Leo Rhein was born in 1890 and traveled with his parents from Nebraska to Wolf Creek, Montana, in 1898. As a young man he worked with horses for Jim Rowe, worked on the Rock Creek Ranch for Phill Reynolds for several years, and drove a stage for Burns and Arthur for one season when he was sixteen.
Later he met and married Pearl Leedy. They had three children, Clinton, Leo, and Carley. Leo and Pearl Rhein ran the Wolf Creek Hotel for many years until Leo Rhein became the director of the Cooney Rest Home. Following his retirement as director, Leo and Pearl lived in Helena until his death in 1972.
J. Robert Atkinson was born in 1887, probably in Missouri, and came to Montana in 1903. The young high-school dropout wanted to be a cowpuncher. He did work as a cowboy, bartender and other odds jobs in Montana and other locales until he was blinded by an accidental gunshot wound in 1912. He turned this piece of bad luck into a lifetime of work for the blind. By 1919 using a gift of $25,000 from an investor, Atkinson started the Universal Braille Press and worked to improve the quality and quantity of publications available for blind readers. He developed a better plate-making system that allowed Braille to be printed on both sides of a page. In 1929 Atkinson founded the Braille Institute of American, Inc. in California. Atkinson's work went beyond that organization into issues of the rights of blind people, especially ensuring their access to facilities and organizations taken for granted by those who can see. His wife, Alberta, worked with him throughout his career, and after his retirement in 1957 the couple enjoyed traveling. J. Robert Atkinson died in 1964.
This collection includes correspondence from 1957 through 1963 and one periodical from 1969. Most correspondence from Atkinson is on letterhead that is representative of his early days on ranches in the West. As Atkinson was blind, all of his correspondence is typed.
The collection is divided into two series:
Series I: Correspondence, 0.4 linear feet, 1957-1963
Series II: Periodical, Autumn, 0.1 linear feet, 1969
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.
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
[Name of document or photograph number], Leo Rhein Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana--Missoula.
Gift of Leo Rhein, Jr., 1982.
The actions of the original processors are unknown. This collection was re-described in 2001.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
This series contains many letters from J. Robert Atkinson to Leo and Pearl Rhein and also contains one letter from Leo Rhein to his children. The letters from Atkinson to the Rheins make mention of current happenings, travel plans, and friends but most letters also reminisce about a ranching cowboy past apparently shared by both men. While Atkinson mentions other locations, he focuses on Montana, particularly Rock Creek. This series is arranged chronologically.
This series contains one copy of the