Utah Historical Quarterly Volume XXVI

The President's report, by Lelenad H. Creer

ie former Coach House on the property it 603 Each South Temple has been beauti­fully remodeled and is providing temporary quarters for the State Library. Eventually it will be used as the Records' Management center for the Archives Division of the Utah State Historical Society. THE P R E S I D E N T ' S REPORT By Leland H. Creer* "History," says Scott, "is the sum total of human experience, clarified by criticism." In the fullest sense of the word, history includes all we know about everything that man has ever done or thought, or hoped or felt. In a practical sense, however, the historian chooses only those pertinent facts of a causal-effect relationship which demonstrate in summary outline the evolution and devolution of civilization in all the ages. Again as Von Ranke says: "Universal history embraces die events of all nations, and times in their connection, insofar as these affect one another, appear one after the other, and all together form a living totality." History, in reality, is mankind's memory. Without it, humanity would be a mere conglomeration of units, born today, for­gotten tomorrow. He who knows no history can only regard life as a flat surface. For him there is no past, and he can have little discern­ment of the influences of contemporaneous events on the future. "He is [like] a fly buzzing on the window pane in company with other flies with no conception of race memory, national memory or the forces which created the life about him." * Dr. Creer is head of the department of history at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City. He has served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Utah State Historical Society since 1949 and has served as its president since April, 1957. His Report was delivered at the sixth annual dinner meeting of the Society on May 10, 1958. 374 UTAH HISTORICAL QUARTERLY In ancient times, most historians felt that the chief purpose was to entertain. Others, like Polybius, have represented the value of history as a means primarily of instruction, to present an object lesson. Begin­ning with Von Ranke and the German school of historians of the latter quarter of the nineteenth century, however, the chief aim of history has come to be the determination of facts, the finding of truth, the dis­covery of things as they are and were. The task of the historian then is first to determine the truth and secondly to tell the truth. The ascertainment and correlation of facts, the verification and weighing of evidence, the discriminatory use of hypotheses, the cautious attempt to form generalizations - all these are the canons by which the historian works. To pursue his task, the historian deals with written documents, and with these materials almost entirely. The document is his starting point, fact his goal. His method of research is indirect, for unlike the physical scientist, he cannot observe directly the data which he uses. It was Von Ranke who said, "In historical research, I do not go back to the sources, I go back of them." Organized for the purpose of collecting, preserving, and dissemi­nating the materials of history, particularly those pertinent to the Inter-mountain West, the Utah State Historical Society was created during the Jubilee year, 1897, which occasion marked the fiftieth anniversary of the coming of the Pioneers to the Great Salt Lake Valley. Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws were drawn up and approved on December 28. Franklin D. Richards was elected the first president. Among the seventy-four charter members were: Governor Heber M. Wells, John Henry Smith, A. O. Smoot, Richard W. Young, C. C. Goodwin, Franklin S. Richards, H. W. Lawrence, John T. Caine, Orson F. Whitney, Charles W. Penrose, R. N. Baskin, Spencer Clawson, John R. Winder, Emmeline B. Wells, J. E. Dooley, Orlando W. Powers, Heber J. Grant, Andrew Jenson, and Joseph T. Kingsbury - all noted and respected leaders of the state. The objectives of the Society, as noted in the Articles of Incorporation were: The encouragement of historical research and inquiry by the exploration and investigation of aboriginal monuments and remains; the collection of such material as may serve to illustrate the growth of Utah and the Intermountain region; the preserva­tion in a permanent depository of manuscripts, documents, papers, and tracts of value; the establishment of a library of books and publications, and a cabinet of antiquities and relics; PRESIDENT'S REPORT 375 the dissemination of information and the holding of meetings at stated intervals for the interchange of views and criticisms. Speaking on this memorable occasion, Professor Joseph T. Kings­bury, in explaining the motives of the Society, put the matter suc-cintly as follows: The Historical Society has an important work to perform in accumulating facts pertaining to the history of the people of the state, both with respect to the past as well as to future time. . . . Nothing is more interesting, and in fact more impor­tant, than the study of man, than to know his past history, his mode of living, the amusements in which he participated, his everyday thoughts, his attainments in the arts and sciences, his manners and conduct. This is as it should be, for around man all else centers. He is the most nearly perfect being of all crea­tion within the knowledge of the human mind. His structure is the grandest, the most complicated and the most ingeniously formed. His capabilities and intelligence far surpass all other beings. There is therefore a good reason for having an interest in man and his works and for taking an interest in his past life. The Historical Society of Utah, I take it, is prompted by more or less the same motives which have actuated other societies and other men and women that have taken upon themselves to gather facts and relics pertaining to the past history of man, and to gather in the facts and incidents of his current history, and to preserve all for their own benefit and information, and for the benefit and information of those of future generations. Under the capable