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Milward L. Simpson papers, 1887-1995

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Simpson, Milward L. (Milward Lee), 1897-1993
Title
Milward L. Simpson papers
Dates
1887-1995 (inclusive)
Quantity
276.50 cubic ft. (603 boxes)
Collection Number
00026
Summary
Papers of this Cody, Wyoming lawyer who later served as University of Wyoming Trustee, Wyoming Governor, and Wyoming U.S. Senator.
Repository
American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming
American Heritage Center
University of Wyoming
1000 E. University Ave.
Dept. 3924
Laramie, WY
82071
Telephone: 3077663756
ahcref@uwyo.edu
Access Restrictions

Boxes 1-81 of the Milward L. Simpson Papers contain case files of persons, families and groups collected during legal representation by Milward Simpson which include personal information about individuals.

Researchers wishing to use boxes 181 must agree not to reproduce or copy the names of any persons, families, or groups recorded in the case files, nor to use the name of any such person, familiy or group in any published or unpublished product that results from the use of the collection. Researchers using this material must sign a Research Use Agreement Form before accessing materials in boxes 1-81.

This restriction will remain in place until 75 years after the latest date in this section of material.

Languages
English
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Historical Note

Milward L. Simpson was born in 1897, in Jackson, Wyoming to parents William and Margaret Burnett Simpson. He graduated from Cody High School in 1916. After serving in WWI, he graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1921. At UW, he captained the football, basketball, and baseball teams. He attended Harvard Law School for several years before taking over his father's law practice in 1924. Simpson married Lorna Kooi in 1929. They had two sons, Peter and Alan. In 1955, Simpson became Governor of Wyoming and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1962. He retired in 1967. After retiring, Simpson helped create the University of Wyoming Political Science Foundation and the Wyoming High School Athlete of the Year program. During his lifetime, Simpson served on many boards including Husky Oil, the Boy Scouts of America, the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, the Gottsche Foundation, the University of Wyoming Board of Trustees, and the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission. Simpson died in 1993.

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Content Description

The Milward L. Simpson Papers contain correspondence, legal documents, financial records, speeches, photographs, political papers and reports, and newspaper clippings relating to Milward Simpson's life as well as the Simpson Family. The material details both Simpson's professional and personal life. The material is arranged in order of professional positions held: lawyer, governor, and senator. A fourth series, Post-Senatorial, details Simpson's life after his retirement from the senate and also includes material collected during his retirement. Finally, there is a small series at the end that includes artifacts and oversized materials from all series, including material such as maps, blueprints, large photographs and bulky items not suitable for storage within the document boxes of each of the series in the main collection.

Of particular note, several files related to Butch Cassidy are included in the Law Office and Post-Senatorial series. William Simpson, Milward's father, was Butch Cassidy's lawyer. There also is a section of Finn G. Burnett papers in the miscellaneous sub-series of the Law Office Series.

Files of note in the Governor's Office series include the gambling and liquor permit problems in Teton County, the LeMasurier Family airplane crash, many files pertaining to Charities and Reform (Prison Board) including the Charles R. Starkweather murder case, the Clay Riggle case and Simpson's view on Capital Punishment. There are also numerous files pertaining to Simpson's involvement with the Republican Party and with the 1953 and 1957 Eisenhower presidential inaugurations.

Files in the Senator's Office series include those detailing national legislation affecting Wyoming, the war in Vietnam from both local and national perspectives, and information relating to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. In addition, there is correspondence to and from noted political figures such as Clifford Hansen, Nellie Tayloe Ross, and George H.W. Bush.

Files in the Post-Senatorial series consist mainly of files created during Simpson's retirement years. Most of the material is personal in nature and relates to family matters. Other material is related to his involvement with numerous organizations during his retired years. Finally, there is material collected by Milward dealing with his son Alan's campaign and subsequent service as a United States senator.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Copyright Information

The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply.

Restrictions on Use

Statement on Potentially Harmful Language and Images Found in Collections

The American Heritage Center aspires to approach all areas of our work in ways that are respectful to those who create, use, and are represented in our collections. For a variety of reasons, however, users may encounter offensive or harmful language or images in some of our finding aids, catalogs, and collection materials.

Note that the AHC does not censor or alter contents of the collections as they provide context and evidence of a time, people, place, or event. Therefore, we encourage users to bring questions and concerns about descriptions in our finding aids to our attention via email or anonymous web-form. For more information, read our full statement.

Preferred Citation

Preferred Citation

Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, Milward L. Simpson Papers, Collection Number 26, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

Alternative Forms Available

Existence and Location of Copies

Digital reproductions of select material from this collection are available at http://digitalcollections.uwyo.edu:8180/luna/servlet/uwydbuwy~50~50.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The Milward L. Simpson Papers are arranged in five series.

  • Series I. Law Office Files, 1887-1959 (155 document boxes). Arranged in ten sub-series. This series consists of files originating from the Simpson law firm.
  • Series II. Governor's Office Files, 1952-1960 (88 document boxes). Arranged in six sub-series. This series consists of files originating from the Governor's Office. It also includes personal files dated at the time during Simpson's governorship
  • Series III. Senate Office Files, 1925, 1942-1967 (317 document boxes and 1 record box). Arranged in twelve sub-series. This series consists of files originating from Milward Simpson's time as a United States Senator from 1962-1967.
  • Series IV. Post Senatorial Files, 1882-1955 (bulk 1967-1989) (32 document boxes). Arranged in four sub-series.This series consists of files that were created during the time of Simpson's retirement, the bulk of those files being created between 1967 and 1989. In addition, it also includes many personal and family files dating from 1892 to Lorna Simpson's death in 1995.
  • Series V. Oversized Materials and Artifacts, 1925-1977) (1 document box, 1 F20 box, 4 F24 boxes, 1 F41 box). Contains artifacts as well as oversized material not suitable for storage in document boxes such as maps, blueprints, large photographs, and certificates.

Related Materials

There are no known other archival collections created by Milward L. Simpson at the date of processing.

Acquisition Information

The Milward L. Simpson Papers were donated to the American Heritage Center by Alan Simpson, Milward Simpson, and Dr. Peter Simpson between 1966-2020.

Processing Note

The collection was processed by Kim Winters and John Waggener from 2001-2003 and updated by Jamie Greene in March 2016 and May 2022.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Container List

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Corporate Names

  • United States -- Congress -- Senate.
  • Wyoming. Governor (1955-1959: Simpson)

Geographical Names

  • Wyoming -- History -- 1919-1945
  • Wyoming -- History -- 1946-
  • Wyoming -- Politics and government

Processed by Kim Winters and John Waggener, 2001-2003
2001-2003

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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