The F. James Sensenbrenner Papers consist entirely of materials documenting his career in the Wisconsin Assembly and Senate, 1969-1978. The collection is largely administrative in character. Although some files are designated “personal” (as they were in Sensenbrenner's office), these tend to be letters to the legislator on public business from people who knew him rather than being personal correspondence in the strict sense. Truly personal glimpses of the legislator as an individual are limited. There also are no discrete files of campaign records in the collection, although some correspondence which treats electoral matters is included.
In order to reduce the bulk of this large collection, a great deal of weeding of routine material was performed. Among the discarded materials were extensive files of individual replies to the questionnaires which Sensenbrenner issued frequently (summaries are included in the publicity section of the collection); several cubic feet of petitions resulting from Sensenbrenner's campaign against Governor Lucey's fiscal policies and the Conta Milwaukee desegregation plan; congratulatory letters to constituents (those of his first legislative term have been retained as evidence of Sensenbrenner's prodigious mailings in this regard); routine requests; case files (see “Constituent Assists” below); documentation on the state budget and other legislation available more conveniently in other sources; and publications.
The collection consists of general files, constituent assists, personal correspondence, and public relations material. The great bulk of the collection is arranged as an alphabetical subject, or GENERAL FILE. These are divided first by legislative term and then subdivided alphabetically by subject. Perhaps due to changing office personnel, the filing approach evolved over the years. During Sensenbrenner's first years in the Legislature, the files were divided into general categories and then, if the quantity of documentation warranted, further subdivided more precisely. Gradually an increasingly large portion of the subject correspondence was filed directly by precise topic rather than under intervening headings. Researchers should also note that the division by legislative terms was not strict and that items which predate a particular session may be found in some folders. The section primarily consists of correspondence from constituents, colleagues, and advocacy groups; working files on particular legislation or Sensenbrenner's committee assignments are less evident.
Sensenbrenner received a sizeable quantity of correspondence dealing with specific problems on the part of his constituents. These case files, here termed “CONSTITUENT ASSISTS,” have been weeded because of their routine nature, and a ten percent sample retained. The remaining file is arranged alphabetically by constituent name. The PUBLICITY FILES have also been substantially reduced by the elimination of individual questionnaire responses (Replies of constituents who wrote letters are filed in the General Files.) Nevertheless, the researcher should find this section of considerable interest. From his first days in the Legislature Sensenbrenner issued large numbers of newsletters, press releases, and columns. Unlike the mailings of many of his contemporaries, the material which Sensenbrenner distributed are very issued-oriented and of considerable value as an expression of the views of an urban conservative. Newsletters pertaining to Sensenbrenner's years in the House of Representatives are available in the SHSW Library. The two disappointments in this section are the speeches, which are quite limited in number, and the microfilmed biographical clippings which are quite fragmentary. This group consists of clippings removed from the other sections of the collection and brought together for preservation purposes. It is not known if a more complete record was kept by Sensenbrenner's staff.
Taken together, the Sensenbrenner Papers provide a good overview of the conservative perspective on the legislation of the 1970's. Particularly well documented are his expertise on financial aid to education especially as it affected Milwaukee, the state budget deliberations, and his memberships on the Judiciary, Elections, and Ethics committees.
