China: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1930-1939: Part 1 - This is one of two digital collections based on the microfilm title, Records of the Department of State Relating to the Internal Affairs of China, 1930-1939. Contained here are reels 1 – 99. Part of the General Record of the Department of State, the files are in Class 8: Internal Affairs of States. The documents are primarily instructions to -- and dispatches from -- U.S. diplomatic and consular staff. Subjects include political and governmental affairs; records on Bolshevism, fascism, Nazism, and socialism; issues relating to public order; and military and naval affairs.

China: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1930-1939: Part 2 - This is one two collections based on the Records of the Department of State Relating to the Internal Affairs of China, 1930-1939. Contained here are reels 100 - 167. Part of the General Record of the Department of State, the files are in Class 8: Internal Affairs of States. The document are primarily instructions to -- and dispatches from -- U.S. diplomatic and consular staff. Subjects include social issues, education, entertainment, communications, the public press, economy and industry, and other topics. 

China: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1940-1944 - China in the Second World War is the focus of this collection. Documents include correspondence from the American Chamber of Commerce of Shanghai (September 1940); discussions calling for protection of American newspapers in China prior to United States entry into the war; letters to Sumner Welles, undersecretary of state; documents noting “unfavorable comments made by Japanese controlled press ... concerning foreigners and policies of the United States and Great Britain” (June 1941); the correspondence of Everett F. Drumright, American consul (August 1942); samples of “Chinese Communist publications” supplied by the Embassy at Chungking under cover of dispatches (June 1943); among many other unique holdings. Topics include the wartime relations between the United States and China, with emphasis on China’s military position and U.S. efforts to give military assistance; U.S. Army analysis of military operations; U.S. interests regarding Kuomintang-Communist relations and negotiations; and efforts to provide technical assistance to China and to facilitate greater cultural cooperation between the United States and China.

China: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1945-1949 - This archive is based on the microfilm title, Records of the Department of State Relating to the Internal Affairs of China, 1945-1949. Part of the General Record of the Department of State, the files are in Class 8: Internal Affairs of States. The document are primarily instructions to -- and dispatches from -- U.S. diplomatic and consular staff. Subjects include politics, military affairs, economy, and society, with separate files on provinces such as Manchuria, Yunnan, and Tibet. Folders on narcotics, entertainment, motion pictures, and other topics are also featured.

Chinese Maritime Customs Service Publications - The Maritime Customs Service of China (1854–1949) compiled and produced a huge number of publications from 1860 to 1949. These publications fall under six series: Statistical Series, Special Series, Miscellaneous Series, Service Series, Office Series, and Inspectorate Series. Out of these, the Statistical Series boasted the largest output. This collection incorporates the core of the Statistical Series, including Returns of the Import and Export Trade, 1859-1866; Returns of Trade at the Ports in China Open by Treaty, 1867-1881; Returns of Trade at the Treaty Ports and Trade Report, 1882-1919; Chinese Version of Return of Trade and Reports of Trade (missing 1885); Foreign Trade of China, 1920-1931; The Trade of China, 1932-1948 (bilingual); Decennial Reports on the Trade, Industries, etc. of the Ports Open to Foreign Commerce, and on the Condition and Development of the Treaty Port Provinces.

Chinese Maritime Customs Service: The Customs’ Gazette, 1869-1913 - The Chinese Maritime Customs Service (中国海关; CMCS) was established in 1854 during the Qing Dynasty and operated until the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. The Service was run by an international-- predominantly British-staffed—team and the last foreign Inspector-General resigned in 1950. Established to collect taxes on maritime trade when Chinese officials were unable to collect them during the Taiping Rebellion, its functions quickly expanded. It became responsible for domestic customs administration (the Native Customs), postal administration, harbor and waterway management, weather reporting, and anti- smuggling operations. It mapped, lit, and policed the China coast and the Yangtze river. It was involved in loan negotiations, currency reform, and financial and economic management. It was always much more than just a tax collection agency, was well informed about local conditions, deeply involved in local, provincial, and national politics, and in international affairs. The Service further involved itself in China's diplomacy, organized its representation at nearly thirty world fairs and exhibitions, and ran various educational establishments. Among its various publications, the Customs Gazette is a quarterly published by order of the Inspector General of Customs of China in Shanghai. It was established in 1869 and ceased publication in 1913. The Gazette publishes quarterly reports on trade prepared and submitted by the custom houses based across the country such as Newchuang, Tientsin, Chefoo, Hankow, Chinkiang, Ningpo, Foochow, Amoy, Swatow, Tamsui, Takow, Kiukiang, and Canton. Each report covers figures of vehicles, imports, exports, re-exports, internal transit, passenger traffic, revenue, etc. There are also sections in the Gazette on quarterly reports on dues and duties, précis of fines and confiscations, notifications, movement in the service, and appendixes. The Gazette had published a total of 180 issues and this collection contains 152 of them. and the missing issues are 29-36, 49-56, 61-64, and 77-84.  

Economic Cooperation Administration's Relief Mission in Post-War China, 1946-1948 - This collection demonstrates how officials of the Economic Cooperation Administration (ECA) looked for economic and cultural opportunities to promote U.S.-China relations, despite the prevailing Cold War suspicions of any and all communists in the early Cold War era. Topics include ECA efforts to urge the U.S. State Department to pursue a friendly economic policy toward Communist China and not to jeopardize U.S.-China economic relations; ECA representation of the opinion of many American businessmen in the face of U.S. State Department and White House opposition; the failure of the Marshall Mission to China to politicize the U.S. economic policy toward China; the effectiveness of the ECA’s implementation of aid to China; and information on the China Aid Act as part of Title IV of the Foreign Assistance Act. Documents include records of Donald S. Gilpatric, foreign service officer; regional offices correspondences; chronological files and cables; interoffice memos; subject files of the office of the director; among other records.

Evangelism in China: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1837-1911 - The American Presbyterian Church was committed at its inception to the belief that it is a missionary church and that every member is a missionary. The establishment in 1837 of the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Missions signaled the beginning of a worldwide missionary operation destined to embrace some fifteen countries in four different continents The records offered here provide invaluable information on social conditions in China and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Documenting the church’s educational, evangelical, and medical work, these are records mainly of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters.

