Skip to main content

Frank E. Moss photograph collection

 Collection
Identifier: P0146

Scope and Contents

Portraits of Frank Moss and other national figures; photographs of Senate committee meetings; photographs of constituents, political and social functions, public appearances, speeches, and travel. Includes slides of water resources development in Russia taken during an inspection trip in 1959.

Dates

  • 1958-1976

Creator

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Conditions Governing Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Historical Note

Frank Edward " Ted" Moss (1911-2003) was born in 1911 in Holladay, Utah. He was educated in the Salt Lake City schools, graduating from Granite High School in 1929. Majoring in history, political science, and speech, Moss was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Utah in 1933.

After graduating, Frank Moss married Phyllis Hart and moved to Washington, D.C., where he attended George Washington University Law School. While a law student, Moss worked for the National Recovery Administration (1933-1935) and the Resettlement Administration (1935-1936). After having received a law degree in 1937, he was admitted to the bar of the District of Columbia and served on the legal staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Moss returned to Utah in 1939 to become a law clerk to Utah Supreme Court Justice James H. Wolfe. In 1940 he was elected to his first public office as a judge in Salt Lake City's Municipal Court. Moss received his commission as a second lieutenant in the U. S. Army Reserve in 1938 and was called to active duty in February 1942. The following year he graduated from Judge Advocate General school after which he served as Judge Advocate in Salt Lake City and in Riverside, California. From 1943 to 1945, Moss was stationed in England with the Judge Advocate General of the U.S. Army Air Corps and completed his active military service in September 1945.

In the fall of 1945, Moss was elected to the Salt Lake City judgeship where he remained until 1950 when he won the election to the office of Salt Lake County attorney. During his two terms as county attorney, he was active in numerous professional organizations serving as the president of the National Association of County and Prosecuting Attorneys (1957-1958).

Moss's Senate career embraced the years of 1959-1976. For fourteen years Moss served on the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee and was chairman of its Minerals, Materials, and Fuels Subcommittee. He also sat on the Public Works Committee for eight years and on the Small Business Committee for six. In 1973 Moss became chairman of the Aeronautical and Space Sciences Committee.

Participating in the 1960s movement for increased consumer protection, he strongly supported the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, the Truth-in-Lending Act, and the Flammable Fabrics Act. As the principal sponsor of the Toy Safety Act, Moss conducted hearings which revealed the dangers of common toys. His legislative endeavors received national attention when he led the fight to compel the elimination of TV cigarette advertising. Moss was one of the original sponsors of Medicare and gained national attention in 1976 when he posed as an indigent, elderly Medicaid recipient in an effort to expose Medicare fraud. He became well known in the United States and Canada for his work in the field of water resources, publishing a book on this subject entitled "Water Crisis" in 1967.

Senator Moss was the first Utahn to attain majority leadership positions in the Senate. He was elected as secretary of the Democratic Conference on three occasions, and sat on the powerful Democratic Policy and Steering committees. At the time of his defeat in 1976, Moss was hoping to become the next majority whip.

Extent

18 Boxes

Abstract

The Frank E. Moss photograph collection contains personal family snapshots and images from his political career.

Arrangement

Collection is arranged topically.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Frank E. Moss in 1976.

Separated Materials

Manuscript materials were transferred to the Frank E. Moss papers (MS 0146).

Processing Information

Processed by Multimedia Archives staff.
Title
Guide to the Frank E. Moss photograph collection, 1958-1976
Author
Finding aid created by Margie Benson.
Date
2017
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository

Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863