Hugh P. Baker Papers, 1919-1951
General International Standard for Archival Description
Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Finding aid encoded using Perl scripts and edited in XMetal 2.0. Encoded by Eric S. Cartier. 2003-05-29
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
Hugh P. Baker Papers
Creation of Hugh P. Baker Papers
Time of Creation of Hugh P. Baker Papers
Baker, Hugh Potter, b. 1878
Biographical History for: Hugh P. Baker Papers
Biographical Note 1878Born January 20 at St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin, the fifth of six sons of Joseph S. and Alice (Potter) Baker.1894-1895Attended Macalester College.1897Entered Michigan Agricultural College.1901B.S., Michigan Agricultural College; worked briefly with K.L. Butterfield.1904-1907Assistant and Associate Professor of Forestry, Iowa State College.1904Master of Forestry, Yale University; married Fleta Paddock of Three Oaks, Michigan, December 27.1907-1912Professor of Forestry, Pennsylvania State College.1910Doctor of Economics, University of Munich.1912-1920Dean, New York State College of Forestry, Syracuse University.1920-1928Executive Secretary, American Paper and Pulp Association.1928First wife died.1928-1930Manager, Trade Association Dept., U.S. Chamber of Commerce.1929Married Richarda Sahls of Buckeburg, Germany, November 271930-1933Dean, New York State College of Forestry, Syracuse University.1931-1932Member, advisory committee, Timber Conservation Board.1933LL.D., Syracuse University.1933-1947President, Massachusetts State College.1942LL.D., Rhode Island State College.1944President, New England Forestry Foundation.1945D. Sc., Boston University.1947Massachusetts State College renamed University of Massachusetts; LL.D., Amherst College; LL.D., University of Massachusetts; Resigned presidency of University of Massachusetts, effective in Sept.1950Died May 24 at Orlando, Florida.
Scope and Contents of the Collection The Hugh P. Baker Papers, 1919-1951, are made up of biographical materials, copies of some of Baker's writings, and administrative and official papers from his presidency at the Massachusetts State College, which began in 1933, soon after the institution had been renamed Massachusetts State College in 1931, and ended a few months after the institution became the University of Massachusetts, in 1947. The papers consist of correspondence and memoranda exchanged with members of the faculty and staff and with state and federal officials, as well as reports on problems connected with the fiscal drought of the Great Depression of the 1930s and the labor-short and student-short period of World War II. The bulk of the administrative papers document the College building program in which Baker's administration brought several new buildings to the campus and launched the planning of a number of others. Some construction was funded from federal sources, while other building was financed by the Massachusetts State College Building Association, which the General Court chartered in 1939. The activities of the Building Association in particular alleviated the shortage of student housing on campus, which had long been the major barrier to the expansion of the College's educational program. The building program not only accommodated the moderate growth of the College's enrollment during the 1930s, but laid the foundation for the rapid expansion of the institution which began with the end of World War II and continued into the 1970s. The papers also include correspondence and other materials related to the donation and manufacture of the Old Chapel Chimes, installed in 1937; the celebration in 1938 of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the College; the dispute between the State Commission on Administration and Finance, and College and federal authorities over the use of Federal Land Grant Funds; and the development of the School of Home Economics. Further information on the course of affairs at the institution during Baker's tenure may be found in the published Annual Reports of the institution in RG 1/00/2, and in the papers of other college officials of his day, such as those of Dean William L. Machmer, in RG 6/1. Some Baker correspondence, probably related to his roles at the Syracuse University School of Forestry and the American Paper and Pulp Association, are in the Ralph S. Hosmer and the National Forestry Program Committee papers in the archives and manuscripts collections of the Cornell University Library.
The collection is open for research.
Processed by W. B. Cook, Jr., 1982.
College buildings--Massachusetts--Amherst--History--Sources.
lcsh
Student housing--Massachusetts--Amherst--History--Sources.
