Dates: 1947-51
Assistant Counsel, Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, 1947; Associate General Counsel, 1947-49, and General Counsel, 1950-51, Office of the Secretary of Defense
The papers of Felix E. Larkin document primarily his work as Associate General Counsel, 1947-49, and General Counsel, 1950-51, in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; there is also a small amount of documentation of his work in 1947 with the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program. Topics covered include the B-36 aircraft, the President's Air Policy Commission, the National Security Act, military procurement, the establishment of an Air Force Academy, Saudi Arabian oil, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, shipbuilding, the unification of the armed services, proposed legislation affecting defense policy, the selective service system, the St. Lawrence Seaway project, and Hoover commission recommendations. The collection includes sometimes detailed summaries of Larkin's meetings and telephone conversations for the period July 1947 to April 1950.
See also Oral History
Size: 4.7 linear feet (about 9,400 pages)
Access: Open, with the exception that a small number of documents have been closed in accordance with the provisions of the donor's deed of gift and with the requirements of the Executive order governing the administration of security classified information.
Copyright: James W. Larkin donated his copyright interest in any unpublished writings, including his father's, in this collection or any other collection in the possession of the United States Government to the people of the United States. In addition, documents prepared by United States Government employees in the course of their official duties are also in the public domain. Copyright interest in documents that do not fall in the above two categories is presumed to remain with the writers of the documents.
Processed by: Dennis Bilger, Raymond H. Geselbracht, Sharie Simon, and Anita Smith
| 1909, Aug. 3 | Born, New York City | |
| 1931 | A.B., Fordham University | |
| 1933 | M.B.A., New York University Graduate School of Business | |
| 1939-47 | Law Secretary to Judge James Garrett Wallace of the Court of General Sessions, New York County, New York | |
| 1942 | L.L.B., St. John's University School of Law; admitted, New York State Bar | |
| 1946 | Vice President, Naval General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board | |
| 1947 | Assistant Counsel to the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program | |
| 1947-49 | Associate General Counsel, Office of the Secretary of Defense | |
| 1949-51 | General Counsel, Office of the Secretary of Defense | |
| 1951-86 | Vice President and President, W.R. Grace & Company, New York | |
| 1991 | Died, Mamdroneck, New York |
The papers of Felix E. Larkin document primarily his work as Associate General Counsel, 1947-49, and General Counsel, 1950-51, in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; there is also a small amount of documentation of his work in 1947 with the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program.
The collection is arranged in five series. The Summaries of Daily Activities File contains remarkably detailed information in the form of often substantive notes regarding Larkin's meetings and telephone conversations. The summaries are in form like annotated daily appointment calendars. The documentation in the series ends, unfortunately, in April 1950, about a year and a half before Larkin left the Defense Department. The Chronological File appears to be a comprehensive collection of the correspondence and memoranda prepared in Larkin's office from October 1947 to September 1951. Topics covered include the B-36 aircraft, the President's Air Policy Commission, the National Security Act, military procurement, the establishment of an Air Force Academy, Saudi Arabian oil, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, shipbuilding, the unification of the armed services, proposed legislation affecting defense policy, the selective service system, the St. Lawrence Seaway project, and Hoover commission recommendations. The series also contains a small amount of material relating to Larkin's service in 1947 with the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program.
The Subject File documents primarily two subjects - the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and the General Court-Martial Review Board. Larkin served on a committee established by the Secretary of Defense in 1948 to study the possibility of developing a uniform system of military justice that would be applicable to all the military services. The series also has some material relating to Secretary of Defense Forrestal's death, and personal correspondence relating to Larkin's government career and other matters. The Personal Correspondence File contains carbon copies of outgoing correspondence about subjects that are clearly personal in character - acknowledgements of congratulations on his new position, letters to friends, letters of recommendation, documentation concerning his career, letters about social engagements, and the like. The Printed Materials File is composed primarily of House and Senate documents, and it has also reprints of two articles written by Larkin.
