Summary Information
Menominee Enterprises Records
1954-1976
Green Bay Mss 70
4.6 c.f. (12 archives boxes)
UW-Green Bay Cofrin Library / Green Bay Area Research Ctr. (Map)
Records of Menominee Enterprises, Inc. (MEI), a corporation created to administer Menominee Indian tribal resources after termination of federal reservation status in 1961. Included are minutes, financial statements and balance sheets, feasibility studies and reports on development plans, legal records, newsclippings, correspondence, and other materials; all preserved by Harry W. Harder, a member of the Board of Directors.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-gb0070 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Menominee Enterprises, Inc. (MEI) was created under Chapter 180 of the Wisconsin Statutes, in order to hold and administer the Menominee Indian tribal resources after the termination of reservation status by the federal government on April 30, 1961. In accordance with the Articles of Incorporation and the By-laws of the Corporation, each enrolled Menominee received a certificate of beneficial interest, representing 100 shares of common stock in MEI. Adult Menominees were entitled to vote directly for members of the Menominee Common Stock and Voting Trust, while the First Wisconsin Trust Company of Milwaukee was empowered to vote on behalf of Menominee minors and other persons of legal disability. The seven members of the Menominee Common Stock and Voting Trust held and voted all shares in MEI, and also selected the twelve member Board of Directors. In turn, the Board of Directors selected the officers of MEI who were responsible for the day-to-day business decisions of the corporation. The Board also created a number of standing committees, consisting of three to five Board members, including: Conservation, Executive, Forest and Mills, Historical, Land Use and Area Development (which became Resource and Business Development in 1969), Legislative, and Planning.
In order to broaden the weak tax base of Menominee County after termination, MEI implemented a number of far-reaching measures which included the leasing of scenic and recreational areas to the state; the sale of land, primarily lake-frontage, to non-Menominees; and the expansion and diversification of forest-products industries. Opposition to these measures and to the Voting Trust structure of the corporation, however, led to the creation of DRUMS (Determination of Rights and Unity of Menominee Stockholders) and a move to restore federal reservation status to the Menominees. In 1973 the Menominee Restoration Act was passed (P.L. 93-197) and in 1975 the tribal land held by MEI was put into trust with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
Scope and Content Note
The collection focuses upon the participation of the donor, Harry W. Harder, in MEI affairs. From 1969 to 1972 Harder, a former state tax administrator, served as a member of the MEI Board of Directors and several additional committees including Resource and Business Development, and Forest and Mills. The main strength of the collection lies in the records pertaining to these administrative positions, as well as the several financial studies, which Harder also undertook for MEI. The picture of MEI presented by the collection, however, is incomplete since no records series span the entire period of MEI's existence, and the activities of some committees, such as the Conservation and Historical committees, remain undocumented.
The seven series of records reflect the basic divisions established by Harder. ANNUAL REPORTS provide the clearest overview of MEI policy and programs. Included with the 1966 Annual Report is the Audit Report for the year ending September 1966. Annual Reports for 1967 and 1972, however, are lacking.
The MENOMINEE COMMON STOCK AND VOTING TRUST PAPERS contain resolutions, announcements, agenda and minutes of the annual and special meetings. Also included are a few items of correspondence to the Chairman of the Trust, copies of which subsequently were sent to the Trustees and Board of Directors; and occasional circulars from the Trust to the certificate holders on matters such as voting procedures.
The BOARD OF DIRECTORS PAPERS likewise contain notices, agenda and minutes of meetings, as well as informal notes taken by Harder. Most prominent in this series, however, is the wide range of supporting documentation on individual issues discussed at the meetings by the directors. These records apparently were circulated beforehand, and include: feasibility studies and reports on proposed industrial and recreational development schemes for the area; financial statements and balance sheets, for the corporation as a whole and for individual divisions such as Forests and Mills; and memoranda and policy statements issued by the Board. Also present in the series are lists of officers, directors and trustees; informational and promotional circulars defending MEI's economic development policy; scattered newsclippings, mainly from the Green Bay Press Gazette and Shawano Evening Leader, pertaining to MEI activities; copies of correspondence between the board and various law firms, legislators, and corporations contemplating the establishment of operations in Menominee County; and a limited amount of personal correspondence between Harder and various officials of MEI primarily on matters of planning and taxation. Since records in this series have been arranged chronologically, the discussion of separate issues at given meetings and the relevant supporting documentation generally are brought together within the files.
