Spector, Melbourne L. Papers

The papers of Melbourne L. Spector consist of memoranda, correspondence, reports, handwritten notes, printed material and transcripts of oral history interviews concerning the work of Charles E. Johnson, a State Department official involved in the reorganization of the Department in 1947-48; and the work of Donald C. Stone as Director of Administration of the Economic Cooperation Administration.

Size: Less than one linear foot (about 1600 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: Melbourne L. Spector donated to the U.S. government his copyright interest in the unpublished writings of Donald C. Stone and Charles E. Johnson in this collection and in any other collection of papers in the custody of the U.S. government. Documents created by U.S. government employees in the course of their official duties are also in the public domain. Copyright interest in other documents is assumed to belong to the creators of those documents, or their heirs.
Processed by: Dennis Bilger
Updated by: Tracy L. Burgess (2003) as part of the Truman Library Internship Program.
Supervising Archivists: Randy Sowell and Amy Williams.

Melbourne Spector was a former State Department official with an interest in his agency's history. He had an opportunity to acquire the two series of papers in this collection. His objective was to preserve the papers and make them available for research. To that end, Spector donated the papers to the Truman Library in 2000.

Spector also conducted oral history interviews with Charles Johnson and Donald Stone as part of the Foreign Affairs Oral History Project of the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. The transcripts of both these interviews are included in these papers.

Donald Stone and the Economic Cooperation Administration:

The Economic Cooperation Administration (ECA) functioned as the administrative body for the European Recovery Plan, otherwise known as the Marshall Plan. President Truman signed the act establishing the ECA in April, 1948. The ECA was created to promote European development and the European currency, and to promote international trade. The ECA's activities were transferred to the Mutual Security Agency in 1951.

According to Mr. Spector's summary, "Donald Stone played a pivotal role in the legislative history of the (Marshall) Plan, in its initiation, and in its management." Stone became involved with the ECA through his position as Assistant Director for Administrative Management of the Bureau of the Budget, in the Executive Office of the President. Stone's papers are scant, and clearly lean towards the administrative side of the ECA. A large portion of the documents address the nuts and bolts of physically setting up the office and administration - getting office supplies, setting up budgets, preparing job descriptions, outlining the mission of the organization, etc. It is evident that Stone played a significant role in getting the offices of the ECA organized and running, and was instrumental in communicating the organization's mission to personnel and other government officials.

The Truman Library has a number of holdings concerning the ECA and the Marshall plan. These include: the White House Central Files Official File (OF 426L - Economic Cooperation Administration; OF 426 - Marshall Plan); the President's Secretary's Files: General File (Marshall Plan), the President's Secretary's Files: Subject Files (Economic Cooperation Administration); and the Confidential File Subject File (Economic Cooperation Administration).

The Truman Library conducted an oral history interview with Paul G. Hoffman, Administrator of the Economic Cooperation Administration from 1948-50, in October of 1964. Mr. Hoffman also donated his papers to the Truman Library, which are available for research.

Additionally, Record Group 469 - Records of U.S. Foreign Assistance Agencies, may be of interest.

Charles Johnson and the Department of State:

Charles Johnson came to the Department of State in 1947 from the Federal Public Housing Authority. Shortly after joining the Department of State, Johnson began working with Assistant Secretary of State John E. Peurifoy on the reorganization of the State Department. Johnson remained with the State Department until 1951.

Johnson was one of the authors of The Peurifoy Plan, which called for the integration of the Department of State and the Foreign Service into "one unified organization for the formulation and execution of foreign policy." The goal was to improve communication and clearly define the line of authority for the handling of foreign relations. Johnson's papers include a copy of the Peurifoy Plan and all related status reports, as well as the preliminary studies of the Department of State and the Foreign Service.

The Truman Library has a great deal of additional information concerning the State Department and Foreign Service. These holdings include: the White House Central Files: Official File (OF 20 - Department of State; OF 67 - Foreign Service of the United States); the President's Secretary's Files: Subject File (Cabinet, State; Foreign Affairs; Foreign Policy and Foreign Aid, 1945-1947). Within the Confidential File is an entire series addressing the State Department. Additionally, Record Group 59, General Records of the Department of State, may be of interest.