Mayo Fesler to Charles W. Chesnutt, 1 April 1932
| Textual Feature | Appearance |
|---|---|
| alterations to base text (additions or deletions) | added or deleted text |
| passage deleted with a strikethrough mark | |
| passage deleted by overwritten added text | Deleted text Added text |
| position of added text (if not added inline) | [right margin] text added in right margin; [above line] text added above the line |
| proofreading mark | ‸ |
| page number, repeated letterhead, etc. | page number or repeated letterhead |
| supplied text | [supplied text] |
| archivist note | archivist note |
The Citizens League of Cleveland1
1307 SWETLAND BUILDING, CLEVELAND
CHERRY 5340
April 1, 1932
Mr. Charles W. Chestnut
Union Trust Bldg.
Cleveland, Ohio
My dear Mr. Chestnut:
You have been given as a reference by Chester K. Gillespie who is a candidate for the office of State Representative.2
The committee on candidates would appreciate a full and frank statement from you regarding this candidate and your opinion of his character, training, experience, and general fitness for office.3
YOUR STATEMENT WILL BE TREATED AS STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL.
We prefer the information in writing, but if you do not wish to put it in writing, we shall appreciate it if you will call at the League's office, or call the Director by telephone (CHerry 5340).
An IMMEDIATE REPLY will greatly assist the committee in its work on the long list of candidates.
Very truly yours, Mayo Fesler Director.Correspondent: Mayo Fesler (1871–1945) was a White politician, civil servant, and urban reformer who came to Cleveland in 1910 as the secretary of the organization that later became the Citizens League. Working under Democratic mayor Newton D. Baker (1871–1937, mayor 1912–1916), Fesler advocated for independent city government in Ohio in 1912. He then helped draft Cleveland's first city charter, streamlined its civil service, and advocated for municipal reform. In 1912 he also helped found the City Club of Cleveland, a forum for public debate of which Chesnutt was a member. After working for municipal reforms elsewhere, Fesler returned to Cleveland and was the director of the Citizens League from 1923 until the year of his death.
1. The Citizens League of Greater Cleveland, first called the Municipal Association and the Civic League, was a nonpartisan organization founded in the 1890s to evaluate electoral candidates and voting issues, and to promote good government. [back]
2. Chester K. Gillespie (1897–1985) was a Black lawyer and activist from Ohio who got his law degree at Baldwin-Wallace College Law School in Berea, Ohio, and became assistant law director for the city of Cleveland in 1921. He brought many (mostly unsuccessful) anti-discrimination lawsuits against businesses, and later served as a Republican in the Ohio General Assembly (1933—34, 1939—40, and 1943—44) and as the president of the Cleveland branch of the NAACP (1936—37). [back]
3. In 1923, Chesnutt had written a letter of recommendation for Chester K. Gillespie (1997–1985) in his unsuccessful bid to become assistant U.S. District Attorney. It is not known whether Chesnutt provided a written evaluation to the Citizens League in 1932, but Gillespie was elected in 1932 to his first of three terms in the Ohio General Assembly. [back]