Clock chimes--Massachusetts--Amherst--History--Sources.
Baker, Hugh Potter, b. 1878.
lcnaf
Massachusetts State College--Presidents--Archives.
Massachusetts State College--History--Sources.
Massachusetts State College--Student housing.
Massachusetts State College--Buildings.
Massachusetts State College--Anniversaries, etc.
Massachusetts State College. School of Home Economics --History--Sources.
Old Chapel (Amherst, Mass.)--History--Sources.
University of Massachusetts (Amherst campus)--History--Sources.
Massachusetts--Politics and government--1865-1950--Sources.
series
Series 1. Subject Files
Creation of Series 1. Subject Files
Time of Creation of Series 1. Subject Files
The subject files of the Baker papers include general biographical materials and a variety of addresses and short articles he wrote between 1930 and 1947. The biographical materials extend from 1930 to 1951, and include biographical sketches and memorial tributes, materials related to degrees both earned and honorary, memorabilia, and several folders of newspaper and magazine clippings on his activities from 1930 to 1947.
For photographs of Baker see RG 110/1.
Series 2. MSC Administrative Papers
Creation of Series 2. MSC Administrative Papers
Time of Creation of Series 2. MSC Administrative Papers
The administrative papers of the President's Office generated while Hugh P. Baker held the office from 1933 to 1947 make up this series. They includes memoranda and correspondence with college, state and federal officials, with the College's suppliers and alumni, and reports and papers generated by College administrators and faculty, all on a variety of topics at issue during Baker's presidency. The papers came primarily from the Secretary's papers. These files had been managed by Secretary Robert D. Hawley until he became the College's Treasurer in 1939, then by James W. Burke, who succeeded as Secretary in 1939 and held the post until his retirement in 1958, and then by Secretary and Liaison Officer Robert McCartney, who died in 1975. As received, the papers were filed largely by subject, and the arrangement used here is representative of that found in the original files. Although materials on many specific projects and problems Baker dealt with are found here, his papers do not seem to be as broadly representative of the issues he dealt with as the corresponding papers of earlier presidents. The bulk of the administrative papers deals directly or indirectly with the College's building program, the pace of which picked up under Baker in spite of the Great Depression of the 1930s and World War II. Federal money for buildings was channeled through the Massachusetts (State) Emergency Public Works Commission (folders 54-56), and money for other improvements in the physical plant became available through the U.S. Works Projects Administration (folders 111-119). Even U.S. Emergency Relief Administration funds, generally used to enhance payrolls and student aid funding, were occasionally mobilized for grounds projects (folders 103-104). Further, after two campaigns, [see Mass. (State) Legislation (folders 57-63)], the M.S.C Building Association (folders 45-46) was chartered to fund the construction of dormitories and other income generating buildings. Further information on the building program under Baker is found under the headings Buildings (folders 11-19), and Women's Program (folders 120-128). The following items from this subseries are located in map case 2, drawer 3: a 1933 organization chart in blue print of the College; plans for buildings 25, 33 and 35; diagrams of two projects at the Experiment Station at Waltham; and plans for a proposed armory and for road construction connected with project ST 5, both of which were proposed to the U.S.W.P.A., but only the latter was funded. Other highlights of this series include correspondence and/or papers connected with the donation and manufacture of the Old Chapel Chimes, installed in 1937 (Chimes--Old Chapel, folders 20-21); the celebration in 1938 of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the College (Diamond Jubilee, folders 28-29); the lengthy dispute between the State Commission on Administration and Finance on one hand, and College and federal authorities on the other, over the use of Federal Land Grant Funds, folders 41-44; the dispute between State authorities and the College over its management of revolving funds and endowments (Mass. (State) Auditor, folder 48; Mass (State) Legislation, folders 57-63; and Trust Funds and Scholarships, folders 88-100); the hearings in 1938 following the firing of chief engineer Howard Bidwell (Personnel, folders 65-7-1); the Lotta Crabtree Agricultural Fund and the Hood Foundation scholarships (Trust Funds and Scholarships. folders 88-100), and the development of the School of Home Economics (Women's, Program, folders 120-128). Other headings include Administrative Planning; Alumni; Appointments; Associations; Chapel; Conferences and Summer Schools; Course of Study; Departments; Extension Service; Gifts, Solicitations, etc.; Graduate School; Grounds; Inauguration; Mass. (State) Attorney General; Public Relations; Report to Board of Trustees; Resignation; Sigma Xi; Student Matters; Tuition and Fees; U.S. Bureau of Education; and U.S. Funds.
