Many of Compton White's constituents wrote to him about problems they were having with the federal bureaucracy, whether it was obtaining a hardship discharge from the military service, requesting assistance in getting relatives into the United States from foreign countries, or requesting aid in straightening out problems with Social Security or the Veterans Administration. White always referred the constituent's letter to the proper federal agency and kept in touch with both the agency and his constituent until a final determination had been made in the case. The results may not always have been what the constituent had hoped for, but many expressed their gratitude to the Congressman for finally obtaining a decision.

Smaller communities often wrote White for assistance in obtaining federal funds for local improvement projects, usually water and sewer improvements. He would then write to the agency involved letting them know of his interest in the application. He continued to follow the progress of the application until the agency decided whether or not to fund the project.

Other special interest groups would write urging White to support the use of their product in federal programs. These letters were referred to the proper agency, but there is usually no follow-up correspondence.

In all cases the correspondence received from the federal departments, whether a brief letter of acknowledgment or a multi-paged report, is retained in the folders. Since most agencies sent at least one carbon copy of their correspondence, White was able to send a copy of all pertinent material to the constituent whose letter had initiated the contact. Also included are the informational brochures sent by the various agencies. The Department of the Treasury folder contains 13 photographs of Compton White's trip to Venezuela to sign the SWAP agreement and inspect a housing project.

Listed below are the folder headings; since most material deals with personal appeals for assistance, the contents of the folders are not mentioned, but are contained on the file cards maintained for this series.