Peel, Roy V. Papers

Director, Bureau of the Census, 1950-1953

The papers of Roy V. Peel include books and other publications, a scrapbook, numerous newspaper clippings, correspondence, printed personal items from events and clubs, and approximately eighty photographs. These documents relate mostly to Peel’s service as Director of the Census Bureau from 1950-1953 under President Harry S. Truman, but also include some material from Peel’s teaching positions at various universities.

[Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List]

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ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Size: Less than one linear foot (about 1600 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: The donor gave to the U.S. government his copyrights in these papers and in any other papers deposited in the Harry S. Truman Library. Documents created by U.S. government officials in the course of their official duties are in the public domain. Copyright interest in other documents presumably belongs to the creators of those documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Erwin J. Mueller (1974).
Updated by: Catherine A. Shelley (2006) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program.
Supervising Archivists: Randy Sowell and David Clark.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

1896 (July 26)		Born in Des Moines, Iowa
1918-1919		2nd Lt., U.S. Air Service, U.S. Army
1920		A.B., Augustana College
1923		A.M., University of Chicago
1927		Ph.D., University of Chicago
1927 (Aug. 18)		Married Esther Peterson
1927-1939		Assistant and Associate Professor at New York University
1928-1937		Worked for Presidential campaigns of Alfred E. Smith and Franklin D. Roosevelt, and for campaigns of Fiorello La Guardia for Mayor of New York City
1939-1953		Professor at Indiana University
1942-1945		Served with Office of Strategic Services
1950 (March 9)		Sworn in as Director of the Bureau of the Census
1953 (February 4)		Resigned as Director of Census Bureau
1953-1961		Chairman of the Department of Political Science, University of Utah
1961-1963		Professor and Chairman of Social Sciences Division, California Lutheran College
1963-1976		Professor, San Fernando Valley State College (now California State University, Northridge)
1978 (Aug. 31)		Died at age 82, Encino, California

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

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COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

The Papers of Roy V. Peel include books and other publications, a scrapbook, numerous newspaper clippings, correspondence, printed personal items from events and clubs, and approximately eighty photographs.

Peel was the Director of the United States Bureau of the Census under President Harry S. Truman from 1950-1953. He was probably appointed not merely because of his academic achievements but because of his political connections. Peel worked on Presidential campaigns for Franklin D. Roosevelt and Alfred E. Smith and served as a political consultant for Presidents Roosevelt and Truman, several Governors of New York, and New York City Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia.

The Papers were collected by Peel throughout his career, but deal especially with his term as Census Bureau Director and the 1950 Census. The Papers include newspaper clippings concerning Peel and the Census, and Peel's correspondence with President Truman and others. The collection also includes books, articles, other publications, and reports written by Peel or relating to his work. The photographs in the collection mostly illustrate Peel's activities and travels as Director of the Census Bureau. The Papers also include invitations, membership cards, programs, and honorary certificates.

More information on Roy V. Peel and the Bureau of the Census can be found in the Papers of Harry S. Truman (Official File 3-B).

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

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