Title: James E. Boulton Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1918-1979

Creator:

• Boulton, James E.

Call Number: Local History Manuscript Collection 345

Quantity: 5.8 cubic ft. (15 boxes)

Repository:

Milwaukee Public Library, Frank P. Zeidler Room

Archival Location:

Milwaukee Public Library (Map)

Abstract:

James Elroy Boulton was a Milwaukee resident and an active Marxist Socialist. He organized the Milwaukee chapter of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) and ran for public office eight times but was never elected.

Note:

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Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.mwpl-lhmc0345

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James Elroy Boulton, a long time crusader for Marxist Socialism, was born in Milwaukee 14 July 1919. He attended Story Grade School, and Solomon Juneau and West Division High Schools. His study at Milwaukee State Teachers College ended after three years with a suspension in 1940 for organizing and leading an anti-war strike.

He organized the Milwaukee chapter of the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) and was active in Socialist groups for the rest of his life. He ran for public office eight times but was never elected. His attempts were: mayor of Milwaukee, 1948; governor, 1948; US senator, 1950 and 1952; US representative, 1966 and 1970; and WI state assemblyman, 1962. He died on 9 March 1980 in Milwaukee at the age of 60.

The collection is comprised of the work of James Boulton, including materials on various elections he was involved in, miscellaneous personal papers, and his work with different political groups, particularly the Socialist Workers Party. It contains correspondence, pamphlets, publications, writings, and clippings.

The collection is arranged into the following series:

1. Civil Liberties, 1941-1969
2. Elections, 1946-1976
3. Non-Boulton Writings, 1945-1974
4. Other Political and Labor Groups, 1946-1976
5. Personal, 1933-1975
6. Politics/Social Theory, 1943-1974
7. Socialist Workers Party, 1918-1979

Within each series, folders are arranged alphabetically and then chronologically within each folder.

Boulton, James E., Papers, 1933-1979, Collection 345. Local History Manuscript Collections, Milwaukee Public Library, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

• Socialist Party Records. Local History Manuscript Collection 322.

The Founding of the Socialist Workers Party : Minutes and Resolutions, 1938-39

The Militant

Starlight on the Lilac Crown

Access Restrictions

There are no access restrictions on the materials. The collection is open to all in accordance with state law. The public may view Local History Manuscript Collections by appointment at the Central Library. To request an in-person appointment, create/login to your Special Collections Account. If you have any questions, please contact the Archives and Special Collections Department at mplarchives@milwaukee.gov.

Use Restrictions

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).

Acquisition Information

This collection was donated by Dr. Richard Crawford, friend of James Boulton, with the approval of Mrs. Elaine Caper, the daughter of James Boulton. There were two donations each with a signed gift form, one in 1982 and in 1986. Materials were accessioned as Local History Manuscripts.

Processing Information

Inventory by previous staff, date unknown. Processed by Casey Lapworth, 2018.

	Series: 1. Civil Liberties, 1941-1969
Box   1 Folder   1	African American Struggle, 1956-1958
Box   1 Folder   2	Alexander, Dr. Neville, Defense Committee, 1965-1969
Box   1 Folder   3	Bloomington Case, 1963
Box   1 Folder   4-5	Civil Rights Defense Committee, Minnesota Seditious Conspiracy Trial, 1941-1944
Box   15 Folder   1	Cotton, Joseph R., 1945-1946
Box   1 Folder   6	Hickman, James, 1947
Box   1 Folder   7	Krezner, Stephen L. and Dressler, John A., 1957-1959
Box   1 Folder   8-9	Kutcher, James, Civil Rights Committee, 1948-1956
Box   1 Folder   10	McCarthyism, 1952-1954
Box   1 Folder   11	Miscellaneous Cases, 1941-1968
Box   15 Folder   2	Monroe, North Carolina, Defense Committee, 1958-1965
Box   1 Folder   12	Shepard, Raymond C., 1954
Box   1 Folder   13	Sobell, Morton, 1956-1958
	Series: 2. Elections, 1946-1976	⇧
Box   2 Folder   1	Clippings, pictures, 1949-1970
Box   2 Folder   2-3	Correspondence, 1946-1972
Box   2 Folder   4-5	Flyers, 1952-1970
Box   2 Folder   6	Mayoral Race, 1948
Box   2 Folder   7	News Releases, etc., 1945-1976
Box   15 Folder   3	Officials' Papers, 1948-1972
Box   2 Folder   8	Tabulations, undated
Box   3 Folder   1	Wisconsin Laws and Requirements, 1959-1967
	Series: 3. Non-Boulton Writings, 1945-1974	⇧
Box   3 Folder   2	China, 1964-1972
Box   3 Folder   3	Intelligence Agency Clippings, undated
Box   3 Folder   4	Miscellaneous Clippings, 1945-1974
Box   3 Folder   5	Miscellaneous Writings, 1948-1973
Box   3 Folder   6	Socialist Workers Party Clippings, undated
Box   3 Folder   7	Stalinism, 1956-1958
Box   3 Folder   8	Trotsky Clippings, 1940
Box   3 Folder   9	Trotsky Philosophy, 1949-1974
	Series: 4. Other Political and Labor Groups, 1946-1976	⇧
Box   3 Folder   10	Anti-War Mobilization, car accident, 1967
Box   3 Folder   11	Flyers, undated
	Labor Unions
Box   4 Folder   1	Allis Chalmers strike, 1941-1947
Box   4 Folder   2-3	General, 1946-1972
Box   4 Folder   4	Kohler strike, 1954-1958
Box   4 Folder   5	Other strikes, undated
Box   4 Folder   6	Right-to-work laws, 1958
Box   4 Folder   7-8	Miscellaneous, 1939-1976
Box   4 Folder   9	New movements, 1973-1976
Box   4 Folder   10-11	Peace/Anti-War Movements, 1938-1965
Box   5 Folder   1-3	Youth/Student Groups, 1938-1965
	Series: 5. Personal, 1933-1975	⇧
Box   5 Folder   4	Biographies, 1935
Box   5 Folder   5-7	Correspondence, 1938-1975
Box   5 Folder   8	Education, college papers, 1937-1939
Box   5 Folder   9	Education, school days, 1933-1937
Box   6 Folder   1	FBI Report, undated
Box   5 Folder   2	Flyers, rummage sale, undated
Box   6 Folder   3	Legal Papers, 1954-1970
Box   6 Folder   4	Letters to the Editor, 1938-1975
Box   6 Folder   5	Miscellaneous, 1946-1964
Box   6 Folder   6	Other Literary Works, undated
	Poetry
Box   6 Folder   7-8	In print, 1954-1961
Box   6 Folder   9	Irving Kroening and Nancy Forsberg, undated
Box   6 Folder   10-11	Manuscripts, undated
	Series: 6. Politics/Social Theory, 1943-1974	⇧
Box   7 Folder   1-5	Articles, Lectures, Papers, and Speeches, 1947-1974, undated
Box   7 Folder   6	Radio/TV Scripts, 1948-1952
Box   7 Folder   7	Writing as Jack O'Connell, 1943-1945
Box   8 Folder   1	Writing as Jack O'Connell, 1946-1952
	Series: 7. Socialist Workers Party (SWP), 1942-1979	⇧
Box   8 Folder   2	Bibliographies, Book Ads, and Tape Lists, 1952-1966
Box   8 Folder   3	Constitution, 1946-1954
Box   8 Folder   4-8	Correspondence, 1939-1959
Box   9 Folder   1-5	Correspondence, 1960-1972
Box   10 Folder   1	Correspondence, 1973-1974
Box   10 Folder   2	Correspondence, business, 1942-1973
Box   10 Folder   3	Correspondence, Dr. Benjamin Spock, 1972-1979
	Fliers
Box   10 Folder   4	General, 1949-1965
Box   10 Folder   5	Social affairs, 1949-1956
Box   10 Folder   6	Socialist Lyceum, 1963-1965
Box   10 Folder   7	Youth, 1966-1968
Box   10 Folder   8	Fund Drives, 1948-1965
Box   11 Folder   1	Mailing Lists, 1956-1966
Box   11 Folder   2	Membership, 1958-1968
Box   11 Folder   3-6	Memos, 1942-1966
Box   12 Folder   1	Militant and Militant Book Service, 1946-1962
	Milwaukee Branch
Box   12 Folder   2	Board and executive committee minutes, 1946-1976
Box   12 Folder   3	Membership meeting minutes, 1944-1960
Box   12 Folder   4	Miscellaneous, 1946-1959
Box   12 Folder   5	Organizational dispute, 1947-1959
Box   12 Folder   6	Miscellaneous Reports, Proposals, and Motions, 1943-1973
	National
Box   12 Folder   7	Conventions and meetings, 1939-1974
Box   12 Folder   8	Factional disputes, 1953
Box   13 Folder   1	Factional disputes, 1953-1954
Box   13 Folder   2	News releases, 1942-1973
Box   13 Folder   3-4	Pamphlets and Publications, 1918-1960
Box   13 Folder   5	Social Committee, 1953-1965
Box   13 Folder   6	Songs and Slogans, undated
Box   13 Folder   7	Study Materials, 1949-1955
	Treasurer
Box   13 Folder   8	General, 1949-1959
Box   14 Folder   1-2	Invoices and statements, 1950-1967
Box   15 Folder   6	Ledger, undated
Box   14 Folder   3-4	Reports, 1946-1963