Title: Marvin B. Rosenberry Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1845-1956

Creator:

• Rosenberry, Marvin B., 1868-1958

Call Number: Wis Mss TN

Quantity: 13.6 c.f. (34 archives boxes and 1 volume)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Personal papers of Marvin B. Rosenberry, a Wausau and Madison, Wisconsin, attorney who was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1916 and served as its chief justice, 1929-1950. Contains Rosenberry's correspondence, mainly on family matters and his personal interests; letters relating to the circulation of nominating papers for his election campaigns in 1918, 1919, 1929, and 1939; and letters concerning his civic interests, including the Boy Scouts, the Young Men's Christian Association, the Community Union movement in Madison in the 1920s and 1930s, and the Wisconsin Conference of Social Work, of which he was president in 1926. Among the very few letters discussing political or legal matters is one written in 1946 concerning Joseph R. McCarthy's qualifications for seeking the United States senatorship from Wisconsin. The collection also contains a manuscript autobiography, several boxes of speeches and articles written by Rosenberry, briefs and legal notes, and biographical, historical, and genealogical materials relating to the Kimball, Landfair, and Rosenberry families. One volume contains proceedings during 1936 of the Wisconsin Citizens Committee on Public Welfare, of which Rosenberry was chairman.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-wis000tn

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Marvin B. Rosenberry was born in Medina County, Ohio in 1868, attended public schools in Michigan, and obtained his law degree from the University of Michigan. After teaching a short while, he moved to Wausau, Wisconsin to set up law practice in 1893. There he was also a bank director, and served as President of the Farmer's Cooperative Packing Company. In 1904 he was a member of the Republican state central committee and for some years was known as an influential Stalwart Republican. In 1909 his letters indicate his interest in politics to the extent of his circulating nomination papers for a friend; but on December 17, 1910 he wrote that he had “retired entirely from the political game.” In the next few years Rosenberry's reputation as an attorney grew, and he became well known as a counsel for land companies and for the Wisconsin Electrical Association, better known as the “Water Power Trust.”

In 1916 he was appointed to the Supreme Court bench by Governor Emanuel Philipp. It was thought by some that the appointment was the result of a deal, since his law partner, A. L. Kreutzer, withdrew from the race for U.S. Senator at the same time, and Governor Philipp favored another candidate over Kreutzer. In any case, Rosenberry apparently divorced himself from politics, became an outstanding jurist, and enjoyed a long and distinguished career on the bench.

While on the Supreme Court Rosenberry had to stand for election four times--in 1918, 1919, 1929, and 1939. He was always able to defeat his opponent by wide margins, and in 1929 had no opposition. Rosenberry's last campaign was conducted by a committee of supporters, as he contended that he was too busy to campaign actively. After thirty-four years on the bench, twenty-one of them as Chief Justice, he retired in January, 1950.

Following his retirement from the court at the age of 82, Rosenberry resumed the practice of law and became associated with La Follette, Sinykin, and Doyle in Madison. His retainers came from industries such as the paper companies, the Schlitz Brewing Company, and Allis-Chalmers.

Justice Rosenberry's first wife, Kate Landfair, died shortly after he was first appointed to the Supreme Court. She left him a daughter, Katherine, and a son, Samuel Landfair. Katherine married, and died at the age of 48; Sam became a lawyer in New York.

In 1918 Justice Rosenberry married Mrs. Lois Mathews, dean of women and associate professor of history at the University of Wisconsin. Both Justice and Mrs. Rosenberry were very active in civic affairs. Rosenberry was one of the leaders in the Community Union movement in Madison in the 1920s and 1930s, was president of the Wisconsin Conference of Social Work in 1926, headed the state Bar Association in 1925-1926, was a warden in his church for more than twenty years, and always took an active interest in Boy Scouts and the YMCA. One of his last public services was his activity in connection with the studies on legislative reapportionment in 1951-1952.

Both Justice and Mrs. Rosenberry died in 1958.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Marvin B. Rosenberry, July 23, 1957.

