Description
The William C. Burdett papers (1942-1973, 2021) consists of photographs, scrapbooks, documents, correspondence, and clippings
belonging to Foreign Service officer William Burdett. The material relates to Burdett's foreign service in Ecuador, the Middle
East and Israel, Africa, the Suez Canal Crisis, the Soviet Union, Turkey, and includes personal correspondence and photographs.
Background
A World War II veteran and Foreign Service officer, William C. Burdett served during the Arab-Israeli War. In 1948, Burdett
served as Vice Consul to U.S. Consul General Thomas C. Wasson. After Wasson's assassination in May of 1948, Burdett was named
Acting Consul General and the U.S. member of the United Nations Security Council Truce Mission. An experienced Middle East
diplomat, Burdett was posted to Iran and Sudan in the early 1950s, and he played an important role as a U.S. envoy during
the Suez Crisis leading up to the Second Arab-Israeli War in 1956.
Extent
4 manuscript boxes, 7 oversize boxes
(19.67 Linear Feet)
Restrictions
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Availability
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.