Waldo Gifford Leland

Waldo Gifford Leland (1879-1966) was an American historian and archivist.

Life

Waldo Gifford Leland was born on July 17, 1879 in Newton Massachusetts. He attended Brown University, earning a BA In 1900 he enrolled at Harvard University and earned an MS in history in 1901.

In 1903 he joined the Carnegie Institute where he and Claude H. Van Tyne co-authored the Guide to the Archives of the Government of the United States in Washington (1904). Leland then produced a revised and expanded edition in 1907, did extensive work documenting materials for American history in France, and directed the foreign copying program of the Library of Congress for French manuscripts relating to the US. He also served as Secretary to the American Historical Association from 1909 to 1920 and produced documentation to support the establishment of US national archives, which opened in 1934.

Leland helped form the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) and left the Carnegie Institution to serve as ACLS secretary from 1927 to 1939 and as director from 1939 until his retirement in 1946. Leland remained active with UNESCO, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Library, and the National Park Service. He died on October 19, 1966.

Contributions

Leland had a wide-ranging influence in the development of archives, archival theory, historical resources, and international developments.

Publications

• "The national archives: a programme." The American Historical Review 18, no. 1 (1912): 1-28. [1]
• Archival Principles: Selections from the Writings of Waldo Gifford Leland. Vol. 20. National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration, 1955.

Offices

• American Documentation Institute. President, 1947.
• International Committee of Historical Sciences. Treasurer then President, 1938-1948.
• Union Académique International. President.
• Society of American Archivists. President, 1939.
• American Council of Learned Societies. Secretary, 1927-39; Director, 1939-1946.
• American Historical Association. Secretary, 1909-20

Awards

Leland received multiple honorary doctorates and other awards.

Further reading

• "Waldo Gifford Leland." Wikipedia [2]
• Ross, Rodney A. "Waldo Gifford Leland: Archivist by Association," American Archivist 46, no 3 (Summer 1983): 264-276. [3]
• "Waldo Gifford Leland and Preservation of Documentary Resources," Federalist (Summer 1986).
• Wosh, Peter J. Waldo Gifford Leland and the Origins of the American Archival Profession. Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 2011.

Papers

Location #1 Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Washington, DC.

• Papers dates: 1879-1966
• Size: 45 ft; ca. 55,000 items
• Includes:
  • Correspondence, diaries, articles, reports, memoranda, notes, and misc. papers concentrating on periods: 1915-28; 1948-66; ACLS (1919-28);
  • UNESCO (1954-64);
  • material relating to his "Guide to Materials for American History."
• Finding aid:
• Source: NUCMC, MS 68-2051, p. 233.

Location #2 Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, NY.

• Papers dates: 1938-1952
• Size: ca. 50 items
• Includes:
  • Correspondence, speeches, surveys, plans, publications relating to the establishment of the FDR Library
  • Access restricted
• Finding aid:
• Source: NUCMC, MS 75-540, p. 59.

Location #3 Columbia Oral History Research Office, Box 20, Room 801 Butler Library, New York, NY 10027; search under: Leland, Waldo Gifford, 1879-1966.

• Papers dates: 1972
• Size: Transcript: 63 leaves.
• Includes:
  • American Historical Association and American Historical Review;
  • State and regional historical societies;
  • Public Archives Commission;
  • International Committee of Historical Sciences;
  • Origin of the American Council of Learned Societies and of the Dictionary of American Biography;
  • Interviewed by Dean Albertson;
  • Access is open;
  • Copyright by the Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, 1972;
  • Permission required to quote, cite, and reproduce;
  • Contact repository for information;
  • Microfiche copy available for purchase;
  • (Columbia University oral history collection, part I, published by Meckler Publishing, Westport, CT).
• Finding aid:
• Source: RLIN