Arrangement of the COMMITTEE RECORDS series is alphabetical by title of committee, and chronological for individual committee records. Minutes of meetings, financial statements and development plans comprise the most significant types of documents within this series. In addition, the Legislative Committee records contain copies of bills, letters from MEI officials supporting various pieces of legislation, and studies of the economic impact of certain laws, both on federal and state level.
Disputes in which MEI and its officials were involved as plaintiffs of defendants, are listed as sub-series within the LEGAL CASES series. The sub-series entitled United States Court of Claims, Docket No. 134-67, The Menominee Tribe of Indians, et al., v. The United States of America, is concerned with a charge of federal mismanagement of Menominee forest lands.
Within the files entitled Papers is correspondence between MEI and Wilkinson, Cragun & Barker, tracing development of the case. Background reports detailing the type and extent of mismanagement, which were prepared specifically for this case, are found within files entitled Briefs and Other Supporting Documentation. The sub-series Daly et al. vs. DNR deals with an attempt by a group of MEI shareholders to prevent DNR from issuing a permit to the Lakes of the Menominees developers for construction of a dam on Menominee land. The sub-series entitled James White et al. vs. George W. Kenote et al. contains the regulations pertaining to the election of members to the Menominee Common Stock and Voting Trust. Tomow, et al. vs. Menominee Enterprises deals with the attempt to halt sales of Menominee land to non-Menominees.
The LEGISLATION series contains copies of bills, acts, and laws primarily pertaining to the termination and subsequent restoration of reservation status. In some folders are hearing transcripts, as well as correspondence between MEI officials and various legislators, including senators Gaylord Nelson, William Proxmire, Henry Jackson, George McGovern, and Edmund Muskie.
REFERENCE MATERIALS are arranged alphabetically by subject. Reports on various aspects of Menominee life as they relate to development plans are included, as are working files of Harry Harder used in the preparation of reports. A few items in the correspondence folders deal with the condition of the Menominee Indians in general.
Related Material
- Series 2035: Joint Legislative Council. Menominee Indian Study Committee. Records, 1955-1976. This series includes the Articles of Incorporation, By-laws, Annual Reports, Trust Agreements, Voting Trust and Income Bond of Menominee Enterprises, Inc.
- Tape 602A/1-2: Taped interview with Henry Harder. Includes a discussion of Menominee Enterprises, Inc.
- Green Bay Mss 120: Ada Deer Papers, 1969-1978. Contains clippings and correspondence collected by an activist for Menominee restoration, member of the voting trust of MEI, and founding member of DRUMS.
- Microfilm P36366 in the Historical Society Library's Microforms Room: Menominee Indians, Miscellaneous Materials. Consists of the By-laws of MEI, an agreement between the Menomonee Coordinating and Negotiating Committee and the Voting Trustees and MEI, the Menominee Indians Minors' Trust Agreement, and the MEI Income Bond.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Harry W. Harder, Keshena, Wisconsin, April 1978. Accession Number: M78-163
Processed by David Tambo and Menzi Behrnd, October 1978; additions processed by Deb Shapiro, August 1990.
Contents List
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Box
1
Folder
1
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Series: Annual Reports, 1961-1973
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Series: Menominee Common Stock and Voting Trust Papers, 1967-1972
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Series: Board of Directors Papers
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Box
1
Folder
3-6
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1966-June 1970
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Box
2
Folder
1-5
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July 1970-June 1972
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Box
3
Folder
1
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July 1972-March 1973
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Series: Committee Records
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Box
3
Folder
2-3
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Forest and Mills Committee, 1969-1972
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Box
3
Folder
4
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Land Use and Area Development Committee, 1966-1969
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Box
3
Folder
5-6
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Legislative Committee, February 1970-November 1972
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Menominee Progress Report Committee
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Box
3
Folder
7
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General Papers, August 1969-December 1969
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Box
3
Folder
8
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Progress Reports, 1969-1970
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Box
4
Folder
1
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Planning Committee, 1970
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Box
4
Folder
2-4
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Resource and Business Development Committee, 1969-1971
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Series: Legal Records
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United States Court of Claims, Docket #134-67, Menominee Tribe of Indians vs. the United States of America
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Papers
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Box
4
Folder
5-6
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1967-1970
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Box
5
Folder
1-2
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1971-1975
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Briefs and Other Supporting Documentation
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Box
5
Folder
3
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Plaintiff's Pretrial Statement, February 1970
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Box
5
Folder
4
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Decisions by the Courts Regarding the Menominee Tribe of Indians' Hunting and Fishing Rights, 1970
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Box
5
Folder
6
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Catalog of Property Sales, Market Data for the Analysis and Appraisal, Forest Lands, Menominee County, Wisconsin, 1971
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Box
6
Folder
1
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Menominee Tribe of Indians: 1940-1970, by Verne F. Ray, 1971
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Box
6
Folder
2
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Report on Investigation of the Predetermination Management of the Menominee Indian Mills, Neopit, Wisconsin, by Mater Engineering, Corvallis, Oregon, 1971
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Box
6
Folder
3
