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Collection Overview

Creator:
Tillett, Paul
Title:
Paul D. Tillett, Jr. Papers
Repository:
Public Policy Papers
Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/nz805z69t
Dates:
1952-1979
Size:
4 boxes
Storage Note:
  • Mudd Manuscript Library (scamudd): Box 1-4
Language:
English

Abstract

The Paul D. Tillett, Jr. Papers contain research material Tillett compiled for his study entitled, "Social Costs of the Loyalty Program." The never-published research contended that the loyalty-security programs of the federal government profoundly affected political and social institutions within the United States. In particular, Tillett asserted that the government initiated and executed the loyalty-security programs without regard for the long-term effects on individuals and institutions.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The papers of Paul D. Tillett, Jr. largely relate to his study, "The Social Costs of the Loyalty Programs." The most significant part of this collection is the responses to questionnaires Tillett sent to academic professionals and a few federal employees in 1964, who were adversely affected by official inquiries into Communist activities during the 1950s. The questionnaire was designed to evaluate the long-term financial and psychological consequences of the anti-Communist crusade. Also included are interviews with several people including Professor Horace David and Herman Orentlicher of the American Association of University Professors. The rest of the material in the collection is largely correspondence, notes, articles, press releases and case studies. Tillett relied heavily upon the ACLU Archives for much of his research. Because the ACLU Archives are housed at Princeton, photoduplicates from that collection have been discarded.

Arrangement

The material is arranged in accordance with an outline of the study that came with the papers followed by correspondence, other articles written by Tillett, and his F.B.I. file.

Collection Creator Biography:

Tillett, Paul

The life of Paul Dexter Tillett, Jr. (1923-1966) began on July 13 in Greensboro, North Carolina. His father, a salesman, and mother, a homemaker, later relocated the family to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He attended Wesleyan University (Class of 1944) where he received an A.B. with high honors and was elected Phi Beta Kappa. After graduation, Tillett interned as an Information Specialist for the Presidentʼns Committee on Fair Employment Practice. He left Washington and earned a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School in 1949. The following year, Tillett served as a research assistant in the Law College, University of Nebraska. In 1950, he became a research assistant in the Department of Politics at Princeton University. He applied and was admitted to the graduate program at Princeton University, where he obtained an M.A. and Ph.D. in political science in 1953 and 1957 respectively. While at Princeton, he received a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship for the 1952-1953 academic year and served as an instructor in the Political Science Department.

In 1957, Tillett was appointed to the teaching faculty of Douglass College, Rutgers University, where he also served as the Assistant Director of its Eagleton Institute of Politics. While at Eagleton, he edited a series of case studies in practical politics designed to bring actual political situations into the classroom. He received wide acclaim in 1965 for his five month television course entitled "A New Birth of Freedom: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties," a part of WCBS televisionʼns Sunrise Semester program.

Tillett received a grant from the Louis Rabinowitz Foundation in 1961 to study the social costs of the loyalty investigations. In the course of conducting the study, he sought out people who had, in one way or the other, been involved with the anti-Communist frenzy of the 1950s. Among those he contacted was Herbert Aptheker of the American Institute for Marxist Studies. This association raised the suspicion of the F.B.I. which began to investigate Tillett in 1965. After discussing the study with Tillett and his colleagues, the F.B.I. concluded that Apethekerʼns role was purely academic.

On the morning of September 26, 1966, Paul D. Tillett, Jr. suffered a fatal heart attack. He left behind a wife and three children.

Collection History

Acquisition:

Mrs. Virginia Wilson, Tillett's widow, donated the papers of Paul D. Tillett, Jr. in 1978 and his F.B.I file in 1979 .

Appraisal

Because ACLU records are held at Princeton, photoduplications of ACLU materials were separated from this collection and destroyed. There is no indication that any other materials were separated from the collection.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Kristine Marconi with the assistance of Natasha Ermolaev. Finding aid written by Kristine Marconi with the assistance of Natasha Ermolaev.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material:

Paul D. Tillett, Jr. Papers; Public Policy Papers, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/nz805z69t
Location:
Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library
65 Olden Street
Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
(609) 258-6345
Storage Note:
  • Mudd Manuscript Library (scamudd): Box 1-4