Mark De Wolfe Howe papers

The 6,300 items in the papers of Mark De Wolfe Howe (1906-1967) span the years 1933 to 1967. There is a certain amount of correspondence post-dating Mark Howe's death, between Professor John Mansfield, Howe's daughter, Fanny, and correspondents of Professor Howe who were solicited for letters of Mark Howe's in their possession or for Xerox copies of such letters.

The collection includes correspondence; memoranda; minutes of meetings; reports; transcripts; legal documents; press releases; research notes; financial statements; form letters; telegrams; drafts and typescripts of writings, speeches, and special lectures; teaching notes; index cards; news clippings; printed items; and photographs.

The papers of Mark De Wolfe Howe related to his professional activities as law teacher and legal scholar, to his involvement in the civil rights movement, his work with civil rights organizations, and his championship of parties in civil rights cases who were defending their civil rights, either as defendants or plaintiffs.

Professor Howe's main teaching interests were in the fields of legal history, both British and American, and in constitutional law in general and First Amendment problems in particular. He kept a considerable amount of his teaching and research notes for his courses in American Legal History, Church and State, Development of Law and Legal Institutions, and so-called "Social Science" courses he taught in Harvard College. There is also a small amount of material on courses in Admiralty and Equity.

Professor Howe's writings, speeches and special lectures also reflect his particular interest in American and English legal history and in civil rights causes. He delivered special lectures at Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts (1950), Williamsburg, Virginia (1957), Villanova University Law School (1957), Princeton (1961), The Frank L. Weil Institute, Cincinnati (1964), and Louisville, Kentucky (1966); he also read papers before many scholarly societies, both national and local. Most of these lectures and papers have been published, and Professor Howe retained some of his research material, drafts, and correspondence regarding publication or the arrangements for delivery of speeches and papers.

Publication projects of other than his own writings in which Mark Howe assisted in various capacities were The Adams Papers, the James Fenimore Cooper Letters, and the Webster Papers Project. Civil liberties endeavors and organizations with which he was closely and actively associated and for which he kept files were the

He also kept files for his participation in local and national political issues, mostly in indirect ways through letters to the editor and board membership of organizations such as the National Committee for an Effective Congress.

Major civil rights cases in which Professor Howe supported those whose civil rights had been threatened or infringed upon were the Furry case (United States v. Wendell H. Furry) 1954-1955; the Futorian case (Futorian v. Foster), 1965-1966; the Ginzberg case, 1966; Markham casethe , 1953; the Scales case, 1961-1962; and the Stamler case, 1965-1966.

Professor Howe's correspondence is of a professional-scholarly nature, relating to his broad scope of interests. Among his correspondents were:

Mark De Wolf Howe's research materials for his books and articles about Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, for his editions of Holmes' diaries, speeches, and letters, and correspondence relating to these publications, were deposited with the Holmes Papers in the Harvard Law School Library. They are listed in the Inventory to the Holmes Papers, pages 77-89.