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The four boxes of Currin V. Shields papers are associated with his activities in the consumer movement from 1966-1984. They also reflect Marjorie Shields' involvement in consumer affairs, especially the Arizona Dairy Products Litigation that extended to 1986. Papers describing Shields' career as an educator and his political activities (he was the Democratic candidate for governor of Arizona in 1970) are not included in the collection.
The Shields papers are organized into four separate series thereby preserving, for the most part, the order in which they were maintained by Shields and received by the Consumer Movement Archives at KSU.
A few minor adjustments in the arrangement were made to facilitate labeling and access. For example, in the Arizona Consumers Council series, the financial documents and typed reports were separated into individual sub-series. In addition, groups of printed material were brought together in the fourth series. Currin Shields was a national figure in the consumer movement. He was president of the Arizona Consumers Council from 1969 to 1980 and the organizer of the Conference of Consumer Organizations in 1973. He directed the National Consumer Affairs Internship Program, National Consumer Symposium, and Consumer Affairs Seminar. His papers document his association with these organizations and the consumer issues both he and the groups addressed.
The first series, Arizona Consumers Council (1966-1984), is housed in two document boxes and comprises the largest series in the collection. It is divided into four subseries; correspondence, general files, financial documents, and reports. The items are in chronological order within each subseries. The correspondence and general files constitute all but three of the folders in this series. Dr. Shields maintained the ACC correspondence and general files in separate notebooks, although their contents are similar. The major difference between the two is the correspondence series contains Shields' individual letters and documents regarding the ACC and his activities, while the general files include correspondence, minutes, surveys, membership data, annual and board meeting documents, and miscellaneous material related to the affairs of the organization.
The general files can be described as the central office files for the ACC while Shields was president from 1969-1980. Both sub-series contain papers dealing with the major consumer issues the ACC was confronting including the following: consumer protection program for Arizona, consumer fraud, unit pricing regulations, energy and environment, public utility rates, milk and bread prices, food price-fixing, labeling, and dating of perishable foods, national meat boycotts, food sale tax, aging, group health plans, Arizona Consumers cooperative store, an anti-trust suit against bakeries, a price-fixing suit against Tuscon Cement Co., and bicycle safety.
The ACC correspondence contains letters between Shields and the following consumer leaders: Erma Angevine, Carol Tucker, Lee Richardson, Ester Peterson, and Edwin Palumbo; Arizona senators and representatives (Douglas S. Holsclaw, Helen Grace Carlson, David B. Stone, Manuel Pena, and Anna J. Cullinan); consumer groups in other states, state and local government officials, national organizations such as the Consumer Federation of American, and federal agencies including the U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Federal Energy Administration, and Federal Trade Commission. The remaining ACC subseries contain financial documents for 1977-1978 and seven typed reports on consumer issues, 1972-1976.
The second series of the Shields papers, Arizona Dairy Products Litigation, contains four files of legal documents and correspondence regarding a class action suit against four major dairies for violation of antitrust laws (1974-1976; 1986-1987). The class action was a partial result of the bread and milk price surveys conducted by the Arizona Consumers Council in the 1970s. Currin and Marjorie Shields were plaintiffs in the case. The litigation continued after Dr. Shields' death and the files indicate Mrs. Shields's involvement, including settlements in favor of the plaintiffs.
Material associated with the Conference of Consumer Organizations (COCO) is contained in series three. It is stored in 21 folders and covers the years 1973-1975. The series was kept in its original order of three related sub-series; correspondence, general, and steering committee. The entire series reflects the formation and early years of COCO and Shields' direct involvement with establishing the organization and service as chairman. Related organizations represented in the COCO series include the National Symposium on Consumer Movement, numerous state consumer organizations, Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union, Arizona Consumers Council, and National Consumers Congress. Individual correspondents include Colston E. Warne, Roy Kiesling, Patricia Van Betten, Lynn B. Jordan, William Fasse, Eileen Hoats, Janet Ann Hutchinson, Robert McEwen, William Pate, Helen E. Nelson, Ellen Zawel, Arline Mathews, Louis Meyer, and Henry E.K. Lee. COCO documents consist of by-laws, minutes, reports, membership data, financial statements, and correspondence.
The fourth series of the Shields' papers contains printed material divided into four sub-series as follows: Conference of Consumer Organizations, National Consumer Affairs Internship Program, National Symposium on Consumer Movement/National Consumer Symposium, and Consumer Affairs Seminar. The COCO sub-series contains two folders of its monthly newsletter, Intercom, for the years 1974-78.
The National Consumer Affairs Internship Program was initiated by Shields in 1975. Originally a joint project between COCO and the American Council on Consumer Interests. It was chartered as a separate non-profit educational corporation in the State of Arizona in 1978. The six folders (1975-1983) contain brochures, articles of incorporation, internship descriptions, application procedures, membership lists, and newsletters.
Printed items describing the National Symposium on the Consumer Movement (1973-1975)/ National Consumer Symposium (1976-1979) make up the third sub-series. This annual conference was directed by Shields as part of the Community Services Center, Division of Continuing Education, University of Arizona. The material consists of descriptions of the symposium, programs, and lists of speakers and registrants. The Consumer Affairs Seminar (4th sub-series) was also conducted by the Community Services Center at the University of Arizona. Each of the five seminars from 1976 to 1980 is described in a folder of printed material.