OHS Research DivisionSpecial Collections Chamber of Commerce

Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Collection

Compiled by Dianna Everett, Ph.D. and Clayton Anderson

The Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Collection of records dates from 1897 to 1986, encompassing all but the eight years (1889-1896) of the Chamber of Commerce's existence in Oklahoma City. Consisting of 700 bound volumes, the collection was donated to the Oklahoma Historical Society by the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce on February 7, 1994. (Additional loose materials are also contained in the collection.)

The Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce maintained its records in standard office files from 1889 to 1923. In that year, Chamber Managing Director Stanley Draper required that each division save the most important of its materials that reflected the year's activities and accomplishments. He directed that these be bound into books. In addition, records dating back to 1897 were also bound. Thus, in 1923 the physical arrangement of the collection was basically established, that is, each division having its own series of record books, compiled annually. The arrangement has been maintained since that time, with the addition of new divisions when created, or deleted when disbanded or absorbed. In 1948 the Public Relations Division became responsible for collecting and arranging for binding the records. The Chamber also maintained an in-house lending library of the bound volumes, which were used by staff and occasionally by members of the public. Chamber officials used the materials in the preparation of reports, news releases, and historical overviews.

The Chamber collection does not include all documents generated by all parts of the Chamber. Not present in this collection are the minutes of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors after 1932. Also not present are the “Company Files” that the Chamber maintained for decades (most of these were destroyed in the 1950s). Nevertheless, the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Collection has many research strengths. The primary focus of the Chamber has been the promotion and encouragement of economic development in Oklahoma City and County, and, peripherally, in the state of Oklahoma.The Chamber records offer much statistical information on the process of economic growth, presented in surveys and other reports. Background material is present reflecting the recruitment of many businesses, industries, and other entities to the city: Tinker AFB, Aero-Commander Inc., Wilson & Co., General Motors, Federal Aviation Agency, and many others. Additional records relate to public works projects designed to enhance Oklahoma City's marketability. Still others relate to transportation and labor relations, two topics also related to marketability. In its efforts to study and improve these areas in order to make the city marketable, the Chamber compiled much information, and the records also reveal the interaction of Chamber officials, civic and business leaders, and governmental officials in these processes. The volumes contain all from the most general to the very specific documents, so that a researcher may look deeply into the genesis and implementation of a wide variety of economic promotion activities. A checklist of volumes was provided by the Chamber listing the volumes by division and gives pertinent numbering, titling, and dating information for each volume.

Agency History

The Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce was originally formed as the “Oklahoma City Board of Trade” on May 25, 1889, only one month after the establishment of Oklahoma City following the April 22, 1889, Land Run. The purpose of the Board of Trade and, subsequently, of the Chamber of Commerce, was to support business development and also promote religious, educational, cultural, and social development in the community. Henry Overholser was the first president of the group. The Board was incorporated under the laws of the Territory of Oklahoma on December 29, 1893. It took the name of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce in 1902.

For the first few years of its existence, Henry Overholser was the Chamber's moving force. In 1919 however, Stanley Draper was hired as managing director, and he became the primary motivator of Chamber of Commerce activities through 1968, when he retired. His tenure covered the bulk of dates represented in the Chamber of Commerce Collection. From the 1900s onward, the Chamber was organized by committees, with a committee for each activity that represented the Chamber's efforts to promote specific aspects of the economy. Later, these committees were renamed divisions. The Chamber's organizational structure has varied over its long history. The creation, absorption, or deletion of committees, or divisions, is reflected in the arrangement of the series within the Chamber of Commerce Collection.

For example, one sees that the Industrial Development Committee of 1918-1922 became the Industrial Department in 1922, the Industrial Committee in 1932, the Industrial Division in 1935, and the Industrial Development Division in 1967. Its basic function remained the same. From 1920 to 1935 the Open Shop Division existed as a separate division and it was also called the Bureau of Industrial Relations. The records of the Open Shop Division are bound in series with the Industrial Division. In addition, each Division had committees, and sometimes subcommittees, to accomplish its directives.

(See Appendix A for examples of organizational structure in 1910, 1928, 1936, and 1965.)

Collection Scope and Content Note

In scope the collection covers the bulk dates 1919-1986.Of the divisions that are represented, the largest number of volumes belong to the Administrative Division and the Public Relations Division, primarily because these had purview over and interacted with every other division.

A. Types of material

Types that were preserved by each division are fairly uniform. Not all divisions saved every type of material in the following list of seven basic categories of archival materials.

  1. Proceedings: Executive Committee of Board of Directors Minutes; Executive Committee of Division Minutes; Committee Minutes; Subcommittee Minutes; Agendas; Resolutions; Membership Lists; Attendance Records; Reports (typescript and published); Annual Reports of Divisions; and Committee Reports.
  2. Correspondence: Incoming/Outgoing letters; postcards; memos; telegrams.
  3. Printed Material: circulars, invitations; chamber-produced brochures, booklets, and annual reports; Economic Development Reports (annual) and plans for coming year; promotional publications; tickets; certificates; programs; news clippings; books and booklets produced by outside entities.
  4. Literary Productions: scripts, speeches, news releases
  5. Photographic Material: positive prints, b/w and color
  6. Legal Documents: contracts, deeds, agreements, articles of incorporation
  7. Financial Documents: statements, checks, invoices, receipts, ledger pages, audits

B. Topics

Topics that are covered in the entire collection are primarily, but not exclusively, related to economic development of Oklahoma City from the 1890s through the mid-1980s. Broad topics found in the records include (in no particular order.)

