The Chester V. Easum Papers consist of correspondence, addresses and publications, itineraries, a clipping, and a report on the Baltic in the early 1940's. The addresses and publications comprise the largest portion of the papers. They are arranged chronologically, 1929, 1936-1962, and are mainly concerned with twentieth-century German history and culture. The majority of addresses were delivered to Madison and University of Wisconsin groups or to German audiences during the course of Easum's duties as cultural attache. Several of the addresses are in German.
The Correspondence in the papers is found in a separate correspondence file or in a small subject file. The separate correspondence is a fragmentary file of incoming letters arranged chronologically. It includes letters of introduction from Glenn Frank, Robert La Follette, Jr., and Philip La Follette for Easum's 1936 trip to Germany; 1945 letters written by history professor Robert L. Reynolds concerning a proposed University of Wisconsin institute for Central European studies; and several items, 1954-1956, concerning Easum's activities as cultural attaché.
The subject file referred to above contains just four folders. The largest contains correspondence, 1945-1946, from Easum's chairmanship of the University War Records Committee, a committee which gathered data on the involvement of Wisconsin faculty, students, and alumni in World War II. The project was completed and the results can be found in the University of Wisconsin Archives. Another folder contains letters and clippings concerning an attack by syndicated columnist Westbrook Pegler on cultural affairs officers in general and on Easum in particular. A third folder contains itineraries for Easum's travels in Germany, 1954-1955; and a fourth contains a typed fragment of a document in German entitled “Baltic Report, 1940-41”, possibly used by Easum as an information source. Included in the report are transcriptions of correspondence between a Dr. Mommsen and a Dr. von Stritsky.
