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John Van Antwerp MacMurray Papers
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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Public Policy Papers. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
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John Van Antwerp MacMurray was born in Schenectady, New York on October 6, 1881 and entered boarding school in 1892 before attending Princeton University (1898-1902). After a year of travel in Europe he entered Columbia Law School in 1903. In 1906 MacMurray was admitted to the New York Bar, though he also sought to secure a position within the Foreign Service. While waiting for an appointment, he studied Elizabethan drama at Princeton, and in 1907 received a master of arts degree. That same year he was appointed Secretary of Legation and Consul General at Bangkok, Siam, followed by a position as Second Secretary of the embassy in St. Petersburg (1908-1911). After a brief interlude as Assistant Chief of the Division of Information, he became Assistant Chief and then Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs at the State Department (1911-1913).
MacMurray started specializing in Far Eastern affairs with his consecutive appointments as Secretary of Legation in Peking (1913-1917), Counselor of the Embassy in Tokyo (1917-1919), and, back at the State Department, Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (1919-1924). In 1921 he published Treaties and Agreements with and Concerning China. In the same year he served as expert assistant on Pacific and Far Eastern affairs to American Commissioners at the International Conference on the Limitation of Armament in Washington. He also was an observer for the U.S. government at the Chinese-Japanese negotiations for the settlement of the Shantung question (1921-1922). In 1924 MacMurray became Assistant Secretary of State, but one year later he was appointed Minister to China (1925-1929), a position he desired. The unstable situation in China, however, soon led to conficts between MacMurray and his superiors at the State Department. This ultimately led MacMurray to resign in 1929, when he accepted an offer to become Director of the Walter Hines Page School of International Relations at Johns Hopkins University.
Faced with the fact that he could not secure enough funding for the Walter Hines Page School MacMurray relinquished his salary and reentered the Foreign Service in 1933, though he officially retained his position until 1935. President Roosevelt appointed him as Minister to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (1933-1936), which was followed by an ambassadorship to Turkey (1936-1942). In these years, he also served as the Assistant Chairman of the International Wheat Advisory Committee (1933-1938) and chaired the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs (1937-1938). His last two years before retirement were spent back at the State Department as Special Assistant to the Secretary of State (1942-1944).
MacMurray married Lois R. Goodnow in 1916 and they had three children: Joan Goodnow, Frank Goodnow, and Lois ("Bisi") Van Antwerp MacMurray. He died at his home in Norfolk, Connecticut on September 25, 1960.
MacMurray, John Van Antwerp, 1881-1960Junius Wilson MacMurray was born in Missouri, the son of Irish immigrant and blacksmith John Dennison MacMurray and Eliza Wilson. At the outbreak of the Civil War he recruited a company for the Union army, which was sworn in with the 1st Missouri Volunteers and reorganized into the 1st Missoury Light Artillery. After participating with his battery in the Battle of Vicksburg he was promoted Captain in 1863. At the end of the Civil War MacMurray participated in the Powder River Indian Expedition into Wyoming and Montana (June-November 1865). He joined the regular army in 1866 and graduated from the Artillery School at Fort Monroe, Virginia in 1870.
MacMurray served as professor of military science and tactics on detail at the University of Missouri (1872-1873) and at Cornell University (1873-1875). He taught on detached service at Union College at Schenectady, New York, where he was in charge of sanitary and landscape engineering (1879-1883). While in Schenectady he was editor of A History of the Schenectady Patent in the Dutch and English Times; being Contributions toward a History of the Lower Mohawk Valley, by Jonathan Pearson et al. (1883). In the summer of 1884, while stationed at Vancouver Barracks, WA, he served as Special Inspector of Indian Affairs and spent considerable time with the Native Americans of the region and their leader and prophet Smohalla. He shared his observations about these "Dreamers" of the Columbia River Valley in a lecture at the Albany Institute, which was published in 1886.
Additional places where MacMurray was stationed include Wadsworth, NY, and Fort Barrancas, Florida, where he contracted yellow fever during an outbreak in 1897. He died in May 1898, two months after he was promoted Major. In 1873, he married Henrietta Van Antwerp, daughter of John H. Van Antwerp of Albany, and they had three children: Edna, Ethel and John Van Antwerp MacMurray.
Consists of public and personal papers of MacMurray (Princeton Class of 1902) and his father, Junius Wilson MacMurray (1843-1898), but the collection primarily relates to MacMurray's diplomatic career as assistant secretary of state (1924-1925), minister to China (1925-1929) and Turkey (1936-1942), chairman (1937-1938) of the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs, and chairman (1933-1938) of the International Wheat Advisory Committee. Included are MacMurray's correspondence and related papers concerning State Dept. activities and foreign affairs in general: accounts and ledgers (1931-1960), diaries (1889-1958), articles, speeches, lectures, manuscripts for his report TREATIES AND AGREEMENTS WITH AND CONCERNING CHINA, 1894-1919 (1921), printed materials, photographs of family, friends, and officials, scenic photographs and motion picture films of countries visited, and supplementary papers (1905-1922) relating to China, Japan, and East Asian affairs. Family records contain a few items from the 1715 to 1860 period, Junius MacMurray's military reports and correspondence during and after the Civil War, diaries (1863-1884), and articles (1883-1898); there are also genealogies, photographs, and other family memorabilia of Missouri and New York.
The John Van Antwerp MacMurray Papers are chronologically arranged and consist of the papers of both John Van Antwerp MacMurray and his father. The collection has been divided into the following series:
The majority of the collection was donated in 1965 by John Van Antwerp MacMurray's children, Frank G. MacMurray '40, Joan Goodnow McMurray (Mrs. Evan M. James), and Lois Van Antwerp McMurray (Mrs. George W.B. Starkey) (AM 18671). Added to this collection, which was originally catalogued at Yale University, are papers that were previously deposited with Princeton University in 1948, 1956, and 1961 (AM 15656, AM 15660-15661, AM 17274), as well as additions to the collection in 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010 (ML.2004.021, ML.2007.006, ML.2008.009, ML.2008.010, ML.2008.016, and ML.2010.009).
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
This collection was reprocessed by Victoria Coleman '99 in 1998 and by Helene van Rossum in 2002 and 2008-2009 with the assistance of Jessica Solano, Ganga Bey '09, Pauline Nalikka '11, Marli Wang '11, and Jamie LaMontagne '11, and additional help from Liz Parsons '11 and Jeremy Russell '12. Finding aid written by Helene van Rossum in 2002 and 2009-2010. With thanks to Nancy N. Tomasko, East Asia Library Journal, Princeton University, for help with transcriptions, and to Shuwen Cao, East Asian Library, Princeton University, for assistance in identifying the contents of the films.
As part of a collections survey in 2020 this finding aid was updated to reflect the consolidation of the following ranges of boxes containing av materials: 161-175, 176-184, 185-190, 202-214. Each box now retains the first box number in the range, with item-level notes detailing the previous number. All labeled items retain their original titles;only the box numbers have changed.
No appraisal information is available.
Organization
Subject
- Diplomatic and consular service, American -- China -- 20th century
- Diplomatic and consular service, American -- Turkey -- 20th century
- Peace treaties -- 20th century
- Wheat trade -- United States -- 20th century
Place
- China -- 20th century -- Motion Picture Films.
- China -- Foreign relations -- Japan -- 20th century.
- China -- Foreign relations -- Treaties -- 20th century.
- China -- Foreign relations -- United States -- 20th century.
- China -- Photographs.
- China -- Politics and government -- 20th century.
- East Asia -- Foreign relations -- United States -- 20th century.
- Japan -- Foreign relations -- China -- 20th century.
- Japan -- Foreign relations -- United States -- 20th century.
- Philippines -- Economic conditions -- 1918-
- Philippines -- Politics and government -- 1935-1946.
