Permanent URL: http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/h415p954r
Melvin A. Hall Papers, 1895-1972: Finding Aid
MC159
Princeton University Shield
65 Olden Street
Princeton, New Jersey 08540 USA
Phone: 609-258-6345
Fax: 609-258-3385
mudd@princeton.edu
http://www.princeton.edu/~mudd
Published in 1997
©2006 Princeton University Library
Summary Information
- Creator:
- Hall, Melvin Adams, 1889-
- Title and dates:
- Melvin A. Hall Papers, 1895-1972
- Abstract:
- Melvin A. Hall's renaissance career as adventurer, aviator, soldier, agent, financial administrator and author spanned four and a half decades, and is well represented in this collection. The materials include: diaries; personal and business correspondence; official documents, reports and correspondence from his tenure with the American Financial Mission in Persia; copies of his published writings, including drafts of his books Journey to the End of an Era and Bird of Time; articles, reviews, speeches and military intelligence reports; copies of unpublished writings; subject files containing background and research notes; information on his medals, awards and commendations; diaries and correspondence from Hall's father, William Augustus Hall, Hall's wife Josephine Johnson Hall, a World War I field nurse; and photographs and scrapbooks.
- Size:
- 8.1 linear feet
- Call number:
- MC159
- Location:
- Princeton University Library. Department of Rare Books and Special Collections.
Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library.
Public Policy Papers.
Princeton, New Jersey 08540 USA - Language(s) of material:
- English. Many of these official documents are in Farsi, and several are in French; most are dated in the Iranian calendar.
- Storage note:
- This collection is stored onsite at the Mudd Manuscript Library.
Biography of Melvin A. Hall
Born in Bellows Falls, Vermont, Hall was the only child of William August Hall and Sarah “Sallie” Jewett (Adams) Hall. His parents exposed him to travel at an early age--an affinity that was to be both vocation and avocation for the rest of his life.
Following his Princeton graduation in 1920, Hall and his mother drove their Packard automobile on a 45,000 mile odyssey around the world. Several of Hall's articles describing that trip were published by the National Geographic Magazine and the events of the journey are documented in Journey to the End of an Era (1947) and in Bird of Time (1949).
At the outbreak of World War I Hall was in France. He volunteered his services to the British Expeditionary Forces and before the entrance of the United States into the war, fought with the French, Belgian and English armies.
At the instigation of Col. William “Billy” Mitchell he transferred to the U.S. Army in 1917, where he worked closely with Mitchell on the formation of the U.S. Air Corps. He believed, as did Mitchell, in the need to build a superior defensive air power. In 1918 Hall was cited for organizing the first American Escadrille for night reconnaissance. He was wounded twice, four times decorated by three different countries and was cited ten times for gallant and distinguished service. His decorations include the Croix de Guerre with Palm from both France and Belgium, and the D.S.O. from Great Britain. He and Mitchell are among only six men honored by an Act of Congress with the rank Military Aviator.
After the war Hall spent three years in London as Assistant Military Attache for Aviation. In 1922 he met and married Josephine Wells Johnson, the daughter of Racine, Wisconsin banker Otis W. Johnson, who had been a field nurse during the war. After their marriage in Paris, the couple left for Persia where Hall joined Arthur Chester Millspaugh's staff as a provincial administrator for the American Financial Mission. During his five years with the Mission, Hall served as Administrator of Finances for East Persia (the provinces of Khorasan, Seistan and Ghayenat), as Acting Treasurer-General of the delegation, and as Administrator of Finances for South Persia (Fars and the Southern Ports). In those positions he was responsible for monitoring activities of the nomadic tribes, taxation, road and railroad construction, investigation of opium traffic for the League of Nations, and the administration of the Anglo-Persian oil fields in Khuzistan.
Following his Persian experience Hall worked as Vice President in charge of European and Asiatic Affairs for the Curtiss-Wright Aeroplane Export Co. While there, he established an airline for the Turkish government, oversaw the reequipping of the Netherlands Air Force, and demonstrated aircraft in twenty countries.
Hall's civilian career spanned the years 1933-1940, when he worked for the Export-Import Bank, Washington, D.C.; as a special advisor on foreign trade for the President; for Sears and for the Diesel Division of Caterpillar Co., and as Chief of the Foreign Economic Section of the Civil Aeronautics Authority.
