Environmental Resources, Manuscript Groups 191-207

MG-191 David L. Lawrence Papers

1959-1966
185 cu. ft.

Papers of David L. Lawrence (b.1889, d. 1966), Pittsburgh Democratic party politician, secretary of the Commonwealth, 1935-39, mayor of Pittsburgh, 1946-59, governor, 1959-63, and chairman of the President's Committee on Equal Opportunity in Housing, 1963-66. Elected an unprecedented four times as mayor of his native city, Lawrence gained national attention as the architect of the city's redevelopment program, which became popularly known as the "Pittsburgh renaissance". The Papers of David L. Lawrence are arranged in two series: Governor's Papers, 1959-1963 and Chairman's Papers, President's Committee on Equal Opportunity in Housing, 1963-66. Documents pertaining to the environment are found within the Governor's Papers

Governor's Papers, 1959-63

Subject file, embracing information on the Commonwealth's departments, boards, and commissions, 41 cu. ft.; general file, 103 cu. ft.; legislative file, 13 cu ft.; appointments file, 15 cu. ft.; press releases, 5 cu. ft. Included are political convention materials, campaign and election items, proclamations, addresses, and photographs. Papers concern agriculture; banking; business and commercial involvements; colleges and universities; courts, police, and legal matters; historic and military sites, hospitals and medicine; insurance; labor and industrial activity (coal mining, iron and steel); the National Guard; prisons; public works; utilities; bridges; transportation systems; rivers and streams; forest and wild life conservation; hunting and fishing; taxes; welfare; etc.

Chairman's Papers, President's Committee on Equal Opportunity in Housing, 1963-66

Correspondence, 7 cu. ft.; addresses, 1 cu. ft.

Governor's Papers, 1959-63

Within this series are sub-series consisting of a subject file, embracing information on the Commonwealth's departments, boards, and commissions, 41 cu. ft.; general file, 103 cu. ft.; legislative file, 13 cu ft.; appointments file, 15 cu. ft.; press releases, 5 cu. ft. The documents include political convention materials, campaign and election items, proclamations, addresses, and photographs. The topics addressed in these papers include banking; business and commercial involvements; colleges and universities; courts, police, and legal matters; federal and state legislation, historic and military sites, hospitals and medicine; insurance; labor and industrial activity (coal mining, iron and steel); the National Guard; prisons; public works; bridges, transportation systems; taxes; and welfare. During the Lawrence administration, air pollution, water pollution, soil conservation, waste disposal and mines were primary environmental concerns. Severe flooding, the Knox Mine Disaster and Pennsylvania's entry into the Delaware River Basin Compact were key events during the Lawrence years.

Governor's Papers

General File
1959-1963

The general file is arranged alphabetically by both letter and subject in 81 cartons.

Carton 1, Agriculture, Departments of, 1959-1962 (federal and state) 7 folders

Documents within these seven folders consist of correspondence, speeches and publicity, reports, and publications.

• Correspondence: Letter, Agriculture Dept. Secretary N. L. Henning to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, May 27, 1959 on conservation in Pennsylvania. In folder 1-17; Memo, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, October 28, 1959 authorizing funds for watersheds in Mercer and Crawford counties. In folder 1-17; Letter, Robert Lott to Lawrence, November 25, 1960 alleges Commonwealth is behind other states in soil conservation. In folder 1-18.
• Speeches and publicity: Speech of U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Secretary Orville Freeman, February 3, 1962 discusses Pennsylvania agriculture, soil conservation and recreational areas. In folder 1-16; Press release of July 10, 1962 declares more than twenty counties disaster areas due to drought. In folder 1-16; Press release of July 17, 1962 declares Union County a disaster area due to a ten week drought. In folder 1-20. Speech by Lawrence at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Land and People Conference, October 22, 1962. In folder 1-16.
• Reports: "Pennsylvania Crops and Livestock Annual Summary, 1959." In folder 1-17; "Report of Activities, June 1, 1958 to May 31, 1959." In folder 1-17; "Report of Activities, June 1, 1959 to May 31, 1960" In folder 1-18; "Report of Activities, June 1, 1960 to May 31, 1961." In folder 1-18; "Wholesale Flower Marketing Facilities, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania," c. 1960. In folder 1-18; "Wholesale Fishery Products Marketing Facilities, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania," c. 1960. In folder 1-18.
• Publications: Rural Development Program Newsletter (federal) issues for 1959 in folder 1-14, issues for 1960 and 1961 in folder 1-15, issues for 1962 in folder 1-20; Weekly News Bulletin (state) issues for 1961 and 1962 in folders 1-18 and 1-20.

Carton 2, Allegheny Conference on Community Development 1959-1962 folder

The folder has correspondence about Point Park in Pittsburgh, Allegheny County.

• Allegheny County-Allegheny County Workhouse 1959-1962 folder
• "Report of the Special Committee to Investigate the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority Submitted to the [Pennsylvania] Senate, September 29, 1959."

Carton 4, Arbor Day, 1959-1962

The folder has the Governor's Proclamations of Arbor, Bird and Conservation Week.

Carton 10, Boroughs, 1959-1962

Letter, Lewis E. Evans, Secretary of Dept. of Mines & Minerals to Civil Defense director Richard Gerstell on discharge from sanitary sewers in the Borough of Mahoney City, Schuylkill County.

Carton 19, Conference of Appalachian Governors, 1960-1963

Correspondence between Lawrence and other governors as well as the conference program of May 8, 1961 can be found here.

Carton 23, "Del-Delva 1959-1962" folder

The folder contains a copy of the "Domestic Petroleum and Coal Development Act of 1959."

Carton 23, Delaware, A-W 1959-1962" folder

This folder has correspondence, press releases, publications and a map.

• Correspondence of the Delaware Water Gap Chamber of Commerce about converting Rim Road in Monroe County into a state highway. [Dates?]
• Press releases. Release of April 22, 1962 from the Delaware Valley Protective Association (DVPA) states group's position on development of scenic River Road near New Hope, Bucks County; Release of September 29, 1962 from the Delaware Valley Protective Association announces that Delaware River Basin Commission's executive director will speak at DVPA conference October 24, 1962.
• Publications: Interstate Commission on the Delaware River Basin (Incodel), Incodel and the Delaware River Basin Commission: A Report to the Commission on Interstate Cooperation of the States Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Delaware, October 1961; The Delaware Water Gap Chamber of Commerce Welcomes You to Delaware Water Gap: The Eighth Scenic Wonder of the World. Date? "Tampering with Scenic Areas," Philadelphia Sunday Bulletin, April 22, 1962. Article is about River Road in Bucks County.
• Map: "Plan and Profile of Portion of Rim Road South of Delaware Water Gap, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, scale shown as of April 8, 1938."

Carton 28, "Lewis E. Evans" folder

This folder has newspaper clippings about the Anthracite region of Pennsylvania:

• "Estimate Put On Coal To Be Lost By Flooding," Scranton Times, October 14, 1960
• "9 Million Dollars in US and State Funds to Dewater Mines Will Go Unused," Scranton Times, October 15, 1960
• "Plea Made For US, State Aid in Mine Water Problem," Scranton Tribune, October 15, 1960

Carton 30, "Fish Commission, 1959-61" folder

The folder contains correspondence, press releases, speeches, a report, publications and legislative bills.

• Correspondence: Letter, Cyril G. Regan to Otis B. Morse, December 21, 1959 re acquisition of Hunter Lake, Sullivan County from Pennsylvania Electric Company; Memo of October 6, 1959 concerning fishing laws; Letter, Albert M. Day to David M. Kurtzman, December 14, 1961 discusses reservoirs in Jefferson County, a dam in Somerset County and Lily Lake property in Luzerne County.
• Press releases of the Fish Commission: February 10, 1959 re fishing laws; September 9, 1959 on trout stocking of streams; July 29, 1960 about support for statewide watershed improvement; August 22, 1960 on fish killed by pollution and favorable fishing season; October 26, 1960 on fish-ways in the Susquehanna River for migratory fish; May 8, 1961 re Fisherman's Paradise, Spring Creek, Centre County.
• Speeches: Commission executive director William Voigt Jr. to Senate Committee on Forest and Waters; Game and Fish, July 28, 1959; Voigt to House Committee on Fisheries, August 10, 1959; Albert M. Day, "Recreational Use of Pennsylvania's Waters," January 31, 1961.
• Reports: Fish Commission, biennial report, June 1, 1958 to May 31, 1960.
• Publications: Article, "Pennsylvania's Troubled Waters" by Albert E. Day, unnamed publication, November 9, 1960; Article, "To Fish On Regulated Lakes License or Free?" by Albert E. Day, unknown publication, September 20, 1960; Pennsylvania Legislative Bulletin, nos. 1-4, 1961.
• Legislative bills: "Summary of principal provisions of proposed Act (H.B. 1178, 1959 Legislative Session) to govern boating in Pennsylvania;" copy of proposed act.

Carton 31, "Fish Commission, 1961-62" folder

The folder has correspondence, minutes, reports and press releases

• Correspondence: Letter, Albert M. Day to Roy A. Schaefer, March 19, 1962 mentions fishing in Pymatuning Lake in Crawford County; Letters from 1961 to 1962 with the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources Wildlife Division about Pymatuning Lake, Crawford County.
• Minutes: Fish Commission staff meeting, August 27, 1962. Minutes note that largest pollution case in American history was settled when the Glen Alden Corporation agreed to pay $45,000 for fish killed in the Susquehanna River, in October 1961.
• Reports: "Engineering and Biological Study of Proposed Fish Passage at Dams on Susquehanna River, Pennsylvania," by Milo C. Bell and Harlan B. Holmes, December 1962.
• Press releases: March 5, 1962 release says Ohio Wildlife Council's refusal to cooperate with Fish Commission over Pymatuning Lake may lead to ban of all fishing; A March 19, 1962 release reproduces telegram from Lawrence to Ohio Governor Michael V. DiSalle requesting fishing limits in Pymatuning Lake.

Carton 32, Forest and Waters, Dept of, 1959, 1959-1962 (11 folders)

Within this sub-series are found numerous correspondence, reports and press releases mainly about the Delaware River Basin and other important water resources. Correspondents include the US Army Corps of Engineers, the US Dept. of Agriculture and the US Dept. of the Interior. Below is a sampling of what is available.

