Ernest Werner Lennart papers, 1941-1968

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Lennart, Ernest Werner
Title
Ernest Werner Lennart papers
Dates
1941-1968 (inclusive)
Quantity
1.5 linear ft.
Collection Number
XOE_CPNWS0180Lennart (collection)
Summary
The collection documents the personal life and political activities of Ernest Werner Lennart, a Whatcom County farmer who also served in the Washington State Legislature from 1941 to 1967. Materials include correspondence, legislative reports, files related to state legislation, speeches and essays, newspaper clippings, and records of Lennart's farm operation.
Repository
Western Washington University, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
Goltz-Murray Archives Building
808 25th St.
Bellingham, WA
98225
Telephone: (360) 650-7534
cpnws@wwu.edu
Access Restrictions

The collection is open to the public.

Languages
English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Ernest Werner Lennart was born in Sweden in 1893, emigrated to the United States in 1913, and served in the Army during World War I. He attended college upon his return from service and was married in 1920. The Lennart family eventually moved to the Pacific Northwest and settled in Everson, Washington, where Ernest worked in farming, cold storage, and the feed business.

Lennart was a member of the Freemasons, the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Grange and Farm Bureau. He also served on the Mt. Baker Union School District board, chaired the Whatcom County Republican Central Committee, was Commissioner of the Whatcom County Public Utility District, and represented the 41st District in Whatcom County as a representative and senator between 1941 and 1967.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Ernest Werner Lennart papers comprise personal and professional correspondence, legislative reports, files related to state legislation, speeches and essays, newspaper clippings, committee materials, and records from the operation of Lennart's farm from 1953 to 1967.

Topics of possible interest to researchers include state taxation issues including property taxes, joint tenancy, and funding for education, Indian treaties and fisheries rights, the Washington State Dairy Products Stabilization Act, Alien Land Law, the Washington State College Foundation, the Implied Consent Bill, and the the Washington State Arts Commission.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

The collection is open to the public.

Preferred Citation

Ernest Werner Lennart papers, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies, Western Libraries Archives & Special Collections, Western Washington University, Bellingham WA 98225-9123.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Processing Note

About Harmful Language and Content

To learn more about problematic content in our collections, collection description and teaching tools (including how to provide feedback or request dialogue on this topic), see the following Statement About Potentially Harmful Language and Content

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/1 Memorial resolutions undated
1/2 Election certificate 1960
1/3 Miscellaneous correspondence - peronal letter from Lennart's children; letters to the editor of the Bellingham Herald; letters exchanging praise between Lennart and other government officials 1941-1965
1/4 Correspondence re: Indian Fisheries - copy of treaty with Duwamish, Suquamish in Washington Territory naming cession of lands and establishment of reservations; exchange with Warren Magnuson, U.S. Senator, regarding efforts to modify or terminate Indian treaties and fisheries rights 1855, circa 1962-1965
1/5 Correspondence with Patricia Martin, freelance writer, near the end of Lennart's life 1967-1968
1/6 Correspondence with constituents re: increases in legislators' expense allowances (per diem), pay raises and pensions 1965
1/7 Personal correspondence - poetry by Eric H. Johnson; redistricting Washington State; retirement of state employees; farewell letters and speech 1965-1968
1/8 Correspondence with Washington State representatives re: secondhand knowledge of perjury committed by Freeman, then U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (Ralph Matter) 1962
1/9-1/11 Correspondence re: levying taxes on intangible property; proposed Bainbridge Island-Fort Lawton Bridge; financing for school systems 1953
1/12-1/18 Correspondence re: the 1967 legislative session 1967 January-April
1/19 Correspondence re: Senate Bill 79 (Dairy Bill) which was sponsored by Senator Lennart - bill would correct structure of the 1937 Milk Stabilization Act to support individual dairy farmers by stabilizing prices against large corporations 1967 January-April
1/20 Correspondence re: funding education 1967
1/21 Correspondence re: highways, including Implied Consent Bill which would authorize Washington State Patrol to stop motorists to inspect drivers' licenses and operational state of the vehicle, designed to detect drivers under the influence of alcohol; efforts to weaken the Billboard Control Act of 1961 1967
1/22 Constitutional Revision Committee Report to Governor Daniel J. Evans - committee formed to explore means of amending the original Washington State Constitution to update the legal structure of state government 1967
1/23 Washington State Parks and Recreation Committee progress report - covered departmental developments from 1950-1960, a brief history of the department, and 20-year plan for the future 1961
1/24 Attorney General opinions 1966 January-1967 August
1/25 Court papers - Thigpen v. Meyers 1963
1/26 Washington State Dairy Products Stabilization Act - text of bill written by Senator Lennart 1967
1/27-1/28 Miscellaneous legislation circa 1965-1967
1/29 Essays re: agriculture and supporting agriculture as a profession and way of life undated
1/30 Essays in support of amending the Alien Land Law to encourage the construction of the Shell Oil Refinery undated
1/31 Subject files re: funding for education 1965-1967
1/32 Subject files re: various constitutional issues 1968
1/33 Subject files re: Interchange undated
1/34 Subject files re: Intiative 208 establishing joint tenancy to simplify inheritance by avoiding probate costs 1962
1/35 Publicity and biographical information about Lennart at the time of his retirement 1967
1/36 Republican Party platform information 1960-1966
1/37 "Skagit Deal" materials re: issues facing Western Washington PUDs purchase of Puget Sound Power and Light properties circa 1949
1/38 Essays, reports and letters concerning taxation issues 1953-1967
1/39 Speeches by Lennart re: the United States and Washington State constitutions 1963
1/40 Talks by Lennart on KPUG Radio re: current legislative issues 1967
1/41 Speeches by Lennart re: patriotism undated
1/42 Speeches given by Lennart to the Republican Party (possibly at the Washington State Republican Convention) 1967
1/43 Lennart retirement speeches 1967
1/44 Speeches by Lennart re: taxation undated
1/45 Speeches by Lennart re: ethics in government 1965
1/46 Miscellaneous speeches circa 1960s
1/47 Speeches by others re: governor's fiscal message 1965
1/48 Speeches by others on various subjects 1967
1/49 Washington Education publication 1963
1/50-1/51 Clippings, including Lennart's obituary 1957-1968
1/52-1/54 Ephemera 1955-1968
1/55 Publications and letters concerning the Washington State Arts Commission 1967
1/56 Children's Home Society materials 1968
1/57 Puget Sound PCA materials 1967
1/58-1/59 Materials related to Lennart's farm business (seed potatoes) 1953, 1962-1964
1/60 Washington State College Foundation 1966-1967

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Agriculture--Washington (State)--Whatcom County--History--Sources.
  • Legislators--Washington (State)--History--Sources.

Personal Names

  • Lennart, Ernest Werner--Archives.

Corporate Names

  • Washington (State)--Legislature--Senate.

Geographical Names

  • Washington (State)--Law and legislation--History--Sources.
  • Washington (State)--Politics and government--History--Sources.

Form or Genre Terms

  • Records (Documents)