	Correspondence Scope and Content Note Fully one half of the correspondence is family and personal letters. A fourth is related to Rosenberry's elections, but these are chiefly routine “thank you” notes or letters making requests for circulating papers. The other fourth of the correspondence is composed of letters regarding civic projects in which Rosenberry was interested. Many letters refer to his interest in hunting and fishing. Although Justice Rosenberry's letters seem to be very conservative in nature, he had a reputation as a liberal jurist, and labor considered him to be fair in his decisions. He stayed so scrupulously clear of politics while on the bench that his letters contain very little mention of political affairs. Occasionally through the 1930s, one gathers that he disapproved of Roosevelt's financial and organizational ability but approved of his vision and purpose. In his letters Justice Rosenberry never referred to cases before the Supreme Court. A rare letter giving any opinion at all is one written December 30, 1946 concerning Joseph McCarthy's qualifications to run for U.S. Senator. In the Rosenberry correspondence are practically no letters to persons of note, and there are very few regarding business conditions, the national scene, or legal opinions. A minor professional exchange between Rosenberry and other members of the Supreme Court occurred in 1944-1945 when he wrote notes to Justices Oscar M. Fritz and Chester A. Fowler. Rosenberry's letters were always scholarly and precise, yet human. They reveal him to have been thoughtful, calm, and dispassionate. Those to his son and daughter are revealing as to his character; letters of April 9 and 13, 1923 to Sam, and May 29, 1918 to Katherine are especially so.
Box   1	1845, 1854, 1863, 1867, 1878, 1895-1898, 1900-1914
Box   2	1915-1917
Box   3	1918, January-April
Box   4	1918, April-1919, March
Box   5	1919, March-December
Box   6	1920-1922, October
Box   7	1922, October-1923
Box   8	1924-1925, May
Box   9	1925, June-1926
Box   10	1927-1928, September
Box   11	1928, October-1929, February
Box   12	1929, March-1930, November
Box   13	1930, December-1932, October
Box   14	1932, November-1935, May
Box   15	1935, June-1938
Box   16	1939, January-September
Box   17	1939, October-1942
Box   18	1943-1944
Box   19	1945-1946, April
Box   20	1946, May-1947, June
Box   21	1947, July-1948, June
Box   22	1948, July-1949, June
Box   23	1949, July-1950, June
Box   24	1950, July-1951,October
Box   25	1951, November-1952, October
Box   26	1952, December-1954, April
Box   27 Folder   1-2	1954, May-1956; undated
Box   27 Folder   3	Accounts, 1902-1916
Box   27 Folder   4	Biographical and Genealogical materials, Rosenberry and Landfair
Box   27 Folder   5	Biographical and genealogical materials, Matthews and Kimball
Box   27 Folder   6	Wills, estates, accounts
Box   27 Folder   7	Manuscript for Rosenberry's autobiography
Box   28 Folder   1-2	Memorials and responses
Box   28 Folder   3	Bar admissions--speeches to law classes
Box   29-31	Speeches and articles
Box   32 Folder   1-2	Speeches and articles, continued
Box   32 Folder   3	History of lawyers in Wausau
Box   32 Folder   4	Articles and memoranda on the military road from Fort Wilkins, Copper Harbor, Mich. to Fort Howard, Green Bay, Wis.
Box   32 Folder   5	Information relating to committee work on possible legislative re-apportionment in 1951-1952
	Briefs and Memoranda
Box   33 Folder   1-2	General
Box   33 Folder   3-4	Motor Transport Co., Yule Truck Lines, Inc., 1951-1952
Box   34 Folder   1	Allen Bradley case, 1957
Box   34 Folder   2	Green Bay Drop Forge Co., 1953
Box   34 Folder   3	Summer case, 1950-1957
Box   34 Folder   4	State vs. Clement A. Friedl
Box   34 Folder   5	Fort Howard Paper Co. case, 1951
Box   34 Folder   6-7	Clippings
Box   34 Folder   8	Miscellaneous
Volume   1	Proceedings of the Citizens Committee on Public Welfare, 1936