Lauchlin B. Currie papers, 1921-1994, bulk dates 1950-1990

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Summary

Creator:
Currie, Lauchlin Bernard
Abstract:
Lauchlin Currie (1902-1993) was an economic advisor to President Franklin Roosevelt during World War II then the government of Columbia. This collection documents his life through his correspondence and writings. It forms part of the Economists' Papers Archive.
Extent:
60.35 Linear Feet (62 boxes.)
Language:
Material in English and Spanish.
Collection ID:
RL.00277

Background

Scope and content:

This collection documnents Currie's career through his correspondence, writings, speeches, published materials, subject files, and clippings. The bulk of the material focuses on Currie's analyis of macroeconomic policy during the New Deal, and growth, housing and export policies for developing countries, especially Colombia. There is also material on China and Currie's mentor at Harvard, Allyn Young. Additional items relate to the investigation of Currie by the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

Folder groups headed only by a date span generally contain articles, reports, and correspondence on a wide variety of economic and socio-political subjects chiefly related to plans for Colombia's economic development (headed by Currie) or to theories of development in poor nations.

Biographical / historical:

Lauchlin Bernard Currie (1902-1993) was a white Canadian-American government economist who served as an economic advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1939-1945 and to the government of Colombia from 1949-1993. He directed with the Lend-Lease Program with China from 1941-1943 and served as acting director of the Foreign Economic Administration from 1943-1944. After the war, he faced repeated allegations of communist sympathies and espionage, and he testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1949. A naturalized US citizen, his passport renewal was denied in 1954, forcing him to leave the country. He returned to Colombia, where he had directed a World Bank mission from 1949-1953.

Date Event
1902
Born in Nova Scotia, Canada
1922-1925
Studied at London School of Economics
1931
PhD, Economics, Harvard University
1934
Published The Supply and Control of Money in the United States
1939
Appointed Assistant on Economic Affairs by Franklin D. Roosevelt
1943-1944
Acting Director, Foreign Economic Administration
1954
Loses US citizenship after being investigated by Senator Joseph McCarthy
1949-1993
Economic advisor to Colombian presidents
1993
Died in Colombia
Acquisition information:
The Lauchlin B. Currie papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library as gifts between 1998-2015.
Processing information:

Processed by Paula Jeannet, Ann Langford, and Kirk White, March 2000.

Encoded by Paula Jeannet and Lisa Stark.

Accessions described in this collection guide: 1998-0039, 1998-0349, 1999-0172, 2000-0251, 2001-0164, 2003-0208, 2012-0051, 2013-0009, 2013-0179, 2014-0035, and 2015-0014.

The Printed Material series has been processed and inventoried at the item level, but the Personal series is unprocessed and requires careful handling, as many of the items are fragile. Accession 1998-0039 is in original order, with the exception of two accessions folded in after 1998 (1998-0349 and 1999-0172). Small groups of material received post-processing (2000-0251, 2001-0164, 2003-0208, and 2012-0051) are also listed.

Arrangement:

The Lauchlin B. Currie papers are arranged into two series: Printed Material and Personal.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

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Restrictions:

Access restricted. Multiple accessions are unprocessed and require additional arrangement, description, and/or screening. Contact Research Services for more information.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Lauchlin B. Currie papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Duke University.