Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Library Collections
  3. Harry S. Truman Papers
  4. White House Central Files: Official File

White House Central Files: Official File

Dates: 1945-1953

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Size: 800 linear feet, 2 linear inches.
Access: Open.
Copyright: President Truman donated his copyright interest in any of his writings in this collection to the people of the United States. In addition, documents prepared by United States Government employees in the course of their official duties are also in the public domain. Copyright interest in documents which do not fall in these two categories is presumed to remain with the writers of the documents.
Updated by: David Clark (2001).

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Collection Description | Folder Title List ]


COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

The Official File (OF) is one of the four principal series within the White House Central Files, the other three being the President's Personal File, the General File, and the Confidential File. The Official File contains materials interpreted by the White House Central Files unit as being primarily official or semi-official in nature. These materials were sent to the White House Central Files unit by the various White House offices when they were considered to be no longer necessary for the day to day conduct of business. The companion President's Personal File (PPF), in contrast, contains materials interpreted as being political, social, or ceremonial in character.

Since documents received by the White House often contained a mixture of personal and official information, the distinction between the Official File and the President's Personal File is very imprecise. A third series within the White House Central Files, the General File, acts as an index, primarily by name, to both the Official File and the President's Personal File.

President Truman's Official File contains 3,480 numbered files pertaining to Government departments and agencies, the operations of the Executive Office of the President, individual countries, broad subject areas, and organizations and individuals having business with the Government. A file number may represent one folder or multiple boxes. The files are elaborately cross-referenced both among other files in the Official File, and among the files of the President's Personal File and the General File. A single original document may be represented by five or six cross-references distributed under file headings devoted to agencies, individuals, countries, and subjects. The cross-references typically give a document's correspondents, date and purpose, as well as other appropriate information. A researcher may follow these cross-reference trails through the three linked file series in search of related documents.

[ Top of the page | Administrative Information | Collection Description | Folder Title List ]


FOLDER TITLE LIST

Group 1: Files 1-999

1-100
101-200
201-299
300-399
400-499
500-599
600-699
700-799
800-899
900-999

Group 2: Files 1000-1999

1000-1099
1100-1199
1200-1299
1300-1399
1400-1499
1500-1599
1600-1699
1700-1799
1800-1899
1900-1999

Group 3: Files 2000-2999

2000-2099
2100-2199
2200-2299
2300-2399
2400-2499
2500-2599
2600-2699
2700-2799
2800-2899
2900-2999

Group 4: Files 3000-3480

3000-3099
3100-3199
3200-3299
3300-3399
3400-3480

Group 5: OF Miscellaneous

Legal Size


Box 1

  • OF 1 Department of Agriculture, 1945
  • OF 1 1946 [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 1946 [2 of 2]
  • OF 1 1947 [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 1947 [2 of 2]
  • OF 1 1948 [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 1948 [2 of 2]

Box 2

  • OF 1 1949 [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 1949 [2 of 2]
  • OF 1 January-March, 1950
  • OF 1 April-July, 1950
  • OF 1 August-December, 1950
  • OF 1 January-March, 1951
  • OF 1 April-June, 1951
  • OF 1 July-September, 1951

Box 3

  • OF 1 October-December, 1951
  • OF 1 January, 1952
  • OF 1 February, 1952
  • OF 1 March, 1952
  • OF 1 April-June, 1952
  • OF 1 July, 1952-1953
  • OF 1 - Misc. 1945-February, 1946
  • OF 1 - Misc. March-May, 1946

Box 4

  • OF 1 - Misc. June-December, 1946
  • OF 1 - Misc. 1947
  • OF 1 - Misc. 1948-1949
  • OF 1 - Misc. 1950
  • OF 1 - Misc. 1951-1953
  • OF 1 - A Endorsements "A-F"
  • OF 1 - A Endorsements "G-Z"
  • OF 1 - A Brannan, Charles F.

Box 5

  • OF 1 - A Under Secretary
  • OF 1 - A Assistant Secretary
  • OF 1 - A Assistant Secretary - Misc.
  • OF 1 - A Misc.
  • OF 1 - B Agricultural Research Administration
  • OF 1 - C Forestry Service [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 - C Forestry Service [2 of 2]
  • OF 1 - C Tongass National Forest Folder Re: H.J. Res - 205 Approved August 18, 1947
  • OF 1 - C Shasta National Forest Folder Re: H.R. 3175 Approved March 19, 1948
  • OF 1 - C Superior National Forest Misc.
  • OF 1 - D Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry
  • OF 1 - E Bureau of Dairy Industry
  • OF 1 - F Farm Security Adm.
  • OF 1 - F Endorsements
  • OF 1 - G Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils and Agricultural Engineering
  • OF 1 - G National Arboretum
  • OF 1 - H Extension Service

