Size: Less than one linear foot (approximately 600 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: Copyright interest in the unpublished writings of Edward P. Meisburger in this collection, or in any other collection of papers in the custody of the U.S. government, has been donated to the U.S. government. Documents created by U.S. government officials in the course of their duties are in the public domain. Copyright interest in other documents in this collection is assumed to remain with the authors of the documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Niel Johnson (1981); Roxie Harper and Randy Sowell (2002).

The papers of Edward Paul "Eddie" Meisburger consist of correspondence, newspaper clippings, and other items mostly pertaining to his service as a sergeant in Battery D of the 129th Field Artillery during World War I, and his subsequent association with his commanding officer, Harry S. Truman, and other veterans of Battery D. The collection also contains some information about Meisburger's family, his career as a journalist and government official, and other aspects of his life.

The papers are organized into three series: an Incoming Correspondence File, a Miscellaneous File, and a Scrapbook File. The Incoming Correspondence File consists mostly of letters from Truman to Meisburger, dating from 1934 to 1972. The letters are primarily personal in nature, relating to birthdays, reunions, and family matters. A few of Truman's letters refer to political issues of mutual interest, such as flood control (Meisburger worked as a public relations official for the Army Corps of Engineers). The series also contains letters written by Meisburger, Bess Truman, and others, with a few related items.

The Miscellaneous File consists of one folder of historical material relating to Battery D. Included are a brief history of the battery, an official record of the 129th Field Artillery, some newspaper clippings, and other items.

The Scrapbook File consists of the contents of several scrapbooks, which include newspaper clippings, correspondence, handwritten notes, photographs, invitations, programs, and other memorabilia. Much of this material documents the activities of Battery D veterans and their attendance at such events as the 1949 Inauguration and President Truman's funeral in 1972. Some of the material pertains to Meisburger's sons, William F. Meisburger and Edward P. Meisburger, Jr., and their military service during World War II.

More information about the boys of Battery D and their association with Mr. Truman can be found in the papers of John Thacher, Edward McKim, Lorain Cunningham, Vic Housholder, and L. Curtis Tiernan; and in oral history interviews with McKim, Cunningham, Meisburger, Eugene Donnelly, Frederick Bowman, Vere Leigh, Walter Menefee, Harry Murphy, Floyd Ricketts, and McKinley Wooden. In the papers of Harry S. Truman, related correspondence is filed under the names of Meisburger and the other veterans in the White House Central Files: President's Personal File, President's Secretary's Files (Personal File), and Post-Presidential Papers. Further information about Truman's military service in World War I can be found in the Truman Papers Pertaining to Family, Business and Personal Affairs and in Record Group 391:Records of U.S. Regular Army Mobile Units (Records of Battery D).

Box 1

INCOMING CORRESPONDENCE FILE, 1921-1977

• Correspondence from Harry S. Truman and Others, 1921-1976 [from scrapbooks]
• Correspondence from Harry S. Truman, 1941-1949
• Correspondence from Harry S. Truman, 1952-1959
• Correspondence from Harry S. Truman, 1960-1972
• Correspondence from Mrs. Bess Truman, 1968-1977

MISCELLANEOUS FILE, 1919-1979

• Battery D Historical Items, 1919-1979

SCRAPBOOK FILE, 1937-1977

• "In Washington, May 3, 1959"
• Loose Items, 1945-1977
• "1949 Inaugural"
• "President Harry S. Truman State Funeral and Burial"
• Scrapbook Items-Unbound, 1937-1945
• Scrapbook Items-Unbound, 1949-1977

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