Addresses 1932-1938
Addresses 1939
Addresses 1940-1941
Addresses 1942-1947
Addresses n.d.
Articles and Pamphlets 1919-1945
Baker House Dedication 1951
Biographical Material 1933-1946
Biographies and Memorials 1932-1951
Dedication -- "Shorthorn" 1939
Degrees and Honorary Degrees 1910-1947
Memorabilia 1930-1937, n.d.
Newspaper-Clips and Extracts 1930-1933
Newspaper-Clips and Extracts 1935-1941
Newspaper-Clips and Extracts 1942-1947, n.d.
Administrative Planning 1933-1944
Alumni 1933-1942
Appointment 1932
Associations: American Council on Education 1933-1941
Associations: Ass'n of Governing Boards 1934-1947
Associations: New England Council 1940
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35 1947
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Cornerstones and Dedications 1934-1941
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Dormitory Building 1932-1937
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: General 1933-1947
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Dormitories for Veterans 1945-1946
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Dormitory Operations 1935-1941
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Heating Plant and Repair Shop 1943-1945
Buildings: #'s 25, 33 and 35: Skinner Hall 1944-1948
Buildings: see also M.S.C. Building Ass'n; Mass.(State), Emergency Public Works Commission; Mass. (State) Legislation; W.S.W.P.A. and Women's Program
Chimes - Old Chapel Conferences and Summer Schools 1936-1937
General 1933-1946
Country Life Conference 1934
Course of Study: B.A. Degree Comm. 1937-1938
Course of Study: Public Health 1939-1942
Departments: Military 1936-1945
Departments: Veterinary Science 1946-1947
Diamond Jubilee - Committee minutes 1937-1938
Extension Service 1933-1944
Extension Service: Publications 1934-1935
Gifts, Solicitations, etc. 1933-1943
Gifts, Solicitations: Use of 1940
Gifts, Solicitations: Proceeds
Gifts, Solicitations: Booklets 1933, 1940
Graduate School 1937-1945
Grounds: General 1932-1934
Grounds: Blundell Report "Campus Planting-Arboretum" 1933
Grounds: Waltham 1943
Inauguration 1933
Inauguration: Papers, Invitations, etc. 1933
Land Grant Funds: Correspondence 1933-1942
Land Grant Funds: Leading Documents 1926-1942
Land Grant Funds: Papers 1935-1937
Land Grant Funds: Policy and Procedure 1926-1942
M.S.C. Building Association: Correspondence 1939
M.S.C. Building Association: Papers 1940-1946
Mass. (State) Advisory Comm. on the Establishment of a Veterinary College see Departments: Veterinary Science
Mass. (State)- Attorney General 1935-1946
Mass. (State)- Auditor 1933-1944
Mass. (State)- Commission on Administration and Finance 1941-1947
Mass. (State)- Commission on Administration and Finance 1936-1937
Mass. (State)- Commission on Administration and Finance 1933-1935
Mass. (State)- Commission on Administration and Finance 1938-1940
Mass. (State)- Commission on Administration and Finance 1943
Mass. (State) Emergency Public Works Comm., Thatcher Dorm and Goodell Library 1933-1934
Mass. (State) Emergency Public Works Comm. 1935-1948
see also Buildings
Mass. (State) Legislation:- "Dormitory Bill" Corr. 1933
Mass. (State) Legislation - "Dormitory Bill" Papers 1932-1933
Mass. (State) Legislation - "Dormitory Bill" Corr. 1938-1939
Mass. (State) Legislation -Revolv. Fund 1938
Mass. (State) Legislation -General 1938-1945
Personnel: General 1933-1947
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-General and Reports 1930
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-General 1933-1937
