Richard M. Long Papers
Collection 48
Introduction
Richard Long was a newspaperman and served as secretary to Senator George McGill of Kansas from 1934-1939. His son Robert Long donated this collection of his correspondence and other documents to the Kansas State Historical Society in June, 1973. Much of the collection consists of correspondence with his friends in both politics and the newspaper business. A portion of the collection deals with Wichita’s Cowtown and contains legal contracts and lease agreements. The collection also includes newspaper clippings, political pamphlets, and other miscellaneous documents produced or received by Long. All material in the collection is open to researchers and no restrictions are made.
Biography
Richard Mortimer Long was born April 28, 1898, in Wichita, Kansas, the son of William Wallace and Alma Ann Long. He attended Wichita University in 1919 and 1920. He was a newspaper reporter for the Wichita Eagle from 1921 to 1934. In 1934, he joined the staff of Senator George McGill, a Democrat from Kansas. He rejoined the staff of the Wichita Eagle as news editor in 1939 and became the managing editor in 1946. He retired from the Eagle in 1963. Long was president of the Wichita Library board in1950 and served as its treasurer from 1955 – 1959. He also served as president of Historic Wichita, Inc. from 1950 – 1958. Long was a member of the board of directors of the Kansas State Historical Society from 1944-1958, serving as president of the Society for the 1958-1959 term. He is a member of the American Legion and the Masons. He wrote Wichita 1866-1883: Cradle Day of a Midwestern City, published in 1945. He married Ruth Marie Blandon on June 9, 1928, and has two children, Robert Timmons and Betsy Ann.
Scope and Content
The inclusive dates of the collection are 1919 to 1967. The bulk of the material dates from 1934 to 1939, when Long was Senator McGill’s secretary.
The major portion of material in this collection relates to political elections in Kansas in the 1930s. The Roosevelt-Landon presidential election of 1936 and the McGill Reed senatorial election of 1938 are covered. The materials include political predictions, voting patterns in the 1928-1934 elections, campaign tactics, and assorted political correspondence.
The collection contains material on the issues of the 1930s and their impact on Kansas. Among these are the Rural Electrification Corporation, the Works Progress Administration, the Pope-McGill Farm bill, Roosevelt’s attempt to pack the Supreme Court, and military assistance to Great Britain and France in response to the Nazi threat.
The collection also contains a report and recommendations by the U.S. Tariff Commission to President Truman in 1951 and the voting records of Senator Reed in 1944 and Senator Schoeppel in 1960. It also includes courtesy correspondence with past U.S. Presidents, Senators, Kansas Governors, and newspaper people. Long was an active supporter of the Friendship Train, a project started by newspaperman Drew Pearson in 1947 to supply food, medicine, and clothing to post-war France and Italy and the collection documents his efforts in Kansas. The final six folders in Box 5 contain material on the Wichita Cowtown, which Long helped found and build as president of Historic Wichita, Inc.
Contents List
Series Description
The filing system in the collection has two parts. The first box is arranged chronologically, with the folders dated 1932 and 1933 containing copies of Senator George McGill’s correspondence. All folders dated 1934-1967 contain the correspondence of Long. Boxes two through five are filed in alphabetical order by topic or by last name of the correspondent.
Box List
Box 1
Papers and Miscellaneous, 1932-1967
Box 2
Ayers-Helm
Ayers, William A., 1939-1951
Baker, H. D., 1934-1938
Breeding, Floyd, 1952-1962
Callahan, John, 1919-1933
Campbell, Cam, 1934-1944
Carlson, Frank, 1937-1968
Clugston, W. G., 1937-1954
Docking, George and Virginia, 1957-1960
Doze, Bert, 1934-1938
Election, 1944
Foley, Ray, 1934-1938
Friendship Train, 1947
George, Newell, 1938-1961
Hay, Jack, 1935-1939
Helm, William, 1940-1957
Box 3
Hill-McGoodwin
Hill, Thurman, 1939-1952
Hope, Clifford, 1937-1965
House, A. B., 1956
Huxman, Walter, 1937-1950
Johnson, Lyndon B., 1964-1965
Box 3 (continued)
Landon, Alf M., 1930-1965
Long, Sidney, 1934-1935
McGill, George, 1931-1959
McGill, George, Miscellaneous Papers
McGill, George, Newsletters
McGill, George, Jr., 1936-1961
McGoodwin, Preston, 1936-1938
Box 4
Miscellaneous-Paulen
Miscellaneous
Murdock, Marcellous, 1933-1954
Murdock, Victor, 1934-1940
Noel, Francis E., 1934-1955
Noel, J. Fred, 1934-1943
Oswald, A. Lewis, 1952-1959
Palmer, Dr. Martin, 1936-1938
Paulen, Sen S., 1960
Box 5
Pearson-Wichita
Pearson, Drew, 1947-1968
Pearson, James, 1965-1967
Private Clubs, Sedgwick County
Railroad Tire Tables, 1883-1888
Ratner, Payne H., 1950-1965
Reed, Clyde M., 1938-1967
Rees, Edward H., 1936-1958
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 1936-1938
Russell, Richard B., 1952
Schoeppel, Andrew F., 1951-1961
Simpson, Mrs. George C., 1935
Sprinkle, J. L., 1938
Taylor, Zach, 1934-1944
Theis, Frank, 1960-1961
Truman, Harry S., 1944-1965
Van Ness, Harry, 1934-1939
White, William I., 1951-1953
Wichita Cowtown, 1878-1962
Wichita Cowtown, Miscellaneous Papers
Wichita Cowtown, Minutes of the Board of Directors,
1956-1960
January 4, 1977 Jim Tefelski, Intern
