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. |
Organization
This collection is arranged into the following series:
|
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: |
1894-1917 |
5 |
7 |
Personal Correspondence M – Z: |
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 |
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 |