Senator William Edgar Borah Scrapbooks

Contents: About The Senator William Edgar Borah Scrapbooks Collection | Tech

About the Senator William Edgar Borah Scrapbooks Collection

This collection consists of 17 pdf documents, which sample the 56 scrapbooks and 34 folders of mounted newspaper clippings of the William Edgar Borah Scrapbooks collection, housed in the University of Idaho Special Collections department. The scrapbooks focus on the political career of Idaho Senator William Borah, spanning 1903 to 1947, with the bulk of the items from the years 1910-1939.

From the University of Idaho Special Collection’s Historical Note:

“William Edgar Borah was born in Fairfield, Illinois, June 29, 1865, the seventh of ten children born to William Nathan and Elizabeth (West) Borah. He was educated in the public schools near Fairfield and at Enfield College. He spent two years, 1885-1887, at the University of Kansas, but had to withdraw because of illness. He then studied law in the office of his brother-in-law and was admitted to the Kansas bar in 1890.

In 1891, Borah moved west and settled in Boise, Idaho, where he opened a law office. On April 21, 1895, he married Mary McConnell the daughter of Governor William J. McConnell.

Borah first became a candidate for the U.S. Senate in 1903, but was defeated by Weldon Heyburn. He was elected in 1907 and served in that body until his death in 1940 following a stroke. In 1924 he became chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; he also served on the Judiciary Committee. He was often mentioned as a presidential candidate, but not until 1936 did he actually enter any primaries, when he was defeated by Alf Landon.”