FBI File on Owen Lattimore - An American sinologist and college professor, Owen Lattimore (1900–1989) traveled extensively and did research throughout China, Manchuria, Mongolia, and Chinese Turkistan. From 1938-1950, he served as director of the Page School of International Relations at Johns Hopkins. In 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy accused him of being a Soviet espionage agent. A senate committee exonerated him later that year. In 1952, he was indicted on seven counts of perjury on the charge that he lied when he told a Senate internal security subcommittee earlier in 1952 that he had not promoted Communism and Communist interests. In 1955, the Justice Department dropped all charges against him. Most of the material in this file relates to Lattimore's leftist sympathies and catalogs how he became a victim of McCarthyism.

General George C. Marshall's Mission to China, 1945-1947 - In November 1945, President Truman appointed General George C. Marshall as special envoy to China and instructed him to negotiate a cease-fire agreement between Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist troops and Chinese Communist forces. Marshall met at length with Chiang, Chou En-lai, and Mao Tse-tung. Although a cease-fire was declared in January 1946, peace negotiations stalled over the question of political unification. Marshall returned to the United States in early 1947 without having reached a solution. This collection comprises the complete records of the Marshall mission and  are among the best English-language sources available for studying the Chinese political and military situations following World War II, as well as U.S. policy there. The minutes of Marshall's meetings and reports and memoranda prepared by U.S. advisers are all included. Information on the military front is provided by reports from U.S. observers in the field who investigated cease-fire violations.

German Foreign Relations and Military Activities in China, 1919-1935 - This collection provides documentation on Germany’s relations with China during the interwar period. Germany was instrumental in modernizing China’s industrial base and provided a military training mission and equipment for the armed forces of the Republic of China prior to the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Norman Bethune Papers - Dr. Norman Bethune (白求恩; 1890–1939), a Canadian thoracic surgeon, is a national hero in China. A dedicated Communist, he helped the Loyalists in the Spanish Civil War. Two years later he went to China to help the Red Army. He died of blood poisoning while operating with the Chinese Eight Route Army, in November 1939. Mao Zedong, who only met Bethune once briefly, lionized him in an essay for his selfless dedication to others. This essay was included in the Red Book and Mao's collected works, and was mandatory reading in China. The Norman Bethune Papers consists of letter correspondences, newspaper and magazine clippings, photographs, pamphlets, and research materials selected from several sub-collections including Norman Bethune Collection, Bethune Foundation Fonds, Roderick Stewart Fonds, Louis and Irene Kon Fonds, and Maurice McGregor Fonds.

Papers of American Missionaries to Asia: Arthur M. Guttery and YMCA China - Arthur M. Guttery (1885–1981) was both an organizer and missionary for the YMCA in the United States and China. Beginning his career with the YMCA in the U.S., Guttery and his wife, Myrtle, departed for the “Y” location in Hankow, China in 1913. Here he was both preacher and teacher in the language school. For 15 years, the Rev. Guttery served as general secretary for the YMCA and helped to organize and establish the program when Wuhan was in the center of a rising tide of Communism. He then returned to the U.S., where he continued to serve with the YMCA until 1948. This collection contains Guttery’s sermons, religious addresses, essays on China, correspondence, and memoirs of YMCA workers in China.

Papers of American Missionaries to Asia: The Ashmore Family in China, Thailand, and Japan, 1850–1937 - William Ashmore, Jr. embarked upon a Baptist missionary career in his father’s territory, the Swatow District in Bangkok, Siam. Here, he worked as an administrator and teacher at the mission and translated the Bible into Swatow’s Tei-chi dialect. The Ashmore Family Papers are divided into eight series, arranged by family members and by medium. This collection consists of correspondence; writings by and about William and his wife, Lida Ashmore, and other members of their family; memorabilia; photographs; and artwork. Some of the most important pieces are those that highlight William, Jr.’s achievements as a translator and member of a long history of missionary service in South China.

Papers of American Missionaries to Asia: Jay C. and Lucile C. Oliver and YMCA China - Jay Charles Oliver served as Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) secretary in Hangchow and Shanghai, China from 1917 to 1943. He also served as district inspector, Inspectorate of Salt Revenue in China, from 1934 to 1936. He was interned in the Chapei Civil Assembly Center near Shanghai, repatriated upon the MS Gripsholm, and returned to the United States with his wife, Lucile, in 1943. The collection comprises papers of Jay C. and Lucile C. Oliver, including family and professional correspondence, personal and travel diaries, and official records of the YMCA and the Salt Inspectorate in China.

Papers of British Consulates and Legation in China (1722-1951) - This collection contains miscellaneous papers and reports from the British legation and consulates in China. Specifically, it comprises a catalogue of embassy archives, 1727 to 1859; trade and intelligence reports; records of legal proceedings; miscellaneous papers, some in Chinese, of the Chinese Secretary's Office; an entry book of papers relating to the East India Company in China; claims arising from Sino-Japanese hostilities, 1927 to 1940; accounts; circulars, etc.

Papers of American Missionaries to Asia: Missionaries associated with Fujian and Taiwan, 1889–1976 - This fascinating collection compiles 12 subcollections of papers of American missionaries associated with Fujian and Taiwan in southeastern China, including diaries, letters, newsletters, sermons, photographs, and manuscripts. The records chronicle their personal experience in their respective provinces as well as administrative matters with churches back home in the United States.

Policing the Shanghai International Settlement, 1894-1945 - This collection provides researchers with the opportunity to explore a unique period in China’s struggle toward a modern existence through the International Settlement in Shanghai.

Political Relations and Conflict between Republican China and Imperial Japan, 1930-1939: Records of the U.S. State Department - The records in this collection relate to political relations between China and Japan for the period 1930 -1939. The records are mostly instructions to and dispatches from diplomatic and consular officials; the despatches are often accompanied by enclosures. Also included in these records are notes between the Department of State and foreign diplomatic representatives in the United States, memorandums prepared by officials of the Department. There are records on: the Japanese occupation of Manchuria, beginning with the Mukden incident, in 1931; military action at Shanghai in 1932; further Japanese political and economic penetration into China, 1935-1936; and the course of the undeclared war between Japan and China, 1937-1939.