With another war in Europe imminent, Hall again sought military involvement. He was recommissioned a Lieutenant Commander, United States Naval Reserve in 1939, and when Pearl Harbor was attacked, was serving as a naval attache in Istanbul. He resigned his naval commission in 1942 to accept a commission as Lt. Colonel in the Army Air Corps. By 1943 he served as Chief of Staff of the 9th Air Force. A shattered knee at the Normandy landing ended his military career, which covered both world wars and branches of the service.
After the war Hall authored two autobiographical books filled with picaresque characters and remarkable adventures. In 1951 Walter Bedell Smith, then Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sent Hall to Indochina as Chief of a special mission attached to the Ambassador to Vietnam and Cambodia. In 1955, Hall reflected that events in Vietnam would ‘inevitably affect the concern of America in world evolution,’ (Correspondence, Aug 19, 1955).
Colonel and Mrs. Hall retired to “La Grangeotte,” their 14th- century residence in Vezelay, France. He was an active member of La Confrerie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, a French wine-tasting society and continued writing on a wide variety of subjects. Included in his papers is a draft of a book on the 12th century pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Spain--a thousand mile journey which Hall traced by jeep, some 50 years after his Princeton graduation.
Hall died in the Veterans Administration Hospital in New York City, on November 23, 1962.
Description
Consists of diaires, correspondence, published and unpublished writings, medals, awards, photographs, and scrapbooks of Hall (Princeton Univerrsity Class of 1910). The collection contains diaries Hall kept throughout his life which chronicle his travels and his reflections on transportation conditions; personal and business correspondence; official documents and reports from his tenure with the American Financial Mission to Persia (1922-1927) which reflect his work as a provincial administrator. (Many of these documents are in Farsi, and several are in French; most are dated in the Iranian calendar.) There are copies of his published writings including JOURNEY TO THE END OF AN ERA, which describes a 45,000 mile motor trip around the world (1912-1913), and BIRD OF TIME, which contains reminiscences of his travels, experience in World War I, and life in Vezelay, France. Photographs document Hall's world travels and his activities in Persia and during World War I when he served as a U.S. Army Air Corps officer. Included are records of his military service, appointments, awards, citations, and medals.
Hall's diaries are detailed and especially valuable for their observations on international travel and transportation conditions. They reflect his fascination with the automobile and aeroplane. Aviation, and his belief in its potential for both defense and commerce, was a life-long commitment. Letters to his family contain analyses of political and social factors in countries where he traveled and was stationed. His assessments and predictions concerning World War II, and later, the future of Indochina, are astute.
Of particular interest are the materials which devolve from Hall's work as a provincial administrator with the American Financial Mission to Persia (1922-1927). Many of these official documents are in Farsi, and several are in French; most are dated in the Iranian calendar. The American Financial Mission paid particular attention to the census value of tax rolls, and the documents contain lists of names and tribal organization charts. Details of agricultural production and land use, observations on uprisings, information on oil concession, the opium trade and pearl fishing industry, and comments on the political regime are highlighted.
Arrangement
Organized into the following series:
- Series I, Biographical Information and Copyright Certificates
- Series II, Diaries and Journals, (1901-1945)
- Series III, Correspondence, (1912-1963)
- Series IV, Persia, (1922-1927)
- Series V, Writings--Published, (1912-1959)
- Series VI, Writings--Unpublished, (1912-1962)
- Series VII, Subject Files
- Series VIII, Awards, Medals, Commendations, Citations
- Series IX, William A. Hall papers, (1911-1913)
- Series X, Josephine Johnson Hall papers, (1918-1974)
- Series XI, Photographs and Negatives, (1899-circa 1961)
- Series XII, Oversize Material
- Series XIII, Medals
Access and Use
Access
Collection is open for research use.
Restrictions on Use and Copyright Information
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Curator of the Public Policy Papers. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.
Other Finding Aid(s)
A more detailed box listing is available to researchers. See Reference staff for details.
Acquisition and Appraisal
Provenance and Acquisition
In 1959 Hall offered his papers to the Princeton University Library. Following his death, Hall's widow transferred the materials to the library in several installments in 1964, 1967-1968 and 1974.
Processing and Other Information
Descriptive Rules Used
Finding aid content adheres to that prescribed by Describing Archives: A Content Standard.
Encoding
Machine-readable finding aid encoded in EAD 2002 by Techbooks and Cristela García-Spitz on November 3, 2006.
Finding aid written in English.
