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United States. Civil Affairs Training School records
XX413
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Title: United States. Civil Affairs Training School records
Date (inclusive): 1942-1947
Collection Number: XX413
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
60 manuscript boxes, 2 oversize folders, 1 card file box, 3 sound discs
(25.0 Linear Feet)
Abstract: Correspondence, memoranda, reports, financial and personnel records, handbooks, syllabi, and instructional materials relating
to the politics, governments, economies, and cultures of Japan, other areas in the Pacific, and various countries in Europe;
and intelligence assessments of the war in the Pacific. Digital copies of select records also available at
https://digitalcollections.hoover.org.
Creator:
Stanford University
Creator:
United States. Civil Affairs Training School, Stanford University
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Microfilm use only except Box 59, Folder 6. 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.
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
[Identification of item], United States. Civil Affairs Training School records, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution
Library & Archives.
Also available on microfilm (65 reels). Digital copies of select records also available at
https://digitalcollections.hoover.org.
As United States involvement in the Second World War deepened, the American military began to make contingency plans based
on the likelihood of an eventual Allied victory and the need for qualified personnel to administer the occupation of liberated
countries in Europe and Asia. In 1943, a training program for such personnel was established at Stanford and other universities
(including Harvard and the Universities of Chicago and Michigan) under the authority of the Office of the Provost Marshal
General of the United States Army. This program, known as the United States Civil Affairs Training School (or CATS) program,
drew upon military personnel with experience in civil affairs or with special language abilities. The schools' curricula involved
intensive courses in the languages, history, sociology, and culture of the various countries which were considered likely
to be occupied by Allied forces. Particular emphasis was placed on the study of the economies of these countries, and exercises
were conducted which simulated the kinds of problems likely to be encountered by occupation authorities.
The CATS program drew extensively upon the resources of the universities with which it was associated. At Stanford, university
officials and faculty were recruited for the CATS program, and both the staff and the research materials of the Hoover Library
played an important role in the program. Because of the need for Japanese language instructors, the CATS program also recruited
among the Nisei population in the various relocation camps established after the American entry into the war. These Nisei
instructors had to receive special permission from the American military in order to participate in the CATS program.
The CATS program operated at Stanford University from late 1943 until the middle of 1945. Throughout most of this time, its
director was Harold Fisher, a Hoover Library official.
The United States Civil Affairs Training School records consist largely of the school's academic and administrative records.
There is a large amount of the course material used in classroom instruction (see ACADEMIC FILE), extensive personnel records
(see ADMINISTRATIVE FILE), as well as numerous reports and intelligence estimates used for research by students (see RESEARCH
MATERIAL). Much of this material gives insights into the concerns of American military planners regarding post-war occupation
regimes, as well as indicating the military's perceptions of enemy countries, both as military powers and as socio-cultural
formations.
There is material in the collection which discusses the origins of the school, its role within the administrative hierarchy
of the Office of the Provost Marshal General, and its relations with other CATS programs (see ADMINISTRATIVE FILE, CORRESPONDENCE,
and SUBJECT FILE). The question of the use of Nisei instructors is documented in the personnel records of the school.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
World War, 1939-1945 -- Japan
Sound recordings
World War, 1939-1945 -- Campaigns -- Pacific Ocean
World War, 1939-1945 -- United States
World War, 1939-1945 -- Occupied territories
Military government
World War, 1939-1945 -- Europe