TABLE OF CONTENTS
Descriptive Summary
Biographical Note
Scope and Contents
Restrictions
Index Terms
Administrative Information
Description of Series
UT Austin student political activities, 1959-1976,
1994
Narcotics Agency, 1964-1973:
Westinghouse Electric, 1970-1980
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A Guide to the Burt Gerding Papers, 1959-1980, 1994
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Creator: |
Gerding, Edward Burton (1927-2013) |
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Title: |
Gerding, Burt, Papers |
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Dates: |
1959-1980,
1994 |
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Abstract: |
The Burt Gerding Papers (1959-1980, 1994) document the activities of the Austin
Police Department during the tumultuous period of the mid-1960s to early 1970s.
During this time, the UT campus was alive with political activity and student
protests about the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement. The Gerding Papers
highlight the political and social climate of the time, as well as the extensive and
oftentimes controversial police surveillance conducted on Austin political
activists. |
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OCLC No.: |
961117918 |
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Extent: |
8.5 ft. |
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Language: |
Materials are written in English. |
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Repository: |
Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The
University of Texas at Austin |
Burt Gerding was a former lieutenant in the Austin Police Department known for his
role monitoring students and political activities at University of Texas at Austin
in the 1960s and early 70s. Gerding was born in Greenville, Texas and raised in
Dallas. Upon graduating high school, he joined the US Navy as a corpsman and served
in World War II. In 1950, after telling a friend in the Austin Police Department
(APD) that “anyone could be a cop,” Gerding took and passed the police entrance exam
to prove his point. He officially joined APD in March 1950. In 1953, Gerding became
a Sergeant with the APD Forgery Detail.
By the early 1960s, Gerding was promoted to lieutenant and lead the Criminal
Investigation Division. Assigned to the University District, he interacted
frequently with the UT Police Department and UT students. During the integration
movement of the early 60s, Gerding monitored pro-integration demonstrations and
protests, including the Wheedon service station incident and the Roy’s Drugstore
protest, which drew between 4,000 and 5,000 people.
Gerding also worked as an APD Intelligence Officer. In consultation with UTPD and the
FBI, Gerding monitored the activities of suspected campus radicals and leftist
student political activists. Through FBI agent and friend George Carlson, Gerding
worked with agents from the FBI’s secret Counterintelligence Program, known as
COINTELPRO. The program was established in 1956 to “expose, disrupt, misdirect,
discredit, or otherwise neutralize” American political groups that were considered
threatening or subversive. COINTELPRO most frequently targeted leftist groups,
including communist and socialist organizations, Black Power groups, and
anti-Vietnam-war groups.
In consultation with FBI agents, Gerding used controversial and sometimes illegal
counterintelligence techniques to monitor and disrupt leftist organizations and
activists on and around the UT Austin campus, including students and faculty
members. Common methods included legal harassment (such as excessive traffic stops),
divulgence of private personal information, vandalism, psychological warfare (such
as anonymous letters and propagation of false or misleading information), and
warrantless break-ins. Gerding frequently utilized the services of student
informants, many of whom were paid by the FBI, to report on the activities of
political activists, as well as campus events. Gerding extensively targeted the
leftist political groups Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Student
Mobilization Committee (SMC), and the Black Panther Party with the goal of
discrediting them and ultimately forcing them to disband or leave Austin.
In the early 1970s, Gerding was transferred to the APD Narcotics Division, where he
worked as a Narcotics Agent. After leaving APD, Gerding went to work for
Westinghouse Electric in Round Rock, Texas, where he did security work. Gerding died
in March 2013.
Sources:
Deflem, M. 2008. Surveillance and Governance. Bingley: JAI Press.
Dreyer, T. 2006. The Spies of Texas. The Texas Observer, 17 November.
Return to the Table of Contents
The Burt Gerding Papers (1959-1980, 1994) document the activities of the Austin
Police Department during the tumultuous period of the mid-1960s to early 1970s.
