Civilian Agency Records
Department of the Treasury Records
Records of the Department of the Treasury (RG 56)
The Department of Treasury was chiefly responsible during World War II, as before the war, for managing the financial affairs of the United States Government. All of its operations were greatly expanded during the war, and several special functions were assigned to the Department in connection with the war, such as the control of American assets owned by designated foreign governments and nationals.
The Department's war-related activities were handled for the most part by its regular organizational units, although special units were established, such as for the wartime control of foreign funds.
Henry Morgenthau, Jr., who served as the Secretary of the Treasury throughout the war, took a relatively active role in efforts to accomplish the return Axis looted assets. (Note 1) On February 22, 1945, he issued the following declaration:
On January 5, 1943, the United States and certain others of the United Nations issued a warning to all concerned, and in particular to persons in neutral countries, that they intend to do their utmost to defeat the methods of dispossession practiced by the government with which they are at war against the countries and peoples who have been so wantonly assaulted and despoiled. (Note 2) Furthermore, it has been announced many times that one of the purposes of the financial and property controls of the United States Government is to prevent the liquidation in the United States of assets looted by the Axis through duress and conquest.
One of the particular methods of dispossession practiced by the Axis powers had been the illegal seizure of large amounts of gold belonging to the nations they have occupied and plundered. The Axis powers have purported to sell such looted gold to various countries which continue to maintain diplomatic and commercial relations with the Axis, such gold thereby providing an important source of foreign exchange to the Axis and enabling the Axis to obtain much-needed imports from these countries.
The United States Treasury has already taken measures designed to protect the assets of the invaded countries and to prevent the Axis from disposing of looted currencies, and other looted assets on the world market. Similarly, the United States Government cannot in any way condone the policy of systematic plundering adopted by the Axis or participate in any way directly or indirectly in the unlawful disposition of looted gold.
In view of the foregoing facts and considerations, the United States Government formally declares that it does not and will not recognize the transference of title to the looted gold which the Axis at any time holds or has disposed of in world markets. It further declares that it will be the olicy of the United States Treasury not to buy any gold presently located outside of the territorial limits of the United States from any country which after the date of this announcement acquires gold from any country which has not broken relations with the Axis, unless and until the United States Treasury is fully satisfied that such gold is not gold which was acquired directly or indirectly from the Axis powers or is not gold which any such country has been or is enabled to release as a result of the acquisition of gold directly or indirectly from the Axis powers. (3) the United States Government formally declares that it does not and will not recognize the transference of title to the looted gold which the Axis at any time holds or has disposed of in world markets. It further declares that it will be the olicy of the United States Treasury not to buy any gold presently located outside of the territorial limits of the United States from any country which after the date of this announcement acquires gold from any country which has not broken relations with the Axis, unless and until the United States Treasury is fully satisfied that such gold is not gold which was acquired directly or indirectly from the Axis powers or is not gold which any such country has been or is enabled to release as a result of the acquisition of gold directly or indirectly from the Axis powers. (Note 3)
Correspondence of the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury
The Office of the Secretary of the Treasury included the immediate office of the Secretary, the office of the Under Secretary, the offices of the several Assistant Secretaries or other officials who exercised for the Secretary general supervision over particular bureaus or comparable units of the Department, and the offices of special consultants or advisers to the Secretary on various subjects. The Secretary, besides his other duties, served as an adviser to the President on fiscal and other aspects of the war. He was also a member of several Federal boards and committees, among them the Board of Economic Warfare and the War Refugee Board.
Transcripts of conferences, memoranda, personal correspondence, and copies of papers coming to the desk of the Secretary during the war are among the Morgenthau Papers in the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library at Hyde Park, New York.
Central Files of the Office of the Secretary and Assistant Secretaries
Name and Subject Index to the Central Files [Entry 193] 1933-1956 (Entry 192)
Boxes 1-36
Central Files of the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury 1933-1956 (Entry 193)
Boxes 1-246 (includes a box 206A)
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 13 | Argentina 1938-1948 |
| 19 | Belgium |
| 20 | Board of Economic Warfare 1941-1943 |
| War Refugee Board 1944-1945 | |
| 60 | France |
| 61 | Germany (Miscellaneous) |
| 83 | Netherlands |
| 104 | Poland Portugal |
| 122 | Spain |
| 122-123 | State Department |
| 123 | Switzerland [1939-1946] |
| 180 | Treasury Department-Foreign Funds Control |
| 203 | War Department |
Central Files of the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury 1957-1966 (Entry 193A)
Boxes 1-129
Office Files of Secretaries, Under Secretaries, and Assistant Secretaries 1932-1965
Records of Assistant Secretary John L. Sullivan
Box 191 contains folder entitled "General Counsel's War History." Included is a copy of a typewritten 78-page-history that was prepared early in 1947, and related records.
Records of Assistant to the Secretary John W. Pehle
Various series, including chronological and subject files. circa 1940-1945
Boxes 206-224
Miscellaneous Records of the Secretary and Assistant Secretaries
History of Treasury Participation in Formulation of German Occupation Program, ca. 1944-1946 (Entry 199C)
Activity Reports 1933-1961
| Box # | Office Name |
|---|---|
| 10 | Foreign Funds Control July 1946-July 1947 |
| 17 | Office of International Finance 1946-1948 |
| 19 | Division of Monetary Research 1946 |
Monthly Reports of the Secretary of the Treasury 1945-1961
Boxes 25-33
Records of the Legal Division
By section 512 of the Revenue Act of 1934, there was created the office of the General Counsel for the Department of the Treasury. The law provided that the General Counsel should be the chief law officer of the Department and perform such duties in respect to its legal activities as were prescribed by the Secretary or required by law. By order dated June 20, 1934, the Secretary prescribed the duties of the General Counsel and established the Legal Division, which was placed under the direct supervision and control of the General Counsel.
