

Southern Commercial Congress

1911

6

35

"The Sugar Beet Continued"

n.d.

6

36

"Taragrapho"

n.d.

6

37

"The Tariff"

n.d.

6

38

To Masons, Potomac Lodge -- Georgetown

n.d.

6

39

Wilson's Mission and Problems

n.d.

6

40

"Work of the Bureau of Plant Industry Relating to Iowa Crops"

n.d.

7

1

Untitled Typescripts of Speeches and Articles

n.d.

7

2

Untitled Typescripts of Speeches and Articles

n.d.

7

3

Untitled Typescripts of Speeches and Articles

1903-1911

7

4

Untitled Typescripts of Speeches and Articles

n.d.

7a

1-3

"Farm and Stock-Yard" newspaper columns

1890s ca

 

Description of series

Series 4

Reports of the Secretary of Agriculture

1895-1913

extent:

4 folders

description:

Series consists of reports written by Secretary Wilson during his tenure as Secretary of Agriculture.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

8

1-4

Report of the Secretary of Agriculture

1895-1913

 

Description of series

Series 5

Interviews by Brent Ponsford

1975-1976

extent:

7 folders

description:

Series contains interviews by Brent Ponsford with family and others who knew Secretary Wilson.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

8

5

Transcript of Interview with Mrs. Laura Knapp, wife of Seaman Arthur Knapp, an associate of James Wilson on 10/15/1975.

1975

8

6

Transcript of Interview with Mrs. Ruth MacMillan, cousin of James Wilson, Fall 1975.

1975

8

7

Transcript of Interview with Grace Wilson, James Wilson's niece, 10/10/1975.

1975

8

8

Transcript of Interview with Harry Taylor, son of E.E. Taylor, editor of the Traer-Star, 10/17/1975.

1975

8

9

Transcript of Interview with James Wilson Wallace, son of Henry C. Wallace, 3/18/1976.

1976

8

10

Transcript of Interview with John Wilson, grandson of James Wilson, 12/4/1975.

1975

8

11

Tapes of Interviews

1975-1976

 

Description of series

Series 6

Wilson Family Materials

1915-1976, n.d.

extent:

0.21inear ft.

description:

Series contains materials about Secretary Wilson's family, including minutes of reunions, genealogies, and news clippings.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

9

1

Wilson Family - Newspaper Clippings

1915-1973, n.d.

9

2

Wilson Family Reunion - General

1940-1976, n.d.

9

3-5

Wilson Family Reunion - Minutes

1922-1959

9

6

"A Brief Autobiography" by West Dodd

n.d.

9

7

"My Story of the Pioneer Wilson Family," by Dalton Wilson

1952

9

8

Wilson Family Genealogy

1974

 

Description of series

Series 7

Flora Wilson Materials

1892-1996, n.d.

extent:

0.21

description:

Series contains documents from Secretary Wilson's daughter, Flora. The records consist of correspondence and typescripts of articles and manuscripts.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

9

9

Correspondence to Flora Wilson

1892-1921

9

10

Notes and drafts of articles written by Flora Wilson

n.d.

9

11

Typescripts of Articles with additions and corrections

n.d.

9

12

Conformed Manuscript: "Between Two Rivers".

1996

 

Description of series

Series 8

Scrapbooks

1897-1913

extent:

6 linear ft.

description:

Series consists of scrapbooks of newspaper clippings.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

10

OVR

Scrapbook 1

1897

10

OVR

Scrapbook 2

1897-1898

10

OVR

Scrapbook 4

1899

11

OVR

Scrapbook 5

1898-1899

11

OVR

Scrapbook 6

1899-1900

11

OVR

Scrapbook 7

1900-1901

12

OVR

Scrapbook 8

1901

12

OVR

Scrapbook 9

1901-1902

12

OVR

Scrapbook 10

1902-1903

13

OVR

Scrapbook 20

1912

13

OVR

Scrapbook 21 – Wiley Clippings

1911-1913

13

OVR

Scrapbook unnumbered

1912-1913