During this time, the UT campus was alive with political activity and student
protests about the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement. The Gerding Papers
highlight the political and social climate of the time, as well as the extensive and
oftentimes controversial police surveillance conducted on Austin political
activists.
The UT Austin Student Political Activities (1959-1976, 1994) series includes
extensive clippings from political newspapers such as The Rag, as well as political
handouts for student groups including Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the
Student Mobilization Committee (SMC), and the Young Socialists Alliance (YSA). The
series contains many photos of student meetings and protests, as well as film and
audio reels of protests. Police reports, legal information, and reports from
Gerding’s student informants are also included. Also in this series are police
surveillance videos that formerly comprised the Patrick McGarrigle Collection and
protest photographs that formerly comprised the Art Osborn Collection. This series
contains cassette tape recordings of a 1994 oral history interview with Gerding, as
well as a full transcript.
The Narcotics Division (1964-1973) series contains informational pamphlets on
narcotics laws and regulations, anti-drug handouts and other marketing materials,
and training materials for Narcotics Agents.
The Westinghouse Electric (1970-1980) series relates to Gerding’s position in
security at Westinghouse after his time with Austin PD. This series primarily
consists of security notes and surveillance photos, as well as labor, management,
and union publications.
Archivist’s note:
The materials formerly comprising the Art Osborn [92-337] and Patrick McGarrigle
[2001-164] Collections have been merged with the Burt Gerding Papers.
Return to the Table of Contents
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research use.
Use of audio material by appointment only; please contact sound archivist for more
information.
Use of video material by appointment only; please contact repository for more
information.
Use Restrictions
The donor retains copyright on all materials by the creator. Written permission must
be obtained from copyright holder in order to photocopy or publish from the
collection.
Return to the Table of Contents
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Subjects (Persons) |
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Gerding, Edward Burton, 1927-2013 --
Archives |
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Caroline, Larry |
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Jackson, Larry |
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Sell, Evelyn |
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Subjects (Organizations) |
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Austin (Tex.). Police Department |
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Student Mobilization Committee (U.S.) |
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University of Texas at Austin. Police
Department |
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Subjects |
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Black power |
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Civil rights movements--United States--History--20th
century |
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New Left--Texas -- Austin |
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Police patrol--Surveillance operations |
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Students--Political activity--Texas--Austin |
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Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Protest
movements--Texas--Austin |
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Places |
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Austin (Tex.) |
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Round Rock (Tex.) |
Return to the Table of Contents
Burt Gerding Papers, 1959-1980, 1994 Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The
University of Texas at Austin.
This collection was processed by Erin Donohue, March 2014.
Return to the Table of Contents
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UT Austin student political activities, : 1959-1976,
1994 |
box |
4Zf350 |
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Rising Up Angry,
1969-1970 |
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Texas Observer, March 1969
– May 1970 |
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Fire Next Time [SDS],
November 1969, undated |
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Challenge [The Revolutionary
Newspaper] March 1969 – March 1970 |
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The Rag and related publications,
1971 |
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The Rag, 1971 –
1972 |
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The Militant,
1969-1970 |
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Pat [reports on Community United Front],
1970 |
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Sal [reports on Young Socialists Alliance and the Student
Mobilization Committee], 1970 |
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The Rag, 1968 –
1969 |
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The Golden Fleece [underground
newspaper], undated |
box |
4Zf351 |
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Black Panther [newspaper],
1969 – 1970 |
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S.M.C. [Student Mobilization Committee], 1969,
undated |
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UT Comm Against War in Vietnam/University Committee to End the
War in Vietnam (UC and EWV), 1968 –
1969 |
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A.A.B.L. [Afro-Americans for Black Liberation], 1968 –
1970, undated |
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S.D.S. [Students for a Democratic Society], 1968 –
1969, undated |
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The Rag; student political notes and
fliers, 1968 – 1969. undated |
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Don Wheedon picketing, undated |
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The Rag and other clippings,
, undated April – May 1969 |
