These papers, 1925-1960, mainly document Naujoks' career as legal counsel and president of the Great Lakes Harbors Association (GLHA), and as Special Assistant to the Lake States Attorneys General in Chicago water diversion litigation. Only a very few documents pre-date 1938, with the great bulk of material falling into the period 1951 to 1960. Very little of the collection relates to Naujoks' private life or law and business career.
The collection has been arranged in a manner reflecting the major areas of concern for Naujoks and the Great Lakes Harbors Association, with series groupings for materials documenting GLHA business in general, involvement in the Chicago water diversion controversy, advocacy of the St. Lawrence Seaway project, and other Great Lakes subjects. The small amount of material not directly related to Great Lakes subjects has been placed last.
The GREAT LAKES HARBORS ASSOCIATION BUSINESS series consists of correspondence, minutes of officers' meetings, convention proceedings, organizational documents, and other items which relate to the Association's internal business or administration. Included in this grouping are addresses delivered at GLHA annual conventions, even where these may relate to the subject matters of other series.
The CHICAGO WATER DIVERSION CONTROVERSY series, which constitutes just over half of the entire collection, is divided into four sub-series as follows:
The subseries Pre-1938 Materials consists of case documents, reports, minutes of meetings of representatives of the Lake States, and miscellaneous items pertaining to the diversion case prior to the date Naujoks became GLHA legal counsel and Special Assistant to the Attorneys General.
The subseries Legislation Files deals with materials related to discussion of the diversion question in Congress or in state legislative bodies. These consist mostly of copies of statements to Congressional committees made by Naujoks and others. Also included are copies of various bills and reports dealing with Chicago diversion, as well as pertinent pages from the Congressional Record and from Sen. Alexander Wiley's Newsletter.
The subseries Litigation Files relates to actions before the U.S. Supreme Court concerning diversion, Wisconsin, et al. v. Illinois, et al., and Illinois, et al. v. Wisconsin, et al. Included are copies or draft copies of various briefs, pleadings, and other case documents, testimony presented at hearings before the Court-appointed Special Master during the 1959 and 1960 Terms, and notes and memoranda circulated among Lake States staff.
The subseries General Diversion Files consists of items related to Chicago water diversion generally. Included are correspondence, Naujoks' speeches and publications regarding diversion (including drafts), public statements of various kinds made by organizations, studies, reports, and proceedings of diversion conferences or symposia. There is also a clippings file on all aspects of the water diversion issue.
The ST. LAWRENCE SEAWAY PROJECT series consists of diverse materials centering on the subject of the Seaway. Correspondence, addresses, literature and other items dating from before May 6, 1954 deal with the promotion of Seaway bills in Congress. Subsequent materials deal with subjects related to the development or actual operation of the Seaway, 1954-1960. Topics include the financing and arrangement of the project, the potential effects of Seaway trade on the economies of Great Lakes states, and the level of tolls to be levied on Seaway use. The clippings file contains items regarding promotion, development, and operation of the Seaway.
Materials dealing with OTHER GREAT LAKES SUBJECTS are arranged into alphabetical subject files. Correspondence, addresses, conference proceedings, and other types of materials are all included. Many files reflect the involvement of the Great Lakes Harbors Association in encouraging harbor and navigational improvements and expanded commerce for Great Lakes ports. Others concern the control of lake levels or other water issues. Some files center on the activities of organizations with interests overlapping those of the GLHA, and may deal with a multiplicity of subjects.
The NON-GREAT LAKES MATERIAL contains papers unrelated to Naujoks' position with the Great Lakes Harbors Association. This includes a small amount of personal correspondence, and correspondence concerning his frequent speaking engagements. Papers documenting Naujoks' legal career apart from his GLHA involvement are not extensive. Legal research files reflect his interest in topics such as the law of waters, Supreme Court decisions under the Commerce Clause and the Sherman and Clayton Acts, and interstate compacts. Other files contain papers stemming from his work as a member of a Regional Loyalty Review Board, and from his ownership of the Rynksel Oil & Coal Company. There are also three scrapbooks in ring binders, containing clippings, some letters, a few photographs, and other memorabilia. These have been left as received in the Archives, and include items concerning both Great Lakes and personal subjects. Each binder contains material from about 1952 to 1960, not necessarily in chronological order.
