A Guide to the J. Carroll Bateman Papers, 1940-1982

Biographical Note

A resident of Butler, New Jersey, J. Carroll Bateman (ca. 1918-1982) received his bachelor’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and his master’s from New York University. In addition to serving in the Philippines during World War II, Bateman was a consultant and a member of the committee for the Philadelphia World Insurance Congress, as well as president of the Public Relations Society of America and the International Public Relations Association. Following his term as president of the Insurance Information Institute from 1960 through 1970, he taught at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville as an associate professor of public relations. Bateman married Marguerite Foerster, with whom he had two children.

Scope and Contents

Comprised of correspondence, diaries, reports, speeches, minutes, notes, publicity files, printed materials, maps, and photographs, the J. Carroll Bateman Papers, 1940-1982, document the career of Bateman in the insurance and public relations industry. Correspondence primarily concerns business affairs, especially the Insurance Information Institute, the Public Relations Society of America, the International Public Relations Association, as well as Bateman’s retirement from the University of Tennessee. The collection contains Bateman’s speeches delivered to a variety of venues, including colleges, fundraising benefits, and insurance associations on such topics as the advancement at the Information Insurance Institute, the history of public relations, and consumerism in the United States. Minutes illuminate the meetings of the Insurance Information Institute and the Public Relations Association, while reports pertain to studies of the insurance industry’s legislative and public relations, its research functions, philosophy, education, and auto insurance issues. Printed materials consist of newsletters and journals such as the PR Reporter, PR News, Policy Holder Insurance Journal, and the International Public Relations Association Newsletter. Additionally, the papers also house Bateman’s publicity files consisting of newspaper and magazine articles, notes on poetry and creative writings, as well as maps, diaries, photographs, and other materials relating to the Philippines and Bateman’s service in World War II.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

J. Carroll Bateman Papers, 1940-1982, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

Processing Information

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s "History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light" project, 2009-2011.

Detailed Description of the Papers