John Garland Pollard Papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
College of William and Mary
Special Collections Research Center
Earl Gregg Swem Library
College of William and Mary
400 Landrum Drive
PO 8795
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (757) 221-3090
Fax: (757) 221-5440
Restrictions:

Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Terms of access:

Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Preferred citation:

John Garland Pollard Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.

Summary

Extent:
30.00 Linear Feet
Creator:
Pollard, John Garland, 1871-1937
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

John Garland Pollard Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.

Background

Scope and content:

Letters, clippings, manuscript volumes, business papers, pamphlets, genealogical material, family papers, reports, memos, campaign literature, photographs of John G. Pollard (1871-1937), lawyer, educator, statesman, humanitarian, and governor of Virginia, 1930-1934. Prominent correspondents include Henry Watkins Anderson, Lady Astor, Frederic W. Boatwright, David K. E. Bruce, John Stewart Bryan, William Jennings Bryan, Harry F. Byrd, James Cannon, J. A. C. Chandler, Calvin Coolidge, Westmoreland Davis, Jessie Ball Dupont, Carter Glass, John D. Rockefeller, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, Claude A. Swanson, Lyon G. Tyler, Alexander W. Weddell, and Woodrow Wilson.

Series 3 contains the correspondence and papers of John Garland Pollard related to his career at the College of William and Mary. Box 4, Folder 98 contains plot plans for Pollard Park and Chandler Court in Williamsburg, Va.

Biographical / historical:

In 1930, John Garland Pollard, a professor at the College of William and Mary was elected governor of the commonwealth of Virginia. A progressive Democrat interested in reform, his administration as governor was marred by dealing with the country's worst economic crisis. From King and Queen County, Va. he combined a strong sense of public service with a firm belief in the separation of church and state and a whimsical sense of humor. Trained in law, he was elected to the Constitutional Convention of 1901 where he made his mark by opposing in the revised constitution, the use of phrase describing Virginia citizens as only Christian; his strong belief in the Baptist faith prompted his speech.

He rose to be elected in 1913 to be Virginia's attorney-general on a reform platform which included initiative and referendum, the short ballot, etc. In 1922 he was appointed William and Mary's director of the School of Government and Citizenship (School of Law) where he excelled as a teacher and was also elected Mayor of Williamsburg. He served as a Sunday School teacher at the Williamsburg Baptist Church.

His run for the gubernatorial seat had the approval of Harry Byrd, leader of the Virginia Democratic machine (called the Byrd Organization) and he worked with Byrd during his term as a maverick governor. One of his chief accomplishments by far during the Great Depression was the founding of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the first state-supported art museum in the United States. Unfortunately, the Byrd mandate of fiscal integrity and balanced budgets did not permit much help to the suffering citizens of the commonwealth. State salaries were cut ten percent including the salary of the governor.

Acquisition information:
Donated to W Special Collections Research Center in batches between 1970 and 1987 by Violet M. Pollard, John G. Pollard, Jr., Charles Pollard, Susan P. Boatwright, Elizabeth P. C. Johnson, Jessie G. P. Dodge, and Joseph P. Pollard. 1989-38A received on 8/31/1989.
Arrangement:

Series 3 was originally the John Garland Pollard Papers, UA 6.025, and was combined with this collection in 2011.

Physical description:
15,000 Items
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard