Papers of Harry S. TrumanStaff Member and Office Files:David D. Lloyd Files

Administrative Assistant to the President, 1951-1953

The David D. Lloyd Files consist of correspondence, printed materials, speech drafts, and other items relating to Lloyd's service on the White House staff during President Harry S. Truman's administration.

Size: 12 linear feet, 8 linear inches (about 23,200 pages).
Access: Open.
Copyright: Harry S. Truman donated his copyright interest in writings in these files to the United States government. Documents created by U.S. government officials in the course of their official duties are likewise in the public domain. Copyright interest in any other writings in these files is assumed to remain with the authors of the documents.
Processed by: Philip D. Lagerquist (1966), Jim Armistead (2012).

The Files of David D. Lloyd relate to his service on the White House staff during the Harry S. Truman administration. The documents in the Lloyd Files are dated from 1945 to 1953. The folders in this collection are arranged alphabetically by title within two series, the Subject File and the Presidential Speech and Message File.

The first series, the Subject File, is largely comprised of letters and memoranda written by Lloyd from 1949 through 1952. The correspondence included relates to Lloyd's duties as a member of the White House staff, and includes references to President Truman's Point Four program, the Cold War, housing, immigration, rent control, and pending legislation in Congress. There are two signed thank-you letters addressed to Mr. Lloyd from President Harry S. Truman included in this series. One folder, "Korean Children's Choir," contains a booklet of photographs.

The second series, the Presidential Speech and Message File, is the larger of the two. This series includes press releases, handwritten notes, speech drafts written by Lloyd and others, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and other items relating to Lloyd's service as a speechwriter on President Truman's White House staff. Some of the speech drafts include a wide array of doodles drawn by Lloyd on various subjects, both abstract and representational, as well as both handwritten and typed changes in many of the speech drafts. Several of these documents concern the 1948 and the 1952 election campaigns. Other documents in the series refer to immigration, General Douglas MacArthur, the Korean crisis, President Truman's Point Four Program, and Senator Joseph R. McCarthy. Some of the speeches were written for particular events such as Fourth of July celebrations and cornerstone layings. Also included are multiple Presidential State of the Union addresses, as well as President Truman's 1949 Inaugural Address.

Related collections at the Truman Library include the David D. Lloyd Papers which include information on Lloyd's work as an assistant to former President Truman from 1953 to 1962, as well as other aspects of his life and career.