urn:taro:utexas.cah.00999 A Guide to the James R. Beverley Papers, 1904-1967 Original EAD encoding by Jessi Fishman according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. May 2008 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Beverley, James R. James R. Beverley Papers 1904-1967 Materials are written in Spanish and English. AR 2002-205 1 foot, 9.5 inches Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin James Rumsey Beverley (1894-1967) was governor of Puerto Rico from January 1932 to August 1933. He also held the office of assistant attorney general of Puerto Rico from 1925-1927 and attorney general from 1927-1932. Correspondence, photographs, speeches, clippings and printed material document his life and work. Biographical Note

James Rumsey Beverley (1894-1967) was governor of Puerto Rico from January 1932 to August 1933. He also held the office of assistant attorney general of Puerto Rico from 1925-1927 and attorney general from 1927-1932. He remained on the island after his governorship ended, practicing law and serving on various committees.

Of the fifteen non-Puerto Rican governors appointed to the island between 1900 and 1952, Beverley, a native of Amarillo, was the only one who spoke Spanish. In his short career as governor, he was faced with a major hurricane, the end of Prohibition on the island, and a controversy over birth control. Beverley returned to Austin, Texas in the 1960s and lived there until his death in 1967.

 Scope and Contents

Correspondence, photographs, speeches, clippings and printed material document the life and work of James R. Beverley. The collection primarily represents Beverley’s work as governor of Puerto Rico from 1932-1933, although it also includes material from before and after his governorship.

Of interest is Beverley’s extensive correspondence with Theodore Roosevelt Jr., with whom Beverley had a long-lasting personal and professional relationship. Material comprising an unfinished autobiography is also included in the collection.

 Access Restrictions

Unrestricted access.

 Preferred Citation

James R. Beverley Papers, 1904-1967, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 Detailed Description of the Papers Inventory 2E390 Roosevelt, Theodore Jr., 1930-1942, 1962 2E390 [Photograph separated to 3Z315] 2E390 Letters, cards, telegrams, news clippings, on Beverley’s death, 1967 2E390 Beverley before Puerto Rico, 1904-1923 and undated 2E390 [Photograph separated to 3Z315] 2E390 Letters, Beverley and Presidents Hoover, F.D.R. and Truman, 1932-1934, 1950 2E390 Junior Hartzell, 1931-1934 2E390 Miscellaneous printed material, 1931-1975 and undated 2E390 Scrapbook pages, 1924-1935 and undated 2E390 For Mrs. Beverley, [letters and clippings on Beverley’s death], 1967 2E390 Correspondence, 1924-1943, 1963-1965 and undated 2E390 [Photograph separated to 3Z315] 2E391 Correspondence, 1924-1943, 1963-1965 and undated 2E391 Inaugural and other clippings, 1928-1940 and undated 2E391 Hurricane clippings, 1928-1932 and undated 2E391 Birth control clippings and correspondence, 1932-1939 2E391 Autobiography [never completed], undated 2E391 Presbyterian Community Hospital annual report, 1965 2E391 Bureau of Insular Affairs, radio messages and correspondence, 1931-1933 and undated 2E391 “Discurso Pronunciado por el Gobernador Interino, Hon. James R. Beverley, Con Motivo de la Celebración del 4 de Julio en San Juan de Puerto Rico,” July 4, 1931 2E391 Bound volume of Beverley’s gubernatorial proclamations, February 1932-June 1933 2E392 Gubernatorial addresses to the Puerto Rican Legislature, February 8, 1932 and February 13, 1933 2E392 Inaugural address of James R. Beverley, January 30, 1932 2E392 Annual Report of the Secretary of War to the President, 1932 2E392 Annual Reports of the Governor of Puerto Rico, 1932-1933 2E392 Texas Bar Journal with Beverley’s obituary, October 22, 1967 4M686 Speeches: 4M686 Volume one, 1928-1933 4M687 Volume two, 1932-1938 and undated 2E392 Volume three, 1930-1954 and undated 2E392 Volume four, 1943-1963 and undated 3Z315 Photographs: 3Z315 Roosevelt, [Theodore, Jr.], Roosevelt at inauguration [?] with unidentified woman [his sister Alice?], ca. 1929 3Z315 Beverley before Puerto Rico, childhood photographs, 1904 and undated 3Z315 Correspondence, signed photograph of Beverley’s military aide, William G. Caldwell, from letter dated July 20, 1933, [1933] 3Z315 Miscellaneous photographs, 1932-1944, 1960 and undated 3S199d Oversized photograph of Beverley, 1944