Preferred Citation
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Melvin A. Hall Papers, Box and Folder Number;Public Policy Papers, Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Library.
Subject Headings
These materials have been indexed in the Princeton University Library online catalog using the following terms. Those seeking related materials should search under these terms.
- American Financial Mission (1922-1927 : Iran)
- Curtiss-Wright Corporation.
- United States. Army. Air Service -- Officers.
- Automobiles -- Touring -- 20th century.
- Military nursing -- 20th century.
- Voyages around the world -- 20th century.
- World War, 1914-1918 -- Aerial operations, American.
- World War, 1914-1918 -- Hospitals.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Aerial operations, American.
- Iran -- Description and travel -- 20th century.
- Iran -- Economic conditions -- 1918-
- Veselay (France) -- Social life and customs -- 20th century.
- Military decorations.
- Diaries.
- Correspondence.
- Manuscripts.
- Photograps.
- Scrapbooks.
- Hall, Josephine Johnson.
Browse other finding aids related to the following terms:
Contents List
Series I, Biographical Information and Certificates, 1914-1949
Series Description
Series I, Biographical Material and Copyright Certificates, contains general biographical material including copies of sketches Hall submitted to Princeton publications, newspaper articles and his own lists of military activities in both wars. Includes Hall's motoring permits, licenses, passes and passports, and legal copyright certificates for his books.
Biographical Information, 1914-1922, 1939-1945, undated
Box 1 Copyright Certificates, 1947, 1949
Box 1 Series II, Diaries and Journals, 1901-1945
Series Description
Series II, Diaries, Journals (1902-1945), contains Hall's meticulous journals, which often include his own line drawings and photographs. They are arranged chronologically, starting with boyhood hunting trips in 1901. Details of his student life at Princeton, daily entries of his activities on world trips, descriptions of social activities, mileage records for his auto tours, observations on World War I battles, information on his trips throughout Persia and on his Curtiss-Wright sales expeditions are included. Of special note is the July 1-28, 1918 diary entitled “War diary of the first night reconnaissance flight, First Brigade.” Most of the entries are in manuscript form, but a few have been transcribed.
Diaries, 1901-1903
Box 1 Diaries,
Box 2 1902, 1905
Box 2 1907-1913
Box 2 Motor Registers, 1911-1913
Box 2 Publicity, 1911-1913
Box 2 Auto Receipts, 1911-1913
Box 2 Auto Log, 1913
Box 3 Diaries,
Box 3 1914-1921
Box 3 1927, 1930
Box 3 1934, 1941
Box 3 1944, 1945
Box 3 Date Book, 1923
Box 3 Series III, Correspondence, 1912-1963
Series Description
Series III, Correspondence (1912-1963), is arranged chronologically and includes routine, social, personal and business information, both incoming and outgoing. Additional correspondence may be found in Series IV, which pertains to his tenure in Persia, and in Series VII, Subject Files. Business correspondence concerns publication of Hall's articles and books and from his literary agent. Some materials are in French, a few in Farsi. Correspondence is both manuscript and typescript.
Correspondence,
Box 4 1912 Apr-Dec
Box 4 1913 Jan-Mar
Box 4 1914-1916
Box 4 1920-1923
Box 4 1927-1963
Box 4 Invitations,
Box 4 1919-1920
Box 4 1952
Box 4 Series IV, Persia, 1922-1930
Series Description
Series IV, Persia (1922-1927), contains materials from Hall's tenure with the American Financial Mission to Persia. Materials include correspondence concerning his employment, background notes and research materials; and official documents and correspondence relating to his administrative posts. Items are arranged chronologically within the subseries, and are generally dated in the Persian calendar. They are in English, Farsi and French, and include reports, letters, cables, articles, briefs, position statements, financial statements and personal evaluations.
Correspondence, 1922-1930
Box 5 Background Notes, 1922-1930
Box 5 Official Documents, 1922-1930
Box 5 Khorasan, 1923-1926
Box 6 Acting Treasurer General, 1925
Box 6 Fars, 1925-26
Box 6 Fars, 1926-1927
Box 7 General Information, 1927-1929
Box 7 Series V, Writings--Published, 1912-1959
Series Description
Series V, Writings--Published (1912-1959), is arranged chronologically within type of publication. Articles and book reviews are included, as well as drafts of his books. Draft chapters often contain material which was not included in the published volumes. This series also contains intelligence reports and briefs completed during World War I and World War II.
