Reppert, Vernon and Hazel Papers

Friends of the Truman family

This collection includes printed materials, photographs, correspondence, and other items mostly relating to Mary Jane Truman and her involvement with the Order of the Eastern Star. These materials were collected by Hazel and Vernon Reppert, friends of the Trumans.

Size: 2.5 linear inches (about 400 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: No donation of copyright was received with this collection. Documents created by U.S. Government officials in the course of their duties are in the public domain. Otherwise, copyright interest in documents in this collection belongs to the creators of those documents, or their heirs.
Updated by: Stephanie Seim (2012) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program.
Supervising Archivists: Randy Sowell and David Clark.

Vernon and Hazel Reppert were close friends of the Truman family. The Repperts were from Buckner, Missouri and owned a funeral parlor. Along with Mary Jane Truman, they were associated with the Order of the Eastern Star. Vernon Reppert was Worthy Grand Patron and Hazel Reppert was Grand Treasurer and Grand Matron of the Buckner chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. Mary Jane Truman and Hazel Reppert each became Worthy Grand Matron of the Grand Chapter of Missouri in the Order of the Eastern Star.

The papers of Vernon and Hazel Reppert include correspondence, press clippings, photographs, and other items mostly pertaining to their involvement with the Order of the Eastern Star and their friendship with Mary Jane Truman and the Truman family.

Most of the correspondence in the collection relates to the activities of the Repperts and their association with the Order of the Eastern Star. There are two handwritten messages from Mary Jane Truman to Vernon and Hazel, and a condolence letter received by Hazel following Vernon's death in 1955.

The press clippings are from various newspapers and include articles on Mary Jane Truman, Vernon and Hazel Reppert, and the Order of the Eastern Star.

Most of the photographs are of the Repperts, Mary Jane Truman, and members of the Order of the Eastern Star. There are also photographs of Martha Young Truman (the President's mother) and Margaret Truman, and one photograph of President Truman and his brother Vivian with Mary Jane at the time of her installation as Worthy Grand Matron.

The collection also includes information about the Masons and the Order of the Eastern Star, catalogs of Masonic and Eastern Star items, and programs and invitations for various events.

The papers of Vernon and Hazel Reppert were photocopied by the Truman Library's staff from original documents in the possession of Lee Ward. The archives staff of the Truman Library arranged the photocopies and created the folder titles.

Related collections at the Truman Library include the papers of Mary Jane Truman and the papers of Harry S. Truman (especially the Masonic Files in the Truman Papers as U.S. Senator and Vice President and in the Truman Post-Presidential Papers).