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Corr. re:Proced. 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Employees Petitions; Time and Pay 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Notes on Reqs. and Inventory 1933-1937
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Administrators Briefs and Notes 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-his Testimony 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Transcript of Hearing V.1 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Transcript of Hearing V.2 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Transcript of Hearing V.3 1938
Personnel: Bidwell Case:-Transcript of Hearing V.4 1938
Personnel: Retirement System 1940-1945
Personnel: Retirement System: Retirements 1936-1944
Public Relations 1937-1945
Report to Board of Trustees (draft) 1945
Resignation 1947
Sigma Xi: Faculty Honorary Society- Pet. 1935
Sigma Xi: Faculty Honorary Society- Pet. 1937-1942
Student Matters: Fraternities, etc. 1934-1935
Student Matters: Fraternities, etc.: General 1933-1946
Student Matters: Fraternities, etc.: Org. of Athletics 1935
Student Matters: Fraternities, etc.: Revolving Funds 1937
Student Matters: Fraternities, etc.: Tau Kappa Alpha debating fraternity 1934-1936
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- General 1938-1947
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- General Report on Endowed Funds 1933-1937
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Crabtree 1934-1939
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Crabtree 1940-1943
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Greene 1939
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Hood Dairy Foundation 1933-1936
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Hood Dairy Foundation 1937-1940
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Hood Dairy Foundation 1940-1946
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Pinkerton Scholarships 1934-1937
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Plumb Fell. 1939
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Sessions Fund 1937
Trust Funds and Scholarships:- Student Loan Funds 1938
Trust Funds: Trustee Comm. on Finance - Extracts of Minutes 1875-1934
Tuition and Fees 1933-1944
U.S. Bureau of Education 1933-1936
U.S. Emergency Relief Admin. - Employment 1935
U.S. Emergency Relief Admin. - General 1934-1935
U.S. Funds: Bankhead-Jones Corr. 3/1935--7/1935
U.S. Funds: Bankhead-Jones Corr. 8/1935-1936
U.S. Funds: Bankhead-Jones Papers and Mem. 1935-1937
U.S. Funds: Jones Papers and Mem. 1937-1941
U.S. Funds: Thomas Bill (Extension Serv) 1944
U.S. Funds: Hatch Act (Political Activ) 1940
U.S.W.P.A.: Corr. and Circulars 1935-1941
U.S.W.P.A.: Grounds Projects 1935-1938
U.S.W.P.A.: Project ST-5 (Road) 1935-1936
U.S.W.P.A.: Projected Buildings 1934-1936
U.S.W.P.A.: Projects M.S.C. 11 and 18 (roads) 1938
U.S.W.P.A.: Proposed Armory Corr. 1940-1941
U.S.W.P.A.: Proposed Armory Papers 1940-1941
U.S.W.P.A.: Steam Lines (Charles T. Main) 1933-1935
U.S.W.P.A.: "White Collar Projects" 1938-1939
Advisory Council of Women: Corr. A-C 1933-1941
Advisory Council of Women: D-G 1933-1941
Advisory Council of Women: H-L 1933-1941
Advisory Council of Women: M-W 1933-1941
Women's Program-General 1933-1945
Women's Program-Mailings 1933-1939
Women's Program-Meetings 13-25 1933-1940
Women's Program-Meetings 26-32 1941-1946
Women's Program-Home Economics Building 1939-1941
World War II and its Aftermath 1941-1946
World War II Veterans 1944-1946