Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

See the University of Virginia Library’s use policy.

Preferred Citation

Papers of Joseph C. Hutcheson, Accession #9819, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

Acquisition Information

Larry M. Jones of Lawrenceville, Virginia, Hutcheson's law partner, gave the papers to the University. They were picked up in Lawrenceville on 22 September 1972.

Biographical/Historical Information

Joseph C. Hutcheson, a native of Boydton, Virginia, followed his father and three of his brothers into the legal profession and public service. Hutcheson was born on July 23, 1906 to Mary Young and Herbert Farrar Hutcheson, clerk of Mecklenburg County. He attended Virginia Episcopal School and received his A.D. and LL.B. degrees from the University of Virginia.

Hutcheson entered legal practice in Lawrenceville, Virginia, and served in the Navy during World War II. In September 1946 Hutcheson was elected Mayor of Lawrenceville and in 1948 he became Commonwealth's Attorney for Brunswick County. He served until 1957 when he was elected to fill the State Senate seat vacated by Governor Albertis Harrison.

Hutcheson remained in the Senate for fourteen years until he was defeated in the 1971 democratic primary by James T. Kenbridge. At the time of his defeat he was Chairman of the Senate Fish and Game Committee and a high ranking member of the committees on Courts of Justice, Education, Finance, Public Instruction, Nominations and Confirmations and Privileges and Elections. He was also on the steering committee of the Democratic caucus. Hutcheson gained recognition in the Senate for his conservative viewpoint, especially with regard to integration of schools, and he was usually identified with the "Byrd wing" of the Commonwealth's Democratic Party. His death followed his defeat by only five months.

Scope and Content

The Hutcheson Papers, 1929-1972, consist of ca. 3 shelf feet pertaining chiefly to Hutcheson's career in the Virginia Senate, 1958-1972. Included are papers dating from the 1930's regarding his years immediately after college and his service in the Navy. The bulk of the political papers is correspondence with the Senator's constituents and with various political figures. There are files of papers and bills from the Senate sessions and from committees on which Hutcheson served.

The papers are valuable for the volume of correspondence between Hutcheson and other members of the State Senate. The greatest value of the papers, however, is the constituents' correspondence. These letters reveal a great deal about the attitude of Southside Virginia on such issues as "liquor by the drink," integration, state aid to private schools, and the state sales tax.

Arrangement

The collection was received with the papers in rough chronological order. They have been rearranged into three series: political correspondence, political papers, and personal. Within each of the series, the material has been arranged chronologically.

Series I
The political correspondence, 1951-1972, deals largely with the opinions of Hutcheson's constituents about the various bills before the Senate. Several of the communities, Chase City, Lawrenceville, and South Hill, had active civic organizations which initiated large letter writing and telegram campaigns. In almost every case there is a carbon reply to the letter.

Series II
Hutcheson's political papers of 1957-1972 have been arranged by committee ad within each committee folder, the material is as chronological as possible. For each committee there are memorandums, correspondence with other senators pertaining to the business of the committee, etc. There are also copies and drafts of bills presented to the committee. Many of these mimeographed bills have hand-written corrections or changes made by Hutcheson. Also there is a general file of bills and memorandums collected during the various sessions of the Senate. Among these there are many legal sheets with notes written by Hutcheson pertinent to the sessions and speeches.

Series III
Hutcheson's personal papers, 1930-1972, include personal letters, and papers from his immediate post college days, the early years of his law practice and his time in the Navy. The letters from his early career, which again usually include both the letter and a carbon of the reply, give the best description of Hutcheson's personality. Some of the correspondence is filled with private jokes, but from the tone and style of these letters, the reader can gain an insight into the type of person Joseph Hutcheson was. The papers from his last years include correspondence regarding his legal practices, some newspapers clippings of important events of the last two decades, and letters of condolence for his brother Sterling's death.