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SDS, civil rights and antiwar movement student pamphlets,
handouts and notes, 1968 – 1969,
undated |
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The Rag and other newspapers,
1968 – 1969, undated |
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Dissent journal, March –
April 1969 |
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Report of the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorder,
March 1968 |
box |
4Zf352 |
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The Rag, 1967 – 1970,
undated |
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SDS UT rally [photos], March 24,
1969 |
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Student civil rights protests, 1969,
undated |
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State and federal court rulings, 1959 – 1972,
undated |
box |
4Zf353 |
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Primacord detonating fuse,
undated |
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"Wanted: Pig Gerding" poster,
undated |
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Flaming Creatures film reviews and
clippings; promotional materials, 1966 |
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SMC [Student Mobilization Committee] march [photos],
April 18, 1970 |
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Political booklets; crime and law enforcement booklets,
1965 – 1969, undated |
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The Challenge of Crime in a Free
Society, 1967 |
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Independent Socialist Bulletin,
April 1969 |
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Spartacist,
1965 |
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Ghetto Members and Associated Persons, 1963 –
1964 |
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Socialist and other leftist political booklets, 1964 –
1968, undated |
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The Rag, June 3,
1974 |
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"Spring" booklet by David
Stark |
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Political booklets [Lin Piao report to 9th National Congress of
Chinese Communist Party; Port Huron Statement], 1966 –
1969 |
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Evelyn Sell and other news clippings, 1974 –
1976 |
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Nation of Islam reports; SDS press releases, 1965,
undated |
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November 15 moratorium, 1969 |
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SDS and SMC police reports and clippings, 1969 – 1970,
undated |
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Lee Otis Johnson Community Center,
undated |
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Reports on SMC, SDS, and other student groups, 1968 –
1968, undated |
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Program for Educational Opportunity, 1969,
undated |
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UT Socialists, SMC, La Raza Unida, and other Austin political
clippings, 1969 – 1970 |
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UT Student political activities; reports and clippings,
1968 – 1970, undated |
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Afro-Americans for Black Liberation (AABL) and civil rights
movement, 1968 – 1969, undated |
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October 15 moratorium, 1969,
undated |
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Texas Union [Chuck Wagon] protests — committee report to Senate
members, February 1970 |
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Reports on UT student political activities; faculty involvement
in student protests, 1971, undated9/5/69 – 3/8/70 Includes Waller Creek
incident and Chuck Wagon [Notes, memos, clippings on student political
groups], 1968 – 1970, undated |
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3/7/70 – 6/23/70 Including YSA Report [notes, memos, clippings on
student political groups], 1970 |
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Photos of student meetings, protests, 1966 – 1968,
undated |
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Speech material, UT [speeches, police reports, notes, promotional
materials, memos], 1972 - 1973, undated |
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Student Mobilization Committee antiwar literature,
1970, undated |
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Gun laws and other legal materials, 1968 – 1969,
undated |
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Gerding oral history interview transcript [partial],
1994 |
box |
4Zf354 |
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SDS and civil rights, 1965 – 1968,
undated |
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UT student political group observations and memos, 1967
– 1968, undated |
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UT SDS observation reports and memos, 1967 –
1969 |
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SDS "Ten Days in April," 1968 |
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Negro Association for Progress (NAP) and Don Wheedon protest,
1967 – 1968, undated |
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Police memos on UT student groups in civil rights and antiwar
movements, 1969, undated |
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UT student political group memos on antiwar movement, civil
rights, labor strikes, 1968 – 1969,
undated |
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Promotional materials and notes on student political groups,
antiwar and civil rights movements, 1969,
undated |
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Charlene Mitchell (Communist party candidate) and Wheedon protest
clippings and reports, 1968, undated |
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The Rag, August 1970;
February – November 1971, undated |
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Minutemen Publications on Target,
undated |
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Police reports on UT student political activities; promotional
political materials, 1961 – 1963; 1968, 1970,
undated |
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Political newspapers [Challenge, The Rag,
Progressive Labor], November 1969 – June
1970 |
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Political newspapers [The Militant, World
Revolution, The Rag], December 1968; May – December
1969 |
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Search Warrant Searches, [police education seminar],
April 22, 1970 |
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Political newspapers [The Rag, Lone Star
Dispatch], December 1969; May – August 1970; June
1971 |
box |
4Zf355 |
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Intelligence report; headshots/mugshots, May 1970,
undated |
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Political clippings and event fliers, 1966 – 1969,
undated |
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The Rag, November – December 1970,
Lone Star Dispatch, November
1970 |
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Political clippings and newspapers [The
Rag, Lone Star Dispatch], 1968 – 1970,
undated |
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Political essay and memos; Austin Police Department intelligence
reports, 1968 – 1970, undated |
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Police intelligence report; SMC meeting notes,
1970 |
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Police reports on Austin political groups, 1968 – 1970,
undated |
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[Negatives] Unidentified people,
undated |
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Evelyn Sell lawsuit, 1967 – 1980,
undated |
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Burt formularies [photos of student gatherings], ca.
1970 |
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Political pamphlets, 1964, 1970,
undated |
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Stephen Russell vs. Robert A. Miles, et al., May
1972 |
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The Rag,
1972 |
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Radical Black Power and anti-war revolution material,
undated |
box |
2.325/D13b |
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Oversize materials: |
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Austin Sun, Vol. 1, No. 1,
October 17 – 23, 1974 |
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The Spark, Austin, Texas, Vol.
1, Issue 1, September 5, 1986 |
box |
4Zd39a |
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Audio: |
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"Reel 1 – 4/5/68 7 ½ years, State
Capitol – Jim Ray," April 5, 1968 |
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Reel 2 – 4/5/68 7 ½ years, State
Capitol – Jim Ray. April 5, 1968 |
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"Eddie Arnold," undated |
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Film: |
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"Anti-War March 3-69-?" [2
reels], March 1969 |
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Unlabeled film, undated |
box |
3Y190.1 |
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Police surveillance reels [seven reels] |
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Austin PD tape 60s + 70s [VHS] |
box |
2X209b |
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Gerding oral history interview [cassette tapes and
transcript] |
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box |
4Zf354 |
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Narcotics Agency, 1964-1973: |
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Texas narcotics laws; magazines on electronics and guns,
1964 – 1969 |
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Hallucinogenic chemical manufacturing processes,
undated |
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Narcotics Agency reports and anti-drug promotional materials,
1964, 1971, undated |
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Advanced narcotics course, April 26 – May 21,
1971 |
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Drug informational pamphlets and anti-drug promotional materials,
1969 – 1973, undated |
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Instructions on writing narcotics reports,
undated |
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Narcotics Agency – educational materials for police,
1964, 1971, undated |
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Informational pamphlets on medicine and drugs, 1967 –
1971, undated |
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Anti-drug and civil service pamphlets, 1971,
undated |
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Gun pamphlets and catalogs, 1970,
undated |
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Narcotics Agency — forms, training materials, 1966 –
1971, undated |
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box |
4Zf355 |
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Westinghouse Electric, : 1970-1980 |
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Electrical Workers Union pamphlets, 1970,
undated |
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Security procedures and contacts, 1979, 1980,
undated |
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Westinghouse parking lot security photos,
undated |
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Westinghouse security notes, 1974,
undated |
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Television monitors [slides],
undated |
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Westinghouse union info and security photos, 1973,
undated |
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Labor publications, 1971 – 1973 |
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Personal [Westinghouse employment papers] |
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Westinghouse general operations, 1975 – 1976
undated |
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Management instructional materials, 1971 – 1972,
undated |
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Westinghouse employee opinion survey, 1973 –
1974 |
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Round Rock survey [employee opinion survey],
1973 |
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