RG 069:135, Richard F. Schneller Collection

Inventory

Finding aid prepared by Chad H. Watkins.

Copyright © 2007 by the Connecticut State Library

Biographical Note

Senator Richard F. Schneller, Democrat from Essex, Connecticut served in the State Senate representing the 20th District from 1975-1984. He was Senate Majority Leader from 1981-1984. Schneller was born in Essex on March 21, 1922. He attended Mount Hermon School and went on to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree from Yale University in 1943. Schneller then served in the Navy during World War II as a Lieutenant and was President of the Verplex Company from 1952-1972, which specialized in residential lighting manufacturing.

While in the State Senate, Schneller served on many committees including the State Urban and Development Committee as chairman (1975-1976), the Education Committee (1977-1978) and the Appropriations Committee (1979-1980). At the local level, Schneller served on the Essex Democratic Town Committee as chairman (1971-1978), the Essex Board of Finance, and the Regional District #4 Board of Education. He also served as trustee of the University of Connecticut (1958-1965), the Connecticut Conservation Association, Middlesex Memorial Hospital, the University of Connecticut Foundation, the Goodspeed Opera House, and the Mount Saint John School for Boys.

In 1984, Presidential candidate Walter Mondale called on Schneller to aid in his campaign in Connecticut. When Governor William O'Neill ran again for governor in 1986 he made a similar request to his good friend, after Schneller had retired from the Senate. Schneller was asked to chair the Governor's Building Construction Advisory Committee in 1987 whose primary focus was to evaluate building codes in Connecticut as a result of the L'Amibiance Plaza disaster in April of that year.

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Scope and Content

The collection includes legislation material, speeches, correspondence, press releases, information pertaining to the Governor's Building Construction Advisory Committee, campaign material, news clippings, scrapbooks, and political cartoons.

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Arrangement

Series 1. Legislation (1975-1985) contains both major state and personal legislation. This includes actual bills as well as background material.

Series 2. Speeches (1974-1985) contains speeches given by Schneller as well as a few speeches by others.

Series 3. Correspondence (1975-1985) contains both professional and personal correspondence including letters to and from other state legislators, governors and U.S. Congressmen.

Series 4. Press Releases (1974-1984) contains press material from Schneller's office detailing his professional life.

Series 5. Governor's Building Construction Advisory Committee (1970-1988) contains information on building and construction in Connecticut. A majority of the material relates to the L'Ambiance Plaza disaster of 1987. This includes news clippings, reports, Public Acts, notes, meeting material, correspondence and published material.

Series 6. Tax Commission (1981-1983, 1991) contains a small amount of material related to the commission of which Schneller was chairman.

Series 7. Campaigns (1981-1987) contains material related to both the 1984 Mondale presidential campaign and the 1986 O'Neill gubernatorial campaign including press releases, election results, issues, correspondence and financial material.

Series 8. News Clippings (1971-1983) contains 18 volumes of news clippings arranged in photo albums.

Series 9. Scrapbooks (1974-1996) is a collection of 9 scrapbooks arranged by Schneller's late wife Nancy which include photographs, news clippings, correspondence and ephemera.

Series 10. Political Cartoons (1979-1983) contains framed cartoons by Edmund S. Valtman (1914-2005) in which Schneller is featured.

Series 11. Published Material (1824-1933) contains material related to the General Assembly and Connecticut in general.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

These records are stored at an off-site facility and therefore may not be available on a same-day basis.

See the Rules and Procedures for Researchers Using Archival Records and Secured Collections policy.

Restrictions on Use

See the Reproduction and Publications of State Library Collections policy.

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Related Material

RG002:025, Accession: 1999-013, Governor's Building Construction Advisory Committee.
RG005:036 Gov. Ella Grasso.
RG005:037 Gov. William A. O'Neill.
RG010, Accession: 2002-002, Insurance Department.Legal Division Files and Reports.L'Ambiance Plaza Settlements.

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Index Terms

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Administrative Information

Provenance

Richard F. Schneller assembled this collection himself with the help of his late wife Nance, who died in 2002. The Connecticut State Library acquired it from him on July 18, 2006.

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Container List