Shortly after Senator Patrick Leahy’s retirement from the Senate in 2023, three UVM congressional papers archivists began organizing his robust collection and preparing it for researchers to access. The project is funded by a $2.5 million Senators’ Preservation Partnership Grant administered by the United States Senate Historical Office. In 2025, the first two of 11 components of the collection—the travel and campaign files—became available for public access. A third component of the collection including briefing books, schedules and correspondence is now available for public access through online discovery aids and by appointment at the UVM Silver Special Collections Library.
With items that explore national and international political affairs as well as local issues relevant to the state of Vermont, those doing research about political events and the legacy of Leahy’s impactful career will find the collection helpful.
This newly available component of the Leahy Papers includes a vast array of items related to his everyday life while in office. A researcher might reach into one box and examine daily schedules documenting the senator’s activities, menu cards from White House state dinners, planning materials related to his 2022 memoir titled “A Road Taken,” or correspondence with the Dalai Lama. In another box, they might interact with material saved by the senator in remembrance, such as a New York Times paper that was published only two days after September 11, 2001, detailing the tragic attacks that occurred on that day.
“This collection includes all kinds of significant material," said Erica Donnis, one of the archivists in charge of the project. “From briefing memos documenting the senator’s work on environmental sustainability, childhood nutrition, and criminal justice reform to items representing his advocacy on behalf of Vermonters and Vermont organizations.”
Eight more components of the collection are slated to be released over the next two years. The remaining records include files kept by Leahy’s legislative staff, constituent service records including grants, project files and constituent mail, and press records including media briefings, press releases and newsletters. Look for more announcements to find out when the next component is made available.
How to interact with the Leahy Papers
Anyone can view the unrestricted content in the Leahy Papers including members of the general public. Using an online research guide, viewers can browse descriptions of the items in the now-available series. A dropdown list of contents from the newly-available series can be found on the left side of the guide under “personal/official records.” Once researchers have determined what they want to see, they can contact Silver Special Collections to make an appointment to view the requested items in person. Upon booking an appointment, the requested materials will be sent to Silver Special Collections Library from a secure, off-site storage facility. At the appointment time, a library staff member will pull the requested materials for viewing.
