Scope Note

The collection covers Wirth's work from the time of his dismissal from the faculty of Tulane University and his return to the University of Chicago in 1931 to the end of his life. Most of the collection is concerned with Wirth's very active professional life, both in and outside of the University.

It is organized into six series and two addenda. I. General Correspondence; II. Professional Activities and Organizations; III. Manuscripts and Research Material; IV. University of Chicago; V. Newspaper clippings; and VI. Addenda.

The General Correspondence, alphabetically arranged and covering the period from 1931 to 1952, is at its heaviest during the 1940's and early 1950's. As his "general" body of correspondence it relates to the whole range of Wirth's activities and overlaps those specifically listed in subsequent sections of these papers. These subsequent sections also contain additional correspondence of particular pertinence to the matter at hand, and should not be overlooked.

Grouped under Professional Activities and Organizations are a variety of records relating to Wirth's professional life outside of the University of Chicago. Arranged alphabetically by name of organization (usually a committee, institution, board but occasionally by subject) this section contains such data as minutes, reports, correspondence, and other relevant documentation relating to Wirth's participation. There is a heavy emphasis on professional societies and conferences, Wirth having served as president of both the American Sociological Society and the International Sociological Association. The material on the Chicago Crime Commission, the Chicago Plan Commission, the Chicago Urban League, the South Side Planning Board, and the Illinois State Housing Board among others reflects Wirth's involvement in the local affairs of Chicago and Illinois. On a national and international level, the Social Science Research Council, the American Council on Race Relations, UNESCO, and the National Planning Association are among the organizations represented. Throughout this section, city planning, urban problems, racial discrimination, housing, and education are the main themes.

The section on Research, including manuscripts, reprints, book reviews, and related correspondence contains Wirth's own writings, although occasionally there are articles by students and colleagues retained for reference. This material alphabetically arranged covers the period from 1930 to 1952, with an occasional earlier piece such as "Life at the Chicago Public Bathing Beaches," a term paper he wrote as a student in Ernest W. Burgess's Social Pathology class in 1918. The correspondence, comments, and a typewritten copy of Gunner Myrdal's The Negro in America is the only major piece in this section that is not Wirth's. During the last ten years of his life, he projected a major scholarly work on the city. An outline of The City was prepared and a few chapters drafted. Boxes 39-49 contain bibliographies, outlines, and other materials to have been used for the work that was never completed.

Wirth's activities specifically connected with teaching and administrative matters at the University of Chicago are arranged alphabetically in Series IV. As a representative of the Sociology Department, he played a large part in developing a one-year course in the Social Sciences. Wirth's records on the committee charged with this responsibility are included as are other records related to courses he taught, in particular on the Sociology of Knowledge. There are some University Committee records such as the Social Science Research Committee, the Committee on Communication, and the Committee on Values. These records often contain correspondence and minutes.

Series V, Newspaper Clippings, contains clippings which are dated and identified, accumulated by Wirth in the 1930's and early 1940's. Arranged by subject matter, they reflect Wirth's concern with community, national, and international problems.