- Turkey -- 20th century -- Photographs.
- Turkey -- Foreign relations -- United States -- 20th century.
- United States -- Foreign relations -- China -- Treaties -- 20th century.
- United States -- Foreign relations -- East Asia -- 20th century.
- United States -- Foreign relations -- Japan -- 20th century.
- United States -- Foreign relations -- Treaties -- 20th century.
- United States -- Foreign relations -- Turkey -- 20th century.
- United States -- History -- 1865-1898.
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.
- Vicksburg (Miss.) -- Siege, 1863 -- Personal narratives.
Occupation
- Publisher
- Public Policy Papers
- Finding Aid Date
- 2010
- Sponsor
- The John Van Antwerp MacMurray Papers were reprocessed with the generous support of Adelaide MacMurray Cooper, Shirley S. French, Joan Ipsen, Frank G. MacMurray '40, Worth D. MacMurray '77, Alison Starkey, Lois MacMurray Starkey, Mills Ten Eyck Jr., Christine Wainwright, and William Waldron. Digitization of the films in Box 161-167, 172, and 176-184 was made possible by the generous support of the East Asian Studies Program, Princeton University.
- Access Restrictions
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Collection is open for research use.
- Use Restrictions
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Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
Collection Inventory
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 1 includes documents concerning Schenectady (NY), as well as the Van Antwerp and the MacMurray families.
The 18th century Schenectady documents were in the possession of Junius Wilson MacMurray, who edited A History of the Schenectady Patent (1883) while on detail at Union College in Schenectady.
The remaining documents are family archives concerning the Van Antwerp and MacMurray families, as well as some estate papers. They include genealogical and biographical materials, as well as personal records, correspondence, and memorabilia, organized by family member. The series includes biographical information about Junius Wilson MacMurray and John Van Antwerp MacMurray. Records and memorabilia from other family members were moved from Series 2 and from Series 7. Certificates and miscellaneous drawings of members of the Van Antwerp and MacMurray families may be found in Series 10C.
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N.B. For letters from John H. Van Antwerp to his grandson see the correspondence of John Van Antwerp MacMurray (series 2B).
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 2 contains the correspondence and papers of Junius Wison MacMurray and John Van Antwerp MacMurray. The series, which was arranged in strict chronological order prior to its donation to Princeton University in 1965, was rearranged in 2009-2010. Some early documents and papers were moved to Series 1.
Physical Description83 boxes
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
The correspondence and papers of Junius Wilson MacMurray have been divided into personal correspondence, business correspondence and papers, and military correspondence and papers. The series does not include any correspondence with Henrietta Van Antwerp, whom he married on October 1, 1873. Junius Wilson's correspondence with his son John Van Antwerp MacMurray while at boarding school may be found in the family correspondence in Subseries 2B.
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Junius Wilson MacMurray's personal correspondence includes, among others, exchanges with his mother and brother, the principals of his son's boarding schools, and general Nelson A. Miles, with whom MacMurray served at Vancouver Barracks, WA in 1884-1885. MacMurray's letters to his mother include two letters written while serving with the First Missouri Light Artillery during the Civil War. The majority of the correspondence with Miles consists of MacMurray's original letters, which include letters concerning the Indian prophet Smohalla (November 2 and 20, 1890) and the Mohawk Indians (October 21, 1891). Other than one perfunctory letter (1895), the correspondence does not include replies from Miles, but contains copies of letters of recommendation only. The A-Z file includes letters from and concerning Cornell University, where MacMurray was detailed from 1873-1875.
Correspondence about MacMurray's attempts to secure particular positions within the army or on detail may be found among the Army Records and Correspondence (boxes 2-4).
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These records include correspondence and papers concerning the architectural iron firm "McMurray, Smith, and Judge" (after 1880 "MacMurray and Judge") of St. Louis, Missouri, of which MacMurray's father John Dennison MacMurray, who died in 1870, was a founder. The files contain financial statements and correspondence with Arthur J. Judge, Thomas C. Fletcher and others about business problems and legal matters, including correspondence about the firm's eventual bankruptcy (1893).
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The correspondence and papers in this section document the army career of Junius Wilson MacMurray as a volunteer in the Army of the Republic during the Civil War, as well as his service at the regular army from 1866 to his death in 1898, during the Indian Wars. The papers include copies and drafts of MacMurray's reports concerning the Vicksburg campaign (1863) and the Powder River Indian expedition (June-November, 1865), as well as his investigation into land disputes of the Lower Columbia River Indians (1884). A detailed description of MacMurray's commissions and career, including a list of military engagements and battles during the Civil War, may be found in MacMurray's biographical papers in Series 1 (box 1, folder 6).
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The correspondence and papers for 1861-1865 document MacMurray's volunteer service with the First Missouri Light Artillery during the Civil War, and with the Second Missouri Light Artillery during the Powder River Indian Expedition of June-November, 1865. Descriptions of conditions at the camps may be found in letters to his mother Eliza Wilson MacMurray (November 6, 1861, and July 14, 1863) (box 2, folder 3). MacMurray's army commissions may be found in series 10 (box 200).
The bulk of the correspondence and papers covering the Civil War include quartermaster's lists, invoices, and returns. In addition, the folders contain affidavits concerning the loss of horses and ambulances, papers concerning MacMurray's initial application for commission in the regular army (July 1863), and reports to superiors about the movements and actions of battery "M", of which he was in charge (October 20, 1862, April 28, May 5, May 25, and August 7, 1863). The reports include a detailed description of the battery's involvement in the Vicksburg Campaign, supplemented by typescript copies of reports by military commanders about the Battle of Jackson (May 14, 1863), which MacMurray copied and added at a later date. Two pocket diaries for 1863, which cover the Vicksburg Campaign, may be found in Series 4 (Box 83, folder 6).
The records for June-December 1865 document MacMurray's participation in the Powder River Indian expedition (Eastern Division) from Franklin, Missouri, to the Valley of the Powder River, Montana, from June 1 to November 12, 1865. He accompanied Colonel Nelson Cole with the 2nd Missouri Light Artillery, while being in charge of reconnoissance. The records include handwritten and typescript copies of communications between military commanders, which MacMurray added later, as well as draft reports by MacMurray. The typescript copies include an eight-page report from Cole to General P.E. Connor, with a handwritten draft, which suggests that MacMurray wrote the report for Cole (September 25, 1865). Of particular interest are drafts of an undated report about the expedition covering July through an unspecified part of October 1865. Found with the latter are several pages of another undated report or log, presumably by MacMurray, which includes a sketches of findings and a small map.
Records concerning MacMurray's renewed application to join the regular army include a detailed service record (December 21, 1865) and recommendations.
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The records in this section include correspondence and papers about MacMurray's career in the regular army, which he entered in February 1866, including service records and correspondence about commissions, promotions, and detail as professor of Military Science and Tactics at the University of Missouri (1872-1873) and at Cornell (1873-1875). There is little documentation, however, about his detached service at Union College, Schenectady, NY (1879-1883).
The papers include some correspondence and notifications MacMurray received during his service in camps on Buck Creek, Texas and Indian territory (1876), and an undated report or testimonial from sergeant William Boyd about desertions in the army when MacMurray was in charge of Battery "L" 1st Artillery (circa 1883). Of particular interest are MacMurray's papers for June-August 1884, when he served as Special Inspector of Indian Affairs at the Military Department of the Columbia at Vancouver Barracks. Preceded by copies of military correspondence and reports from March 1883, the papers include reports received as well as draft reports by MacMurray himself (July-October, 1884). A notebook that MacMurray kept during this period may be found in Series 5 (Box 85, folder 6). MacMurray recounted his observations about the American Indians in this area and his meetings with their leader and prophet Smohalla in his lecture 'The 'Dreamers' of the Columbia River Valley in Washington Territory' at the Albany Institute in 1886. Additional views about Smohalla's teachings can be found in letters that MacMurray wrote to General Miles in November 1890 (Box 2, folder 3).
