McLogan
Frances Willson Thompson Library
Genesee Historical Collections Center
Inclusive years: 1960-1963
Size of the collection: 4 linear ft.
Acquisition: The collection (donor no. 086) was deposited with the Genesee Historical Collections Center in January, 1985.
Access: There are no restrictions on access.
Photographs: Photographs were removed and are to be cataloged separately.
Processed by: Darwin C. Matthews, September, 1985.
BIOGRAPHY
Edward (Ted) A. McLogan was born in Flint in 1920. He received his B.A. in political science from the University of Michigan in 1942. While there, he was active in the R.O.T.C. program and, after graduating, served in the U.S. Army during World War II.
After the war, McLogan returned to Flint and worked in his father’s business, McLogan and Austin, Inc., on South Saginaw Street. He was aware of how Michigan’s fiscal policies affected state and local economic conditions. As a result, McLogan became interested in the political environment in the Republican Party.
McLogan was elected a delegate to the Michigan Constitutional Convention in September, 1961. He was endorsed by the Flint Journal and the Detroit Free Press and received over 16,000 votes in the general election. At the age of 41, he was the youngest of the five delegates representing Genesee County. All of these delegates were Republicans, with McLogan being the most moderate. In McLogan’s eyes, the convention had two primary objectives: to formulate a document tailored to the needs of Michigan, and to see the constitution favorable voted upon by the people of Michigan. In order to accomplish the latter objective, McLogan supported and urged the delegates to elect George Romney, a moderate-liberal, as the convention’s president. McLogan felt that since the semi-independent Romney was not a Republican Party regular it would be easier to gain bipartisan support for the constitution. The four other Genesee County delegates did not support either Romney or McLogan’s argument. They all backed Republican Party regular and conservative delegate Edward Hutchinson. In the voting for the convention’s president, neither Romney nor Hutchinson could gather the required votes, and a compromise candidate, Stephen S. Nesbit, was elected.
The Constitutional Convention began on October 3, 1961, and the final draft was completed in August, 1962. The vote on the new constitution was held on April 1, 1963. Edward McLogan actively promoted the new constitution. He was the executive director of the Coordinating Committee for the New Constitution (CCNC). This committee was based in Lansing and Detroit and included over 20 statewide organizations which supported the adoption of the new constitution. The committee acted as an information bureau by issuing press releases, brochures, and pamphlets; by coordinating the activities of organizations and individuals working for the new constitution; and by making accurate and readily understandable information available.
The election was held on April 1, 1963, and the new constitution narrowly
passed by a vote of 811,098 to 803,269. Tom Downs and James H. Inglis,
Democratic Party recount officials, requested a recount. The CCNC
emphasized the need for citizen interest in the recount and invited the
organizations which had supported their cause to assist the CCNC in defending
the new constitution. The CCNC received help from numerous organizations,
including the Michigan Republican Party and Volunteers for Romney.
The results of the recount showed the final tally to be 810,862 “yes” votes
and 803,401 “no” votes, a margin of 7,431. After this recount Downs
and Inglis announced they had abandoned plans to make any further legal
challenge.
SCOPE AND CONTENT
The records consist of five subgroups: delegate files (1960-1962), correspondence (1961-1963), topical files (1961-1963), public policy statements and reports (1960-1963), and a tape-recorded debate (1963).
The delegate files contain records from various committees established by the Constitutional Convention. McLogan was a member of the Committee on Local Government. This committee’s records (eight folders) include agendas and minutes, proposals, minority reports, and statements given to the committee by concerned individuals and representatives of cities and townships. There are also some records from the Subcommittee on County Government concerning the question of home rule. There are two volumes of the Journal of the Constitutional Convention, October 3, 1961-March 20, 1962, and March 21, 1962-August 1, 1962. These journals consist of reports on the daily activities of the convention. Volume 2 includes subject indexes, history of committee proposals, history of articles and sections of the 1963 constitution, and a general index.
The correspondence files are arranged alphabetically, their original order having been retained.
The topical files consist of papers relating to McLogan’s activities with various individuals and organizations throughout Michigan. Two substantial groups include the Citizens Research Council of Michigan and the Coordinating Committee for the New Constitution (CCNC). The papers in the CCNC files express candid opinions. They include the bylaws, correspondence, memoranda, campaign progress reports, and executive committee minutes.
The public policy statements and reports are papers that were issued by various individuals, organizations, and governmental agencies concerning various aspects of the new constitution. Some issues that are addressed in these papers include constitutional aspects of state financial administration, legislative apportionment in Michigan, municipal and county home rule, corporations and the Michigan constitution, the executive and civil service in the new constitution, and the Michigan constitution and the judiciary.
These papers were sponsored by the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, the Citizen’s Research Council of Michigan, and the Office of the Governor (Michigan Constitutional Convention Studies).