Articles,
Box 8 1912-1913
Box 8 1920, 1935
Box 8 1936, 1939
Box 8 1940-1941
Box 8 1947, 1953
Box 8 1956, 1959
Box 8 Journey to the End of An Era, 1947
Box 8 Bird of Time, 1949
Box 8-9 Intelligence Reports,
Box 9 1917-1919
Box 9 1921-1922
Box 9 1933-1935
Box 9 1940, 1942
Box 9 1943, 1944
Box 9 Series VI, Writings--Unpublished, 1912-1963
Series Description
Series VI, Writings--Unpublished (1912-1962), contains articles and reviews submitted for publication in one revision or another. Materials are arranged chronologically and include drafts, speeches, papers, reviews, and reminiscences. Two drafts of Hall's publication on the 12th century pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Spain are also in this series.
Articles,
Box 9 1912-1913
Box 9 1939-1940
Box 9 1949, 1953
Box 9 1954-1956
Box 9 1960, 1963
Box 9 undated
Box 9 Santiago de Compostela
Box 9 drafts, undated
Box 9 Santiago de Compostela (cont)
Box 10 Series VII, Subject Files
Series Description
Series VII, Subject Files, often complements his diary entries. This series is arranged alphabetically and includes clippings, articles, and background notes which Hall compiled while researching both his professional postings and his writings.
Arabia, undated
Box 11 China, 1912
Box 11 Chevaliers du Tastevin, undated
Box 11 Cravath, Paul D., undated
Box 11 E.L.T.A. (International Aeronautical Exposition), 1919
Box 11 Hungary, undated
Box 11 “L’independence du VietNam, undated
Box 11 Indochina, undated
Box 11 Indochina (Bao Dai), undated
Box 11 Indochina (Persia), undated
Box 11 Iran (Persia), undated
Box 11 Iraq (Mesopotamia), undated
Box 12 Java, 1912
Box 12 Lend Lease, 1943
Box 12 Middle and Near East, undated
Box 12 Miscellaneous Notes, undated
Box 12 Motoring (early), undated
Box 12 Pan American Airways, undated
Box 12 Routh, Guy M., undated
Box 12 Santiago de Compostela, circa 1960
Box 12 Turkey, 1920-1942
Box 12 Vezelay, France, undated
Box 12 Ypres,Belgium, undated
Box 12 Series VIII, Awards, Medals, Commendations, Citations
Series Description
Series VIII, Awards, Medals, Commendations, Citations, contains documentation which accompanied Hall's many awards. A number of materials are filed in Series XII, Oversized Materials (Box 17). Actual medals awarded to Hall are located in Box 18.
Summary List
Box 13/18 Iran
Box 13/18 Ypres
Box 13/18 Croix de Guerre
Box 13/18 Ypres reconnaissance
Box 13/18 Great Britain
Box 13/18 Chevalier de L'Ordre de la Couronne
Box 13/18 British Military Mission
Box 13/18 Medaille de Saint Mihiel
Box 13/18 Croix de Guerre (Belgium)
Box 13/18 U.S.Air Service
Box 13/18 A.E.F. promotion
Box 13/18 A.E.F. citation
Box 13/18 Military Aviator rating
Box 13/18 Medaille de Verdun
Box 13/18 D.S.O.
Box 13/18 Aero Club
Box 13/18 Polish license
Box 13/18 U.S.N.R. appointment
Box 13/18 Army appointment
Box 13/18 Military Intelligence
Box 13/18 Bronze Star
Box 13/18 Purple Heart
Box 13/18 Laos
Box 13/18 Legion d'Honneur
Box 13/18 Chateau Thierry
Box 13/18 Vietnam
Box 13/18 Series IX, William Augustus Hall, 1911-1913
Series Description
Series IX, William Augustus Hall (1911-1913), contains correspondence and diaries of Hall which he kept while Melvin and his mother were on their world tour. The diaries document his activities, and recount his family's adventures. The correspondence is from his wife “Sallie” describing their travels.
Diary, 1911-1913
Box 13 Correspondence, 1912-1913
Box 13 Series X, Josephine Johnson Hall, 1918-1974
Series Description
Series X, Josephine Johnson Hall (1918-1974), contains journals, correspondence of Josephine Wells Johnson, a native of Racine, Wisconsin who served as a World War I field nurse. Her correspondence describes battlefield conditions and nursing activities, as well as contacts with family and friends after her marriage. Her daybook, kept during their five years in Persia, includes observations on social life and customs, and on domestic problems.
