This collection houses correspondence, business information, audio-visual media, and other materials documenting Bill Schulz's political career and apartment housing business. It is arranged in three series.
Identification:
FM MSS 125
Language:
Material in English
Repository:
Arizona State University Library. Greater Arizona Collection P.O. Box 871006 Tempe, AZ 85287-1006 Phone: (480) 965-4932 E-Mail: archives@asu.edu Questions? Ask An Archivist!
Biographical Note
William R. "Bill" Schulz was born on April 4, 1931 in Des Moines, Iowa. He graduated from the Kentucky Military Institute in 1949 and from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1954. After resigning his commission to focus on a career in business he attended Harvard Business School and graduated in 1959. He and his wife Lelia (married 1954) have three daughters, Ellen, Lelia, and Cindy.
Schulz was the founder and executive manager of Homesmith, Inc., based in Palo Alto, California (1959-1963 May). Homesmith offered a new service of home repair to homeowners in the Palo Alto area. He was also the founder and President of W. R. Schulz and Associates (WRSA) from 1965 to 1983. The firm owned and managed 88 garden apartment properties comprising 12,800 units mainly in the Phoenix Metropolitan area. Despite operating in a highly volatile industry, WRSA was never sued by a partner, lender, or supplier. In the course of housing over 250,000 renter households, WRSA enjoyed a reputation for upholding renter and employee interests. Schulz built his apartment empire on the motto "He who serves best profits most."
Schulz was responsible for pushing the Apartment Renter's Tax Relief Bill through the Legislature. During this process, he acquired a taste for and appreciation of politics and was inspired to run for office. In the 1978 Arizona Governor's Campaign, Schulz ran on the Democratic ticket and was opposed in the primary election by Wesley Bolin (incumbent governor) and Dino DeConcini. He launched his "Goals for Arizona" campaign using research accumulated during trips around the state. He withdrew from the race in March 1978 after the death of Governor Wesley Bolin. Schulz lent his support to Bruce Babbitt, the former Attorney General, who became Governor upon Bolin's death.
In the 1980 Arizona Senate Campaign, Schulz entered the race as the third Democrat (with Jim McNulty and Frank DePaoli) seeking to earn the primary nomination and run against longtime Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater. Schulz used "Energy for the Eighties" as his campaign slogan. He lost the race to Goldwater by a small margin.
In the 1986 Arizona Governor's Campaign, Schulz announced his intent to run for governor again early in 1984. He had to withdraw from the race in 1985 due to his daughter's poor health. He re-entered the race as an Independent candidate in September of 1986 after obtaining enough signatures to place him on the ballot. Although most politicians believed that Schulz would not be able to obtain the requisite number of signatures, Schulz and his family and friends were able to obtain approximately three times the number needed. He re-entered the race to campaign against Evan Mecham (R) and Carolyn Warner (D). He was defeated by Evan Mecham and chose not to run for office again.
Schulz conducted extensive research for this campaign, traveling around Arizona and spending time in correctional facilities, universities, community colleges, and primary and secondary schools. He traveled to fifteen other states, including North Carolina, Iowa, and Utah, to speak with legislators of both parties to develop a plan for improving Arizona. Schulz wrote up his research findings in "The Arizona Governor".
Scope and Content Note
This collection houses correspondence, business information, audio-visual media, and other materials documenting Bill Schulz's political career and apartment housing business. It is arranged in three series.
Series I: Business (Box 1) houses company and property information documenting W. R. Schulz and Associates as well as apartment complex information and partnership documents.
Series II: Politics (Box 2-3) houses campaign information, research, correspondence, and lists of contributors and volunteers showing Schulz's political career. Files documenting specific campaigns are organized alphabetically by campaign and chronologically within; materials regarding political issues and speeches are organized alphabetically.
Series III: Media Files (Box 4-11) houses newspaper clippings, photographs, audiocassettes, VHS videotapes, UCA videotapes, and 7½ IPS tracks. The majority of the audiocassettes and VHS tapes are political in nature and focus on campaign issues. Two audiocassettes were discarded due to poor quality; the remaining tapes are in good condition. VHS tapes were sampled and are in good condition. The condition of the UCA videotapes and 7½ IPS tracks is unknown.
Arrangement
This collection consists of eleven boxes divided into three series:
To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Monday through Friday. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.
Copyright
The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of the Arizona State University Library. Requests to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.
Access Terms
Personal Name(s)
Goldwater, Barry M. (Barry Morris), 1909-1998.
Schulz, William R., 1931- -- Archives.
Corporate Name(s)
Arizona Apartment Association.
Arizona. Governor.
Arizona. Legislature. Senate.
W.R. Schulz and Associates.
Subject(s)
Apartment dwellers -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Arizona.
Bill Schulz donated these papers to the Arizona Historical Foundation in May of 2005.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], William R. Schulz Papers,FM MSS 125, Arizona State University Library.
Provenance
The Arizona Historical Foundation transferred these materials to the Arizona Collection in 2012.
Processing Note
Upon receipt, the collection was housed in 4 boxes of varying sizes containing correspondence, business information, media files, and 11 picture albums containing newspaper clippings.
The portion of the collection comprised of newspaper articles has been placed into the media files series and interleaved with acid-free paper to slow the deterioration process. In cases where the original article was accompanied by a photocopy, the photocopy was retained for its ease of use and better quality.
All was done to maintain the original order of the collection when possible. Most folders retain their original headings except in cases where there was no heading or materials were loose or in unmarked folders. Folders are arranged alphabetically and chronologically within.
