Manuscripts Collection
In 1958, while still in law school, Anderson, a Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party member, was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives, and was re-elected in 1960. He was elected to the Minnesota Senate in 1962 and 1966, and was selected as one of two outstanding Minnesota legislators by the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University. He also served as chairman of the 1968 Humphrey for President campaign in Minnesota.
Anderson was elected governor of Minnesota in 1970, focusing his campaign on the need to reduce the burden of high property taxes, and to provide local communities--primarily schools--with major non property revenues from the state. He chaired the Democratic Governor's Conference (1974-1975) and was a member of the Democratic National Committee during the same period. He was re-elected governor in 1974, but resigned in December 1976 to accept appointment to the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Walter F. Mondale after his election as vice-president. Anderson was defeated by Independent-Republican Rudy Boschwitz in the 1978 general election.
Following his senate service, Anderson remained active in the DFL Party and served for a number of years on the University of Minnesota Board of Regents.
Anderson married Mary Christine McKee of Bemidji. They have three children: Amy, Elizabeth, and Brett.
Senatorial files include general correspondence, legislative assistants' files, bill and other legislation files, case work files, and St. Paul office files. Legislative areas of particular significance are agriculture, energy matters, environmental concerns, social legislation, and transportation.
Remaining materials provide documentation of Anderson's career as a state representative and senator during the 1960s, as well as photographs and scrapbooks documenting personal and public activities, including photographs of the Anderson and extended families, participation as a member of the U.S. Hockey Team, awards and certificates, and miscellaneous related materials.
These documents are organized into the following sections:
Gubernatorial files of Wendell Anderson are in the Minnesota State Archives.
Access to the collection requires written permission.
Quotation or publication beyond the fair use provisions of the copyright law requires written permission.
Accession number(s): 11,498; 11,823; 12,449; 14,174; 2009-33
Catalog ID number: 09-00021925
The general correspondence files of the senator's staff are arranged by computer access numbers that refer to the date the file was processed and by which staff member. In order to find correspondence with a particular individual the researcher must consult a computer print-out index to the files. The indexes to the 1977 and 1978 files are contained in Box 76. The indexes also denote the type of files (issue mail, casework, administrative, or request) and the subject of the file. There is no ready means of subject access, however; the indexes are arranged alphabetically by correspondents' names. While most of the correspondence is with constituents, some letters are from other legislators, government officials, lobbyists, and other people interested in various sorts of legislative action. The series contains all correspondence that does not directly relate to legislation in which Anderson was involved; all such correspondence may be found in the legislative files that follow this series. See Box 76 description in inventory for detailed instructions on use of computer print out indexes.
One sample copy of each Robo letter (robotically-signed, personalized form letters); arranged numerically.
These files, created and managed by Anderson's legislative assistants, provide a record of the office's activities with regard to particular legislative issues. The files contain staff notes and collected data, position papers, memoranda to the senator, and correspondence with constituents, lobbyists, governmental agencies, and other legislators. The files are arranged by staff member and thereunder by legislative issue.
Railroad matters.
Aviation and highway matters.
Includes files on St. Croix River.
These files consist of correspondence, memoranda, position statements, speeches, and printed matter relating to bills sponsored or co-sponsored by Anderson. The files are in a rough chronological order by bill number. Senate resolutions follow the bills sequence and are also in numerical order.
Files are arranged alphabetically by constituent's name.
Executive assistant.
both offices.
Instructions on how to use the print-out indexes:
All files are filed in numerical order using the Julian date system. Each individual file has a ten digit document number stamped on the top of it. Example: 7156242036
First digit: 7 stands for the year 1977.
Second, third and fourth digit: 156th day of the year.
Fifth and six digit: Operator number (meaning the person who typed the file).
Seventh digit: will always be the number 2, meaning it is a file.
Eighth, ninth, and tenth digit: 036 would mean this is the 36th file entered on the 156th day of the year.
Each box is labeled with the year and the date the files were completed.
Each print-out is listed in alphabetical order. The constituent's name and address appear and then directly under that the initials of the aide that processed the file. Other information contained on the print out is as follows: the type of document (issue, files, case, project, etc.); the topic and subtopic of the file (example: Topic-Health Subtopic- Nurse Training); the date the file was completed; and the document number.
Arranged in chronological order.
Miscellaneous bills and related files.
Includes Governor Anderson's 1956 Olympics passport.
Includes Wendy's parents, Ted and Gladys, his brothers, and the Nord family.
Includes several pieces of original artwork by political cartoonist, Jerry Fearing.
Includes Governor Anderson's high school diploma, and his U.S. Army officer commissions.
Include newspaper clippings and programs concerning Governor Anderson’s hockey teams at Johnson High School (St. Paul), the University of Minnesota, and the 1956 Olympics team. Also, newspaper clippings regarding Governor Anderson's political career, and photographs.