Mag, Arthur Papers

Partner in the Law Firm of Stinson, Mag, and Fizzell, 1924 - 1981; Legal Counsel to Harry S. Truman, 1945 - 1967

 

The papers of Arthur Mag consist mainly of Harry S. Truman's legal documents and correspondence between Truman, Mag and others relating to legal matters. Included are the wills of Harry and Bess Truman, trust agreements between Harry Truman and the City National Bank and Trust Company of Kansas City, and deeds to land owned by Truman. The collection also contains a small amount of non-legal correspondence and other material relating to Truman.

 

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

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ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Size: Less than one linear foot (about 400 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: The First National Bank of Kansas City, Donald H, Chisolm, and Charline W. Mag donated the copyright in Arthur Mag's unpublished writings contained within this collection or any other collection in the possession of the United States Government to the people of the United States. In addition, documents prepared by United States Government employees in the course of their official duties are in the public domain. Copyright interest in documents that do not fall in the above two categories is presumed to remain with the writers of the documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Dennis Bilger (1983).
Updated by: Aaron B. Kivett (2002) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program
Supervising Archivists: Randy Sowell and Amy Williams.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

1896, October 11		Born, New Britain, Connecticut
1914		Entered Yale College
1918		Received Bachelors of Arts degree
1920		Received LL.B. from Yale Law School
1922		Moved to Kansas City area to work for law firm of Rozzelle, Vineyard, Thacher & Boys
1924		Became full partner in the law firm of Rozzelle, Vineyard, Thacher & Boys
Mid 1920s		Rozzelle, Vineyard, Thacher & Boys changed name to Stinson Mag and Fizzell
1926		1926 Joined the Menorah Medical Center Board of Directors
1933		Founding member of the Kansas City University Board of Trustees
1945		Founding member of Midwest Research Institute Board of Directors
1949		Founding member, Kansas City Association of Trusts and Foundations
1950		Served as founding member of Greater Kansas City Mental Health Foundation
1950		Served as founding member of Starlight Theater Association.
1981, October 23		Died, Kansas City, Missouri

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COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

The papers of Arthur Mag consist of the wills of Harry S. Truman and Bess W. Truman, trust agreements between Harry Truman and the City National Bank and Trust Company of Kansas City, deeds to land owned by Truman, and correspondence relating to legal matters. Also included are a few personal notes relating to Harry S. Truman and a fundraising brochure for the Harry S. Truman Library. The collection spans the period from 1945 to 1983, with the bulk of the material dating from 1953 to 1967. The collection contains about 400 pages of material, arranged alphabetically in a single series, the Harry S. Truman File.

Arthur Mag was Harry S. Truman's legal counsel from 1945 to 1967. He was a partner in the Kansas City law firm of Stinson, Mag and Fizzell. Mag was an expert in the formation of trusts, and was responsible for preparing several trusts for Harry S. Truman. The documents within this collection relate specifically to Harry S. Truman and his family and to the relationship between Truman and Arthur Mag. They do not contain information about other aspects of Mag's life and career.

The contents of the collection fall into three main categories: legal documents; correspondence regarding legal documents and legal affairs; and personal correspondence and other items. The legal documents include the wills of Harry and Bess Truman, codicils to Harry Truman's will, agreements to establish trusts benefiting Truman's grandsons, deeds and real estate contracts involving land owned by the Trumans, and a history of land owned by Truman's grandfather, Solomon Young, and his descendants. The correspondence regarding legal affairs includes messages from Truman asking that he be billed for the firm's legal services, and expressing concern about conditions at Forest Hill Cemetery in Kansas City, where his parents and other relatives were buried. The personal correspondence category consists of a range of items. There are several notes from Truman thanking Mag for birthday congratulations, messages from Mag wishing Truman well during periods of illness, as well as a program from a fundraising event for the Harry S. Truman Library Fund. The last piece of correspondence is a telegram notifying Mag of Truman's death, along with a formal invitation and program for Truman's funeral services.

More information about Truman's legal affairs during this period can be found in the Truman Post-Presidential Papers and in the Rufus Burrus Papers.

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