• Brandywine Creek Basin: This watershed region within Chester, Delaware and Lancaster counties is addressed in a letter from Maurice K. Goddard to John M. Ferguson, January 16, 1959 in folder 32-1.
• Delaware River Basin: For this subject, the files are very rich. Correspondence, minutes of the Delaware Basin Survey Committee, press releases; papers, draft reports and final reports can be found in folders 32-1 thru 8.
• Gifford Pinchot State Park: The development of the park is argued for in a letter from Joseph A. Blatt to Otis B. Morse, January 20, 1960. Attached to the letter is a map of the park circa July 1958. In folder 32-4.
• Locust Creek, Schuylkill County. A press release from the Governor's Office, January 22, 1960 announces agency's plan to create new state park. In folder 32-4.
• Oil and Gas Lands: Guide to Information for Leasing and Operating Oil and Gas Lands Owned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. By Hugh Brinton Montgomery. (PA Dept. of Forests and Waters, 1960)
• Pymatuning Lake Reservoir: The reservoir is the subject of documents found in folders 32-1.
• Schuylkill River: In a letter to Walter W. Gisey, December 14, 1959, Maurice K. Goddard expresses concern about silt draining into tributary streams from the Schuylkill. In folder 32-1.
• Tohickon Valley Park: In a letter dated April 28, 1961, Maurice K. Goddard outlines land requirements for Tohickon Valley Park in Bucks County. There is also a map of the reservoir and proposed park site. In folder 32-7.
• Took's Island Dam: This proposed project in Monroe County is named in a press release of May 25, 1959 in folder 32-1.

Carton 33, "Freeman, Orville L., 1959-62" folder

Here are minutes of a press conference given by Freeman on February 3, 1962 during which he speaks about problems in Pennsylvania agriculture.

Carton 34, "Game Commission, 1959-60" folder

Governor Lawrence was in favor of leasing the oil and gas rights on state game lands. This folder contains correspondence regarding leasing of state game land in Bedford, Blair, Cameron, Cambria, Clearfield, Fayette, Lycoming, Somerset, and Westmoreland counties. The folder has four maps of state game lands.

Carton 39, "Goddard, Maurice K., 1959-1962" folder

This folder contains copies of speeches Goddard gave while he served as Secretary of the Dept. of Forests and Waters.

Carton 40, "Governor's Committee, 1958-1962," folder

The folder has one item: Report by the Governor's Committee on Power Boating at Pymatuning Reservoir, January 5, 1959.

Carton 40, "Governor's Conference, 1958-1959" folder

This folder contains a speech by Idaho Governor Robert E. Smylie before the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, May 20, 1959; there is also a letter to Lawrence from C. L. Wilbur Jr., February 4, 1959 suggesting a national meeting of various river basin commissions.

Carton 40, "Governor's Conference on Fire Prevention, 1959-61" folder

A press release of April 9, 1960 from the Governor's Office claims this conference is the first of its kind in the nation. There is also a copy of a speech by Lawrence given at the Conference on June 6, 1960.

Carton 40, Great Lakes Commission, 1959-1962 and 1959-1963" folders

These two folders have minutes and digests of annual and semi-annual meetings of the Great Lakes Commission from 1959 to 1961. Items of interest to historians of the environment include the following:

• Minutes, November 21-22, 1960, Appendix C is a Commonwealth report on off-shore drilling and soil erosion at Presque Isle State Park. Minutes, May 11-12, 1961, Appendix G is a Commonwealth report on commercial fishing and recreation on Lake Erie.
• Digest, November 9-10, 1961, Appendix G is a Commonwealth report on the Port of Erie, Presque Isle State Park, and recreational use of Lake Erie and pollution of Lake Erie.

Carton 40, "Health Dept, 1959; 1959-1963" folders

The topics mentioned in these two folders are air pollution, water pollution, and waste disposal. Examples of correspondence, press releases and speeches discussing these matters are listed below:

• Air pollution. Speech, " A Changing Public Health" by Charles L. Wilbar Jr. before the meeting of the 7th annual Health Conference, August 18, 1958. Wilbar says "air pollution in our state is not controlled as well as stream pollution."
• Water pollution. Letter, Charles L. Wilbar Jr. to US Senator Joseph Clark, May 19, 1961 about amending the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
• Waste disposal: A Health Dept. Press Release claims the D.M. Bare Paper Company of Roaring Spring, Blair County is the first pulp and paper mill in Pennsylvania to achieve high degree treatment of all of its liquid wastes.

Carton 44, "Interior, US Dept. of, 1956-1958" folder

• Report of the River Master of the Delaware River. Four reports for the periods, 1957-1958, 1958-1959, 1959-1960, and 1960-1961.
• Document: Procedures for Administration of the Act of July 15, 1955, To Provide for the Conservation of Anthracite Coal Resources through Measures of Flood Control and Anthracite Mine Drainage. As Amended by Act of October 15, 1962.
• Letter, M. J. Golden to Lawrence, February 1, 1962 concerning the Federal Migratory Bird Conservation Act.

Carton 48, "Improvement and Development of the Philadelphia Port Area, 1959-60" folder

• Letter to Lawrence from Harry G. Schad, March 11, 1960 makes a case for anchorage improvements in the Delaware River.

Carton 49, "Independent Petroleum Association of America, 1959-1962" folder

The folder contains correspondence of association members concerning imports, price controls, repletion rate for oil and gas and production statistics. In addition, there are three publications in the so-called "Oil and Gas Depletion Fact Series:

• Leaflet no. 1, "Percentage Depletion and Cost Finding Petroleum," January 1959
• Leaflet no. 2, " A History of Percentage Depletion," February 1959
• Leaflet no. 5, "Percentage Depletion and the Consumer of Petroleum," 1960.

Carton 49, "Interstate Oil Compact Commission, 1959, 1960, 1961-62 folders

Three folders contain correspondence, commission minutes, and publications of the commission. The publication titles include Oil and Gas Compact Bulletin (Dec. 1959) and Compact Comments (Jan. 1959, Feb. 1960, July 1961, and Feb. 1962).

Carton 52, "Keep America Beautiful, Inc. 1959-1962" folder

• 
  Letter, Roy Schafer to Allen H. Seed Jr., December 20, 1961 says there were more than 125 arrests for highway littering in Pennsylvania during the first 9 months of 1961.

Carton 68, "Mines and Mineral Industries, 1959-62" folder

The folder consists of correspondence, proclamations, reports, clippings and lists concerning a refuse bank fire in Plymouth Twp, Luzerne County and coal mine subsistence problems in Pittston, Lackawanna and Allegheny Counties in 1962.

• Correspondence: Memo, W. S. Benosky to Lewis E. Evans, January 23, 1962 re coal mine subsistence in Rural Ridge, Allegheny County; Memo, Evans to Walter W. Giesey, January 30, 1962 re anthracite law of 1961; Letter, Evans to Walter W. Giesey, June 26, 1962 re strip mine areas and culm banks; Letters, Evans to Giesey, July 1962 about mine subsidence in Scranton, Lackawanna County; Letter, Daniel H. Connelly to Evans, August 10, 1962 about a joint state and federal government mine drainage program; Letter, Evans to Roy A. Schaefer, August 10, 1962 re joint state and federal mine drainage program; Letter, Daniel H. Connelly to Evans, August 20, 1962 re burning refuse bank, Plymouth Twp, Luzerne County; General correspondence about subsidence of Cleveland School, Pittston, Luzerne County, 1962.
• Proclamations: Declaration of Disaster Area in Plymouth Twp, Luzerne County, August 2, 1962; Termination of Emergency in Plymouth Twp, Luzerne County, October 25, 1962.
• Reports: Lewis E. Evans to Lawrence, September 21, 1962 on activities of the Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from September 25, 1961 to June 320, 1962.
• Clippings: "Prior Subsidence Experience Must Be Listed in Application," Scranton Tribune, January 8, 1962; "Mine Cave Insurance Makes Debut on July1," The Scrantonian, January 7, 1962;"Flood Pushes Safety in Mine-Fill Bill," Harrisburg Patriot-News,, February 2, 1962; "Clark, Scott Ask For Fast Action On Mine-Fill Bill," Harrisburg Patriot-News, August 18, 1962.
• Lists: Mines Other Than Coal Mines in Pennsylvania." Compiler unknown, undated. List names mines by county, and type, i.e. open quarry, deep mine or day mine.

Carton 68, "Municipal Water Authority, Borough of Lewistown, 1960-62" folder

The folder has correspondence of the Municipal Water Authority of Lewistown with Mifflin County and the state Dept. of Health about the Juniata River as source for public water for the Borough of Lewistown.

Carton 69, "National Recreation Association, 1959-62" folder

The folder contains two reports:

• "Public Recreation and Its Administration in Pennsylvania." Prepared for the State Planning Board and State Recreation Council c. 1958.
• "Public Recreation and Its Administration in Pennsylvania: A Summary of Findings and Recommendation." Prepared for the State Planning Board and State Recreation Council.

Carton 74, "Pennsylvania Federation of Sportmen's Clubs, 1959-62" folder

The minutes of the annual meeting of the Federation on September 22, 1961 and a 1960 progress report issued by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture-"Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act, Public Law 566-are in this folder.

Carton 77, "Port of Erie, 1959-62" folder

The development of the Port of Erie is the subject of items within this folder.

• "The Port of Erie, Its Role in Western Pennsylvania" by the Northwestern Pennsylvania Conference for Relief to Depressed Areas, n.d.
• "An Act for Making an Appropriation to the Dept. of Forests and Waters for the Development of Erie Harbor and land adjacent thereto." [date?]

Carton 99, "Washington Crossing Park Commission, 1959-62" folder

The folder has correspondence dealing with acquisition of 27 acres of adjacent land for a proposed "Children's Forest."

Governor's Papers

Subject File
1959-1963

Carton 6, "Delaware River Basin Compact, 1959-1962," 3 folders

The folders have correspondence, minutes, reports, legislation, and publications by and about the Delaware River Basin Compact Commission.