The following collections include material relating to the Office of the Secretary of Defense during Larkin's tenure there: the President's Secretary's Files, the Confidential File, the Official File (OF 1285), and the papers of John H. Ohly, Ralph N. Stohl, Clark M. Clifford, and George M. Elsey.
| Container Nos. | Series | |
| 1-2 | SUMMARIES OF DAILY ACTIVITIES FILE, 1947-50 The typescript summaries contain often substantive notes regarding Larkin's meetings and telephone conversations. They document the entire range of his responsibilities in the counsel's office of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The ending date for this series is April 1950. Arranged chronologically. |
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| 2-7 | CHRONOLOGICAL FILE, 1947-51 Primarily carbon copies of outgoing correspondence and memoranda and a few mimeographed items, newspaper clippings and incoming letters. Topics covered include the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, the investigation regarding the B-36 aircraft, the President's Air Policy Commission, the National Security Act, military procurement practices, the establishment of an Air Force Academy, the purchase of oil from Saudi Arabia, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, universal military training, shipbuilding, the unification of the armed forces, the organization of the general counsel's office, proposed legislation affecting defense policy, the investigation of the Malmedy massacre, the selective service system, military housing, the St. Lawrence Seaway project, doctors and lawyers in the armed services, and Hoover commission recommendations relating to the defense establishment. Arranged chronologically. |
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| 7-9 | SUBJECT FILE, 1947-(1950)1951 Primarily carbon and mimeographed copies relating to the General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. There is also a small amount of mainly printed material relating to the illness and death of James V. Forrestal. A folder entitled "Personnel Records-1950" contains material relating to Larkin's career as well as some other more-or-less personal correspondence. Arranged by subject in alphabetical order. |
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| 10 | PERSONAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE, 1947-51 Primarily carbon copies of outgoing correspondence and memoranda. The material is primarily personal in nature and includes correspondence with Larkin's relatives and friends. Arranged chronologically. |
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| 11-12 | PRINTED MATERIAL FILE, 1947-51 Primarily House and Senate documents and reports relating to the national defense program, the National Security Act of 1947, post-war global economic recovery, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the nomination of Anna M. Rosenberg as Assistant Secretary of Defense, and the dismissal of General Douglas MacArthur. There are also copies of two articles by Larkin, one (with Robert S. Pasley, Jr.) on the Navy court material procedure, one on the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Arranged in an approximate chronological order. |
SUMMARIES OF DAILY ACTIVITIES, 1947-50
Box 1
- July-December, 1947 [1 of 2]
- July-December, 1947 [2 of 2]
- January-April, 1948 [1 of 2]
- January-April, 1948 [2 of 2]
- July-December, 1948 [1 of 2]
- July-December, 1948 [2 of 2]
- January-April, 1949 [1 of 2]
- January-April, 1949 [2 of 2]
- May-August, 1949 [1 of 2]
- May-August, 1949 [2 of 2]
Box 2
- September-December, 1949
- January-April, 1950 [1 of 2]
- January-April, 1950 [2 of 2]
- July-October, 1947--"Truman Committee" [memoranda documenting Larkin's work as assistant to Chief Counsel William P. Rogers of the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program; Saudi Arabian oil; the "Flying Boat" idea of Henry J. Kaiser and Howard Hughes; the investigation of I.G. Farben Industries and General Aneline; German espionage during World War II; George Meader's report on the records of the Arabian-American Oil Company.]
