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Howard W. Moore
Papers, 1915-1993

SC20795

Quantity: 3 Boxes (1.0 cubic ft.)
Access: Open to research
Acquisition: Gift:  Louise Porter (Mrs. Howard W.) Moore, 1993
Processed By: Vicki Weiss, Senior Librarian, Manuscripts and Special Collections, June 1997; Revised August 2014

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Biographical Note:

Howard Wilber Moore was born February 9, 1889, in Sing Sing (now Ossining), Westchester County, New York. His parents, Frank Moore and Gertrude (Wilber) Moore, were originally from Cherry Valley, Otsego County, New York, but had moved to New York City and, subsequently, Sing Sing shortly after they married. Moore lived on his uncle's farm in Cherry Valley from 1895 through 1901. In July 1903 he moved back to New York City, and in 1906 he began work for the New York Telephone Company in New York City; he stayed with the company until early 1918.

On December 28, 1917, he sent a "formal deposition" to the local draft board stating that he was not a member of "any religious sect or organization whose creed forbids me to participate in war, but the convictions of my own conscience as an expression of my social principles forbid me from so doing and [thus, I] claim the same rights accorded under the law to members of a well-recognized religious sect or organization whose principles forbid their members to take part in war."

On April 29, 1918, Moore was dispatched to Camp Upton, New York, where he refused to accept the uniform issued to him and "ignored the whistles and shouts to line up for reveille and retreat."  Moore and about 55 other absolutist conscientious objectors (COs) who had refused any form of service, including farm furloughs or home parole, were soon transferred to Fort Riley, Kansas, and then Camp Funston. On Armistice Day, November 11, 1918, he was sent with a number of other COs to the Fort Leavenworth Disciplinary Barracks. "For refusing to work in the prison [he] was placed in solitary confinement, shackled to the bars of [his] cell in a standing position for nine hours each day, on a bread and water diet."

While he was in prison he received a letter from the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission informing him "that in recognition of your heroism [in rescuing May Hanney from drowning in 1915] the commission has awarded you a bronze medal and the sum of five hundred dollars for a worthy purpose to be approved by the Executive Committee."

In June 1919 most of the remaining 150 or so COs in Leavenworth were moved to Fort Douglas, Utah, at the edge of the Wasatch Mountains overlooking Salt Lake City.  Here they published "Barbed Wire Entanglements," twenty-seven typewritten pages of prose and poetry with a strong Socialist slant.

On the day before Thanksgiving 1920 Moore and Henry Schmeider were the last COs released: "Along with my dishonorable discharge I received from the government a train ticket home." He spent about a year with his family in Cherry Valley and then again moved to New York. Eventually, he paid off the mortgage on the family farm, established a nursery business in Cherry Valley and reforested some of the family pasture land. In 1932 Moore opened the Takaharawa American Indian Camp for Boys, a summer camp. The camp closed after the 1933 season. He worked for the Works Project Administration during the Depression and by 1939 had permanently settled in Cherry Valley.

In December 1941 he wrote a letter to Attorney General Francis Biddle informing him that he would refuse to comply with the law requiring … registration. On May 31, 1942, he was ordered to report for registration at the draft board in Cooperstown, New York, not later than June 3. After a two-hour talk with the assistant district attorney, the U.S. Marshall addressed him: "You are under arrest. Now you are free." Moore then went home.               

From the 1950s to the 1990s, he spoke out against the peacetime draft, aided draft resisters in any way he could during the Vietnam war, and wrote letters to the editor and commentaries on a wide array of issues relative to government, politics, culture and society.

Moore lived with his wife Louise on their farm in Cherry Valley until his death on June 9, 1993.

Scope and Content Note:

The papers of Howard W. Moore relate chiefly to his beliefs and experiences as a conscientious objector (CO) to war and military action of any kind. Included are letters, military service records, printed material, and photographs. Much of the material appears to have been compiled by Moore for his autobiography, Plowing My Own Furrow. The book, however, does not diminish the value of these papers.

The bulk of material here relates to the consequences of Moore's refusal to perform any kind of service on behalf of the United States Army during World War I. Included is a summons from the local draft board, court martial trial proceedings, and military prison records. Moore's correspondence with family, fellow COs, and various government officials provide a vivid depiction of the squalid living conditions of military prisons and the treatment of prisoners by authorities that was unduly harsh. Materials of related interest include printed pamphlets, periodical articles, news clippings, and a copy of "Barbed Wire Entanglements," twenty-seven typewritten pages of prose and poetry written by the prisoners at Fort Douglas, Utah.

