Office of the President (Guy Bailey) Records
Scope and Content note
The Guy Bailey Papers reflect the development of more systematic record keeping as the twentieth century progressed. The largest portion of the records consist of Subject Files which are arranged chronologically by year and then alphabetically by author/subject within years. Additional topics documented include personal records related to banking and correspondence with James B. Wilbur. Wilbur left a trust fund that supported annual scholarships for students, funded the building of the Ira Allen Chapel, and provided for the acquisition of the Vermont Research Collection. A group of "Special Folders" are arranged alphabetically and include records of the planning and construction of Waterman building as well as correspondence with significant organizations and individuals. Bailey's annual opening addresses and regular speeches are also present. Speeches are organized by date or title (when date is unknown). A project to memorialize Bailey after his death inspired letters from all corners of the University of Vermont community, which are included in the collection.
Dates
- 1920-1940
Creator
- Bailey, Guy W. (Guy Winfred) (Person)
- University of Vermont. Office of the President (Organization)
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the University Archivist.
Biographical/Historical note
Guy Winfred Bailey was a native Vermonter, born in Hardwick, Vermont in 1876. He attended UVM, graduating in 1900 and was admitted to the Vermont bar in 1904. A member of the Vermont Legislature from 1904 to 1906, he was elected Vermont Secretary of State in 1908 until he resigned in 1917 to join the university administration as comptroller. Already a Trustee since 1914 and acting president from August 1919, he was elected in 1920 to the presidency and remained in office until his death in 1940.
Bailey had a reputation among students as a benevolent, fatherly figure, who personally supported some students financially and strove to find funds in aid of students during the bleak days of the Great Depression. He was a president during difficult times financially, but managed to bring major donations to the university, not only from James Wilbur but from the Fleming family, who supported the building of the Fleming Museum; Charles and Anna Waterman, who provided major support for construction of the new administration building named after them; and a number of donors that made possible the purchase of the Redstone estate that was the beginning of new women's campus. Nevertheless, his illness during the last year of his life left the university financially rudderless, and in 1941, UVM was in crisis. Bailey's legacy, however, in addition to enlarging the infrasctructure, was that the student body nearly doubled and the faculty tripled during his administration.
Sources consulted in the preparation of this note and others in Record Group 2 include:
Daniels, Robert V. editor. The University of Vermont : The First Two Hundred Years Hanover, NH : University of Vermont : Distributed by University Press of New England, 1991.
Marshall, Jeffrey. Universitas Viridis Montis, 1791-1991: An Exhibition of documents and artifacts telling the story of the University of Vermont. Burlington, Vt.: University of Vermont, 1991.
Smallwood, Frank. The University of Vermont Presidents: Two Centuries of Leadership. Burlington, Vt.: University of Vermont, 1997.
Extent
54.836 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Guy Winfred Bailey (1876-1940), born in Hardwick, Vermont, attended UVM, graduating in 1900 and was admitted to the Vermont bar in 1904. A member of the Vermont Legislature from 1904 to 1906, he was elected Vermont Secretary of State in 1908 until he resigned in 1917 to join the university administration as comptroller. Already a Trustee since 1914 and acting president from August 1919, he was elected in 1920 to the presidency and remained in office until his death in 1940. Most of the records are arranged chronologically by year and then alphabetically by author/subject within years, plus a number of series on special topics such as the Bailey Memorial Project and the James B. Wilbur correspondence.
Location
Library Research Annex; contact uvmsc@uvm.edu for access.
- University of Vermont -- Administration
- University of Vermont -- History
- Title
- Guide to the Office of the President (Guy Bailey) Records
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- 2013-01-31
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the University of Vermont Archives Repository
Silver Special Collections Library
48 University Place, Room B201
Burlington Vermont 05405 U.S.A. US
802-656-2138
802-656-4038 (Fax)
uvmsc@uvm.edu
