Simeon E. Leland (1897-1972) Papers

The Simeon E. Leland Papers, comprising 23 boxes and one package, span the years 1918 to 1972 and are arranged in six subseries: biographical materials, general correspondence, writings and speeches, course and teaching materials, research and reference files, and files of the University of Chicago Social Science Research Committee pertaining to its investigation of the role of public debt in the modern state. The papers document Leland's career in academics and government service as a specialist in the fields of government finance and taxation as well as his personal and family life. There are significant gaps throughout the papers.

The biographical materials, arranged in eight folders, include Leland's vitae, lists of his publications, biographical sketches, newspaper clippings and press releases, as well as correspondence and related materials pertaining to honors and testimonials. A few of Leland's class notes, dating from 1916, also are included here.

The general correspondence, totaling only about one-half box, spans the period from 1918 through 1972 with several gaps. The correspondence, incoming and outgoing, concerns a variety of Leland's personal and professional activities. It is arranged chronologically according to date within folders.

The writings and speeches files, spanning the years 1918-1972, are divided into two components: books and major reports and articles and speeches. The books and major reports files, filling three boxes, include published and occasionally draft versions of seven of Leland's most comprehensive works. Materials relating to his last major publication, “The History and Impact of Section 5219 on the Taxation of National Banks,” include successive drafts, outlines, and notes as well as the final published version. Leland's books and major reports are arranged in folders alphabetically by title. The articles and speeches files, comprising nearly six boxes, include a fairly complete run of Leland's shorter writings and statements on various topics concerned mainly with public finance. The articles and speeches are foldered individually and arranged alphabetically by title. Leland's report, “The Short-Term Borrowings of Local Governments in 1933 and 1934,” written in 1934 at the request of Henry Morgenthau, Jr., Secretary of the Treasury, and Jesse H. Jones, Chairman of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, is oversized and packaged at the end of the papers.

Course and teaching materials fill approximately one box and date from 1923 through 1946 with many gaps. They include student grade sheets, doctoral examination questions, lists of dissertation topics, and undergraduate teaching materials generated during Leland's tenures at the universities of Kentucky and Chicago. Also included is a scattered collection of course examinations and bibliographies, lists of term paper topics, student papers, and a few lecture notes. The student grade sheets, spanning the period from 1930 to 1946, are arranged in folders according to course number and chronologically within folders. Following are materials pertaining to doctoral examinations and dissertations dating mainly from Leland's service at the University of Chicago. The remaining teaching materials are arranged in folders according to course title or number and within folders chronologically. Kentucky-related materials precede those pertaining to Chicago courses.

The research and reference files, comprising approximately eleven boxes, form the largest component of the papers. The files include mainly research notes and outlines dating from the 1930s and 1940s pertaining to various economic fields, particularly public finance and debt, taxation, and assessments. Also part of this subseries are reference files ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s relating to several of Leland's government and community service activities. The research and reference files are arranged alphabetically according to topical folder headings.

As a member of the University of Chicago's Social Science Research Committee, Leland directed the Committee's investigation on the role of public debt in the modern state. A sampling of his files from this project has been retained. Filling slightly more than one box, the project files span the years from 1939 to 1943. They include proposals and outlines for study, as well as progress reports and summaries of special investigations undertaken by several research assistants. Arranged at the front of the subseries are folders of background materials, and periodic reports on research. Following are subject files arranged alphabetically by folder title.