Register of the James A. Rabbitt papers

Finding aid prepared by Sarah Ainsworth
Hoover Institution Library and Archives
© 2000, 2022
434 Galvez Mall
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003
hoover-library-archives@stanford.edu


Title: James A. Rabbitt papers
Date (inclusive): 1895-1967
Collection Number: 71005
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material: In English, Chinese, and Japanese
Physical Description: 62 manuscript boxes, 3 oversize boxes, 3 oversize folders (29.2 Linear Feet)
Abstract: James Aloysius Rabbitt was an American engineer who worked in China and Japan in the first half of the twentieth century and specialized in the mining of metals. The collection includes correspondence, memoirs, lectures, reports, surveys, patents, clippings, sketches, and photographs, relating to economic, scientific, and technological developments in the mining and metallurgical industries of China, Japan, and the Far East, with emphasis on nickel, China labor and dockyard projects, cultivation of rice in Japan, and related governmental policies of China and Japan.
Creator: Rabbitt, James Aloysius, 1877-1969

Access

Boxes 19, 24, and 62 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 1971.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], James A. Rabbitt papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Processing Information

In 2022, archivist Sarah Ainsworth reprocessed this collection. The majority of the original description has been retained with 4 boxes added. Box numbers may have changed during reprocessing.

Biographical Note

James Aloysius Rabbitt (1877-1969) was an American engineer who worked in China and Japan in the first half of the twentieth century and specialized in the mining of metals. In addition to his engineering business ventures, Rabbitt conducted research into various industries in the far East, including agriculture. Rabbitt's newsclippings, personal photographs and personal correspondence reveal what it was like to live as an expat in China and Japan at that time. Rabbitt also dabbled in the arts, and his papers contain some of his sketches, calligraphy, and poetry. His poetry was published under the pseudonym Shamus A'Rabbitt.
Rabbitt was born in Stamford, Connecticut, on August 4, 1877 and trained as an engineer at the Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute (now the Rochester Institute of Technology), graduating in 1901.
Rather than pursue further education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rabbitt chose to take a job as an engineer in Osaka, Japan. He remained in that position until 1909.
From 1911 through 1917, he worked for the Nipponophone Laboratories company, where he helped develop various inventions and filed patents in both Japan and the United States.
In December of 1917, Rabbitt traveled back to the United States for World War I military service. He served as the Special Assistant to the Department of State at Washington and as War Trade Attache. Through May 1919, he continued to serve as both the Commercial Attache and War Trade Attache to the American Embassy at Tokyo.
In July 1919, Rabbitt opened an engineering consulting business in New York City. In December of that year, this business took him to Canton, China, where he advised on the rebuilding of the Kwangtung Military Arsenal, the Kwangtung Provincial Mint and the Kwangtung Dockyard. After a trip back to the United States to establish the James Rabbitt Engineering Corporation, Rabbitt journeyed back to China to work on the mining and railway projects in the Province of Kwangsi.
Rabbitt completed the plans for the Canton Delta Railway System and the Inner and Outer Canton Harbors in 1921, however, because of the Civil War in South China, was forced to abandon his engineering projects as well as his business.
Back in the United States by 1924, Rabbitt was hired as a consulting engineer for the Asia Development Corp. to write a report on the Hakata-Wan Harbor and Daibu Railway Project at Hakata, Fukuoka Province, Japan. From 1925 to 1929, Rabbitt continued to work as an engineer, including in the areas of high temperature combustion, industrial waste, and industrial plant design.
In 1932, Rabbitt founded the Japan Nickel Information Bureau and in 1933 he started the "Japan Nickel Review" scientific magazine, serving as the publication's first editor.
In January of 1941, Rabbitt and his family were forced to leave Japan. Later that year, he wrote a report on Nickel in Japan for the U.S. government. He became a technical consultant to the War Department in New York City in 1944 and helped create a report on the Industrial Disarmament of Japan.
From 1948 to 1952, Rabbitt returned to live in Japan while he worked on projects for the Inco company and on matters related to ductile cast iron.
In 1952, he returned to Inco's New York office to finish reports on Asia's Industrial Potential. In 1955, he retired from the Inco company and lived the rest of his years on Water Island, St. Thomas Harbor, U.S. Virgin Islands. He died in July 1969.

Scope and Contents of Collection

The collection includes correspondence, memoirs, lectures, reports, surveys, patents, clippings, sketches, and photographs, relating to economic, scientific, and technological developments in the mining and metallurgical industries of China, Japan, and the Far East, with emphasis on nickel, China labor and dockyard projects, cultivation of rice in Japan, and related governmental policies of China and Japan.
The Biographical File spans from 1908 to 1961 and contains newspaper clippings on Rabbitt's life, career, and inventions, as well as documents related to his family and ephemera from his involvement in amateur theater in China and Japan.
The Correspondence series, largely comprised of bound volumes, contains letters sent and received over the course of business activities.
Additionally, Rabbitt wrote extensively throughout his life, from poetry to technical articles to a memoir. The Writings series consists of these both published works and drafts. He titled his memoir "Yankee Engineer in Asia" and he collected material related to this memoir in volumes numbered 1-23, though it should be noted that a few volumes are missing. For these volumes, we have retained the original order as the materials were received by the Library and Archives.
Records related to Rabbitt's engineering career and research endeavors can be found in the Reports and Surveys series, which spans from 1918 to 1950. These files include engineering projects in Canton, railway projects, data on industries in Asian countries, and an in-depth survey of the industries of Japan.
The Miscellaneous series features artwork by Rabbitt, his journal and daybook, and a guestbook for his residence in Japan in the 1930s.
In the Photographic Materials series, there are a significant amount of prints depicting rice cultivation. Additionally, there are five photo albums with photographic prints from Rabbitt's life and travels.

Arrangement Statement

This collection is organized in six series: Series I. Biographical File, 1908-1961; Series II. Correspondence, 1901-1951; Series III. Writings, 1903-1967; Series IV. Reports and Surveys, 1918-1950; Series V. Miscellaneous, 1906-1949; Series VI. Photographic Materials, 1895-1960. Series II through V are arranged chronologically.
Original order has been retained for the Yankee Engineer in Asia Sub-Series within Series III: Writings, as well for the Surveys of the Industries of Japan Sub-Series within Series IV: Reports and Surveys.

Related Materials

The Hoover Library holds two volumes of Rabbitt's poetry, published under his pseudonym Shamus A'Rabbitt: Ballads of the East (1937) and China Coast Ballads (1938).

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Engineers
Agriculture -- Japan
Engineering -- China
Mines and mineral resources -- China
Mines and mineral resources -- East Asia
Mines and mineral resources -- Japan
Nickel mines and mining

 

Biographical File 1908-1961

box 61, folder 3-8

Diplomas, awards, and certificates 1917-1955

box 1, folder 1

General career material 1908-1952

box 1, folder 2

Engineering career 1952

box 1, folder 3-4

Invention clippings 1910-1961

box 2, folder 1

Amateur theater and clubs 1914-1932

box 2, folder 2

Children's immigration documents 1919

box 2, folder 3

Career clippings 1935-1952

Physical Description: Bound volume
 

Correspondence 1901-1951

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically, original titles retained

Scope and Contents

Letters sent and received over the course of business activities. Most correspondence consists of bound volumes
box 3, folder 1

Miscellaneous Letters Received 1901-1939

box 3, folder 2

Morris, Roland S. 1918-1919

box 3, folder 3-5

Peppermint leaves and menthol data 1919-1921

os_folder 2

Peppermint and menthol charts and blueprints 1920-1921

Scope and Contents

Contains charts and blueprints, 13 items
box 55, folder 2

General business 1921-1923

box 4, folder 1-2

A-H 1930-1931

box 5, folder 1-2

I-M 1930-1931

box 6, folder 1-2

N-Z 1930-1931

box 7, folder 1

Chronological Outward File 1932 May-December

box 7, folder 2

Letters 1932

Scope and Contents

Concerns business related to nickel
box 8, folder 2

Asano Agency Termination 1932

box 7, folder 3

Letters on Rotary Steel-making process 1932-1933

box 8, folder 1

Mitsui Correspondence and Legal 1932-1933

box 9, folder 1

Chronological Outward File 1933

box 10, folder 1

China and Miscellaneous Letters 1933

box 10, folder 2

American European Trip 1934

box 11, folder 1-4

Commercial File 1934-1936

box 12, folder 1

American European Trip, A-L 1936

box 13, folder 1

American European Trip, M-Z 1937

box 12, folder 2

Commercial File 1937

box 14, folder 1-3

Commercial File 1937-1939

box 13, folder 2

Commercial File 1939

box 55, folder 3-5

International Nickel Company 1941-1961

box 57, folder 1-2

International Nickel Company 1947-1951

 

Writings 1903-1967

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically

Scope and Contents

Includes published and unpublished works by Rabbitt, including a memoir, articles, lectures, and poetry.
 