leadership of Dr. A. Russell Mortensen, who assumed the office of director and editor of its publications in 1950, the Utah State Historical Society has made steady progress toward the realization of the above aims. A year ago the Society occupied its cur­rent spacious quarters, formerly known as the Governor's Mansion, a gift to the state by Thomas Kearns, its original builder and owner. It is always "open house" at the new residence, for the Historical So­ciety, be it understood, is a public state institution housed in a public building, and designed to perform a public service. Since its occu­pancy of the new residence, hundreds of writers, historians, graduate students, genealogical workers, foreign visitors, and public officials have frequented its many rooms and utilized its splendid facilities in quest of further knowledge, for the edifice has become a veritable storehouse 376 UTAH HISTORICAL QUARTERLY of priceless written and pictorial memorabilia of Utah from the time of its origin. Furthermore, the Society, under careful regulation, is mak­ing available its facilities to various groups who are interested in pur­suing objectives through organized lectures, programs, meetings, etc., which are compatible with the aims of the Society. During the past year, two public receptions were held, one in commemoration of the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the Society; another to exhibit the William H. Jackson collection of pictures which was purchased and donated to the Society by Nicholas G. Morgan, Sr. During the past year an effort has been made to revitalize com­mittee action. Six important standing committees were created and their functions carefully defined. These include the committees on Archives; Public Relations; Library; Publications; Expansion and Membership; and Finance, Buildings and Grounds. To activate interest in the Society bimonthly meetings of the Board of Trustees have been scheduled and written reports requested from committee chairmen. As a result, renewed interest among Board members has been de­veloped, for which your president expresses sincere gratitude. (A) ARCHIVES. In 1951, the legislature created a division of State Archives and made the Historical Society responsible for all noncurrent public records. Most of the archival material - official papers, corre­spondence, minute books, commission reports of die territorial and state governors of Utah - are filed in the basement vaults. Several serious obstacles, however, confront the archives program. First, insuffi­cient archival space. Only a few of the valuable public records of the state can be housed properly under present facilities. All of these valu­able documents should be kept in fireproof air-conditioned vaults, specially constructed under archival specifications. Until this is done, many historically valuable records will have to remain in the vaults of the agencies of origin, many of them unclassified and therefore ren­dered useless for historical purposes. Personnel. There is immediate need for at least two additional staff members in the Archives Department - a trained assistant whose activities should be devoted to the field of record management, to insure the creation, filing, indexing, and preservation of current records before they reach the archival stage; and the other, a field representative whose chief function should be to advise city and county agents relative to the proper disposition of records. Professional advice is necessary if county recorders and clerks are to function wisely in the important PRESIDENT'S REPORT 377 Librarian John James adjusts a microfilm roll on the reader in the library for a researcher. Staff member Ohleen Leatherwood checks the territorial records section of the archives. work of record keeping and preservation. In addition, the field repre­sentative might assist as an organizer of county units. Insufficient funds. More funds are needed for salaries, archival space, fireproof vaults, and microfilming. That the Society in its archival program has already saved the state thousands of dollars can be demonstrated easily. Dr. Everett L. Cooley, the archivist, says: Since January 1, 1957, the Archives has been instrumental in the legal destruction or disposal of 4,865 cubic feet of worth­less public records. Translated into file cabinet storage, this would amount to the emptying of 608 four-drawer file cabinets. Translated into dollars this amounts to freeing $48,640.00 worth of equipment (608 file cabinets valued at $80.00 each) plus $6,080.00 of free office space (608 file cabinets occupy 2,432 square feet of space valued at $2.50 per square foot). So the total savings effected by this disposal amounts to $54,720.00, more than four times the total budget of the Archives for the current year. The preservation of important historical records of the state through microfilming has scarcely begun. Funds are necessary for this service. Only recently, thanks to the generosity of the Genealogical Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the minutes of the Commission of Salt Lake City (1850-1957), were made available on microfilm to the State Archives. A similar microfilm program should be carried throughout the state in both city and county offices. 