Access
Use
Acquisition Information
Preferred Citation
Processing Information
Biographical Note
Scope and Content of Collection
Title: Iris Chang papers
Date (inclusive): 1877-2007
Collection Number: 2004C22
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
403 manuscript boxes, 2 cubic foot boxes, 5 card file boxes, 5 oversize boxes, 2 oversize folders, 10 sound cassettes, 4 videocassettes,
digital media
(177.7 Linear Feet)
Abstract: Correspondence, writings, recordings and transcripts of interviews, photocopies of government records and other documents,
printed matter, audiovisual material, and memorabilia relating to the history of Chinese in the United States, and to aspects
of World War II. Includes research material for the books by Iris Chang,
Thread of the Silkworm (New York, 1995),
The Rape of Nanking (New York, 1997), and
The Chinese in America (New York, 2003), and for an uncompleted work on conditions of American soldiers captured by Japanese forces and Japanese
atrocities against American prisoners of war.
Creator:
Chang, Iris
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Access
Boxes 377-379, 382-383, 386-394, and 397-412 closed until 2072 January 1. 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
The material was acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 2004, with a substantial increment received in 2005.
An additional increment was added in 2011.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Iris Chang papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Processing Information
Similiar series were consolidated in 2023 in order to provide easier researcher access to like materials
Biographical Note
1968 |
Born, Princeton, New Jersey |
1989 |
Bachelor's degree, journalism major, University of Illinois |
1991 |
Master's degree in writing, Johns Hopkins University |
1992 |
Peace and International Cooperation award, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation |
1995 |
Author,
Thread of the Silkworm
|
1997 |
Author,
The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II
|
2003 |
Author,
The Chinese in America: A Narrative History
|
2004 |
Died, California |
Scope and Content of Collection
The Iris Chang papers span the career of a prominent American writer whose work centered on topics of Chinese and Chinese
American history. In addition to speeches and writings, including drafts of her three books, the papers contain a large amount
of research materials related to Chang's work as a historian. These include notes, interview transcripts, documents, sound
recordings, and videorecordings. The collection also contains articles from Chang's career as a journalist, as well as significant
biographical materials. There is a considerable amount of correspondence in the papers, including many letters of appreciation
from readers of her books.
Chang's 1997 book
The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II was an enormous popular success, focusing renewed attention on the actions of the Imperial Japanese army in China in the late
1930s and transforming Chang herself into a public figure who gave numerous speeches on the subject of her book. In the process,
she became identified as an advocate who sought both to preserve the memory of the Nanking Massacre and to force a greater
recognition on the part of Japan of its role in this tragedy.
Chang's other books include
The Thread of the Silkworm, a biography of the Chinese rocket scientist Qian Xuesen (or Tsien Hsue-Shen), and
The Chinese in America: A Narrative History, a major work on the Chinese American experience based on extensive research and interviews.
The collection contains numerous sound and video recordings of speeches made by Iris Chang, as well as of radio and television
interviews conducted with her. Additionally, there are extensive materials in the papers relating to various public appearances
made by Chang to promote her books. These include press releases, photographs, and correspondence.
The papers also contain materials pertaining to Iris Chang's death in 2004, including obituaries, memorial tributes, and letters
of condolence received by her family.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
World War, 1939-1945 -- Prisoners and prisons
World War, 1939-1945 -- Japan
Audiotapes
Video tapes
Sino-Japanese War, 1937-1945
Prisoners of war
Chinese Americans
World War, 1939-1945 -- Atrocities
War crime trials -- Guam
Nanking Massacre, Nanjing, Jiangsu Sheng, China, 1937
United States. Army
Qian, Xuesen, 1911-2009