Political Relations Between China, the U.S. and Other Countries, 1910-1929 - This collection includes the microfilmed U.S. Department of State records for 1910-1929 relating to the political relations between the United States and China and relations between China and other states. The collection includes instructions to and despatches from diplomatic and consular officials; the despatches are often accompanied with enclosures. Also included in these records are the correspondence, reports, and journals of the commissions concerned with extraterritoriality in China, as well as notes between the Department of State and foreign diplomatic representatives in the United States, memoranda prepared by officials of the Department, and correspondence with officials of other government departments and with private firms and individuals.

Political, Economic, and Military Conditions in China: Reports and Correspondence of the U.S. Military Intelligence Division, 1918-1941 - The documents in this collection are from the Military Intelligence Division (MID) relating to conditions in China from 1918 to 1941. In addition, there are documents created by other U.S. Government agencies and foreign governments.  The MID documents from which the six file categories (general conditions, political conditions, economic conditions, army, navy, and aeronautics) reproduced in this collection were extracted is a part of the Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, Record Group (RG) 165.

Records of the U.S. Information Service in China: Chinese Press Reviews and Summaries, 1944-1950 - This collection of essential U.S. Information Service collections on the Civil War period provides a unique opportunity to understand immediate post-World War II Chinese history, comparative revolution, and early Cold War history. This combination of smaller press collections weave together the strands of military, social, political, and free world history and includes an analysis of how the Chinese Communist Party achieved victory in the Chinese civil war of 1946-1950.

Records of US State Department's Division of Chinese Affairs - This collection consists of inter and intradepartmental memorandums, reports, position papers, summaries, maps, photographs, and despatches (from US Foreign Service officers and military personnel) relating to the internal political affairs of China and United States foreign policy toward China.

Shanghai International Settlement: Urban Planning and Development, 1845–1948 - A collection comprising land assessment schedules, land lists, land regulations and by-laws, rules on buildings, as well as files relating to public utility services, transportation, and other urban infrastructure and facilities in the Shanghai International Settlement.

Shanghai Municipal Council: The Municipal Gazette, 1908-1940 -  The Shanghai Municipal Council (SMC) was founded on 11 July 1854 by a group of Western businessmen to govern the daily operation and infrastructure of the Shanghai International Settlement. By the mid-1880s, the Council had become a practical monopoly over the city's businesses.  The SMC was dissolved on December 17, 1943. As the official organ of the Shanghai Municipal Council, The Municipal Gazette was established in 1908 and ceased publication in 1942. Published every Friday, the Gazette publishes notifications, departmental reports, letters from readers, minutes of Council meetings, municipal budget, monthly summary of revenue, financial statements on income and expenditures, policies and orders formulated by the council. This is a complete collection of the Gazette, containing all 35 volumes. 

Subject Files of US State Department's Office of the Republic of China Affairs (1951-1978) - This collection consists of briefing books, correspondence, memoranda, policy papers, reports, statistics, and other miscellaneous records from the Office of the Country Director for the Republic of China.

The Amerasia Affair, China, and Postwar Anti-Communist Fervor - The Amerasia Affair was the first of the great spy cases of the postwar era.  It prompted several congressional investigations, stirred-up partisan controversy and threatened to destroy the political reputations of several government officials.

The Chinese Civil War and U.S.-China Relations: Records of the U.S. State Department's Office of Chinese Affairs, 1945-1955 - The U.S. State Department’s Office of Chinese Affairs, charged with operational control of American policy toward China, amassed information on virtually all aspects of life there immediately before, during, and after the revolution. Declassified by the State Department, the Records of the Office of Chinese Affairs, 1945-1955, provide valuable insight into numerous domestic issues in Communist and Nationalist China, U.S. containment policy as it was extended to Asia, and Sino-American relations during the post-war period. This product comprises all 41 reels of the former Scholarly Resources microfilm product entitled Records of the Office of Chinese Affairs, 1945-1955.

The Chinese Recorder and the Protestant Missionary Community in China, 1867-1941 - Knowledge was valuable to the Christian missionaries who went to China in the nineteenth century. They wanted to spread the knowledge of Western Christianity and technology to the Chinese, but also they wished to exchange information among themselves about the work they were doing. The need to keep informed about the activities of their counterparts in other locations in the country was evident very soon after they arrived in China. Although the first Protestant missionary reached China in 1807, missionaries were not legally permitted to live in the interior of the country until after the signing of the 1860 treaties between China and Britain and France.

The Earl George Macartney Collection - This is a collection of a great variety of records related to Earl George Macartney’s historic mission to China during 1792–1794. The mission was dispatched by King George III of Britain in the name of congratulating Emperor Qianlong’s 83rd birthday. The mission’s goals included the opening of new ports for British trade in China, the establishment of a permanent embassy in Beijing, the cession of a small island for British use along China's coast, and the relaxation of trade restrictions on British merchants in Guangzhou (Canton). The mission left Britain in September 1792 on HMS Lion and HMS Hindustan; and the voyage to China took Macartney and his entourage a year. Macartney met with the Chinese emperor in September 1793 but his requests were all rejected due to competing worldviews and huge cultural differences between the two sides. This Cornell University Library collection consists of letters, journals, logbooks, watercolors, engravings, and books (illustrated accounts of the expedition/mission) produced by Macartney himself and those who accompanied him on the mission in various capacities such as secretaries, commanders/captains, officers, comptroller, artists, guards, and servants. According to Prof Robert Swanson (U of Birmingham), while records related to this mission are dispersed in many different libraries/archives across the world, the Cornell East Asian Library (Charles Wason Collection) “contains the largest accumulation of material associated with the [George Macartney’s] mission.” 

