Research: Topics: Legal & Correction Records: Records of the Governor's Office
Records of the Governor's Office
Governors' records held elsewhere
Holdings chronologically by term of office
George Clinton. Term of office: 1777-1795; 1801-1804
A collection of George Clinton papers, 1776-1819 (1 linear foot), includes correspondence, 1776-1812, concerning the Revolutionary War, gubernatorial, vice-presidential, and personal matters; military commissions, 1779-1803, signed by Clinton as governor of New York; and a volume of Clinton's proclamations issued as governor, 1777-1781. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
John Jay. Term of office: 1795-1805
A collection of John Jay papers, 1668-ca. 1862, (32 linear feet); is located at Columbia University, Manuscripts and Special Collections. The collection covers a wide array of topics including letters, manuscripts, documents, and letterbooks of Jay and of many members of his family. The letters touch on every aspect of American life and government of the period.
Morgan Lewis. Term of office: 1804-1807
A collection of Morgan Lewis papers, 1777-1839; (0.5 cubic ft); is located at the Mills Mansion State Historic Site, Staatsburg, N.Y. The records primarily consist of political and financial correspondence.
DeWitt Clinton. Term of office: 1817-1822; 1825-1828
A collection of DeWitt Clinton Papers, 1785-1828 (9 linear feet), contains twenty four volumes of Clinton's papers and letter books. Volumes 1-15 contain letters written to Clinton, 1785-1828. Volumes 16-23 are letter books covering the years 1793-1828. Volume 24 contains miscellaneous papers, speeches, poems, and the like in various hands. (Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library)
Another collection of DeWitt Clinton Papers, 1790-1835 (1 linear foot), consists chiefly of letters, 1790-1835, and also includes military commissions signed by Clinton as governor and other official and legal documents, autographs, portraits, clippings, and printed material. Clinton's letters include discussions of gubernatorial matters, politics, legislation, and canal construction. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
Enos Thompson Throop. Term of office: 1829-1832
A collection of Enos Thompson Throop Papers, 1804 -1868, (7 inches), includes mainly family correspondence with a little political and financial material. Correspondence from the gubernatorial period is limited to one political invitation and about 15 incoming letters from his wife and other relatives. (Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Rush Rees Library, University of Rochester)
William H. Seward. Term of office: 1839-1942
A collection of Seward papers, 1730-1917 (230 linear feet), includes some gubernatorial records of William Seward, including reports and letters concerning appointments, extraditions, pardons, elections, Indian affairs, New York Geological Survey, and State institutions. (University of Rochester, Rush Rees Library)
William L. Marcy. Term of office: 1833-1838
A collection of Marcy papers, 1820-1863 (14 Boxes) primarily relates to Marcy's role as receiver of the City Bank of Buffalo, when that bank failed in 1840. Materials cover such topics as Marcy's career as a member of the cabinets of presidents James K. Polk and Franklin Pierce; New York state and national Democratic politics (ca. 1830-1860); and international relations. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
William C. Bouck. Term of office: 1843-1844
A collection of William C. Bouck Papers, 1727-1866 (4 cubic feet, 4 microfilm reels), contains correspondence and other papers relating mainly to Bouck's political career, including letters concerning State and local politics, political struggles over the enlargement of the canal system, Bouck's campaigns for the governorship in 1840 and 1842, and the anti-rent movement in Schoharie and Rensselaer Counties. Correspondence as governor concerns appointments, judicial reform, revision of State constitution, temperance, Sabbath observances, conditions at State prisons with special attention to facilities for women, minors, and the insane, sale of Oneida Indian Reservation land, State politics, Democratic Party factionalism, and pre-Civil War tensions. (Department of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cornell University Libraries)
Washington Hunt. Term of office: 1851-1852
A collection of Hunt's Papers, 1836-1862 (18 items) can be found can be found at the Manuscripts and Special Collections, Syracuse University Libraries.
Horatio Seymour. Term of office: 1853-1854; 1863-1864
A collection of Seymour's Papers, 1764-1886 (15 boxes), includes correspondence dealing with Seymour's personal and political affairs, a governor's office blotter and telegram book, account books of his business activities, notebooks, scrapbooks of material on the Erie Canal, scrapbooks on Seymour's political activities, and speeches. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
Myron H. Clark. Term of office: 1855-1856
A collection of Myron H. Clark Papers, 1834-1856 (4 boxes), contains correspondence from Clark's terms as sheriff, state senator, and governor. Also included is family and business correspondence. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
Edwin D. Morgan. Term of office: 1859-1962
A collection of Edwin Denison Morgan Papers, 1830-1872 (50 cubic feet), relates to Morgan's personal, business, and political affairs. Included are correspondence, letterpress copybooks, journals (bookkeeping), ledgers, mortgages bonds, bills, receipts, other business papers, scrapbooks, pamphlets, and printed circulars. Morgan's papers include a significant amount of correspondence with national figures. The correspondence deals with personal business and political matters. A significant amount of material relates to Morgan's activities during the Civil War, including vouchers and requisitions for equipment, contracts for rations and clothing, and records relating to preparation of coastal defenses in and around New York Harbor. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
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Reuben E. Fenton. Term of office: 1865-1868
A collection of Reuben Eaton Fenton Papers, 1854-1885 (.75 cubic foot), contains materials relating to all phases of Fenton's political career, including letters, 1854-1885, and telegrams received as governor, 1865-1868, concerning topics such as election campaigns, patronage, and mustering out regiments at the conclusion of the Civil War. Also includes a proclamation by Governor Fenton regarding the end of the Civil War. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
John T. Hoffman. Term of office: 1869-1872
A collection of John Thompson Hoffman Papers, 1868-1883 (60 items), contains letters to Hoffman regarding State and national politics. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
John A. Dix. Term of office: 1873-1874
A collection of John Adams Dix Papers, 1813-1879 (6.5 linear feet), contains correspondence, speeches, essays, clippings, leaflets, and other papers. Most of the collection is correspondence with prominent political, military, and literary figures of the period. (Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library)
Samuel J. Tilden. Term of office: 1875-1876
A collection of Samuel Jones Tilden Papers, 1794-1886 (49.4 linear feet), contains correspondence; speeches; writings; political, legal, and family papers; maps; photographs; and other papers. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
Additional Tilden papers from 1876-1880 (ca. 1,000 items) are located at Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
Alonzo B. Cornell. Term of office: 1880-1882
A collection of Alonzo B. Cornell Papers, 1830-1904 (7.5 cubic feet), contains correspondence, journal, accounts, clippings, notes, leaflets, blotters, and scrapbooks relating largely to Cornell's political activities. Includes letters (1880-1882) written during Cornell's administration as governor concerning appointments, the veto, various reform or political measures, political treachery, elevated companies, railroad commissions, and other matters. (Department of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cornell University Libraries)
Grover Cleveland. Term of office: 1883-1884
A microfilm collection of Grover Cleveland Papers, 1828-1945 (164 microfilm reels), includes diaries, correspondence, speeches, and other papers, mostly relating to his two terms as United States President; very few items relate to his New York State political career. (Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library)
Additional Grover Cleveland papers on microfilm are located at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society - Manuscripts, Buffalo, New York. Other Grover Cleveland papers are located at the Princeton University Library, and the Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library.
David B. Hill. Term of office: 1885-1891
A collection of David B. Hill Papers, 1872-1920 (15 boxes), consists mainly of political correspondence. Also included are petitions sent to Hill regarding several bills pending in the State legislature and several albums regarding receptions given or attended by Hill. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
Another collection of David Bennett Hill Papers, 1886-1910 (.9 linear foot), consists of correspondence, legal documents, drafts of speeches, and other materials, mostly relating to Hill's career as United States Senator. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
Levi P. Morton. Term of office: 1895-1896
A collection of Levi Parsons Morton Papers, 1842-1920 (19 linear feet), includes correspondence as governor of New York as well as correspondence, speeches, newspaper clippings, and other papers relating to his private, political, and diplomatic careers. (Manuscripts and Archives Section, New York Public Library)
Another collection of Levi Parsons Morton Papers, 1860-1912 (.5 linear foot), contains correspondence and other papers, mostly relating to his term as governor. (Syracuse University, Special Collections, George Arents Research Library)
Theodore Roosevelt. Term of office: 1899-1900
The Theodore Roosevelt Papers, 1759-1920, at the Library of Congress include family, personal, and official correspondence, diaries, speeches, press releases, and other materials, mostly dating from 1889-1919. These papers are also available in a microfilm publication produced by the Library of Congress. (Library of Congress, Manuscript Division)
The Theodore Roosevelt Collection, 1850s-1970s (175 linear feet), at Harvard University includes microfilm of the Roosevelt Papers at the Library of Congress in addition to original correspondence, diaries, and other papers of Roosevelt and members of his family. (Houghton Library, Harvard University)
A microfilm collection of Theodore Roosevelt Papers, 1759-1931 (485 microfilm reels), includes correspondence, speeches, press releases, and other papers of Roosevelt. (Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library)
A collection of Theodore Roosevelt Papers, 1885-1919, contains correspondence relating to Roosevelt's political career at the State and federal level. (William L. Clements Library, Division of Manuscripts, University of Michigan)
The Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Photograph Collection, ca: 1860-1990 (ca. 10,000 items), contains photographs from all stages of Theodore Roosevelt's life and career, photos of his family, friends and associates, and of Sagamore Hill and other places associated with him. Includes pictures of his early political activity in New York State and his service as governor. (Sagamore Hill National Historic Site)
A collection of Theodore Roosevelt Photographs, 1903-1973 (565 photoprints and photonegatives), provides a visual account of Roosevelt's life, including family life, outdoor activities, home correspondence from the White House, election campaign posters, cartoons, and newspaper articles about him. (American Museum of Natural History, Department of Library Services)
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Benjamin B. Odell, Jr.. Term of office: 1901-1904
The George Arents Research Library for Special Collections at Syracuse University has letters, 1901-1922, 9 items concerning the selection of Ray Brook as a proposed site for a State Hospital and gubernatorial appointments.
