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WORLD WAR II ERA-COLLECTIONS

This list gives the collection name, date range and number of items in a collection followed by a very brief description of the contents of the collection. All of these collections are related to World War II.

ARDEN, C. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1938-1940
• ITEM COUNT: 28 items
• The C. Arden mss. consist of twenty-eight letters from author Edward Frederic Benson to writer Clive Arden. Some of the letters discuss social aspects of Britain during World War II.

BAATZ MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1940-
• ITEM COUNT: 94 items
• The Baatz mss. consist of correspondence from prominent literary and political figures to librarian Wilmer Henry Baatz. Of particular interest are ca. 1943-1946 mimeographed newsletters written by Baatz for distribution in an army camp.

BARNHART MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1813-1962
• ITEM COUNT: 706 items
• The Barnhart mss. are the papers of John Donald Barnhart, professor of history at Indiana University. During World War II Barnhart served as the chairman of the Indiana War History Commission. There are financial reports, notes, and minutes of the Commission dated 1943-1951.

BERRY MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1925-1971
• ITEM COUNT: 337 items
• The Berry mss. are the papers of diplomat Burton Yost Berry. World War II reports and correspondence with diplomats, military officers, statesmen, congressmen, senators and governors are included, some deal with war atrocities and some deal with occupied territories.

BOWERS MSS. II

• DATE RANGE: 1893-1960
• ITEM COUNT: 17,019 items
• The Bowers mss. II are the papers of ambassador Claude Gernade Bowers. From 1939 to 1953 Bowers was ambassador to Chile. The letters during the World War II period reveal the activities of the Germans and communists in South America as well as the economic, social and political situation in Chile.

BROWN MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1933-1955
• ITEM COUNT: 120 items
• The Brown mss. are letters and papers of Paul Van Dyke Brown, executive of the Indiana State Department of Conservation, the U.S. National Park Service and the Washington State Department of Parks. The letters consist principally of correspondence between Brown and Richard Lieber, director of the Indiana State Department of Conservation and concern the Civilian Conservation Corps camps in Indiana state parks.

CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1939-1942
• ITEM COUNT: 480 items
• The Civilian Conservation Corps mss. consist of completed forms and correspondence relating to 83 Monroe County Indiana applicants for service in the CCC.

CLELAND MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1911-1946
• ITEM COUNT: 507 items
• The Cleland mss. are the papers of botanist Ralph Erskine Cleland. Some letters relate to scientific research during World War II and some letters discuss the persecution of Jews in Germany in 1938.

COLUMBIA CONSERVE CO. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1903-1953
• ITEM COUNT: 56,321 items
• The Columbia Conserve Company mss. are the papers of the Columbia Conserve Company, a cannery in Indianapolis, Indiana. Of interest are papers dated 1944-1945 and 1947 which discuss the use of German prisoners of war for employment at the company.

EASTMAN MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1892-1968
• ITEM COUNT: 4,096 items
• The Eastman mss. consist of the correspondence and writings of author Max Forrester Eastman. Of particular interest are writings pertaining to World War II: "Churchill's Big Mistake: A Memorandum on Yugoslavia" by Max Eastman and "Strange People these Americans" by Vladimir Petrov. Also included are some letters with friends discussing the war.

ERDMANN MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1942-1945
• ITEM COUNT: 35 items
• The Erdmann mss. consist of letters from teacher Marvin H. Erdmann to his cousin Elaine (Lohrey) Herold written during Erdmann's service with the 21st General Hospital, U.S. Army during World War II. Erdmann was stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, and later in North Africa, Italy and France. The letters discuss mutual friends, his living conditions and descriptions of the various places he was stationed.

ERVINE MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1914-1957
• ITEM COUNT: 153 items
• The Ervine mss. consist of correspondence and writings of playwright and critic, St. John Greer Ervine. Letters to Leonora Mary Ervine (wife of St. John Greer Ervine) relate experiences of civilians in various parts of Britain during World War II.

FISCHER MSS.

• DATE RANGE: ca. 1888-1975
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 5,461 items
• The Fischer mss. consist of the correspondence and manuscripts from the files of German publisher S. Fischer Verlag. There is extensive correspondence from the World War II era.

FORD, J. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1906-1976
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 7,000 items
• The J. Ford mss. consist of the correspondence, papers, and memorabilia of motion picture director John Ford. In early 1940 Ford formed the Naval Field Photographic Reserve and directed two documentaries, The Battle of Midway and December 7th. He spent the war years doing documentary work in the Pacific, North Africa, Europe and India. Included in the collection are materials pertaining to the war-time movies as well as correspondence, personnel materials, orders and equipment lists relating to the Naval Field Photographic Reserve.

FORWALTER MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1642-1939
• ITEM COUNT: 28 items
• The Forwalter mss. are historical documents collected by Dorothy J. Forwalter. Of particular interest is a document signed by Adolf Hitler dated Nov. 16, 1939 which appoints members to a division of the Supreme Court.

HALDEMAN, MRS. S.A. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1839-1953
• ITEM COUNT: 5,466 items
• The Mrs. S.A. Haldeman mss. consist of personal correspondence and papers of Sarah Alice (Addams) Haldeman, banker. Of interest is Clinton A. Sanders' "Dictionary of Slang of the Army, Navy and Marines in World Wars I and II."