The Minutes of the Shanghai Municipal Council - This collection replicates all the minutes of meetings held by the Board of Directors of the Shanghai Municipal Council from July 1854 to December 1943. A wide range of topics were discussed at these board meetings, such as sanitation, transportation, telecommunication and postal service, taxation, urban planning, gas supply, street lighting, rickshaw operator management, animal protection, and police system. The minutes taken from July 1854 to December 1906 are handwritten while the rest are typewritten.

Tiananmen Square and U.S.-China relations, 1989-1993 - This digital collection reviews U.S.-China relations in the post-Cold War Era, and analyzes the significance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations, China’s human rights issues, and resumption of World Bank loans to China in July 1990.

Country Intelligence Reports/State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research Reports Japan (1941-1961) - This series consists of reports, studies, and surveys on various topics of interest to the Department of State. The reports vary from short memorandums to detailed, documented studies. The topics range from individual commodities or countries to the economic and political characteristics of whole regions. This collection consists of research and intelligence reports prepared during 1941-1947 on Japan.

Evangelism in Japan: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1859-1911 - The American Presbyterian Church was committed at its inception to the belief that it is a missionary church and that every member is a missionary. The establishment in 1837 of the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Missions signaled the beginning of a worldwide missionary operation destined to embrace some fifteen countries in four different continents The records offered here provide invaluable information on social conditions in Japan and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Documenting the church’s educational, evangelical, and medical work, these are records mainly of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters.

Japan and Korea: Summation of Nonmilitary Activities, 1945-1948 - The rebuilding of postwar Japan and southern Korea by Allied occupation forces is described herein a series of thirty-six monthly reports. The reports offer detailed information on industrial reparations; conversion of production from military to consumer goods; land reform; restructuring of educational, public health, and welfare programs; and the establishment of a liberal, democratic political system. The reports on SCAP (Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers) activities in Korea cover the administration of civil affairs and reconstructive efforts under the military occupation government and later the South Korean Interim Government. This digital archive is based on eight microfilm rolls.

Japan at War and Peace, 1930-1949: U.S. State Department Records on the Internal Affairs of Japan - During the 1920s and early 1930s, Japan progressed toward a democratic system of government. However, parliamentary government was not rooted deeply enough to withstand the economic and political pressures of the 1930s, during which expansionism and militarization became increasingly influential in government and society.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Commercial Relations, 1910-1949 - This archive reproduces microfilm of the U.S. Department of State Decimal Files 611.94 and 6194.11. The documents trace the commercial relations between the United States and Japan over the course of almost half a century in the years 1910-1929, 1930-1939, 1940-1944, and 1945-1949. The files are predominantly instructions to -- and despatches from -- diplomatic and consular officials. Notes between the Department of State and foreign diplomats in the United States, memoranda prepared by State Department officials, and correspondence with officials of other government departments and with private businesses and persons are also featured. Subjects include: advertising, aircraft, commerce, customs administration, drug regulations, duties, embargo, free ports, landing certificates, law, markets, merchandise, prison-made goods, pure food, and drug regulations, smuggling, tariff treaties, export and import trade, undervaluation of imported merchandise, among many other topics.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Commercial Relations, 1950-1963 - This archive reproduces Decimal File 494 and is based on the microfilm title Records Relating to U.S. Commercial Relations with Japan, for the years 1950-1954, 1955-1959, and 1960-1963. The documents in this collection are predominantly instructions to -- and despatches from -- diplomatic and consular officials are often accompanied by enclosures. Notes between the Department of State and foreign diplomats in the United States, memoranda prepared by State Department officials, and correspondence with officials of other government departments and with private businesses and persons are also included.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs, 1950-1954 - The documents in this collection are predominantly instructions to and dispatches from U.S. diplomatic and consular staff regarding political, economic, military, social, and other internal conditions in Japan. Documents also include reports and memoranda prepared by U.S. State Department staff, communications between the State Department and foreign governments, and correspondence with other departments of the U.S. government, private firms, and individuals. Contained here are U.S. Department of State Decimal Files 794, 894, and 994, entitled Records Relating to the Internal Affairs of Japan, for the years 1950-1954.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs, 1955-1959 - The documents in this collection are predominantly instructions to and dispatches from U.S. diplomatic and consular staff regarding political, economic, military, social, and other internal conditions in Japan. Documents also include reports and memoranda prepared by U.S. State Department staff, communications between the State Department and foreign governments, and correspondence with other departments of the U.S. government, private firms, and individuals. Contained here are U.S. Department of State Decimal Files 794, 894, and 994, entitled Records Relating to the Internal Affairs of Japan, for the years 1955-1959.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Political Relations, 1930-1939 - The year 1931 stands as a major turning point in Japan’s modern history. In September 1931 Japanese armed forces overran Manchuria, committing their government to a course of direct action in Asia and, ultimately, to the rejection of the structure of international relations which had emerged in the 1920s. By 1940 Japan was caught up in a cycle of extreme nationalism, isolation, and ultimately war with the United States. This archive charts a key decade in U.S.-Japanese relations. It is one of three digital collections based on the microfilm title Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to United States Political Relations with Japan, 1930-1954. The source material contains Decimal File 711.94.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Political Relations, 1940-1944 - This archive traces the outbreak of the U.S. war with Japan in December 1941 through 1944. It is one of three digital collections based on the microfilm title Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to United States Political Relations with Japan, 1930-1954. The source material contains Decimal File 711.94.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Political Relations, 1945-1949 - Japan in the summer of 1945 was a nation totally exhausted by war. The Allied Occupation, dedicated to political and social reform, thoroughly transformed the country in a remarkably short period of time. This is one of three digital collections based on the microfilm title Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to United States Political Relations with Japan, 1930-1954. The source material contains Decimal File 711.94.