Box 6

  • OF 1 - J Office of Experiment Stations
  • OF 1 - K Agricultural Adjustment Agency
  • OF 1 - L Farm Credit Administration [1 of 2]
  • OF 1 - L Farm Credit Administration [2 of 2]
  • OF 1 - L Misc.
  • OF 1 - L Endorsements
  • OF 1 - L Endorsements "A - Z"
  • OF 1 - M Federal Farm Mortgage Corporation
  • OF 1 - N Beltsville Research Center
  • OF 1 - O Bureau of Agricultural Economics
  • OF 1 - P Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine
  • OF 1 - Q Bureau of Animal Industry
  • OF 1 - R Soil Conservation Service
  • OF 1 - R Misc.
  • OF 1 - S Advisory Board
  • OF 1 - S Commodity Credit Corp. 1945-1947
  • OF 1 - S Commodity Credit Corp. 1948
  • OF 1 - S 1949

Box 7

  • OF 1 - S 1950-1951
  • OF 1 - S 1952-1953
  • OF 1 - S Misc.
  • OF 1 - S Endorsements
  • OF 1 - S Advisory Board of Commodity Credit Corp.
  • OF 1 - T Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
  • OF 1 - T Misc.
  • OF 1 - U Office of Marketing Services
  • OF 1 - V Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations
  • OF 1 - W War Food Administration
  • OF 1 - W Endorsements
  • OF 1 - X Bureau of Human Nutrition and Home Economics
  • OF 1 - Y Production and Marketing Administration
  • OF 1 - Y Fats and Oils Branch
  • OF 1 - Y Misc.
  • OF 1 - Z Office of Foreign Food Programs
  • OF 1 - AA Farmers Home Corporation
  • OF 1 - AA Misc.
  • OF 1 - AA Endorsements

Box 8

  • OF 1 - BB Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation
  • OF 1 - CC Solicitor General
  • OF 1 - DD Department of Ag'l Graduate School
  • OF 1 - EE Sugar Rationing Admin.
  • OF 1 - FF Commodity Exchange Authority
  • OF 1 - GG Remount Service
  • OF 1 - HH Office of Information
  • OF 2 Civil Service Commission 1945
  • OF 2 1946
  • OF 2 1947 [1 of 2]
  • OF 2 1947 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 January-June 1948
  • OF 2 July-December 1948

Box 9

  • OF 2 January-May 1949
  • OF 2 June-September 1949
  • OF 2 October-December 1949
  • OF 2 1950 [1 of 2]
  • OF 2 1950 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 January-August 1951
  • OF 2 September-December 1951

Box 10

  • OF 2 January-October 1952 [1 of 2]
  • OF 2 January-October 1952 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 November 1952-1953
  • OF 2 Misc. 1945
  • OF 2 Misc. 1946 [1 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. 1946 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. January-June 1947
  • OF 2 Misc. July-December 1947 [1 of 2]

Box 11

  • OF 2 Misc. July-December 1947 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. January-July 1948
  • OF 2 Misc. August-December 1948
  • OF 2 Misc. January-March 1949
  • OF 2 Misc. April 1949
  • OF 2 Misc. May-July 1949
  • OF 2 Misc. August-December 1949 [1 of 2]

Box 12

  • OF 2 Misc. August-December 1949 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. January-May 1950
  • OF 2 Misc. June-December 1950 [1 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. June-December 1950 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 Misc. 1951
  • OF 2 Misc. 1952-1953 [1 of 2]

Box 13

  • OF 2 Misc. 1952-1953 [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 Press Releases
  • OF 2 - A Endorsements "A - C"
  • OF 2 - A Endorsements "D - M"
  • OF 2 - A Endorsements "N - S"
  • OF 2 - A Endorsements "T - Z"
  • OF 2 - A Endorsements Miscellaneous
  • OF 2 - B Federal Personnel Council 1947-1949 (Formerly the Council of Personnel Administration) [1 of 2]

Box 14

  • OF 2 - B Federal Personnel Council 1947-1949 (Formerly the Council of Personnel Administration) [2 of 2]
  • OF 2 - B Federal Personnel Council 1950-1953 (Formerly the Council of Personnel Administration)
  • OF 2 - B-1 Interagency Committee to Study the Federal Employee Health Program
  • OF 2 - C Board of Appeals and Review
  • OF 2 - D Board of Legal Examiners
  • OF 2 - E Loyalty Review Board

Box 15

  • OF 2 - E Miscellaneous
  • OF 2 - E Endorsements "A - Z"
  • OF 2 - E Endorsements Misc.
  • OF 2 - F Fair Employment Board
  • OF 2 - F Miscellaneous
  • OF 2 - F Endorsements
  • OF 2 - F Endorsements Miscellaneous
  • OF 2 - G Reserve pool of key executives for Emergency Governmental Needs
  • OF 3 Department of Commerce 1945-1946
  • OF 3 1945-1946 (cross reference) [1 of 2]
  • OF 3 1945-1946 (cross reference) [2 of 2]
  • OF 3 1947 [1 of 2]
  • OF 3 1947 [2 of 2]

Box 16

  • OF 3 1948 [1 of 2]
  • OF 3 1948 [2 of 2]