Yankee Engineer in Asia 1903-1965

Scope and Contents

Volumes 1, 12, 14, 15, 19, and 20 missing. The remaining volumes contain patent documents, legal and business correspondence, and newspaper clippings.
box 15, folder 1-4

Manuscript drafts undated

box 15, folder 5-6

Volume 2 1903-1919

box 16, folder 1-6

Volume 2 1903-1919

box 17, folder 1

Volume 2 1903-1919

box 17, folder 2-6

Volume 3 1918-1920

box 18, folder 1

Volume 3 1918-1920

box 18, folder 2-6

Volume 4 1919-1924

box 19, folder 1

Volume 4 1919-1924

Conditions Governing Access

Box 19 may not be used without the permission of the Archivist
box 19, folder 2-5

Volume 5 1919-1922

Conditions Governing Access

Box 19 may not be used without the permission of the Archivist
box 18, folder 7

Volume 6 1925-1929

box 18, folder 8

Volume 7 1929-1940

box 20, folder 1

Volume 7 1929-1940

box 20, folder 2-4

Volume 8 1933-1940

box 21, folder 1-4

Volume 8 1933-1940

box 21, folder 5

Volume 9 1942-1943

box 21, folder 6

Volumes 10 and 11 1943-1949

box 21, folder 7

Volume 13 1952-1965

box 21, folder 8

Volumes 16 and 17 1924-1944

Scope and Contents

Newspaper clippings from China and Japan
box 22, folder 1-3

Volume 18 1921-1932

Scope and Contents

Canton newspaper clippings regarding Sun Yat-sen
box 25, folder 1

Volume 18 1921-1922

Scope and Contents

Bound volume titled "Canton newspaper clippings"
box 26, folder 1

Volume 18 1921-1922

box 24, folder 1-4

Volume 21 1921-1923

Conditions Governing Access

Box 24 may not be used without permission of the Archivist
os_folder 2

Kwang Tung Province Highway Department Diagram for Determining Width of Roads 1921 October

os_folder 3

Kwang Tung Province Highway Department Diagram for Determining Width of Roads 1921 October

box 24, folder 5

Volume 22 1921-1924

Conditions Governing Access

Box 24 may not be used without permission of the Archivist
box 62, folder 1-2

Volume 22 1921-1924

Conditions Governing Access

Box 62 may not be used without permission of the Archivist
box 62, folder 3

Volume 23 1921-1922

Conditions Governing Access

Box 62 may not be used without permission of the Archivist
box 26, folder 4

Lectures and articles on Japanese silk industry 1916-1939

box 25, folder 3

"Rice in the Cultural Life of the Japanese People" manuscript 1919

os_folder 2

A Conspectus of Japanese History and Notes undated

box 25, folder 2

"Rice and Social Policy" manuscript 1919-1938

box 23, folder 4-5

Article Drafts 1922

box 29, folder 1-2

"Nickel: Mining, Smelting, Refining and Applications" 1930-1931

Physical Description: Two bound volumes
box 27, folder 2-5

"History of Rice in Japan" 1931-1940

box 23, folder 2

"Mining and Metallurgy of Nickel" 1934

box 23, folder 6

Poetry Clippings and Drafts 1938-1939

box 26, folder 3

Lectures on tea 1939

box 27, folder 1

Writings on history of silk 1939

box 22, folder 5

"Historical Background of Government in Japan" 1941 April

box 23, folder 3

Articles on economies of China and Japan 1947 October-November

box 23, folder 7-8

"Trailing the Moon" poetry manuscript 1960s

box 23, folder 1

"Prolonged Youth" manuscript 1967

box 26, folder 2

"History of the Japanese Tea Industry" undated

box 22, folder 6

"Tea Leaves" manuscript undated

box 22, folder 4

"History of Japan Under the Shoguns" undated

 

Reports and Surveys 1918-1950

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.
 

