Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Joseph Harding Underwood Collection, 1888-1976
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Underwood, Joseph Harding, 1874-1926
- Title
- Joseph Harding Underwood Collection
- Dates
- 1888-1976 (inclusive)18881976
- Quantity
- 6.5 linear feet
- Collection Number
- Mss 492
- Summary
- Joseph Harding Underwood was an early professor of history, sociology, politics, economics, and business at the University of Montana--Missoula. The collection is predominantly Underwood's non-academic writing projects, including essays, novels, and poetry.
- Repository
-
University of Montana, Mansfield Library, Archives and Special Collections
Archives and Special Collections
Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library
University of Montana
32 Campus Dr. #9936
59812-9936
Missoula, MT
Telephone: 406-243-2053
library.archives@umontana.edu - Access Restrictions
-
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana--Missoula.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for creating this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historic Publications and Records Commission. Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Joseph Harding Underwood was born in Singers Glen, Rockingham County, Virginia in 1874. His father was a minister in the United Brethren Church, and his mother won recognition as a writer of hymns. He received his B.A. from Western College and 1902, his M.A. from the State University of Iowa in 1904, and his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1907. He was also a student at Shenandoah Institute in Virginia; at Central College in Kansas; at Western College in Iowa; at Mt. Morris College in Illinois; at Beloit College in Wisconsin; and a graduate scholar in economics at the State University in Iowa from 1903 to 1904. He had a University Fellowship in sociology at Columbia University from 1904 to 1905 and was a student at the Chicago School of Philanthropy in 1906. He supported his educational efforts by working as a printer, editor, teacher, and preacher.
He was an instructor in English and History at Nora Springs Iowa Seminary in 1905 and 1906, and a Professor of History and Social Science at Leander Clark College in Iowa from 1906-1907.
He came to the University of Montana as a Professor of History and Economics in 1907. He was a strong proponent of faculty participation in the administration of the University. He taught classes in history, sociology, politics, economics, and business, and conducted research in inheritance taxation in the Northwest. In 1921 he became the first chairman of the Budget and Policy Committee at the University. He published The Distribution of Ownership, a book on wealth and property, in 1907. He was also a member, with Washington Jay McCormick and Jeannette Rankin, of the Political Equality Club of Missoula. Underwood enjoyed outdoor recreation, including mountain climbing.
He died in 1926 in Washington, DC, after a serious illness. In memorials to him, admirers compared him to George Bernard Shaw and Joseph Conrad and spoke of his private literary output.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
This collection contains biographical records, correspondence files, writing drafts, clippings, and printed materials generated and collected by Joseph Harding Underwood. The collection is predominantly Underwood's writing projects, including essays, novels, and poetry. Underwood's diaries are mostly those written prior to his career at the University of Montana and detail many of his other aspirations. His correspondence focuses mostly on his time at the University, with particularly detailed information on administrative matters at the University, including the dismissal of President Craighead. Correspondence written by others after his death details the many attempts to place this collection at an appropriate and accessible location for research use. His writings include his non-fiction academic works, but mostly consist of fiction. Topics of his non-fiction material include analyses of American and European history and proposals for promoting and reforming social justice, property ownership, tax regulations, and education policies. Additionally, the series contains several creative non-fiction projects such as Underwood's editorial reflections on religious topics, life as an academic, the relationship between individuality and social responsibility, the role of literature in personal development, perceived parallels between Montana landscapes and proper acculturation, and a biography of and tribute to his mother.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Copyright not transferred to The University of Montana.
Preferred Citation
[Name of document or photograph number], Joseph Harding Underwood Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana—Missoula.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in six series:
Series I: Biographical, 0.75 linear feet, 1888-1961
Series II: Correspondence, 3 folders, 1892-1976
Series III: Writings, 5.5 linear feet, 1902-1926
Series IV: Clippings, 2 folders, 1890-1926
Series V: Printed Material, 4 folders, 1902-1916
Custodial History
In 1928, after Dr. Underwood's death, his mother and father, Irvine and Elizabeth Underwood, transferred responsibility for his papers to Helen Gleason and Alvan R. Underwood, with University of Montana professors H.G. Merriam and Paul C. Philips as councilors. The collection appears to have been in their, and possibly several other, hands until donation to the Archives.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Edmund Freeman, 1976.
