urn:taro:utexas.cah.03121 A Guide to the John R. Chamberlain Archive, 1923-1991, Original EAD encoding by Maria Soscia according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. November 2011 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Chamberlain, John, 1903-1995 Chamberlain, John, Archive 1923-1991 Materials are written in English. AR 2011-360 3 in. Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin Composed of approximately 200 typed and handwritten letters, the John R. Chamberlain Archive, 1923-1991, comprises correspondence between Chamberlain and many notable writers and business leaders, such as author Archibald MacLeish, journalist Dorothy Thompson, and Texaco president John K. McKinley documenting several political issues, including Watergate, federal aid to education, and the Eichmann trial. Additionally, the letters concern books and columns written by Chamberlain. Biographical Note

American journalist and literary critic John R. Chamberlain (1903-1995) graduated from Yale University in 1925, and the following year began his career in the news industry working for the New York Times. He later held positions as reporter, editor, columnist, and book reviewer for several other newspapers and magazines, including the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and Life. Additionally, he authored a syndicated column for King Features for twenty-five years. Prior to the 1940s, Chamberlain was known as a liberal until switching his political beliefs over to conservatism, as did many other writers and thinkers of the time.

After the death of his first wife Margaret Sterling in the mid 1950s, he married Ernestine Stodelle, formerly married to Russian theatrical producer Theodore Komisarjevsky. Chamberlain had two daughters, one son, a stepdaughter, and two stepsons.

Sources:

“John Chamberlain, Columnist, Dies at 91.” New York Times. April 13, 1995. Accessed November 23, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/1995/04/13/obituaries/john-chamberlain-columnist-dies-at-91.html.

“John Chamberlain (Journalist).” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Accessed November 23, 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chamberlain_%28journalist%29.

 Scope and Contents

Composed of approximately 200 typed and handwritten letters, the John R. Chamberlain Archive, 1923-1991, comprises correspondence between Chamberlain and many notable writers and business leaders, such as author Archibald MacLeish, journalist Dorothy Thompson, and Texaco president John K. McKinley documenting several political issues, including Watergate, federal aid to education, and the Eichmann trial. Additionally, the letters concern books and columns written by Chamberlain.

 Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

 Index Terms Subjects (Persons) Chamberlain, John, 1903-1995 -- Archives. MacLeish, Archibald, 1892-1982. Thompson, Dorothy, 1893-1961. Subjects (Organizations) Wall Street journal. King features syndicate. Subjects Journalists -- United States -- Correspondence. Federal aid to education. Watergate Affair, 1972-1974. Places Connecticut. Los Angeles (Calif.) New York (State). Preferred Citation

John R. Chamberlain Archive, 1923-1991, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 Processing Information

This collection was processed by Maria Soscia, November 2011.

 Detailed Description of the Papers Inventory 3G16 Correspondence, April 3, 1923-August 19, 1991