SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Correspondence concerning the 1976 election, especially presidential messages, telegrams, candidate endorsements, and fundraising.

QUANTITY
0.8 linear feet (ca. 1,600 pages)

DONOR
Gerald R. Ford (accession number 77-107)

ACCESS
Open. Some items are temporarily restricted under terms of the donor's deed of gift, a copy of which is available on request, or under National Archives and Records Administration general restrictions (36 CFR 1256).

COPYRIGHT
Gerald Ford donated to the United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to remain with them. Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain.

Prepared by Barbara J. White, August 1984
[s:\bin\findaid\field, james - files.doc]

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

H. James Field, Jr.

January 1949 - Born in Providence, Rhode Island

1971 - B.A. - Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL

1971-72 - Staff Assistant, Cost of Living Council, Department of Treasury

1972 - Campaign Committee Member, Chaffee Senate Campaign, Providence, RI

1973-75 - Director of Administration, City of Cranston, RI

1975-76 - Chairman, Rhode Island Republican State Committee, Providence, RI

1976 - Associate Director, Presidential Personnel Office, The White House

1976 - Staff Assistant, White House Operations Office

Dec. 1976 - Jan. 1977 - Special Assistant to the President, The White House

INTRODUCTION

H. James Field, Jr., joined the White House staff in February 1976 as Associate Director of the Presidential Personnel Office, filling human resources, housing and transportation positions. In July 1976 he was appointed Staff Assistant to Richard B. Cheney, whom he had previously assisted at the Cost of Living Council. In this position, Field, a former Republican State Chairman of Rhode Island, drafted replies to Cheney's campaign-related correspondence, along with Michael Raoul-Duval, and accumulated copies for his work with the President Ford Committee (PFC). He worked closely with other White House staff members, the PFC, People for Ford, and many state Republican parties, responding to requests for presidential messages, telegrams and endorsement and fundraising letters.

The Field Files cover his work on the campaign during the last six months of the administration. The majority of the collection consists of routine campaign material, containing presidential endorsement letters for United States Congressional candidates, presidential fundraising letters on behalf of state parties, and outgoing presidential messages and telegrams, mostly in response to PFC and People for Ford requests. The folders of Richard Cheney and Gwen Anderson correspondence reflect his more administrative duties. White House staff members folders contain memoranda between Field and their offices; the Cheney folders contain correspondence with party officials, Ford supporters, and the public.

Related Materials (August 1984)
Related materials are listed in "1976 Presidential Election: List of Manuscript Materials Available for Research," available from the reference archivist. In addition, the White House Central Files categories ME - Messages and PL - Political Affairs include related materials. Files from Field's position in the Presidential Personnel Office are found in the files of Margo M. Boyle.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Subject File, 1976.  (Boxes 1-2, 0.8 linear feet)
Campaign related correspondence, memoranda, telegrams, drafts of fundraising letters, and occasional newspaper clippings and reports. Included are outgoing presidential telegrams and letters to the public, to state Republican organizations, and to congressional candidates; Cheney correspondence drafted or accumulated by Field; and memoranda with White House staff members on routine campaign matters. Also filed here are five memoranda recommending telephone calls from the First Lady, with her handwritten notes.

Arranged alphabetically by subject.

View container list for this series

CONTAINER LIST

Box 1 - Subject File

• Anderson, Gwen
• Baroody, William J., Jr.
• Calhoun, John C.
• Cheney, Richard B. (1)-(6)
• Ford, Betty - Telephone Calls to Republican Convention Delegates
• President - Endorsement Letters (1)-(2)

Box 2 - Subject File

• President - Fundraising Letters (1)-(3)
• President - Telegrams and Messages (1)-(6)
• Presidential Memorandum
• Roth, Barry