• Correspondence. It consists of letters re commission appointments, and exchanges with city, borough, county and state officials as well as members of Congress about the Compact. In folder 3.
• Minutes. Commission meeting minutes for December 13, 1961, March 28, 1962 and September 26, 1962. In folder 1; Transcript of hearing on Delaware River Basin Compact before US Senate Subcommittee on Public Works, August 24, 1961. In folder 2; Report of Proceedings before the Dept. of Interior in the Matter of Delaware River Basin Compact Meeting, April 13, 1961. In folder 2; "Water Pollution Control Field Laboratory Facilities," by George R. Jenkins, October 12, 1961. In folder 3.
• Reports. "A Comprehensive Plan, Phase I, Adopted March 28, 1962." In folder 1; U.S. Congress, HR report no. 310, "Delaware River Basin Compact." In folder 2; Berks County and the Delaware River Basin Compact and Plan." By the Berks County Planning Commission, July 1961. In folder 2.
• Legislation. HJ Res. 225, "Joint Resolution of Congress Approving Incodel." [date?] In folder 2.
• Publications. Delaware River Basin Compact, 1961. [book] In folder 2. Interstate-Federal Compact for the Delaware River Basin, February 1961. In folder 2; "The Delaware River Compact: Its Meaning for Pennsylvania." By the State Planning Board. In: Pennsylvania Business (November-December 1961). In folder 2.

Carton 10, "Floods, 1959" 11 folders

These folders contain information on the Knox Coal Mine Disaster of 1959 in Luzerne County.

• Folder A-L has correspondence about the flood and mine disaster with city, county, and state officials and President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
• Two folders labeled "Armstrong County" contain a report by county commissioner on 1959 flood damage; a map showing affected areas, and photos of flood scenes mainly by photographer Howard R. Frederick.
• A folder labeled "Governor's Meeting, 1959" has the minutes of a July 28, 1959 meeting held to discuss how to pump water out of abandoned coal mines and prevent contamination of nearby waterways. There is also some correspondence with the Pennsylvania Coal Company and the Lehigh Valley Coal Company.
• Four folders labeled "Knox Coal Company" are rich in materials. Correspondence, maps, charts, copies of congressional legislation, civil defense disaster reports, reports by the state Departments of Mines and Minerals and Forests and Waters, testimony of witnesses, and photographs of the Knox Coal Company shafts can be found here.
• The Mines and Mineral Industries folder consists of minutes of a department meeting with representatives of Glen Alden Corporation about the mine water situation and correspondence between the State Council of Civil Defense, Glen Alden Corp. and Governor Lawrence.
• The folders labeled "M-S" and "T-Z" has a variety of items ranging from correspondence, news clipping to disaster assistance plans and safety recommendations for mines.

Carton 12, "Great Lakes Basin Compact, 1959-62" folder

Lawrence's correspondence with other governors regarding the compact can be found here.

Carton 12, "Great Lakes Water Diversion, 1959" folder

Correspondence of Governors George M. Leader and David L. Lawrence in which they state opposition to federal legislation allowing Illinois to diverse water from Lake Michigan for the city of Chicago.

Carton 29, "Negro Glade Lake, 1960-1961" folder

The folder has correspondence between the Fish Commission and sportsmen concerning Negro Glade Dam and Lake in Somerset County.

Carton 38, "Susquehanna River Basin Survey, 1961-62" folder

There is a copy of a speech by Lawrence on August 13, 1962 before the Interstate Advisory Commission about the Susquehanna. Also letters discussing a proposed Susquehanna River Basin Commission are here.

Carton 40, "Water Conservation," 22 folders

The water conservation record of the Lawrence administration is documented here in folders labeled by alphabetical letter and by subject name. Information on many rivers and streams are found in multiple folders. The correspondence deals with environmental issues such as the pollution of the Susquehanna in Luzerne County which killed many fish. Controversy occurred sometimes as in the case of Kinzua Dam which threatened to flood the property of Seneca Native Americans. In addition there are a number of petitions from citizens and conservation groups regarding water conservation. Some of the waterways discussed in these folders are:

• Allegheny River
• Brandywine Creek, Chester County
• Chartiers Creek, Washington County
• Clarion River
• Conococheague Creek, Franklin County
• Cobbs Creek, Philadelphia County
• Delaware River Basin
• French Creek, Crawford County
• Genesee River Basin
• Indian Hollow Run, Warren County
• Juniata River
• Kinzua Dam, Allegheny County
• Lackawanna River Basin
• Lake Erie
• Lehigh River
• Ohio River Basin
• Potomac River Basin
• Raccoon Creek, Beaver County
• Saw Mill Run Creek, Allegheny County
• Schuylkill River
• Shenango Dam, Mercer County
• Spring Creek, Centre County
• Susquehanna River
• Turtle Creek, Westmoreland County

MG-199 Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania Collection

(ca. 1830-1974)
660 cu. ft.

Records (minutes, reports, photographs, maps, drawings, timetables, accounts, etc.) relating to the former Pennsylvania Railroad, together with records of other railroads which have operated in Pennsylvania. Included also are materials of a general character relative to the administrative and operational history of the railroad industry, nationally and internationally.

The collections, now available for limited investigation at the Archives Building, Harrisburg, will eventually be open for research at the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission's Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, Strasburg.

The chief items of interest to environmental historians are photographs of floods found within the Walter A. W. Fister Collection and the Walter A. Lucas Stereographs Collection.

Walter A. W. Fister Collection

series #199m.57

• Photographs of the1912 flood in Muncy and 1955 flood damage to Tamaqua Yard are available.

Walter A. Lucas Stereographs: Pennsylvania Railroad

series #199m.155

• No. 5, The Great Johnstown Flood, May 31, 1889, R. K. Bonine, no date
• No. 8, The Great Johnstown Flood, May 31, 1889, R. K. Bonine, no date
• No. 23, The Great Johnstown Flood, May 31, 1889, R. K. Bonine, no date
• Wrecked Engines at Conemaugh, Johnstown Disaster, William H. Raw, no date
• The Johnstown Calamity, Wreck at the Stone Bridge, George Barker, 1889
• The Johnstown Calamity, Scene of the Fire at the Stone Bridge, George Barker, 1889

MG-206 John S. Fine Papers

1951-1955
154 cu. ft.

The son of a coal miner, John S. Fine rose to face post-war challenges as governor and the birth of "suburbia." Fine was born in a mine "patch" home in the anthracite coal town of Alden, Newport Township, Luzerne County, on April 10, 1893. Fine was the son of Jacob W. Fine and Margaret Croop Fine. Fine learned about hard work at a young age as he labored on the coal company's farm, plowing fields, milking cows, and doing other chores. While Fine was still young, the family moved to Nanticoke where he attended Nanticoke High School and wrote community news part time for a small newspaper.

After graduating from high school, Fine earned his LL.B. degree from Dickinson Law School in Carlisle in 1914. The following year he was admitted to the Luzerne County Bar, practicing law in Wilkes-Barre, near his hometown of Nanticoke, until the start of World War I. In May 1917, Fine enlisted in the 23rd U. S. Army Engineers, advancing to the rank of sergeant. In 1919, while stationed in Ireland, the future governor advanced his education with post-graduate work at the University of Dublin's Trinity College. He was discharged from the military in August 1919 and returned to his law practice, eventually as a partner in the firm Coughlin and Fine.

His direction toward public service and politics was noted soon after law school when he became Republican district chairman, Fourth Luzerne District, serving 1916 to 1920, except during military duty. He became secretary of the Republican County Committee, 1920-1922 and Luzerne County Republican chairman, 1922-1923. In 1927, Fine began a 23-year career as a court judge. Governor Gifford Pinchot appointed him to the bench of the Court of Common Pleas, Luzerne County, where he served from January 3, 1927, through a successful public election for a ten-year term that November, and was re-elected for another ten years in November 1939. Soon after that election, on December 5, 1939, at the age of 46, Fine married Helene Pennebecker Morgan, and from this marriage were two children, John Sydney Jr. and Donald.

On July 15, 1947, he was elevated to the Pennsylvania Superior Court after being appointed by Governor James Duff to fill a vacancy left by retiring Judge Thomas Baldrige. In November 1947, Fine was successfully elected to a permanent term, serving until he began his campaign for governor on March 1, 1950. Fine was the choice of Governor Duff to succeed him as governor and together they campaigned, with Duff running for the U. S. Senate. A continuing feud between Duff and the Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association forced Fine to contend with a bitter multi-million dollar primary among opposing Republican factions, but he was victorious in the primary. In the fall election of 1950, Fine faced the charismatic Democratic mayor of Philadelphia, Richardson Dilworth, a Yale cum laude graduate and a former marine with a Purple Heart from World War I and a Silver Star in World War II. Dilworth's running mate was Michael A. Musmanno, who eventually became a state Supreme Court justice. Duff managed a victory by a slim 86,000 vote margin, the narrowest margin for a Republican in twenty years. Fine's favored lieutenant governor nominee, Lloyd H. Wood, defeated Musmanno by 126,000 votes.

Fine's term would be a tough challenge and within three months personal tragedy struck. During the campaign in late October 1950, Fine's wife Helene fell from a platform and began to suffer from severe headaches. A month after the inauguration, Mrs. Fine underwent surgery, but her condition became critical and she died on April 23 following more brain surgery at University Hospital in Philadelphia. Fine was only the second Pennsylvania governor to be widowed while in office, the other being Simon Snyder in 1810. The bitterness of the loss to his family was nearly matched by the bitterness of a divided legislature arguing over the governor's tax proposals.

One of the problems of postwar Pennsylvania was a lingering recession and an unemployment rate that had doubled in just two years prior the Fine administration. Fine inherited requirements to meet interest payments, mandatory teacher salary increases, veterans' bonuses, and other state government expenses combined to be about $120 million short of revenues. In addition, the postwar "baby boom" was just beginning. While the upper grades of public schools were not yet feeling the effect of the population boom, the lower grades were becoming strained to accommodate more pupils. School enrollments increased by about 38,000 students each year of Fine's term. A new word, "suburbia," was coined as areas and counties surrounding cities began to have population explosions, from 50 percent growth in suburban Harrisburg, for example, to 46 percent in Montgomery County, and 387 percent for the new community of Bristol. The urban areas, such as Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Lancaster grew by more than 18 percent.

School buildings were generally becoming run-down, classrooms understaffed and overcrowded, equipment outdated and worn out, and only half of the state's teachers held college degrees. There were still more than 330 one-room schools and the average teacher's salary was just $3,410 per year. The poor state of the Commonwealth's schools was despite the fact that education expenditures had been tripled since 1940, but it was inadequate to meet the modern demands of educating the state's growing population.

