Executive Assistant to Robert T. Hartmann, Counsellors to the President

Primarily correspondence prepared by Calkins documenting his contacts with local, state, and national Republican Party officials and members of the general public.

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    Scope and Content Note

    The John T. Calkins Files consist primarily of correspondence prepared by him during his one year tenure as executive assistant to presidential counsellor Robert T. Hartmann. The files document his numerous contacts with local, state, and national Republican Party officials and members of the general public. The files are arranged as subject and general correspondence series.

    Calkins, formerly executive director of the National Republican Congressional Committee, joined the White House staff in January 1975 to help Hartmann develop wider contacts with Republican Party officials. Calkins brought with him 25 years of experience assisting various Republican congressmen and coordinating Republican Party financial support for congressional candidates. During 1975 Calkins worked with Hartmann assistant Gwen Anderson as White House contact for Republican Party officials. He answered letters on behalf of Hartmann or President Ford, prepared schedule proposals, drafted presidential letters to groups, and recommended appointments to federal boards and commissions.

    President Ford's reluctance to involve his staff heavily in local Republican politics limited the effectiveness of Calkins' White House work. Calkins left the White House in January 1976 to run for Congress in a special primary election in New York's 39th congressional district. He lost. Following his departure Gwen Anderson assumed most of his duties, assisted by Douglas Smith.

    The Calkins files primarily document his efforts to explain Ford administration policies to local Republican Party officials, and help make preparations for President Ford's presidential campaign prior to and immediately following the establishment of the President Ford Committee. Calkins also attempted to infuse various White House staff with a greater appreciation of the concerns of Republican politicians and the Republican National Committee. The files only indirectly document Calkins' difficulties on the job. The general absence of incoming correspondence and lack of substantive memoranda or notes from Hartmann or other senior presidential aides complicates a full assessment of Calkins' role in the White House.

    Related Materials (March 1985)
    The files of Gwen Anderson contain extensive materials on White House relations with state and local Republican Party officials and the Republican National Committee. Additional materials on President Ford's efforts on behalf of the Republican Party may be located in various subcategories of the White House Central Files category Political Affairs (PL). White House contacts with non-government organizations, including political party officials, are documented in the files of Domestic Council staff member James Falk.

    The files of Counsellor Robert Hartmann also contains significant materials on White House political activities. They are currently (March 1985) unprocessed and unavailable for research.

    Extent

    1.6 linear feet (ca. 3,200 pages)

    Record Type
    Textual
    Donor

    Gerald R. Ford (accession numbers 77-63, 77-107)

    Last Modified Date
    Collection Type
    Tag - Office Name
    Access

    Open. Some items are temporarily restricted under terms of the donor's deed of gift, a copy of which is available on request, or under National Archives and Records Administration general restrictions (36 CFR 1256).

    Processed by

    Paul Conway, March 1985
     

    Biography


     

    John T. (Jack) Calkins


    5/14/25 - Born, Elmira, New York

    1943-46 - United States Army

    1949 - BA, Syracuse University

    1949-51 - Special Assistant to Rep. John Davies (NY)

    1952 - Account Executive, Mellor Advertising Agency, Elmira, New York

    1953-57 - Administrative Assistant to Rep. Sterling Cole (NY)

    1958-70 - Executive Assistant to Rep. Howard Robison (NY)

    1970-75 - Executive Director, National Republican Congressional Committee

    Jan. 1975-Jan. 1976 - Executive Assistant to White House Counsellor Robert T. Hartmann

    March 1976 - Candidate for U.S. House of Representatives, New York, 39th District

    1977-80 - Administrative Assistant to U. S. Representative Robert McEwen (NY)