Collection context
Summary
- Creators:
- Weinstein, Allen
- Abstract:
- Correspondence, writings, conference proceedings, printed matter, photocopies of government documents, and sound recordings relating to promotion of democratic institutions outside the United States; to Soviet espionage in the United States, especially the cases of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and Alger Hiss; and to the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II. Includes research material used for the books by Allen Weinstein, Perjury: The Hiss-Chambers Case (New York, 1978) and The Haunted Wood: Soviet Espionage in America (New York, 1999).
- Extent:
- 168 manuscript boxes, 1 card file box, 4 oversize boxes (73.0 Linear Feet)
- Language:
- English
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Allen Weinstein papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
Acquired in 2004, the Allen Weinstein papers in the Hoover Institution Library & Archives span much of the career of an important American historian who had also long been involved in the arena of public policy. Consisting of correspondence, writings, conference proceedings, printed matter, and some sound recordings, the papers largely relate to American domestic and foreign policy, with additional significant materials relating to Soviet espionage in the United States before and during World War II.
Of particular interest to historians are the extensive research materials in the papers pertaining to the books Perjury: The Hiss-Chambers Case and The Haunted Wood: Soviet Espionage in America—The Stalin Era. These include a large number of photocopies of FBI and other files which were obtained by Weinstein under the Freedom of Information Act. The research materials also include a large number of clippings and other printed matter, as well as interviews conducted by Weinstein of numerous individuals associated with the Hiss case, including Alger Hiss himself. There are also microfilm reels containing documents relating to the purported involvement of Bulgarian security forces in the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II in 1981.
The papers also include materials relating to Weinstein's editorship of The Washington Quarterly in the 1980s and his tenure as executive director of The Democracy Program and its successor organization, the National Endowment for Democracy, from 1982 to 1984. In addition, the papers contain conference proceedings stemming from Weinstein's service as vice-chairman of the American delegation to a major UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) conference in Mexico City in 1982.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Date Event 1937 September 1 Born, New York City1967 PhD, Yale University1966-1981 Professor of history, Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts1970 Author, Prelude to Populism1978 Author, Perjury: The Hiss-Chambers Case1981-1983 Professor of history, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.1982-1983 Executive editor, The Washington QuarterlyExecutive director, The Democracy Program, Washington, D.C.1984 President, Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions1985-1989 Professor of history, Boston University1985-2003 Founder and president, Center for Democracy, Washington, D.C.1999 Co-author, The Haunted Wood: Soviet Espionage in America—The Stalin Era2002 Author, The Story of America: Freedom and Crisis from Settlement to Superpower2005-2008 Archivist of the United States, Washington, D.C.2015 June 18 Died, Gaithersburg, Maryland - Acquisition information:
- Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives in 2004, with increments received in subsequent years.
- Physical location:
- Hoover Institution Library & Archives
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Boxes 121-148 closed. Box 158 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.
- Terms of access:
-
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Allen Weinstein papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
- Location of this collection:
-
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford UniversityStanford, CA 94305-6003, US
- Contact:
- (650) 723-3563