The collection consists primarily of material documenting Kyle's role as campaign manager for Senator Robert M. La Follette, Jr., in the 1946 Wisconsin Republican primary, with only fragmentary files for other periods. The papers are divided into three series: Correspondence and Political Literature, 1925-1964; the Senator Robert La Follette, Jr., Primary Campaign of 1946; and Board of Regents of Wisconsin State Colleges.
The CORRESPONDENCE AND POLITICAL LITERATURE files, 1925-1964, contain letters, assorted clippings, flyers, and pamphlets on political figures of the period. Notable among the political literature is the special memorial edition of La Follette's Magazine of July 1925, commemorating Robert M. La Follette, Sr. following his death on June 18, 1925. Of special interest among the correspondence are Kyle's letter of resignation to the Wisconsin Labor Relations Board on March 7, 1939; a copy of a letter (original in vault) from Franklin D. Roosevelt of October 4, 1940 expressing appreciation for the support of the Wisconsin Progressive Party; campaign pamphlets from 1964; and a June 1, 1964 letter to Kyle concerning the John F. Kennedy memorial stamp.
Material in the SENATOR ROBERT LA FOLLETTE, JR., PRIMARY CAMPAIGN OF 1946 series includes both Correspondence and Records. The majority of the Correspondence category consists of letters, organized by county and chronologically therein, between La Follette re-election managers and county campaign coordinators. Some files also contain lists of La Follette supporters and newspaper clippings indicating candidates for county offices. Remaining correspondence files contain the letters of Robert La Follette, Jr., with campaign directors and supporters; contacts between the campaign and state and national labor organizations, especially the railroad brotherhoods; and a file of correspondence between Kyle and Richard Lund, a field organizer in western Wisconsin, which also contains some campaign organizational documents.
Records pertaining to the 1946 primary election include publications and newspaper clippings giving the election statistics of prior elections and the voting records of La Follette and other Wisconsin congressmen from 1942 to 1944. Lists in the Records files note, by county, campaign officials; nomination circulators; potential supporters of La Follette; and delegates and alternates to the March Progressive Party Conference. Also included are campaign literature and press clippings outlining La Follette positions regarding special interest groups, especially labor and agriculture, letters sent to Wisconsin newspapers concerning a political advertisement, and newspaper election statistics on the 1946 primary election. Missing are financial records for the 1946 campaign.
The BOARD OF REGENTS OF WISCONSIN SATE COLLEGES correspondence pertains to a specific incident in 1962 during Kyle's term as president, the controversy over the proposed location of a new University of Wisconsin Extension Center in Wood County. Most letters reflect opinions and reactions of parents and community leaders in Marshfield and Wisconsin Rapids to this issue.
