| Abstract: |
Theodore E. Burton (1851-1929) was a United States Representative (1889-1891, 1895-1909, and 1921-1928) and Senator (1909-1915
and 1928-1929) from Cleveland, Ohio. While in Congress, Burton was involved in a number of important issues of the day, and
was also a prominent figure in Republican Party politics. He maintained a lifelong involvement in the international peace
movement. Burton was a candidate in the 1907 Cleveland mayoral election, losing to Democrat Tom L. Johnson. A bachelor, he
was close to his niece, Grace Burton, who became a political confidant, housekeeper, and companion to him in his later years.
The collection consists of diaries, journals, appointment books, correspondence, reports, bills and government documents,
minutes, notes and other memoranda, pamphlets, printed public remarks, speeches, articles, manuscripts, notebooks, account
books, receipts, income tax returns, programs and other memorabilia, passports, address files, newspaper clippings, and scrapbooks.
Legislative issues Burton was involved with are well represented in the collection. These include inland waterways; the Inland
Waterways Commission; financial, banking, and currency legislation; immigration restriction; postal, trade and tariff issues;
the Panama Canal; political patronage; veterans' and pension affairs; and labor legislation. Local Cleveland, Ohio, issues
are represented in the collection. These include the 1907 Cleveland mayoral race, construction of a federal building, local
and Ohio politics, and the flood of 1913. Burton's dedication to the international peace movement is documented in the collection.
The important role played by his niece Grace Burton is illustrated in her correspondence with her uncle, often demonstrating
her own deep interest in local and national politics. Burton's own writings, especially research materials and manuscripts
for his two major works, Financial Crises and John Sherman, make up a significant portion of the collection.
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