Japan: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1950-1959 - In 1945 Japan was a devastated and occupied country. A decade later it reemerged as an independent state within an American-led order of capitalist states. This rapid transformation was the product of the unusual circumstances of the U.S. occupation and the global rivalry of the Cold War. Eager to ensure Japan’s dependability as an anti-Communist ally in Asia, staunch anti-Communist leaders found favor with the occupation, and postwar Japan was born as a coalescence of renewed commitments to democracy and an East Asia fractured by U.S.-Soviet rivalry. The primary beneficiaries of this formula became Japan’s export industries. Favorable currency exchange rates gave Japanese manufactures easy access to the large U.S. market. In these years, Japan’s economy grew at a double-digit pace. Commercial documents include, for example, Pacific Ocean Fisheries Convention between the United States, Canada, and Japan (1950); the duty of frozen tuna fish (1951); finding of “radioactive radiation in the fisherman, fish and boat affected by the explosion of the hydrogen bomb at Bikini” (March 1954); records of Philippine tourists to Japan 1953-1956. Diplomatic correspondences include those of U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and discussions of U.S.-Japanese policies in the Pacific and East Asia (June 1957).

Japan: U.S. Naval Technical Mission, 1945-1946 - The U.S. Naval Technical Mission to Japan was established on 14 August 1945. The purpose of the mission was to survey Japanese scientific and technological developments of interest to the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps in the Japanese islands of Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu, Hokkaido; China; and parts of Korea. The enterprise entailed the seizure of intelligence material, its examination, the interrogation of personnel, and ultimately the preparation of reports which would appraise the technological status of Japanese industry and the Japanese navy. During the period of operation, a total of 655 officers and men served the organization and 185 individual reports were published.

Japan-U.S. Economic Relations Group Records, 1979-1981 - On May 2, 1979, President Jimmy Carter and Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira met in Washington, D.C., and agreed to establish the Japan-U.S. Economic Relations Group—informally known as the “Wise Men.”  This small group of distinguished persons drawn from private life would submit recommendations to Carter and Ohira for maintaining a healthy bilateral economic relationship between the United States and Japan.  Among the issues considered were the role of economic issues in the overall “political-security-cultural relationship,” especially Japan’s emerging position as a world power; Japan’s future comprehensive economic security needs; and its involvement in foreign assistance programs. The Group actively solicited the views of the American public (Congress, business, labor, agriculture, public interest groups) to provide an additional forum for those who wished to be heard.  The Group also drew upon research that was currently underway in the two countries and sponsored a modest program of separate independent research.  

Records of the Far Eastern Commission, 1945–1952 - All the activities of the multinational Far Eastern Commission (FEC), which oversaw the postwar governing and reconstruction of Japan, are fully documented in this publication. The collection includes two distinct sets of records: The first set contains the FEC's official policy statements, or action plans. The commission released statements on practically every aspect of the occupation, ranging from Japan's post-surrender policy to all facets of that country's economic development. The second set contains primary materials upon which policy statements were formulated and includes: reports, photographs, clippings, and position papers for investigation of the economic and political reconstruction of Japan, and the interactions of powerful nations with very different objectives.

The Papers of Sir Ernest Mason Satow - A collection of prominent British diplomat Ernest M. Satow's private, diplomatic and other correspondence, letter books, diaries, and papers. Sir Ernest Mason Satow (1843–1929) was a legendary British diplomat, a key figure in East Asia and Anglo-Japanese and -Chinese relations, particularly in Bakumatsu (1853–1867) and Meiji Era (1868–1912) Japan, and in China after the Boxer Rebellion (1900–1906). He also served in Siam (present-day Thailand), Uruguay, and Morocco, and represented Britain at the Second Hague Peace Conference in 1907. This collection, sourced from the UK National Archives, consists of Satow's private, diplomatic and other correspondence, letter books, diaries, and papers. His diary included herein covers a period of over sixty-five years (1861 to 1926). With the exception of a few drafts among those addressed to Lord Reay, the letters are all originals that appear to have been returned to Sir Ernest Satow after the death of their several recipients. 

Country Intelligence Reports/State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research Reports Korea (1941-1961) - This series consists of reports, studies, and surveys on various topics of interest to the Department of State. The reports vary from short memorandums to detailed, documented studies. The topics range from individual commodities or countries to the economic and political characteristics of whole regions. This collection consists of research and intelligence reports prepared during 1941-1947 on Korea.

Evangelism in Korea: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1884-1911 - The American Presbyterian Church was committed at its inception to the belief that it is a missionary church and that every member is a missionary. The establishment in 1837 of the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Missions signaled the beginning of a worldwide missionary operation destined to embrace some fifteen countries in four different continents The records offered here provide invaluable information on social conditions in Korea and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Documenting the church’s educational, evangelical, and medical work, these are records mainly of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters.

Korea: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1930-1963 - This archive documents Korea under Japanese occupation through the postwar period. Japan annexed Korea in 1910, and in the period 1931 to 1945 it ruled Korea by a strict military regime with complete cultural assimilation the order of the day The euphoria following Japan’s defeat, and Korea’s liberation, in 1945 was short-lived as Soviet and American policymakers divided Korea under a joint protectorship. The Korean War, which broke out in 1950, resulted in a strategic stalemate, and the unwillingness of the United Nations to risk a larger conflict with China and perhaps the Soviet Union, ultimately resulted in a 1953 armistice, with Korea divided along roughly prewar lines. Documents from the U.S. Department of State, Division of Far Eastern Affairs, and the U.S. Department of Commerce include: “Annual Report of the Administration of Chosen, 1927-1928: Control of Opium”; “Morphine Addicts in Chosen”; laws and regulations on narcotics; an agricultural report focusing on rice production (1939); issues of repatriation of American citizens from “the Japanese Empire and from Japanese-controlled areas of the Far East” (June 1943); a report from U.S. Secretary of State Dean Rusk on a visit of a Japanese delegation, in April 1962, to South Korea and to North Korea outlining “… the Department’s continuing need for intelligence on North Korea.”

U.S. Army Center of Military History Historical Manuscripts Collection: The Korean War - U.S. participation in the war, plus U.S. relations with Korea immediately before and after, is documented in this unique collection of never-before published documents produced by the Military History Section of the Far East Command. Hundreds of documents created on the scene or shortly thereafter are included, such as after-action interviews and reports, orders, narratives, analyses, charts, maps, and photographs. Authoritative detail is provided on a great range of topics, from individual battles to logistical operations, treatment of prisoners, chemical warfare, and peace negotiations.