378 UTAH HISTORICAL QUARTERLY (B) PUBLIC RELATIONS. Much effective work in public relations has resulted through favorable yet factual newspaper publicity, thanks to the good offices of George F. Egan, chairman of that committee. A bimonthly lecture series, free to the public, has been arranged also. The first assigned address was delivered March 7 by Dr. A. Russell Mortensen on the subject, "The Historical Society: A Public Institu­tion," and the second by William R. Palmer on May 9 on the subject, "Early-day Trading With the Nevada Mining Camps." The generous use of the Mansion and its splendid facilities has attracted wide atten­tion. An excellent opportunity to effect better public relations, particu­larly outside of Utah, has been accorded the Society through an invita­tion to serve as major sponsor for the joint convention of the American Association for State and Local History and the Society of American Archivists to be held in Salt Lake City this coming August. It has been suggested that public relations might be improved locally by trans­ferring the Society to outlying areas through regional conventions or­ganized and held occasionally in communities where interest is alert but contacts with the parent society difficult. (C) LIBRARY. The library is the heart of the Society's activities and functions. Reference and reading rooms are on the second floor with tables, desks, and lounge chairs for patrons. Catalogues, indices, newspaper files, and microfilm facilities are readily available. One room is devoted to pictures and maps of great historic value and another to the splendid Nicholas G. Morgan Collection of more than two thou­sand volumes on Western Americana. The latter includes also micro­films of rare and historically significant books, pamphlets, periodicals, diaries, letters, and manuscripts as well as rare editions of church periodicals, books, and pamphlets. When Mr. John James was employed as first professional librarian of the Society in 1952, he found only four thousand volumes. These were uncatalogued and improperly stored in the cramped quarters of the State Capitol. Hundreds of volumes of no historical worth were given to other institutions, and today, after five years, while the number of volumes has increased to only forty-five hundred, all these have been catalogued. In addition there are sixteen hundred pamphlets cata­logued. A microfilm reader today services two hundred fifty rolls of films as compared with fifty, five years ago. These films contain rare historic records impossible to obtain in their original form. For ex­ample, the library contains thirty reels of the Weekly Deseret News (1850-1900), sixteen reels which record the entire manuscript collection PRESIDENT'S REPORT 379 Mrs. "fane" Stites, reference librarian, shown working on the newspaper clip files, a valuable and much used portion of the research facilities of the library. of the Bancroft Library, and others containing the record of priceless journals, diaries, and manuscripts gleaned from such depositories as the Library of Congress, Bancroft Library, Huntington, Yale, Harvard, and the New York Public libraries. The newspaper clip file, one of the most popular in the library, is an interesting innovation. Selected news­papers are examined, and all articles of Utah interest are clipped, in­dexed, and filed. Two additional extra-curricular projects of the library are worthy of mention. One is a card index by author, title, and subject of all registered dissertations pertaining to die history of Utah and the Mormons found in universities and colleges throughout the United States. So far more than fifteen hundred theses have been so listed. The other is the compila­tion of a "Union Catalogue of Published Materials on Utah and the Mor­mons." This project, begun several years ago by Dale L. Morgan, lists by author, title, and date all published materials found in every library in the United States. So far the library staff has listed more than nine thousand separate items and has typed some thirty thousand cards. Despite the excellency of the library and its staff, further progress is impeded through lack of funds. It is recommended that the current budget of $2,000.00 per year for the purchase of books be increased to at least $5,000.00, for the present appropriation is not sufficient to cover even the cost of new books which appear annually. I also recom­mend that the Library Committee attempt to acquire either by gift or purchase some of the larger private collections of the state. 380 UTAH HISTORICAL QUARTERLY (D) PUBLICATIONS. The Board of Trustees is proud of our Quar­terly. When Dr. Mortensen first assumed the role of director and editor in 1950, seventeen volumes of this periodical published on an annual basis had appeared. Since that time, Volume XVIII, Pageant in the Wilderness, and Volume XIX, West from Fort Bridger, have been issued, and the Quarterly has appeared regularly on a true quarterly basis. It is now in the twenty-sixth volume. The Publications Com­mittee in recent issues has attempted to make the Quarterly more salable by proposing a more attractive cover, improving the type, and adding timely illustrations. Writes Dr. Mortensen in a Newsletter dated February, 1958: The July issue will be full of interest and excitement. A new and different approach is being made. In co-operation with the Utah Tourist and Publicity Council and the State Parks Com­mission, a magazine devoted to the history of the parks and other scenic areas of Utah is planned. Many illustrations are to be used, both black and white and color, and outstanding writers are preparing effective articles. In addition to the regular issues of the Quarterly, it is hoped that special issues containing completed research of the authors will appear occasionally as special monographs. (E) EXPANSION AND MEMBERSHIP. Under the very capable chair­manship of Dr. Joel E. Ricks, immediate past president, a comprehen­sive program of expansion is being planned. Excellent chapters have already been organized in Cache and Utah counties, and it is expected that Salt Lake and Weber counties will be similarly organized within the current year. A new plan of membership involving institutional as well as individual affiliation might result in increased membership. It is with pride that we recognize the phenomenal growth of the Utah State Historical Society during the past decade. But we must also become increasingly aware of our greater responsibilities to the people of the state along with this growth. Our biennial budget has increased from $40,000.00 in 1950 to $152,800.00 today, and our membership has grown from approximately three hundred and fifty to more than one thousand during the past eight years. No task is too great to preserve the marvelous heritage of our wonderful pioneers. In this we must not fail. With a loyal and devoted Board of Trustees, an efficient staff, a sympa­thetic legislature, and your enthusiastic co-operation, the future of the Society appears permanently assured.