Summary Information
Capital Community Citizens Records
1964-1989
- Capital Community Citizens (Madison, Wis.)
Mss 440; M80-375; PH 4931; Audio 1846A; M96-153
2.7 cubic feet (7 archives boxes); plus additions of 0.8 cubic feet, 0.1 cubic feet of photographs, and 2 tape recordings
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Records of Capital Community Citizens, a Madison, Wisconsin, organization founded in 1964 to address community environmental problems. The majority of the records cover the years 1966-1974 and document the organization's research, lobbying, legal, and educational activities. Administrative files consist of general minutes and agenda, treasurer's reports, position papers, and publicity. Community files consist of much the same types of material pertaining to the CCC committee structure. Also included are general correspondence, miscellaneous subject files, and indexes to the CCC correspondence and newsletters and to relevant issues in the Madison papers. Prominent correspondents include Robert Kastenmeier, Patrick Lucey, Gaylord Nelson, William Proxmire, and Madison mayors William Dyke, Otto Festge, and Paul Soglin.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00440 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Capital Community Citizens (CCC) is a Madison, Wisconsin, public membership, volunteer organization founded in 1964 to address local environmental problems. An outgrowth of a Tenth Ward citizens' group organized to defeat a referendum which would have abolished the Madison Redevelopment Authority and thereby ended federally-sponsored urban renewal in Madison, CCC began with an invited membership of forty-five citizens selected for their concern with urban problems in Madison. By 1974, largely due to an active membership drive during the early 1970s, it had expanded to six hundred Dane County citizens including business people, government workers and officials, and University of Wisconsin faculty and students.
During the period covered by these documents, CCC sought, often successfully, to affect government policy through a variety of activities. By testifying at public hearings, recommending qualified members for appointments to public advisory boards and commissions, and cooperating with other local organizations, CCC was instrumental in winning City Council approval of bicycle path proposals (1965), billboard and sign regulation laws (1966), and parking lot landscaping ordinances (1970). Its standing and ad hoc committees produced in-depth studies on subjects such as transportation (1966), pollution (1970), and urban growth (1971). CCC also sponsored public information meetings and media campaigns, which helped to focus public attention on environmental problems. It has been probably best known for its annual “Orchid and Onion” awards to individuals, organizations, and commercial enterprises whose actions demonstrate concern or contempt for the environment. Other major efforts included the preservation of park lands such as Willows Beach (1965) and litigation opposing the construction of a new power plant in Portage by the Wisconsin Power and Light Company (1974).
Arrangement of the Materials
This collection was received in multiple parts from the donor(s) and is organized into 4 major parts. These materials have not been physically interfiled and researchers might need to consult more than one part to locate similar materials.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Elizabeth W. Bardwell, Madison, Wisconsin, February 4, 1975, and Janice K. Schur, Madison, Wisconsin, December 9, 1976. Accession Number: M75-051, M76-536, M80-375, M85-100, M96-153
Processed by M. Patton (archives intern) and Joanne Hohler, December 5, 1978.
Contents List
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Mss 440
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Part 1 (Mss 440): Original Collection, 1964-19762.7 cubic feet (7 archives boxes) The majority of the records cover the years 1966-1974 and document the organization's research, lobbying, educational, and legal activities. The collection has been divided into six series: Administrative Subject Files, General Correspondence, Committee Files, General Subject Files, Note Fragments, and Indexes. The ADMINISTRATIVE SUBJECT FILES constitute the most informative series in the collection. The Agenda and Minutes provide a detailed record of the monthly meetings of the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors, as
well as the far less frequent meetings of the general membership. Unfortunately, no minutes exist for 1975 and only one meeting in 1976 is recorded. Many Treasurer's Reports are also missing. The Position Papers and Public Statements best define the principal environmental issues in which the organization was involved. They vary from extensive committee reports to brief statements made before city advisory committees or the state legislature. They are arranged alphabetically by subject; most are undated. This file also includes an “Environmental Bill of Rights” stating general environmental goals for the Madison community. The Publicity file consists primarily of magazine articles on the Orchid and Onion awards and a list of locally produced television videotapes describing various CCC activities. The GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE series includes letters and memoranda to and from the president, vice president, and board of directors, discussing the entire range of CCC activities. Correspondents include members, representatives of environmentalist organizations, and political figures, among them Robert Kastenmeier, Patrick Lucey, Gaylord Nelson, William Proxmire, and Madison mayors William Dyke, Otto Festge, and Paul Soglin. Only one letter, which invites selected citizens to the first organizational meeting, pre-dates 1965. The COMMITTEE FILES constitute the largest series and reflect CCC's heavy reliance upon committee organization. A typical file includes correspondence initiated by committee chairmen, minutes of committee meetings, and background material such as unpublished reports. The Membership Committee File also includes annual membership rosters; and the Program Committee file, speeches delivered at annual meetings by Charles E. Little of the Open Space Institute (1969) and by Patrick Lucey, governor of Wisconsin (1974). Missing are the records of the Landmarks Committee, which eventually took on quasi-independent status in order to attract the more specialized membership it felt necessary to identify and preserve historically and architecturally important structures effectively. In the GENERAL SUBJECT FILES are a wide variety of materials relating to activities that were not referred to a committee, as well as reference files containing county and city staff reports, proposed ordinances, brochures describing other local citizen action groups, and miscellaneous unpublished studies and fact sheets. The INDEXES, compiled in 1974, consist of two sets of note cards. The first set is arranged chronologically and abstracts board minutes and newsletters. The second provides subject access to correspondence and newsletters and also indexes newspaper articles concerning CCC and local environmental issues published in the Capital Times, Wisconsin State Journal, and Monona Community Herald.
