British Library of Information collection, 1920-1921

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Creators:
British Library of Information (New York, N.Y.)
Abstract:
The collection includes clippings from American newspapers in English, French, and German, collected by the British Library of Information in New York City. The clippings focus on American sentiment towards Great Britain and the British Empire in 1920-1921.
Extent:
1 manuscript box (0.4 Linear Feet)
Language:
In English, German and French
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], British Library of Information collection, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection includes clippings from American newspapers in English, French, and German, collected by the British Library of Information in New York City during 1920-1921. The clippings focus on American sentiment towards Great Britain and the British Empire, especially in relation to the establishment of the Irish Free State, the anticolonial movement in India, the Versailles peace settlement, and the Anglo-Japanese alliance.

Biographical / historical:

The British Library of Information was a branch of the British Foreign Office News Department created in 1919 to improve relations between the United States and Great Britain. This was done in two ways: firstly, by dispensing officially approved information about Britain's domestic, imperial, and foreign affairs through the Library's reading room in New York city; and secondly, by monitoring American public opinion through newspaper clippings, which were collected and sent to the Foreign Office.

The Library proved to be an adequate dispensary and collector of information for the Foreign Office during peacetime, but with the onset of World War II, it could no longer meet the goals or demands of wartime foreign policy. Consequently, it was absorbed into the larger British Information Services in 1942.

Further information on the British Library of Information can be found in David Lincove's article, "The British Library of Information in New York: A Tool of British Foreign Policy, 1919-1942." in Libraries & the Cultural Record 46.2 (2011) p.156-84.

Acquisition information:
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives
Arrangement:

The collection is organized into 3 series of clippings, arranged by language: English, French, and German.

Physical location:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

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], British Library of Information collection, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Location of this collection:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003, US
Contact:
(650) 723-3563
hooverarchives@stanford.edu
Website