The Steinkopf Papers consist of three series, the ALVIN STEINKOPF PAPERS, the IRENE STEINKOPF PAPERS, and VISUAL MATERIALS. Because Irene actively pursued her career only before her marriage and during World War II, her professional papers are smaller than his, but even for Alvin the career papers in the collection are not extensive. The 1920s and 1930s when he worked in Milwaukee and then in Eastern Europe is largely undocumented. It is likely the papers for these years were lost during the course of the couple's many moves. A substantial portion of the collection consists of letters addressed to both Steinkopfs, which for convenience, has been filed entirely with Alvin's papers.
The ALVIN STEINKOPF PAPERS consist of his personal letters to Irene; general correspondence exchanged with professional associates, relatives, and friends; writings and memorabilia.
His letters to his wife are primarily before their marriage and during the years 1938-1941 when, for her health, she lived in Copenhagen and Rome. The general correspondence dates primarily from the post-World War II years, and it primarily concerns the couple's common friendships and associations. There is only limited administrative contact with AP executives in the collection, although there are a few letters from managers such as Kent Cooper, John Evans, John Lloyd, and Frank Starzel. There are many letters, although chiefly of a social nature, from Louis Lochner, Glen Stadler, Clifton M. Utley, and other AP correspondents. One of the sound recordings is dictated letters to Nick Carter and Preston Grover. Evidence of a few additional contacts with Associated Press personnel can be found in the scrapbooks. A large quantity of correspondence concerns arrangements for public speaking while with WBBM in Chicago during World War II. Of autograph interest in the correspondence is a letter from Sean O'Casey humorously turning down a request for an interview from Steinkopf in 1960.
Writings, in both clipped and draft form, cover Steinkopf's career from his college days to his retirement in 1962, although there are many gaps. There is little documentation of his reporting before and during the early World War II years, although there are clippings, wire stories, and occasional drafts from 1939 through his internment at Bad Nauheim in 1941-1942. Also included from his early years are copies of the Marquette Campaigner, which Steinkopf edited; one copy of the Intercollegian, the school journal; articles he wrote for newspapers in Wisconsin during World War I; and clippings from the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The most extensively documented period is from his post-World War II assignment as a feature writer at the London AP bureau. These files include a clipping scrapbook and individual draft and wire service stories. The original wire service stories are filed alphabetically by subject as Steinkopf labeled them (e.g., bachelor husbands and women veterinarians). More important and separately filed, are the stories on the royal family and on the London bureau and several AP colleagues. Some of the memorabilia in the collection also relates to these assignments.
There are two subject files in Steinkopf's papers. One concerns his service in World War I as an ambulance driver with the 125th Ambulance Company. In addition to news stories filed from Camp MacArthur in Texas that were published in the Evening Wisconsin in Milwaukee, there are general orders, a few personal letters, photographs, and memorabilia. Most useful is a small diary neatly recopied by Irene. The file on Bad Nauheim, among the most interesting material in the collection, consists of draft news stories written while interned, photographs of internees, and varied documentation such as church bulletins; notebooks for classes taken at the journalists' university, diplomas, and graduation programs, and lists of house rules and internees.
The IRENE STEINKOPF PAPERS consist of correspondence, diaries, and writings. The correspondence consists of Irene's letters to her husband while they were living apart. They cover the period from 1939 to 1942, as well as the immediate post-World War II months. Her other correspondence is filed with the previously-described alphabetical correspondence in her husband's papers. The letters to the Steinkopfs include some individuals who were primarily her friends: Louise Cattoi, a fellow Milwaukee reporter; Ellen Wilson, the widow of Gordon MacQuarrie; and Evelyn Loebel.
Irene's diaries vary over time from brief chronological notes to true diaries. One journal entitled “Random Ramblings” covers her experiences before and during early World War II Europe, 1934-1941. Some of these “Ramblings” were written contemporaneously by hand while other entries were typed and added later. One of the sound recordings is an interview with her husband Alvin about tea and teatime probably intended for one of these “Ramblings.” While the early diaries are of widest interest, the later volumes contain useful insights into her life in a Wisconsin retirement home. Irene' writings consist primarily of WJJD radio scripts about the role of women in World War II, speeches about her experiences in Europe, and a series of articles published in 1930 on the living conditions of Native Americans in Wisconsin. Unfortunately, her autobiographical book, which is mentioned in the correspondence and which she apparently completed shortly before her death, was not received in the Archives.
The VISUAL MATERIALS series provides the most comprehensive coverage of the Steinkopfs' life and careers. Albums, loose prints, and negatives document their individual careers and as well as their lives together, their professional associations, and their travel in Europe. Alvin Steinkopf took a camera with him while on assignment from 1939 to 1941, and these images are perhaps the most valuable documentation in the collection. In 1939 he was part of a tour of journalists from neutral nations to Lemberg, Poland, where German prisoners had been killed during the invasion. In addition to his own photographs of the scene, there is a packet of images distributed by the Germans for propaganda purposes. Steinkopf visited Poland again in 1940, escorted by Dr. Walbaum, a German. Frequently left on his own, Steinkopf was able to photograph wartime conditions, as well as the Jewish ghettos in Lublin, Warsaw, and elsewhere. In August 1941 he was the first American to enter Smolensk after the Russian city fell to the Germans. Once again, Steinkopf made good use of his camera. Pre-war photographs of Sarajevo and Prague are also included in the albums. Many of Steinkopf's post-World War II photographs cover vacations in Europe and England. Most often these are the kind of scenic views photographed by most tourists, but there are also images of his AP colleagues and their work environment, and coverage of a few of his feature story assignments such as Queen Elizabeth's travel to Africa in 1956 and the Mayflower II.
Many of Steinkopf's photographs are available online as part of the Wisconsin Historical Images database. (http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/whi/advancedSearch.asp)