The correspondence and papers for 1892-1893 mainly consist of recommendations for a promotion, and do not contain records concerning his service in Sandy Hook, New Jersey, during the cholera scare. The records for 1896-1898, when MacMurray was in command of the Post of Fort Barrancas, Florida, include his reports about the outbreak of yellow fever in 1897.
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 2B includes John Van Antwerp MacMurray's correspondence from the time he entered boarding school to his death in 1960. The subseries, which was arranged in strict chronological order at Yale University Library in 1965, was rearranged in 2009 into three further subseries: Family Correspondence, Alphabetical Correspondence, and Additional Correspondence and Papers. Printed and mimeographed items that were extracted from the correspondence in 1965 may be found in Series 6. A limited subject index to the correspondence is available in the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library's reference room.
Physical Description80 boxes
John Van Antwerp MacMurray's family correspondence includes correspondence with his parents Junius Wilson MacMurray and Henrietta Van Antwerp MacMurray, his sisters Edna and Ethel and their spouses, as well as his wife Lois, and his children Joan, Frank and Lois ("Bisi"). In addition, the subseries includes correspondence with his grandfather John H. Van Antwerp (1823-1903) and other members of the Van Antwerp family, as well as with his father-in-law Frank J. Goodnow and his wife, and other members of the Goodnow family. The files are alphabetically arranged, with maiden names used for the female members of the family, unless the correspondence started after they married. The majority of the series consists of the correspondence between John Van Antwerp MacMurray and his father Junius Wilson MacMurray, who died in 1898, and his mother Henrietta Van Antwerp MacMurray. The correspondence with both his parents documents MacMurray's life at boarding school in New Jersey (Captain Wilson's Collegiate Institute at Newton 1891-1895 and Lawrenceville School 1895-1898), which is supplemented by Junius Wilson's correspondence with the headmasters of both institutes (Subseries 2A).
The letters from John Van Antwerp MacMurray (a bachelor until he was 35) to his mother include extensive and often humorous descriptions of college life at Princeton University (1898-1902), his attempts to get a "footing" in the diplomatic service, and his subsequent diplomatic career. The correspondence is particularly rich for detail about his life and work at the American Legation at Bangkok, Thailand (1907-1908), the Embassy at St. Petersburg, Russia (1908-1911), and at the Peking Legation in China (1913-1917). The Peking correspondence includes interesting observations about the political situation in China and the position of Yuan Shikai. In China MacMurray started taking numerous photographs, many of which he sent to his mother (see series 8). MacMurray's postcards to his mother and sisters, which were printed from his negatives, often provide details that are not found with the photographs, and are therefore kept separately in a chronological arrangement (box 24-26). The correspondence for 1909-1914 includes entries that MacMurray copied from his diaries (see Series 4).
After 1916 MacMurray's letters to his mother include details about his family life, his time as counselor of the embassy in Tokyo (1917-1919) and as Minister to China (1925-1929), a position from which he resigned shortly after his mother's death in 1929. MacMurray's correspondence with his sisters Edna and Ethel complements his early letters to his mother, particularly his letters to Edna, with whom he could often be more frank. The later correspondence includes details about their respective family lives abroad (among other places, Edna MacMurray Robinson lived in Puerto Rico and the Philippines; Ethel MacMurray Wright lived in part in Indonesia).
Included in the series are MacMurray's letters to Lois Goodnow, whom he married in February 1916. A Bryn Mawr sophomore, Lois met MacMurray in Summer 1915 when she and her two cousins accompanied her father Frank J. Goodnow to China. Frank Goodnow was an advisor to the government of Yuan Shikai and had been MacMurray's professor at Columbia Law School. During their marriage the couple kept in close touch when work and family kept them separate. Of particular interest in this respect is the correspondence between April to November 1927, when Lois and the children were in the United States because it was not considered safe to stay in China.
Additional correspondence includes correspondence with the couple's children Joan, Frank, and Lois ("Bisi"), their life at boarding school and subsequent life. The correspondence with Frank Goodnow is not extensive, but includes correspondence about the offer to MacMurray to head the Walter Hines Page School of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University, of which Goodnow was president until 1929.
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The alphabetial correspondence contains John Van Antwerp's personal and professional correspondence, which was rearranged from chronologial into alphabetical order in 2009 and 2010. The majority of the correspondence spans MacMurray's years in the diplomatic service and at the Department of State (1908-1929, 1933-1944), as well as at the Walter Hines Page School of International Relations, Johns Hopkins University (1929-1933).
The correspondence is of particular interest for the time MacMurray served in China as Secretary to the Peking Legation (1913-1917) and as Minister to China (1925-1929). Descriptions of his experiences in 1913-1917 may be found in his letters to his mother and sisters (Family Correspondence, boxes 7-9, 19-20). MacMurray's correspondence for 1925-1929 documents the problems that he faced while the Nationalist Party was gaining control of the country, which led to increasing differences of opinion with his superiors at the State Department, ultimately leading to his resignation in 1929. His correspondence with Secretaries of State Frank Kellogg and Henry Stimson, as well as with Joseph Grew, Stanley Hornbeck, Nelson T. Johnson, and his assistants Willys Peck and Ferdinand Mayer are particularly informative for this period. Of note, too, is the correspondence from George Sokolsky about developments in the Nationalist Party. Related memoranda and notes may be found in the Additional Correspondence and Papers (box 76). Correspondence with Chinese politicians and acquaintances are filed according to the spelling used at the time.
An overview of MacMurray's directorship of the Walter Pines Page School of International Relations, established to support research into foreign relations and policy, may be found in the correspondence with, among others, Joseph S. Ames, President of Johns Hopkins University. This documents how MacMurray became the School's first director in 1930, but decided to relinquish his salary and reenter the Foreign Service in 1933, after economic circumstances prevented him from securing enough funding for the school. Additional correspondence may be found among the subject files in in the Additional Correspondence and Papers (box 80-81).
Information about John Van Antwerp MacMurray's reentry in the Foreign Service and subsequent positions as Minister to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (1933-1936) and ambassador to Turkey (1936-1942) may be found in the correspondence with president Franklin Roosevelt, Cordell Hull, and in the files for the Department of State. MacMurray's memoranda are most informative for this period (box 77). Much of the correspondence for these years concerns the International Wheat Advisory Committee, of which MacMurray was assistant chairman from 1933 to 1938, and the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs, which MacMurray chaired from 1937 to 1938. Additional papers concerning both committees may be found in Series 6 and in the subject files (box 77-78).
The correspondence to the respective Secretaries of State, to whom official correspondence was often addressed, may be supplemented by the correspondence filed under 'US Department of State,' as well as MacMurray's memoranda (boxes 76-77). Researchers looking for particular correspondents are advised check the additional correspondence and papers in box 73-82, in addition to alphabetical correspondence. Letters of introduction are filed under the name of he person introduced. Some correspondence is organized in rough chronological order only.
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These records include correspondence and papers, which were part of John Van Antwerp MacMurray's chronological correspondence that was rearranged in 2009, but could not be arranged into alphabetical order.
Physical Description10 boxes
Most of the records in this section were kept or generated by MacMurray's staff, particularly Kathleen O'Shaugnessy, who was MacMurray's personal secretary and kept his accounts while he served in China, the Baltic states, and Turkey. The majority of the files concern the order of foods, wine and spirits, and other commodities from abroad.
