The papers are arranged into two series: the J. EARL LEVERICH PAPERS and the JAMES WOOD LEVERICH PAPERS. The J. EARL LEVERICH PAPERS are further subdivided into General Papers, Town of Angelo Papers, Campaign Papers, and Legislative Papers. The JAMES W. LEVERICH PAPERS are divided into Town of Angelo Papers, Personal and Family Papers, and Farm Records. Taken together, the two series document one family's involvement in agricultural and civic life over a sixty-year period. In addition to the Legislative Papers, which comprise the majority of the collection, the collection includes important documentation about two important Wisconsin dairy and fruit cooperatives and about the upheaval in Wisconsin's dairy industry in the 1930s. Photographs document Leverich's inspection of the Petenwell Dam as part of a legislative committee in 1949. Portraits of Leverich and Mrs. Leverich received with the collection were separated to the Visual Materials Name File.
The General Papers are arranged alphabetically by subject, and they variously include biographical clippings, correspondence, financial records, floor plans and drawings, memorabilia, and speeches. Well documented topics include Leverich's interest in the town airport; his administration of the estate of Cora Allendorf, a farm which may have been owned by Leverich; leadership of the Sparta Cooperative Creamery and participation in the Anti-Oleo Fund in 1931 which grew out of his cooperative activity; management of the family farm; and participation in Governor Schmedeman's 1933 Dairy Committee and the Wisconsin Agricultural Authority. Also filed here are some undated or unidentified materials that date from his legislative career.
The Town of Angelo Records pertain to Leverich's responsibilities as town chairman and county board member. They include fragmentary financial records dating from 1954 to 1967 and materials relating to the relationship of the town with Camp McCoy and various WPA projects at the camp dating from 1934 to 1939. The Monroe County records also include WPA payroll sheets. In addition, correspondence that touches on town matters may be found scattered throughout the Legislative Papers.
The Campaign Papers are arranged chronologically by election year. The files variously consist of campaign literature, correspondence regarding nomination forms, solicitation of endorsements, and papers on general election issues; financial reports and statistics; and occasional items from the state Republican Party.
The Legislative Papers are arranged chronologically by biennial session, 1935-1938 and 1943-1966. The papers for his first and last four-year terms in the Senate are most complete; the files from the 1940s and the early 1950s are less bulky and consequently probably incomplete. Because the number of legislative collections held by the Historical Society that date from the 1930s is limited, the files for Leverich's first term are especially notable. The collection is also unusual because of the legislators with collections at the Historical Society, Leverich was one of the few who served in both the Progressive and Republican parties.
The legislative files were received in great disorder, but it is believed that the earliest files were a simple alphabetical subject file. In 1943 the basic files were arranged alphabetically by correspondent name, although the files also include some subject files. In 1959 the file system became more complex with the introduction of a separate file for correspondence arranged by bill number. Such files are present for the 1959, 1961, and 1965 sessions.
During the course of his career Leverich's legislative interests remained fairly constant. These themes include aviation, Camp McCoy, conservation, dairy and agricultural issues (and especially oleomargarine), education, highway construction, and taxation. Some files of short-term duration are also of interest, particularly the files on the Council of State Government, relief employment during the 1930s, the Sparta Flood of 1943, the Petenwell Dam, and parochial school busing.
The JAMES W. LEVERICH PAPERS document his activities as farmer, town chairman, and leader in the agricultural cooperative movement in western Wisconsin. The papers are arranged as Town of Angelo Papers, Personal and Family Papers, and Farm Papers. The Town of Angelo materials are fragmentary and date from 1908 to 1917. They include information on bridge and road construction, school board matters, and rural electrification. In addition there are a few items relating to the Monroe County Asylum of which Leverich was briefly the superintendent.
Personal and family correspondence in the series dates from 1909 to 1917 and includes correspondence with his son Edward, a fruit grower in Door County, and his son Pierce, an employee of the U.S. Patent Office and the Interstate Commerce Commission. A small portion of this file consists of the correspondence of his wife Elizabeth with her family in Connecticut.
Correspondence and financial records relate to the operation of his fruit, produce, cattle and hog farm from 1904 through the 1920s. Although the financial documentation does not include true accounting records, the collection does include useful correspondence regarding management of the farm and especially its seasonal work force. The collection also includes miscellaneous financial records of the Sparta Fruit Growers Association and the Sparta Produce Exchange.
