Title: Sons of the American Legion. Alonzo Cudworth Squadron 23: Records
Inclusive Dates: 1933-1941

Creator:

• Sons of the American Legion. Alonzo Cudworth Sqaudron 23 (Milwaukee, Wis.)

Call Number: Milwaukee Mss 84

Quantity: 2.0 c.f. (5 archives boxes)

Repository:

Housed at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries’ Archives Department / Milwaukee Area Research Center; owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

UW-Milwaukee Libraries, Archives / Milwaukee Area Research Ctr. (Map)

Abstract:

Records of a conservative Milwaukee youth organization, formed in 1934, composed of sons of American Legion post members, and dedicated to instilling values of patriotism, discipline, citizenship, and leadership. The bulk of the records pertain to the squadron's Drum Corps, begun in 1935. The materials include correspondence, administrative and financial records, constitution and bylaws, annual reports, minutes of meetings, the squadron's newspaper, and other publicity items. Also included are records documenting state and national conventions, Drum Corps competitions, and materials used for Drum Corps performances. Most of the records were created or kept by the squadron's long-time leader, Joseph Hrdlick.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mil00084

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On September 15, 1932, the 14th National Convention of the American Legion authorized the organization of the Alonzo Cudworth Squadron Number 23, Sons of the American Legion, Milwaukee. The squadron served as an adjunct to its parent organization, Alonzo Cudworth Post Number 23 of the American Legion, which had been founded in 1919. The new squadron--largest in Wisconsin--held its first meeting on March 3, 1934. All male descendants of American Legion post members were eligible for membership in the organization, and squadron activities were supervised by a committee chosen by the post commander. The squadron was essentially a social and citizenship organization, similar to the Boy Scouts. Members participated in athletics, performed community services, held fund-raising events, heard speeches, and studied American history. The guiding principles of the organization, as represented by its five-pointed star, were patriotism, citizenship, discipline, leadership, and “legionism.”

Attached to the squadron was its Drum Corps, founded in 1935. The sixty-five person corps soon became one of the best of its kind in the nation, and the group won awards at state and national conventions of the American Legion. The Drum Corps sponsored numerous fund-raising events, practiced on a rigorous schedule, and performed often.

The first chairman of both the Drum Corps and the squadron was Joseph Hrdlick. He held many posts in local and state organizations of the Sons of the American Legion, and it was he who kept the records of the Cudworth squadron in Milwaukee. In 1937 administrative work for the squadron and the Drum Corps was divided between two committees, both chaired by Hrdlick. Separate constitutions and bylaws were drawn up for both organizations in 1938. A dispute over administrative control of the Drum Corps developed in 1939: revolving around an amendment which Hrdlick proposed for the post bylaws, the controversy had to be resolved at the state and national levels of the American Legion.

With the United States' entry into World War II, membership in the squadron and Drum Corps diminished substantially.

The collection documents the hierarchical organization of the squadron and its interaction with other units of the American Legion. The materials reveal an aspect of the socialization of youth and illustrate an attempt to inculcate young people with values of conservatism and tradition. About two-thirds of the collection pertain to the squadron's Drum Corps. The records of the squadron proper do not extend beyond 1937, and there are few materials in general for the years 1939-1941. The collection is organized into three series: Squadron Records, Drum Corps Records, and Conventions.

The SQUADRON RECORDS and DRUM CORPS RECORDS include correspondence, minutes of meetings, annual reports, constitution and bylaws, plans for upcoming years, records of receipts and disbursements, and materials relating to fund-raising activities. There are materials concerning squadron and Drum Corps policy, publicity, social events, the squadron rifle team, and issues of the squadron newspaper, The Cudworth Heir (1935-1937). Much of the correspondence is to or from Joseph Hrdlick, chairman of both the squadron and Drum Corps. Correspondents include businessmen, post members, and other Legion administrators. Notable are the records concerning an amendment to the squadron's constitution defining administrative control, which Hrdlick introduced in 1939. A large proportion of the correspondence is with musical director Arthur F. MacCammond, and many of these letters deal with the logistics of performances or events. Drum Corps records include materials relating to rehearsals, competitions, parade routes, musical programs, and attendance statistics.

The series CONVENTIONS contains materials concerning state and national conventions, including programs, souvenirs, financial records, summaries of activities, competition scores, and awards.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Joseph Hrdlick, Milwaukee, 1973. Accession Number: M73-442

Processing Information

Processed by Christian Frazza (FGH intern), 1983; and Geoffrey Wexler, 1986.

	Series: Squadron Records
Box   1 Folder   1-3	Correspondence, 1933-1936
Box   1 Folder   4-7	Minutes, Constitution, and Bylaws, 1934-1937
Box   1 Folder   8	Squadron Membership Applications, 1934-1935
Box   1 Folder   9	Rifle Team, 1936-1938
	Financial Records
Box   1 Folder   10	Miscellaneous Records, 1936, 1938
Box   2 Folder   1	Receipts and Disbursements, 1935-1936
Box   2 Folder   2	Fund-raising Activities, 1935-1936
	Publicity
Box   2 Folder   3	General, 1935-1936
Box   2 Folder   4	National Publications, 1934-1936
Box   2 Folder   5	The Cudworth Heir, 1935-1937
Box   2 Folder   6	Social Events, 1934-1937
	Series: Drum Corps Records	⇧
	Correspondence
Box   2 Folder   7-8	1935-1936
Box   3 Folder   1-2	1937-1938, 1940
Box   3 Folder   3	A.F. MacCammond, 1935
	Administrative Records
Box   3 Folder   4	Annual Reports, 1939-1941
Box   3 Folder   5	Financial Records, 1940-1941
Box   3 Folder   6	Minutes, 1936-1938, 1940
Box   3 Folder   7	Miscellany, 1936-1937
Box   4 Folder   1	Fund-raising Activities, 1935, 1938
Box   4 Folder   2	Equipment, 1935, 1937
Box   4 Folder   3	Rehearsal, 1935-1936, 1938-1939
	Appearances, Engagements, and Competitions
Box   4 Folder   4-7	1935-1938
Box   5 Folder   1	1939
	Series: Conventions	⇧
Box   5 Folder   2-4	State
Box   5 Folder   5-7	National