Physical Description4 boxes
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This section comprises MacMurray's memoranda to superiors and colleagues, including memoranda of conversations, as well as miscellaneous notes and memos to himself. The files include, but are not limited to, the memoranda listed with the 1965 finding aid to the John Van Antwerp MacMurray papers. In addition, they contain memoranda provided by MacMurray's assistants, including Howard Bucknell's accounts of the negotiations with regard to the settlement of the Nanking incident (January 1928). Memoranda sent as an enclosure to a letter may be found among the files for the respective Secretaries of State.
The files include the memorandum, 'Development Affecting American Policy in the Far East' (November 1935), in which MacMurray warned of the possibility of aggressive action by Japan, made possible by previous disregard for the integrity of the international legal framework. The memorandum was ignored at the time, but gained recognition after it was discussed by George Kennan in his book American Diplomacy (1951), and was published in How the peace was lost : the 1935 memorandum, Developments affecting American policy in the Far East with an introduction and notes by Arthur Waldron (1992). The correspondence with Kennan about this in 1950 is missing, but may be found in the George F. Kennan Papers for 1950 (Box 139).
Physical Description2 boxes
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5 boxes
The files in this section contain records concerning the International Wheat Advisory Committee, of which MacMurray was assistant chairman (1933-1938), and the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs, of which he was chairman (1937-1938). Series 6 contains additional records for both committees. The records concerning the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs are of a miscellaenous nature.
Physical Description2 boxes
1 folder
The records concerning the International Wheat Advisory Committee were originally part of MacMurray's 'Wheat files,' and are arranged by country. Other correspondence with the 'wheat file' stamp has been filed in the alphabetical correspondence. Additional records concerning the Wheat Committee, which include a subject index to the correspondence, may be found in Series 6.
Physical Description2 boxes
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This section contains files relating to John Van Antwerp MacMurray's compilation of Treaties and Agreements with and Concerning China (1921). MacMurray donated the files, which include correspondence with diplomats, businessmen and Chinese officials, to Princeton University in 1948. In addition, the section includes MacMurray's original files of treaties and agreements which were moved from Series 5.
The correspondence documents how MacMurray started collecting the treaties in 1910 to supplement the compilation of treaties published by William W. Rockhill (1904), who was ambassador to Russia when MacMurray served in St. Petersburg. The letters supplement and often precede the correspondence found in the alphabetical range, and include exchanges with, among others, E.T. Williams, G.E. Morrison, C.C. Wang, C.C. Wu, Katsuji Debuchi, Hawkling Yen, I.V. Gillis, and Hamilton Wright. Correspondence with James Brown Scott and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace concerning the publication of the Treaties may be found in the alphabetical correspondence (box 33 and 61).
The files of treaties and agreements include copies of treaties for 1920-1935, which MacMurray added after the publication of the Treaties in 1921. They are kept with copies of accompanying correspondence, mostly from ministers and consuls to respective Secretaries of State.
Physical Description3 boxes
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The records in this section include answers to written enquiries about research and employment opportunities at the Page school, as well as miscellaneous reports (not complete), and documents concerning the 'Russian Project,' a proposal to study all aspects of the Soviet governemnt and society, which was turned down by the Carnegie and Rockefeller foundations in 1931. Correspondence about the Page school may be found among the alphabetical correspondence, in particular with Joseph Ames.
Physical Description2 boxes
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This section contains correspondence and records of a miscellaneous nature, and include, among others, naval radio communications, office correspondence, and invitations. De miscellaneous records, specified by country, include documents and speeches relating to welcome ceremonies. Of particular interest are the papers concerning the reinterment of Sun Yat-sen in the Mausoleum in Nanking in 1929, which include a nine feet long printed line drawing of the procession. For related film footage of the trip of the foreign representatives to Nanking in the "Ministers train" see Series 9A (box 173-174).
Physical Description2 boxes
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
This series contains financial documents and correspondence kept by Junius Wilson MacMurray and his parents (1865-1896) and by John Van Antwerp MacMurray and his wife (1931-1960), arranged chronologically. The older material pertains mainly to Junius Wilson MacMurray's father's business, the MacMurray Iron Works in St. Louis. Founded by John Dennison MacMurray, the firm was later known as MacMurray, Smith & Judge, and then MacMurray & Judge. In addition, this series includes a cash book kept by Junius as an army officer for the period 1867-1870, an account book for the sales of A History of the Schenectady Patent, and a personal journal for Junius's recruiting fund (1891-1896). John Van Antwerp MacMurray's financial papers mainly concern income statements from his dividends.
Physical Description4 boxes
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3 boxes
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6 folders
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 4 includes two diaries and a note book kept by Junius Wilson MacMurray in 1863 and 1884, a series of logs and diaries kept by John Van Antwerp MacMurray between 1902 and 1919, and date books he kept between 1930 and 1958.
Physical Description3 boxes
Only one of the two 1863 diaries seems to have been MacMurray's. The entries contain descriptions about his participation in various campaigns during the Civil War, including the Vicksburg campaign. (The second 1863 diary has the name "Gotlieb Schopper" written in the front.) The 1884 note book concerns MacMurray's findings during a trip to investigate the living conditions of the Colorado Indians.
Physical Description1 box
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The early John Van Antwerp MacMurray diaries include descriptions of European tours in 1902 and 1905, his duties at the Siam legation (1907-1908), his transfer to Russia (1908-1909) and his work on the "Jewish problem" in Russia in 1910. The diaries he kept between 1911 and 1919 cover his transfer to the State Department, his time as Secretary of the Peking Legation, and as Counselor of the embassy in Tokyo. Copies of his diary entries between 1911-1914 may be found among the correspondence to his mother Henrietta Van Antwerp MacMurray (box 19). After his return to Washington in 1919 MacMurray no longer kept a diary. His date books for 1930-1958 mainly concern appointments.
Physical Description3 boxes
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Physical Description5 boxes
Junius Wilson MacMurray's writings and speeches include a copy of A History of the Schenectady Patent (1921), as well as some of his lectures and articles (1886-1898).
Physical Description2 boxes
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John Van Antwerp MacMurray's early writings and speeches include note books and papers, written while at boarding school and Princeton University, as well as miscellaneous writings and poetry. His later writings include a confidential report of 1913 concerning the denunciation of a Russo-American commercial treaty, and various articles and addresses on the Far East. In addition, the series includes galleys and worksheets for his Treaties and Agreements with and Concerning China, 1894-1919 (1921). A collection of treaties and agreements for 1865-1935, originally filed in this series, has been moved to the subject files in Series 2B (box 78-80).
Physical Description4 boxes
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 6, Printed Materials, 1910-1954, contains materials arising from John Van Antwerp MacMurray's work as Assistant Chairman of the International Wheat Advisory Committee (1933-1938) and as Chairman of the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs (1937-1938), including reports, memoranda, minutes, press releases, and newspaper clippings. Similar materials are found concerning routine matters at the State Department (1922-1941). The remainder of the series contains items extracted from the correspondence series, including enclosures too bulky to be kept with their transmittal letters (filed by date of letter) and complimentary copies of articles and books sent to MacMurray without accompanying letters (filed by date of publication). Miscellaneous materials relating to foreign affairs are arranged by country. Among the Wheat Advisory Committee materials are cross-reference sheets for MacMurray's correspondence concerning this subject.
Physical Description9 boxes
3 boxes
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5 folders
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 7, Memorabilia and Clippings, 1803-1954, relates to the life and work of members of the Van Antwerp and MacMurray families. The memorabilia, chronologically arranged from 1803-1952, includes a family Bible with a marriage, birth, and death record of members of the Van Antwerp and MacMurray families (1829-1894). Newspaper and magazine clippings span the period 1873-1960, and Christmas and calling cards can also be found.
