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MC 149
Erickson, John Edward,
1863-1946
John E. Erickson papers
1883-1958
3 linear feet of shelf space
John E. Erickson was the Governor of Montana from 1924 until
1933, and a U.S. Senator from 1933 to 1934. Collection (1883-1958) consists of
correspondence, speeches, subject files, scrapbooks, clippings, photographs, and
miscellaneous mementos. Topics discussed include various campaigns and elections, the
Democratic Party, Helena local history, the opening of Yellowstone National Park, the Custer
Battlefield anniversary, Norwegian-Americans, and Mrs. Burton K. Wheeler. [Photographs and
printed materials transferred to the Photograph Archives and Library respectively.]
7:4-1
English
Biographical Note:
John Edward Erickson was born in Stoughton, Wisconsin, on March 14, 1863, the son of a
Norwegian immigrant. A year later his family moved to a Greenwood County, Kansas, homestead.
Erickson graduated from Washburn College in Topeka in 1890, and was admitted to the Kansas
state bar a year later.
In 1893 Erickson moved to Choteau, Montana, and began his law practice. He served three
terms as county attorney, and then was elected judge of the 11th Judicial District for three
terms, beginning in 1904. Erickson resigned from the bench in 1915 to move his law practice
to Kalispell. Three years later he was appointed to fill an associate justice vacancy on the
Montana Supreme Court, but refused to accept the position. Always active in politics,
Erickson was a delegate to the 1920 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco and
chairman of the Democratic State Committee in 1922. Two years later he received his party's
nomination for governor. He defeated the incumbent, Joseph M. Dixon, and assumed the office
on January 5, 1925. He was re-elected in 1928 and 1932. Erickson resigned the governor's
seat on March 13, 1933, to accept an appointment as U.S. Senator, replacing Thomas J. Walsh
who died in office. Erickson was defeated by James E. Murray when he ran for the Senate in
November 1934.
Erickson returned to Helena to work again as a lawyer and to serve on the Montana Old Age
Commission. On June 27, 1898, Erickson married Grace Vance at Salt Lake City. They had three
children, Vance (b. 1901), Ellen (b. 1904), and John Cooper (b. 1908). John E. Erickson died
in Helena on May 25, 1946, at the age of 83.
This collection consists of correspondence (1925-1944), speeches (1923-1939), subject files
(1904-1936), clippings (1893-1944), and miscellany. Much of the correspondence is
congratulatory or in support of his campaigns, with little information on policy or
strategy. Speech topics include Woodrow Wilson, Elk Days, Roosevelt's inauguration, the
Custer Battlefield, etc. In addition, there are speeches in the subject file Erickson kept.
The scrapbooks in the subgroup deal with the Good Roads Convention in Louisiana in 1926, the
fiftieth anniversary of the Custer Battlefield in 1926, the opening of Yellowstone National
Park, and the Valier Irrigation Project. The scrapbooks also contained numerous photographs
which were transferred to the Photo Archives. The newspaper clippings in the collection were
arranged and titled by Erickson.
Arranged by series. Some material housed in Archives Map Case. See inventory below for more
information.
Collection open for research.
Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of the Montana Historical
Society. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collection.
In some cases permission for use may require additional authorization from the copyright
owners. For more information contact an archivist.
Item description and date. Collection Title. Collection Number. Box and Folder numbers.
Montana Historical Society Research Center, Archives, Helena, Montana.
Acquisition information available upon request
Maps and printed material separated to Library. Photographs separated to Photo Archives.
See inventory below for more information.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the Montana Historical Society
Archives catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places
should search under these terms.
Erickson, John Edward,
1863-1946
Custer Battlefield National Monument (Mont.)
Helena (Mont.)--Buildings, structures, etc.
Yellowstone National Park
St. Peter's Mission (Mont.)
Elections
Norwegian Americans--Montana.
Montana
Government and Politics
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection
General Correspondence
1 / 1
B-W (correspondents include H. Bjornson, T.W. Elliot,
Ralph Budd, David R. McGinnis, B.S. Robertson, Jerome Williams)
1925
1 / 2
C-W (correspondents include Chattanooga News, E.C.
Carruth, Dillon Tribune, C.F. Morris, Maurice P. Murphy, Rocky Mountain Oil and Gas
Association, Warren Toole, Edmund G. Toomey, Clifford Walker, May Watson)
1926
1 / 3
A-W (correspondents include O.C. Adams, Buffalo Creek
Sheep Company, Gordon Campbell, Dan R. Conway, Charles Gordon, George E. Hurd,
Hydro-Electric Power Association, Thomas Middleton Jones, Max Lowenstein, H.H.