The remaining portion of papers mostly concern Moore's opposition to military conscription mandates of the United States government during World War II and Vietnam as well as peacetime drafts. It includes copies of many of the letters he sent to editors of newspapers and other periodicals. Notable correspondents included Jeannette Rankin, John Haynes Holmes, John Nevin Sayre, and Julius Eichel.

Some other papers of note include letters and articles recounting Moore's rescue of May Hanney from drowning in Long Island Sound, off the shore of Norwalk, Connecticut, on July 18, 1915, and subsequent nomination for the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission Award; printed literature and photographs related to Takaharawa American Indian Camp for Boys that Moore ran in 1932 and 1933; a screenplay and other writings of Moore written during the 1930s.

Box and Folder List:

Box Folder Contents
1 1 Biographical – notes and newspaper clippings, ca. 1975-1993 (11 items)
1 2 Howard W. Moore Correspondence, 1917-1918 (10 items plus 2 transcriptions)
  1. Howard Moore to John A. Sawyer (editor of The Gazette, Cherry Valley, N.Y.), Cherry Valley, N.Y., April 7, 1917, with attached essay: "If this be treason, make the most of it – Patrick Henry"
  2. John Sawyer to Howard Moore, Cherry Valley, N.Y., April 28, 1917 (on stationery of The Gazette)
  3. Howard W. Moore to U.N. Bethel, president of New York Telephone Co., New York, April 27, 1918
  4. Howard Moore to family, Camp Upton, N.Y., May 11, 1918 (transcription attached)
  5. Howard Moore to Leila [Moore],  Camp Upton, N.Y., May  25, 1918
  6. Howard Moore to Leila [Moore], Fort Riley, Kansas, August 4, 1918 (transcription attached)
  7. Annette [?] to Howard Moore, [after August 19, 1818] (fragment with note by Moore on back)
  8. [Gertrude Moore] to Howard Moore, [Cherry Valley, N.Y.], Wed. afternoon 28 [August 28, 1918?]
  9. Henry H. Fischer to Howard Moore, Base Hospital, [Fort Riley, Kanas], November 6, 1918
  10. Cornelia L. Swinnerton, New York, December 29, 1918
1 3 Howard W. Moore Correspondence, 1919-1921 (13 items plus 3 transcriptions)
  1. Howard Moore to sisters, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, April 21, 1919 (transcription attached)
  2. Howard Moore to [?], Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, April 24, 1919 (transcription attached)
  3. Howard Moore to sisters, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, May 11, 1919 (transcription attached)
  4. Paul J. Furnas to Leila Moore, [New York], June 6, 1919 (on stationery of National Civil Liberties Bureau)
  5. Celia Gaole to Howard Moore, June 10, 1919
  6. Cornelia Swinnerton, Cherry Valley, [N.Y.], August 2, 1919
  7. Anna Morell to Howard Moore, Hamburg, Germany, November 30, 1919
  8. Emma M. Thomas to Howard Moore, Baltimore, Md., [March 1, 1920]
  9. Howard Moore to Jacmagys, Fort Douglas, Utah, September 30, 1920
  10. Howard Moore to B. Frank Moore (father), Fort Douglas October 15, 1918 [sic] (postmark date on attached envelope: October 15, 1920)
  11. H.C. Schneider to Howard Moore, Philadelphia, Pa., November 13, 1920
  12. Hilda Abrams to Howard Moore, Cleveland, Ohio, April 10, 1921
  13. Devers Allen to Howard Moore, [New York], November 29, 1921
1 4 Military Service Records, 1917-1920 (16 items)
  1. Sworn affidavit of Howard W. Moore in regards to conscientious objection to war, December 28, 1917 (copy)
  2. Order of induction into military service of the United States, April 20, 1918 (Form 1028)
  3. Instructions enclosed with the order of military service (Form 1028)
  4. Letter of Howard Moore to Local Board No. 130, New York, April 27, 1918 (copy)
  5. Memorandum No. 281, H.Q. U.S. War Prison Barracks, Fort Douglas, Utah, November 17, 1920 (copy)
  6. Dishonorable discharge from the Army of the United States, November 17, 1919 (Form No. 527)