Processing Note
The collection was originally processed as two separate collections, UM 2 and UM 10. In 2004, the collections were merged and extensively re-described.
Separated Materials
Administrative materials in the Archives list a collection of 102 glass lantern slides of people, buildings, ruins, and landscapes in the Middle East, mostly Palestine and Turkey. Underwood took these photographs and used them in his University of Montana classes. Their present location is unknown.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series I: Biographical, 1888-1961 Return to Top
This series contains some of Joseph Underwood's diaries, school records, certificates, personal notes, and public records. Additionally, the series includes notes written by researchers who examined Underwood's manuscripts prior to the collection's donation to the K. Ross Toole Archives. Many of Underwood's diaries were transcribed at some point in the past. Those transcriptions are included in this series, along with the originals. Materials in this series provide insights into Underwood's life and ambitions, particularly from the years preceding his teaching career at the University of Montana.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
1/1 | Biographical |
1894-1926 and undated |
1/2 | Diary |
1889 |
1/3 | Diary Transcription |
1889 |
1/4 | Diaries |
1890-1891 |
1/5 | Diary Transcriptions |
189-1891 |
1/6 | Diary |
1891-1893 |
1/7 | Diary Transcriptions |
1892-1893 |
1/8 | Diaries |
1893-1896 |
1/9 | Diary Transcriptions |
1893-1895 |
1/10 | Diaries, Loose
Entries |
undated |
1/11 | Personal Notes |
circa 1889-1906 |
1/12 | School records |
1888-1909 |
2/1 | School Scrapbooks |
1893 |
2/2 | School Scrapbooks |
undated |
2/3 | Notes on Joseph Underwood's
Papers |
1938-1961 |
Series II: Correspondence, 1892-1976 Return to Top
This series contains Joseph Underwood's incoming correspondence and an extensive file of correspondence documenting efforts to preserve Underwood's manuscripts. Most of the correspondence in this series is focused upon Underwood's teaching career and developments at the University of Montana (particularly the dismissal of President Craighead). Correspondence regarding Underwood's manuscripts document multiple relocations and various efforts to secure public access to his work--both through posthumous publication and archival preservation.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
2/4 | General
Correspondence |
1892-1923 and undated |
2/5 | Dismissal of University of
Montana President Craighead |
1915-1917 and undated |
2/6 | Joseph Underwood's
Manuscripts |
1926-1976 |
Series III: Writings, 1902-1926Return to Top
This series contains an extensive collection of Joseph Underwood's writings. Materials are predominantly writing notes, rough drafts, and typescript copies; however, the series also contain a few published copies. Underwood's writing projects often mixed fiction and non-fiction, poetry and prose. Fiction materials in this series include extensive sequences of poetry (some loosely grouped and others within cohesive projects), numerous short stories, and mixed-medium novels. Topics of his non-fiction material include analyses of American and European history and proposals for promoting and reforming social justice, property ownership, tax regulations, and education policies. Additionally, the series contains several creative non-fiction projects such as Underwood's editorial reflections on religious topics, life as an academic, the relationship between individuality and social responsibility, the role of literature in personal development, perceived parallels between Montana landscapes and proper acculturation, and a biography of and tribute to his mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood. The manuscript project titled Sin, one of two major projects Underwood was developing at the time of his death, appears to be a re-working of an earlier project titled The Canyon - Love.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
