Curated Manuscripts

World War II

August 20, 2017
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General Douglas McArthur wades ashore during initial landings at Leyte, Philippine Islands
Gen. Douglas MacArthur wades ashore during initial landings at Leyte, Philippine Islands. October 1944. U.S. Army Signal Corps officer Gaetano Faillace. National Archives (NARA.)

Introduction

From Einstein’s grave premonitions about what was to erupt in Europe, to Harry Truman’s sudden ascension to the presidency in the midst of World War II, to his justification of the atomic bombardment of Japan, this collection highlights the progression and dramatic moments of the war that shaped the greatest generation: World War II.

Curated Manuscripts

In 1936, As Hitler Closes In, Freud Acts to Help a Colleague’s Son Who Has Been Charged With High Treason

In 1936, As Hitler Closes In, Freud Acts to Help a Colleague’s Son Who Has Been Charged With High Treason

c. November 8, 1936
FDR Assures Fired, and Fired Up, Isolationist Secretary of War: No War Unless Monroe Doctrine is Breached

FDR Assures Fired, and Fired Up, Isolationist Secretary of War: No War Unless Monroe Doctrine is Breached

c. June 20, 1940
Homesick General Eisenhower Writes of a WWII Visit to Jerusalem and Levant at Christmas

Homesick General Eisenhower Writes of a WWII Visit to Jerusalem and Levant at Christmas

c. December 26, 1943
Harry Truman Letter Written as Vice-President But Signed as President with “Terrible Responsibilities”

Harry Truman Letter Written as Vice-President But Signed as President with “Terrible Responsibilities”

c. April 12, 1945
President Harry Truman Defends Atomic Bombing of Japan as “the Only Language” a “Beast” Can Understand

President Harry Truman Defends Atomic Bombing of Japan as “the Only Language” a “Beast” Can Understand

c. August 11, 1945
Albert Einstein Renounces German Citizenship;”I Will Not Be Returning to Germany, Perhaps Never Again”

Albert Einstein Renounces German Citizenship;”I Will Not Be Returning to Germany, Perhaps Never Again”

c. March 28, 1933
Einstein, Working to Save Jews from Hitler, Discusses “Brown Book of Hitler Terror” and Personal Risk

Einstein, Working to Save Jews from Hitler, Discusses “Brown Book of Hitler Terror” and Personal Risk

c. July 20, 1933
Albert Einstein Advises a Young Refugee From Germany, Then Controlled By What He Called “The Hitler Gang”

Albert Einstein Advises a Young Refugee From Germany, Then Controlled By What He Called “The Hitler Gang”

c. March 18, 1935
FDR’s 1938 Plan to Settle Jewish and “White” Refugees in the Unexplored Highlands of Venezuela

FDR’s 1938 Plan to Settle Jewish and “White” Refugees in the Unexplored Highlands of Venezuela

c. June 3, 1938
President Franklin D. Roosevelt Fires His Isolationist Secretary of War During WWII

President Franklin D. Roosevelt Fires His Isolationist Secretary of War During WWII

c. June 19, 1940
Einstein On His Anti-Nazi Work: “Had Those Fellows” Listened, “These Horrors Would Not Have Existed”

Einstein On His Anti-Nazi Work: “Had Those Fellows” Listened, “These Horrors Would Not Have Existed”

c. March 15, 1943
Secretary of Interior on Campaign to Stop German Annihilation of Jews -The Holocaust- During WWII

Secretary of Interior on Campaign to Stop German Annihilation of Jews -The Holocaust- During WWII

c. October 18, 1943
Chaim Weizmann in 1943: “Nothing Short of a Miracle if We Do Get Something Out of this War”

Chaim Weizmann in 1943: “Nothing Short of a Miracle if We Do Get Something Out of this War”

c. December 10, 1943
Praising the United Jewish Appeal, FDR Mentions Suffering Brought on by the Nazis

Praising the United Jewish Appeal, FDR Mentions Suffering Brought on by the Nazis

c. March 13, 1944
Prime Minister Winston Churchill on Orde Wingate: A Man of Genius Who Might Have Become a Man of Destiny

Prime Minister Winston Churchill on Orde Wingate: A Man of Genius Who Might Have Become a Man of Destiny

c. September 10, 1944
Chaim Weizmann on the Jewish Brigade and Jewish State in 1944

Chaim Weizmann on the Jewish Brigade and Jewish State in 1944

c. September 30, 1944
Hiding Two Deadly Illnesses, Franklin D. Roosevelt Dreams of a World Organization for Peace: The UN

Hiding Two Deadly Illnesses, Franklin D. Roosevelt Dreams of a World Organization for Peace: The UN

c. March 24, 1945
Eisenhower’s Trip to Ohrdruf Concentration Camp: “I Never Dreamed… It Was Horrible.”

Eisenhower’s Trip to Ohrdruf Concentration Camp: “I Never Dreamed… It Was Horrible.”

c. April 15, 1945

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