  • Agriculture
  • Aviation (Military)
  • Chemicals Industry
  • Chemurgy
  • City Planning
  • Communications
  • Distribution Industries
  • Energy Industries
  • Export Trade
  • Housing
  • Industrial Buying
  • Industrial Development Projects
  • Industrial Districts
  • Industrial Management
  • Industrial Relations
  • Lumber Trade
  • Manufacturing Industries
  • Military Planning
  • Minerals Industries
  • New Deal
  • Oklahoma City--Economic Development
  • Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce
  • Population
  • Public Safety
  • Public Utilities
  • Public Works
  • Retail Industry
  • Service Industries
  • Surveys
  • Taxation
  • Tourism
  • Trade
  • Traffic Regulations
  • Transportation
  • Wholesale Industry
  • World War II

Topics of a social and cultural nature are also represented, in somewhat lesser degree (present in all divisions but generally found in Public Welfare):

  • Education
  • Churches/Religion
  • Recreation/Leisure
  • Medical

As indexing proceeds throughout the 700 volumes, more broad topics and sub-topics will be developed.

C. Aids to Research

"Historical Reference" books were intermittently prepared by Chamber staff, in order to expedite their promotional and public relations projects. These are basically scrapbooks, that deal with Chamber history, city history, and the history of specific promotional activities. These are noted in the Checklist under Series "H" and series Pr-d." Some special volumes within divisions also deal with specific issues, topics, or activities. For example, the Stockyards; airports; the New Deal; the Cowboy Hall of Fame; the Civic Center; expressways and highways; the Myriad Gardens; the Central Business District, etc. Close examination of the Checklist will reveal these important cross-references.

Each Division of the Chamber had a stated purpose and, annually, compiled a list of “Policies and Projects” to accomplish. These may be found in the Annual Reports and in printed pamphlets in each division's volumes, as well as in reports for the Board of Directors, in the Board Minutes (Administrative Division) for each year. The format of reporting varies from year to year, sometimes typescript, sometimes published. For early years, the overview report is called “Results." Later it may be termed “Production Sheet,” “Annual Report,” or “Policies and Projects.” The information contained herein merits the effort required to find the document in the volumes and files.

The researcher should also consult the agency's house organ, Oklahoma, a newsletter published by the Public Relations Division. This extensive collection distills much of the overview information, for which documentation is to be found in the division and series files.

IV. Series Description

A. Series Arrangement

By virtue of its original, bound, division by division arrangement, each division's volumes constitutes a "series"; there are eleven divisions/series in the collection, plus two additional series. The divisions/series include:

  • Administrative, 1897-1985
  • Agriculture and Livestock, 1922-67 (includes Natural Resources Division, which was the original division title and also includes Oil and Gas Committee, 1922-33) Convention and Visitors, 1919-67
  • Governmental Relations, 1922-78 (includes Good Roads Committee, 1922-1935)
  • Industrial, 1918-71 (1940-45 activities are in War Activities Division)
  • Oil and Gas, 1944-67
  • Public Relations, 1919-86
  • Public Welfare, 1919-63
  • Transportation, 1922-61
  • War Activities, 1940-45 (separated from Industrial Division)
  • Wholesalers and Manufacturers, 1922-1963
  • Historical–Oklahoma City, 1909-51
  • Miscellaneous Committees, 1930-34

B. Numbering of Series

Each series is designated by an Upper-Case letter, e. g., Industrial Division is “I”, Public Relations Division is “PR”, Administrative Division is "A." Within the series, each volume is numbered sequentially, on the spine, and volumes ascend chronologically. In early years, the series volume number is handwritten in white ink on the spine. The division name and a general title is also printed on the binding, on the spine. In later years, the year is printed on the binding.

There are subsections within some series; these are designated with a lower case letter following the series designation: Thus, I-b2 is the volume in the Industrial Division, “Manufacturers and Distributors in Oklahoma City,” 1925.The date of each subsection varies in including dates of the division or series, and the subsections are usually both topical and chronological. This system is clearly reflected in the checklist provided by the Chamber in 1994.

The Checklist also notes instances in which records relating to a particular topic are housed with another series. For example, Industrial Division records for the World War II era, 1940-45, are contained in a separate division or series, “War Activities Division.” Similarly, Public Welfare Division records for 1927-35 bond issues are also included in Governmental Relations Division. Oil and Gas Committee Records are, for the early years, found in the records of the Industrial Division. Goodwill Tour records are mainly found in the Public Relations division but are also found in the Wholesale & Manufacturers Division (1935-63) and in the Industrial Division (1922-1929). Careful perusal of the Checklist will reveal other instances of cross-referencing and duplication of files.

While external arrangement of volumes is uniform from series to series (by year), the internal arrangement within each volume is not uniform. Usually, the internal arrangement of files is reflective of committees, or activities, or simple chronology. Arrangement Note: The Oklahoma Historical Society received permission to remove the Chamber material from the bindings and house it in traditional archival fashion. Every effort will be made to preserve the documents in original order of creation and sometimes documents are out of chronological order to maintain provenance. The Chamber will from time to time add materials to the collection as they become available. The Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Collection will for many years to come provide researchers with a rich source of material on the economic development of the City of Oklahoma City.

Photograph of the 1917-1918 of the Chamber of Commerce