Schwartz Jr., J.E. Swindlehurst, Yellowstone County, Yellowstone National Park)
1927
1 / 4
A-C (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Walter Aitken, E.B. Amdahl, Herbert L. Barber, Big Timber
Pioneer, Jim Blake, E.V. Blankenship, W.C. Brown, T. Cantrell, Charles M. Russell
Memorial Committee, Ed F. Crossfield)
1928
1 / 5
D-L (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Daniels County Clerk of Court, Chris W. Demel, Democratic
Party, James C. Dockstader, James Donovan re Big Hole Battle, Flathead County, John A.
Fox, Kalispell-Kevin Oil Company, Marcus Lyter)
1928
1 / 6
M-R (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Missoula Drug Company, D.H. Morgan, H. Clyde Nelson, L.S.
Olsen, Goodwin T. Paul, W.F. Ruegsegger)
1928
1 / 7
S-Y (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Scandinavian Fraternity of America, H.R. Schlytter, George E.
Snyder, Tom Stout, E.J. Stromnes, Howard Toole, Warren Toole, H.J. Toomey, Earl T.
Vance, Fred Whiteside)
1928
1 / 8
A-W (correspondents include George Arnott, A.E.
Erickson, H.R. Green, Chester T. Kennan, Harold A. Lafounte, Rocky Mountain Oil and
Gas Association, Ludwig Rose, Tom Stout)
1929
1 / 9
C-W (correspondents include F. Denny Curry,
Independent Petroleum Association, Montana Oil Journal, Leo L. Totten, Earl T. Vance,
Frances D. Whittemore)
1930
1 / 10
D-W (correspondents include Democratic Party, Ke-Sun
Oil Company, Paul C. Phillips, Walter Smethurst, Stillwater County Commissioners,
Burton K. Wheeler, B.C. White)
1931
1 / 11
A-E (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Joe Bosone, Frank F. Bossuot, Boston Mayor James M. Curley,
Thomas Cantrell, M.B. Casey, L.E. Cooper re "Slippery Bill" Morrison, Mrs. L.E.
Cooper, Chris W. Demel, Democratic Party, Charles H. Draper, Ernest T. Eaton, O.B.
Egland, L.M. Erickson)
1932
1 / 12
F-K (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Robert S. Good, Charles Gordon, Albert Hopen, Kalispell City
Clerk)
1932
2 / 1
L-N (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include H.S. Larson, J.A. Lowry, George McCormick, Earl F. McGinnis,
Cora M. Marsh, Montana Record-Herald, Montana State Board of Chiropractic Examiners,
Montana State Council of Carpenters, Maurice P. Murphy, H.L. Myers, Hal Noftalin)
1932
2 / 2
O-S (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include Jack O'Neill, Gifford Pinchot, H.M. Roberts, Scandinavian
Fraternity of America, M.B. Sherrard, J.H. Stevenson, Tom Stout, J.E. Swindlehurst)
1932
2 / 3
T-Y (primarily congratulations on re-election;
correspondents include T.A. Thompson, United States Society, Thomas J. Walsh, J.A.
Weaver)
1932
2 / 4
H-W (re Reconstruction Finance Corporation;
correspondents include Claude E. Hamilton Jr., James E. Murray, President Franklin D.
Roosevelt, Burton K. Wheeler)
1942
2 / 5
Edward M. Curray
1943
Incoming Correspondence
2 / 6
John W. Stanton
1914
2 / 7
C-W (correspondents include Will A. Campbell, Charlie
P. Donnell, George L. MacGibbon, F.H. Stoltze)
1925
2 / 8
A-W (correspondents include Horace M. Albright, A.M.
Anderson, American Good Will Association, E.C. Carruth, Clarence H. Howard, W.S.
McCormack, Omaha Bee, O.S. Warden)
1926
2 / 9
C-U (correspondents include E.C. Carruth, Disabled
American Veterans, Frank J. Jennison, Harry M. Ralston, C.J. Seely, J.E. Swindlehurst)
1927
2 / 10
A-U (correspondents include A.B. Cook, J.G. Diamond,
E.S. Kosen enclosing speech by Wellington D. Rankin, P.W. Murray, Frank H. Nash, C.D.
Powell, James T. Shea, Sam W. Teagarden, Tioga Club, O.S. Warden)
1928
2 / 11
A-W (correspondents include Anti-Saloon League of
Montana, I.M. Brandjord, Maggie Smith Hathaway, W.H. Howe, KFBB, Chester T. Keenan,
Burton K. Wheeler)
1929
2 / 12
B-T (correspondents include Billings Advertising
Company, J.M. Byrnes, Charles H. Clapp, Chester T. Keenan, "Powder River" Jack H. Lee,
Joseph P. Monaghan, Oscar Halvorsen Reinholt, Hans C. Roe, George F. Spaulding re
Rhodes Scholarships, Sam W. Teagarden)
1930
2 / 13
H-W (correspondents include R.F. Hanks, Chester T.