The General Counsel was responsible for and in charge of all legal activities of the Treasury Department, including all legislation pertaining to the affairs of the Department; rendered formal legal opinions for the information and guidance of administrative officers of the Department; prepared or reviewed material for publication, official regulations, Treasury Decisions, and other rulings and orders concerning laws administered by the Department, and cooperated with the Department of Justice with respect to litigation in which the Treasury Department had an interest.
Records of the Office of the General Counsel
Correspondence and Subject Files ca 1927-1963 (Accession 56-74-0001)
Boxes 1-17
Subject Files ca. 1940-1957 (Accession 56-58A845)
Boxes 1-6
Chronological Files ca. 1940-1957 (Accession 56-58A845)
Boxes 7-12
Subject Files ca 1940-1957 (Accession 56-58A845)
Boxes 13-31
General Correspondence 1934-1947 (Entry 352M)
Arranged in several alphabetically arrangements by subject.
Boxes 1-69
Records of the Assistant General Counsel (for the Office of the Fiscal Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Accounts, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and the Bureau of the Mint) 1903-1956
Subject Files ca. 1903-1956 (Accession 56-67A752)
Boxes 1-11
Records of the Assistant General Counsel (for Customs, Coast Guard, and Foreign Funds Control)
Subject Files 1941-1943 (Accession 56-61A331)
These records pertain almost exclusively to ship movements and seizures, and other customs matters. Boxes 1-3
Records of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs
The Office of the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs (OASIA) was, during the World War II period, named the Office of the Assistant Secretary in Charge of Monetary Research and Foreign Funds Control. The Assistant to the Secretary in Charge of Monetary Research supervised both the Division of Monetary Research and all matters relating to the management and operation of the United States Stabilization Fund. He also had general supervision of all foreign relations of the Department. In December 1944 the Assistant to the Secretary was replaced by the Assistant in Charge of Monetary Research and Foreign Funds Control. Both of these positions were held by Harry D. White. Records of the Division of Monetary Research
The Division of Monetary Research, established on March 25, 1938, supplied information and analyses and made recommendations to assist the Secretary of the Treasury and other Treasury officials in formulating and executing the international financial policies of the Department. The Division was headed by the Director of Monetary Research, a position held by Harry D. White until 1945, when Frank Coe became Director. Although the Division was essentially a research and not an operating unit, it was authorized to act for the Treasury Department in exchange stabilization and other international financial negotiations and to implement stabilization agreements through use of the United States Stabilization Fund. During the war the division had representatives stationed in various foreign countries to deal directly with the governments of those countries on financial matters, and emergency field officers to assist military authority on financial and currency problems related to invasion and occupation. The Division also represented the Treasury Department in interdepartmental groups concerned with international affairs.
At the outbreak of the war in Europe the Division was directed to prepare analyses of the international aspects of the fiscal policies of the United States and of foreign countries, and throughout the war it continued to make studies of the financial positions of foreign countries. When the Treasury Department's Foreign Funds Control was established in April 1940, the Monetary Research Division was assigned to do research for it.
In 1943 the Division began sending representatives to work directly with military headquarters in the various theaters and to establish Treasury representation in United States embassies and legations in a number of capitals. At the same time, it undertook work in the field of postwar planning. Its members performed research, prepared memoranda, and rendered technical assistance in connection with the numerous conferences of technical experts that culminated in the International Monetary Conference at Bretton Woods in June 1944.
With the end of hostilities it furnished economic analyses and provided most of the Treasury advisers for the United States representatives in the many postwar international economic conferences and organizations.
Records of the Deputy to the Assistant Secretary and Secretary of the International Monetary Group
Records of the Bretton Woods Agreements 1938-1946 (Entry 360O)
The Bretton Woods Conference, also known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, was held during 1944. Economic and financial experts of 44 members of the United Nations met to discuss balanced economic relationships between nations. The American delegation was led by Henry Morgenthau, Jr. In August 1944 the United Nations represented at the Conference adopted Resolution VI, calling upon the neutral governments to take all necessary steps within their respective jurisdictions to (1) immobilize looted assets; (2) uncover and control enemy property; and (3) hold German assets for the disposition of the post-hostilities authorities in Germany. Boxes 1-59
Records of the Assistant Secretary relating to Monetary and International Affairs, 1934-1946
Chronological File of Harry Dexter White, 1934-1946 (Entry 360P)
There is a listing at the beginning of each folder of the subject content of Mr. White's correspondence. Boxes 1-13
Staff Memoranda of Harry Dexter White, 1941-1946 (Entry 360Q)
Boxes 14-15
Intra-Treasury Memoranda of Harry Dexter White, 1934-1945 (Entry 360R)
Boxes 16-20
Memoranda of Conferences held in the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury, 1938-1945 Entry 360S)
Box 20
Memoranda of Conferences held in Harry Dexter White's Office, 1940-1945 (Entry 360T)
Boxes 20-21
RECORDS RECENTLY ACCESSIONED (November 1996)
Newly accessioned Department of Treasury records, mainly from the predecessor offices of the Office of International Affairs have recently been declassified and moved to an unclassified stack area. The most heavily used and pertinent records have then been moved to the Textual Research Room (Room 2000) hold area to make them more accessible. Thus the location for these newly declassified records is the "Research Room Hold Area." The Compartment of the Hold Area is given, followed, In brackets [ ], by the eventual location. Because the records are not being thoroughly processed (e.g., reboxed into archives boxes), the records are being identified under the accession number under which the Treasury Department retired the records to the Federal Records Center. The records are presently contained in Federal Record Center boxes which hold a cubic foot of records, or the equivalent of three archives boxes. Researchers should note that at some point these records will be reboxed, renumbered, and relocated.