Fine believed strongly that state government was in need of reorganization and the Department of Health was one such agency updated to meet the health needs of local communities. Fine expanded mental health programs, highway programs, and a clean up of state waterways begun in previous administrations. The governor formed the Chesterman Committee to study government structure and to make recommendations. However, recommendations were not completed until after Fine left office. To pay for new or expanding programs, Fine proposed a one half percent income tax, but the General Assembly rejected the idea. The governor wanted to avoid increasing the tax burden on businesses, believing that it would cause more unemployment. In fact, he gave employers retroactive tax credits in connection with the Unemployment Compensation Reserve Fund. Fine instead turned to other revenue sources. Except for a limited six-month sales tax during the Pinchot administration, the state's first permanent sales tax, amounting to one percent, was passed in 1953 and has increasingly remained a part of Pennsylvania's budget ever since. Under the State Public School Building Authority, created in 1947, more than $430 million was borrowed and committed to 714 school building projects, the biggest school building boom in state history. In 1951, the legislature expanded the ability of local school districts to form their own taxing authorities.

Fine also signed laws in 1951 providing training in areas such as nursing for the unemployed, licensing for commercial homes for the elderly, rehabilitation programs for drug users, and safety regulations in the handling of liquid gases. Pennsylvania had been ranked near the bottom in public health by the American Public Health Association and Fine saw to improvements in health care. He approved a pay raise for legislators, congressional redistricting, allowing a truck weight limit increase from 15,000 to 60,000 pounds, and extending the Turnpike into his native Luzerne County.

Although Fine came down on the side of privacy when he vetoed the General Assembly's attempt to publish the names of welfare recipients, he considered himself a Cold War warrior and was a strong anti-Communist. Because of the fervor raised with the hunt for Communists in the United States during the era of Joseph McCarthy, whom Fine supported at the time, the Communist Party was outlawed and Fine required all state workers, including teachers in state supported colleges, to each sign a loyalty oath. In his farewell address, Fine expressed the fear of many Americans who firmly believed that a surprise Russian nuclear attack and war with the Soviet Union was a real possibility.

During the second half of his administration, Fine signed into law a uniform child adoption law, prison reform, and he established the Governor's Commission on Race Relations, a cross-section of respected civic leaders to work with local communities to end discrimination. At the same time, he opened up the State Police to African Americans and ended segregation in the state divisions of the National Guard. Fine initiated the construction of the State Vocational Rehabilitation Center at Johnstown, of which the dedication would be left to the next governor, George Leader. Other rehabilitation centers around the state were established to retrain injured workers. The governor also sought revisions in the state constitution, but Pennsylvanians voted down the idea and would not be ready for such a change until 1968.

Fine was the first Pennsylvania governor to have his inauguration televised, but television would also prove to cut both ways. During the National Republican Convention in July 1952, Fine led the Pennsylvania delegation. Privately, Fine supported General Douglas McArthur for president, but a group within his own delegation favored Senator Robert Taft. Fine requested time from the chair of the convention to caucus his delegation before casting votes, which would normally be granted as a floor courtesy to a state delegation. The chair reportedly reneged on the request, which made Fine appear indecisive to television viewers. Further, Fine was snubbed by the convention leadership when he sought to cast Pennsylvania's vote to put Dwight Eisenhower over the top as the party's nominee. Again, the discourtesy made the governor appear foolish to viewers. This incident hurt Fine's public image and overshadowed his accomplishments as governor.

Fine faced great challenges in a postwar economy, political enemies within his own party, negative headlines from the news media, and a booming population, but despite overwhelming opposition in some instances, his administration reached many noteworthy goals that he set. It was also during Fine's term of office that Dr. Jonas Salk, who was working at the University of Pittsburgh, succeeded in finding a vaccine for polio, which had crippled thousands of Pennsylvanians, as well as people around the world. Philadelphia was reorganized under a new charter and the nation's first commercial nuclear generating plant became operational in 1954 in Shippingport, Beaver County.

Following his term of office, Fine returned to the practice of law and lived on a farm in Loyalville, Luzerne County. He also partnered with his brother-in-law in coal stripping and construction. In 1957, he made an unsuccessful bid to return to the bench on the Common Pleas Court of Luzerne County. John S. Fine died on May 21, 1978, and is buried in Oak Lawn Cemetery in Nanticoke, Luzerne County.

Subject File

1951-1955

Carton 6, Compacts-Interstate" folder

The folder contains correspondence and documents

• Correspondence: Letters pertain to the Oil and Gas Interstate Compact, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission and the Delaware River Port Authority.
• Documents: "Agreement to Extend the Interstate Compact to Conserve Oil and Gas; Turnpike Compact between the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Turnpike Commissions.

Carton 6, "Cook Forest, 1953" folder

The folder features the correspondence of Lawrence with Secretary of Forests and Waters Samuel S. Lewis and conservationist John M. Phillips regarding timber cutting in Cook Forest.

Carton 9, "Delaware River Crossing, 1952-1954 (10 folders)

The folders under this heading are classified as general correspondence, 1952-53, bridge approach protest, 1953-54, Joseph Costello correspondence, deepening, 1953-1954 and Delaware River Port Authority (New Jersey), 1952-1954. The folders contain the following:

• General correspondence, 1952-53. Fine corresponds with New Jersey Governor Alfred E. Driscoll, Philadelphia Mayor Joseph S. Clark Jr., and Secretary of the Navy Dan A. Kimball about creating new Delaware River bridges or tunnels. "Report of the Delaware River Joint Commission of Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the Legislatures of Pennsylvania and the State of New Jersey on an Additional Crossing of the Delaware River South of the Present Philadelphia-Camden Bridge, March 14, 1957;" There is also a map issued by the New Jersey State Highway Dept.: "Camden-Philadelphia Area Showing Existing Road System and Proposed Future Highways."
• Bridge approach protest, 1953-1954. Here are letters and petitions from citizens of Pennsylvania and New Jersey who object to the location of the proposed new bridge.
• Joseph Costello correspondence. Letters with state officials and the public concerning proposed bridge. Costello explains that Governors Fine and Driscoll decided on the final location of the bridge.
• Deepening [of the Delaware] 1953-1954. Publications: Delaware River Between Philadelphia Pa and Trenton NJ and Philadelphia to the Sea. Letter from the [US} Secretary of the Navy. (Washington, DC, Government Printing Office, 1954); "Sketch Showing Proposed Method of Open Ditch Construction For Tunneling Delaware River," Gerald H. Turnillo, Engineer, April 12, 1952.
• Delaware River Port Authority (New Jersey), 1952-54. Reports are available for 1952 and 1953. There are also meeting minutes of the Authority for September 24 and October 22, 1952.

Carton 11, "Game Commission, 1952-1953" folder

Because of a drought and consequent forest fire threat, Governor Fine banned all hunting and fishing in the Commonwealth on October 30, 1952. The ban was lifted in November 1952. The following are examples of what this folder has:

• Correspondence for and against the ban during the fall of 1952 and 1953. Weather conditions were dry in autumn of 1953 but the hunting season was not postponed.
• Copies of proclamations by Governor Fine declaring beginning and end of ban on hunting in 1952.

Carton 11, "Game Season, A-Z" folder

This folder has governor's proclamations opening the hunting season, Game Commission press releases and correspondence of the governor, the commission and the public about the game season.

Carton 16, "Governor's 1st Commonwealth Fuel Conference April 26, 1954" (2 folders).

Governor Fine calls a conference to discuss how the Commonwealth's coal industry can compete with foreign oil in the American marketplace. In these folders are found:

• Correspondence with other governors and with coal company executives
• Call for conference
• Agenda and resolutions of the conference
• Proceedings of the conference
• Program of the conference
• Introductory remarks made by Governor Fine
• News clippings

Carton 16, "Anthracite Institute, 1954" folder

• Publication: Manual of Statistical Information (Wilkes-Barre: Anthracite Institute, c. 1954)

Carton 18, "Howard Nursery Abandonment by Forests and Waters, 1953" folder

The folder has news clipping about the closing of the tree nursery at Mount Eagle in Centre County by the Pennsylvania Dept. of Forests and Waters.

Carton 18 , "Independence Hall Mall, 1953-54" folder

A plan to eliminate buildings in and around Independence Hall and especially on Market Street in Philadelphia caused controversy as protest letters poured into the Dept. of Forests and Waters.

Carton 26, "Karpenki Quarry, Langhorne, Bucks Co. 1953-1954" folder

Letters from citizens contend that mine blasting damages nearby homes and businesses.

Carton 30, "New Jersey Zinc Company Protests re Water Shortage" folder

Letters to and from citizens of Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County allege New Jersey Zinc Company is depriving their community of water. There is no correspondence from the company.

Carton 30, "Northeast Philadelphia Airport, 1953" folder

The folder contains letters from the public protesting a proposal by the U.S. Air Force to use the airport as a reserve training basis. Citizens are worried about potential noise pollution.

Carton 32, "Presque Isle Peninsula, 1953-54" folder

The correspondence deals with efforts to preserve Presque Isle and the Port of Erie.

Carton 36, "St. Lawrence Seaway, 1951-54" folder

Fine was opposed to federal legislation approving the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Others were against it too. In this folder are found items such as:

• Correspondence from citizens and congressme.
• Petitions from citizens and industrialists
• Transcripts of testimony by state officials before Congressional committees about the Seaway's effect on Pennsylvania business.

Carton 37, "Schuylkill Expressway Location, 1951-54" (4 folders)

The proposal to build the Schuylkill Expressway was unpopular among many Philadelphians who protested and suggested alternative routes in order to save Fairmount Park. The folder contains:

• Correspondence with the Dept. of Highways, the Fairmount Park Commission, conservationists and the general public.
• "Report to the Honorable John S. Fine Governor Commonwealth of Pennsylvania re Location of Schuylkill Expressway in the Vicinity of Fairmount Park-Zoological Gardens, City of Philadelphia" by Michael Baker Jr., n.d.
• Governor's Office press releases
• Citizen petitions against the expressway.

Carton 40, "Submerged Lands, Tideland Dispute, 1951-1953

The so-called "tidelands" dispute is whether the states or the federal government own the rights to natural resources such as oil or natural gas which may be found on American coastlines. The folder features correspondence, speeches, copies of federal legislation and reports.

