The papers, which consist entirely of documentation about Seaborne's interest in improving conditions on the Fox and Wolf rivers, are of somewhat uncertain provenance having been received from the Wolf River Basin Planning Commission and the Northeast Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission. Included are correspondence, reports, minutes, transcripts of public hearings, technical reports, charts and maps, clippings, and photographs.
The Correspondence is arranged chronologically, beginning with Seaborne's effort to organize the Water Power Users Association in 1937 and concluding in 1950 when he was still attempting to construct a reservoir system. Also documented here is the interest of the Water Power Users Association in Senate Bill 509 in 1939. Once this bill was passed the correspondence began to include contacts with attorneys and consulting engineers concerning planning for construction. During the early 1940's there is a lull in the correspondence and not until 1944 did Seaborne resume activity. From this point through 1950 the files reflect his personal activity in forming the Fox and Wolf River Control Association and attempts to gain financial, legislative, and public support.
The technical Reports, which are also arranged chronologically, date from 1936 through 1944. Most contain charts, graphs, maps, and illustrations concerning the proposed reservoir projects. Original photographs separated from the 1938 report documenting the site proposed for a reservoir at Lily are housed in the Visual and Sound Archives. Two related documents, The Control and Development of the Fox and Wolf Rivers, Wisconsin (1946) and The Lower Fox: A River of Paper (1957), have been separated to the SHSW Library.
The Miscellany includes several loose maps and charts and a file of newspaper clippings.
