Steve Lacy collection of Herbert B. Maw audio recordings, 1941-1946

Overview of the Collection

Collector
Lacy, Steve, 1951-
Title
Steve Lacy collection of Herbert B. Maw audio recordings
Dates
1941-1946 (inclusive)
Quantity
7 audiocassettes
Collection Number
A0331
Summary
The Steve Lacy collection of Herbert B. Maw audio recordings (1941-1946) consists of several audio recordings of speeches made by or on behalf of Herbert B. Maw during his term as governor of Utah.
Repository
University of Utah Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library
University of Utah
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City, UT
84112-0860

Telephone: 8015818863
special@library.utah.edu
Access Restrictions

Materials must be used on-site; no use of original material, access copies will be made available for viewing. Five business days advanced notice required. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law, condition of the material, or by donor.

Languages
English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Dr. Steve Lacy (b.1951) is a Utah historian and the author of books including Posey: The Last Indian War, Last of the Bandit Riders . . . Revisited and The Lynching of Robert Marshall, Last in the West. His photograph collection, donated to the Utah State Historical Society (Mss C 472), includes images of the Castle Gate mine disaster, which killed over 170 miners in three explosions March 8, 1924.

Utah Governor Herbert B. Maw (1893-1990, Gov. 1941-1948) was born in Ogden, Utah to Emma Brown and Ephraim Goodman Maw, who later moved their family to Salt Lake City. After attending Latter Day Saint (LDS) High School and the University of Utah, Maw served in World War I as one of the army's first Mormon Chaplains. He married Florence Buehler in 1921. Having earned his J.D. degree at Northwestern University in 1927, Maw returned to the University of Utah to teach speech and political science from 1927-1940, and he served as Dean of Men from 1928-1936.

In 1928, Maw was elected to the state senate where he served until 1938. He was president of that body from 1934-1938. One of the Utah Democratic Party's more liberal members, Maw promoted old-age assistance programs, government control of public utilities, and direct primary elections. He won the Democratic Party's gubernatorial nomination in 1940 in the state's first primary election of that kind and went on to defeat his conservative opponent, Don B. Colton to become Utah's eighth governor.

As governor of the state of Utah, Maw reorganized various commissions, bureaus and boards under the somewhat controversial Publicity Industrial Department (PID) to promote tourism and new business. The PID built roads to scenic attractions in Southern Utah and built a natural history museum in Vernal. Maw's administration also built the "This is the Place Monument" at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. While governor, Maw supported a major highway building program and approved the creation of a state water and power board to oversee the use of Colorado River water within the state. During World War II, he successfully attracted military and other war related industries to Utah, creating many jobs and reviving the state's economy.

Herbert Maw was defeated in the 1948 gubernatorial election by Republican J. Bracken Lee. After his term as governor, he ran a private law practice until well into his 90s. He died in 1993.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Steve Lacy collection of Herbert B. Maw audio recordings (1941-1946) consists of several audiocassettes recorded from 16" radio transcription discs. The recordings are of speeches made by or on behalf of Herbert B. Maw during his term as governor of Utah. The collection also includes two episodes of the 1940s Natoinal Broadcasting Company (NBC) radio program We the Abbots, which were recorded on the opposite sides of a Maw cassette.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in loose chronological order.

Related Materials

See also the Herbert B. Maw audio-visual collection (A066) and papers (Ms 532).

Processing Note

Processed by Mark Jensen in 1991.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
cassette
1 A Challenge to Utahns speech, interview with Maw in Oklahoma, and inaugural address part 1
Side A "A Challenge to Utahns," by Royal Garff. circa 1941; 13 minutes Local teacher and public speaker Royal Garff delivers a speech which beseeches Utahns who have left the state for educational or career pursuits to make a contribution back to the state. The speech also promotes Herbert B. Maw as a candidate for governor. An identical recording of this speech follows on the cassette. Side B 1. Interview with Governor Herbert B. Maw. 1946; 14 minutes Recorded by KDYL radio at the 1946 National Conference of Governors in Oklahoma. The governor praises Oklahoma and its oil resources; discusses topics of the conference (veteran's affairs, agriculture and labor), the 1946 presidential campaign, and the purpose of the conference. 2. Inaugural address of Governor Herbert B. Maw, part 1. January 6, 1941; 19 minutes The governor praises his predecessor, Governor Henry H. Blood, a fellow Democrat. Topics include the need for the state to remain debt-free, control of state money, the spending power of the population and economic problems. Continued on cassette 2, side A.
1941, 1946
2 Inaugural address part 2; Maw speech January 1941 part 1, and We the Abbots
Side A 1. Inaugural address of Herbert B. Maw, part 2. January 6, 1941; 5 minutes Continued from cassette 1, side B. The Governor continues by praising and expressing gratitude for his wife, family and Russell L. Tracy, local banker and founder of Tracy Aviary. 2. Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, part 1. January 13, 1941; 13 minutes In an address before the Utah State Legislature, topics include addressing the needs of farmers and laborers, the stimulation of industry, government finances and taxation. Continued on Item 3, Side A. Side B circa 1941; 30 minutes A recording of two episodes of the NBC radio program, We The Abbots
1941 January 6-13
3 Maw speech January 1941 parts 2-5
Side A Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, parts 2 and 3. January 13, 1941; 26 minutes Address before the Utah State Legislature continued from cassette 2, side A. Topics include appropriations, the state budget, and creation and operation of new government departments. Side B Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, parts 4 and 5. January 13, 1941; 28 minutes Topics include the restructuring of the State Liquor Commission, control of and restructuring of higher education, administration of welfare programs, stimulation of employment opportunities, reappraisal of freight rates, and development of hydroelectric power. Continued on cassette 5, side A.
13 January 1941
4 Maw speech 1943 parts 1-4
Side A Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, parts 1 and 2. 1943; 30 minutes An address before the 25th Utah State Legislature. Topics include problems of governing during wartime, praise of government's and citizen's response to demands of wartime, progress of government restructuring initiated two years earlier, and use of government funds. Continued on cassette 4, side B. Side B Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, parts 3 and 4. 1943; 30 minutes Topics include criticism of current welfare/relief system, proposals for alternatives for Social Services Department, state debt, and proposed legislation. Part 4 is an incomplete recording. Cassette 5, Side A has a complete recording of part 4.
1943
5 Maw speech January 1941 part 6, Maw speech 1943 parts 4-5
Side A 1. Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, part 6. January 13, 1941; 10 minutes Continued from cassette 3, side B. Topics include development of a coal industry, as well as other mineral, agricultural and manufacturing industries around the state, promotion of tourism, revenue collection, and use of tax funds for roads. 2. Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, part 4. 1943; 17 minutes The complete recording of part 4 of this address to the 25th Utah State Legislature, described in cassette 4, side B. Side B Speech by Governor Herbert B. Maw, part 5. 1943; 15 minutes Topics include war, emergency legislation, construction of a coal processing plant, centralization of state accounting needs in Finance Department, funding of higher education and condition of state finances.
1941-1943
6 A Challenge to Utahns speech, interview with Maw in Oklahoma, and inaugural address part 1
Cassette 6 is a duplicate of cassette 1.
1941, 1946
7 Inaugural address part 2; Maw speech January 1941 part 1, and We the Abbots
Cassette 7 is a duplicate of cassette 2.
1941 January 6-13

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Personal Names

  • Garff, Royal A.
  • Maw, Herbert B. (Herbert Brown), 1893-1990

Geographical Names

  • Utah--History
  • Utah--Politics and government

Form or Genre Terms

  • Sound recordings
  • Speeches