House Page Program Bibliography
Below is an annotated bibliography of primary and secondary sources on the Page program at the U.S. House of Representatives. It is not meant to be an exhaustive list but should provide a starting point for researchers interested in the topic.
Primary Sources
- Primary source material on the Page program in the U.S. House of Representatives is scattered. Nineteenth- and early 20th-century newspapers ran occasional stories on House Pages, and at times included Page-related vignettes in longer articles about Congress. The sources in this section offer a variety of perspectives on the Page program, including those from an institutional view as well as those from former Pages themselves.
Books and Memoirs
Losche, Albert C. Washington Memoirs. Indianapolis, Ind.: Indianapolis Printing Company,1940.
Thomas, Augustus. The Print of My Remembrance. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1922.
- Contains a chapter on the author’s time as a Page in the 41st Congress (1869–1871).
Committee Reports and House Documents
- The House intermittently studied its Page program and printed its findings as committee reports and House documents. The annual and semiannual Reports of the Clerk of the House often provide the names and salary information for Pages who served in a given year.
U.S. House of Representatives. Committee on Accounts. “Duties of Officers of House of Representatives.” 25th Cong., 2nd sess., 1838. H. Rep. 750.
———. Select Committee on Contingent Expenses of the House of Representatives. “Report on the Contingent Expenses of the House of Representatives.” 27th Cong., 2nd sess., 1842. H. Rep. 30
———. Office of the Clerk. “Contingent Expenses—House of Representatives: Report of the Clerk of the House of Representatives.” Multiple Congresses.
———. Office of the Clerk. “Annual Report of the Clerk of the House of Representatives Showing the Receipts and Disbursements of the House of Representatives.” Multiple Congresses.
———. Select Committee on the Welfare and Education of Congressional Pages. “Study of the General Welfare and Education of Congressional Pages. 88th Cong., 2nd sess., 1965. H. Rep. 1945.
Oral Histories
- The most comprehensive account of the Page program and its role in the House from the 1930s onward can be found in the oral histories the House Historian’s Office has conducted with former Pages. They are all available here.
Anderson, Donnald K. Oral History Interviews, 2006. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives.
Bartlett, Joe. Oral History Interviews, 2006. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives.
Goodwin, Bill. Oral History Interview, 2005. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives.
Looper, Felda. Oral History Interview, 2007. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives.
Mitchell, Frank. Oral History Interview, 2008. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives.
Rupp, Glenn. Oral History Interviews, 2005. Final Edited Transcript. Office of the Historian,U.S. House of Representatives.
Page Yearbook
- The congressional Page yearbook, which was renamed The Congressional Eagle in 1984, provides a yearly look into the everyday life of House Pages.
Secondary Sources
- Few books or articles have ever been written on the House Page program. The studies listed below include some of the more comprehensive treatments.
Amer, Mildred Lehmann. “Pages of the United States Congress.” Congressional Research Service (CRS) Report No. 84-73-GOV (25 April 1984). Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress.
Gonzalez, Darryl J. The Children Who Ran for Congress: A History of Congressional Pages. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Praeger, 2010.
- The most scholarly history of Pages in the United States Capitol, and includes discussions on both House and Senate Pages, as well as their education.
Severn, Bill. Democracy’s Messengers: The Capitol Pages. New York: Hawthorne Books, Inc., 1975.
- Written for a younger audience, and provides a basic overview of Page duties and responsibilities.
Springer, William. “Congressional Pages: Their Work and Schooling.” In We Propose a Modern Congress—Selected Proposals by the House Republican Task Force on Congressional Reform and Minority Staffing, edited by James C. Cleveland, et al. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1996.