Roger William Riis
A Register of His Papers in the Library of Congress
Prepared by Melinda K. Friend
Manuscript Division,
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
2007
Contact information:
http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html
Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Manuscript Division,
2007
Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms007103
Title: Roger William Riis Papers
Span Dates: 1903-1990
Bulk Dates: (bulk 1921-1952) ID No.: MSS75875 Creator:
Riis, Roger William, b.
1894 Extent: 3,500
items;
14 containers;
5.6 linear feet
Language: Collection material in
English
Repository:
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress,
Washington, D.C. Abstract: Author and editor.
Correspondence, diaries, journal, speeches, articles and other writings,
subject files, scrapbooks, printed matter, and photographs pertaining to Riis's
work as an author and editor. Subjects include consumer fraud, tobacco smoking,
the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Sherman Antitrust Act. Also
includes material pertaining to his service in the U. S. Navy during World War
I.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this
collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person
or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed
alphabetically therein.
Personal Names Baldwin,
Roger Nash, 1884-1981--Correspondence. Benton,
William, 1900-1973--Correspondence. Donner,
Robert, d. 1964--Correspondence. Ernst,
Morris Leopold, 1888---Correspondence. Foster,
Elizabeth Hipple Riis--Correspondence. Fredericks, Carlton--Correspondence. Hayes,
Arthur Garfield--Correspondence. Holmes,
John Haynes, 1879-1964--Correspondence. Moore,
Martha Riis--Correspondence. Owre, J.
Riis--Correspondence. Riis,
Jacob A. (Jacob August), 1849-1914--Correspondence. Riis,
Roger William, b. 1894. Rorty,
James, 1890-1973--Correspondence. Seldes,
George, 1890-1995--Correspondence. Wallace,
DeWitt, 1889-1981--Correspondence.
Organizations American
Civil Liberties Union. United
States. Navy--History--World War,
1914-1918. United
States. Sherman Act.
Subjects Antitrust law. Automobile repair
fraud. Cigarettes. Fraud. Reader's
digest. Smoking. Tobacco. World War, 1914-1918--Naval
operations, American.
Occupations Authors. Editors.
Provenance: The papers of Roger William Riis, author and editor, were given by J.
Riis Owre in 1977 and Martha Riis Moore from 1987 to 1991.
Processing History:The papers of Roger William Riis were arranged and described in 1999.
The finding aid was revised in 2007.
Transfers:Some photographs have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs
Division where they are identified as part of the Roger William Riis
Papers.
Copyright Status:The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Roger William
Riis is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17,
U.S.C.).
Preferred Citation:Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, Roger William Riis Papers, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Date |
Event |
1894, Mar. 15 |
Born, Richmond Hills, N.Y. |
1913 |
Attended the Hill School, Pottstown, Pa. |
1917 |
A. B., Williams College, Williamstown, Mass. Reporter, New York
Sun |
1917-1918 |
United States Naval Reserves |
1920 |
Associate editor,
American Legion Weekly |
1921-1922 |
Associate editor,
Collier's Weekly |
1921-1952 |
Contributor, magazine articles |
1922-1942 |
Free-lancer, public relations and publicity work for
corporations and social movements
|
1926 |
Published with Charles W. Bonner, Jr.,
Publicity: A Study of the Development of Industrial
News. New York: J. H. Sears & Co.
|
1926-19?? |
Member and Board of Directors, American Civil Liberties
Union
|
1941 |
Married Elizabeth Hipple |
1941-1945 |
Civilian advisor, Bureau of Aeronautics, United States
Navy
|
1942 |
Published with John Patric,
Repairmen Will Get You If You Don't Watch Out. New
York: Doubleday, Doran & Co.
|
1943 |
Honorary M. A., Williams College, Williamstown, Mass. |
1943-1952 |
Roving editor,
Reader's Digest |
1951 |
Published,
The Truth About Smoking. New York: Grosset &
Dunlap
|
1953, Jan. 23 |
Died, Wilton, Conn. |
The papers of Roger William Riis (1894-1953) span the years 1903-1990,
with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period 1921-1952. The papers are
arranged in four series,
Personal
File,
Writings
File,
Subject
File, and
Scrapbooks.