Frank W. Higgins. Term of office: 1905-1906
A collection of Frank Higgins papers (3.5 linear feet), is located at Syracuse University, Special Collections, George Arents Research Library.
Charles Evans Hughes. Term of office: 1907-1910
A collection of Charles Evans Hughes papers is located at the Library of Congress, Manuscript Division.
Horace White. Term of office: 1910
A collection of Horace White papers, 1903-1914 (10 linear feet), is located at Syracuse University, Special Collections, George Arents Research Library.
William Sulzer. Term of office: 1913
Fourteen Scrapbooks, 1906-1936, containing political correspondence and leaflets concerning Sulzer, are located in Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library. Additional Sulzer papers are located at the Department of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cornell University Libraries (30.2 cubic feet, 2 microfilm reels), The New York Historical Society, and Rutgers University Libraries (4 volumes).
A collection of William Sulzer Correspondence, 1898-1941 (40 items), contains mostly outgoing letters, a few of which (Eugene Brewster, Everett Wheeler) refer to Tammany Hall and the impeachment proceedings against Governor Sulzer. (Syracuse University, Special Collections, George Arents Research Library)
Martin Glynn. Term of office: 1913-1914
A collection of Martin Glynn Papers, 1913-1924 (6 boxes) is located at Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library.
Charles S. Whitman. Term of office: 1915-1918
A collection of Charles Whitman papers, 1868-1947 (115 items), is located at Columbia University, Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
Alfred E. Smith. Term of office: 1919-1920; 1923-1928
A collection of Alfred E. Smith Papers, 1919-1944 (32 boxes), includes correspondence, 1932-1940; speeches, 1913-1944; clippings concerning the gubernatorial campaign of 1924; subject files, 1924-1939; governor's annual messages to the legislature, 1923, 1924, and 1925; records of Governor Smith's secretary, George B. Graves; 1919 inaugural ceremony materials; and press releases from the governor's office, 1925-1928. (Manuscripts and Special Collections, New York State Library)
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Nathan Lewis Miller. Term of office: 1921-1922
A collection of Nathan Lewis Miller Papers, 1902-1958 (1.75 linear feet) contains correspondence, legal briefs, writings, scrapbooks and other memorabilia, (Syracuse University, Special Collections, George Arents Research Library).
Franklin D. Roosevelt. Term of office: 1929-1932
Records and papers relating to Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Roosevelt family can be found at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and the Hyde Park Historical Society, both located in Hyde Park, New York. Roosevelt gubernatorial records that had been deposited at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library have been returned to the New York State Archives.
