Conditions Governing Access

This collection is minimally processed and open for research.

Conditions Governing Access

Boxes 9-12 must be reviewed by archivists prior to researcher use as these boxes contain personally identifiable information.

Preferred Citation

MSS 16641, Bradley H. Patterson, Jr. papers, Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This collection was a gift from Dawn Capron, Bruce Patterson, Glenn Patterson, and Brian Patterson to the Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia on August 23, 2021.

This donation was part of a larger gift of Patterson's library given to the Miller Center at the University of Virginia in 2002.

Biographical / Historical

Bradley Hawkes Patterson, Jr., was born on December 5, 1921, in Wellesley, Massachusetts to Bradley Hawkes Patterson, Sr. and Helen Gilman. Patterson completed his post-secondary education at the University of Chicago and received his bachelor's degree in 1942 and his master's degree in 1943. Patterson first served in the U.S. Department of State from 1945 to 1954, and then as the Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet under the Eisenhower administration from 1954 to 1960. Following this service, Patterson received the Arthur S. Fleming Award as one of the ten outstanding young men in federal service.

In the Kennedy administration, Patterson served as the first Executive Secretary of the Peace Corps from 1961 to 1962. He continued his service as a national security assistant at the Treasury Department in 1962 for four years, and in 1966, graduated from the National War College. In 1964, Patterson served as the Deputy Assistant Director of President Johnson's Inaugural Ball, and two years later, in 1966, was appointed as the Executive Director of the National Commission on Selective Service. In the later years of the Johnson administration, from 1967 to 1968, Patterson served as the Executive Director of the National Advisory Council on Economic Affairs.

Beginning in 1969 through 1974, Patterson served as Executive Assistant to Leonard Garment, a special consultant to the president and later White House Counsel in the Nixon administration. In 1974, Patterson worked as a staff aide for First Lady Betty Ford before serving as the Assistant Director of the Office of Presidential Personnel from 1975 to 1976 under the Ford administration. Following his years of White House service, Patterson joined the Brookings Institution as a senior staff member in their Center for Public Policy Education from 1977 to 1988. He also served as a member of the American Political Science Association, including one term as president from 1984 to 1985, and as an associate of the Center for the Study of the Presidency.

As one of the most prominent authorities on the organization and functioning of White House staff and personnel, Patterson authored three books: Ring of Power: The White House Staff and Its Expanding Role in Government (Basic Books, 1988), The White House Staff: Inside the West Wing and Beyond (Brookings Press, 2000), and To Serve the President: Continuity and Innovation in the White House Staff (Brookings Press, 2008).

Patterson taught at George Washington University, and conducted a regular class on the presidency for several years for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at American University. In 2004, he was awarded the University of Chicago National Alumni Association's Professional Achievement Citation.

Patterson died on Thursday, March 19, 2020, in Bethesda, Maryland at the age of 98.

Sources:

American Society for Public Administration [ASPA]. "In Memoriam: Past President Bradley Patterson." March 2020. https://www.aspanet.org/ASPA/About-ASPA/In-the-Community/Mem-News/PattersonBradley.aspx

"Obituary of Bradley H. Patterson, Jr." March 2020. https://rappfuneral.com/tribute/details/25358/Bradley-Patterson-Jr/obituary.html

Patterson Jr., Bradley H. MSS 16641 Bradley H. Patterson, Jr. Papers, Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia. Box 27, [Biographic Notes] folder.

Content Description

The Bradley H. Patterson, Jr. collection consists of personal, professional, and business papers and files related to Patterson's work and research as a historian and expert on the organization and function of White House staff and executive branch personnel. These papers include correspondence, interview transcripts, notes, memorandums, press releases, organizational charts, newsletters, government and association reports, journal articles, conference and association presentations, audiocassettes, CDs, and newspapers and clippings spanning from 1943 to 2017. This collection also contains large amounts of secondary source materials which have been retained given the importance of Patterson's intellectual decisions and subsequent research value of these organized items as part of the historian's collection.

The bulk of the papers and files focus on the Nixon (c. 1970s) to George W. Bush (c. 2000s) administrations. While the earliest primary source materials are from the Roosevelt administration (c. 1940s), the notable contents of this collection on the organization, operation, and function of White House staff begin in the Eisenhower administration (c. 1950s) and continue through the Obama administration (c. 2010s).

The largest portions of the Patterson papers revolve around topics relating to the organization and operation of the White House, function of federal government offices and personnel, presidential nominations, chiefs of staff, presidential transitions, roles and responsibilities of White House offices, White House administrative operations, executive branch officials, foreign policy, national security, federal government spending, presidential advisors and advisory committees, legislative leadership, presidential cabinets, and presidential initiatives.

While there are no deed restrictions for this collection, some of the materials (boxes 9-12) are restricted due to the presence of personal identifying information. There are also items with "classified" stamps, however, these items have either been marked declassified or are otherwise publicly available.

Arrangement

Series 1-5 are ordered based on Patterson's original filing system in the efforts to maintain his organization and categorization of materials. The series number corresponds with the original respective filing cabinet, and the materials in each series are organized by drawer number. Each of the original series filing cabinets contained four drawers, except for Series 5, which contained three drawers. Series 6: Additional Materials contains audio cassette tapes of interviews with current and former White House staff and executive branch officials along with materials and resources from Patterson's course on the presidency for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) program at American University.

Below are the general topics found in the filing cabinets. It should be noted that correspondence and interview transcripts with executive branch officials and White House personnel can be found throughout these filing cabinets.

Filing Cabinet 1: Boxes 1-8

Topics: Organization and operation of The White House and the roles and function of the President of the United States, Presidential libraries, museums, and foundations, Presidential transitions, Chiefs of Staff, crisis management, federal government offices, Presidential nominations, and federal government personnel

Filing Cabinet 2: Boxes 9-16

Topics: Presidential transitions, the function of the federal government, national security, White House offices, various presidential administrations policies, organization and affairs of presidential administrations, continuity of government, White House press secretary, related public relations offices, Secret Service and presidential protection, presidential scheduling, presidential records, and advisors.

Filing Cabinet 3: Boxes 17-25

Topics: Presidential administrations, the 2008 presidential election and 2009 presidential transition, governmental surveillance, presidential overreach, government reforms, Offices of Administration and Management and Budget, Comprehensive design plans of the White House and President's Park, papers related to the Executive Residence, presidential ethics, speeches, and travel, White House administrative operations, and the Selective Service, White House: Visitors Office, Historical Association, and Fellows.

Filing Cabinet 4: Boxes 26-34

Topics: September 11, 2001 investigations, national security, and federal government spending, federal government intelligence, White House Chief of Staff, White House budgets, organization of executive branch officials and White House personnel, and Bradley Patterson writings, activities and initiatives of First Ladies, Vice Presidents, White House Offices, National Security Council, National Economic Council, presidential advisory committees, foreign policy, Office of Management and Administration, Office of Legislative Office Affairs, and legislative leadership across and presidential administrations.

Filing Cabinet 5: Boxes 35-39

Topics: Presidential powers, presidential initiatives, and federal government operations National Security Council, foreign policy and national security across presidential administrations, Nixon administration records, White House operations, and White House staff and presidential appointees orientation efforts and programs across presidential administrations, papers related to presidential powers and advisors, and the members, activities, and affairs of presidential cabinets across administrations, the secretariat function in government, and correspondence and interviews with executive branch officials and White House personnel,

Box 40 contains a small set of Patterson's course materials for the OSHER Institute and Box 41 contains AV materials.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Executive departments -- United States
• Patterson, Bradley H. (Bradley Hawkes), 1921-2020
• Presidents -- United States