Register of the Leo McDowell papers
Finding aid prepared by Lucy Hernandez
Hoover Institution Library and Archives
© 2022, 2023
434 Galvez Mall
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003
hoover-library-archives@stanford.edu
Title: Leo McDowell papers
Date (inclusive): 1950-1986
Collection Number: 2022C30
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material: In English
Physical Description:
2 manuscript boxes,1 oversize box
(1.59 Linear Feet)
Abstract: The Leo McDowell papers (1950-1986) contains correspondence, invitations, photographs, newspaper clippings, military insignia,
and other ephemera that belonged to McDowell (1927-2017), a decorated African American Marine who served during World War
II, Korean War, and the Vietnam War. McDowell earned accolades as a top Marine recruiter.
Creator:
McDowell, Leo, 1927-2017
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Access
Box 3 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.
Use
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquisition Information
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 2022.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Leo McDowell papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Biographical Note
Sergeant Leo McDowell (1927-2017), a decorated African American Marine, served during World War II, the Korean War, and the
Vietnam War. Born in Detroit, Michigan, McDowell joined the United States Navy during World War II when he was seventeen.
He served for two years before enlisting with the US Marine Corps. McDowell assisted with integration efforts in the military
during the Korean War. Quartermaster General W.P.T. Hill asked McDowell to serve on the Steward Inspection and Demonstration
Team that sought equality for Black stewards. Between the wars, he was one of the first African American recruiting officers
working out of a Hollywood office. McDowell retired from the military, after 25 years, when a grenade shattered his ankle
during combat in Vietnam. He then worked for the Daylin Corp. in Beverly Hills, the Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), the Veterans Administration (VA), and in various private security firms. At the VA, McDowell was an equal-employment
opportunity investigator where he met his wife, Alice Sims. McDowell was a lifelong Republican who supported President Nixon
and served Ronald Reagan through his governorship of California and as President of the United States. Ill with Parkinson's
disease, McDowell died in Littlerock, California on March 8, 2017
Scope and Content of Collection
The collection documents Leo McDowell's career in the miliary, work in government administration, private security firms,
and his relation to Hollywood stars as a Marine recruiter.
The correspondence relate to the assignments/orders given to McDowell in his late military career, his time in other government
service, and from the private security services he worked for. Included is a letter to one of his colleagues from John Wayne
and a copy of McDowell's letter to Bob Hope in 1966. There is also a drawing relating to a public recruiting event that McDowell
assisted Bob Hope with during the 1960s. The collection includes McDowells writings on Black History Month and a typescript
of a speech by McDowell in which he recounts the effects of the 1971 earthquake that led to his involvement at the Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
The photographs document McDowell's early career in the military and his work in government administration. The images chronicle
McDowell and other soldiers in Hawaii and the Pacific in the later 1950s. Additionally, the images include soldiers during
training exercises. A few photographs depict McDowell with Hollywood stars Charlton Heston and Jimmy Stewart. Included is
an inscribed photograph from Ronald Reagan.
Other material includes McDowell's military insignia pins, his dog tag, name badges, patches, invitations, and newspaper clippings.
Included is an invitation to Richard Nixon's 1973 Inaugural Ball and ticket to the Inauguration, and an invitation to Reagan's
1984 Inaugural Convocation.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
African American soldiers
Soldiers -- United States
World War, 1939-1945 -- Veterans
Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Veterans -- United States
Korean War, 1950-1953
Veterans
Photographs
Insignia
United States. Marine Corps
Biographical File
1955, undated
box 1, folder 2
Business cards
undated
Scope and Contents
3 business cards from McDowells employment with different companies.
box 1, folder 4
1950, 1955
Scope and Contents
Includes military endorsements and orders.
box 1, folder 5
1961-1969
Scope and Contents
Includes military correspondence, endorsements, orders, correspondence from John Wayne to Lt. Colonel Fagan, correspondence
with Bob Hope, Governor Edmund Brown's office, drawing of the Bob Hope Challenge Platoon, and candidate endorsement letter.
box 1, folder 6
1975-1981, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes correspondence from the Veterans Administration, Compton Unified School District, equal opportunity for housing,
EEO meeting report, writing by Sergeant Major Robert Begg, and a holiday card from President Johnson.
box 1, folder 7
Event invitations
1973-1986
Scope and Contents
Includes invitations for Richard Nixon's 1973 inauguration, Ronald Reagan's 1981 inauguration, and the 1986 Beverly Hills
Ball.
Speeches and Writings
circa 1971-1979
box 1, folder 3
"Actual Experience"
circa 1971-1979
Scope and Contents
Annotated speech in which McDowell recounts the effects of the 1971 earthquake that led to his involvement at the Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
box 1, folder 3
"Black History Month"
1979
box 1, folder 3
"It Must Not be in Vain"
circa 1971-1979
Scope and Contents
Writing in relation to Black History Month and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Photographic materials
1958-1963, undated
box 2, envelope 1-15
1958-1963, undated
Scope and Contents
84 photographic prints capture McDowell and other soldiers in Hawaii and the Pacific, training exercises, family images, recruitment
offices, the Honolulu Zoo, and Disneyland.
box 2, folder 16
1958-1963, undated
Scope and Contents
Photographic print of McDowell in uniform.
box 2, folder 17
1963, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes images from recruiter's school, recruitment office, events, autographed photographs from Ronald Reagan and others,
McDowell receiving recognition, and celebrities Charlton Heston and Jimmy Stewart.
box 2, folder 17, envelope 1
Photographic album
undated
Scope and Contents
Images include the Pacific.
Printed Matter
circa 1966, undated
box 1, folder 8
circa 1966, undated
Scope and Contents
Newspaper clippings, table place cards, flyers for the Bob Hope Challenge Platoon, photograph for female recruitment, campaign
flyer for CFC
Memorabilia
circa 1950-1986
box 3
Military insignia
circa 1950-1986
Conditions Governing Access
Box 3 may not be used without permission of the Archivist.
Scope and Contents
Includes Navy patch, decal, dog tag, name badges, Eagle Globe and Anchor pin, officer insignia pins, Chevron pins, Achievement
Medal pin, and other military insignia pins.
box 3
Desk name plate
circa 1950-1986
Conditions Governing Access
Box 3 may not be used without permission of the Archivist.
Scope and Contents
Name plate for McDowell, UCMC Vietnam.
