Dates: 1922-1992
Second Secretary, U.S. Embassy in Chungking, China, 1945-1946 and Nanjing, China, 1946-1948; Official, Office of Philippine and Southeast Asian Affairs, Department of State, 1949-1952; Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Mutual Security Affairs, 1952
See also John F. Melby oral history.
Size: 15 linear feet.
Access: Open
Copyright: The donor gave to the U.S. government the copyrights in this material and in any other material received by the U.S. government and maintained in a depository administered by the National Archives and Records Administration. Documents created by U.S. government officials in the course of their official duties are in the public domain. Copyright interest in other documents presumably belongs to the creators of those documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Dennis E. Bilger (1978, 1995); David Clark (2013).
Box 1
CHINA FILE
- General - 1938-1945
- Maps - 1945
- General - 1946 (January-May)
- General - 1949 (June-December)
- American Embassy - 1946
- Chinese-American Agricultural Collaboration Commission - 1946
- Diary - 1946
- List of periodicals in Shanghai - June 1946
- News and Views - Bulletin of the Press Bureau of the Embassy of the USSR in China - 1947 (3 folders)
Box 2
- General - 1947 (January-May)
- General - 1947 (June-December)
- News and Views - Bulletin of the Press Bureau of the Embassy of the USSR in China - 1947 (3 folders)
- "Notes on Local Government in Szechuan" by A. Dook Barnet
- "The Peitashu Incident" - July 1947
- The Shanghai Newsletter - 1947
- "Situation of Chinese Vernacular Press" - July 1947
- Special and feature articles - 1947
- "Supplementary English News Service - New China News Agency" - 1947
Box 3
- General - 1948 (January-May)
- General - 1948 (June-December)
- "Communist Suppression in Hainan" - report - 1948
- New China News Agency (Communist) - 1948
- Press Review - 1948 (January-May)
- Press Review - 1948 (June-August)
- Press Review - 1948 (September-December)
Box 4
- Republic of China - biographies of Kuomintang leaders - 1948 (3 folders)
- Republic of China - government organization - September 1, 1948
- United States Educational Foundation in China - 1948
- Marshall College (West Virginia) - lecture - "Some Aspects of American-Chinese-Soviet Relations in the Far East" - June 1949
- Department of State - Roundtable Discussion - "American Policy Toward China" - October 6-8, 1949
Box 5
- Publications - 1944-1948
- General - 1949-1952
- Drafts of speeches and telegrams
FAR EAST FILE
- General Headquarters Armed Forces in Far East (2 folders)
- Pacific Security - 1949-1952
Box 6
PERSONAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE
- 1945-1946
- 1947
- 1948 (January-May)
- 1948 (June-December)
- 1949
- 1950
- 1951-1952
PHILIPPINE FILE
- General - 1948
- General - 1949 (January-September)
- General - 1949 (October-December)
Box 7
- Economic Report - 1949 - Part 1 "Present Economic Difficulties"
- Economic Report - 1949 - Part 2 "Development Problems and Politics"
- General - 1950 (January-May)
- General - 1950 (June-December)
- General - 1951 (January-May)
- General - 1951 (June-December)
- General - 1952
- Cowen-Melby correspondence - 1949-1950
Box 8
- Cowen-Melby correspondence - 1951 (January-March)
- Cowen-Melby correspondence - 1951 (April-May)
- Cowen-Melby correspondence - 1951 (June-July)
- Cowen-Melby correspondence - 1951 (August-December)
PRESS RELEASE FILE
- Press releases, 1949-1952
SOUTH PACIFIC COMMISION FILE
- Transcript of meeting - 8th session - 1951 (2 folders)
SOUTHEAST ASIA FILE
- General - 1948-1949
Box 9
- General - 1950-1952
- Joint State-Defense Department - Mutual Defense Assistance Program (MDAP) Survey - 1950-1951
- Military Group Joint MDAP Survey - 1950
- Southeast Asia Regional Conference - Bangkok, Siam - June 21-26, 1948 (2 folders)
Box 10
- Family and personal correspondence - 1950
- Harriman, W. Averell - memo of conversation with Melby re the Yalta Agreements and the Far East, June 15, 1951
- Indonesia - general - 1950