Physical Description6 boxes
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8 folders
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 8 includes photographs that John Van Antwerp MacMurray acquired as a Foreign Service officer, as well as family photographs and photos that MacMurray made as an amateur photographer in the various countries in which he served, particularly China. The series consists of photographs that were part of the original collection, processed in 1965, and photos added to the collection by MacMurray's surviving children in 1998, 2002, and 2007-2008. The series is divided into six subseries.
Physical Description55 boxes
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 8A consists of photos of John Van Antwerp MacMurray, his parents and ancestors, and family members. The subseries includes photographs of social gatherings and and snapshots of friends. Portrait photographs of friends, however, have been moved to Subseries 8B.
Physical Description14 boxes
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N.B. See also Box 123
Physical Description1 box
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 8B contains portrait and group photographs of East Asian, American, and European officials with whom MacMurray got acquainted while serving as a Foreign Service officer, particularly as Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs at the Department of State (1919-1924) and as U.S. Minister to China (1925-1929). Most of the portraits contain dedications to MacMurray. The majority of the photographs were donated to Princeton University by MacMurray's surviving children in November 2004 and February 2007 (ML.2004.21 and ML.2007.06). The subseries includes photographs of family member and friends, that were moved from subseries 8A.
Physical Description3 boxes
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(N.B. detail of a photograph of Kemal on Kocatepe hill (1922), dedicated to "Mr. Hikmet" in 1928)
Physical Description1 box
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(N.B. Postcard with annotated identifications by MacMurray)
Physical Description1 box
(N.B. Photograph presented by Ch'en Ch'i)
Physical Description1 box
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(N.B. MacMuray and Bingham were invited to inspect documents and weapons that were found during a raid adjacent the Soviet embassy in early April 1927. See also photos of the event in Box 120.)
Physical Description1 box
(N.B. The photo was taken at the beginning of the MacMurray's tour along the Yangzi River. See the description of Series 9, box 168).
Physical Description1 box
(N.B. Possibly taken on the occasion of the Nanking Settlement, March 24, 1928)
Physical Description1 box
(N.B. A previous identification that was found with the photograph, indicating that it concerned the American Consulate in Chungking with warlord Liu Hsiang, governor of Szechuan, is incorrect.)
Physical Description1 box
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 8C consists of photographs that were taken while Macurray was serving as Secretary of the Legation and Consul General at Bangkok, Siam (Thailand, 1907-1908), and as Second Secretary of the Embassy in St. Petersburg, Russia (1908-1911).
Physical Description2 boxes
1 box
N.B. Duplicated group photographs with identifications can be found in box 113
Physical Description1 box
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 8D contains photographs MacMurray took while serving as Secretary to the Legation in Peking, 1913-1917 and as Minister to China 1925-1929. The first group includes photos of Wyoming that MacMurray took prior to moving to China in 1912.
Additional photographs of China can be found in the mixed albums and in Subseries 8F (Box 155-157).
Physical Description23 boxes
The bulk of this group consists of 1,500 3x4 inch and 3x5 inch contact prints and negatives, as well as over three hundred 6½ x 9½ inch enlargements, which were donated by John Van Antwerp MacMurray's surviving children in February 2007 (ML.2007.06). MacMurray, an avid amateur photographer, took the photographs while serving as Secretary to the U.S. Legation in Peking (Beijing) from 1913 to 1917. He had his photographs developed and printed in a local camera shop in Peking.
The majority of the photographs depict sites and scenes in Peking and its vicinity, particularly the Western Hills, the region to the northwest of Peking, which was renowned for its scenery and temples. Other photographs were taken during longer trips to, among others, the northern province of Jehol (Rehe) and the Yangzi Valley. A small amount of photos were taken prior to MacMurray's appointment in China during a vacation in Wyoming (U.S.A.) in 1912.
MacMurray, who kept a record of the places he visited in his diaries (See Series 4) listed the subjects and dates of the photographs at the front of the albums in which he kept his contact prints and negatives. In some cases MacMurray wrote the subject at the back of a photograph. Additional information can be found on the postcards that MacMurray had printed of his negatives, which he sent to his mother and sisters, often with brief descriptions of the image. MacMurray continued this practice until his mother died in 1929 (kept separately among the correspondence in Series 2).
The group includes negative albums with indexes, prints with negatives, sepia prints and enlargements, and additional photographs.
Physical Description18 boxes
MacMurray kept his 3x4 inch and 3x5 inch contact prints and negatives in sixteen small albums, which he organized by area or trip with subjects and dates listed in an index at the front. The photos and negatives have been taken out of the albums and may be accessed in the next section, where the index is reproduced.
Physical Description2 boxes
1 box
1 box
The photographs and negatives are kept together in their original order under the subject titles and dates that MacMurray provided in indexes at the front of his albums. The titles of the albums and their index entries are reproduced here in MacMurray's original spelling. When MacMurray did not provide an index entry for a photograph, the subject may be found at the back of the photograph. Alternatively, it may be described on a postcard of the image that MacMurray sent to his mother or sisters, which can be found in Series 2. When there are gaps within an album (particularly Volume XV), the numbers have not been reproduced.
Physical Description5 boxes
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(N.B. See also XV 43-46)
Physical Description1 box
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(N.B. See also XII 90-92 )
Physical Description1 box
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(N.B. 1-60 are indicated in the index but not present in the series)
Physical Description1 box
MacMurray had the photos that he liked best printed in sepia 6½ x 9½ inch enlargements. The sepia prints were arranged by subject by MacMurray's descendants. However, identifications of the photographs have not always been established.
Physical Description9 boxes
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The modern 8 x 10 inch enlargements in this section were made from MacMurray's original negatives for exhibiting purposes.
Physical Description1 box
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The miscellaneous photographs in this section were taken during the same years as the other photographs in subseries 8B, but are otherwise not related. An exception are the negatives of the Twogwotee Pass in Wyoming, which may originally have been kept with the other photographs of Wyoming in MacMurray's albums, volume XVI.
The other photographs concern various scenes in Peking and other places, including undated photographs of the arrival of General Feng Kuo Chang (Feng Guochang) in Peking, who was sworn President of the Republic of China on August 1, 1917. Some of the photographs were taken by Lois Goodnow MacMurray, who married John Van Antwerp MacMurray in February 1916.
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N.B. Photographs made by friends of MacMurray.
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This second group of photographs of China and the Far East was taken while MacMurray served as Minister to China (1925-1929), and mainly consists of photos of MacMurray at official functions. Photograps that MacMurray took himself during family trips and vacations can be found in the mixed albums and photographs in Subseries 8F. Instead of photography, MacMurray spent much of his free time with a 16mm motion picture camera. His films of China, 1925-1929 can be found in Subseries 9A.
Physical Description5 boxes
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N.B. See group photo Series 8B (Box 122)
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N.B. See group photo commemorating the event, Series 8B (Box 122)
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N.B. See MacMurray's "Peking Miscellaneous" films in Series 9A (Box 173-175)
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N.B. Copies of photographs at the Museum of National Sciences, New York. See also MacMurray's film of the event at Series 9A (Box 171)
Physical Description1 box
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N.B. See MacMurray's film in Series 9A (Box 177)
Physical Description1 box
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 8E includes photographs of official and ceremonial functions that were made while MacMurray served as Minister to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (1933-1936) and as ambassador to Turkey (1936-1942). The subseries includes additional photographs and snapshots made in Turkey.
Physical Description4 boxes
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
This subseries contains photographs that were taken by MacMurray and Lois Goodnow in the United States before they married, and during following family trips and vacations in Asia and Europe. Many of the photographs are kept in mixed albums.
Box 158 includes photos that MacMurray took while serving as Minister to China (1925-1929), most of which he had printed as postcards and sent to his mother, often with descriptions (see Series 2).
In addition to the photographs the subseries contains purchased postcards and pictorial views, and miscellaneous negatives.
