In July 1974, President Nixon appointed Fernando E. C. De Baca as Counsellor Anne Armstrong's Deputy for Hispanic Affairs, but De Baca did not arrive at the White House until the following September. He received the new title of Special Assistant to the President for Hispanic Affairs from President Ford and served under Armstrong in the newly-created Office of Hispanic Affairs (OHA) until her resignation in December 1974. The one-person office was then placed with similar special interest groups in the newly-created Office of Public Liaison (OPL) under the direction of William J.
The George Denison Papers consist of case files on his speechwriting activities in the White House Office of Editorial Staff between May 1976 and January 1977. During this period Denison shared the speechwriting duties with several other individuals. They were all supervised by Robert Orben, Special Assistant to the President and director of the Editorial Staff.
The Computer Office provided the Domestic Council staff with correspondence control, priority tracking, enrolled bill status and coordination, along with the White House staff, of Presidential - Congressional mail. In the fall of 1975, the Council began to organize its paperwork by computer. After January 1976, the computer functioned to control correspondence and track the status of enrolled bills. Kathleen D.
Maria Downs joined Mrs. Ford's staff as Social Secretary in October 1975, replacing Nancy Lammerding Ruwe who had held the position for one year. Lucy Winchester, formerly Mrs. Nixon's Social Secretary had remained in the White House as assistant to Mrs. Ford until October 1975. Most of the material in the Downs Files was generated during her own tenure as Social Secretary but portions document Social Office activities under Winchester's and Ruwe's leadership.
Maria Downs replaced Nancy Lammerding Ruwe as White House Social Secretary in October 1975, remaining in that position until the end of the administration. The Downs Papers partially document some aspects of her role in planning White House social activities. Unique to the collection are several unpublished manuscripts written by Ms. Downs after leaving the White House which describe in unusual detail the role of the White House Social Office and what President and Mrs. Ford were like as hosts.
Dorothy Downton joined the Ford congressional staff as a secretary in January 1967, becoming Mr. Ford's personal secretary in 1972, and remaining his personal secretary throughout the Ford Vice Presidency, the Presidency, and for three years after the Presidency in the Ford Office in California. During her tenure as secretary to the President, Downton worked in the Office of the President, reporting directly to the President. The Office of the President was responsible for handling the President's personal affairs.