The
Personal
File, 1903-1990, contains Riis's correspondence with his family and
associates, servicemen who visited the Riis home during World War II, and
letters to the editor as well as a journal chronicling his articles and their
publication. The largest number of family correspondence was written to his
niece, Martha Elizabeth Riis (later Martha Riis Moore), from about 1929 to
1950. Letters after his death were exchanged mostly among Martha Riis Moore and
family members, including Elizabeth Hipple Riis Foster and Jacob Riis Owre,
known as "Riis." Noteworthy are letters written in 1903 and 1904 to Riis's
father, Jacob Augustus Riis, and a photograph dated 1905 of the elder Riis with
Theodore Roosevelt. Some of the letters written to Roger William Riis by
prominent persons were removed by the donor and replaced with photocopies.
The
Writings
File, 1916-1953, is comprised mostly of articles written by Riis for
magazines and includes fillers for magazines, pamphlets and booklets, poetry,
and speeches. Although a majority of the articles were written under Riis's
name, some were published under his pseudonym, Niel Hunter. In 1941, Riis's
began publishing a controversial series entitled "The Repairman Will Gyp You If
You Don't Watch Out" in the
Reader's Digest. The series criticized the unscrupulous
behavior of various types of repairmen including automobile mechanics and those
servicing watches and radios. Riis kept a scrapbook of the many articles,
advertisements, and letters to the editor that defended the repairmen. The
series was published in 1942 as the book
Repairmen Will Get You If You Don't Watch Out, coauthored
with John Patric. Riis also maintained scrapbooks of his articles and other
writings which can be found in the
Scrapbook
series.
The
Subject
File, 1912-1953, contains information on research topics and Riis's
involvement with various organizations. One of his early concerns related to
claims made by advertisers which led to his investigations of the Lever
Brothers Company and the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. His findings regarding
cigarettes and tobacco smoking prompted Riis to publish
The Truth About Smoking in 1951 and related articles found
in the
Writings
File. The American Civil Liberties Union file concerns the union's
defense of communists, its involvement with the National Labor Relations Board
regarding the Ford Motor Company, the report of the Dies Committee, and the
ouster of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn as a board member. Because Riis was the roving
editor for the
Reader's Digest, a file related to his work includes
reports and correspondence with various editors about his articles.
Scrapbooks, dated from 1920 to 1952, document Riis's
participation on a federal grand jury in the winter of 1941-1942 investigating
possible violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act, his service in the United
States Navy during World War I, a collection of clippings on various topics,
and family photographs.
Correspondents include Roger Nash Baldwin, William Benton, Robert
Donner, Morris Leopold Ernst, Carlton Fredericks, Arthur Garfield Hayes, John
Haynes Holmes, James Rorty, George Seldes, and DeWitt Wallace.
This collection is arranged in four series:
Container |
Series |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
BOX 1-3
|
|
|
Correspondence, diaries, a journal of articles, photographs, and
items relating to a trip to Denmark.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein
chronologically.
|
|
BOX 3-8
|
|
|
Articles, a book, fillers for magazines, pamphlets and booklets,
poetry, and speeches.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by type of material. |
|
BOX 8-13
|
|
|
Correspondence, clippings, and printed matter. |
|
Arranged alphabetically by topic or name of person or
organization, and therein chronologically.
|
|
BOX 13-14
|
|
|
Scrapbooks containing clippings, writings, and correspondence.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by subject. |
Container |
Contents |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
BOX 1-3
|
Personal File,
1903-1990
|
|
Correspondence, diaries, a journal of articles, photographs, and
items relating to a trip to Denmark.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein
chronologically.
|
|
BOX 1
|
Correspondence |
|
BOX 1
|
General,
1903-1904, 1914, 1925-1989, n.d.
|
|
(8
folders)
|
|
BOX 2
|
Letters from servicemen,
1942-1944, n.d.
|
|
BOX 2
|
Letters of condolence,
1953
|
|
(5
folders)
|
|
BOX 3
|
Diaries,
1914-1915
|
|
BOX 3
|
Journal of articles,
1936-1952
|
|
BOX 3
|
Miscellany,
1918-1923, 1937-1946, 1953, 1967, 1990,
n.d.
|
|
BOX 3
|
Photographs,
1905, 1928, 1948, 1990, n.d.
|
|
BOX 3
|
Trip to Denmark,
1948
|
|
BOX 3-8
|
Writings File,
1916-1953
|
|
Articles, a book, fillers for magazines, pamphlets and booklets,
poetry, and speeches.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by type of material. |
|
BOX 3
|
Articles |
|
BOX 3
|
"4th of July in Denmark,"
1948
|
|
BOX 3
|
"88th Acre,"
1945
|
|
BOX 3
|
"4000 Years of Failure of OPA,"
1946
|
|
BOX 3
|
"16,000,000 Kisses,"
1952
|
|
BOX 3
|
"America First,"
1941
|
|
BOX 3
|
"--And Like Him,"
1952
|
|
BOX 3
|
"The Anti-Trust Division's
Record of Failure,"
1944
|
|
BOX 3
|
"Anybody Fly This Plane?"
1950
|
|
BOX 3
|
"Are You a Bigot?"
1946
|
|
BOX 3
|
"Astrology,"
1945
|
|
BOX 3
|
"Aunt Martha and the Whiskey
Cake,"
1946
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Battle with the Slum,
1900-1950,"
1950
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Big Stuff in Small Towns,"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Billboards Must Go--II,"
1938
|
|
BOX 4
|
"A Bitter Outcry,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Boimondau,"
1948
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Book of the Month Club,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"But What Can I Do About It?"
1950
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Can You Stop Smoking for Two
Weeks?"
1953
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Cancer,"
1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Chiropractors,"
1946
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Christmas Seals,"
1948-1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Civic Progress--Toledo Style,"
1938
|
|
BOX 4
|
"A Critic Looks at
Advertising,"
1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Cruising Down the Styx,"
1944
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The District Attorney Isn't
Always Right,"
1946
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Don't Be an Ass about
Aspirin,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Every Man Has His Own Weather
Bureau,"
1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Every Middlesex Village and
Farm,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Fortunate City,"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Freedom and Food,"
1942
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Gary Urban League,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"A German Silhouette,"
1921
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Give Me a Seaplane,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Give the Unions a Church,"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Golden Rule Is Good
Business,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Grass Roots, or Brass Hats?"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Great Maple Syrup War,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Grown-Up Industrial
Relations,"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Hearing Aids Win New
Popularity,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Here's a Banker with
Imagination,"
1945
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Home, Dangerous Home,"
1952
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Honorable Mention,"
1944
|
|
BOX 4
|
"How Harmful Are Cigarettes?"
1950
|
|
BOX 4
|
"How Not to Fill a
Prescription,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"How Uncle Sam Plays Shylock,"
1922
|
|
BOX 4
|
"How's Your Aura? or Yogi,
Biophysics, and Halos,"
1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Human Nature
Has Changed,"
1941
|
|
BOX 4
|
"I Admire the Human Race,"
1951
|
|
BOX 4
|
"I Have 130,000,000 Friends,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"In Our Hands,"
1952
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Incident in the Day of a
Machinist,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Industry's Plan for Postwar
Prosperity,"
1943
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Ingenuity,"
n.d
|
|
BOX 4
|
"It's Backward We Are Going,"
1951
|
|
BOX 4
|
"It's Wrong, What They Say
Against Laundries,"
1948
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Jackpot That Doesn't Cost
a Nickel,"
1952
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Jail-Collecting,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Jimmy,"
1947
|
|
BOX 4
|
"John Doe Versus Caesar,"
1946
|
|
BOX 4
|
"John Doe Versus Caesar,"
1949
|
|
BOX 4
|
"Junior Councillors,"
1946
|
|
BOX 4
|
"The Jury Nuisance,"
1938
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The King Is Sick,"
1920
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Learning the Habits of Free
Men,"
1945
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Let's Refurbish Our Jury
System,"
1950
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Live in the Country--and
Live!"
