Finding aid for the Theodore Hall Papers


Repository: Western Reserve Historical Society
Creator: Hall, Theodore
Title: Theodore Hall Papers
Dates: 1941-1945
Extent: 1.80 linear feet (3 containers)
Abstract: Theodore Hall was an information specialist for the Office of Civilian Defense in Cleveland, Ohio, during World War II. He was also a writer for the Cleveland City Planning Commission and a book reviewer for the Washington Post. Hall compiled an unpublished history of the Jack & Heintz Company, Jack & Heintz: the Human Factory, which focused on the company's wartime production. The collection consists of correspondence, reports, newspaper clippings, speech texts, diaries, and publications. Series I consists mainly of radio scripts written by Hall as information specialist for the Cleveland Office of Civilian Defense during World War II. Series II consists of Hall's research material and several drafts of his unpublished manuscript, Jack & Heintz: The Human Factory, on the Jack & Heintz Company (Jahco) during World War II. It includes biographical data on Ralph Heintz and William S. Jack and interviews with Jack & Heintz employees.
MS Number MS 4529
Location: closed stacks
Language: The records are in English

Biography of Theodore Hall

Theodore Hall was born in Ashtabula, Ohio, to May Churchill Beamish Hall of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Theodore Hall of Ashtabula, Ohio. He was educated at Harvard, graduating with a B.A in 1930. During his career Hall worked as a book reviewer for the Washington Post, information specialist for the Office of Civilian Defense in Cleveland, Ohio, during World War II, and writer for the Cleveland City Planning Commission. He authored several works including Gifted Children: The Cleveland Story (1956).


Scope and Content

The Theodore Hall Papers, 1941-1945, consist of correspondence, reports, newspaper clippings. speech texts, diaries, and publications.

This collection will be of interest to labor historians and researchers interested in the Cleveland business community. The unique relationship between Jack and Heintz Company (Jahco) management and associates (employees) instituted by Bill Jack, and the incentives used to increase war time production were both novel and controversial. The radio typescripts for Sam At War and You Can't Do Business With Hitler are good examples of the use of the broadcast media during war time.


Statement of Arrangement

The collection is arranged in two series that are each arranged alphabetically by subject.
Series I: Office of Civilian Defense consists mainly of radio scripts written by Hall in his job as information specialist for the Cleveland Office of Civilian Defense during World War II.
Series II: Jack and Heintz: The Human Factory consists of Hall's research material for an unpublished manuscript on the Jack and Heintz Company (Jahco) during World War II.
The material in Series II includes biographical data on Ralph Heintz and William S. (Bill) Jack, personal interviews with Jack and Heintz employees and several drafts of the 400 page manuscript.

Restrictions on Access

None.

Separated Material

A series of studio disc records of Civilian Defense programs have been removed to the Audio Visual collection.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Hall, Theodore.
Heintz, Ralph M.
Jack & Heintz, Inc.
Jack, William S.
Radio programs, Public service -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Radio scripts.
Radio scripts.
United States. Office of Civilian Defense.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Economic aspects -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
World War, 1939-1945 -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
World War, 1939-1945 -- War work -- Ohio -- Cleveland.

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4529 Theodore Hall Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Barbara Culp, 1980.

Processing Information

Processed by Patricia J. Stahley in 1990.

Detailed Description of The Collection

Series I: Office of Civilian Defense 1941-1943 undated

Box Folder
1 1 The Cleveland Fire Defense Plan, and program book from Cleveland defense rally 1941-1942
1 2 Civilian Front, national weekly newspaper, not an official OCD publication 1942
1 3 Hall, Theodore, calendar diaries 1942-1943
1 4 Miscellaneous publications 1942
1 5 Office of Civilian Defense, correspondence 1942-1943 undated
1 6 Office of Civilian Defense, miscellaneous bulletins and pamphlets 1943 undated
1 7-8 Office of Civilian Defense, publications, United States Office of Civilian Defense 1942
1 9 : Office of Civilian Defense, Radio Script Service, miscellaneous radio scripts, including You Can't Do Business With Hitler, episodes 22-28 1942
1 10-15 Office of Civilian Defense, Radio Script Service, Sam At War, episodes 1-54 1942
1 16 Office of Civilian Defense, Speaker's Bureau, including radio broadcasts of roundtable discussions of war issues 1942
1 17 Office of Civilian Defense, Standard school lectures, civilian protection 1942
1 18 Region Five publications, including employees handbook for Cleveland regional office, and Sabotage and Counter-Sabotage: A Bibliography 1942

Series II: Jack and Heintz: The Human Factory 1943-1945

Box Folder
1 19 Articles, reports and speeches about Jahco and/or Bill Jack, including "Jack and Heintz: A Blueprint For Labor Relations" Public Relations Quarterly, by William S. Jack and "The Fantastic Jack and Heintz" Mill and Factory 1943-1944
1 20 Book Outlines 1943-1944
1 21 Correspondence and research, including biographical data on Ralph Heintz and William S. (Bill) Jack, and letters to publishers regarding Jack and Heintz manuscript 1943
1 22 Correspondence and research 1943-1945
1 23 Financial correspondence and research 1943-1945
1 24 Jahco publications, including Jahco News 1943-1945
Box Folder
2 25-26 Newspaper clippings, relating to Jack and Heintz war production and Cleveland business community 1943-1945
2 27 Working draft,(#1) The Genius of Jack and Heintz, (original title of manuscript), chapters 1-6 1944
2 28 Working draft,(#2) Jack and Heintz: The Human Factory, (final title) chapters 1-6 1944
2 29 Working draft, revisions and annotations 1944
2 30-31 Working draft, unarranged, annotated manuscript pages 1944
Box Folder
3 32-34 Working draft,(#3) annotated, chapters 1-12 1944
3 35-37 Working draft,(#4) annotated, chapters 1-12 1945