  7. Orders for solitary confinement, U.S. Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, November 11, November 26, and December 5, 1918 (Form No. 34) (3 items)
  8. Forms relative to registration and enrollment for selective service, 1917 (6 items)
1 5 Court Martial Trial Proceedings, Fort Preston, Kansas 1918 (12-page report  with 3 attached documents)
1 6 Papers regarding Moore's incarceration at Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley, Kansas, 1918 (8 items)
  1. United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Rules and Regulations for the Government and Discipline of General Prisoners (booklet issued to Howard Moore, November 6, 1918; No. 15122)
  2. [Roster of Prisoners at Fort Leavenworth, 1918?]
  3. Extracts taken from letters written to the War Risk Department, [1918-1919] (carbon copy)
  4. Letter to Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War, from Evan W. Thomas, Howard W. Moore, Erling Lunde, Harold S. Gray, Fort Riley, Kansas, August 21, 1918 (carbon copy)
  5. Letter to Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War, from Howard W. Moore, Fort Riley, Kansas, August 21, 1918 (carbon copy)
  6. "Conscientious Objectors to be treated for sanity" (carbon copy)
  7. "War Prison Reform" (handwritten copy of order from Secretary [Newton D.] Baker freeing COs from solitary confinement)
  8. Letter to Conscientious Objectors in H.M. Prison at Wakefield, England, signed by Howard W. Moore, Erling H. Lunde, and Harry Lee, U.S. Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, April 2, 1919
1 7 Statement made by Fred Briehl at his court martial at Fort Riley, Kansas, August 23, 1918 (9p.)
1 8 Papers and proceedings relative to the court martial of Erling H. Lunde, a conscientious objector, 1918-1919 (7 items)
  1. Proceedings of Col. Byram vs. Erling H. Lunde at Headquarters, Fort Douglas, Utah, September 29, 1919, with attached letter of Lunde to Byram, September 30, 1919 (carbon copy)
  2. Defense of Erling H. Lunde, Conscientious Objector to War, Made before a Court Martial at Camp Funston, Kansas, October 15, 1918 (Chicago: American Industrial Co., [1918])
  3. Printed Circular: "Revelations of Filth in our Military Prison Life" reprint of a letter by Erling H. Lunde to his father from Fort Leavenworth, December 1, 1918; published in Moans from the Military Machine … December 1918 (Chicago: American Industrial Co., 1918)
  4. Printed Circular: Letters from a Political Prisoner in a Military Hospital, U.S.A., December 1918 (Chicago: American Industrial Co., 1918)
  5. Printed Circular: Senators! Pause in your labors for the British Imperials and listen to the voice of the English people pleading "Shall Babies Starve?" Washington, November 4, 1919
  6. Broadsides of printed letters by Theodore H. Lunde, January 27, 1915, and August 21, 1918
1 9 Letters and statements written by Howard Moore regarding the harsh treatment of prisoners and poor conditions at the war prison barracks at Fort Douglas, Utah, 1919-1920 (9 items – carbon copies)
  1. Statement of Carl W. Paschke, July 8, 1919, and August 30, 1919
  2. Petition to U.S. Senate, August 1,1919 (2 copies – unsigned)
  3. Statement regarding the unjust confinement and treatment of COs at Fort Douglas, [Fall 1919?] (undated and unsigned)
  4. Petition to the Secretary of War, the Attorney General, and Sen. Hiram W. Johnson, October 14, 1919 (unsigned)
  5. Statement detailing conditions at Fort Douglas, October 15, 1919
  6. Letter of Christian Conscientious Objectors, December 2, 1919 (unsigned)
  7. Petition on behalf of men in Barracks 11 and 12 to George L. Byram, Commandant, Fort Douglas, January 30, 1920
  8. Petition to Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War, February 2, 1920 (signatories listed)
1 10 "Barbed Wire Entanglements," November 7, 1919 (literary work of inmates at Fort Douglas, Utah) (27p.)