1948
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Many a Germ 'Twixt Cup and
Lip,"
1937
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Meier & Frank, Portland,
Ore.,"
1945
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Most Unforgettable
Character I've Met,"
1942
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Mothers-in-Law,"
1952
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Murderous Blind Men,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Neighborliness at the UN,"
1949
|
|
BOX 5
|
"A New Year's Resolution for
Every American,"
1950
|
|
BOX 5
|
"New Yellow Dust in
Placerville,"
1951
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Nothing Rotten in Denmark,"
1943
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Now I Am For the Churches,"
1941
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Nutrition Foundation,"
1952
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Official O.K.,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Ohio's Co-Op Giant,"
1944
|
|
BOX 5
|
"A One-Year Old Inquires,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Optometry on Trial,"
1937
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Our Biggest War Prize,"
ca. 1942
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Our Case of Atomic Nerves,"
1947
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Paint Up, Folks!"
1948
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Pay By the Year Is Labor's
Goal,"
1944
|
|
BOX 5
|
"People Like to Do Business
with Friends,"
1947
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Phantom Inventions,"
1950
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Plant America,"
1952
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Playground in the Sky,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"President Cleveland's Action
in the Chicago Strike, 1894,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Private Charity,"
1944
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Profit-Sharing or
Profit-Fighting?"
1946
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Progress by Protest or
Historical Hysterias,"
1945
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Public Relations Needs Public
Relations,"
1947
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Punish the Sucker, Too,"
1947
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Quiet, Please,"
1936
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Quincy Goes to Church,"
1941
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Quinine and Public Policy,"
1942
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Radiophone,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Radio's Plug-Uglies,"
1942
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Repairman" series,
1941
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Research Board for National
Security,"
1945
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Restaurant,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Rubber--It's Coming at Last!"
1943
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Saint Timothy,"
1944
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Slyly the Veterans Grab for
Five Billions More,"
1941
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Smoothing the Road to Europe,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Soil and the Soul of
America,"
1941
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Song of the Cow-Bell,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Sounding Boards,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"A Spectre and a Talisman,"
1921
|
|
BOX 5
|
"The Stamford General Strike,"
1946
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Steve,"
ca. 1943
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Summertime on the South Shore
with a Seaplane,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 5
|
"Swindling the Vets,"
1945
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Take It or Leave It,"
1922
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Teargas, Pickhandles or ...?"
1945
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Thank God for Congress,"
1944
|
|
BOX 6
|
"That Poor Man from Cook's,"
1949
|
|
BOX 6
|
"These Roosevelts,"
ca. 1936
|
|
BOX 6
|
"These, the Seekers,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"They Do It Differently,"
1949
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Thirty-Six Churches in One,"
1940
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Those ECA Productivity Teams
Are Paying Off,"
1950
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Thurman Arnold,"
1943
|
|
BOX 6
|
Untitled,
1921-1927, 1937-1952, n.d.
|
|
(3
folders)
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Up to Our Ears in Suds,"
1949
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Watch-Dog of Liberty,"
1938
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Weighed--and Found Wanting,"
1938
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Welcome to Denmark,"
1948
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Welfare State,"
1949, n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What About Cartels?"
1945
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What Church Do You Belong To?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What Does Coffee Do to You?"
1950
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What Makes This Church
Successful?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
What's That Thing on Your
Dollar Bill?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What's Wrong with Management?"
1943
|
|
BOX 6
|
"What's Wrong with the American
Flag?"
1951
|
|
BOX 6
|
"When Black and White Work
Together,"
1945
|
|
BOX 6
|
"When They Laugh,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Which Helping Hand?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Who Said Civilized?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Who Was John Miller?"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Why I Came to America,"
1940
|
|
BOX 6
|
"Why I Go to Church,"
1941
|
|
BOX 7
|
"Will Oil Run Out?"
1943
|
|
BOX 7
|
"Working Conditions in Heaven,"
1947
|
|
BOX 7
|
"The World's Costliest Waste
Basket,"
1949
|
|
BOX 7
|
"Yoga and Science,"
1947
|
|
BOX 7
|
"You Can't Pay Workers That
Much,"
1944
|
|
BOX 7
|
"You Can't Sell That!"