Access to the records temporarily stored in the Textual Research Room are governed by the following procedures issued on December 11, 1996, by Clarence F. Lyons, Jr., then Chief of the Archives II Textual Reference Branch. These procedures are still valid. Specifically:
- Many of the most frequently requested records will be placed in a location near the research room for easy retrieval by research room staff.....
- Researchers may request these records at any time during the day. These pulls are not limited to the normal record pull schedule.
- A researcher may charge out ONE box of these records at a time. When the box is returned to the research room attendant, a researcher may request and charge out another box.
- A researcher may charge out a box for ONE day only. All boxes must be returned by the end of the day.
- Requests for these records must be made in person. Records may not be reserved in advance.
- These procedures apply only to those records moved to the proximity of the Textual Research Room. Other records in their stack location will be pulled according to the usual pull schedule and remain subject to established research room procedures.
Mr. Lyons, in issuing these instructions, indicated that "these procedures are designed to meet the heavy demand for these records from many parties and ensure all interested researchers [receive] equal access to the materials."
TREASURY DEPARTMENT RECORDS IN THE RESEARCH ROOM HOLD AREA AND OTHER NEWLY ACCESSIONED AND DECLASSIFIED TREASURY DEPARTMENT RECORDS NOT MOVED TO THE HOLD AREA
Accession 56-66A-155
Correspondence with other Government Agencies, including the Alien Property Custodian, State Department, and Treasury representatives abroad ca. 1930s-1950s
Boxes 1-3
Incoming Correspondence
| Box # | Country/Area |
|---|---|
| 1 | Foreign Economic Administration Federal Reserve Banks |
| 2 | Office of Economic Warfare Office of Strategic Services Office of War Information State Department |
| 3 | War Department White House Telephone Conversations with Representatives Abroad |
| 10 | Germany |
| 11 | Germany Greece Italy |
| 12-13 | Italy |
| 15 | Latin America |
| 18 | Netherlands |
| 20 | Portugal |
| 21 | Sweden |
| 22 | Switzerland |
| 23 | Turkey |
Country Files
| Box # | Country/Area |
|---|---|
| 28-32 | Latin America |
| 32-34 | Argentina |
Division of Monetary Research
Monthly Reports to the Secretary Box 67
Office of International Finance
Monthly Reports to the Secretary Box 68
Office of International Finances
International Conference Files Boxes 69-70
Accession 56-66A-816
Special Subject Files
Boxes 1-2 "Looted Gold" location: Compartment 3
| Box # | File Titles |
|---|---|
| 1 | Austria Bank for International Settlements, General Bank of France Mission to Berlin, 1946 Bank Report on Netherlands Gold, 1941 (Volumes I and II) BIS-Documents Relating to Gold Possibly Delivered to BIS at Constance Bulgaria Correspondence -Dutch Gold Shipped to Germany France German Correspondence (Grzesinki) Germany Gold Bars Received by Swiss National Bank from Deutsche Reichsbank Hungary Inter-Allied Reparations Agency, General Location and Recovery Miscellaneous Negotiations for Restitution, Lisbon, 1946 |
| 2 | Netherlands (Volumes I and II) Netherlands-Gold Looted by Germans and Acquired by BIS Portuguese Position Prussian Mint Records re Smeltings Report of Subcommittee and Supplement to Report, Lisbon, 1947 Resmelting Belgian Gold Spain (Volumes I and II) Treasury Missions and Conferences Tripartite Conference Reports on Reparation and Restitution, Brussels, 1946 Yugoslavia |
Boxes 3-4 Miscellaneous statistical reports received from De Nederlandsche Bank location: Compartment 3 [450/80/19/01]
Box 3 also contains the Reichsbank Precious Metals Department Records. (Note 4)
In mid-June 1948 Harry E. Hesse of the Treasury Department went to Frankfurt, Germany, to investigate at the Foreign Exchange Depository (FED), the original records of the Deutsche Reichsbank regarding the administration of the gold in its possession before and during World War II. He concluded that the records of the Precious Metal Department were fairly complete, but that the records of the Devisen Abteilung were in the Reichsbank Building in Berlin in the Russian sector of the city. In view of the imminent dissolution of the Foreign Exchange Depository, with the concurrence of the chief economic advisor, Jack Bennet, Hesse requested Colonel William G. Brey, Chief of the Foreign Exchange Depository, to turn the Precious Metals Department records over to the Bank Deutscher Laender as permanent custodian. Prior to that happening, he had the records microfilmed so that there would be a set available in Washington, DC. (Note 5)
