The Original Collection dates 1932-1966 and is organized into two major series: PRE-MERGER FILES, which precede the March 1962 merger between Locals 442, 695, and 870; and POST-MERGER FILES which generally date from after that event. Each of the major series is in turn organized into a number of different subseries and other divisions.

Pre-Merger Files

The main sub-divisions of this series are the Waukesha and Watertown Records, Madison Records, Richland Center Records, and Reedsburg Records. Thus, except for the files of the original Local 695 at Waukesha and old Local 434 at Watertown, the records of each local which went into the 1962 consolidation have been kept intact as a distinct unit. Records of the Waukesha and Watertown locals, which merged in 1953, had been consolidated at union headquarters, and that arrangement has been preserved here.

The Waukesha and Watertown Records fill 67 boxes and are the largest single component of the collection. They include Minutes, 1937-1962; a Subject File, 1932-1962; an Employer File, 1935-1962; and a Contract File, 1936-1962.

The Minutes document general membership meetings, executive board meetings, and craft meetings. The last-named category consists of meetings of members with the same employer or type of work (i.e. Carnation Company workers or laundry workers). Additional minutes of craft meetings can be found in some of the individual employer files. There are no minutes for the old Local 434 of Watertown; all minutes pre-dating the November 1953 merger pertain to the Waukesha body.

The Subject File contains correspondence, reports, clippings, and other types of materials arranged alphabetically by file heading. This segment does not include files on companies with whom the union dealt. Rather, the files concern the local's relations with other locals, state and area Teamster bodies, and the national union; and topics such as insurance, pensions, legal matters, and politics. Of particular interest are the files on the “Joint State Area Committee,” “Wisconsin Conference of Teamsters,” and the various “Wisconsin Teamsters Joint Councils.” They contain very complete sets of minutes for each of these organizations as well as correspondence and committee materials. Also significant are the “Reports (Secretary-Treasurer)” file and the several “Surveys” files. The reports are monthly and provide basic income, expenditure, and membership data. The Washington and Waukesha County surveys contain statistical information on employers within those counties including number of employees and wage rates. The dairy products survey contains comparative financial data on several area companies. The two county surveys along with the “Jurisdictional File” and the “Local 200” file contain information on the 1956-1957 dispute between Local 695 and Milwaukee Local 200.

The Employer File includes correspondence, negotiations information, copies of warnings and disciplinary notices, job descriptions, seniority lists, minutes of employee group meetings, and other material. Researchers interested in employment patterns of women and migrant workers will be interested in the files on canning factories and dairy plants. These generally maintained separate seniority lists, job classifications, and pay rates for men and women. Some canning factories also established a third seniority list for migrant workers. Arrangement is alphabetical by the name of the employer.

The Contract File is also organized alphabetically by company name. Files generally cover the same companies as the Employer File; the dates in the file headings are the signing dates rather than the effective dates of the contracts.

Madison Records include Minutes, 1939-1962; a Subject File, 1942, 1947-1962; a Contract File, 1949-1962; and Financial Records, 1937-1962.

Minutes document executive board, general, and craft meetings. Like the Waukesha and Watertown craft minutes, craft meetings can be either workers from various employers in the same business or employees of a single company.

The Subject File includes files on employers with whom the union dealt as well as files on other local activities and interests. Files on employers make up a large majority of the Subject File. Their content is similar to that of the Employer Files in the Waukesha and Watertown records. Particularly significant is the “Wisco Hardware Company” file which covers a lengthy strike against that company in the early 1950s. The Historical Society also holds records of the Wisco Company which contain a substantial amount of information on the strike from the company's perspective.

The Madison Contract File is also arranged alphabetically by company name. Dates on files refer to contract signing dates.

Financial Records consist of four types of records: annual reports; audit reports; monthly reports, which also include membership statistics; and cash books. The audit reports cover the operations of the local and the Truck Drivers Building Corporation, a separate entity established to handle funds set aside for a new headquarters building.

Richland Center Records consist of only three boxes of records. Included are Minutes of regular and special meetings, 1937-1962; a Subject File, 1958-1962, primarily covering employers; and Financial Records, 1937-1962, which are similar in nature to the Madison financial records.

Reedsburg Records are very spotty. Files of this short-lived local include minutes, 1937-1942, and a cash book dating from 1946. All other Reedsburg records were destroyed by fire shortly before the local went into receivership in April 1946.

Post-Merger Files

Post-Merger Files total 29 boxes, or about one quarter of the collection. For the most part they date from the merger of Locals 442, 695, and 870 in March 1962 until the end of 1964 although one or two files contain papers pre-dating the merger, and a few others include material from 1965-1966.

These Post-Merger Files are arranged into two major sub-divisions: Minutes, including general, executive board, craft, and Truck Drivers Building Corporation meetings; and an alphabetically arranged Subject File. This Subject File contains entries for employers and for non-employer related activities and interests of the local. Content of the files is similar to that of the subject and employer files of the Pre-Merger records. Important among the Post-Merger records are those files documenting the conflicts with the Lannon area stone quarries which commenced in 1962. These include briefs, transcripts, and other legal records; correspondence with attorneys, individual strikers, and international officials; and other types of records. These records can be found in “Quarries Strike” files and in the “Waukesha Lime and Stone Company” file, “Halquist Lannon Stone Company” file, and the files on the other companies involved.