• Correspondence with state and federal officials as well as members of Congress
• Speeches. "Submerged and Reclaimed Lands-Where We Are and Where Do We Go From Here?" by Maryland Attorney General Hall Hammond, October 26, 1951
• Legislation. Senate Bill 940-"to confirm and establish the title of the states to lands beneath navigable waters with state boundaries�" (1951); Senate Bill 3306-to provide for the development of the oil and gas reserves of the Continental Shelf adjacent to the shores of the United States�" (1952)
• Reports. "State Rights [to] Tidelands, Every State Has Submerged Lands: Report of the California Senate Interim Committee on Tidelands."

Carton 41, Turnpike Extension, 1952-1954 (5 folders)

Within the folders is correspondence from sportsmen's groups, conservationists, and the general public over expansion of the Pennsylvania Turnpike throughout the Commonwealth.

Carton 42, "Water Resources Committee, Incodel, 1951-54 (13 folders)

The folders contain several committee reports and correspondence with the Dept. of Forests and Waters and the governors of Delaware, New Jersey and New York. The letters pertain to creation of the Delaware River Basin Water Commission and efforts to prevent New York State from diverting water from the Delaware. There is also 1952 correspondence about the Black Moshannon Creek Strip Mine in Centre County.

General File

1951-55

Carton 1, "Agriculture, U.S." (2 folders)

The folders consist of correspondence and reports

• Correspondence. The letters discuss environmental threats such as drought, army worms, and leaf hopper plague and the reorganization of the Soil Conservation Service.
• Reports. "Survey Report, Delaware River Watershed: Program for Runoff and Water Flow Retardation and Soil Erosion Prevention, October 1950;" "Report on the Insect and Plant Disease Control Programs of the USDA, February 1, 1952;" "Report of the Chief of the Forest Service: Grazing on the National Forests, 1953."

Cartons 9 and 10, "Delaware River Joint Commission, 1951-1954" (10 folders)

These folders contain correspondence, the 1951 annual report, a 25th anniversary booklet and minutes of the Commission for 1951 and 1952.

Carton 10, Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, 1950-1954" folder

• Annual reports for the period 1950 through 1953 are available.
• "Delaware River Port Authority, 1950-51" folder
• A copy of the Delaware River Port Authority Compact of August 1951
• A copy of New Jersey Senate Bill no. 340 permitting state to join Delaware River Joint Commission, March 30, 1950
• A copy of Pennsylvania House Bill no 1306 and Senate Bill 592 authorizing the Commonwealth to join Delaware River Joint Commission, August 1951.

Carton 13, "Forests and Waters, Dept. of, 1951-1954" folder

This folder is extremely rich in correspondence pertaining to the environment and Fine's conservation views. The correspondence is mainly between Fine and the Secretaries of Forests and Waters M. F. Dramel and S.S. Lewis. Topics mentioned include the following

• Strip coal mining in state forests
• Forest fires
• Bendigo Park, Elk County
• Crooked Creek Reservoir, Armstrong County
• First Fork Sinnemahoning Creek Reservoir, Cameron County
• Scott's Run Dam Project, French Creek, Crawford County
• Presque Isle, Erie County
• Schuylkill River
• Flood control

In addition, there are some letters about leasing of state game lands to private companies to drill for oil and gas. Like his predecessor Governor James Duff, Governor Fine is anxious to reconcile conservation policy with commercial exploitation of state game lands. For instance, in a letter from H. Albert Lehrman to Duncan C. McCallum of November 8, 1951, Lehrman urges Fine not to make the mistake that Duff made. He says "under the Duff administration time and money was spent in advertising lease of mineral, oil, and gas rights and at a later date the Governor refused to approve the actual leasing on the basis of conservation policy." This caused the Duff administration bad publicity among industrialists says Lehrman. Within this folder are lists of gas and oil leases in effect in the Commonwealth as of March 3, 1952.

Carton 20, "Highways, Dept. of, 1951-1954" folder

• A memo dated November 26, 1951 written by C. H. Bukius addresses coal removal along Route 515 in Luzerne County by the Hudson Coal Company.

Carton 21, "Interstate Oil Compact Commission, 1951-1954 (4 folders)

These folders contain correspondence, minutes, annual and monthly reports as well as publications and surveys produced by the commission including Interstate Oil Compact Quarterly Bulletin volumes 10 and 11 (1951-52) and Compact Comments volumes 7-8 (1952-53). Also there are commission oil surveys for Illinois and Kentucky.

Carton 21, "Ingle-Interstate, 1951-1954" folder

The folder has correspondence about the Delaware River Basin and copies of speeches given by Internal Affairs Secretary William S. Livengood Jr. and Bureau of Geological Survey geologist S. H. Cathcart at a Mineral Industries meeting, May 3, 1950.

Carton 32, "Public Utilities Commission-Q, 1951-1954" folder

A Public Utilities Commission press release of October 5, 1951 announces that the commission has notified President Harry Truman that it is restricting natural gas use in Pennsylvania in compliance with the federal Defense Production Act.

Planning & Research Consultant Files

Robert J. O'Donnell research materials

1953-54

Carton 1, Folder 6

• Letter, Secretary Dept. of Commerce D. L. Corgan to O'Donnell, April 23, 1954 notes that Fine has approved an amendment to the Commonwealth's "production control plan for the Anthracite Industry."

Carton 1, Folder 7

• A copy of Saward's Journal: the Weekly Coal Trade Newspaper vol. 37, no. 32, October 30, 1954.

Public Relations Specialist Files

William W. Wheaton

1951-1955

Carton 1, "Delaware River Bridge-Delaware River Port, 1951-1952" (2 folders)

These folders contain correspondence, press releases, speeches and publications. Examples of items of interest include:

• Press release, Governor's Office, New Jersey, August 1, 1952 about Governor Alfred E. Driscoll's endorsement of Governor Fine's choice for placement of the new bridge
• News clippings from Philadelphia and Camden papers and Life Magazine about the controversy surrounding the proposed Delaware River Bridge.
• Speech by Governor Fine, undated, "The Delaware River-Gateway to the World."

Carton 2, Highway Safety-Incodel Plan, 1951-1953" folder

The folder features material of interest to environmental historians including

• The publication, Incodel Items volume 3, February 1953
• Article, "Incodel, the Right Way" by Raymond Moley, Newsweek, December 17, 1951
• Memo, M. Vashti Barr to Charles J. Margiotti, February 2, 1951 concerning the "proposed Delaware River Basin Interstate Compact."
• Reports of the Pennsylvania Water Resource Committee for January and February 1953
• Governor's Office press release of June 7, 1951 concerning the Incodel Plan.

MG-207 George M. Leader Papers

1955-1959
504.5 cu. ft.

George Leader was born the third of seven children on January 17, 1918 to Guy A. Leader and the former Beulah Boyer. Like his Pennsylvania Dutch family that had farmed in York County for several generations, George grew up on his parent's poultry farm. He attended a one-room schoolhouse in present-day Leader Heights, then York High School. Leader continued his studies at Gettysburg College then went to the University of Pennsylvania for graduate work in philosophy, economics, and political science and had planned to be a teacher. In 1939 he married Mary Jane Strickler whom he had dated since high school.

During World War II Leader served as a Navy ensign aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Randolph that was assigned to the Pacific. When the war ended he returned to York County, purchased Willow Brook Farm and began a successful family-operated chicken hatchery. In the late 1940s Leader launched a political career as secretary then chair of the York County Democratic Committee. At the time his father was a state senator representing the 28th district. Leader was credited with building a credible Democratic organization that challenged the tradition of "machine" politics that had dominated York County. In 1950 the younger Leader won his father's state Senate seat when Guy Leader decided to retire.

In 1952 Leader ran for state treasurer. Though he lost to Republican Weldon Heyburn, Leader proved an avid campaigner who earned statewide name recognition. Shortly thereafter he launched a bid for the1954 gubernatorial contest. It was an election that many politicos-including prominent Philadelphia Mayor and fellow Democrat Joseph Clark-thought could not be won by a Democratic candidate.

As in his state treasurer's race, Leader campaigned vigorously for the governorship and was among pioneering candidates who utilized media advertising and professional pollsters. Among his major themes were state aid for job creation, an end to one-party control in Harrisburg, and a progressive system of taxation to cure a growing state budget deficit. With the backing of the state's Democratic Party and with agrarian and labor support, Leader and his lieutenant governor candidate, Roy Furman, defeated John Fine's Lieutenant Governor Lloyd Wood by 280,000 votes. His win was an upset especially since the GOP had a voter registration edge of nearly one million. Leader was the second youngest person yet elected to the post (Robert E. Pattison, 1883-1887 and 1891-1895, was thirty-three when he assumed his first term). He took office on January 18, 1955; the second Democrat to that point in the twentieth century to hold the post.

Significant issues facing the Leader Administration included the economy and an insolvent state budget. While post World War II economic growth raised the standard of living for most Pennsylvanians, by the 1950s statewide unemployment once again crept upward. By 1958 it reached 10 percent, among the highest of any state. Communities that were dependent upon single industries-such as coal and steel-saw unemployment rates of 15 percent or more. Leader was critical of the fact that the Commonwealth had no substantive policy to attract and retain new and diverse industries. In response his administration enacted the Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority (PIDA) in 1956. A fixture of economic development policy to the present day, PIDA buttressed the work of regional industrial development authorities by providing state financing to private enterprises as an incentive to locate in distressed communities. In its first thirty months the program attracted seventy-one new or expanded business facilities and 12,000 new jobs. By 1980 the program allocated a half-billion dollars to over 1,300 new or expanded businesses across the state. PIDA also served as a model for federal Appalachian economic development policy that culminated in the creation of the Appalachian Regional Commission in 1965.

Leader inherited a $75 million budget deficit from John Fine and, along with it, the public's dislike of Fine's 1 percent sales tax. To ensure the Commonwealth's solvency Leader proposed an income tax designed to place a greater onus on higher incomes and investment returns. He found slim support for the measure in the Democratic House of Representatives and vehement opposition in the Republican-controlled Senate. After a seventeen-month stalemate Leader was forced to abandon his proposal and increased the sales tax to 3 percent, a move that displeased the public.

Despite this setback Leader pressed forward with an aggressive agenda. He placed over ten thousand jobs in the civil service system to insulate them from patronage and to professionalize the day-to-day affairs of government. In a highly publicized campaign Leader set out to reform state mental hospitals by reducing overcrowding and replacing "warehousing" of the mentally ill with professional treatment programs. Leader also provided state support for the education of children with disabilities, and established a program to expand the state park system.