On July 2, 1948, Mr. Freeman, of the Finance Advisor's Office, called Colonel Brey and instructed him to release the books and records of the Precious Metals Department to custody of the Bank Deutscher Laender as requested by Mr. Hesse and to release the FED microfilm records to Hesse to take back to Washington DC. (Note 6) On July 3, 1948, Hesse departed Frankfurt and took with him the microfilmed records. (Note 7) On July 7, 1948, the original Precious Metals Department records were turned over to the Bank Deutscher Laender and Colonel Brey sent a message to the Office of the Finance Advisor advising of the action he had taken. (Note 8) On July 8, 1948, Brey wrote Mr. Hesse, enclosing a complete index of the microfilm and stating that the actual records (both those microfilmed and those note microfilmed) had been turned over to the Bank Deutscher Laender. (Note 9) Frank J. Roberts, the Acting Chief of the Foreign Exchange Depository, in September 1949, reported that the records had "been released to bank Deutscher Laender but are at out disposal as required. From time to time the Tripartite Gold Commission requests examinations of these records to verify statements in claims submitted by foreign governments." (Note 10)
Reichsbank Precious Metals Department Records
The microfilm is located in the Microfilm Reading Room 4050
| Roll # | Subject |
|---|---|
| 1 | Gold in bars and foreign coins |
| 2 | Control over the record amounts of bank holdings |
| 3 | Statistics covering the gold holdings of the Reichsbank |
| 4 | Gold and silver statistics, Precious-Metal Purchasing Fund |
| 5 | Gold purchase inventory control, February 9, 1940-January 2, 1945 |
| 6 | Gold purchase inventory control, from January 2, 1945 |
| 7 | Gold and silver statistics, Precious-Metal Purchasing Fund |
| 8 | Inventory of the Main Treasure (January 6, 1932 to September 23, 1942) |
| 9 | no roll |
| 10 | Gold purchase, miscellaneous gold bars, Main ledger No. 30001 |
| 11 | Gold purchase, miscellaneous gold bars, Control Ledger No. 30001 |
| 12 | Main Ledger Sundry Gold bars, Main Fund Precious Metal |
| 13 | Control Ledger, Sundry Gold bars, Main Fund Precious Metal |
| 14 | 900-fine gold bars, Main Ledgers No. 15001-21000 |
| 15 | 900-fine gold bars Control Ledgers No. 15001-21000 |
| 16 | Standard gold bars Main Ledger No. 10001-15000 |
| 17 | Standard gold bars Control Ledger No. 10001-15000 |
| 18 | High-content gold bars Main Lain Ledger over 990/1000, No. 2000-3000 |
| 19 | High-content gold bars Control Ledger over 990/1000, No. 1-10000 |
| 20 | High-content gold bars Control Ledger over 990/1000, No. 20000-30000 |
| 21 | High-content bars Main Ledger, special storage in Germany |
| 22 | High-content special storage in Germany Control Ledger |
| 23 | Journal - June 1, 1940-September 9, 1943 |
| 24 | Journal - September 10, 1943 |
| 25 | Treasure Work Book of Treasure A, June 1, 1940 |
| 26 | Gold purchase receipt and dispatch book from September 15, 1944 |
| 27 | Ledger covering storage in Treasure A |
| 28 | no microfilm reel 28 |
| 29 | Weight control and stores |
| 30 | Weight control for gold bars of the gold purchase |
| 31 | Bar control by the Precious Metal Fund from January 3, 1944 32- |
| 33 | no reels |
| 34 | Gold and silver notations [quotations] 35- |
| 37 | no reels |
| 38 | Main Fund Precious Metal, inventory ledger of silver coins purchased |
| 39 | Foreign Office |
| 40 | no reel |
| 41 | Gold bars and gold coins, inventories in banks (?), etc. |
| 42 | Gold and silver Statistical notes |
| 43 | Scales and weights-Precious Metal Main Fund |
| 44 | Test results of the Assay Office |
| 45 | Gold purchase prices |
| 46 | Business routine and assignments of the Precious Metal Purchasing Fund |
| 47 | Signature-specimen sheets |
| 48 | Sundry letters re gold |
| 49 | Bag ledger (Main ledger) A foreign gold coins |
| 50 | Bag ledger (Control ledger), A, foreign gold coins |
| 51 | Gold Ledger B Main Ledger |
| 52 | Bag Ledger B Control Ledger |
| 53 | Bag Ledger Control Ledger C |
| 54 | Bag Ledger Control Ledger (filmed twice) |
| 55 | Store for armament, etc. |
| 56 | Laws and regulations etc., concerning Jews |
| 57 | Silver regulations [dispositions] |
| 58 | General regulations concerning purchase of gold coins, bars, etc. |
| 59 | Economic and currency notes |
| 60 | Gold management I |
| 61 | Gold management II |
| 62 | List of dispatched gold shipments |
| 63 | Precious Metal Purchasing Fund |
| 64 | Receipt book of the Precious Metal Purchasing Fund |
| 65 | Same as No. 38 - filmed twice |
| 66 | Receipt and dispatch book of Silver Purchase |
| 67 | Inventory of the treasure |
| M1 | Bag ledger C Main Ledger |
| M2 | Banca d'Italia folder |
| M3 | Gold management - war measures |
| M4 | Store folder (same as No. 55, filmed twice) |
| M5 | Gold management in Austria |
| M6 | Miscellaneous data |
| M7 | Removal of store of Italian gold (from) Milan to Fortezza |
Subject Files
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 5 | Bank Instructions and Blocked Accounts Bank for International Settlements |
| 6 | BEW Reports French Africa Black List Blocked Enemy Accounts |
| 7 | Economic Warfare Enemy Accounts Enemy Assets |
| 8 | Foreign Funds Control |
| 9 | German Financial Methods in Connection with Occupation |
| 10 | Letters-North African Representatives-U.S. Treasury |
| 11 | Office of War Information (OWI) |
| 12 | Swiss Francs |
| 13 | Trading with the Enemy Act Economic Warfare |
| 15 | Censorship Civil Affairs and Financial Guide to Liberated Areas 1944 |
| 16 | Exchange Control-War Study 1940 |
| 17 | Reparations |
| 18 | War Claims War Criminals War Damage War Data-Foreign War Data-United States |
