The Edward D. Clarkson Collection, in the form of an autograph collection, contains various correspondence, photographs, miscellaneous works, and ephemera of Clarkson’s. The correspondence discusses a diverse array of contemporary issues, including U.S. relations with Cuba and race relations between whites and African Americans in the United States. In a recruitment type fashion, Clarkson attempts to enlist a variety of individuals in many causes.  These individuals include both the political and artistic sphere of American life. Clarkson spent the majority of his efforts lobbying for peace with foreign nations, mainly Cuba, in the decades of the 1950’s and 60’s. His main efforts were directed towards United States Senators and Congressmen. However, Clarkson did attempt to influence a number of United States Presidents, both retired and active. Among the Presidents were, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Richard Nixon. Included in Clarkson’s political endeavors are a number of other prominent figures in American society. Among them are letters to Hubert Humphrey pertaining to peace efforts, yet directed toward the disarmament of the Soviet Union. Clarkson inquired of Eleanor Roosevelt on the possibility of creating separate societies for blacks and whites, not excluding the possibilities of migrating the African American to Africa. Clarkson also corresponded with many well-known American social figures like Georgia O’Keefe, Robert Oppenheimer, Gregory Peck, and Upton Sinclair.