Ending a twenty-year legislative debate on what role-if any-the state should play in civil rights, Leader signed legislation creating the Fair Employment Practices Council to police employment discrimination. And, when a black family encountered hostility, threats, and violence for moving into predominantly white suburban Levittown, Bucks County, Leader responded by assigning the State Police to keep peace and voicing support for the family to live as they chose. He also ordered the Commonwealth's attorney general to prosecute those who had discriminated against Bill and Daisy Myers.

In the era of Sputnik and the Cold War, Leader expanded state aid to school districts and to the fourteen state-owned colleges and increased teacher's salaries by 20 percent. Besides increasing workers' and unemployment compensation payments, in 1958 he opened the Department of Labor and Industry's Vocational Rehabilitation Center in Johnstown. Later known as the Hiram G. Andrew's Center, it was the only facility of its kind in the nation to provide rehabilitation and job training to people with disabilities. And, for the first time, the state regulated the discharge of radioactive water from nuclear reactors.

These accomplishments came despite the fact that the state House of Representatives joined the Senate and turned decidedly Republican during the second-half of his term. Moreover, Leader endured and, by most measures, overcame criticism that he was too young and inexperienced for the task of governing such a large and diverse state though he did suffer another political setback: in 1958 he waged and lost a campaign for U.S. Senate against then Sixth District Congressman Hugh Scott. Leaving Harrisburg in early 1959 Leader bowed out of public service, became a mortgage banker, and established Leader Nursing Homes, Inc. He remains active in public affairs, served as a delegate to Democratic National Conventions, supports various candidates and positions on political issues, and maintain associations with prominent public figures.

In the 1980s and 1990s Governor Leader and his family established Country Meadows and Providence Place Retirement Communities. He spearheads numerous community and philanthropic initiatives, lectures on issues ranging from wellness to public education, and completed a book of inspirational poetry in 2001. George Leader resides in Hummelstown with his wife Mary Jane. He has three sons, Michael, Frederick, and David; one daughter, Jane Ellen, and eleven grandchildren.

General File

1955-1959

Carton 4

There is correspondence with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission concerning fisheries. In folder 4/4

Carton 11

Publication: Why Soil Conservation: A Look into the Future by the National Association of Soil Conservation Districts (League City, TX: c. 1957)

Carton 17

The activities of the Delaware River Basin Coordinating Committee (also known as the Delaware River Basin Advisory Committee, Delaware River Basin Research Inc and as the Delaware River Basin Survey Committee) are represented by minutes, a press release, a survey and a flyer.

• Minutes: Delaware River Basin Advisory Committee, August, Sept. October 1956; Delaware River Basin Research Inc., April 1957; Delaware Basin Survey Committee, Feb. April, August, November 1957.
• Press release: Delaware Valley Protective Association, February 19, 1958 re dirt fill-in of canal in Theodore Roosevelt State Park.
• Survey: "Delaware River Survey, 1958 Fiscal Requirements and Budget Problem."
• " Flyer: "Delaware River Port Cruise in Observance of National Maritime Day, Tuesday, May 22, 1956." The trip is sponsored by a number of maritime groups for the purpose of lobbying support for federal funds to dredge and deepen channel in the Delaware.

Carton 18, Delaware River Toll Bridge Commission, 1955-1958

• Annual Reports, 1955-58. In folder 18/1.
• Minutes, Sept. 27, 1956-Feb. 20, 1958. In folders 18/1-15

Carton 19, Delaware River Toll Bridge Commission, 1955-1958

• Minutes, March 27-Dec. 18, 1958. In folders 19/1-7.

Carton 19, Delaware River Port Authority, 1955-1958

• Reports,1953-1957 (2 folders)
• By-Laws, Statutes, Pamphlets, 1955-1958

Carton 24, "Report of Committee on Disaster Survey, Erie County, Pennsylvania, Sept. 21, 1956.", folder 8

Because of crop damage due to excessive rain, Erie County qualifies as production disaster area.

Carton 25

Correspondence, reports, and articles concerning the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, 1955-1959 are within this carton.

• Correspondence: Letter, William Voigt Jr. to Leader, November 19, 1958 in which Voigt compares Leader to conservationist Gifford Pinchot; Memo, Thomas Hodges to Leader, Dec. 11, 1955 re pollution of Spring Creek near Bellefonte, Centre County.
• Press releases: Nov. 22, 1955 release announces that winter fishing is allowed everywhere except for Promised Lake whose fish population needs protection; Jan. 13, 1957 release says 93,000 yearling trout to be donated to Pennsylvania from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to replace fish killed in pollution of Spring Creek.
• Articles: Series of articles about the Fish Commission written by Executive Director William Voigt Jr.

Carton 26

Information about the Dept. of Forests and Waters, 1955-58 is found within four folders in this carton.

• Correspondence: Memo, Maurice K. Goddard to Leader, March 1, 1955 re department purchase of the Tobyhanna Military Reservation; T. T. Darlington to Pat Lieb, Oct. 25, 1956 re stream clearance projects in Luzerne County; Memo, John S. Rice to David V. Randall, Dec. 11, 1956 re recovery of coal from impounded culm basins in the Schuylkill River; Memo, Wanda P. Chocallo to David V. Randall, June 27, 1957 re acquisition of Manayunk stretch of Schuylkill River by the city of Philadelphia. In folders 26/11, 12, and 13.
• Contracts: Contracts for flood protection work of Lackawaxen River, Wayne County, Delaware River shoreline, Bucks County, Lehigh River, Carbon County and Middle Beaver River, Beaver County. In folder 26/13.
• Reports: "Preliminary Report, Delaware River Basin Study-Agriculture in the Delaware River Basin, Part A: Introductory Perspective for Agriculture, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, March 1958; "Draft, Use and Management of Land and Cover Resources of the Delaware River, Part C: Forestry," U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Sept. 1958. In folder 26/14
• Press releases: Media bulletins covering topics such as sale of state forest timber, flood damage in Cook Forest State Park, and new state parks etc. In folders 26/11-26/14.
• Map: Tobyhanna Military Reservation, Tobyhanna, Monroe County, Jan. 1918.

Carton 27

• There is 1955 correspondence of Leader with the Friends of the Perkiomen Valley, Philadelphia mayor Richardson Dilworth, Horace E. Godshall and others re Perkiomen Creek. In folder 27/8.

Carton 28, Game Commission, 1955-59

• Correspondence: Numerous memos and letters concerning leasing of state game land for oil and gas exploration. Counties discussed are Crawford, Erie, Fayette, Jefferson, Lycoming, Pike, Somerset, and Westmoreland. In folders 28/1-3.
• Publications: 1955-1956 Yearbook and Report of the Fourteenth Annual Convention of the American Association for Conservation Information, May 15-18, 1955. In folder 28/3; Pennsylvania's Wildlife Conservation History (Harrisburg: Pennsylvania Game Commission, 1958). In folder 28/3.
• Maps: "State Game Lands No. 101, Erie and Crawford Counties, 1958; "State Game Lands 111, Somerset County, 1958. In folder 28/3.
• Photos: 4 photographs of three-legged deer with one of her fawns. In folder 28/1.

Carton 33

This carton contains documentation regarding the Great Lakes Commission, 1956-58. In folder 33/2.

• Correspondence includes discussion of the St. Lawrence Seaway, 1958
• Minutes of the commission, June 3 and Nov. 11, 1958
• Reports: "Important Current Developments on the Great Lakes, May 14, 1957."
• Publications: Great Lakes Newsletter vols. 1 and 2, 1957-1958; Great Lakes Overseas Commerce (Ann Arbor: Great Lakes Commission, c. 1958).

Carton 35

Correspondence, reports and press releases of the Dept. of Health, 1955-1959 in 4 folders.

• Correspondence: Letter: John W. Gittings to David V. Randall April 12, 1955 re mine drainage by independent coal operators. In folder 35/17; Letter, Berwyn F. Mattison to David V. Randall, Feb. 23, 1956 re federal legislation on water pollution. In folder 35/18; Letter, C. L. Wilbar Jr. to Lewis L. Strauss, May 22, 1958 re Atomic Energy Commission assistance to the Commonwealth in preventing discharge of radioactive waste into state's waterways. In folder 35/20.
• Reports: "Preliminary Report of Investigation of Leechburg Mining Co., Leechburg, Pennsylvania c. 1957." Department says burning culm pile is nuisance rather than health hazard.
• Press releases: Governor's Office, Nov. 18, 1958, Leader announces "grants-in-aid" to 127 municipalities for cost of sewage treatment plants. In folder 35/20; Dept. of Health, August 7, 1958, links acid mine drainage to death of fish in the Susquehanna River. In folder 35/20.

Carton 40, Interstate Commission on the Delaware River Basin, 1957

• Correspondence: Letter, James E. Allen to Leader, Nov. 29, 1954 re environmental issues. In folder 40/6.
• Publication: Report on the Utilization of the Waters of the Delaware River Basin. Malcolm Pirnie, Engineers and Albright and Friel Inc., Consulting Engineers, Sept. 1956. In folder 40/6.

Carton 40, Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, 1955-58

• Correspondence: Between Leader and Maryland governor Theodore M. McKeldin concerning a meeting of lawmakers from the Potomac River Basin states, Jan.-Feb., 1957; Letter, Ellis S. Tindale to Leader, Oct. 24, 1957 re prevention of water pollution.. In folder 40/6.
• Publication: A Symposium on Supplemental Irrigation (Wash. DC: Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, 1956). In folder 40/6.