- Philippines - Summary of Facts re U.S. Philippine War Damage Commission
- Philippine and Southeast Asian Affairs, Office of (2 folders)
Box 11
- Press - Indochina - July 15-August 3, 1950
- Press - Philippines (Manila) - September-October 1950
- Press - Singapore - Malaya - August 1950
- Press - Thailand - Chinese and Siamese language newspaper clippings
- Press - United States Information Service
1950 (CHRONOLOGICAL FILE)
Box 12
- May-July
- August 1-15
- August 16-31
- September 1-15
- September 16-31
- October
- November-December
1951 (CHRONOLOGICAL FILE)
- January-April
- Undated documents
- Undated publications
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, DIVISION OF AMERICAN REPUBLICS
Box 13
- Bolivia - rubber agreements with the United States
- Brazil-Argentine relations
- Foreign policy reports on Brazil
- Manuscript, Rubber River: Being an Account of the Rise and Collapse of the Amazon Boom by John F. Melby (Draft 1)
- Introduction
- Chapter I - "Rubber Origins"
- Chapter II - "Rubber Boom"
- Chapter III - "Rubber Man"
- Chapter IV - "Rubber Scandal"
- Chapter V - "Rubber War"
- Chapter VI - "Rubber Government"
- Chapter VII - "Rubber Problem"
Box 14
- Draft II
- Introduction-Chapter 2
- Chapters 3-4
- Chapters 5-6
- Chapters 7-8
- Military Agreements with the United States
- Chile - correspondence re Chile and Peru, 1942
- Colombia - Gran Colombia Nations, collaboration among
- Peru - telegrams, 1940-1943
- Ecuador - Agriculture
- Ecuador - Aviation
Box 15
- Ecuador - Geographic reports
- Ecuador - Report of Preliminary Relief and Survey Mission, El Oro Province, March-April 1945
- Ecuador - Military
- Ecuador - Nester, Alfred T., Charge d'Affaires - correspondence, 1942-1943
- Ecuador - Subversive activities
- Ecuador - Territorial organizations and distribution
- Ecuador - Trade and economic reports
- Ecuador - Miscellaneous
- Peru - Agriculture
- Peru - Aprista Party
- Peru - Cities and roads
- Peru - Colombia-Leticia Affair
- Peru - Japanese
- Peru - Political
Box 16
- Peru - Rubber
- Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute (folders 1-4)
Box 17
- Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute (folders 5-8)
Box 18
- Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute (folders 9-10)
- Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute - Neutral Observers Reports
Box 19
- Ecuador - Dispatches (4 folders)
Box 20
- Peru - Telegrams (3 folders)
- Peru - Dispatches (folder 1)
Box 21
- Peru - Dispatches (folders 2-3)
- Reports and bulletins - Latin American countries - miscellaneous
Box 22
- Latin America - miscellaneous correspondence re
- Neutral Observers Reports re Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute
- Notes and Dispatches from Peru (2 folders)
- Peru - Miscellaneous
- Peru-Ecuador technical advisers
- Publications re Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute
Box 23
- Document from the Ecuadoran Government - United States Embassy
- Document from the Peruvian Government - United States Embassy
- Letters from the American Embassy, Lima
- Miscellaneous materials re Peru-Ecuador boundary dispute (2 folders)
- Mexico - "Agrarian phase of the Mexican Revolution" by Harley Notter, 1938
- Mexico - Correspondence from American Embassy, Mexico City - personal
- Mexico - Inspection trip through the Norman Colonies, 1938
- Mexico - "Popol Vuh: The Sacred Book of the Ancient Maya," English version by Delia Goetz and Syvanius G. Morley - newspaper clippings re
Box 24
- Spain - miscellaneous dispatches, press releases and papers
- United Nations Conference on International Organization, June 23, 1945
- Uruguay - memoranda re, July 2, 1941
- Venezuela - Amazon Basin
- Wells, Summer, address - Foreign Policy Association dinner, New York Times, October 17, 1943
PERSONAL AND FAMILY CORRESPONDENCE
- Biographical Information - Curriculum Vitae on Melby
- Letters from Melby's father, Harry C. Melby, 1922-1945 (3 folders)
Box 25
- Letters from Melby's mother, Mrs. Harry C. Melby, 1935-1945 (3 folders)
- Letters from Melby's wife, Florence Melby, 1925-1942