| 19 | Wartime Problems Pending with Treasury-August 1, 1944. [Areport containing a section on "Pending Problems and Negotiations with or related to the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, USSR, Italy, Germany, Austria, Balkans, Switzerland, and China" and "Dollar Position and Gold Holdings of European Countries." The Swiss section of the report is broken into the following categories: Swiss Franc Problem, War Trade Agreement, Practices of Swiss Banks, Swiss Policy in Buying Axis Gold, and Flight of Nazi Funds.] |
| 20 | Contains printed [by USGPO] Treasury Departmentreports entitled Census of American-Owned Assets in Foreign Countries (1947, 128pp.) and Census of Foreign-Owned Assets in the United States (1945, 88pp.). These reports were based on the information contained in census forms TFR-500 (Note 11) and TFR-300. (Note 12) |
Miscellaneous Subject Files
Box 30 "Safe Haven, 1951" These records pertain to Latin American activities
Boxes 33-35 United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation
Foreign Funds Control Activities ca. 1940-1950
| Box # | File Title or Subject |
|---|---|
| 37-38 (part) | Census of Foreign-Owned Property Records |
| 38 (part)-39 | Census of U.S. Property Abroad The above records relate, for the most part, to the administrative aspect of undertaking the Census in 1941 (TFR-Form 300) and 1943 (TFR-Form 500). |
Special Subject Files
Boxes 45-54 location: Compartments 3-4
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 45 | Administration of Executive Order 8389 Applications Relating to U.S. Imports and Exports Authorizations, Licenses and Reports Censorship Conflicting Custodianship Congressional Hearings-Kilgore Committee on German Financial Penetration, 1945 Currency Imports Reported by Federal Reserve Banks Currency Imports to the United States, 1941-1942 Currency Imports: Tables Currency (United States) Reported Movement |
| 46 | Developments Discussion of Documents and Other Matters Pertaining to the Foreign Funds Control Enforcement Division Exchange Control: Chronology January 1941-June 1942; Originals; Completed Requests |
| 47 | Flight of Axis Capital General Information on the Administration, Structure and Functions of the Foreign Funds Control, 1940-1948 General License No. 94 General License, Rulings and Authorizations History of the Foreign Funds Control Operation Holland: Study on Banks Sponsored and/or Controlled by German Interests, 1945; Study on the Central Bank and the Eight Largest Commercial Banks, 1944 Investigations: Bata Company; Stehlik, R.F.; Wallenbergs; Williamson, Hugh |
| 48 | Germany: External Assets and Obligations MGAX-1; Declarations consisting of the following: (a) German Property Located in and Claims Against the United States (Books 1-4), (b) Foreign (U.S.)Property Located in and Claims Against Germany (Books 5-27), and (Present Holders of German-owned Foreign (U.S.) Securities (1 book). |
| 49-50 | Germany: List of N.S.D.A.P. Members in Foreign Countries (Nazi Party List) |
| 51 | Latin America: Enemy Property Latin America: Reports Licensing Division Licensing: Reports of Applications Reviewed Meetings in Director's (Pehle) Office Monthly Activity Reports Organization Proclaimed List: 1941-1946; Proclaimed List: General Information Proclaimed List: Meetings with Nominating Committee Property Reports Stamp Trade Statistical: Progress Reports; Weekly Reports; Miscellaneous Countries Statistical Program, General |
| 52 | Summary of Trade Applications TFR: 300-500 (1942-1952) Volumes I though IV 300-Galley Proof and Worksheets 300-Memoranda 300-Questions and Answers (Insurance Companies) 300-Receipt of Reports 500-Memoranda 500-Correspondence |
| 53 | TFR: 600 - 1948-1949 600-Codes 600-Tabulation Results 100- 1940-1941 (Note 13) |
| 53-54 | Trade Tables - June-November 1941; December 1941-May 1942 |
| 54 | Trading with the Enemy Act Transactions Affecting Foreign Bank Accounts in New York Area Treatment of American Assets Abroad Foreign Funds Control: Correspondence (1943-1949) Foreign Funds Control: Memoranda (Staff) during the years 1943-1950 |
Freezing Program
Box 55 Special Subject Files Relating to the Freezing Program
File Title
- Agenda
- American Property Abroad
- Analysis of Trade Applications
- Chemie, I.G.
- Chronology (1940-1942)
- Johnson Act
- Joint Committee (State and Treasury)
- Minutes of Meetings with Foreign Funds Control
- Policy
- Representatives Abroad
- Status of Cases
Country and Area Files Relating to the Freezing Program
Boxes 56-57
Legal Records
Special Subject Files
Miscellaneous Records Relating to the Defrosting Program and Legislation, including information on the Bretton Woods Agreement Act and the Trading with the Enemy Act. Contains specific files on Austria, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. Box 61
Miscellaneous Records Relating to Looted Securities, including "General-Volumes I through IV (1944-1947); "Netherlands," and "Restitution of Looted Securities Located in Austria and Germany" Box 62
Miscellaneous Records
Box 63 contains a miscellaneous case file labeled "Dwork, Dr. Irving, C (Note 14)." containing information on heirless assets in the United States, and especially in New York, along with draft legislation dealing with heirless assets in America. 1946. Also contained in the box are a files on banks, the vesting program, and three files dealing with securities, particularly French securities.