The tape-recorded debate was sponsored by the Industrial Editors Association
of Detroit. The topic of the debate was “Should Michigan Voters Accept
or Reject the Proposed Constitution on April 1, 1963?” The debate
was between Tom Downs and Richard Van Dusen.
FOLDER LIST
BOX 1
DELEGATE FILES, 1960-1962
Committee on Administration,
1961
Committee on Education,
1961
Committee on the Executive
Branch, 1961
Committee on the Judicial
Branch, 1961
Committee on Local Government,
1960-1961
Action journals
Agenda and minutes
Proposals
Reference sources
Statements given to the committee
Subcommittee on County Governments-Home Rule
Miscellaneous
Committee proposals, 1961-1962
1st reading
2nd reading
Constitution of the State
of Michigan, as finally adopted by the Convention, May 11, 1962, with subject
index to the current (1908) and
proposed (1962)
constitution
Delegates column, 1961-1962
Journal of the Constitutional
Convention
Volume 1 - Oct. 3, 1961-Mar. 20, 1962
BOX 2
Volume 2 - Mar. 21, 1962-Aug. 1, 1962
Memoranda
CORRESPONDENCE, 1961-1963
A-B
C
Cushman, Katherine
D
Delegate letters
E-H
I-L
Judd, Dorothy
M
Media plan
(1 of 2)
(2 of 2)
Morrison, Lee
N-Q
Pollock, Dr. James
R-S
Speaker's bureau
T-Z
BOX 3
TOPICAL FILES, 1961-1963
Anti-constitution organizations
Billboards
Citizens Research Council
of Michigan
(1 of 2)
(2 of 2)
Coordinating Committee for
the New Constitution
Bylaws, correspondence, and memoranda
Campaign progress reports
Executive Committee minutes
Democratic response
Detroit Bar Association
Hannah, John A.
Institute of Public Administration,
University of Michigan
Preparing for the Michigan Constitutional Convention
Profile of Candidates and Delegates: Michigan Constitutional Convention,
1961-1962
League of Women Voters
McLogan, Edward
Metropolitan Club
Michigan Association of
Professionals
Michigan Congress of Parents
and Teachers
Michigan Education Association
Michigan Farm Bureau
Michigan Manufacturers Association
Michigan Municipal League
Michigan State Chamber of
Commerce
Michigan State Chiropractic
Association
Michigan State Dental Society
Michigan State Medical Society
Municipal Clerk Association
of Michigan
Pamphlets and brochures
(1 of 3)
(2 of 3)
(3 of 3)
Press releases
Recount
(1 of 2)
(2 of 2)
Reference sources
Republican State Central
Committee
Romney, Gov. George
Romney Volunteers
State Association of Supervisors
Swainson, Gov. John B.
Television programs
United Churchwomen of Michigan
Vaughan, Henry F.
Miscellaneous papers
BOX 4
PUBLIC POLICY STATEMENTS AND REPORTS, 1960-1963
Citizen's Advisory Committee
Executive Department
Judicial Department
Legislative Department
Local Government
Taxation and Finance
Citizen's Research Council
of Michigan
A Comparative Analysis of the Michigan Constitution
(1 volume)
(2 volume)
Constitutional Aspects of State Financial Administration, by Frederick
L. Bird
Constitutional Earmarking of State Tax Revenues
Legislative Apportionment in Michigan, by Charles W. Shull
Metropolitan Government, by William N. Cassella, Jr.
Municipal and County Home Rule for Michigan, by Arthur W. Bromage
The State Constitution: Its Nature and Purpose, by Paul G. Kauper
Michigan Constitutional
Convention studies
The Constitution and the Legislature, by Herbert Garfinkel
Corporations and the Michigan Constitution, by Alfred F. Conard, R. W.
Ogders, and T. R .Scanlon
The Declaration of Rights in the Michigan Constitution, by Charles Shull
Direct Government in Michigan, by Daniel S. McHargue
The Elective Franchise and the Michigan Constitution, by John P. White
The Executive and Civil Service in the Michigan Constitution, by Albert
L. Strum and F. S. Steingold
Local Government and the Michigan Constitution, by Louis L. Friedland
The Meaning of American Constitutional Government, by Alfred H. Kelly
The Michigan Constitution and Eminent Domain, by Solomon Bienenfeld
The Michigan Constitution and the Judiciary, by Charles W. Joiner
Miscellaneous Problems
Rejected Amendments to the Michigan Constitution, 1910-1961, by Sidney
Glazer
State Constitutional Provisions on Exemptions, by Robert E. Childs
TAPE-RECORDED DEBATE
Industrial Editors Association
of Detroit, Tom Downs vs. Dick Van Dusen, "Should Michigan Voters Accept
or Reject the Proposed Constitution
on April 1, 1963?"