2/7 | Articles,
Intermountian Educator
|
1917 and 1921 |
2/8 | Articles,
Religious Telescope
|
1904-1914 |
2/9 | Articles,
The Watchword
|
1902-1908 |
2/10 | "Mike O'Donnell, of Sing
Sing"
Authorship uncertain
|
undated |
3/1 | "Exemptions as a Principle of
Social Justice" |
undated |
3/2 | "Exemptions as a Principle of
Social Justice"
The American Journal of Sociology
|
1916 |
3/3 | "Homesteads and
Exemptions" |
undated |
3/4 | Institute of Economics Series:
"Instinct and Social Habit" |
undated |
3/5 | Institute of Economics Series:
"The Social Feelings" |
undated |
3/6 | Institute of Economics Series:
"The Thinkings of Society" |
undated |
3/7 | Institute of Economics Series:
"The Physical Environment" |
undated |
3/8 | Institute of Economics Series:
"The Problems of Social Well-being" |
undated |
3/9 | Institute of Economics Series:
"Competition and Cooperation" |
undated |
4/1 | Institute of Economics Series:
"Effects of Maladjustment" |
undated |
4/2 | Institute of Economics Series:
"Inequalities of Property Income" |
undated |
4/3 | Institute of Economics Series:
"Contrasts of Condition" |
undated |
4/4 | "Society" manuscript and
notes |
undated |
4/5 | "Society" manuscript and
notes |
undated |
4/6 | "Society" manuscript and
notes |
undated |
4/7 | "Sociability" |
undated |
4/8 | "Movements to Improve the
Physical Basis of Social Life" |
undated |
4/9 | Unattached writing
notes |
undated |
4/10 | "Conservation" |
undated |
4/11 | "Instincts in the Industry of
Education" |
undated |
4/12 | "Dissertation on Eu-Kako-Phonic
Prose" |
undated |
4/13 | "Barbarians Among the New
Poets" |
undated |
4/14 | Untitled essay on
poetry |
undated |
4/15 | Poems |
undated |
5/1 | Poems |
undated |
5/2 | "Ante-Bellum Berlin" |
undated |
5/3 | "A Bachelor Professor Pities the
Poor Professor's Wife" |
undated |
5/4 | "Beauty" |
undated |
5/5 | "Beauty" |
undated |
5/6 | "Beauty Once Passed in
Manhattan" |
undated |
5/7 | "Beauty Once Passed in
Manhattan" |
undated |
5/8 | "A Boulevard
Meditation" |
undated |
5/9 |
The Canyon - Love , handwritten notes |
undated |
5/10 |
The Canyon - Love , handwritten notes |
undated |
6/1 |
The Canyon - Love , handwritten notes |
undated |
6/2 |
The Canyon - Love , typescript |
undated |
6/3 |
The Canyon - Love , typescript |
undated |
6/4 | "Culver's Love of
Children" |
undated |
6/5 | "Gethsemane" |
undated |
6/6 | "Her Price" |
undated |
6/7 |
Immortality, first copy |
undated |
6/8 |
Immortality, second copy |
1926 |
6/9 |
Immortality, second copy |
1926 |
6/10 |
Immortality, third copy, handwritten notes and
mark-ups |
1926 |
7/1 |
Immortality, third copy, handwritten notes and
mark-ups |
1926 |
7/2 |
Immortality, fourth copy |
1926 |
7/3 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "I,
Beauty" |
undated |
7/4 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "II,
Art" |
undated |
7/5 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "III,
Sorrow" |
udnated |
7/6 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "IV,
Work" |
undated |
7/7 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "IV, Work"
handwritten notes and mark-ups |
undated |
7/8 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "V,
Rebellion" |
undated |
7/9 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "VI,
Freedom" |
undated |
7/10 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "VII,
Love" |
undated |
7/11 |
A Man Who Was Loved by Youth, "VIII,
Trust" |
undated |
7/12 | "The Mount of Olives" |
undated |
7/13 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, handwritten
notes and draft copy |
undated |
7/14 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, handwritten
notes and draft copy |
undated |
8/1 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, partial draft
copy, pages 99-214 |
undated |
8/2 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, partial draft
copy, pages, 197-400 |
undated |
8/3 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, partial draft
copy, pages, 151-385 |
undated |
8/4 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, poetry