Box 73 containes files on foreign accounts in the Federal Reserve Board and insured banks, 1941; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1940-1941; the Federal Reserve Board; the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; foreign accounts in New York banks 1940-1941; and, foreign banks-New York agencies, 1941.
Records of the Office of the Technical Assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury
Stabilization Records
Subject File 1936-1942
| Box # | File Title or Subjects |
|---|---|
| 74 | "Germany" and "Gold" |
| 80 | Switzerland, including the Bank for International Settlements |
Accession 56-66A1039
Miscellaneous Committee Records
| Box # | File Tile or Subject |
|---|---|
| 23 | Combined Liberated Areas Committee, ca. 1945-1946. |
| 24-26 | Treasury Department participation in the Board of Economic Warfare. Box 24 contains a folder entitled "(Board of Economic Warfare): Economic Defense: Functions Administered by Treasury," which contains a copy of a memorandum prepared by Harry D.White for Secretary Morgenthau's signature, October 7, 1941, to the Vice President, concerning "Economic Defense Functions Administered by the Treasury. Box 25 contains information on economic warfare in Latin America, 1941-1943. Box 26 contains information on Swedish trade with the Axis, 1942-1943. |
| 33 | Liberated Areas Committee 1945-1946. Also includedis a folder on the Kilgore Committee, a U.S. Senate Subcommittee of the Committee on Military Affairs, June-December 1945, looking into German economic penetration of neutral countries, elimination of German resources for war, Germany's resources for a third world war, and related matters. Included are published copies of Senate documents, drafts and copies of testimony by Treasury staff, and related records. |
| 34 | Occupied Areas Committee, 1946. Also included is one folder entitled "Occupied Areas Committee-Country" 1943, that contains files on Scandinavian countries, the Lowlands, Italy, France, East Indies, China, Central Europe, and the Balkans |
| 35 | Treasury Department participation in the State-War-Navy Coordinating Committee, 1945-1947 |
| 62 | Inter-Allied Reparations Agency (IARA). Contains folders entitled "IARA:-Tripartite Commission for the Restitution of Monetary Gold," [1950-1953]; "IARA-Looted Gold-Restitution and Claims Volume I," [1943-1947]; "IARA-Looted Gold-Restitution and Claims Volume II," [1948-1951]; and "IARA-Looted Gold-Location and Recovery," [1945-1959]. |
Accession 56-67A245
Country Files
| Box # | File Title or Subject |
|---|---|
| 8 | Economic warfare in French Africa; contains a folder entitled "French Africa-Gold," covering the 1942-1944 period. |
| 10 | French North Africa including a folder labeled "F.N.A. Safehaven,"1945. |
| 11 | "F.N.A. Trading with the Enemy." |
| 13 | "Tangier-FFC" "Tangier German Assets" "Tangier Gold" "Tangier Proclaimed List" |
| 33 | Denmark, including folders labeled "Denmark Safehaven & Defrosting Program (inc. Enemy Property and FFC), 1944-1949 |
| 34 | Norway and Sweden, including folders labeled "Norway Gold & Silver (inc. transactions in Norwegian Accounts); "Norway Foreign Funds Control. |
| 35 | Sweden, including folders labeled "Sweden German Assets," "Sweden Gold and Silver (including transactions in Swedish Accounts), Sweden Negotiations," "Sweden, Negotiations Swedish Allied 1954,"[ volumes 1 and 2]; "Sweden Safehaven," and "Sweden War and War Related Activities (including FFC)." |
| 36-39 | Country files on Albanian, Baltic States, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Balkans, Hungary, Poland, Rumania, USSR. Contains information on banks, banking, foreign assets control (including gold). |
Miscellaneous World War II Records and Studies
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 66 | Censorship Items Correspondence with Military Intelligence Economic Survey of German Europe and the Far East Economic Warfare Foreign Funds Control |
| 67 | Naval Intelligence Nazi Industrial War Machine North Africa Office of Strategic Services |
Accession 56-67A1804
Country and Area Records 1934-1952
| Box # | Country |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | Austria |
| 4-10 | France |
| 13-21 | Italy |
| 23 | Portugal |
| 24-25 (part) | Spain |
