Robert D. Stuart Jr. (1916-2014) was the founder of the America First Committee (AFC). The Robert D. Stuart Jr. papers (1940-1941) includes correspondence, records, promotional materials, pamphlets, brochures, and posters.

Robert D. Stuart Jr. (1916-2014) was the founder of the America First Committee (AFC), a leading isolationist organization active in 1940-41. Born on April 26, 1916 in Winnetka, Illinois, Stuart attended Princeton University and Yale Law School. While at Yale, he founded the AFC in opposition to the US joining the Allied war effort. Stuart headquartered the AFC in Chicago and at its peak in 1941, the AFC had 450 chapters across the nation. When Japan attacked the US at Pearl Harbor in December of 1941 and officially joined the Allied war effort, the AFC disbanded. During WWII Stuart served as a major in the US Army. After the war, he worked for the Quaker Oats Company for 38 years, serving as its CEO from 1966 until 1981. In 1984, he became the US ambassador to Norway. Throughout his adult life, he was active in the Republican Party and an advocate of the Boy Scouts of America.

18 manuscript boxes, 5 oversize boxes, 1 oversize folder (13.2 Linear Feet)

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Boxes 19, 21, and 23 may not be used without permission of the Archivist. The remainder of the collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.