drafts |
undated |
8/5 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, typescript,
pages 1-210 |
undated |
8/6 |
Mother, Elizabeth Harding Underwood, typescript,
pages 211-400 |
undated |
8/7 | "Natura Naturans" |
undated |
8/8 | "New Year Night in New
York" |
undated |
8/9 | "One Generation Passeth Away,
Another Cometh" |
undated |
8/10 | "One Who Is To Come" |
undated |
9/1 | "One Who Went Down to
Sea" |
undated |
9/2 | "The Philosopher and the
Feminist" |
undated |
9/3 |
Pilgrimage
|
undated |
9/4 |
Pilgrimage, partial manuscript |
undated |
9/5 | "The Professor Pauses
Midway" |
undated |
9/6 | "Rabbit Like
Professor" |
undated |
9/7 | "Research Magnificent in New
York" |
undated |
9/8 | Short writings |
undated |
9/9 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
9/10 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
9/11 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
9/12 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
10/1 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
10/2 |
Sin, first draft, notes and mark-ups |
1926 |
10/3 |
Sin, typescript, pages 1-187 |
1926 |
10/4 |
Sin, typescript, pages 200-254 and
300-338 |
1926 |
10/5 |
Sin, typescript, pages 1-250 |
1926 |
10/6 |
Sin, typescript, pages 251-342 |
1926 |
10/7 | "Social Art" |
undated |
10/8 | "A Stranger in the
Strand" |
undated |
10/9 | "Turkey" |
undated |
10/10 | "Unter Den Linden, Then; The
Great Divide, Now" |
undated |
11/1 | Untitled project |
undated |
11/2 | Untitled project |
undated |
11/3 | "Which Man Wins/Janet, or
Woman?" |
undated |
11/4 | "The Woman at the
Well" |
undated |
11/5 | "Work" |
undated |
11/6 | Writing fragments |
undated |
12/1 | Handwritten essays,
general |
undated |
12/2 | Short essays |
undated |
12/3 | Essays on Tax Law |
1907-1912 |
12/4 | Essays on Justice |
1904 |
12/5 | "The British Campaign Against
Tuberculosis" |
1926 and undated |
12/6 | "Municipal Government in
Montana" |
undated |
12/7 | "Socialism" |
undated |
12/8 | "The Distribution of
Ownership" |
1907 |
12/9 |
Ownership, notes and mark-ups |
undated |
12/10 |
Ownership, notes and mark-ups |
undated |
12/11 |
Ownership, notes and mark-ups |
undated |
12/12 | Class lecture notes |
undated |
12/13 | Class lecture notes |
undated |
Series IV: Clippings, 1890-1926Return to Top
This series contains newspaper and magazine clippings collected by Joseph Underwood as well as a small sequence of material regarding his death collected by another. Topics range across a spectrum of personal and professional interests, including University of Montana events.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
13/1 | General Topics |
1890-1926 and undated |
13/2 | Regarding dismissal of University
of Montana President Craighead |
1917 |
Series V: Printed Material, 1902-1916 Return to Top
This series contains printed materials collected by Joseph Underwood during his professional career. Materials in this series are primarily invitations to and programs for University of Montana events. Also included are some pamphlets regarding topics of personal interest to Underwood and a picture postcard capturing a well-dressed group gathered in a park.
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
13/3 | University Programs |
1907-1914 |
13/4 | Univeristy Programs and
Invitations |
1902-1912 and undated |
13/5 | Pamphlets |
1904-1916 |
13/6 | Postcards |
undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Acculturation
- Education
- Individualism
- Landscape--Montana
- Literature
- Religion
- Rights of property
- Social justice
- Taxation
Personal Names
- Craighead, Edwin Boone, 1861-1920
- Underwood, Joseph Harding, b. 1874--Diaries
Corporate Names
- University of Montana--Missoula--Administration
- University of Montana--Missoula--Faculty
- University of Montana--Missoula--Presidents
Geographical Names
- Europe--History
- United States--History
Form or Genre Terms
- Diaries
- Essays
- Fiction
- Novels
- Poems
Occupations
- College teachers--Montana--Missoula