Physical Description9 boxes
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This subseries contains photographs that were taken by MacMurray and Lois Goodnow in the United States before they married, and during following family trips and vacations in Asia and Europe. Many of the photographs are kept in mixed albums.
Box 158 includes photos that MacMurray took while serving as Minister to China (1925-1929), most of which he had printed as postcards and sent to his mother, often with descriptions (see Series 2).
In addition to the photographs the subseries contains purchased postcards and pictorial views, and miscellaneous negatives.
Physical Description1 box
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N.B. Include duplicates of postcards sent to MacMurray's mother in Series 2 (Correspondence)
Physical Description1 box
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
MacMurray began filming in 1925, two years after Kodak introduced the Cine-Kodak Motion Picture camera, which made production and display of motion pictures possible for amateurs. Series 9 contains reels of 16mm, 8mm, and 35mm black and white films, which MacMurray shot between 1925 and 1942, during the time he served as Minister to China (1925-1929), and to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (1933-1936) and as US Ambassador to Turkey (1936-1942). The films were donated by MacMurray's surviving children in February and June 2007 (ML 2007-006 and ML 2008-010), and in May 2008 and April 2010 (ML 2008-016 and ML.2010-009). The series is divided into five subseries.
Physical Description6 boxes
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 9A contains twenty-eight 16 mm films that MacMurray shot while serving as US Minister to China (1925-1929). In these years the country was divided by civil war: the Nationalist Party, initially cooperated with the Communist Party in fighting rival warlords in order to gain control of the country. After establishing a Nationalist government in Nanking (Nanjing), the Nationalists took control of Peking (Beijing) in June 1928. Although the films of Peking contain footage of soldiers, MacMurray's films are not political in nature. They contain street and other local scenes in Peking and the Western Hills, where the family leased part of the Ta Pei Ssu temple, as well as in other places that MacMurray visited in China. In addition, some of the films contain footage of family and friends.
The subseries exists of fifteen 400 foot reels and thirteen 100 foot reels. The 400 foot reels were labeled by MacMurray himself and contain footage that he may have selected to display to family and friends. The remaining 100 foot film reels, which are only labeled in part, contain brief films and fragments, some of which similar to footage found on the 400 foot reels.
Digital conversions of the majority of the films in DVD format can be found in subseries 9D.
Physical Description3 boxes
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This film was shot during various MacMurray family trips occasionally with guests to the hilly area to the northwest of Peking, where travel was often by donkey. The film includes unidentified views and local scenes, villagers doing manual labor, donkeys and camels and their drivers, and views of the hills covered in snow. Among the footage is a trip to the Ming tombs.
Physical Description1 box
MacMurray grouped the films he shot in Peking in two undated sets which he labeled "Peking Misc[ellaneous] I-II" and "Peking Misc[ellaneous] I-III." The first set ends with the entry of Nationalist troops in Peking in June 1928, and therefore dates circa 1925-1929.
Physical Description1 box
The first film of the set starts with a visit of a naval officer of high rank, followed by extensive footage of a military drill. The remainder of the film consists of various Peking sites, including scenes at Behai Park and footage of Peking in snow. In addition, the film contains street and market scenes, including footage of musicians and performers.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 162.
Physical Description1 box
The second film of this set starts with brief footage of a funeral procession, followed by various street and market scenes and Peking sites. The film includes a skating scene and footage of the selling and burning of incense at a temple.
The film ends with what seems to be the entry of Nationalist troops in June 1928, filmed at various locations in Peking, which is followed by a soldier raising the Nationalist flag. The film ends with footage of soldiers and men leaving the city by train.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 163.
Physical Description1 box
This film captures MacMurray's children at play, riding bikes and ponies, at a birthday party, and in the company of servants and of their dogs. The film includes some footage of John Van Antwerp MacMurray and Lois Goodnow MacMurray, as well as group shots of their staff.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 164.
Physical Description1 box
This film was shot in Chefoo (Yantai) and Penglai, where the MacMurray family spent summer vacation in 1926. The film includes ships at Chefoo harbor, the summer headquarters of the US Asiatic Fleet, where the family witnessed target practice on board of U.S.S. Pruitt. This is followed by footage of Penglai, a small enwalled medieval town, with a walled harbor and a temple on an adjacent cliff. An edited list of scenes, which also includes scenes on the "Shanghai and South" film (box 166), may be found in box 192. Descriptions of the US ships in Chefoo harbor and the visit to Penglai can be found in MacMurray's letters to his mother Henrietta Van Antwerp MacMurray (box 20).
In addition, the film includes footage of military airplanes at Camp MacMurray, a US Marine Corps airfield at Hsin Ho near Shanghai that was named after MacMurray. It is followed by a film of an inspection and parade in Tientsin, with footage of early tanks and other military vehicles.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 165.
Physical Description1 box
This short film, which was found on a 400 ft reel, was shot aboard a ship and seems to contain the scenes found on a list in box 192. These include the Shanghai Bund, Amoy Harbor, Canton Harbor with the H.M.S. Sacramento, and scenes along the West River with a pagoda on the inner reach and the U.S.S. Pamfanga. This is followed by footage of the hoisting of the anchor on the H.M.S. Sacramento and ends with a view of Hong Kong Harbor.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 166.
Physical Description1 box
MacMurray and his family spent much of their free time in the Western Hills northwest of Peking, where many diplomats "rented a temple." MacMurray leased living quarters at Ta Pei Ssu in the Pa ta Ch'u valley. MacMurray describes the temple in a letter to his mother on August 16, 1925 (box 20). The film includes some family and temple scenes, probably at Ta Pei Ssu. In addition, the film includes unidentified street and village scenes, as well as footage of carriers, laborers, pig herders, and other villagers. Additional footage shot in the Western Hills may be found in box 161 and box 174.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 167.
Physical Description1 box
The three "Yangtsze" (Yangzi) films were shot during an official six-week long tour along the Yangzi River in February and March 1928, when MacMurray visited consulates and ports between Tsingtao (Qingdao) and Chungking (Chongqing) to familiarize himself with the situation in Central China. MacMurray was accompanied by assistant Chinese Secretary Howard Bucknell and Captain Halsey Powell, the naval attaché.
MacMurray created lists of the scenes on the first two Yangzi reels (subseries 9D). The journey is further documented in MacMurray's correspondence files (series 2) as well as the newspaper clippings in series 7. However, details about the journey between Ichang (Yichang) and Chungking on the river gunboat USS Guam are lacking. The films do not document official functions, but only depict outdoor scenes filmed aboard the ships or in the cities visited. MacMurray printed postcards from the photographs that he took during the trip, which he sent to his mother with brief explanations. Photographs and duplicate postcards can be found in series 8A (box 156).
Physical Description1 box
MacMurray's first "Yangtsze" film documents the journey from Tsinanfu (Jinan) to Ichang (Yichang). It begins with some brief footage in Tsinanfu, followed by outdoor scenes in Tsingtao (Qingdao), where administrator general Chao Chi (Zhao Qi) took him to a training session of police dogs.
The film contains extensive footage filmed aboard various ships. The destroyer USS Noa took MacMurray's party to Shanghai, where they boarded the USS Isabel a few days later to sail to Chinkiang (Zhenjiang), and to Anking (Anqing). In Chinkiang the group paid a visit to Silver Island (Jiao Shan), where MacMurray filmed temple scenes and a paper rubbing shop. At Chinkiang harbor MacMurray captured a Standard Oil house boat, which represented, according to MacMurray's notes, the "American Consulate at Nanking, temporarily at Chinkiang." In Anking the party boarded SS Kungwo to Hankow (Hankou), where they were joined by Consul-General Frank Lockhart for the remainder of the journey to Chungking.