- October-December, 1947 [1 of 2]
- October-December, 1947 [2 of 2]
Box 3
- April-June, 1948 [1 of 3]
- April-June, 1948 [2 of 3]
- April-June, 1948 [3 of 3]
- July-September, 1948 [1 of 2]
- July-September, 1948 [2 of 2]
- October-December, 1948 [1 of 2]
Box 4
- October-December, 1948 [2 of 2]
- January-February, 1949 [1 of 2]
- January-February, 1949 [2 of 2]
- March, 1949 [1 of 2]
- March, 1949 [2 of 2]
- April-June, 1949 [1 of 2]
- April-June, 1949 [2 of 2]
Box 5
- July-September, 1949 [1 of 2]
- July-September, 1949 [2 of 2]
- October-December, 1949 [1 of 2]
- October-December, 1949 [2 of 2]
- January-March, 1950 [1 of 2]
- January-March, 1950 [2 of 2]
- April-July, 1950 [1 of 2]
Box 6
- April-July, 1950 [2 of 2]
- August-October, 1950 [1 of 2]
- August-October, 1950 [2 of 2]
- November-December, 1950 [1 of 2]
- November-December, 1950 [2 of 2]
- January-April, 1951 [1 of 3]
- January-April, 1951 [2 of 3]
Box 7
- January-April, 1951 [3 of 3]
- May-September, 1951 [1 of 3]
- May-September, 1951 [2 of 3]
- May-September, 1951 [3 of 3]
- November-December, 1951 [a small amount of material, mostly personal in nature, from the period immediately following Larkin's departure from government service.]
- Forrestal, James V. [illness, death, and memorials, 1947-51]
- General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board [1 of 4]
- General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board [2 of 4]
Box 8
- General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board [3 of 4]
- General Court-Martial Sentence Review Board [4 of 4]
- Personnel Records--1950
- Uniform Code of Military Justice [1948-49] [1 of 2]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice [1948-49] [2 of 2]
Box 9
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Committee on Comparative Studies [1 of 5]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Committee on Comparative Studies [2 of 5]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Committee on Comparative Studies [3 of 5]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Committee on Comparative Studies [4 of 5]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Committee on Comparative Studies [5 of 5]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice, Comments on
PERSONAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE, 1947-51
Box 10
- 1947-48
- 1949-50
- 1951 [1 of 2]
- 1951 [2 of 2]
PRINTED MATERIALS FILE, 1947-51
Box 11
- National Defense Establishment--Hearings Before the Senate Committee on Armed Services, Part I, March-April 1947
- Investigation of the National Defense Program, Hearings before a Special Committee Investigating the National Defense Program, United States Senate in re S.Res. 46 (80th Congress, Part 41, Petroleum Arrangements with Saudi Arabia [March 1947-January 1948]
- National Security Act of 1947--Hearings before the House Committee on Expenditures in the Executive Departments (80th Congress, First Session on H.R. 2319) [April-July 1947]
- United States Foreign Policy for a Post-War Recovery--Hearings before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 80th Congress, 2nd Session (February-March,1948)
- Calendar No. 481, Report No. 486, Senate, 81st Congress, 1st Session, Establishing a Uniform Code of Military Justice, June 10, 1949
Box 12
- Nomination of Anna M. Rosenberg to be Assistant Secretary of Defense, Hearings Before the Senate Committee on Armed Services, 81st Congress, 2nd Session, Parts 1 and 2, November-December, 1950 [1 of 3]
- Nomination of Anna M. Rosenberg to be Assistant Secretary of Defense, Hearings Before the Senate Committee on Armed Services, 81st Congress, 2nd Session, Parts 1 and 2, November-December, 1950 [2 of 3]
- Nomination of Anna M. Rosenberg to be Assistant Secretary of Defense, Hearings Before the Senate Committee on Armed Services, 81st Congress, 2nd Session, Parts 1 and 2, November-December, 1950 [3 of 3]
- Uniform Code of Military Justice [Public Law 506, 81st Congress, 2nd Session, H.R. 4080]
- Universal Military Training and Service Act, 82nd Congress, 1st Session, Report of the Committee on Armed Services, S. 1
- Military Situations in the Far East--Hearings Before Senate Committee on Armed Services and Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, 82nd Congress, 1st Session, to Conduct an Inquiry into the Military Situation in the Far East and the Facts Surrounding the Relief of General of the Army Douglas MacArthur...(June 1951)
- Cornell Law Quarterly, Vol XXXIII, No. 2, November 1947, "The Navy Court-Martial: Proposals for Its Reform," by Robert S. Pasley, Jr. and Felix E. Larkin
- Journal of the American Judiciary Society, Vol. 32, April 1949, Number 6, "The Uniform Code of Military Justice," by Felix E. Larkin
- [Cross references for materials transferred to the audiovisual collection]