On April 12, 1944, the U.S. legation in Jidda, Saudi Arabia, dispatched a despatch to the Department of State. Enclosed was a sealed envelope containing a letter from King Ibn Saud to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The legation was not provided with a copy of the letter, so it could not provide a translation along … Continue reading Presidential Humor, 1944
In today’s world, a President of the United States travelling anywhere in the World is constantly in touch with the White House and government agencies through sophisticated and secure means of communications. The President is literally never out of touch. This has not always been true. While Presidents have always left Washington, DC, to travel … Continue reading Keeping in Touch with a Traveling President, 1940
King George VI King George VI of Great Britain died on February 6, 1952, at Sandringham House. He had come to the throne in December 1936 upon the abdication of his brother Edward VII. Edward gave up the throne in order to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson. George, as the second son, had not … Continue reading Responding to the Death of King George VI
In July 1943, World War II raged around the world. In Europe, the combined U.S./British bombing campaign against Germany proceeded. In Nazi-occupied areas, mass murder continued. On July 5, on the Eastern Front, the huge and pivotal battle of Kursk began. In the Mediterranean, U.S. and British forces were about to invade Sicily on July … Continue reading Love Among the Ruins (Apologies to Robert Browning et. al.)
Today's post was written by David Langbart, archivist in Textual Reference at the National Archives at College Park, MD. The PBS miniseries Atlantic Crossing tells a story of a princess stealing the heart of the president of the United States in a made-for-television drama about the World War II relationship of President Franklin D. Roosevelt … Continue reading Atlantic Crossing: The Christmas Visit
Today's post was written by David Langbart, archivist in Textual Reference at the National Archives at College Park. Franklin D. Roosevelt began his second term in office on January 20, 1937, the first President inaugurated on that day and month. In February, reflecting his frustration with the Supreme Court's numerous negative decisions on New Deal … Continue reading Foreign Reaction to Reforming the Supreme Court, 1937
Today's post was written by David Langbart, archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park. The October 1935 issue of The Atlantic Monthly included an article entitled "Worse Than Arnold" by Burton J. Hendrick. That article was a preview from Hendrick's book The Lees of Virginia. Hendrick, a graduate of … Continue reading FDR and Diplomatic Security, 1935
Today’s post is written by David Langbart, an Archivist in the Textual Records Division at the National Archives at College Park. {This is a revision of an earlier post.} In late October 1933, as the end of the first year of his Presidency drew near, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent the following note to Secretary … Continue reading Presidential Holiday Greetings, 1933
This is the third and final post in a three-part series on the Uncle Sam poster for the Security of War Information campaign. Today’s post is written by Daniel Dancis, an Archivist in the Textual Processing Branch at the National Archives in College Park, MD. In October 1943, Representative Harold Knutson (R-MN) charged the U.S. … Continue reading Propaganda, Politics, and the Personification of FDR: The Uncle Sam Poster Controversy
Today’s post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park During the first months of 1942, two individuals in the Office of Facts and Figures, within the Office for Emergency Management of the Executive Office of the President, drew up lists of newspapers critical of the Roosevelt Administration.[1] … Continue reading “Fake News” 1942: President Roosevelt and the Chicago Tribune
