Lee A. Nelson was the president of both The Colored Voters Club and The Colored Democratic League of Somerset County, New Jersey. During the 1930s, Nelson was very active on behalf of the Democratic Party with the hope of being appointed to a...
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Lee A. Nelson was the president of both The Colored Voters Club and The Colored Democratic League of Somerset County, New Jersey. During the 1930s, Nelson was very active on behalf of the Democratic Party with the hope of being appointed to a position in the Federal Service. He also campaigned on behalf of fellow Democrats including Franklin Roosevelt and John N. Garner. Through the help of people like James A. Farley, Chairman of the Democratic State Committee, Percy H. Stewart, and others in charge of the campaign in Somerset County, New Jersey, Nelson was able to gain Roosevelt and Garner a lot of votes from the African American community. The Lee A. Nelson letters contain 35 letters ranging from 1932-1936, written to Nelson primarily from James A. Farley, John N. Garner, and Percy H. Stewart. The bulk of the letters are acknowledgments and thank you letters for the work Nelson did to ensure that Franklin Roosevelt won the 1933 Presidential election. Of note are the letters discussing the Democratic party gatherings held in 1932. Content includes advice on how to save money and attend events during the Great Depression. Another discusses Nelson's responsibility in filling a quota for a gathering by convincing others to vote for the Democratic Party. There are also invitations to various meetings, such as one that occurred on November 2nd, 1932, at the St. Peter's Hall in Somerville, New Jersey, and one for a mass meeting that occurred on October 26 at the Brook Theater in Bound Brook, New Jersey.
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