The journey between Hankow and Chungking and back to Hankow (March 8-22) was traveled on river gunboat USS Guam with Admiral Yates Stirling, commander of the Yangtze Patrol. After passing Shashi and the Tiger's Tooth Gorge, the film ends with harbor and street scenes in Ichang, where MacMurray and his party arrived on March 11. The journey on the USS Guam is continued in reels "Yangtsze II" and "Yangtsze III."
This item was formerly cataloged as box 168.
Physical Description1 box
The second Yangzi film documents the journey through the Yangzi Gorges on the upper river between Ichang and the city at the other end of the Gorges, known as Kweifu (now called Fengjie Xian). MacMurray listed the gorges and rapids that he filmed himself (subseries 9D). The footage ends with salt boiling at Kweifu and some riverbank scenes with gondola-like boats that, according to MacMurray in a postcard to his mother, were native to Kweifu. The film is continued on reel "Yangtsze III."
This item was formerly cataloged as box 169.
Physical Description1 box
The contents of "Yangtsze III" are not listed by MacMurray. The film continues the journey on the upper river to Chungking after passing the Yangzi Gorges. During a stop, possibly at Wanhsien (Wanxian), MacMurray filmed the building of a boat, as well as some other riverbank scenes. The footage that follows includes a close up of MacMurray's party with Admiral Yates Stirling, under whose command the USS Guam was sailing. Upon arrival in Chungking the party apparently visited warlord and local ruler Liu Xiang, who is shown walking next to MacMurray. Italian diplomat Daniele Varè describes a similar meeting with Liu during his own trip along the Yangzi River in his memoirs Laughing Diplomat.
Subsequent footage contains street scenes and the waterfront of Chungking. The Yangzi footage that follows was filmed on the way back to Hankow. It includes the Precious Stone Rock (Shibaozhai) in Zhong Xian, a steep natural rock with pagoda that was passed on the Northern river bank.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 170.
Physical Description1 box
MacMurray shot this film during a visit with his wife and sister to the Northern city of Kalgan (Zhangjiakou) at the Great Wall of China, the gateway to Mongolia. They accompanied the American explorer Roy Chapman Andrews and his excavation team between Kalgan and Changpeh (Zhangbei) through the Wanchuang (Wanzhuang) pass. Andrews had led a series of expeditions in the Gobi Desert in the 1920s. In 1928, however, rogue soldiers and brigands made access impossible, hence MacMurray had to secure passage by calling upon the assistance of local warlord Chang Tso-lin (Zhang Zuolin). The film captures the exit of the crew of 37 people, eight cars and 150 camels from Kalgan on April 16, 1928, escorted by 50 Chinese cavalrymen. In addition, MacMurray filmed local scenes in Kalgan and on the way to the Wanchuang pass.
Photographs of the trip can be found in Series 8A (box 156). There is no correspondence, however, about the event. A description of the expedition can be found in Dragon Hunter: Roy Chapman Andrews and the Central Asiatic Expeditions by Charles Gallenkamp (2001).
This item was formerly cataloged as box 171.
Physical Description1 box
Miao Feng Shan ("Marvelous Peak Mountain") was a popular pilgrimage site about 30 miles northwest of Peking. On October 23, 1928 MacMurray wrote his mother that the family was taking their guest, the artist Lilian ("Jack") Miller, on a five-day trip in the Western Hills to Lung Ch'uan Ssu, Miao Feng Shan, Ti Shui Yen, and T'an Che Ssu. MacMurray must have shot this film during this trip. The film includes views of the Summer Palace northwest of Beijing, but the scenes following are not identified. The last part of this film seems to have been shot while climbing Miao Feng Shan.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 172.
Physical Description1 box
The second set of MacMurray's "Peking Misc[ellaneous]" films consists of three undated reels, which should be viewed in reverse order (III, II, I) due to a mislabeling of the originals. Most of the footage in the films concerns the reinterment of Sun Yat-sen (who died in 1925) in his mausoleum in Nanking (Nanjing) on June 1, 1929. The Nationalist government in Nanking had invited the foreign representatives in Peking to participate in the ceremony. MacMurray filmed much of the footage during the train trip to Nanking.
Photographs of the foreign representatives attending the funeral proceedings that were sent to MacMurray can be found in Box 144. MacMurray does not seem to have made photographs himself and there are no descriptions of the trip in his correspondence. The trip in the "ministers train" is described by the Italian minister Daniele Varè in Laughing Diplomat (1938).
Physical Description1 box
Due to a mislabeling of the originals films, the first film of this set of three begins with scenes in Behai Park, which include footage of soldiers, followed by local sites and scenes, including the Summer Palace and markets places. The film ends with footage of who we believe is José Gallostra y Coello de Portugal, the secretary of the Spanish legation, who published caricatures of foreign representatives and other Westerners in Peking in Le Rire Jaune, a satirical journal for French ex-patriots in Peking. Many of the caricatures, including one of MacMurray with his film camera, were drawn during the trip on the "Ministers Train" to Nanking. In a letter to Stanley Hornbeck, MacMurray describes Gallostra as having a "genius for caricature and an irrepressible spirit of mockery" (19 July, 1929).
In the film, Gallostra, who is impersonating different characters, seems to be mimicking the prescribed behavior of the diplomatic representatives when paying their last respects to Sun Yat-sen. During a ceremony on May 31, prior to the reinterment, each minister placed a wreath at the foot of the dais at the headquarters of the Nationalist party, where the embalmed body lay in state. The three bows while moving forward and backward can be found in descriptions of the ceremony. Similar footage of Gallostra may be found among the numbered reels (box 182).
This item was formerly cataloged as box 173.
Physical Description1 box
The film "Peking Misc[ellaneous] II" begins with village scenes in the Western Hills, where diplomats and their families spent much of their free time, often "renting a temple." The film includes footage of MacMurray and his family, probably at the temple Ta Pei Ssu where they leased living accommodations. MacMurray filmed additional street and temple scenes, followed by a local fair and other village scenes.
After footage of MacMurray's children in costumes, the film continues with the procession of Sun Yat-sen's body passing by the Legation Quarter (Dongjiaominxiang) on its way to the train station in Peking (May 26, 1929). It is followed by the departure of the foreign representatives in the "Ministers train" on the following day. Close-ups include the French minister Damien de Martel and the Dutch minister W.J. Oudendijk, doyen of the diplomatic corps, standing next to José Gallostra, who is drawing in a sketchbook (see the description in "Peking Misc[ellaneous] III" at box 173). The film ends with a train stop at Taianfu and is continued by "Peking Misc[ellaneous] I."
This item was formerly cataloged as box 174.
Physical Description1 box
"Peking Misc[ellaneous] I" continues the "Peking Misc[ellaneous] II" footage on the Taianfu station and includes harvesting scenes that were filmed along the Jinpu railroad on the way to Nanking. The brief footage of Sun Yat-sen's mausoleum was shot prior the funeral, as MacMurray did not film the official ceremonies. Additional scenes include street scenes in Nanking, where MacMurray filmed silk thread making and other local scenes.
The footage that follows seems to have been shot at the Nanking harbor (Xiaguan), as the train station in Pukou was on the other side of the Yangzi River. The next scenes were filmed during train stops on the way back to Peking and include the Lianghsiatien (Liangxiadian) station (the man in bathrobe believed to be Italian minister and author Daniele Varè), as well as agricultural scenes, and local musicians. The film ends with a children's scene in the garden of the US legation in Peking.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 175.
Physical Description1 box
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This film, which was labeled by MacMurray himself, captures a three minute long dance with two swords by the Chinese dancer Yu Rongling (1882-1973), the wife of General Dan Pao Chao of Beijing. Yu, who received a Western education along with her older sister "Princess" Der Ling, had studied dance in Paris and introduced Western dances to China.