Keenan, Rosalta Laist, New Mexico Governor, Elizabeth Peterson, Virginia Governor,
R.J. Williams)
1931
2 / 14
A-I (correspondents include American Forestry
Association, E.C. Carruth, E.B. Coolidge, Democratic Party, Tom Dooley, Edward E.
Elliott, Idaho Governor, Ernest J. Immel)
1932
2 / 15
J-P (correspondents include Carl A. Kansala, Andrew
P. Larsen, "Powder River" Jack Lee, John Lindquist, J.A. Lowry, Frank R. Marsh, J.E.
Murphy, David Murphy Jr., Gerald F.M. O'Grady, Picket-Journal)
1932
2 / 16
R-Y (correspondents include Luther H. Reichelderfer,
J.E. Ricketts, Ray N. Shannon, M.B. Sherrard, Harry Stanford, T.S. Stockdale, S.A.
Stoddard, Gus E. Strand, W.P. Sullivan, J.E. Swindlehurst, United States Society,
Virginia Governor)
1932
2 / 17
A-V (correspondents include Will Aiken, I.J.K.
Isakson, George Y. Patten, I. Parker Veazey Jr.)
1933
2 / 18
Dean King
1940
2 / 19
B-W (correspondents include Frank J. Bell, "Powder
River" Jack Lee, H.S. Robinson, Marian P. Stover, Burton K. Wheeler, Mrs. A.E.
Williamson)
undated
Outgoing Correspondence
2 / 20
Miscellaneous
1926-1932, 1940, 1944
2 / 21
Miscellaneous
undated
Maps, Photographs, and Printed Materials
2 / 22
List of maps and printed materials transferred to the
Library; list of photographs transferred to the Photo Archives
Speeches
3 / 1
Messages to legislative assemblies
1925-1931
3 / 2
Miscellaneous
1923-1939, undated
3 / 3
Fragments
undated
Subject Files
3 / 4
Campaigns for district judge
1904, 1908
3 / 5
Seward J. Erickson
1908
3 / 6
Campaign of 1918 for State Senator
1918
3 / 7
Montana Supreme Court appointment
1919
3 / 8
Democratic National Convention, San Francisco
1920
3 / 9
"League of Nations Foundation: Cause and Cure"
1923-1935
3 / 10
Campaign for governor
1924
3 / 11
Campaign for governor
1928
3 / 12
Campaign for governor
1932
3 / 13
U. S. Senate and campaign of 1934
1933-1934
MC 122-157
U.S. Senate and campaign of 1934
[Map Case See Folder MC 122-157]
1933-1934
3 / 14
Montana Old Age Pension Commission
1936, undated
Clippings
3 / 15
"Campaign for County Clerk"
undated
4 / 1
Scrapbook of political clippings
1893-1921, undated
4 / 2
Scrapbook of John Erickson
1900-1909
4 / 3
"Campaign of 1900 for County Attorney"
1900
4 / 4
"Democratic State Convention"
1922
4 / 5-7
"Campaign of 1924 for Governor"
1924
4 / 8
"Administration 1925-1927"
1925-1927
5 / 1
"Campaign of 1928 for Governor"
1928
5 / 2
"Administration 1929-1931"
1929-1931
5 / 3
"Campaign of 1932 for Governor"
1932
5 / 4
"Administration"
undated
5 / 5
"U.S. Senate Appointment and Campaign of 1934"
1933-1934
5 / 6
Scrapbook of cartoons of U.S. Senators
1934, undated
5 / 7
"John E. Erickson"
1936-1956, undated
5 / 8
"Bible and Church - Salvaging of Civilization by H.
G. Wells; the Bible of Civilization"
1911-1924
5 / 9
"A. Lincoln; Jefferson"
1910-1940
5 / 10
"Crusade Against Evolution per Darwin"
1921-1935
5 / 11
"Disarmament Conference - Reports by Ida Turbell and
H. G. Wells"
1922-1923
5 / 12
"Helena's Diamond Jubilee"
1939
5 / 13
"K-9 Corps at Rimini, Montana"
1944
6 / 1
"Montana Products"
1926-1927
6 / 2
"World War II"
1941
6 / 3
Miscellaneous
1906-1944, undated
Miscellany
6 / 4
Certificates, eulogy, memberships, etc.
1901-1946
6 / 5
Conferences of Governors booklets
1927, 1932
6 / 6
Notes on court cases, speeches, miscellaneous
1890-1920, undated
6 / 7
Political materials re F. D. Roosevelt; T. J. Walsh;
Kalispell highways; government publications; Northern Pacific Railroad; etc.
1910-1948
6 / 8
Items removed from scrapbook and photo album re Good
Roads Convention, Custer Battlefield Anniversary, Yellowstone National Park opening,
Valier Irrigation Project, etc.
1925-1927
6 / 9
Miscellaneous
1896-1942