| 25 (part) -29 | Switzerland Box 25 contains information on banks and banking, bank investigations, and blocked assets in the United States. Box 26 contains information on the Bretton Woods Conference, Foreign Funds Control activities, and defrosting of Swiss assets. Box 27 contains the following file titles: German Assets; German Assets- Currie Mission; German External Assets-Negotiations-Reports & Exhibits; German External Assets Vol. 1-Negotiation Briefing Data; German External Assets Vol. II-Negotiation Briefing Data; Gold & Silver; Investigations; Mission to the United States; Safehaven. Boxes 28-29 (part) contain information on transactions in Swiss Francs. Box 29 (part) contains file "Switzerland: War and War Related Activities" |
Special Subject Files
Gold Records 1931-1959
Subject Files
Boxes 49-55
External Debt Settlements by West Germany 1950-1957
Boxes 58-62 (part) Box 61 contains file GER/1/436 Claims of BIS
Tripartite Commission on German Debts 1951-1953
Boxes 62 (part)-63
Accession 56-68A2809
Area Records
World (WOR), 1946-1959
| Box # | File # | File Title |
|---|---|---|
| 26 | WOR/0/100 | Financial and Economic Studies and Reports - Volume I |
| WOR/2/000 | Money, Banks and Banking - Volume I | |
| WOR/2/300 | Gold Reports and Statistics - Volume I | |
| Europe (EUR), 1941-1959 | ||
| 28 | EUR/2/00 | Money, Banks and Banking, General (1941-1959) |
| EUR/3/11 | Treasury Policy and Activities - European Trade and Payments (1942-1959) | |
| EUR/9/00 | War and War Related Activities (1941-1946) |
International Statistics Division
Working Group Records
- Box 36 contains file "Gold and Dollar Assets in the U.S. of ERP Countries" WDR Records
- Box 37 contains forms (WDR-22 and WDR-18) relating to reports of gold and statements of government finances for various countries, including Austria, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey. Foreign Funds Control Activities Records relating to the Census of American-Owned Assets in Foreign Countries (TFR-500)
- Box 38 contains a subject file relating to the census
- Box 39-contains country files
- Boxes 39 (part)-42 (part) contain details regarding certain American property in various countries
- Boxes 42 (part) contains miscellaneous records relating to the TFR-500 Census
- Box 43 contains files on the Census of Foreign Owned Assets in the United States (TFR-300)
- Box 44 contains various completed FFC forms, 1945-1946
Accession 56-69A7584
Legal Staff Records
Country Files ca. 1940-1950
Boxes 1-3
| Country | Box # | File Title |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 1 | General (1943-1950) Banking Transactions and Instructions to Banks (1940-1950) Economic Controls (1941-947) Shipment of Gold to Argentina (1943-1946) |
| French Africa | 2 | General - Volumes I and II (1942-1949) Banknotes and Shipments of Gold and Currency (1943-1944) |
| Germany | 2 | General (1936-1952) Morgenthau Plan (1944-1945) |
| Italy | 3 | General (1946-1948) |
| Poland | 3 | Polish Gold Claims Against France (1942-1943) |
| Sweden | 3 | General (1948) Mission to Sweden (1947) |
| Switzerland | 3 | General (1941-1947) |
| Turkey | 3 | General (1946) |
Special Subject Files
Boxes 4-7 contain information on Gold 1933-1959.
General Office Records of the Undersecretary for Monetary Affairs
Budget and Fiscal Records
| Box # | File Title or Subject |
|---|---|
| 40 | Switzerland 1943-1952 |
| 41-46 | Swiss, Argentine, and other countries' banks and central banks, including information on buying and selling gold. Box 43 also contains American dealings with the Bank for International Settlements (1938-1959) and Box 46 contains information on the War Refugee Board (1944-1945) ca. 1936-1959. |
Accession 56-70A6232
Legal Records
- Box 22 Contains information on looted gold; the gold Commission; negotiations with Switzerland, Portugal, and Sweden forrecovery of looted gold; the Swedish Gold Conference, the Bank for International Settlements. circa 1946-1954
- Box 24 Swiss Bank Investigations circa 1950s.
Country and Area Records
- Box 48 - Folder "GER/3/15 Gold General 1949-58 vol.1" deals with looted and other gold matters relating to Germany. Included is a printed copyof Treaties and Other International Acts Series 2252 "Restitution of Monetary Gold: Submission to an Arbitrator of Certain Claims with respect to Gold looted by the Germans from Rome in 1943; Agreement between the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and France, signed April 25, 1951, entered into force April 25, 1951."
- Box 53 - Germany - Safehaven Agreements and German External Assets 1951-1959
- Box 54 - Germany - Looted Gold 1950-1959; contains information on German Assets in the United States, 1940-59 and U.S. Germany discussions relating to German External Assets/Safehaven 1954-1959.
- Box 75-76 - Switzerland 1947-1959; contain information about Swiss banking financial/economic situation 1946-1959.