1947
|
|
BOX 7
|
"You Motorists Will Gyp Us If
We Don't Watch Out,"
n.d.
|
|
BOX 7
|
"Your Airplane Is Waiting,"
1935
|
|
BOX 7
|
Book,
The Truth About Smoking,
1951
|
|
BOX 7
|
Fillers for magazines,
1920-1922, 1945, n.d.
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 7
|
Miscellany,
1933-1934, 1943-1945, n.d.
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 7
|
Pamphlets and booklets,
1923, 1942-1948, n.d.
|
|
BOX 8
|
Poetry,
1916-1952, n.d.
|
|
(3
folders)
|
|
BOX 8
|
Speeches,
1941-1949
|
|
BOX 8-13
|
Subject File,
1912-1953
|
|
Correspondence, clippings, and printed matter. |
|
Arranged alphabetically by topic or name of person or
organization, and therein chronologically.
|
|
BOX 8
|
Advertising
investigations
|
|
BOX 8
|
Lever Brothers Co.,
1947-1952
|
|
BOX 8
|
Miscellany,
1931, 1947-1951, n.d.
|
|
BOX 8
|
R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.,
1947-1951
|
|
BOX 8
|
American Civil Liberties
Union
|
|
BOX 8
|
1938-1940
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 9
|
1941-1952, n.d.
|
|
BOX 9
|
Anti-Trust Division, United
States Department of Justice,
1941-1952, n.d.
|
|
(3
folders)
|
|
BOX 9
|
Benton, William,
1950-1952
|
|
BOX 9
|
Bread |
|
BOX 9
|
Fredericks, Carlton,
1950-1952, n.d.
|
|
BOX 9
|
Rorty, James,
1947-1951
|
|
BOX 10
|
Clippings and notes,
1944-1953, n.d.
|
|
BOX 10
|
Continental Committee on
Technocracy,
1932-1933, n.d.
|
|
BOX 10
|
Donner, Robert,
1937-1947, n.d.
|
|
(3
folders)
|
|
BOX 10
|
Ernst, Morris Leopold,
1944-1946
|
|
BOX 10
|
Merck & Co., report on public
relations,
1942
|
|
BOX 10
|
Morgan, John Pierpont,
1933
|
|
BOX 10
|
Negroes,
1951-1952
|
|
BOX 10
|
Politics,
1920-1950, n.d.
|
|
BOX 11
|
Presidential campaigns,
1944-1952
|
|
(4
folders)
|
|
BOX 11
|
Reader's Digest |
|
BOX 11
|
Correspondence,
1937-1952, n.d.
|
|
(3
folders)
|
|
BOX 11
|
Miscellany,
1944-1947, n.d.
|
|
BOX 12
|
Reports,
1943-1952, n.d.
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 12
|
Seldes, George,
1941-1947, n.d.
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 12
|
Smoking of tobacco,
1949-1952, n.d.
|
|
BOX 12
|
United States Navy, recruitment,
1940-1943, n.d.
|
|
BOX 12
|
United States of America,
1917-1921, n.d.
|
|
BOX 12
|
Williams College, Williamstown,
Mass.
|
|
BOX 12
|
1912-1922, 1934, 1941-1948
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 13
|
1949-1953, n.d.
|
|
BOX 13-14
|
Scrapbooks,
1920-1952
|
|
Scrapbooks containing clippings, writings, and correspondence.
|
|
Arranged alphabetically by subject. |
|
BOX 13
|
Articles by Riis,
1937-1952
|
|
BOX 13
|
Federal grand jury,
1939-1942, n.d.
|
|
BOX 13
|
Fillers for magazines,
1920-1923
|
|
BOX 13
|
Reactions to "Repairman" series,
1941-1942
|
|
(2
folders)
|
|
BOX 13
|
Various topics |
|
BOX 13
|
1937-1944
|
|
BOX 14
|
ca. 1938-1952
|
|
BOX 14
|
World War I, writings, and
photographs,
1910-1927
|
|
(4
folders)
|
|