Carton 52, Mines and Minerals, Dept. of, 1955-1959

• Correspondence: Leader with Dept. of Health, Mines and Minerals, State Police in 1955 re culm bank fire in Natalie, Northumberland County, underground fire in Baldwin, Allegheny County and mine fire in Carbondale, Lackawanna County: Letter, W. J. Clements to Leader Jan. 18, 1955 re Pennsylvania Anthracite Mine Drainage Study Commission; Letter, Joseph T. Kennedy to Leader, March 17, 1955 discussing Bituminous Coal Open Pit Mining Conservation Act of May 31, 1945; Letter, Joseph T. Kennedy to Leader, June 13, 1955 concerning surface subsistence problem in Pittston, Luzerne County. All in folder 52/13. Correspondence of 1956 includes letter, George Leader to Nicholas Burdash, Sept. 20, 1956 concerning Hurricane Diane flooding of Hazelton Shaft Colliery operated by the Lehigh Valley Coal Co. Letter, Ralph A. Lambert to Joseph T. Kennedy, August 15, 1956 re mine subsistence at Coaldale, Schuylkill County; Letter, Joseph T. Kennedy to David V. Randall, August 27, 1956 about state funds to fight culm bank fire in Cass Twp., Schuylkill County. All in folder 52/14. Correspondence of 1957 includes Letter, Joseph T. Kennedy to Leader, Feb. 6 and 8, 1957 re refuse bank fire in Exeter, Luzerne County. Letter, Daniel H. Connelly to Joseph T. Kennedy, Feb. 11, 1957 re strip mine blasting complaints in Forty Fort Borough, Luzerne County. Both in folder 52/15; Letter, Joseph T. Kennedy to Leader, Sept. 17, 1957 re report on "mine sealing projects conducted on the west branch of the Susquehanna River during this Administration;" Letter, Kennedy to Leader, Oct. 3, 1957 re mine explosion in Marianna, Washington County. Both in folder 52/16.
• Reports: "Report of air pollution, Natalie, Pennsylvania, PA. Dept. of Health, Bureau of Industrial Hygiene, 1955;" In folder 52/13; "Report of Commission of Mine Inspectors Appointed to Make Investigation into Flood Situation at Hazelton Shaft Colliery of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company," c. 1955. In folder 52/14; "Report of Strip Coal Mining Industry in the Bituminous Regions of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, May 31, 1945-February 29, 1956." In folder 52/14; "Final Report of the Pennsylvania Anthracite Mine Drainage Study Commission to George M. Leader, Governor of Pennsylvania and the General Assembly, January 1955 in compliance with Act no. 250 Approved July 29, 1953." In folder 52/13. "A Report Covering Strip Mines Which May Be Converted Into Lakes For Recreational Purposes." Included in letter, Kennedy to Leader, Oct. 5, 1955. In folder 52/13.
• Press releases: Governor's Office, March 14, 1955, Leader says Natalie coal culm fire is nuisance. In folder 52/13; Governor's Office, Feb. 24, 1956, Leader approves deal with federal government to disperse funds for anthracite mine drainage. In folder 52/14; Governor's Office, March 17, 1956, Leader releases emergency funds for control of bank fire along US Route 309 south of Tamaqua in Schuylkill County. In folder 52/14; Governor's Office, April 6, 1956, Leader signs bill regulating all garbage and refuse dumps in Pennsylvania coal mining areas. In folder 52/14.
• Maps: "The Hudson Coal Company Powderly Colliery, Top, Bottom and Third Beds, Feb. 1954." In folder 52/13; "Map No. 1, Bituminous Map Outlining the State Mine Inspection Districts and Showing Locations of Deep Mine Operations, Sept. 1, 1954." In folder 52/16; "Map No. 2, "Bituminous Map Outlining the State Mine Inspection Districts, Sept. 1, 1957."

Carton 60

• Folders 60/1 to 60/6 contain correspondence of 1958 between Leader and the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs concerning the Big Spring Co. Inc. of Cambia County. In folder 60/13 there is a letter from Joseph T. Kennedy to John D. Paul, May 24, and 31, 1956 regarding underground work in preparation for shushing of mine voids underlying the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Lackawanna County.

Carton 80

• Correspondence of the Izaak Walton League of America for 1956 is about the Game Commission's purchase of land in Venango County. The organization's 1957 correspondence is concerned with the Big Spring Co. Inc. controversy. In folder 80/7

Subject File

1955-1959

Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent or corporate body

Carton 5

• A certified photo copy of counterpart of An Agreement to Extend the Interstate Compact to Conserve Oil and Gas c. 1956. In folder labeled "Compacts-Interstate."

Carton 7

• "Delaware Canal" is the subject of correspondence from 1959 between Leader and the general public about preserving the Delaware Canal. In "Delaware Canal" folder
• "Delaware River Bridge." The growth of the Philadelphia-Camden metropolitan area after World War Two created the need for a new bridge across the Delaware. In this folder are found correspondence, a report and copy of legislation pertaining to the controversial bridge.
• Correspondence with the Dept. of Highways, Burlington County (NJ) Bridge Commission, Delaware River Port Authority and the Joint Executive Committee for Improvement and Development of the Philadelphia Port Authority.
• "Report of the Delaware River Port Authority of Pennsylvania to the Legislatures of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the State of New Jersey on an Additional Vehicular Crossing of the Delaware River from Northeast Philadelphia to New Jersey, August 15, 1955."
• Copies of Senate Bill 528, US Congress Session of 1955 authorizing the Delaware River Port Authority to build a new bridge.

Carton 7, "Delaware River Deepening" is the label given to five folders with the following items:

• Correspondence chiefly with the Dept. of Forests and Waters; Joint Executive Committee for the Improvement & Development of the Philadelphia Port Authority; with Congressmen; with New Jersey governor Robert B. Meyner; with the US Army Corps of Engineers, and the Delaware River Port Authority. There are also letters and petitions from the general public. In Delaware River Deepening folders1-3 and Delaware Deepening Gov. Leader's file folders 1 and 2.
• Testimony transcripts of statements by Leader and other state officials before Congressional committees. In Delaware River Deepening folders 1 and 2 and Delaware River Deepening Gov. Leader's file folder 1.
• Reports: US Army Corps of Engineers, Philadelphia District, "Preliminary Procedural Plan for the Delaware River Basin Resource Survey Report," April 2, 1956. In Delaware River Deepening folder 1; "Depths to be created in Seaports, Entrance Channels, and Berths: A Report to the Association of Navigation Congresses, Brussels, Belgium April 3, 1956." In Delaware River Deepening Gov. Leader's file folder 2.
• Publications: Marine News, November 1954 issue is dedicated to the Delaware River. There are nine articles including one by former governor John S. Fine. In Delaware River Deepening Gov. Leader's file folder 2. The Case for a Deeper Delaware-Primer on a Great Seaport. Published by the Greater Philadelphia-Delaware-New Jersey Council c. 1955. In Delaware River Deepening folder 2; A New Report: The Delaware Port Area, One of the World's Great Estuarial Harbors. Published by the Joint Executive Committee for the Improvement and Development of the Philadelphia Port Area. In Delaware River deepening folder 3; John Franklin Lent, Harbors of Delaware River, undated. In Delaware River Deepening folder 2.
• Maps: "Industrial Map, Delaware River District, Wilmington to Trenton," November 1918, revised June 1, 1951 by the Engineering Dept., Pennsylvania Railroad. In Delaware River Deepening Gov. Leader's file folder 2; "The Delaware River Port, Trenton to the Sea," by the Greater Philadelphia-Delaware-South Jersey Council. In Delaware River Deepening folder 2.

Carton 7, "Delaware River Advisory Committee Correspondence, A-Z, 1955-1958" (3 folders)

Correspondence of the Delaware River Basin Advisory Committee, the Interstate Commission on the Delaware River Basin, Members of Congress, New York governor Averell Harriman and the Dept. of Forests and Waters.

Carton 7, "Delaware River Evaluation Meeting, July 10, 1958" folder.

Correspondence of the Delaware River Basin Advisory Committee and Second Annual Report of the Committee, April 1957 to March 1958.

Carton 7, "Delaware River Evaluation Survey Release" folder.

Some items of interest include a Governor's Office press release of February 16, 1956 announcing the formation of the Delaware River Basin Survey Commission; a speech by Leader before the Senate Subcommittee on Public Works, May 2, 1956; "Draft Outline of Proposal for Review of Status of Comprehensive Development of the Water Resources of the Delaware River Basin," by George M. Leader, undated.

Carton 7, "Delaware County Expressway, 1956-1958" (10 folders)

Correspondence, signed petitions, and aerial black and white photos of Delaware County scenes pertaining to construction of freeway. In folder labeled "Delaware County Expressway."

Carton 14, "Flood Insurance, Governor's Flood Insurance Committee, 1957" folder

• Correspondence with Dept. of Forests and Waters, members of Congress and members of the Governor's Flood Committee.
• Report: Governor's Flood Committee, 2nd Report, April 17, 1956
• Speech: Governor George M. Leader at the Governor's Flood Committee's first meeting, April 5, 1956.
• Press releases: Governors Office, Nov. 10, 1955 announces formation of Governor's Flood Committee; Governor's Office, May 3, 1957 cites Leader telegram to Senator Joseph S. Clark and Pennsylvania delegates in the House of Representative urging vote in favor of flood insurance appropriation.
• Publication: the May 7, 1957 issue of the Congressional Record quotes Leader telegram to Clark amid debate over federal flood insurance legislation.

Carton 14, Floods 1955-58 (12 folders)

Folders are labeled as follows: Press Releases, Booklets etc. 1955; American Red Cross, 1955; Correspondence, A-Z, 1955 (7 folders); Releases and correspondence 1956; Releases and correspondence, 1957; releases and correspondence, 1958. Much of eastern Pennsylvania was flooded in 1955 when Hurricanes Connie and Diane caused many creeks and rivers to overflow. Below are some examples of what is in this sub-series.

• Report, "List of Flood Victims and Next of Kin by County, Sept. 2, 1955. In Correspondence, 1955 folder A-C.
• A Pictorial Report of Flood Damage to Highways and Bridges in Eastern Pennsylvania August 1955: Photos Taken on Inspection Trips of Governor George M. Leader by the Photographic Unit of the Pennsylvania Dept. of Highways. The publication contains 109 numbered black and white photographs. There is also a list of captions for most flood photos. In Highways folder.
• Report: "Eastern States Floods, 1955-the Red Cross Story." The report includes photographs of Red Cross workers and flood victims, damaged and rehabilitated homes and businesses and flood scenes. In American Red Cross folder.

Carton 14

"Fuels Industry, 1955-1958" is represented in 5 folders of correspondence and 1 folder of press releases, pamphlets, articles and books. Minutes, newspaper clippings and copies of legislation are also found in the carton.