Herbert H. Lehman. Term of office: 1933-1942
A collection of Herbert Henry Lehman Papers, 1858-1963 (1,250,000 items), includes correspondence, manuscripts of writings, documents, sound recordings, motion pictures, political cartoons, clippings, printed material, and memorabilia documenting Lehman's early business career and his careers as lieutenant governor (1928-1932), governor (1933-1942), director general of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), and senator from New York(1949-1956). Also documented are Lehman's college years, his retirement years, and family and personal life. (Columbia University, Herbert H. Lehman Suite and Papers)
Charles Poletti. Term of office: 1942
A collection of Charles Poletti Papers, 1920-1983 (ca. 38,400 items), includes correspondence, subject files, speeches, clippings, photographs, and memorabilia of Poletti as counsel to the governor of New York, 1933-1937; justice of the New York State Supreme Court, 1937-1938; lieutenant governor, 1939-1942; governor, December 1942; and vice president for international relations, New York World's Fair, 1960-1966. Of particular importance are his files on the Allied Military Government in Italy, political campaigns, New York State Defense and War Councils, power projects, and the New York World's Fair, 1960-1966. (Columbia University, Herbert H. Lehman Suite and Papers)
Thomas E. Dewey. Term of office: 1943-1954
Most records of the Thomas E. Dewey administration and other Dewey papers (735 cubic feet, 283 volumes) are located at the University of Rochester, Rush Rees Library, Department of Rare Books and Special Collections. The gubernatorial records include the original central files, a microfilm copy of which is in the State Archives. This collection includes personal and political correspondence, legislative papers and official correspondence from Dewey's terms as governor, speeches, photographs, clippings, and engagement calendars. The collection also includes recordings of speeches as well as motion picture films of official functions and political campaigns, beginning 1937.
W. Averell Harriman. Term of office: 1955-1958
Records of the W. Averell Harriman administration formerly formerly held at Syracuse University, Special Collections are now located at the New York State Archives. Search our catalog to locate Harriman records.
Nelson A. Rockefeller. Term of office: 1959-1973
Over 2,000 cubic feet of Nelson A. Rockefeller administration records, including originals of the microfilmed Central Subject and Correspondence Files which are in the State Archives, and Rockefeller family collections are at the Rockefeller Archive Center, Pocantico Hills.
A collection of Eliot H. Lumbard Papers, 1959-1973 (27.3 linear feet), includes correspondence, notes, clippings, pamphlets, and reprints of Governor Rockefeller's Special Assistant Counsel for Law Enforcement(1961-1967). Materials concern probation, parole, gambling, criminal identifications, the New York State Constitutional Convention of 1967, New York City crime, the Law Enforcement Act of 1965, and Governor Rockefeller's speeches, 1959-1973. (State University of New York at Albany, Archives, University Libraries)
The David Lawrence Cole Papers, Series 2, Commissions and Boards Materials (16.5 linear feet), Subseries 3, New York State Governor's Committee on Public Employee Relations Files, 1966-1969, includes correspondence, proposals, documents, minutes, drafts, judicial records, and memoranda relating to Governor Rockefeller's Committee on Public Employee Relations and to the Public Employees' Fair Employment Act (the "Taylor Law'), which it helped draft. Also included are documents relating to the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) covering disputes involving various unions, and data on a number of decisions handed down by PERB. (Cornell University, Labor Management Documentation Center)
Malcolm Wilson. Term of office: 1973-1974
A collection of Miscellaneous Records, ca. 1925-1985, includes about 100 linear feet of unprocessed papers of Governor Malcolm Wilson. (Fordham University Archives)
Hugh L. Carey. Term of office: 1975-1982
A collection of Hugh L. Carey Gubernatorial Papers, 1975-1982 (50 cubic feet, 498 microfilm reels), includes files containing biographical materials, correspondence, and social invitations; campaign files including promotional literature; administrative and staff files of the Council on State Priorities highlighting Carey's support of education, housing, transportation, and economic issues; press releases; remarks and statements made during public appearances; speeches; and photographs of Carey and associates attending public events. (St. John's University)
RELATED RECORDS AND PAPERS AT THE NEW YORK STATE LIBRARY
The New York State Library, Manuscripts and Special Collections, holds a number of collections relating to New York State governors in addition to those listed above Many of these collections consist of one or two items such as land grants, military appointments, receipts for funds, or letters to or from the governor. However, several larger collections, described below, each contain materials relating to a number of governors.
The William Gorham Rice Papers, 1841-1937 (8 boxes), include correspondence, articles, legislative bills, and other materials relating to Rice's career as secretary to Governors Grover Cleveland and David B. Hill.
The George Stephenson Bixby Papers, 1872-1935 (15 boxes, 12 packages), include materials used in preparing a biography of David B. Hill; letters to Hill; Hill's letter copybooks and speeches; and speeches of Roswell P. Flower.
The James Mahoney Papers, 1925-1942 (2 cubic feet), include personal and business letters addressed to Mahoney, an assistant secretary to Governors Alfred E. Smith, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Herbert Lehman. The letters deal with issues before the legislature, political matters, requests for the governor's attention, and other matters. Correspondents include a wide variety of individuals representing government agencies, business firms, special interest groups, and politicians.
The New York State Governor's Autograph Collection, 1815-1900 (81 items), includes commissions, appointments, deeds, recommendations, official correspondence, and personal letters, all bearing the signature of a governor.
