COZZENS, WILLIAM E., JR.
William E. Cozzens, Jr. papers 1965-2015

Restrictions on Access

Special restrictions apply: Collection stored off-site. Researchers must contact the Rose Library in advance to access this collection.

Use copies have not been made for audiovisual material in this collection. Researchers must contact the Rose Library at least two weeks in advance for access to these items. Collection restrictions, copyright limitations, or technical complications may hinder the Rose Library's ability to provide access to audiovisual material.

Researchers must contact the Rose Library in advance for access to unprocessed born digital materials in this collection. Collection restrictions, copyright limitations, or technical complications may hinder the Rose Library's ability to provide access to unprocessed born digital materials.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

All requests subject to limitations noted in departmental policies on reproduction.

Source

Gift of Noreen D. Francis Cozzens, 2018

Custodial History

The Rose Library received the materials from Noreen D. Francis Cozzens, widow and executor of the William E. Cozzens, Jr. estate. Curator of Modern, Historical, and Political Collections for the Rose Library, Randy Gue, packed the materials and transported them to the Rose Library.

Citation

[after identification of item(s)], William E. Cozzens, Jr. papers, Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library, Emory University.

Appraisal Note

Acquired by Randy Gue, Curator of Modern Political and Historical Collections, as part of the Rose Library’s holdings in Atlanta, Georgia, history and culture.

Processing

Processed by Laura Starratt, June 2019.

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Biographical Note

William E. Cozzens, Jr. (1947-2018) was a graduate of Tucker High School (Tucker, Georgia) and the University of Georgia (Athens). Bill Cozzens was a founding member of the Students for a Democratic Society, had a passion for civil and equal rights, and actively opposed the war in Vietnam. He was a member of the Martin Luther King March Committee and, as a member of the Friendship Force, visited China on three occasions. During his 41-year career at OFS (Norcross, Georgia), Bill Cozzens served in several union leadership roles in the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and as the Atlanta Labor Council executive board member. He marched in Cumming, Georgia, with Hosea Williams in the 1987 Brotherhood March and led marches for the first national Immigrant Worker Freedom rides and the Charleston 5.

Scope and Content Note

The collection includes the papers of William E. Cozzens, Jr. relating to his work as an activist and union leader as well as personal papers from his childhood through his time at the University of Georgia where he started his political activism. Personal papers include schoolwork and transcripts, as well as correspondence to his family and personal notes. Also included are a small amount of writings by Cozzens as well as others, including speeches and handwritten notes. There are also dates books from 1942-1971 and 2004-2005. The collection also contains subject files on topics, including his work with China and a trip there in the early 1970s; his work with unions, specifically the Communication Workers of America (CWA); folk music; and Martin Luther King, Jr. marches and the holiday. Subject files also include information on his time at the University of Georgia and government memoranda on his demonstrations with the Democratic Socialists, as well as his time in China. There are printed materials, news clippings and serials, primarily from the Friends of China, as well as other magazines: The U.S China Review, CWA Newsletter, and The Red and Black. The majority of the collections consists of images, both photographs and slides, covering his work as an activist and documenting marches, meetings, and events from the 1980s-2011.

Arrangement Note

Arranged in alphabetical order by record type.