Scope and Content Note
The papers of Leland Harrison (1881-1953) span the years 1915-1947, with the bulk of the material dating from 1918 to 1921. The collection primarily documents Harrison’s participation as a member of the American Commission to Negotiate Peace at the Paris Peace Conference (1919-1920) after World War I. There is also significant correspondence from his time as United States assistant secretary of state (1922-1927) and as a diplomat to Sweden, Uruguay, Romania, and Switzerland. The collection is organized into four series: General Correspondence, Memoranda, Paris Peace Conference, and Miscellany.
Correspondents include Dean Acheson, Will Clayton, Joseph C. Grew, Warren G. Harding, Manley O. Hudson, Cordell Hull, Alexander Comstock Kirk, Robert Lansing, Henry Cabot Lodge, Frank Ross McCoy, George S. Messersmith, Robert D. Murphy, William Phillips, Frank L. Polk, Eliot Wadsworth, Sumner Welles, and John G. Winant.
The collection’s series are listed and briefly described below. A fuller description of each series and a list of its contents can be accessed in the series descriptions within the container list.
The General Correspondence series contains Harrison’s letters sent and received from 1915 to 1947.
The Memoranda series contains copies of memoranda from 1924 to 1926 and 1942 to 1947.
The Paris Peace Conference series contains primarily printed and mimeographed documentation from the conference, minutes of commissioners and technical advisors, and Harrison’s notes and personal miscellaneous files. Material dates from 1918 to 1921.
The Miscellany series contains correspondence, printed matter, reports, maps, clippings, photographs, diaries, indexes, and personal memorabilia dating from 1906 to 1947.