HAPGOOD MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1915-1951
• ITEM COUNT: 4,286 items
• The Hapgood mss. are the papers of labor leader Powers Hapgood. Material pertaining to the U.S. National Recovery Administration, the U.S. Dept. of Labor, the U.S. Office of Price Administration and the U.S. National War Labor Board are present. Hapgood's interview sheet from the U.S. Air Force is also present.

HOUSMAN II MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1913-1943
• ITEM COUNT: 88 items
• The Housman mss. II consist of correspondence of poet Alfred Edward Housman, Geoffrey Bernard Abbott Fletcher and Grant Richards. Of interest are two letters: one dated Aug. 6, 1940 which describes the bombing of Newcastle and another dated Oct. 4, 1940 which describes the bombing of London.

INDIANA W.P.A. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1936
• ITEM COUNT: 50 items
• The Indiana W.P.A. mss. are those papers for the state of Indiana generated by the U.S. Works Progress Administration with the National Archives as a cooperating sponsor in conducting a nation-wide survey of Federal Archives.

JENNINGS MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1924-1956
• ITEM COUNT: 300 items
• The Jennings mss. are the papers of Indiana WPA administrator, John Kaley Jennings. In November 1931 Jennings organized and became Chairman of the Unemployment Relief Agency, one of the first work relief programs in the nation. From 1937-1943 he was Indiana WPA Administrator and from 1943-1946 he was State Director of the War Manpower Commission. Included in the collection are letters from and to prominent political figures, speeches and official documents. Of special interest are photographs and films of WPA projects.

LANGER MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1940-1976
• ITEM COUNT: 119 items
• The Langer mss. consist of the professional papers and reprints of Lawrence Marvin Langer, Professor Emeritus of Physics at Indiana University. Langer worked at Los Alamos on the Manhattan Project, 1943-1945. Present are a set of glass slides of Hiroshima taken after the dropping of the atomic bomb.

LOCKHART, R. MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1906-1969
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 3,500 items
• The R. Lockhart mss. consist of the correspondence, writings and memorabilia of diplomat and writer Sir Robert Hamilton Bruce Lockhart. During World War II Lockhart became Director-General of the Political Warfare Executive, coordinating all British propaganda against the enemy. The collection includes correspondence about these activities and samples of the propaganda used.

LUDLOW MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1898-1948
• ITEM COUNT: 8,355 items
• The Ludlow mss. are the papers of journalist and congressman Louis Leon Ludlow. Of interest are 1935-1940 letters and petitions on the Peace Amendment which proposed a constitutional amendment giving the electorate the right to vote on U.S. participation in foreign wars.

MCNUTT MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1899-1955
• ITEM COUNT: 31,922 items
• The McNutt mss. are the papers of Paul Vories McNutt, lawyer, governor of Indiana and federal official. Included in the collection is material from when McNutt was Federal Security administrator, 1939-1942; Chairman, War Manpower Commission, 1942-1945 and U.S. High Commissioner to the Philippines, 1937-1939 and 1945-1946.

MEYER MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1938-1988
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 1,640 items
• The Meyer mss. consist of the papers of war correspondent and short story writer Robert Louis Meyer. In 1941 he joined United Press as a journalist and worked as a war correspondent in London and then with General George S. Patton's 3rd Army and later with General Omar Bradley's 12th Army Group. Present are Meyer's wartime dispatches and some correspondence and photographs from the war period.

MISCELLANEOUS MSS.

• The Miscellaneous mss. consist of individual items acquired from various sources. Of interest is a Jan. 24, 1940 letter from Margaret Steggall to Mr. and Mrs. Robert Burke of Bloomington, Indiana which contains a description of London in wartime.

PYLE MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1921-1953
• ITEM COUNT: 537 items
• The Pyle collection consist mostly of letters from and to journalist Ernest Taylor Pyle. Most of the letters were written while Pyle was a war correspondent in Europe, Africa, and the South Pacific during World War II. In addition to the letters there are 66 articles written by Pyle.

U.S. HISTORY MSS.

• The U.S. History mss. consist of individual items acquired from various sources. Of interest:
  • 1940, Nov. 1. Radio speech by Wendell Willkie which discusses planes for Britain.
  • 1941, Dec. 8-1942, Feb. 28. Report on the U.S.S. Houston from Dec. 8, 1941, until she was reported missing Feb. 28, 1942.
  • 1945, Mar. 3. Letter from Mark Wayne Clark, General of the 15th Army Group to Herman B Wells of Indiana University, contains one paragraph on the Italian campaign.
  • 1945, Apr. 2. Letter from George C. Marshall to Herman B Wells pertaining to R.O.T.C.

WHITCOMB MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1933-1985
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 1,750 items
• The Whitcomb mss. consist of the correspondence and papers of Edgar Doud Whitcomb, lawyer and former governor of Indiana. The early correspondence, 1933-1942 with his parents covers his aviation and military career. The majority of the remaining collection concerns Whitcomb's book about his capture, internment, and escape from the Japanese in the South Pacific during World War II, Escape from Corregidor.

WILLKIE MSS.

• DATE RANGE: 1934-1945
• ITEM COUNT: ca. 500,000 items
• The Willkie mss. are the papers of Wendell Lewis Willkie, utilities company executive and Republican nominee for president in 1940. There is extensive correspondence with prominent political figures, speeches, and newspaper clippings from the war period.