19th Century English-Language Journals from the Far East - The six journals included in this collection cover 84 years in the 19th century and together they provide a unique perspective—from the eyes of Westerners—for modern scholars to review the history of Asia, in particular China, in the 19th century. Five of these journals were founded and run in Asia, away from Europe and America; however, they had played an undisputed role in promoting the awareness and study of Asia and especially China among the Westerners. Moreover, China Review is arguably the first major sinology journal in the true sense.    

Country Intelligence Reports/State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research Reports USSR (1941-1961) - This series consists of reports, studies, and surveys on various topics of interest to the Department of State. The reports vary from short memorandums to detailed, documented studies. The topics range from individual commodities or countries to the economic and political characteristics of whole regions. This collection consists of research and intelligence reports prepared during 1941-1947 on USSR.

The Russian Civil War and American Expeditionary Forces in Siberia, 1918-20 - This collection reproduces important letters, reports, memorandums, cablegrams, maps, charts, and other kinds of records relating to the activities of the American Expeditionary Forces in Siberia (hereafter, AEF in Siberia), 1918-20.

United States and the Russian Civil War: The Betty Miller Unterberger Collection of Documents - This collection covers World War I and its immediate aftermath, concentrating on America's role in the Russian Civil War and early relations between the United States and the newly formed Soviet Union. Additional topics include Allied attempts to reopen the Eastern Front after the collapse of Imperial Russia, the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian empire, Allied intervention in Russia, the Czech-Bolshevik conflict, the clash of the United States and Japan in eastern Siberia, and U.S. policy toward Russia at the Paris Peace Conference. This material is the result of decades of research by historian Betty Miller Unterberger, renowned professor of American diplomacy and international history at Texas A&M University and former president of the Society for the History of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR). Consisting of approximately 10,000 documents pulled from over 50 repositories around the world, including the former Soviet Union, most of this collection is in English, with 80 percent of the foreign-language materials having been translated or accompanied by English-language abstracts. Much of this material has never been published before, and the opening of the Russian and Czech Archives in the early 1990s resulted in significant additions to this collection. Each document is preceded by a control sheet produced by Professor Unterberger listing the sender, recipient, date, repository, and a brief description.

World War I and Revolution in Russia, 1914-1918 - This collection documents the Russian entrance into World War I and culminates in reporting on the Revolution in Russia in 1917 and 1918. The documents consist primarily of correspondence between the British Foreign Office, various British missions, and consulates in the Russian Empire and the Tsarist government and later the Provisional Government.

Evangelism in India: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Mission, 1833-1910 - Evangelism in India took the form primarily of village itineration where male and female missionaries ministered to the spiritual needs of the populace while simultaneously attending to their medical and educational needs. The collection documents the Board of Foreign Missions' tripartite ministry (Farukhabad, Punjab, and the West Indian missions) in India but also reflects the development of the modern Indian state in a broader sense. Reaction to foreigners generally and Protestant missionaries specifically, discontent with British rule and the development of the Independence movement, and racial and internecine religious warfare between Hindu and Muslim populations are well documented. 

India from Crown Rule to Republic, 1945-1949: Records of the U.S. State Department - Comprising records of the State Department’s Central Classified Files, this collection contains records relating to the internal affairs of India, during the period 1945-1949. The records include instructions sent to and correspondence received by the State Department; the State Department's internal documentation, as well as correspondence between the Department and other federal departments and agencies, Congress, and private individuals and organizations; telegrams, airgrams, instructions, inquiries, studies, memoranda, situation reports, translations, special reports, plans, and official and unofficial correspondence. There is essential documentation on these subjects: political parties and elections; unrest and revolution; human rights; government; administration; fiscal and monetary issues; labor; housing; police and crime; public health; national defense; foreign policymaking; alliances; religion; culture; education; trade; industry; natural resources; communications; transportation; and many more. These State Department records offer authoritative, in-depth, and timely documentation and analysis that cannot be matched.

India-Pakistan Conflict: Records of the U.S. State Department, February 1963-1966 - Over 16,000 pages of State Department Central Files on India and Pakistan from 1963 through 1966 make this collection a standard documentary resource for the study of the political relations between India and Pakistan during a crucial period in the Cold War and the shifting alliances and alignments in South Asia.

Pakistan from Crown Rule to Republic: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1945-1949 - A companion archive to India from Crown Rule to Republic, 1945-1949, this collection traces the end of British India and the emergence of modern Pakistan. Representative documents with valuable details include the “Economic Survey,” dated April-June 1949, and issued by the Board of Economic Inquiry, West Punjab, Lahore, and “Dacca Newsletter,” dated July 1949. The collection is sourced from the Central Files of the General Records of the Department of State. The records are under the jurisdiction of the Legislative and Diplomatic Branch of the Civil Archives, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

The Hindu Conspiracy Cases: Activities of the Indian Independence Movement in the U.S., 1908-1933 - During World War I, Indian nationalists took advantage of Great Britain’s preoccupation with the European war by attempting to foment revolution in India to overthrow British rule. Their activities were aided politically and financially by the German Government. Indian nationalists in the United States were active in the independence movement effort through fundraising, arms buying, and propagandizing through the Hindustan Ghadar newspaper published in San Francisco. The Justice Department and U.S. Attorney records reproduced herein primarily concern the U.S. government’s prosecution of these nationalists in the “Hindu Conspiracy Case” for violations of the Espionage Act (40 Stat. 217-231) arising from two major incidents. The Immigration and Naturalization Service records reproduced herein relate to efforts to revoke the citizenship of certain Indians naturalized as U.S. citizens, as well as to general efforts to exclude Indians from admission to the United States and Canada.

The Indian Army and Colonial Warfare on the Frontiers of India, 1914-1920 - For generations of British and Indian Officers and men, the North-West Frontier was the scene of repeated skirmishes and major campaigns against the trans-border Pathan tribes who inhabited the mountainous no-man’s land between India and Afghanistan. This collection contains Army Lists; Orders; Instructions; Regulations; Acts; Manuals; Strength Returns; Orders of Battle; Administration Summaries; organization, commissions, committees, reports, maneuvers; departments of the Indian Army; and regimental narratives. This collection is a welcome addition to the new-flourishing literature on the military history of South Asia and the growing field of serious study of the British military experience in India.