1 11 Poems written by conscientious objectors, ca.1918-1920 (9 items)
1 12 "The C.O. Experience - World War I" by Angus Thomson (printed research paper, ca.1980)
1 13 Writings of Winthrop D. Lane
  1. "Who are the Conscientious Objectors," by W.D. Lane (typescript)
  2. Uncle Sam: Jailer: A Study of the Conditions of Federal Prisoners in Kansas Jails (New York: National Civil Liberties Bureau, 1920)
1 14 Printed Literature
  1. Some Aspects of the Constitutional Questions Involved in the Draft Act of May 18, 1917 (New York: American Union Against Militarism, 1922)
  2. Conscription and the Conscientious Objector … (New York: American Union Against Militarism, 1917)
  3. The "Knights of Liberty" Mob and the I.W.W. Prisoners at Tulsa, Oklahoma (New York: National Civil Liberties Bureau, 1918)
  4. World War Objectors, New York ([New York]: s.n., [1920])
1 15 Printed Literature
  1. A Sympathetic Strike in Prison (New York: National Civil Liberties Bureau, 1919)
  2. The "Mutiny" at Fort Leavenworth Disciplinary Barracks, July 22, 1919 (Chicago: American Industrial Company, 1919)
  3. Speech of Hon. Charles H. Dillon Introducing Examples of Brutalities, Tortures, and Deaths to Political Prisoners under Military Regime … January 1919 (Washington, D.C.: G.P.O., 1919)
  4. Conscientious Objectors: Remarks of Hon. William E. Mason of Illinois in the House of Representatives, Monday, March 3, 1919 (Washington, D.C.: G.P.O., 1919)
1 16 Printed Literature
  1. Hassler, R. Alfred. Conscripts of Conscience: The Story of Sixteen Objectors of Conscription (New York: Fellowship of Reconciliation, 1942)
  2. The Memoirs of Reverend Andrew Wurtz: World War I – 1918 as Told to His Son Andrew A. Wurtz (S.l.: s.n., 1941)
  3. Federal Convicts Numbers 1128 and 1129: College to Prison (pamphlet regarding the arrest and conviction of Arnold Chase Satterthwait and Frederick Howard Richards for nonregistration under the terms of Military Service Act of 1941)
1 17 Printed Literature
  1. Richards, Edward C.M. They Refuse to Be Criminals: Parole and the Conscientious Objector (West Chester, Pa.: Edward C.M. Richards, 1946)
  2. Richards, Edward C.M. "The Test of Faith: A Chapter in Non-resistance" (reprinted from Atlantic Monthly, May 1923)
    Periodicals (selected issues)
1 18 Issues and Events: American Liberal Review
  1. Vol. 6, no. 21, May 20, 1916
  2. Vol. 7, no. 21, November 26, 1917
  3. Vol. 7, no. 23, December 8, 1917
  4. Vol. 7, no, 25, December 22, 1917
  5. Vol. 7, no. 26, December 29, 1917
1 19 Issues and Events: American Liberal Review
  1. Vol. 8, no. 1, January 5, 1918
  2. Vol. 8, no. 7, February 16, 1918
  3. Vol. 8, no. 9, March 2,1918
  4. Vol. 8, no. 11, March 16, 1918
  5. Vol. 8, no. 19, May 11, 1918
1 20 Liberator, Vol. 3:6 (June 1920)
1 21 Pearson's Magazine,
  1. Vol. 40:4 (February 1919)
  2. Vol. 46:1 (July 1920)
1 22 Socialist Review, Vol. 8:2 (January 1920)
1 23 Survey, Vol. 41:19 (February 1, 1919)
1 24 News clippings, 1918-1920 (ca. 40 items)
2 1 Correspondence and papers relative to nomination and subsequent receipt of award and medal from the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, 1915-1973  (32 items)
  1. Letter from May Hanney of July 27, 1915, with news clipping regarding the rescue
  2. Letter:  F.M. Wilmot to Leila Moore, September 13, 1915
  3. Letter of U.S. Representative, William H. Hill, October 30, 1919, and attached copies of letter  to Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War, October 30, 1919, requesting clemency for Howard Moore, and copy of letter from F.M. Wilmot of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, October 9, 1918
  4. Correspondence between Howard Moore and officials of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, 1918-1973
2 2 Takaharawa American Indian Camp for Boys. Papers, 1932-1933 (8 items)
  1. Letter: John Haynes Holmes of April 4, 1933
