Guy Vander Jagt papers, 1951-1992, 2004

Summary

Creator:

Vander Jagt, Guy, 1931-2007.

Abstract:

Guy Vander Jagt served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan from 1966 until 1992. Vander Jagt served as Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee from 1975 until he left the House in 1992. The collection documents Vander Jagt's involvement on the National Republican Congressional Committee and his career as a Michigan congressman. It consists primarily of correspondence, legislative files, speeches, and audiovisual material.

Extent:

243.4 linear feet
2.55 GB (online)

Language:

English

Call Number:

2024028 Aa 2

Authors:

Separate finding aids to distinct parts of the collection were originally created by staff at Grand Valley State University Special Collections and University Archives and Hope College Archives and Special Collections. These finding aids were merged and updated in 2024 by Bentley Historical Library archivist Alexis Miettinen, assisted by student Sophie Weiswasser.

Background

Scope and Content:

The Guy Vander Jagt papers span the years 1951-1992 and 2004, with the majority of the papers dating from 1975 to 1992. Included are papers from his single term as a Michigan State Senator (1965-1966), his work as a lawyer in Grand Rapids, Michigan (1960 to 1964), and personal papers dating from 1951 to 1964. Record types primarily consist of correspondence, bill and legislative files, press and campaign materials, speeches, and audiovisual material.

Series I contains material transferred from Grand Valley State University, and Series II contains material transferred from Hope College. Additional information can be found in the Custodial History.

Biographical / Historical:

Guy Vander Jagt was born in Cadillac, Michigan on August 26, 1931 to Marie and Harry Vander Jagt. Harry Vander Jagt was an immigrant who had moved to the United States from the Netherlands around 1910. For Guy Vander Jagt, religion and public speaking were foundational parts of his adolescence. While still a student at Cadillac High School, Vander Jagt began preaching at the nearby Tustin Presbyterian Church in Tustin, Michigan. His oratory skills continued to grow throughout college, and by the time he graduated from Hope College with a Bachelor of Arts (1953), he had won the National Oratorical Championship, the Michigan Debate Championships three years in a row, and was undefeated in four years of extemporaneous speaking at the state and national level. His first job after graduation began in June 1954, where he worked as a news reporter for WWTV in Cadillac. He continued his studies, and in 1957, graduated from Yale Divinity School with a Bachelor of Divinity. After graduating from Yale, Guy Vander Jagt returned to Cadillac to serve as the interim pastor of the Cadillac Congregational Church. In January of 1958, he moved to Washington D.C., where he enrolled in law school at Georgetown University. While in Washington, he was hired as a public relations assistant to U.S Representative Robert McIntosh (R-MI). However, later that year, Vander Jagt left Washington to attend law school at the University of Michigan, where he earned his Juris Doctor in 1960. From 1960 to 1964, he practiced law at Warner, Norcross & Judd in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1964, he married Carol Doorn of Grand Rapids. The same year, he ran for a seat in the Michigan State Senate and was successfully elected.

In February of 1966, Vander Jagt was one of thirty-six candidates in Governor George Romney's program to select a "consensus candidate" to the U.S. Senate. The field of thirty-six was narrowed to three—Dr. Leroy Augesstine, U.S. Rep. Bob Griffin, and Vander Jagt. When it became clear that neither Vander Jagt nor Griffin could reach the 65% support demanded by Romney as long as each of them stayed in the race, Vander Jagt threw his support to Griffin and ran instead for the congressional seat being vacated by Griffin. He was simultaneously elected to fill the remainder of Griffin's term in 1966 and to complete a full term beginning in 1967, which would be the beginning of his over a quarter-century service in the House of Representatives. He held that seat until January 3, 1993.

Throughout Vander Jagt's time in office, he served on many House committees and subcommittees. As ranking minority member on the Conservation and National Resources Subcommittee, Vander Jagt was involved in establishing the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan. Another notable appointment includes the Space, Science and Astronautic Committee, where Vander Jagt helped oversee the development of America's space program and successful landing on the Moon. As an active member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, he was appointed by President Nixon to serve as his personal trade envoy to eight African nations in 1973. Later that year, President Nixon sent Vander Jagt to Japan, Korea, and Taiwan to explain the "Nixon Doctrine" of foreign policy to Asian leaders. Appointed to the Ways and Means Committee in 1974, Vander Jagt was the lead Republican sponsor of the Comprehensive Multilateral Trade Agreement and later the Caribbean Basin Initiative, two landmark pieces of trade legislation. In addition to serving as the ranking Republican on the Trade and Select Revenue Measures Subcommittees of Ways and Means, Vander Jagt also served on the Joint Tax Committee of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. By the time of his primary election defeat in 1992, he had risen to become the second ranking minority member on Ways and Means.Vander Jagt's congressional career included serving as Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee from 1975 until 1992. His impact was also recognized internationally; he was awarded a Knighthood in the House of Orange by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands in 1986 and named the Outstanding Dutch-American of the Year by the Netherlands Amity Trust Association in 1991.

In 1992, Vander Jagt lost the Republican primary to challenger Peter Hoekstra. After leaving the House of Representatives, Vander Jagt joined the law firm of Baker & Hostetler LLP. He continued to be active in political circles until his death on June 22, 2007.

Acquisition Information:

Donated by Grand Valley State University Special Collections and University Archives (donor no. 12016 ) in 2019 and Hope College Archives and Special Collections (then called the Joint Archives of Holland) (donor no. 12018 ) in multiple accessions between 2019-2022. See Custodial History for details.

Custodial History:

Materials in Series I were originally donated to Grand Valley State University Special Collections and University Archives in 1994, and were transferred to the Bentley Historical Library in 2019. Materials in Series II were originally donated to Hope College Archives and Special Collections (then called the Joint Archives of Holland) between 1992-1995, and were transferred to the Bentley Historical Library in multiple accessions between 2019-2022.

Processing information:

Materials in Series I were processed and described by the staff at Grand Valley State University Special Collections and University Archives. The majority of materials in Series II were processed and described by the staff at Hope College Archives and Special Collections. In 2024, a small portion of remaining unprocessed materials in Series II were arranged and described by the University of Michigan's Bentley Historical Library archivist Alexis Miettinen. Along with processing remaining material, Alexis Miettinen also updated the finding aid, assisted by student Sophie Weiswasser.

Additionally, during initial processing at Hope College, some "closed file" series were created. Over time, some of these restrictions have expired, so some of the items in these series are available for research. Restricted items will have an access restriction note dating when the restriction is active.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into two series: Series I (consisting of material transferred from Grand Valley State University) and Series II (consisting of material transferred from Hope College).

Accruals:

No further additions to the records are expected.

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:

Legislators -- United States.
Politicians -- Michigan.
Political campaigns -- Michigan.
Political campaigns -- United States.
Republican Party (Mich.)
United States. Congress. House.

Formats:

Audiocassettes.
Audiotapes.
Digital file formats.
Photographs.
Sound recordings.
Video recordings.
Videocassettes.
Videotapes.

Names:

Vander Jagt, Guy, 1931-2007.

Places:

Grand Rapids (Mich.)
Michigan -- Politics and government.
Michigan -- Politics and government -- 20th century.