Woodward, Stanley Papers

Officer, United States Army, 1918; Foreign Service Officer, 1925-1934, 1937-1953; Assistant Chief of Protocol, 1937-1944; Chief of Protocol at the State Department, 1946-1950; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Canada, 1950-1953; Treasurer, Democratic National Committee, 1953-1955

A majority of the documents in the Stanley Woodward Papers are dated after his service in the Truman Administration as its Chief of Protocol and Ambassador to Canada. These letters, reports, newspaper clippings, and memoranda show that Woodward remained a staunch supporter of Truman beyond his years of service. The papers include a large amount of personal correspondence - handwritten and typed - between Harry S. Truman and Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Woodward; a summary report by Woodward on his mission in Canada; an editorial in the Washington Post by Woodward addressing Truman's attendance at a ceremony marking the tenth anniversary of the U.N. Charter; statements by the former President regarding foreign affairs in the Middle East and Asia; a report by the 85th Congress addressing retirement privileges for former Presidents; articles written by Truman for the North American Newspaper Alliance; a report by Felix Greene on the status of China; a program from the dedication of the George C. Marshall Research Library; a series of articles by Truman detailing his trip to Europe in 1956; press releases regarding the transfer of Truman's papers to the Government of the United States; an informational pamphlet about the Truman Library; and programs from birthday celebrations for the former President. The collection has one series, a Subject File, and is arranged in alphabetical order, and thereunder chronologically.

[Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List]

---

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Size: Less than one-half of one linear foot (approximately 600 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: Stanley Woodward donated his copyright interest in writings in these files to the United States government. Documents created by U.S. government officials in the course of their official duties are likewise in the public domain. Copyright interest in any other writings in these files is assumed to remain with the authors of the documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Harry Clark Jr. (1965).
Updated by: Wendy M. Henderson (2001) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program.
Supervising Archivists: Amy Williams and Randy Sowell.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

---

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

1899 (March 12)		Born, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1918		Served in US Army in World War I
1922		A.B. Yale University
1923-24		Student, Ecoles de Sciences Politiques, Paris
1925		Appointed Foreign Service Officer, Dept. of State
1926-29		Foreign Service Officer, Geneva, Switzerland
1929-33		Foreign Service Officer, Brussels, Belgium
1933-34		Foreign Service Officer, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
1934-37		Fairmont Park Commissioner, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1937-44		Assistant Chief of Protocol, State Department
1946 (July 15)		Appointed Chief of Protocol at the State Department
1950		Termination of Appointment as Chief of Protocol
1950-53		Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Canada
1951		LL.D. University of B.C.
1952		LL.D. Laval University
1952		D.C.L. Bishop's University
1953 (January 15)		Resigned as Ambassador
1953-55		Treasurer, Democratic National Committee
1956 (May-June)		Accompanied Ex-President Harry S. Truman and Bess Truman on their trip to Europe, joined by wife, Shirley Woodward, and Mr. Eugene Bailey
1992 (August 17)		Died, Washington, D.C.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

---

COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

The Stanley Woodward Papers include personal correspondence between Woodward and former President Harry S. Truman from roughly 1950-1960, as well as many materials written or dictated by Truman of a more political nature. Woodward served in the Truman Administration as the Chief of Protocol at the State Department from 1946-1950 and later as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Canada from 1950-1953. His relationship with Truman reached far beyond his official services, however, and the handwritten and typed letters contained within the collection illustrate the depth of the friendship between the two men. Included in the collection are letters relating to visits to the homes of both men, programs from birthday celebrations commemorating the former President, and letters written by Truman after Woodward's service as Chief of Protocol, asking for advice on international decorum. Indeed, the main focus of the collection is not the political accomplishments of Stanley Woodward, but the relationship between Woodward and the former President. In 1956, Woodward and his wife Shirley accompanied Harry and Bess Truman on their trip to Europe, with Mr. Eugene Bailey serving as the group's secretary.

The Woodward Papers consist of one series, a Subject File, and are arranged in alphabetical order, and thereunder chronologically. The collection measures less than one-half of one linear foot, approximately 600 pages. Although Woodward's service as Ambassador ended in 1953, most of the materials in the collection extend beyond that year. Of those documents from the 1950-1953 period, most consist of personal correspondence regarding visits, the deaths of mutual friends (Charlie Ross, Joe Short) and Woodward's appointment as Ambassador. Of note, however, is Woodward's report on his mission to Canada, in which he addresses such issues as the St. Lawrence Seaway, Canadian defense, consular affairs, and the organization and administration problems in Canada. A noticeable absence within the collection is any correspondence regarding the war in Korea taking place during these years.

Filed along with many messages between the Woodward and Truman families over the years are a statement made by the former President regarding Soviet Russia, the Eisenhower Administration, and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East; articles written by Truman for the North American Newspaper Alliance addressing Red China and developments in Asia; a report by Felix Greene on the status of China; a speech delivered by Truman upon receiving an honorary degree from Oxford University; the itineraries for the Woodward/Truman European Trip of 1956; a series of articles from Europe by former President Truman; press releases and letters regarding the transfer of Truman's papers to the U.S. Government; and a pamphlet describing the plans for the Harry S. Truman Library.

Perhaps the most valuable contents in the collection for gaining an overall view of former President Truman are the articles written during his European trip of 1956. From these articles, one gains a perspective on Truman the man, Truman the President, and Truman the historian. Travelling across the continent, Truman reflects on his first trip there in 1918, the history of European religion, the prosperity and recovery apparent since the conclusion of World War II, his decision to drop the atomic bomb, NATO, and steps for achieving lasting peace. He comments as well on the differing ideologies of communist and democratic states. Economically, he touches on the effects of the Marshall Plan, plans for the Common Market, and the Point-Four Program.

Also of particular interest is the folder dealing with the Harry S. Truman Library. A press release dated September 28, 1953 describes preparations for the transfer of Truman's papers to the Government of the United States, and another press release from September 29 of that year discusses the authorization for construction of the Library. An informational fact sheet written by the General Service Administration is also present. Letters asking for contributions for the development of the Library are also contained in the collection, as well as the contribution and donation cards that were used. The last folder contains White House envelopes, some of which are postmarked, and one of which has the presidential wax seal on the front flap.

Other materials at the Truman Library that relate to Stanley Woodward include Official File #2722 and President's Personal File #3871, in the White House Central Files of the Harry S. Truman Papers. Other documents pertaining to Woodward can be found in the Post-Presidential Papers, in the Secretary's Office File, and in the Name File.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Biographical Sketch | Collection Description | Series Descriptions | Folder Title List ]

---