Merriam, Robert E. Papers, 1918-1984

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Politics, Public Policy and Political Reform

Chicago and Illinois

African American Studies

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When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Merriam, Robert E. Papers,

Robert Edward Merriam, historian and politician, was born October 2, 1918, in Chicago, Illinois to University of Chicago political science professor and onetime Chicago alderman and mayoral candidate, Charles E. Merriam. He attended the University of Chicago Laboratory School, University High School, and the University of Chicago where he completed his bachelor's degree in 1939 and received a Master's degree in public administration in 1940. During his undergraduate and graduate years, he was active in the Youth For Roosevelt as well as many other political organizations. He married his classmate, Jane Jungkunz. After finishing his degree and working for several months for the American Society of Planning Officials, Merriam spent the first half of 1941 as the assistant to the State Personnel Officer of the National Youth Administration. Then, between July 1941 and May 1942, Merriam held positions as field representative, liaison officer to the armed forces, and deputy administrator at the National Housing Agency.

In 1942 Merriam joined the Army as a private and became a second lieutenant in 1943 after Infantry Officers Candidate School. In late 1944, shortly after he was sent to the European theatre, Merriam became a combat reporter during the Battle of the Bulge. He remained in Europe after the end of the war, in the capacity of Army historian. His interviews with hundreds of participants and planners of the battle for the Ardennes, together with his own combat experience there, inspired him to write Dark December, a bestseller account of the Battle published in 1946. His book was a critical success, praised by General Eisenhower, but was faulted for its lack of emotional distance.

Merriam's first job after returning to civilian life in 1946 was as a project planner for the Federal Public Housing Authority. After a few months, he returned to Chicago as Director of the Metropolitan Housing Council and began campaigning for the Fifth Ward alderman seat. Running as a Democrat against the Democratic machine incumbent, Bertram Moss, he touted independent politics in his efficiency and decency in government platform. After winning the most hotly contested City Council seat in the 1946 election, Merriam became known as a reform politician and a member of the "economy bloc" for eliminating waste in city government. He quickly became Chairman of the housing committee, as well as serving on the budget and health committees. His most publicized role came after his 1951 re-election. As Chairman of the Emergency Commission on Crime, Merriam received national coverage on his fight against Chicago's infamous and firmly entrenched corruption.

During his aldermanic terms, Merriam married his constituent, Marguerite de Ternova in 1950 and became a stepfather to her two children, Aimee and Oliver. In 1954, their daughter, Monique, was born. Merriam supplemented his City Council salary through extensive lecturing, writing, and planning and hosting a documentary style television program. Merriam later used his television experience for weekly half-hour mayoral campaign shows.

Despite his accomplishments as an alderman, Merriam was unable to win the 1955 mayoral election against then Cook County Democratic Committee Chairman Richard J. Daley. Running as a Republican, after frustration with Democratic stonewalling on reform, Merriam easily won his primary. After the primary, Merriam claimed the strategy of a "Fusion" candidate in the spirit of Fiorello LaGuardia. However, the only significant difference between the respective platforms of the two candidates was Merriam's assertion that a vote for Daley was a vote for continued machine corruption. Their professed goals were barely differentiable. Merriam drew wide support as a fusion candidate, but lost with forty-five percent of the vote in a controversial election. The evidence from investigations Merriam conducted on vote fraud and corruption in the polling place were dismissed by the Election Committee and the Democratic County Judge.

In August 1955, Merriam moved to Washington, D.C., to serve as the assistant to the Director of the U.S. Bureau of the Budget. One year later he was promoted to Assistant Director and, finally, Deputy Director in March 1958. After holding his new position for six months, Merriam became President Dwight D. Eisenhower's aide on intergovernmental relations. Following his White House service, Merriam returned to Illinois and worked in the private sector, but became National Coordinator for the Republican Party-to-People Forum as part of the 1964 Presidential campaign.

With the return of a Republican administration in 1969, Merriam resumed his advisory role in intergovernmental affairs as Chairman of the President's Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Affairs. He was appointed by Nixon and held the chairmanship until the beginning of the Carter Administration in 1978. Merriam received a letter of commendation for his contribution to federalism from the Canadian government. After the chairmanship, Merriam continued to participate in the national debate on federalism into the 1980s. Robert Merriam died in 1988.