During the second World War, Mrs. Hall was active in American Women's Voluntary Services, Inc. and memos and correspondence about the group are included in this series. As well, there are some proceedings from the 1946 Conference on Peace Settlements. There are two folders of notes and anecdotes which she collected, and extracts from the diary given to her father which describes revolution in China in 1911. This material is arranged chronologically.
Correspondence,
Box 14 1918-1919
Box 14 1922-1929
Box 14 1944-1974
Box 14 Clippings, 1918-1919
Box 14 Daybook, 1923-1927
Box 14 American Women's Voluntary Service, Inc., 1941
Box 14 Conference on Peace Settlements, 1945
Box 14 Notes, undated
Box 14 Anecdotes, undated
Box 14 Diary, extracts, 1911
Box 14 Series XI, Photographs and Negatives, 1889-1960
Series Description
Series XI, Photographs and Negatives, includes drawings and sketches completed by Hall as well as photographs and negatives. Photographs are arranged in chronological order and include scenes from his earliest hunting trips, world travels, aircraft, aerial reconnaissance, his Persia work, and also includes illustrations from his publications. Negatives are filed at the end of the series and include more images than the printed photographs.
Sketches and Drawings, 1910-1947
Box 15 Photographs, 1889-1963
Box 15 Portraits
Box 15 Winton Auto, undated
Box 15 New England, 1895-1900
Box 15 Canoe trip, 1904
Box 15 Vermont, 1908
Box 15 Europe, 1908
Box 15 Moose Lake, Maine, 1909
Box 15 Maine, 1908-1909
Box 15 Central Park, 1910
Box 15 Motoring, 1889-1914
Box 15 European auto racing, undated
Box 15 Philippines, 1911-1912
Box 15 Japan, 1912
Box 15 Asia, 1911-1913
Box 15 Santa Barbara, California, 1912
Box 15 Transcontinental Trip, 1912-1913
Box 15 End of World Trip, 1913
Box 15 World War I, 1917
Box 15 World War I
Box 15 aircraft, 1917
Box 15 Belgium, 1917
Box 15 Battle of Messines, 1917
Box 15 Flanders, 1917
Box 16 Amsterdam, 1919
Box 16 Turkey, undated
Box 16 Persia, 1923-1927
Box 16 Syria, 1927
Box 16 Air Corps, 1929
Box 16 Ankara, Turkey, 1933
Box 16 Curtiss-Wright Mission, 1930
Box 16 Dardanelles, 1933
Box 16 Fishing Trip, 1939
Box 16 World War II--Vezelay, France, 1949-1950
Box 16 Les Vendanges, France, 1950
Box 16 Vezeley, France, 1950, 1960
Box 16 Massif Central, 1958-1960
Box 16 Pyranees, 1958-1960
Box 16 Santiago de Compostela, 1958-1960
Box 16 Valleys of Andorra, 1958-1960
Box 16 Unidentified
Box 16 Negatives
Box 16 Series XII, Oversize Material
Series Description
Series XII, Oversize Materials, includes one scrapbook/photo album containing clippings, tickets, passes, etc. from his around-the-world trip, and one photo album attributed to William A. Hall with what appear to be construction scenes of the Panama Canal. There are several panoramic views of the Continental Divide 1911-1912, and photographs of employees in Hall's Shiraz and Meshed (Persia) offices, and a photo of the 1944 eruption of Vesuvius.
Eight documents accompanying Hall's awards and medals are also filed in this series.
Scrapbook/Photo Album, 1911-1912
Box 17 Photo album [Panama Canal]
Box 17 Photographs:
Box 17 Panoramic Views, Continental Divide
Box 17 Employees
Shiraz, Iran
Box 17 Meshed, Iran
Box 17 Eruption of Vesuvius, 1944
Box 17 Series XIII, Medals
Series Description
Series XIII, Medals contains a sampling of the actual medals awarded to Hall during his career.
Awards, Medals, Commendations, Citations
Belgian Croix de Guerre
Box 17 Legion D-Honneur
Box 17 Signal Corps Commission
Box 17 Air Service Commission
Box 17 Chauteau-Theirry citation
Box 17 American Reconnaissance Escadrille
Box 17 Medaille de l'Yser
Box 17 French Croix de Guerre
Box 17
Permanent URL: http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/h415p954r