Economic Reports 1918-1950

box 31, folder 1

Economic Reports for Trade Board, Washington 1918

box 31, folder 2-3

Monthly Trade Reports: Japan Trade and Economic Letters 1934-1936

Physical Description: Two bound volumes
box 32, folder 1-2

Monthly Commercial Reports: Japan 1935-1936

Physical Description: Two bound volumes
box 33, folder 1-2

Monthly Activity Reports: Japan Nickel Information Bureau 1936-1937

os_folder 3

Japan Nickel Information Bureau Organization Flow Chart undated

os_folder 3

Flowchart of Nickel Industries of Japan undated

box 51, folder 4

The Economic Position of Japan Report 1947-1950

box 57, folder 6-7

Report on Industrial Reparations Survey of Japan to the United States of America 1948 February

box 47, folder 1

Economic Orientation of the Far Eastern Crisis 1941 July-August

 

Mining, Metal, and Scientific Reports 1920-1950

box 54, folder 1

Reports on Steel 1920-1932

box 51, folder 1

4 Days at the Huntington Mills circa 1930

box 54, folder 3

Rotary Steel Process and Casting Machine 1932

box 51, folder 2

Nickel Deposits in Japan and Korea 1932-1933

box 53, folder 1

Nickel News and Reports 1936-1937

box 53, folder 2

Commercial Distribution of Nickel, Japan 1937

box 51, folder 3

Commercial Distribution of Nickel, Japan 1938

box 57, folder 4-5

China's Iron and Steel Industries, ore sites, coal fields, and coal mines 1944

box 48, folder 2

Scientific and Technological Societies of Japan Report 1947 October

box 48, folder 3

Iron and Steel Industries in Japan 1948-1949

box 48, folder 4

Postwar Reorganization and Research Activities in Metal and Alloys by Japanese Government and Industries 1950 March

box 54, folder 4-7

Ductile Cast Iron in Japan 1950 May-June

box 54, folder 8

Nickel and Economic Civilization undated

 

Engineering Projects 1921-1924

box 34, folder 1-3

Canton Delta and West River Railways Project: Preliminary Report 1921 October

os_folder 3

Proposed West River Railroad System undated

box 34, folder 4

Canton City Waterfront and Inner Harbor Improvements 1921 May

box 34, folder 5

Canton Outer Harbor and Dockyard Development 1921

os_folder 2

Canton Outer Harbor and Dockyard Development blueprint 1921 October

box 55, folder 1

Canton Project Business Documents 1921-1923

box 54, folder 2

Canton Project Business Documents 1921-1923

box 35, folder 1

Report on Hakata-Wan Harbor and Daibu Railway Project 1924

box 35, folder 2

Appendix to Report on Hakata-Wan Harbor and Daibu Railway Project 1924

 

Surveys of the Industries of Japan circa 1929

box 40, folder 3

Volume 1: Textiles circa 1929

box 48, folder 1

Volume 2: Industrial Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Artificial Fertilizers circa 1929

box 50

Appendix to Volume 2: Industrial Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Artificial Fertilizers circa 1929

box 49, folder 1

Volume 3: Dyes, Paints, Oils and Fats, Petroleum, Toilet Articles circa 1929

box 50, folder 1

Volume 4: Cement, Porcelain, Glass, Bricks circa 1929

box 50, folder 2

Volume 4 supplement: Porcelain circa 1929

box 41

Volume 5: Rubber, Leather, Paper, Celluloid, Explosives, Matches circa 1929

box 41

Volume 6: Beverages, Sake, Beer, Soy, Miso, Vinegar, Wines, and Liquors, Soft Drinks circa 1929

box 42

Volume 7: Canning, Salt, Fisheries, Ice and Refrigeration circa 1929

box 43

Volume 8: Dairies, Stock Farms, Agricultural Products, Sugar, Confectionery, Tea and Tobacco circa 1929

box 44

Appendix to Volumes 6, 7, and 8 circa 1929

box 45

Volume 9: Mining - Cold, Silver, Platinum, Copper, Lead, Zinc etc., Iron, Coal, Oil, Sulphur circa 1929

box 45

Maps of Japan circa 1929

box 46

Volume 10: Metals - Iron, Steel, Copper, Zinc, Brass, Lead, Alloys, Castings, Bolts, Nuts, Chains, Plating, etc. circa 1929

box 47

Appendix to Volumes 9 and 10 circa 1929

box 52

Supplement A: Trade and Industrial Leaders circa 1929

 

