Summary Information
William H. Sell Papers
1938-2022
- Sell, William H., 1938-2022
UWM Manuscript Collection 396
3.3 cubic ft. (4 boxes)
UW-Milwaukee Libraries, Archives / Milwaukee Area Research Ctr. (Map)
This collection contains the papers of William H. Sell, a
catholic priest and a civil rights and peace activist in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Records include personal materials, personal, professional, and religious writings,
materials related to activism, photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-mil-uwmmss0396 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
William H. Sell was born on November 4, 1938 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and was raised
in Hales Corners, Wisconsin. He enrolled in the "minor seminary" program at St.
Francis De Sales Catholic Seminary, located in St. Francis, Wisconsin, in 1952. Sell
continued at St. Francis De Sales, gaining his high school and undergraduate degree.
Between 1959 and 1971, William Sell obtained 2 master's degrees from Catholic
University of America in Washington, DC., first in Philosophy and then Religious
Education. On May 28th, 1966 Sell was ordained as a priest in the Catholic Church at
St. John's Cathedral in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and performed his first mass on May
29th, 1966 at St. Mary's Parish in Hales Corners, Wisconsin. William Sell served as
an Associate Pastor at St. Catherine's Parish from 1966 until 1969 when he was
discharged from the parish. Sell founded the Center for International Life, which
operated from 1969-1971. In 1970, William Sell met Sue Sartori, and on August 9,
1970, the two were married in a public ceremony in Washington Park on the west side
of Milwaukee. In 1972 Sell founded his business, The Last Word, which was a
secretarial service that included the preparation of documents for copying, editing
services and transcription services. Sell moved to the Bay View neighborhood in the
late 1980's, becoming involved with the creation of the Bay View Neighborhood
Association. He remained a Bay View resident until his passing in 2022.
Scope and Content Note
The William H. Sell papers contain materials that document most areas of Sell's life,
and includes personal materials, personal, professional, and religious writings,
materials related to activism, photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera. Heavily
focused on activist causes, Sell participated in civil rights marches, such as the
"open housing" marches with Father James Groppi, delivered homilies regularly that
centered on civil rights issues, and served as an advisor to the Milwaukee 14, a
group of 14 men who stole and then publicly burned around 10,000 draft files at
Triangle Park in downtown Milwaukee in 1968. Materials documenting Sell's
involvement these causes are included within the collection. Bulk of papers are
ca.1965-ca.2000, including correspondence split amongst 7-8 different folders, news
about the Milwaukee 14 protest and reunions, sermons by date from 1963-1969, letters
to the editor and news columns, news clips of Fr. Groppi, himself as a married
priest, and many of his other writings including poems, a few plays, a novella or
two and some scrapbooks of clippings.
Arrangement of the Materials
The files are organized alphabetically by subject.
Preferred Citation
Citation Guide for Primary Sources
Related Material in the UWM Libraries
Administrative/Restriction Information
There are no access restrictions on the materials, and the collection is open to
all members of the public in accordance with state law.
The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of libel,
privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of this collection
(Wisconsin Statutes 19.21-19.39).
David Sartori donated the collection to the Archives on October 21, 2022.
Lauran Slagle processed the collection in April 2023 at the Archives, supervised
by Derek Webb.
Contents List
|
Box
2
Folder
20
|
Birthday Wishes from Friends for 70th birthday,
2008
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
24
|
Book Reviews, 1970-1971
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
4
|
Car Accident, 1958 December 12
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
20
|
Center for International Life,
1970-1972
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
40
|
Collaborative Performance Art Pieces
|
|
|
Correspondence
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
2-3
|
1958-1968
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
16
|
Archbishop Rembert Weakland Regarding Mobilization for Survival,
1988-1989
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
13
|
Bruce Murphy of Milwaukee Magazine,
1993-1994
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
15
|
Fr. James Groppi and Archbishop William Cousins,
1971
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
6
|
Milwaukee 14, 1968-1970
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
18
|
Sister Mary Verna of Butler, WI,
undated
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
34
|
Dedicated to a Love,
1970-1997
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
9
|
Disarment Clearing House, "De-Alerting Nuclear Weapons Resource and
Action Kit," 1988-1989
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
23
|
Draft of Article on the NBA, Money, and University Politics,
circa 1970-1971
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
21-22
|
Editorial Queries and Replies,
1971-1976
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
19
|
Father Sell's Wedding, Milwaukee Sentinel, 1970 August
10
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
36-37
|
Fiction/Poetry, 1973-2001
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
16
|
First Sermon at St. Catherine's Church, 1966 July
10
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
8
|
Freeway Expansion Background,
2005 January 5
: Proposed by the Bay View Neighborhood Association Transportation
Committee.
|
|
|
Box
XX
Folder
XX
|
Hiroshima Performance Art Piece,
2003
|
|
|
Homilies/Sermons
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
5
|
1963
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
6
|
1965
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
7
|
1966
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
8-10
|
1967
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
11-13
|
1968
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
14
|
1969
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
15
|
undated
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
17
|
Homily about Peace, 1968 August 4
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
31
|
In Milwaukee: The Church's Business,
undated
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
2
|
Journal, 1969-1978
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
27-28
|
Landlords Eat Damages: A Mellow Drama with
Tragic Demise, 1978-1982
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
41
|
Last Word, 1972-1988
|
|
|
Letters
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
3
|
From Bill Seil, 1957-1972
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
18
|
Scott R. Jensen, Speaker of the Assembly, 1988 March
26
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
38
|
undated
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
29
|
Looking at Things: 1st Person
Singular, 1988
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
33
|
Mask and Myth, Cultural Comparisons,
undated
|
|
|
Milwaukee 14
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
7
|
Defense Committee/Fund,
1968-1969
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
10
|
Milwaukee 14/William Sell Media Coverage,
undated
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
9
|
Miscellaneous, 1968
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
5
|
News Coverage, 1968-1969
|
|
|
Box
4
Folder
5
|
Poster Designed by Brandon Bauer,
2005
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
12
|
Reunion Correspondence, 1993
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
11
|
Reunion Media Coverage, 1993
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
8
|
Statements, undated
|
|
|
Box
4
Folder
4
|
Ten Year Anniversary Commemoration Poster,
1978
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
4
|
Mobilization for Survival, "Conflict Resolution in Bosnia?,"
1994
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
17
|
Musicians Against Nuclear Arms (MANA),
1988
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
14
|
NAACP (Fr. James Groppi) News Clippings and Correspondence,
1967
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
30
|
Off Ramp Column,
2004-2005
: Published in the Bay View Compass.
|
|
|
Peace Action
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
6
|
Milwaukee, "20 years of Peacemaking,"
1997
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
5
|
National, 1996
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
7
|
Wisconsin, "Missile Defense News Clippings,"
2000
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
1
|
Penman, The,
1955-1956
|
|
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Photographs
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
43
|
Bill Officiating Mass at St. Mary's Parish, Hales Corners, WI.,
1966 May 29
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
44
|
Bill as a Priest, 1966-1969
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
46
|
Bill's Bayview Home, undated
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
42
|
Childhood and Family, 1940-1970
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
45
|
Miscellaneous, undated
|
|
|
Box
4
Folder
1
|
Pins, undated
: Activism related efforts
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
3
|
Pity the Nation,
1970
: Written by James Sage
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
35
|
Poetry, 1973-1974
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
26
|
Political and Economic Control of Social
Services in Milwaukee, 1975
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
32
|
The Politics of Amnesty: A
Consideration,
: Written by Alfred Janicke and William Sell
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
19
|
Proclamation of "Bike the Hoan" Day by Mayor John O. Norquist,
2003 December 31
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
25
|
Published Letters and Guest Columns,
1974-2001
: Published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
|
|
|
Scrapbooks
|
|
|
Box
4
Folder
2
|
1968
|
|
|
Box
4
Folder
3
|
1971-1972
|
|
|
Box
4
|
Bill's Priesthood, 1966-1969
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
1
|
Third Grade Report Card from Hales Corners School,
1946-1947
|
|
|
Box
3
Folder
1
|
Via, 1955
: St. Francis Minor Seminary Yearbook
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
2
|
W9MCK Ham Radio Station, 1954-1956
|
|
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Box
2
Folder
4
|
William Sell Leaving St. Catherine's Parish,
1969-1970
|
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