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]

Breadcrumb

White House Central Files: Official File