Accession 56-75-101
Foreign Exchange Reporting Section Records
Reports
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 29 | Balances in earmarked Gold: FRBNY [ Federal Reserve Board New York] Weekly and Monthly Statements 1937-1947. |
Miscellaneous Subject Files
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 39 | Balances and Earmarked Gold Held for Foreign Account, Volumes I and II (1939-1949) Estimated Gold, Short-Term Dollar, and Long-term Dollar Assets of Participating Countries (June 1945-November 1948) Estimated World Gold and Dollar Resources Selected End-Years 1945- 1955 and March 31, 1956 Gold Tables and Capital Movements (1940-1941) |
Report Files
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 42 | Estimated Gold and Dollar Resources of Foreign Countries
Monthly Report of NAC (June 1945-March 1967) |
Subject File
Bank For International Settlements (BIS)
| Box # | File | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| 169 | BIS/0/00 BIS/0/75 BIS/0/98 BIS/2/00 BIS/4/00 |
General, Volumes 1-2 (1947-1969) Meetings and Documents (1954-1969) Letters to Finance Ministers (1945) Looted Gold (1945-1948) Liquidation (1944-1948) |
Legal Staff Records
General Subject Files
War and War Related (World War II) Activities
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 237 | Authority of Allied Military Command and Government in Territories Occupied (1943) Axis Instruments and Decrees Relating to Control of Foreign Property (1940-1942) Belgian Financial Matters (1944) |
| 238 | Currency Programs: General, Volumes I -V (1944-1950) Big Bill Program (1945) Foreign Currencies (1944-1945) Legal Background Memoranda re Currency Programs (1934-1945) Directives for Treatment of Germany Post SHAEF (1945) Directives of Other Areas Excluding Germany (1945) Dutch Decrees (1943-1944) Economic Warfare (1942-1943) External Assets Interrogations: General (1944-1946) External Assets Interrogations: Goering (1945) Volumes I-IV |
| 239 | External Assets Interrogations: Himmler (1945-1946) External Assets Interrogations: Hitler (by Schroeder and Schaub) (1945-1946) External Assets Interrogations: Heuman and Company (1945) External Assets Interrogations: I.G. Farben (1945) External Assets Interrogations: Kaltenbrunner (1945) External Assets Interrogations: Ribbentrop (1945) External Assets Interrogations: Kreutzer (1946) External Assets Interrogations: RHSA (Reich Security Office) (1945) External Assets Interrogations: Schellenberg (1945) External Assets Interrogations: Switzerland (1946) French War Settlement Negotiations-(1946) Volumes I and II Foreign Economic Policy (1944) Legal Memoranda (1944-1945) Netherlands Decrees (1940-1942) -The Netherlands-Occupation Decrees- M.E. Locker (1940-1942) Post War Dutch Problems (1942) Post War Planning (1942-1943) |
| 240 | Programs for Germany (1944-1945) Reoccupied Areas: Organizational Procedures (1943) War Criminals (1944-1945) War Property Loss Program (1943-1944) |
| 241 | Bank For International Settlements (1940-1945) 242-244 Gold; |
Accession 56-77-52
Assistant General Counsel
Legal Subject Files 1952-1972
- Box 5 contains information on Swiss bank secrecy laws. Included is a fileon a 1942 Swiss Bank investigation, including a "Final Report: Swiss Bank Investigation" and a July 3, 1942 memorandum by Bernard Bernstein pertaining to the Swiss investigation.
- Box 6 contains a file of legal memoranda between 1943 and 1957. Includedis one, a 16-page memorandum dated April 21, 1945, regarding the Allied Control Commission and vesting German Property situated outside of Germany.
Records Declassified but not relocated to an unclassified stack area. Please consult with the staff in the consultation area in Room 2600 about the location of these records.
Accession 56-69A4707 processing
International Statistics Division General Records 1944-1959
Alphabetical Subject File
Boxes 43-48
| Box # | File Title |
|---|---|
| 43 | Allied Commission on Reparations Alien Property Custodian |
| 45 | Foreign Exchange Controls Foreign Funds Control, General Foreign Funds Control, Miscellaneous Blocked Assets Foreign Funds Control, Regulations |
| 47 | Gold and Foreign Exchange Reserves-Tripartite Commission Looted Gold-Countries Looted Gold-Miscellaneous |
| 48 | Safehaven Deposits in America |
Country Files
Germany 1931-1952
Boxes 73-86
| Box # | File Title |
| 73 | Banks and Banking - Volumes I and II |
| 74 | Bretton Woods Cartels(including Trademarks and Patents) Claims Against - Position Papers Claims Against - Working Group Documents |
| 75 | Claims - Intergovernmental Study Group- Volumes I and II Communications (including Censorship) Currency, General - Volumes I and II Currency - Counterfeit and Captured |
| 76 | Decartelization, General Decartelization-Investigation of Bosch Company |
| 78 | Economic and Financial, General - Volumes I and II External Assets Farben: 1. Camouflage of External Assets 2. General Aniline and Film American I.G. 3. Hearings and Exhibits to Testimony 4. History of Military Control |
| 79 | 5. I.G. Chemie 6. Interrogations and Investigations 7. Miscellaneous Materials 8. Reports 9. Standard Oil Case (Note 15) 10. War Crimes (Basic Information and Exhibit List) 11. War Crimes - Investigating Team Materials Financial Arrangements |
| 80 | Foreign Exchange Control Foreign Funds Control (including SOFINA) Gold: 1. Currency and Loot Recoveries (Discover and Accounting) 2. Currency and Loot Recoveries (Non-RBK Caches "Closed" Depots) 3. Currency and Loot Recoveries (Problem of Disposition) 4. Looted Holdings and Transfers 5. Prussian Mint Records Concerning Smeltings 6. Records Found and Research Thereon 7. Recovered (Origin and Claims by Countries) |
| 81 | Insurance Interrogations, Miscellaneous Interrogations - Testimony of Emil Puhl |
| 82 | Looted Property, General Looted Property - Inter-Allied Declaration Military Government: 1. General Information 2. Investigations 3. Program (Including Allied Control Council) 4. Reports 5. Termination Programs 6. Treasury Participation |
| 83 | Policy: 1. Morgenthau Plan |
| 84 | 2. Suggestions of Other Agencies 3. Policy Toward, General - Volumes I and II 4. Policy Toward and Negotiations (U.S.) Property Control Reparations - Volumes I and II Restitution |
| 85 | Safehaven Securities (including Dollar Bonds) |
| 86 | Treasury Studies: 1. Considerations on the Reorganization of the Germany Currency, Public Debt, Banking and the Budget 2. Corporations and Other Forms of Business Organizations in Nazi Germany (Concentration of Capital and Other Developments) 3. Economic Position of Germany 4. German Government Finance 5. How Defeated Germany Rose to Power Vesting War Crimes (including Nazi Underground Activities) |
Records of the Under Secretary
Country Records
Box 107 - Switzerland
Gold Records Box 108
Monetary and Stabilization Fund Records, General 1934-1952 Boxes 122-123