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Series: Administrative Subject Files
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Box
1
Folder
1
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By-laws, 1965-1973
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Objectives, 1964, undated
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Box
1
Folder
3-8
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Agenda and minutes of Executive Committee, Board of Directors, and general membership meetings, 1964-1976
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Box
1
Folder
9
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Monthly and annual Treasurer's reports, 1965-1976
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Box
1
Folder
10-11
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Position papers and public statements, 1965-1974
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Box
1
Folder
12
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News releases, 1968-1975
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Box
2
Folder
1-2
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“Newsletter,” 1965-1974
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Box
2
Folder
3
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History, 1974
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Box
2
Folder
4
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Publicity, 1969-1974
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Box
2
Folder
5
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Awards, 1968-1975
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Series: General Correspondence, 1963-1976
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Box
2
Folder
6-10
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1963-1971
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Box
3
Folder
1-6
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1972-1976
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Series: Committee Files
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Box
4
Folder
1
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General, undated
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Aesthetics
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Box
4
Folder
2
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General, 1965-1970
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Box
4
Folder
3-5
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Billboards, 1971-1973
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Box
4
Folder
6
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Budget, 1968-1974
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Box
4
Folder
7
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City-University Coordinating, 1964-1973
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Box
4
Folder
8
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Environmental Resources, 1966-1975
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Box
4
Folder
9
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Fund Raising, 1969-1970
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Box
4
Folder
10
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Intergovernmental Planning, 1966-1973, undated
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Box
5
Folder
1
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Membership, 1966-1974
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Box
5
Folder
2
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Neighborhood Organizations, 1967, undated
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Box
5
Folder
3
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Nominating, 1966-1976
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Box
5
Folder
4
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Orchid and Onion Awards, 1969-1975
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Box
5
Folder
5
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Organization (ad hoc), 1972
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Box
5
Folder
6
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Pollution Abatement, 1968-1976
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Box
5
Folder
7
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Programs, 1969-1974
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Box
5
Folder
8
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Prospectus Review (ad hoc), 1972
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Box
5
Folder
9
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Speakers Bureau, 1968-1969
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Box
5
Folder
10
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Transportation, 1967-1972
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Box
5
Folder
11
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Urban Growth (ad hoc), 1971-1972
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Box
5
Folder
12
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Urban Planning, 1963-1972
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Series: General Subject Files
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Box
6
Folder
1
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Dane County, 1967-1969
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Box
6
Folder
2
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Earth Week, 1970-1975
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Box
6
Folder
3
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Ecology Center, 1970
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Box
6
Folder
4
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Environment Wisconsin, 1972-1974
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Box
6
Folder
5
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Environmental/Public Action Groups, 1973-1975
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Box
6
Folder
6
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Land Use Policy Project, 1975
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Box
6
Folder
7-8
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Madison City Government, 1966-1974
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Box
6
Folder
9
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Mapleside Fund, 1969-1971
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Box
6
Folder
10
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Neighborhood Technical Information Service, undated
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Box
6
Folder
11
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Symposiums and Conferences, 1973, undated
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Box
6
Folder
12
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Wisconsin Power and Light Company lawsuit, 1974
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Box
6
Folder
13
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Miscellaneous, undated
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Box
6
Folder
14
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Series: Note Fragments of Horst Lobe (president from 1972-1974), circa 1973-1974
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Series: Indexes
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Box
7
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Chronological, 1964-1974
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Box
7
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Subject, 1964-1974
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M80-375
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Part 2 (M80-375, PH 4931): Additions, circa 1960s, undated
0.4 cubic feet (1 archives box) and 0.1 cubic feet of photographs
: Materials on board activities and photographs of meetings and displays, and Madison postcards mounted as part of committee minutes. A photograph made by Fritz Kaeser II is also included.
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Audio 1846A
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Part 3 (Audio 1846A): Additions, circa 1979
2 cassette tape recordings
: Tape recordings of the 15th anniversary meeting of the CCC.
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M96-153
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Part 4 (M96-153): Additions, 1969-1989
0.4 cubic feet (1 archives box)
: Additions, 1969-1989, including Board of Directors minutes and correspondence; by-laws; membership and officer information; newsletters; position statements; and files concerning the Orchids and Onions awards and a design study of Madison's isthmus neighborhoods (1983-1984).
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