Rice 1933-1940

box 28, folder 1-2

Translation of Naoji Suzuki's Bibliography on Rice 1938

box 28, folder 3-6

Newspaper clippings on rice 1933-1940

box 30, folder 1-2

Newspaper clippings on rice 1933-1940

box 29, folder 3-4

Data on rice 1938-1939

box 30, folder 3-6

Data on rice 1938-1939

box 28, folder 7

Rice Writings 1939

os_folder 1

Untitled Invention Sketch undated

 

Industrial Potential of Asia Surveys 1936-1946

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by name of country or region
box 36, folder 1-6

Asia's Industrial Potential 1930s

box 37, folder 1

Asia's Industrial Potential 1930s

box 37, folder 2

Australia's Industrial Potential circa 1939

box 37, folder 3-4

China's Industrial Potential 1940s

os_folder 1

Important Mines, Oil, and Metallurgical Plants of Manchuria map 1945 October

os_folder 1

Map of China undated

os_folder 3

Dr. Sun's railway map undated

box 37, folder 5-7

China's Industrial Potential Appendices 1940s

box 38, folder 1

Formosa and Korea's Industrial Potential 1944-1946

os_folder 1

Important Mines, Oil, and Metallurgical Plants of Korea 1945 July

box 38, folder 2-3

India's Industrial Potential 1938

box 38, folder 4-6

Japan's Industrial Potential 1936-1947

box 39, folder 1

Japan's Industrial Potential 1936-1947

box 57, folder 3

Japan's Industrial Potential 1936-1947

os_folder 1

Charts of Japanese industries and oversize maps of Japan 1936

Physical Description: 23 items
os_folder 3

Flowchart of Survey of Industrial Potential of Japan 1941

os_folder 3

National Geographic Map of Asia and Adjacent Areas 1942

box 39, folder 2-3

Southeast Asia's Industrial Potential 1936-1940

box 39, folder 4

Southwest Asia's Industrial Potential 1936-1940

box 39, folder 5

Philippine's Industrial Potential 1944 October

box 40, folder 1-2

Soviet Union's Industrial Potential 1940s

os_folder 2

Soviet Union Basic Industries chart and map 1940

 

Miscellaneous 1906-1949

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically
box 54, folder 9

Business Documents and Contracts 1906-1949

box 1, folder 7

Journal 1913

box 1, folder 7

Daybook 1918

box 51, folder 5

Preparatory Work for Japan 1928

box 49, folder 2

Articles on Agricultural Problems, Farm Machinery, Food Review 1938

box 49, folder 3

Newspaper clippings on silk and tea 1938

box 52, folder 2-3

Rehabilitation of the Mining Industry in the Philippines manuscript by H. Foster Bain 1938

box 49, folder 4

Food Review circa 1930s

box 54, folder 10

Japan Food Review circa 1930s

box 65

War Department, Military Intelligence Division, New York Office, History and Operation Manual  1944

box 56, folder 6-7

Pen and Ink Sketches undated

box 63, folder 1

Pen and Ink Sketches undated

box 63, folder 2-18

Assorted Artwork undated

box 61, folder 1-2

Assorted Artwork undated

box 56

Guest books 1933-1940

Scope and Contents

Three guest books for Rabbitt residence in Japan
 

Photographic Materials 1895-1960

 

Photographic prints 1927-1930s

box 60, folder 3

1927

Scope and Contents

Photographs of tea flowers
box 60, folder 4-5

circa 1930s

Scope and Contents

Photographs of rice cultivation
box 58, envelope 1-56

circa 1930s

Scope and Contents

Photographs of rice cultivation
 

Photographic albums 1895-1924

box 60, folder 1-2

1921-1924

Physical Description: 2 unbound photographic albums
box 59

1895-1920

Physical Description: 2 bound photographic albums
box 64

undated

Physical Description: 1 unbound photographic album
box 60, folder 6

Miscellaneous photographs 1940-1960