- Letters from Melby's sister, Mary E. Melby, 1936-1942
Box 26
- Letters from Melby's brother, Everett K. Melby, 1935-1942 (2 folders)
- Letters from friends of John F. Melby, 1931-1945
- Letters from Lillian Hellman, 1945
- Programs, receipts - miscellaneous
- Personal correspondence, 1933-1968
- Personal Correspondence, 1969-1971
- Miscellaneous papers re employment possibilities, 1953
MANUSCRIPTS FILE: China
Box 27
- Article re China - "China Today" by Owen Lattimore
- Article re China - "China: Many Changes in Four Years" by John S. Service
- Articles on China - miscellaneous authors
- Articles on China - A-H
- Articles on China - K-N
- Articles on China - P-W
- Articles on China - Unidentified
- Bills and receipts - Melby's trip to China, 1973
- Chinese Government publications, 1948
- Correspondence re China - general, 1966-1969
- Correspondence re China - general, 1970-1974
Box 28
- Correspondence re China - general, 1975-1977
- Correspondence re China - George Ayers, 1969-1970
- Correspondence re China Studies Program at the University of Guelph, 1968-1970 (2 folders)
MANUSCRIPTS FILE: Mandate of Heaven
- Book reviews, 1968-1969
- Correspondence re, 1968-1969
- Correspondence re, 1970-1976
- Reading Copy
Box 29
- Drafts (4 folders)
MANUSCRIPTS FILE: Gold Bars and Concubines
- Drafts (3 folders)
Box 30
- Correspondence re Gold Bars and Concubines and other manuscripts, 1955-1968
- Course Paper, "United States Relations with China, 1945-1947: The Marshall Mission and the American Press," by Stanley A. Kochanck, June 1958 written for Professor John F. Melby, University of Pennsylvania
- Library of Congress, Public Affairs Bulletin No. 77, October 1949, The China White Paper by Francis Valeo
- Miscellaneous articles by John F. Melby - "The Tyranny of Liberty"
- Miscellaneous articles by John F. Melby - "The Attack on McCarthyism"
- Miscellaneous articles by John F. Melby - "The China Tangle"
- Chinese Press Review - Department of State, 1947 (4 folders)
Box 31
- Miscellaneous Press releases re China, 1947
MANUSCRIPTS FILE: Miscellaneous Articles
- Africa - Middle East
- Asia
- Cambodia
- Cuba
- Europe
- India
- Indonesia
- Japan-Korea
- Latin America
- Pearl Harbor
- Philippines
- South Africa
- Vietnam
MANUSCRIPTS FILE: Articles and Speeches by John F. Melby
Box 32
- "Maoism as a World Force" reprinted from The Annuals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Philadelphia, Vol. 402 (July 1972)
- "China and Japan," Canadian Institute of International Affairs reprinted from Vol. XXVI, No. 3 (Summer 1971), International Journal
- "The Cold War-Second Phase: China," Canadian Institute of International Affairs, reprinted from Vol. XXIII, No. 3 (Summer 1968) International Journal
- "The Origins of the Cold War in China," reprinted from Pacific Affairs, Vol. XLI, No. 1 (Spring 1968), University of British Columbia
- "China and the West"
- "Making of the White Paper"
- "The Chinese Revolution"
- The View from the Embassy
- The Continuity of Chinese Foreign Policy"
- "The Role of the Government"
- "Shadows on the Tapestry," Canadian Institute of International Affairs, International Journal, Vol. XXVIII, No. 2 (Spring 1973)
- "For Poor Lands: Reform or Revolt," The Rotarian, June 1969
- "The Philippines"
- Notes on Articles (handwritten by Melby)
- Articles re China and Asia by other authors reviewed by Melby
- Book reviews on China by John F. Melby
- Correspondence re articles and books re China and Asia, 1944-1977 (folder 1)
Box 33
- Correspondence re articles and books re China and Asia, 1944-1977 (folder 2)
- Speeches by John F. Melby
- Speeches re guerrilla warfare by W.W. Rostov and J.K. Zawodvey
CANADA FILE (UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH)
- Aims and objectives, University of Guelph, April 1972
- American Historical Association, 1967-1969
- "Asia in Perspective," Paper by Professor William L. Holland
- The Asian Society
- Association for Asian Studies
- Canada - general
- "Canada, Asia and the United States" by Chester Ronning
- "Canada's Trade with Asia" by Alben Hamilton, M.P.