• Correspondence: Discourse is mainly with the Dept. of Mines and Minerals, members of Congress, coal mine operators, coal companies such as Glen Alden Coal Company, fuel dealers and labor union representatives. An example of correspondence is a letter in folder 3. Letter, R. T. Laing to Leader, April 5, 1955 announces the formation of the Pennsylvania Fuel and Transportation Conference to promote passage of federal legislation re the National Gas Act. In Fuels Industries Correspondence folder 3.
• Minutes: The minutes of the Coal Research Board of the Dept. of Mines and Minerals are available for the dates July 30, August 27, Sept. 11, Sept. 27 and Oct. 23, 1956. In Fuels Industry Correspondence folder 3.
• Press releases. An example of press release is one from the Governor's Office, February 1956. Leader says the Commonwealth reached an agreement with the Eisenhower administration over how to disperse funding for anthracite mine drainage cleanup. In Fuels Industries Releases, Pamphlets, Books etc. folder 1.
• Publications: An interesting example of publications is one issued by a Pennsylvania mining association. Questions and Answers on Open Pit or Strip Mining of Bituminous Coal. (Phillipsburg, PA: Central Pennsylvania Open Pit Mining Association, c. 1954). In Fuels Industries Releases, Pamphlets, Books etc. folder 1.
• Newspaper clippings: Here is a sample of clippings: "Federal Agency Refuses to Aid Mine Drainage," Scranton Times, December 10, 1954. In Fuels Industry Correspondence folder 3.
• Legislation: H.R.10228, "A Bill to Provide for Temporary Measures of Flood Control and Anthracite Mine Drainage�" In Fuels Industry Correspondence folder 3.

Carton 45, Saint Lawrence Seaway, 1957-1958 (1 folder)

• Correspondence: Leader with the City of Erie, the Great Lakes Commission and members of Congress.
• Press releases: Governor's Office, Oct. 21, 1957, June 10, 1958; Port Commission, Jan. 29, 1958
• Publication: New York Times, Sunday, June 29, 1958, section 11, special section about the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Carton 51, Water Conservation, Stream Purification & Flood Control, 1955-1958

This subject consists of 21 folders labeled "Reports, Releases, 1955-1958," "U.S. Army, 1955-1958," General Correspondence A-Z," "Moosie Glendale Civic Association, A-7, 1957," "Kinzua Dam," "Wallpack Bend Dam & Reservoir, 1955-1958." In the description below, the content of the folders is identified by name of waterway and in cases of minor waterways by county as well. In addition the folders contain correspondence and reports generated mainly by the US Army Corps of Engineers.

Carton 51, "Reports, Releases, 1955-1958" folder:

• Reports: Dept. of Forests and Waters, Division of Flood Control, "Report of Flood Control Study of the Juniata River Basin, Pennsylvania, Nov. 1955." Includes 21 maps; Dept. of Forests and Waters, "Floods and Flood Damages, Susquehanna River Basin, October 1955;" Dept. of Forests and Waters, "Interim Report on Emergency Flood Control Work, June 7, 1957."
• Testimonials: Francis A. Pitkin before the House Committee on Governmental Organizations, Sept. 21, 1955; Harry G. Schad before the Senate Subcommittee on Public Works, May 2, 1956.
• Press releases: Governor's Office, 1955 to 1958 re water conservation and flood control.
• Publication: Clean Streams [a quarterly of the Sanitary Water Board, PA Dept. of Health] no. 34, October 1955.

Carton 51, "US Army, 1955-1958" folder:

• Allegheny River
• Beaver River
• Forty Fort Flood Protection Project
• Lake Erie
• Lehigh River
• Lycoming Creek, Lycoming County
• Mahoning River, Portage County, Ohio
• Ohio River Basin
• Potomac River Basin
• Schuylkill River
• Shenango River, Mercer County
• Susquehanna River
• Tunungwant Creek, Bradford County
• Wilkes-Barre Flood Control Levee
• "Report no. 5858, Preliminary Outline Report Establishing the Definitive Scope of an Economic Study of the Potomac River Basin, June 30, 1956" by Day & Zimmermann Inc. Engineers, Philadelphia.

Carton 51, General Correspondence

The General Correspondence is arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent or subject. The subjects are the various waterways of the Commonwealth and occasionally those of Ohio and New York State.

Carton 51, "A" Folder:

• Allegheny River
• Bald Eagle Creek, Centre County
• Brandywine Creek, Chester County
• Cowanesque River, Potter and Tioga Counties
• Delaware River
• French Creek, Venango County
• Lackawanna River
• Lackawaxen River, Wayne County
• Little Schuylkill River, Schuylkill and Carbon Counties
• Mill Creek, Mercer County
• Schuylkill River
• Wallpack Bend Dam, Pike County
• Letter of interest: W. L. Henning to David V. Randall, May 15, 1958 speaks of "a new concept in conservation. Conwanesque watershed is the largest in Pennsylvania and one of the largest in the U.S. It will serve as a valuable showcase for soil and water conservation practices and small dams for upstream flood prevention."

Carton 51, "B" Folder

• Bald Eagle Creek, Centre County
• Brandywine Creek, Chester County
• Brodhead Creek, Monroe county
• Chesapeake Bay
• Delaware River
• Fishing Creek, Columbia County
• Genesee River
• Lake Erie
• Lehigh River
• McMichaels Creek, Monroe County
• Ohio River
• Potomac River Basin
• Racket Brook, Carbon County
• Sambo Creek, Monroe County
• Schuylkill River
• Sinnemahoning Creek
• Susquehanna River
• Tioga River, Tioga County
• Report: "West Branch Susquehanna River and Tributaries," US Army Corps of Engineers, c. 1954. In General Correspondence Folder "B.

Carton 51, "C" Folder

• Brodhead Creek, Monroe County
• Clarion River
• Connoquenessing Creek, Butler County
• Fishing Creek, Columbia County
• Juniata River
• Kettle Creek, Clinton County
• Pine Creek, Clinton County
• Schuylkill River
• Shawnee Lake, Bedford County
• Sullivan Run, Butler County
• Susquehanna River
• Turtle Creek, Allegheny County
• Reports: "Galeton Borough's Flood Problem." Report includes 6 black and white photographs of Pine Creek, Clinton County
• "Watershed Work Plan for Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention, Cowanesque River Watershed, Tioga and Potter Counties, Pa., March 1958."

Carton 51, "D, E, F" Folder

• Barns Run, Bedford County
• Chester Creek, Delaware County
• Delaware River
• Forge Creek, Luzerne County
• Juniata River
• Lackawanna River
• Lehigh River
• Shaver Creek, Huntingdon County
• Wallback Bend Dam, Pike County
• Wallenpaupack Creek, Pike and Wayne Counties

Carton 51, "G-H," Folder

• Allegheny River
• Clarion River
• Juniata River
• Pennypack Creek, Philadelphia County
• Turtle Creek, Allegheny County

Carton 51, "I, J, K" Folder

• Delaware River
• Manatawny Creek, Montgomery County
• Paradise Creek, Monroe County
• Potomac River Basin
• Sterling Runes, Cameron County
• Susquehanna River

Carton 51, "L, M, N" Folder

• Allegheny River
• Bear Brook, Lackawanna County
• Brandywine Creek, Chester County
• Corbin Run, Centre County
• Delaware River
• Frankfort Creek, Philadelphia County
• Juniata River
• Lehigh River
• Little Schuylkill River, Berks, Carbon and Schuylkill Counties
• Roaring Brook, Lackawanna County
• Turtle Creek, Allegheny County
• Yellow Creek, Indiana County
• Wallpack Bend Dam, Pike County

Carton 51, "O, P, Q" Folder

• Ben's Creek, Somerset County
• Chesapeake Bay
• Clarion River
• Connoquenessing Creek, Butler County
• Delaware River
• Juniata River
• Laurel Hill Creek, Somerset County
• Ohio River Basin
• Pymatuning Creek, Mercer County
• Shenango River, Mercer County
• Sullivan Run, Butler County
• Wallpack Bend Dam, Pike County
• Yellow Creek, Indiana County

Carton 51, "R, S, T" Folder

• Brodhead Creek, Monroe County
• Clymer Dam, Chautauqua County, New York
• Disney Lake, Lancaster County
• Juniata River
• Lackawanna River
• Lake Erie
• Lehigh River
• Little Schuylkill River, Berks, Carbon and Schuylkill Counties
• Neshaminy Creek, Bucks County
• Pennypack Creek, Philadelphia County
• Schuylkill River
• Shenango River, Mercer County
• Sinnamahoning Creek
• Solomon Creek, Luzerne County
• Stafford Meadow Brook, Lackawanna County
• Sugar Notch Run, Luzerne County
• Sulphur Creek, Luzerne County
• Susquehanna River

Carton 52, Water Resources Correspondence cont.

Carton 52, "U-V" Folder

• Conneaut Creek, Crawford County
• Mahoning River, Portage County, Ohio
• "W-Z" Folder
• Allegheny River
• Chartiers Creek, Washington County
• Hull Creek, Lackawanna County
• Juniata River
• Lehigh River
• Ohio River
• Saint Lawrence Seaway
• Schuylkill River
• Susquehanna River
• Wallpack Bend Dam, Pike County

Carton 52, Moosie Glendale Civic Association, A-Z, 1957 Folder

• Lackawanna River
• Spring Brook Creek, Luzerne County

Carton 52, "Wallpack Bend Dam" Folder

The folder contains mainly correspondence with the Dept. of Forests and Waters, the Office of the Attorney General and the general public. There is also A Report to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Dept. of Forests and Waters on Wallpack Bend Dam and Reservoir on the Delaware River, Bushkill, Pennsylvania, September 1, 1955 by Albright and Friel Inc. Consulting Engineers, Philadelphia.

Carton 52, "Water Resource Conference, 1957" Folder

Beside routine state interoffice memos and correspondence, the folder has a copy of a speech by Leader at the First State Conference on the Commonwealth's Water Resource Problems, April 4, 1957. In addition, a copy of the conference's agenda or program is available.

Miscellaneous file

1955-1959
Largely unarranged

Carton 1

• US Army Engineer District, Pittsburgh, Office of the District Engineer, Specifications for Construction of Bradford Flood Project Unit 3 at Tanungwant Creek, Bradford, Pennsylvania" c. 1957. In folder 1/4
• 37 drawings and maps of Bradford Flood Project 3 at Tanungwant Creek, Bradford County. In folder 1/4
• Dept. of Forests and Waters, Exploratory Master Plan for McConnell's Mill State Park and Potential State Park in the Muddy Creek Valley, Lawrence and Butler Counties, Pennsylvania. In folder 1/11

Carton 2

• US Army Engineer District, Pittsburgh, Office of the District Engineer, Plan for Monongahela River Dam & Construction of Movable Crest," 1958.