Mike Mansfield represented Montana in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1943-1952 and in the U.S. Senate from 1953-1977. Mansfield's responsibility and prestige steadily increased through his tenure in Congress. He became Assistant Majority Leader (Majority Whip) of the Senate in January 1957, and served in that capacity until 1961, when he was elected Majority Leader of the Senate. He held that position until he retired from the Senate in 1977- longer than any other Majority Leader in the history of the U.S. Senate. He served as the Ambassador to Japan from 1977-1988.
Francis Ralph Valeo was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1916. He studied Asia during his graduate work at New York University and served in Asia during World War II. After the war, Valeo worked in the Foreign Affairs Division of the Legislative Reference Service, where he worked on many Asia-related projects with Mike Mansfield, then member of the House of Representatives, who shared his interest in Asia. Valeo served as Administrative Assistant to Senator Mike Mansfield, 1958-1963; Secretary to the Majority, 1963-1966; and Secretary of the Senate, 1966-1977. Throughout his career, his interests and Mansfield's interests were closely tied.
The collection contains non-constituent correspondence sent to Mansfield concerning national defense and the Vietnam Conflict. Additional materials include a letter from Henry Kissinger and one photograph of President Richard Nixon.
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], Mike Mansfield Non-Constituent Correspondence Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana-Missoula.
The letters were originally part of Mansfield's papers, but were not retained by Mansfield's staff because they were not from Montana constituents. Valeo kept the letters as a sample of Mansfield's other correspondence, particularly that on the Vietnam Conflict.
Gift of Michael L. Crenshaw, Assistant Archivist of the U.S. Senate, on behalf of Francis Valeo, 1990.
The collection was originally processed as SC 295 and identified as Mike Mansfield Papers. In 2004, the collection was re-numbered Mss 130, a new finding aid was prepared, and the collection was renamed the Francis Valeo Mike Mansfield Collection. In 2007 the collection was renamed the Mike Mansfield Non-Constituent Correspondence Collection.
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.