Physical Description1 box
This film was added to the series in April 2010 and has not been transferred to DVD. Details about the contents have therefore not been established.
Physical Description1 box
This film captures a military review in Tientsin, where MacMurray gave an address to the Third Brigade of the US Marines during a visit in January 1928. Additional photos of the event can be found in box 145. The Third Brigade was under the command of General Smedley D. Butler (1881-1940), who also appears on the film. The scenes in Tientsin are followed by footage of the building of the Sino-American highway, a cooperative project in which the Third Brigade was involved. A commemorative photo album of the project can be found in box 147.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 177.
Physical Description1 box
The few fragments on this film include footage of MacMurray's children, a nationalist flag, and British Ambassador Miles Lampson, who was a friend of MacMurray.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 178.
Physical Description1 box
The fragments on this reel include images of MacMurray's children Joan and Frank and a guest riding donkeys in the Western Hills.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 179.
Physical Description1 box
After a brief train scene, the footage of this film is shot aboard a boat, possibly across the Yangzi River between the train station at Pukou and Nanking. This is followed by shots of the new mausoleum for Sun Yat-sen, awaiting Sun's reinterment on June 1, 1929. The film ends with brief footage of a train being guarded by a soldier, followed by men who are carrying luggage and walking past people holding Chinese banners.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 180.
Physical Description1 box
This film starts with footage of camels, followed by a local man standing at a table, possibly the storyteller referred to in the title that is penciled on the container of the original film. The footage ends with a small boat being pulled across a stream.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 181.
Physical Description1 box
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This reel contains another fragment of the mime performance by the man identified as José Gallostra on the "Peking Misc[ellaneous] III reel (box 176). It is followed by some footage of MacMurray's children with an artist and performers.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 182.
Physical Description1 box
The footage on this reel includes a picnic with guests, family swimming, and more footage of the performers seen on above reel "1."
This item was formerly cataloged as box 183.
Physical Description1 box
This film was added to the series in April 2010 and has not been transferred to DVD. Details about the contents have therefore not been established.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 203.
Physical Description1 box
This film was added to the series in April 2010 and has not been transferred to DVD. Details about the contents have therefore not been established.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 204.
Physical Description1 box
This film was added to the series in April 2010 and has not been transferred to DVD. Details about the contents have therefore not been established.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 205.
Physical Description1 box
After some footage of village and nature scenes and military exercises, this film shows what may be a Chinese burial procession of someone of importance. The footage shows grieving people carrying banners, and puppets of people and animals.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 184.
Physical Description1 box
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Physical Description2 boxes
This film was shot in October 1926, when MacMurray and his wife visited the Philippines, where they stayed at the residence of Governor General Leonard Wood and at Camp John Hay, at the end of a trip to Shanghai, Canton, and Hong Kong. MacMurray described the trip in letters to his mother on October 8 and December 12, 1926 (box 20). The film captures a trip with Colonel Livingston and his wife along the trail between Baguio and Bontoc, where they stayed with governor John C. Early and his wife. In honor of his visitors, Early, who had a close relationship with the local Igorots, organized a festival on October 9, 1926. The film contains elaborate Igorot dancing scenes, including footage of, according to MacMurray, a 'particularly uprightly and engaging head-hunter' who taught the 'townsmen' the dance of another tribe that he had recently seen. The film ends with footage of Igorot huts and village scenes.
An album with photographs of the trip to the Philippines may be found in Series 8 (box 157). Descriptions of the photographs may be found on the postcards that he printed of some of the negatives and sent to his mother (box 26).
Physical Description1 box
This film was added to the series in April 2010 and has not been transferred to DVD. Details about the contents have therefore not been established.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 206.
Physical Description1 box
"Diamond Mountains" captures a family holiday at one of the pools in the Diamond Mountains (Mount Geumgang, now North Korea), where the family spent their vacation in a hotel in the village of Onseiri between August 17 and September 18, 1928. The footage includes family swimming and fishing scenes, as well as mountain scenes. In addition, the film contains footage of villagers, monks, and street scenes in Onseiri and possibly Choanji, where MacMurray and his wife spent a few days on their own while their children were looked after at the hotel.
MacMurray made photographs during the trip, which he sent as postcards to his mother. Apart from the first postcards, however, descriptions of the scenes are lacking. Copies of these photographs and postcards can be found in Series 8F (Box 156). The film, which was donated along the seven 400 foot films of China, described in subseries 9A, has been converted to DVD format, which can be found in subseries 9D.
This item was formerly cataloged as box 186.
Physical Description1 box
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
These films were added to the series in May 2008 and April 2010 and have not been transferred to DVD. Details about their contents have therefore not been established. The group consists of two 400 foot reels, which were labeled by MacMurray, and seven unlabeled 100 foot film reels, which may have been shot in the period 1930-1933, when MacMurray directed the Walter Hines Page School of International Relations at Johns Hopkins University.
Physical Description2 boxes
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This item was formerly cataloged as box 187.
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This item was formerly cataloged as box 188.
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This item was formerly cataloged as box 189.
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This item was formerly cataloged as box 190.
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These items wwere formerly cataloged as boxes 207-211.
Physical Description1 box
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Subseries 9C includes three 16mm and fourteen 8mm black and white films that were shot when MacMurray served as Minister to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (1933-1936) and as ambassador to Turkey (1936-1942). The films are not available in digital format.
Physical Description2 boxes
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This item was formerly cataloged as box 212.
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These items wer formerly cataloged as boxes 213-214.
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
Series 10 consists of papers deposited with Princeton University during the lifetime of John Van Antwerp MacMurray and soon after his death. Additional materials were donated by his surviving children in 2007. The series consists of three subseries.
Physical Description9 boxes
No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
The documents in this subseries, which supplement those in Series 6, were deposited during MacMurray's lifetime. The majority of the documents is related to his work at the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (1919-1924), as well as his position as observer during the International Conference on the Limitation of Armament in Washington (1921), and the Chinese-Japanese negotiations for the settlement of the Shantung question (1921-1922). They also include minutes and printed materials for the China Consortium (1919-1925).
Physical Description6 boxes
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
The documents in this subseries, which were donated during MacMurray's lifetime and soon after his death, concern memorabilia and clippings supplementing Series 7 and additional materials, including papers concerning MacMurray's diplomatic appointments.
Physical Description2 boxes
1 folder
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No arrangement action taken or arrangement information not recorded at the time of processing.
The oversize materials in this subseries, which were part of the original collection donated in and before 1965 (AM18671 and AM15671), supplement the historical and family documents in Series 1. They consist of army commissions of Junius Wilson MacMurray, diplomatic appointments and laissez-passers of John Van Antwerp MacMurray, school and other certificates of female members of the Van Antwerp and MacMurray families, and personal drawings. The oversize materials also include printed photographs and miscellaneous maps of the United States and China. Large tinted photographs of China and autographed portrait were moved to Series 8.
In addition, the subseries includes a volume of caricatures of diplomats and other Westerners in Peking (Beijing), by José Gallostra (1929), as well as two audiotapes, which were donated by MacMurray's surviving children in 2007. The caricatures were previously published in Le Rire Jaune, a satirical periodical published in China for the French expatriate community. José Gallostra y Coello de Portugal was the secretary of the Spanish Legation. He drew many of the caracatures during a trip by the foreign representatives in from Peking to Nanking (Nanjing), where they attended the reinterment of Sun Yat-sen in 1929. Films of the trip, including footage of Gallostra mimicking expected ceremonial behavior, may be found in Series 9A, box 173-175 ("Peking Misc[ellaneous]") and box 182.
Physical Description2 boxes
1 folder
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(N.B. Volume of caricatures of diplomats and other Westerners in Peking)
Physical Description1 folder
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