Ambassador Graham Martin and the Saigon Embassy's Back Channel Communication Files, 1963-1975 - The bulk of the materials in this collection are "backchannel" cables between the U.S. ambassadors in Saigon (Henry Cabot Lodge, Ellsworth Bunker, and Graham Martin, successively) and the President’s national security advisers (McGeorge Bundy, Henry Kissinger, and Brent Scowcroft, successively) regarding the situation in South Vietnam or the peace negotiations. In addition, there are straight State Department cables, usually between the Secretary of State and the U.S. ambassador in Saigon; talking points prepared for meetings between the ambassador and South Vietnamese officials, mainly President Nguyen Van Thieu; reports and memoranda of conversations of those meetings; drafts of speeches and proposed agreements prepared by both sides; military situation reports; and intelligence reports.

Cambodia: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1960-1963 - This collection provides a window into the political, social, and economic development of Cambodia, the rapidly maturing “modern” state in the heart of Southeast Asia. Traced here is the critical legacy of Prince Norodom Sihanouk (1922-2012), the nation’s controversial and paradoxical leader. Khmer nationalism, loyalty to the monarch, struggle against injustice and corruption, and protection of the Buddhist religion were in the forefront of developments in this period. The archive is an essential resource for the study of Southeast Asian history and the U.S. role in the war in Vietnam. The files are arranged according to the classification system of U.S. State Department Records, and they cover a wide range of internal political affairs. 

Evangelism in Philippines: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1898-1910 - The American Presbyterian Church was committed at its inception to the belief that it is a missionary church and that every member is a missionary. The establishment in 1837 of the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Missions signaled the beginning of a worldwide missionary operation destined to embrace some fifteen countries in four different continents The records offered here provide invaluable information on social conditions in the Philippines and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Documenting the church’s educational, evangelical, and medical work, these are records mainly of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters.

Evangelism in Thailand: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1840-1910 - The American Presbyterian Church was committed at its inception to the belief that it is a missionary church and that every member is a missionary. The establishment in 1837 of the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Missions signaled the beginning of a worldwide missionary operation destined to embrace some fifteen countries in four different continents The records offered here provide invaluable information on social conditions in Siam (renamed Thailand in 1948) and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Documenting the church’s educational, evangelical, and medical work, these are records mainly of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters.

Indochina, France, and the Viet Minh War, 1945-1954: Records of the U.S. State Department, Part 1: 1945-1949 - Comprising records of the State Department’s Central Classified Files, this collection contains records relating to the internal affairs of Indochina, during the period 1945-49. The records include instructions sent to and correspondence received by the State Department; the State Department's internal documentation, as well as correspondence between the Department and other federal departments and agencies, Congress, and private individuals and organizations; telegrams, airgrams, instructions, inquiries, studies, memoranda, situation reports, translations, special reports, plans, and official and unofficial correspondence. 

Intelligence Reports from the National Security Council's Vietnam Information Group, 1967-1975 - Primarily Department of State cables and CIA intelligence information cables concerning South and North Vietnam. Topics include the Vietnam War, U.S.-South Vietnam relations, South Vietnam’s political climate, opposition groups, religious sects, ethnic groups, labor unions, corruption, press censorship, the North Vietnam’s military and economy, peace negotiations, and events in Cambodia and Laos.

Laos: Records of the U.S. Department of State, 1963-1966 - This archive treats the political affairs of Laos in the 1960s, when the United States supported the government of Souvanna Phouma in the face of North Vietnamese aggression. The collection is an essential resource for the study of Southeast Asian history and the U.S. role in the war in Vietnam. It offers a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats including special reports on political and military affairs; studies and statistics on socioeconomic matters; interviews and minutes of meetings with foreign government officials; conference proceedings and international legal documents; full texts of instructions and cables sent and received by U.S. diplomatic personnel; reports and translations from foreign journals and newspapers; translations of high-level foreign government documents, such as speeches; and memoranda, official reports, and transcripts of political meetings and assemblies. 

South Vietnam: Records of the Office of the Defense Attache, 1973-1975 - The Defense Attaché Office (DAO) Saigon was organized and was activated on 28 January 1973. DAO Saigon was a unique organization. It performed the traditional functions of a defense attaché, managed American military affairs in Vietnam after the cease-fire, including the programs for the support of the Republic of Vietnam’s Armed Forces (RVNAF), and furnished housekeeping support to Americans remaining in Vietnam after the ceasefire. Aside from the support of the RVNAF, it reported on operational matters and produced intelligence information on which subsequent decisions concerning the Military Assistance Program and American interests in Southeast Asia could be based. The DAO was evacuated from South Vietnam during the fall of Saigon on April 29, 1975. This collection comprises the DAO’s Historian’s Office files, including the official DAO History and the background files used in its compilation. The background files consist of serial reports, program memoranda and correspondence, operational and planning historical reports, intelligence summaries, briefing papers, press releases, and documents on the ceasefire.

Sukarno and the Army-PKI Rivalry in the Years of Living Dangerously, 1960-1963 - The records in this collection cover the internal and foreign policies, personalities, and events in a pivotal period of Indonesian history. The charismatic leader of Indonesia, Achmed Sukarno, steered his country between the political machinations of the Army Staff and the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI). These records consist of essential memoranda, correspondence, telegrams, memoranda of conversations, reports, and news articles and cover all aspects of U.S. relations with Indonesia, Indonesian internal affairs, and Indonesia’s relations with its neighbors.

Thailand: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs, 1945-1954 - This collection of U.S. State Department files relating to the internal and foreign affairs of Thailand contains a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats. Included here are special reports on political and military affairs; studies and statistics on socioeconomic matters; interviews and minutes of meetings with foreign government officials; full texts of important letters, instructions, and cables sent and received by U.S. diplomatic personnel; reports and translations from foreign journals and newspapers; translations of high-level foreign government documents, including speeches, memoranda, official reports, and transcripts of political meetings and assemblies.

