The Daum and Doderer Family papers date from 1840-2014 (bulk 1840-1953) and measure 14.16 linear feet (34 boxes). The papers are arranged in seven series: Mildred D. Raymond, Caroline Elizabeth Doderer Daum, Early Doderer Family, Doderer family letters, John G. Daum personal papers, John G. Daum business records, and Frank Arnold Daum.

The papers were initially arranged by the donor at the series, sub-series, and folder levels. That order and the original folders and folder titles have been maintained, with collection, series, and sub-series information added to the folders by the archives. Note that folder titles for individuals often use initials in place of full names; for example, Mildred D. Raymond is often identified as “MDR” and Caroline Elizabeth Doderer Daum by “CEDD.” Within each box, such initials are periodically spelled out for reference.

The Mildred D. Raymond series (1909-2014; bulk 1909-1952) is divided into multiple sub-series: Childhood; State University of Iowa; Columbia University; Correspondence, College years; Law school and early years of practice; Law school notes; First job in law; Law cases; Admission to bar; Missouri law cases; Correspondence, law school and early years of practice; Family correspondence; and Biographical. The State University of Iowa sub-series is concentrated on Raymond’s undergraduate career at SUI 1937-1940, but also includes a few materials related to other family members’ attendance at SUI and student life more generally. The Law school and early years of practice sub-series includes material related to Raymond’s work and appointment as the first female editor of a law review, as well as later assessments of women’s status and experiences in the UI College of Law. The Law school notes sub-series provides insight into the law school curriculum at SUI in the early 1940s, with Raymond’s detailed and copious course notes for topics such as criminal law, legal ethics, and trial practice. The First job in law sub-series relates to Raymond’s position at the Washington, D.C. firm of Covington-Burling, where she also met her future husband, Donald E. Raymond. Pay stubs and job search materials for both Mildred and Donald Raymond offer some perspective on disparate compensation and employment practices for male and female lawyers following World War II. This series also includes Raymond’s 1945 response to a request from Glamour Magazine for her perspective on women in the legal profession. Throughout the series, Raymond’s correspondence with her parents (John G. Daum and C. Elizabeth Doderer Daum), brother (F. Arnold Daum), and other family provides an interesting record of life at the university, Raymond’s experience as an early female law student, and her early career. The Family correspondence sub-series also includes two folders related to extended family relations Minnette Doderer and Shirley Briggs. The bulk of material in this series ends in 1953, during Raymond’s early years of law practice, and thus offers little information about her subsequent career and community and family life. Several plaques and awards in the Biographical series show Raymond’s recognition for ongoing contributions to civic engagement and her community.

The Caroline Elizabeth Doderer Daum series (1879-1953; 1967) is divided into multiple sub-series: Childhood; Teaching; Early marriage; Finances; Writing/records; Correspondence, 1890-1939; General correspondence, 1939-1951; Correspondence, Mildred D. Raymond at Columbia, 1940-1941; Correspondence, Mildred D. Raymond at law school, early years of practice, 1941-1945; Financial records; and Correspondence, 1946-1951. The bulk of this series consists of correspondence which speaks to the networks Doderer Daum sustained with her children (especially Mildred Raymond), sisters- and brothers-in-law, extended family, and former students and teaching colleagues. Letters exchanged among the women in Doderer Daum’s generation offer insight into the activities of educated women who pursued professional work before marriage, but subsequently gave up those careers. The Teaching sub-series documents Doderer Daum’s early training as a teacher and her graduation from Iowa State Normal School (now the University of Northern Iowa). Multiple sub-series include albums and scrapbooks which Doderer Daum compiled during her lifetime; materials include postcards, clippings related to friends and family, and miscellaneous poems and articles of interest. In some cases, only a representative sample of pages has been preserved.

The Early Doderer family series (1840-1919) consists of material related to earlier generations of C. Elizabeth Doderer Daum’s family lines, the Naas and Doderer families from Bad Koenig and Württemberg, Germany, respectively. The series consists primarily of family correspondence in German, along with miscellaneous German-language items such as a reader, calendar, music, and newspaper clippings. Two scrapbook albums are also included. This series includes material before and after family members’ immigration to the United States and settlement in Iowa.

The Doderer family letters series (1860-1949) consists primarily of miscellaneous correspondence from various family members to C. Elizabeth Doderer Daum and her husband, John G. Daum. Correspondents include C. Elizabeth Doderer Daum’s brothers, J. Frederick, Herman, and William Doderer and John Daum’s brother and sister, Frederick Daum and Minnie Daum Krenz.

The John G. Daum personal papers series (1868-1943) includes papers and correspondence that offer a glimpse of Daum’s personal activities, including church membership, management of family affairs and property, and involvement in the civic life of Buffalo Center, Iowa. There is also significant correspondence and other material related to the period of Daum’s illness and death. In 1940, Daum died unexpectedly of pneumonia in the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, following surgery for colon cancer.

The John G. Daum business records series (1898-1949) includes material related to the business ventures and financial affairs of Daum and other family members. Significant material relates to the meat market and other businesses which Daum managed with his brother-in-law, Randolph Krenz, from the 1890s to the time of Krenz’s death in 1920; and on into the 1930s. The series includes multiple detailed ledgers. There is significant material related to Daum’s farm and property management. Also included are some family and household expenses and financial records.

The Frank Arnold Daum series (1910-1952; 1983) includes voluminous correspondence from Daum to his parents and other family, from his college years through the first 15-20 years of his career as a lawyer. Because this material was collected and preserved by Daum’s mother, C. Elizabeth Doderer Daum, the bulk of it ends in 1952, near the time of Doderer Daum’s death, and thus does not reflect the later years of F. Arnold Daum’s life and career. In addition to correspondence, this series includes miscellaneous materials from Daum’s childhood, his JD thesis, and several publications.