Henry C. L. Miller, Jr. papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
University of Virginia, Special Collections Dept.
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
University of Virginia
P.O. Box 400110
160 McCormick Rd
Charlottesville, Virginia 22904-4110
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Brenda Gunn
Phone: (434) 924-1037
Phone: (434) 243-1776
Fax: (434) 924-4968
Restrictions:

This collection has been minimally processed and is open for research.

Terms of access:

This collection contains some in-copyright material. Visit our Permissions and Publishing page for more information about use of Special Collections materials. The library can provide copyright information upon request, but users are responsible for making their own determination about lawful use of collections materials. InC: In Copyright – https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/

Preferred citation:

MSS 16942, Henry C. L. Miller, Jr. papers, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia Library.

Summary

Extent:
.34 Cubic Feet 1 small flat box, 1 oversize medium flat box
Creator:
Miller, Henry C.L., Jr. (Coudon Lay), 1901-1980 and Stettinius, Edward R., Jr. (Edward Reilly), 1900-1949
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

MSS 16942, Henry C. L. Miller, Jr. papers, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia Library.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains the Second World War-period diary and scrapbook of Henry C.L. Miller, Jr. of Richmond, Virginia (1901-1980). The scrapbook contains telegrams, letters, taped-in postcards, and printed memoranda. Correspondence included in the scrapbook is largely friendly correspondence between Miller and Edward Stettinius, Jr., (1900-1949). Stettinius's tone is jovial and highly complementary of Miller in their correspondence. A memorandum dated August 4th, 1942, from Thomas B. McCabe of the Lend-Lease Office states that "Regarding the Miller appointment [as Chief of the Civil Service Requirements Section], I [Stettinius] am delighted." Stettinius refers to Miller as "Chick" and Stettinius is referred to as "Eddie" by Miller in all their private and Lend-Lease Office-officiated correspondence. Aside from letters with Stettinius, Miller's scrapbook contains records of his work on the Civil Service Commission from 1941 to 1944, including tipped-in newspaper clippings, daily schedules, travel authorizations, and official internal memoranda. A tipped-in invitation for Edward Stettinius's farewell dinner from the Lend-Lease Administration is dated October 6, 1943, before his transition to Under Secretary of State. Several tipped-in newspaper clippings at the back of the scrapbook document the work completed by the Lend-Lease Administration and the Civil Service Commission. Miller's "Service Diary" dated from March 17th, 1943, to November 24th, 1942, includes descriptions of daily work, Miller's personal thoughts on his work and the war, and descriptions of the places he visited as part of his Lend-Lease work.

Biographical / historical:

Henry C.L. Miller, Jr. was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania on September 17, 1901. He attained a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1923 and moved to Richmond in 1937. During the Second World War, Miller served as assistant deputy administrator and a member of the operations committee of the Lend-Lease Administration and a member of the requirements committee of the War Production Board, compiling these papers between 1941 and 1944. Miller had a close friendship with Edward Stettinius, Jr., (1900-1949), the Administrator of the Lend-Lease Administration during the period of Miller's writings. Once a University of Virginia attendee, Stettinius served as director of priorities in the Office of Production Management (1941), head of the Lend-Lease program with Great Britain (1942), the undersecretary of state (1943-1944), the secretary of state (1944-1945) and was then appointed U.S. representative to the United Nations (1945-1946).

Acquisition information:
This collection was a gift from Holliday Pulsifer to the Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia on 15 April 2025.
Physical description:
Good
Dimensions:
1 oversized medium flat box: 18" X14 " X 2" 1 small flat box: 7.5" x 5.5" x 1.5"
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard