Diary, 1915

Delph Carpenter's diaries cover fourteen years of his working life, including the years when he was involved in major court cases and compact negotiations. Carpenter mainly chronicled his work activities--legal cases, compacts, cattle, and politics--and would include the location and topics of the day as well as people with whom he met or phoned. It is an excellent record of how Carpenter spent his time. He wrote about his personal activities to a lesser extent and seldom recorded private thoughts or emotions. The diaries from 1914 to 1918 are on small, loose-leaf notebook paper; the rest are pocket-sized bound volumes. As Carpenter's handwriting gradually deteriorated beginning in the early 1920s due to the onset of illness, he would dictate to someone else, most typically his wife. The diaries are arranged chronologically; some are accompanied by online transcriptions. Loose items found in the diaries were separated and moved to their own folders; these include notepaper, business cards, quotations, and a 1923 fishing and hunting license.