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Appraisal of the Menominee Forest as of April 29, 1961, Volume 1, by George Banzhaf and Co., Milwaukee, 1971
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Box
6
Folder
4
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Report on Damages Suffered by the Menominees as a Result of the Mismanagement of the Menominee Forest by the United States for the Period Commencing July 10, 1951, Volume 2, by George Banzhaf & Co., Milwaukee, February-August 1971
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Box
6
Folder
5
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Papers Relating to George Banzhaf & Co., Reports, February-August 1971
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Plaintiff's Requested Findings of Fact and Brief
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Box
6
Folder
6
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Volume 1, November 27, 1972
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Box
7
Folder
1-5
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Volume 2-6, November 27, 1972-January 12, 1973
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Box
7A
Folder
1
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Volume 7, January 18, 1973
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Box
7A
Folder
2-4
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Plaintiff's Reply to Defendant's Objections to Plaintiff's Requested Findings of Fact, Volumes 1-3, September 21, 1973-October 26, 1973
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Box
7A
Folder
5
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Plaintiff's Reply Brief, October 31, 1971
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Box
7A
Folder
6-7
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Plaintiff's Objections to Defendant's Proposed Findings of Fact, Volumes 4-5, October 30, 1970
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Box
8
Folder
1
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Daly vs. DNR, August-October 1970
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Box
8
Folder
2
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James White, et al. vs. George W. Kenote, et al., December 1970
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Box
8
Folder
3-5
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Tomow vs. MEI, October-January 1974
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Box
8
Folder
6
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Miscellany, 1972-1975
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Series: Legislation
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Federal
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Box
8
Folder
7
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House of Representatives Bill 8034, 1966
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Box
8
Folder
8
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Senate Bill 1934, 1965
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Box
9
Folder
1
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Senate Concurrent Resolution 26, 1971
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Box
9
Folder
2-3
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Menominee Restoration Act, 1972, 1973
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Box
9
Folder
4
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Miscellaneous Bill and Supporting Documents, 1968-1972
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Box
9
Folder
5
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Wisconsin Bills, Acts, and Laws, 1959-1971
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Series: Reference Materials
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Box
9
Folder
6
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Crucial Decisions for the Future of the Menominees, by Duncan W. Harkin, September 1970
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Box
9
Folder
7
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DRUMS Newsletter, March 1972-July 1972
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Box
9
Folder
8
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Forest Valuation, 1968
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Box
9
Folder
9
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Forestry, 1966-1971
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Box
9
Folder
10
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Indian Hunting and Fishing Rights II, by Charles A. Hobbs, July 1969
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Box
9
Folder
11-12
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Job Classification and Pay Plan for Non-Union Employees of Menominee Enterprises, Inc., Presented December 1969
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Box
10
Folder
1
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Judicare, 1972
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Box
10
Folder
2
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Nelson-Laird Funds (P.L. 89-653), 1967-1970
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Box
10
Folder
3
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Preloznik Request, 1968-1970
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Box
10
Folder
4
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Reforestation Project, 1970-1971
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Box
10
Folder
5
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Regional Planning Program, 1967
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Box
10
Folder
6
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A Status Report-Menominee Indians, 1967
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Box
10
Folder
7
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State Taxation, 1976-1977
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Box
10
Folder
8
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Surface Water Resources of Menominee County, 1963
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Box
10
Folder
9
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Tax Assessment, 1968-1971
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Box
10
Folder
10-11
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Tax Base Projection, Lakes of the Menominees, to 1974, Made December 1968
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Box
11
Folder
1
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Technical Assistance Study, 1967
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Box
11
Folder
2
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Termination Documents, 1954-1961
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Box
11
Folder
3
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Testimony for the Approval of Third Dam on Legend Lake, 1970
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Box
11
Folder
4
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Vocational Education Issue and Supporting Papers, 1969-1971
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Box
11
Folder
5
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Miscellaneous Correspondence, 1965-1976
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Box
11
Folder
6
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Miscellaneous Newsclippings and Correspondence, 1969-1970
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