  2. Untitled typewritten essay about American Indians (2 p.)
  3. "The Red Men from Maine to Mexico" typewritten essay (4 p.)
  4. Program (printed): "Old Indian Dances and Songs" held in New York, April 8, 1932,
  5. "Sagoyewata Tells the League of Advertising Women about Takaharawa, His American Indian Camp" (reprinted from Women's Wear Daily, June 1, 1932)
  6. "An Indian Directed Camp," Christian Science Monitor, June 18, 1932 (newspaper clipping)
  7. List of Indian place names (printed brochure)
  8. An envelope from Takaharawa American Indian Camp for Boys
2 3 Works Progress Administration, Certificates of Appointment, 1935-1936
  1. August 1, 1935
  2. October 1,1935
  3. March 1, 1936
2 4 Writings of Howard Moore, ca.1930s
  1. "Work Relief Versus Chaos" (17p.)
  2. "Pleasant Valley": Outline for a screen play, 1936 (27p.)
  3. "Too Late Now" (3p.)
2 5 Correspondence and writings regarding conscientious objectors and conscription during World War II, 1941-1953; includes letters from Jeannette Rankin, [February 12, 1942]; John Haynes Holmes, December 26, 1941; John Nevin Sayre, April 10 and April 20, 1942 (27 items)
2 6 Correspondence with Julius Eichel,  and papers relative to his refusal to register for the draft during World War II, 1942-1989 (25 items)
2 7 The Compass,
  1. Vol. 1:3 (Spring 1943)
  2. Vol. 1:4 and 5 (May 1944)
2 8 Fellowship, Vol. 8:5 (May 1942) (2 copies)
2 9 Smoke Jumper (Civilian Public Service Camp 103, December 1944)
2 10 Correspondence regarding selective service legislation, 1975-1990; includes a letter from Rosalyn Carter,  May 27, 1976 (28 items)
2 11 Speeches of Howard Moore, 1976-1988 (7 items)
2 12 Howard Moore's letters to the editor, copies of original letters and news clippings of those published,1975-1990 (ca. 55 items)
2 13 Transcripts of Howard Moore's letters to the editor, 1972-1990 (42p.; print-out from disk – 2 copies)
2 14 News clippings regarding resistance to selective service registration, 1985-1986 (17 items)
2 15 "How Luther Reynolds became a Christian" by Luther Reynolds (15p., typescript)
2 16 Miscellaneous publications, 1985-1992
  1. Brochure from Fellowship of Reconciliation (3 copies)
  2. Fellowship (March 1985)
  3. Friends Journal Vol. 38:1, January 1992 (2 copies)
3 1 Graphic Materials
  1. Sketch of Robert Seidenberg,  drawn in prison by Howard Moore, ca.1918-1920
  2. Photograph of the hunger strike at Fort Riley, 1918
  3. Photograph: Barracks at Fort Douglas, Utah, ca.1919
  4. Real photo postcard: Fort Douglas, Utah
3 2 Cartoons and caricatures reflecting anti-draft sentiments, ca.1918-1920
  1. "A May Day Thot [sic]…The COs May 1, 1920, U.S.D.B. Fort Douglas, Utah (real photo postcard; 2 copies)
  2. "Discharged, All 100% American…. (real photo postcard; 2 copies)
  3. "Col. Graham, affably – this way out" "CO  - That gate is too small for my trunk!"
  4. "The CO Problem" (2 copies)
  5. Democracy in America, Conscience. Free Speech. / Words frame a sketch of a man behind bars
3 3 Photographs: Takaharawa Indian Camp (4 items)
  1. John Nananshee; Camp Show, April 16-23, 1932 [Lone Deer and Needahbeh]
  2. Henry Red Eagle, Needahbeh, White Dove, Lone Deer, Ramona, Mae Big Woman, Nahrehtesha, Sagoyewata, John Nananshee; Camp Show, April 16-23, 1932
  3. [Howard Moore, Seneca, camp director]
  4. [Needahbeh, Penobscot, assistant camp director]
3 4 Photographs: Takaharawa Indian Camp (8 items)
  1. Howard Moore and camp counselors, ca. 1932
  2. Howard [Moore] in camp days, ca. 1932
  3. Camp counselors, ca. 1932
  4. Teepees and camp guest (?) ca. 1932; Devil's Hill behind; well house, right; old barns
  5. Howard [Moore] at Takaharawa Gorge (Judd's Falls), ca. 1932
  6. Takaharawa Falls, ca. 1932
  7. Judd's Falls, ca. 1933
  8. George Bull Child (real photo postcard)
3 5 Unidentified negative
3 6 Photocopies of images used for a publication.
Last Updated: February 15, 2022