- Canadian Institute of International Affairs
- Canadian Institute of Public Affairs
Box 34
- Canadian Labour Congress
- Citizens Advisory Committee on Urban Renewal
- Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars
- Correspondence - Canada
- Department of National Defense
- Department of State - Washington, D.C.
- Donner Canadian Foundation
- Foreign Policy Association
- Fugh, Philip - correspondence re, 1969-1970
- International Affairs Society
- International House of Philadelphia
- Northwest Angle re boundary between Minnesota and Ontario - correspondence with Senator Walter F. Mondale and Ambassador W. Walton Butterworth
- Peacekeeping, Conference on, Queen's College and the National Defense College, February 26, 1967
- Wellington College, University of Guelph
GENERAL FILE
- Africa - trusteeship - reports on Ruanda-Urundi, 1948-1950
- Alfaro, Eloy International Foundation
- "Construction of the United States together with an Account of its Travels since September 17, 1787" compiled by David Mearns and Verner W. Clapp, Library of Congress, 1952
- "How I answered Joe McCarthy" by anonymous
Box 35
- Letters - general, 1965-1992(2 folders)
- Publications
- Vietnam War - newspaper clippings and magazine articles re (2 folders)
- Cross reference sheets
Box 36
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [1 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [2 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [3 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [4 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [5 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [6 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [7 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [8 of 9]
- Letters from John F. Melby to Lillian Hellman [9 of 9]
- Letters to John F. Melby from Lillian Hellman
- Miscellaneous Personal Letters
Box 37
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [1 of 6]
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [2 of 6]
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [3 of 6]
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [4 of 6]
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [5 of 6]
- Letters between John F. Melby and Professor Robert Newman re "Cold War Romance between Lillian Hellman and John Melby" [6 of 6]
Box 38
- Harlee Chandler, "The Discipline of Circumstances" [1 of 4]
- Harlee Chandler, "The Discipline of Circumstances" [2 of 4]
- Harlee Chandler, "The Discipline of Circumstances" [3 of 4]
- Harlee Chandler, "The Discipline of Circumstances" [4 of 4]
- Soviet War Propaganda [1 of 2]
- Soviet War Propaganda [2 of 2]
- Draft of Melby's Manuscript on United States Foreign Policy
- "Letters of a Russian Diplomat to an American Friend" [1 of 4]
Box 39
- "Letters of a Russian Diplomat to an American Friend" [2 of 4]
- "Letters of a Russian Diplomat to an American Friend" [3 of 4]
- "Letters of a Russian Diplomat to an American Friend" [4 of 4]
- Miscellaneous Correspondence re China - Book Reviews by John F. Melby
Box 40
- Manuscript, "Rubber River" [Melby's PhD Dissertation, University of Texas at El Paso] [1 of 3]
- Manuscript, "Rubber River" [Melby's PhD Dissertation, University of Texas at El Paso] [2 of 3]
- Manuscript, "Rubber River" [Melby's PhD Dissertation, University of Texas at El Paso] [3 of 3]
- Brazil - Antigua
- Ecuador - Rubber
- Correspondence with Truman Library and the Hoover Institute [re Melby's papers]
- Brasil Constroi No. 10
- President Sukarno's Visit to the United States, May 16 to June 3, 1956