Dakota Datebook By Jayme L. Job

September 27, 2021 — Robert Henry Bahmer was born on this date in 1904 in Gardena, North Dakota. He is best known for his work with the National Archives, which is responsible for maintaining the records of the United States Federal Government. The archives, located in Washington, DC, are known as the “Nation’s Record Keeper.” Bahmer led the archives from 1966 to 1969 as the country’s fourth United States Archivist.

Bahmer attended high school in nearby Omemee to the east, which is now an abandoned ghost town, but in the early 1910s was a busy railroad hub. Upon his graduation, Bahmer went on to study at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, but later transferred to Valley City State Teacher’s College. While still a teaching student, he served as school principal in the small town of Bentley, southwest of Bismarck. He graduated with his Bachelor’s degree from Valley City in 1928.

In 1936, Bahmer joined the National Archives as an archive specialist. He learned archival techniques and practices while pursuing a graduate degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He received his Master’s degree in 1938, and then went on to pursue his doctorate from the University of Minnesota. During that time, he also served as a specialist in records management for several governmental agencies.

He graduated with his PhD in 1941, and continued to serve the National Archives through World War II as the chief of archival services for the United States Navy and War Departments. In 1948, Bahmer was appointed to the position of the Assistant Archivist of the United States, working out of the National Archives building in Washington, D.C. He served in this capacity until 1965, when he was appointed to become the head Archivist. On January 16, 1966, Bahmer was officially made the fourth Archivist of the United States. “He headed the National Archives and Records Service and directed the offices of the Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower Presidential Libraries.”

In 1969, Bahmer retired to Las Vegas, Nevada. The following year, he received the Rough Rider Award, North Dakota’s highest honor. He passed away in 1990 at the age of eighty-five.

“Dakota Datebook” is a radio series from Prairie Public in partnership with the State Historical Society of North Dakota and with funding from the North Dakota Humanities Council. See all the Dakota Datebooks at

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