Thailand: Records of the U.S. Department of State Relating to Internal Affairs, 1955-1963 - This collection of U.S. State Department files relating to the internal and foreign affairs of Thailand contains a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats. Included here are special reports on political and military affairs; studies and statistics on socioeconomic matters; interviews and minutes of meetings with foreign government officials; full texts of important letters, instructions, and cables sent and received by U.S. diplomatic personnel; reports and translations from foreign journals and newspapers; translations of high-level foreign government documents, including speeches, memoranda, official reports, and transcripts of political meetings and assemblies.

The International Women's Movement: The Pan Pacific/Southeast Asia Women’s Association, 1950-1985 - Formerly known as the Pan Pacific Women's Association of the U.S.A., the Pan Pacific and Southeast Asia Women's Association was founded in 1928 to strengthen international understanding and friendship among the women of Asia and the Pacific and and women of the U.S.A. The group promotes cooperation among women of these regions for the study and improvement of social, economic, and cultural conditions; engages in studies on Asian and Pacific affairs; provides hospitality to temporary residents and visitors from Pacific and Asian areas; and presents programs of educational and social interest, dealing with the customs and cultures of Asian and Pacific countries. The records of the Pan Pacific and Southeast Asia Women's Association consist of international conference proceedings, from the 10th, 11th, and 13th-15th conferences; correspondence; minutes of the executive board and other meetings; reports; constitution and by-laws; publications and printed material; and photographs of the national PPSEA taken between 1950-1985. The records also include two scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, and records from four local chapters including New York, Chicago, Toledo (OH), and Stockton (CA).

The Observer: News for the American Soldier in Vietnam, 1962-1973 - The Observer was a weekly newspaper published by the Command Information Division of the U.S. Military Assistance Command’s Office of Information. It was the official organ of the Military Assistance Command, and it carried official news about and for American troops in Vietnam. As such, it goes without saying that it was carefully edited to make certain it did not print news articles favorable to the communist enemy. The Military Assistance Command spread more than 80,000 weekly Observers among all points in Vietnam in which American troops were domiciled.

The U.S. Civilian Advisory Effort in Vietnam: U.S. Operations Mission, 1950-1954 - The United States decision to provide military assistance to France and the Associated States of Indochina was reached informally in February/March 1950, funded by the President on May 1, 1950, and was announced on May 8, 1950. The decision was taken in spite of the U.S. desire to avoid direct involvement in a colonial war, and in spite of a sensing that France's political-military situation in Indochina was deteriorating. This collection consists of unique records of U.S. agencies established to intervene in Vietnam—the country U.S. foreign policy deemed a lynchpin in the free world’s fight against communism. The Subject Files from the Office of the Director, U.S. Operations Missions, document the myriad concerns and rationales that went into the control and direction of U.S. economic and technical assistance programs, as well as the coordination of mutual security activities, with respect to Vietnam.

The U.S. Civilian Advisory Effort in Vietnam: U.S. Operations Mission, 1954-1957 – Classified & Subject Files of the Executive Office - This collection consists of unique records of the U.S. Operations Mission established to intervene in Vietnam-the country U.S. foreign policy deemed a lynchpin in the free world’s fight against communism. The Classified & Subject Files of the Executive Office, document the myriad concerns and rationales that went into the control and direction of U.S. economic and technical assistance programs, as well as the coordination of mutual security activities, with respect to Vietnam.

United States-Vietnam Relations, 1945-1967: Study Prepared by the Department of Defense (The Pentagon Papers) - United States-Vietnam Relations reproduces a 12-volume set prepared by the Department of Defense for the House Committee on the Armed Services and printed by the Government Printing Office in 1971 (also known as the Hebert edition). This seminal publication relates how the U.S. was drawn into the war and gives accounts of crucial policy meetings and why decisions were made. When leaked to the press by Daniel Ellsberg in 1971, these papers caused an uproar, since they exposed U.S. involvement in Indochina much earlier than the public previously had assumed. The collection is a crucial acquisition for libraries with holdings in Asian and military studies and will be of interest to scholars and generalists alike.

U.S. Military Advisory Effort in Vietnam: Military Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam, 1950-1964 - The involvement of the United States in the affairs of Vietnam began with grants of money and military equipment, grew with the dispatch of military advisers and maintenance personnel, and mushroomed with the commitment of ships, planes, tanks, and 550,000 troops.  The United States created the Military Assistance and Advisory Group, Indochina, in 1950 to process, monitor, and evaluate American military aid to the French forces fighting in Southeast Asia. The French forces resented MAAG’s presence and hindered its operations. At first MAAG’s mission was not to train or advise the Vietnamese National Army, but by the time of the battle of Dien Bien Phu, those activities were under consideration by U.S. and French leaders. In 1955, MAAG Indochina, became MAAG Vietnam, and a separate MAAG was established in Cambodia. In 1955–1956, MAAG Vietnam, took over from the French the training and organizing of the Vietnamese National Army. The task facing MAAG Vietnam was enormous.

U.S. Relations and Policies in Southeast Asia, 1944-1958: Records of the Office of Southeast Asian Affairs - Historically, U.S. policy and diplomacy with Southeast Asia has been defined by U.S. interests in the region, whether it’s maintaining free lanes of communication through the South China Sea, gaining access to the resources and markets of Southeast Asia, or containing the spread of Communism. Since World War II, the U.S. has constantly been involved in conflicts in the region: providing material and financial support for France during the First Indochina War and direct involvement in the Viet Cong insurgency in South Vietnam. This collection identifies the key issues, individuals, and events in the history of U.S.-Southeast Asia relations between 1944 and 1958, and places them in the context of the complex and dynamic regional strategic, political, and economic processes that have fashioned the American role in Southeast Asia. This comprises the records of eight U.S. State Department Offices related to Southeast Asia. 

Western Books on Southeast Asia - This product consists of 318 rare Western-language publications selected from the John M. Echols collection on Southeast Asia at Cornell University. The publications date from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries.