Summary Information
Emil Seidel Papers 1906-1940
UWM Manuscript Collection 76
.6 cubic ft. (2 boxes)
UW-Milwaukee Libraries, Archives / Milwaukee Area Research Ctr. (Map)
Contains miscellaneous papers, mostly dating 1912-1919, of a
Milwaukee political and socialist leader. Includes drafts and a manuscript booklet on
Seidel's defense of his 1910-1912 Socialist mayoral administration in Milwaukee; the first
report of the strikers' aid committee organized during the strike against Cudahy Brothers
Company and against the Illinois Steel Company in 1919; and information on the Socialists'
view of World War I. English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-mil-uwmmss0076 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Emil Seidel was born on 13 December 1864 in Ashland, Pennsylvania and moved to Wisconsin
with his parents in 1865, and to Milwaukee in 1869. He became a woodcarver and studied the
trade in Germany, and converted to Socialism while in that country. Upon his return to
Milwaukee, Seidel helped organize local Socialists, and promoted gradual change, political
action, and reform. He was elected alderman in 1904, and reelected two years later. He
unsuccessfully ran for mayor in 1908 but was elected alderman again in 1909. Seidel was
elected mayor in 1910, but was defeated in 1912. He was alderman again from 1916 to 1920,
and from 1932 to 1936. He was the Socialist Party's vice-presidential candidate in 1912.
Seidel died on 24 June 1947.
Scope and Content Note
Contains miscellaneous papers, mostly dating 1912-1919, of a Milwaukee political and
socialist leader. Of special interest is drafts and a manuscript booklet on Seidel's defense
of his 1910-1912 Socialist mayoral administration in Milwaukee. Seidel described the
Socialist philosophy as being "the duty, the purpose, and the object of a real democratic
government'; showed what the Socialists tried and succeeded in accomplishing; and "set right
the wrong impressions" held by the opponents of socialism. Also includes a 31 December 1914
letter to Mrs. May Wood Simons in which Seidel stated his interests and position on
vocational education and the role of education in building a socialist society; and undated
manuscript which provides Seidel's comparison of the management of railroads under
capitalism and socialism, and the relationship of railroad terminals to city planning.
Seidel's personal file includes manuscripts on the future of Milwaukee, the elimination of
taxes, and a letter stating his opinion on a court for domestic relations.
The file on unions contains the first report of the strikers' aid committee (of which
Seidel was a member) organized by the Federated Trades Council and the Milwaukee County
Central Committee during the strike against the Cudahy Brothers Company and against the
Illinois Steel Company in 1919. The files on World War I contain Liberty Loan contracts from
the Cudahy Brothers; drafts of notes for anti-war speeches, in German; a report of the 1916
Conference of Socialist Parties of Neutral Countries; and proceedings of the 1917 Emergency
Convention of the Socialist Party in St. Louis.
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).
The Milwaukee Public Library transferred Seidel's papers and mayoral records to the
Archives in April 1991. Seidel's mayoral records were removed and processed
separately.
Mark Vargas processed the collection in August 1992 at the Archives.
Contents List
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2
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Defense of the Socialist Regime in Milwaukee, circa 1912
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7
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The Small Town, undated
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16
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Box
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