E. Raymond Attebery Papers

Overview of the Collection

Creator

Attebery, E. Raymond (Edgar Raymond), 1895-1944

Title

E. Raymond Attebery Papers

Dates

1913-1979 (inclusive)

Quantity

1.55 cubic ft. (4 boxes)

Collection Number

3176

Summary

Papers of a Seattle clergyman and civic leader documenting activities as a civic leader, soldier and military chaplain

Repository

University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu

Access Restrictions

The collection is open to all users.

Request at UW

Languages

English

Sponsor

Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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Biographical Note

Edgar Raymond Attebery was born in Missouri on Sept. 11, 1895. After graduating from Everett High School he attended Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, until his studies were interrupted by World War I. In 1917 he joined the Oregon National Guard and served for two years, including 14 months in France. After the war, he earned his B.A. from the University of Washington in 1921, attended Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship, and received his bachelor of theology degree from Harvard Divinity School in 1925.

In Sept. 1925 Attebery became pastor of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church in Seattle (renamed Grace Methodist Church ca. 1939). He would serve in that post the rest of his life. In addition to his work in the ministry, Attebery was active in a number of civic causes. In 1929 he played an active role in the effort to free Industrial Workers of the World members jailed after the 1919 Armistice Day clash between workers and veterans in Centralia. He was also a vocal advocate of Prohibition and a critic of American isolationism.

Attebery joined the Washington National Guard as a chaplain in 1929. He was called to active duty in September 1940, and sent overseas the following year. He died while landing with his division on Biak Island, New Guinea, in May 1944.

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Content Description

The E. Raymond Attebery Papers document the Seattle pastor's activities as a civic leader, soldier, and military chaplain.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

There are no restrictions on the use of the collection.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Organized into 2 accessions.

Accession No. 3176-001, E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
Accession No. 3176-002, E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943

Acquisition Information

Accession 3176-1 was donated by Rev. Attebery's widow, Miriam, in 1980. She donated the materials in Accession 3176-2 in 1989.

Separated Materials

Eighteen photographs, largely taken during Attebery's service in World War II, were transferred to the E. Raymond Attebery Photograph Collection in the division in 2004.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944

1.13 cubic ft. (3 boxes)

Scope and Content: Accession 3176-001 includes correspondence with his family. The bulk of the letters are to his wife, Miriam, written while Attebery was serving as a chaplain during World War II. There are also letters to his children, Eliot, Jerry, Edgar, and Gay. (Edgar also served in World War II and would be killed in action just months after his father's death.) Letters to his mother, Betty, date largely from his time in France during World War I. A scrapbook containing letters and clippings documents Attebery's career from the early 1930s. The Class Notes were made while Attebery was attending Harvard Divinity School.

Restrictions on Access: The collection is open to all users.
- Description: Incoming Letters
  
  Dates: 1936-1943
  
  Container: Box/Folder 1/1, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Outgoing Letters to
  - Description: Attebery, Bettie L.
    
    Dates: 1918, 1944
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/2, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / Outgoing Letters to
  - Description: Attebery, Miriam
    
    Dates: 1939-1944
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/3-13, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / Outgoing Letters to
  - Description: Attebery, Eliot
    
    Dates: 1942
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/14, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / Outgoing Letters to
  - Description: Attebery, Gerald
    
    Dates: 1943
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/15, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / Outgoing Letters to
  - Description: Miscellaneous
    
    Dates: 1943
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/16, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / Outgoing Letters to
- General Correspondence
  - Description: Attebery, Edgar R.
    
    Dates: 1942-1943
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/17, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / General Correspondence
  - Description: Attebery, Gay
    
    Dates: 1943
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/18, Accession 3176-001
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944 / General Correspondence
- Description: Correspondence Regarding Application for Rhodes Scholarship
  
  Dates: 1919-1920
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/1, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Correspondence to Miriam Attebery Regarding E. Raymond Attebery
  
  Dates: 1942, 1944
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/2, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Speeches and Writings
  
  Dates: 1922-1944
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/3, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Class Notes
  
  Dates: 1922-1924
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/4-5, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Appointment Book
  
  Dates: 1937
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/6, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Legal Documents
  
  Dates: 1919-1927
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/7, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Diplomas and Honors
  
  Dates: 1921-1944
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/8, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Scrapbook
  
  Dates: 1919-1979
  
  Container: Box 3, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Clippings
  
  Dates: 1943-1979, n.d.
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/9, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
- Description: Ephemera
  
  Dates: n.d.
  
  Container: Box/Folder 2/10, Accession 3176-001
  
  Location: Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944
Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943

.42 cubic ft. (1 box)

Scope and Content: Accession 3176-2 includes additional personal and church-related correspondence. Of note is a letter from President Franklin D. Roosevelt asking for Attebery's comments on local social conditions. His stance on Prohibition is outlined in the Writing file. The Friends of City Light subgroup includes correspondence and minutes of the organization, which was formed to support municipal ownership of Seattle's electric utility. The Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy subgroup documents the efforts of Washington State church groups and individuals to exonerate International Workers of the World members imprisoned after the 1919 confrontation. The committee was established by the Puget Sound Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1929 to investigate the Centralia shootings and was part of a local movement that eventually led to a joint investigation by several national religious organizations. Attebery served as secretary of that special committee. The correspondence files document Attebery's requests to national organizations to join the effort. The report issued by the national groups in 1930 is also found in this subgroup.

Restrictions on Access: The collection is open to all users.
- Personal Papers
  - Description: Biographical
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/1, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Incoming Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1928-1944
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/2-3, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Outgoing Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1938-1944
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/4, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: General Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1940-1941
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/5, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Writing
    
    Dates: n.d.
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/6, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Clipping
    
    Dates: n.d.
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/7, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Scrapbook
    
    Dates: 1937-1942
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/8, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
  - Description: Ephemera
    
    Dates: 1913-1944
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/9, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Personal Papers
- Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Incoming Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1936-1933
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/10, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Outgoing Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1932-1939
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/11, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Minutes
    
    Dates: 1936-1939
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/12, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Transcript - City Council - Department Efficiency Committee Meeting
    
    Dates: 1937
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/13, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Financial Documents
    
    Dates: 1936-1939
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/14, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
  - Description: Ephemera
    
    Dates: 1935-1937
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/15, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Friends of City Light, 1913-1979
- Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy
  - Description: Incoming Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1929-1930
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/16, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy
  - Description: Outgoing Correspondence
    
    Dates: 1929-1930
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/17, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy
  - Description: Reports - Conclusions of Committee
    
    Dates: 1930
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/18, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy
  - Description: Writing
    
    Dates: n.d.
    
    Container: Box/Folder 1/19, Accession 3176-002
    
    Location: Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943 / Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy

E. Raymond Attebery Papers, 1913-1979

Table of Contents

Overview of the Collection

Biographical Note

Content Description

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Administrative Information

Arrangement

Acquisition Information

Separated Materials

Detailed Description of the Collection

Accession No. 3176-001: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1918-1944

Outgoing Letters to

General Correspondence

Accession No. 3176-002: E. Raymond Attebery papers, 1919-1943

Personal Papers

Friends of City Light, 1913-1979

Methodist Episcopal Church, Puget Sound Conference, Committee on the Centralia Armistice Day Tragedy

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

Personal Names

Corporate Names