Merriam maintained files of correspondence, publications, news clippings and memorabilia throughout his life as can be seen in the extensive and continuous runs of materials preserved in the collection. The papers have been arranged in six series:

Series I: World War II, begins with general correspondence from the years of Merriam's military service. The letters to his wife are not only personal letters but almost daily accounts of his activities and thoughts during the war, including from the battlefield in the Ardennes in December 1944. The second subseries contains Merriam's army career records composed of enlistment papers, orders, clearances and a bronze star citation.

The main body of the series consists of Merriam's research materials and Historical Division report drafts on the planning and execution of the "Battle of the Bulge." His notes include operation reports and plans as well as many transcripts of interviews with Allied and German commanders. The transcripts of twenty-three Nazi officers are from interrogations that took place while they were in prison, and include Hermann Goering, Alfred Jodi and Joseph "Sepp" Dietrich. There are two report drafts, "Seventh Armored Splits the Ardennes Attack," and the more general report on the entire battle for the Ardennes.

Merriam's research for Historical Division reports, as well as his personal battle experience, provided him with the data he needed as a civilian to write his bestseller account of the "Battle of the Bulge," Dark December, and the abridged version, The Battle of the Bulge. This section contains correspondence, publishing notes, reviews, and contractual correspondence, with publishers over rights and royalties. Much of the correspondence, not relevant to publishing is correspondence, with individuals either appreciative or critical of Merriam's account. One of the former is a letter of congratulations from General Dwight D. Eisenhower. While the reviews were generally good, Merriam was criticized for his lack of emotional distance in his defense of General Montgomery's controversial battle decisions, citing the failure of U.S. Intelligence. Dark December established Merriam as an expert on accounts of World War II and as such led to the many book reviews he published between 1947 and 1950. (These reviews are located in the publications section of Series II.) This section also includes essays and articles, published and unpublished, on St. Vith and SS Officer "Sepp" Dietrich.

The personal subseries is comprised of memorabilia, more articles and essays as well as "Battle of the Bulge" anniversary events. Merriam's Army insignia, notepads carried in battle, and scrapbooks kept for or by him during this period make up the most personal items in this section.

Finally, the photograph subseries includes four types of pictures, personal or official, and of ground situation maps and of paintings of the Ardennes region during the War. The official photographs include those taken by the Army and those from captured German film. There are few personal snapshots.

Series II: Aldermanic Campaigns and Service contains a section for both of Merriam's aldermanic campaigns, in 1947 and 1951. Each contains correspondence, lists of supporters, organizational materials, campaign literature and paraphernalia, election results and news clippings. While his platform was based on efficiency and decency in government, the literature from his first campaign emphasized his opponent, Bertram "Bunny" Moss's, Democratic machine connections. Merriam also heavily targeted the War veterans' vote. His campaign as an incumbent was generally uneventful as he won 97% of the vote. His opponent, Irving Beinin, ran under the Socialist Workers Party. Campaign literature and news clippings from other elections occurring between 1947 and 1954 are included after the Merriam campaign sections. The only candidate with a substantial amount of materials here is Adlai Stevenson, between 1949 and 1952. There are also election results from the Fifth Ward for various elections during this period.

The papers from Merriam's aldermanic service make up about one quarter of the collection. Spanning two terms, there are 46 folders of correspondence, with other local politicians, prominent Chicago business families, concerned citizens and World War II acquaintances. There is a section for each of the City Council committees and activities Merriam was involved in. The directly relevant correspondence, begins each of the respective sections.

As a member of the "economy bloc" of alderman, Merriam initiated cost-cutting programs and efficiency studies. The reports yielded by his initiatives and all relevant revenue and appropriations worksheets and recommendations are under the budgets and expenditures heading. There are similar evidential materials and Merriam's respective recommendations for the Emergency Commission on Crime, home rule, the Housing Committee, rent control, the milk-dating probe and miscellaneous other Council activities or concerns. Crime and housing were of particular interest to Merriam and are well represented in this series. There are notes, reports, trial transcript and news clippings from Merriam's nationally covered expos

The following related resources are located in the Department of Special Collections:

• NamesMerriam, Robert Edward, 1918-
• SubjectWorld War, 1939-1945
• Geographic CoverageChicago (Ill.) -- Politics and government