Fitzpatrick, B. T. Papers

Deputy Administrator, Housing and Home Financing Agency, 1949-1954

The papers of B. T. Fitzpatrick consist of correspondence, newspaper clippings, and photographs mostly pertaining to his career as General Counsel and Deputy Administrator of the Housing and Home Finance Agency. The collection also includes the contents of six scrapbooks, memorabilia, and other items.

[Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List]

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ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Size: 10 linear inches (about 1,200 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: James F. Fitzpatrick donated to the U.S. Government his copyright interest in all writings in this collection. Documents created by U.S. government employees in the course of their official duties are also in the public domain. Copyright interest in other documents in the collection presumably belongs to the creators of those documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Alexander Eichstadt (2012) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program.
Supervising Archivists: Randy Sowell and David Clark.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

1907 (13 July)		Born Berchmans Tanner Fitzpatrick, Washington, D.C.
1930		A.B., Dartmouth College
1933		L.L.B., Harvard Law School
1933-1937		Attorney and Special Counsel, Public Works Administration
1938-1942		Counsel, U.S. Housing Authority and Public Housing Administration
1942-1947		Associate General Counsel and General Counsel, National Housing Agency
1947-1955		General Counsel, Housing and Home Finance Agency
1949-1954		Deputy Administrator, Housing and Home Finance Agency
1955-1961		Director, National Housing Conference
1973 (19 August)		Died, Washington D.C.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

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COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

The B. T. Fitzpatrick papers include correspondence, newspaper clippings, the contents of six scrapbooks, and photographs relating to the career of Berchmans Tanner ("Fitz") Fitzpatrick and his involvement in government housing programs.

The contents of the scrapbooks, which make up the bulk of the collection, consist mostly of various newspaper and periodical clippings related to housing legislation and other events surrounding Fitzpatrick's career. Also in the scrapbooks are keepsakes such as invitations to White House receptions and greeting cards from family members, as well as correspondence and photographs.

One of the scrapbooks is devoted mostly to the Housing Act of 1949, which Fitzpatrick helped draft. Another scrapbook is largely focused on Fitzpatrick's resignation from the Housing and Home Finance Agency (HHFA). (A holdover from the Truman Administration, Fitzpatrick was forced out of office by political pressure after less than two years of service in the Republican Eisenhower Administration.) Clippings in this scrapbook allude to the dangers of a spoils system and cite Fitzpatrick as a case study. Much of the personal correspondence in the scrapbook expresses regret at the circumstances of his resignation and goes to great lengths to express gratitude for his distinguished service.

The collection also contains memoranda between Fitzpatrick and other HHFA officials, certificates acknowledging Fitzpatrick's government service, photographs of Fitzpatrick and other government employees, and assorted memorabilia, including a small paperweight bearing the seal of the HHFA.

A number of Fitzpatrick's speeches are included in the collection, along with an audio recording of remarks he made concerning the 1949 Housing Act.

The collection focuses on Fitzpatrick's work during the Truman Administration; there is significantly less material regarding his life and career after his resignation from the HHFA.

More information about housing policy during the Truman Administration can be found in the papers of Raymond M. Foley, Nathaniel S. Keith, and William K. Divers.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

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