David E(lliott) Bell (#25)

An Inventory of His Personal Papers
1947-1981
In the John F. Kennedy Library
National Archives and Records Administration

Administrative Information
Biographical Note
Collection Overview
List of Series
Series Description


Administrative Information

Abstract
Papers 1947-1981
Economist, educator, government official. Administrative Assistant to President Truman (1949-53); Director, Bureau of the Budget (1961-62); Administrator, Agency for International Development (1963-66); vice president, executive vice president, Ford Foundation (1966-81). Correspondence, memorandums, reports, background material, speeches, writings; includes material on the Truman-MacArthur relationship.

Access
Open.

Usage Restrictions
According to the deed of gift signed March 1981, copyright of these materials has been retained by the donor for his lifetime. Documents in this collection that were prepared by officials of the United States as part of their official duties are in the public domain. Users of these materials are advised to determine the copyright status of any document from which they wish to publish.

Copyright
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excesses of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law. The copyright law extends its protection to unpublished works from the moment of creation in a tangible form. Direct your questions concerning copyright to the reference staff.

Provenance
Received from David E. Bell of New York, NY, in August 1981 (Acc. 1981-086).

Extent
About 50,000 pages (25 linear feet, 9 linear inches ; 29.75 cubic feet)

Classified/Withdrawn Items
30 items withdrawn
Selected folders may contain withdrawal sheets where documents containing national security classified information were removed from this collection.  Selected folders may contain withdrawal sheets where documents, in accordance with the donor's deed of gift, were removed from the collection. These include documents which may be used to injure or harass any living person.  All withdrawn documents have been placed under seal and upon request the Kennedy Library will review any material which has been closed for a period of not less than 2 years for the purpose of opening items which no longer require restrictions. Researchers should consult the reference staff to obtain the appropriate form(s).

Date Opened
December 1981

Processed by
William Mulcahy under the direction of Jo August Hill

Encoded by
James M. Roth

Related Collections
David E. Bell, Oral History Interviews, John F. Kennedy Library

The Personal Papers of David E(lliott) Bell (1919-2000)

Biographical Note
David Elliott Bell was born in Jamestown, North Dakota, on January 20, 1919. He received his B.A. from Pomona College, California, in 1939. Bell went on to Harvard University, where he received an M.A. in Economics (1941). In 1942, he became a staff member at the Bureau of the Budget. During World War II (1942-1945), Bell served in the United States Marine Corps. Bell married Mary Louise Barry on November 17, 1943. They had two children: Susan and Peter. From 1947 to 1951, Bell alternated between a position on the staff at the Bureau of the Budget, and a position as a special assistant to President Truman. In 1951, Bell became Administrative Executive to the President. In these capacities Bell helped in the formulation and evaluation of the administration's economic policies and programs. Bell also worked as a speech writer for President Truman. In 1952, Bell left Washington temporarily to join the campaign staff of the Democratic nominee for president, Adlai Stevenson. Bell served Stevenson as a speech writer and as the nominee's White House liaison. With the end of the Truman administration in January 1953, Bell returned to private life. At the end of 1960, President-elect Kennedy asked Bell to become the Director of the Bureau of the Budget. Bell accepted, and was immediately put to work during the Eisenhower/Kennedy transition helping to formulate the new administration's economic policy. Some of Bell's other tasks were to map out legislative proposals and strategy, and to review the proposals made by other government agencies. At the end of 1962, President Kennedy asked Bell to become the new Administrator for the Agency for International Development. In this post Bell worked at developing foreign aid programs and legislation and appealing for funds and fighting budget cutbacks. Bell left the government in the summer of 1966, and became Executive Vice President of the Ford Foundation, a private institution interested in aiding underdeveloped nations. During his time at the Ford Foundation, Mr. Bell was a member of a large number of advisory committees dealing with foreign aid and government reorganization. Mr. Bell died in 2000.

Collection Overview
The personal papers of David E.   Bell span the years 1947-1980. The papers cover his career in government service and his career as Executive Vice President of the Ford Foundation. The papers have been arranged along career lines, and they have been arranged into three series: Series 1. The Truman Years, 1947 -1953; Series 2. The Kennedy/Johnson Years, 1960 -1966; and Series 3. The Ford Foundation Years, 1966 -1980. Series 1. The Truman Years, contains material created by Bell while serving first as a staff member at the Bureau of the Budget, then as a special assistant to the President, and finally as Administrative Executive to the President. Also included in this series are Bell's papers as a staff writer for Adlai Stevenson. In addition, material on the Truman/MacArthur relationship can be found within this series. Series 2. The Kennedy Johnson Years, is arranged into three subseries: 2.1. Transition; 2.2. Bureau of the Budget; and 2.3. Agency for International Development. Series 2.1. Transition contains material on the Eisenhower/Kennedy transition and papers relating to the work of Richard Neustadt and Clark Clifford. Series 2.2. Bureau of the Budget contains material relating to the creation of federal budgets, the l96l State of the Union Address and Economic Messages. Series 2.3. Agency for International Development contains material relating to the creation of foreign aid legislation and programs, and materials relating to the internal structure of A.I.D. Series 3. Ford Foundation Years, is arranged into seven subseries: 3.1. Conferences; 3.2. Foreign Aid Advisory Committees; 3.3. National Academy of Public Administration Panels; 3.4. Presidential Committees, Commissions and Task Forces; 3.5. Science and Technology Committees; 3.6. United Nations Association of the United States of America; and 3.7. United Nations Capacity Study. Additional information on David E. Bell may be found by reading the two oral histories that he did for the Kennedy Library. The transcripts of these oral histories are on file in the research room of the Kennedy Library.

List of Series

Series Description

Series 1. Truman Years, 1947 -1953.
Boxes 1 -13.
About 5200 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical by subject, thereunder chronological within subject.

These files were created by Bell while serving first as a staff member at the Bureau of the Budget, then as a special assistant to the President, and finally as Administrative Executive to the President. Included in these files are correspondence, background materials, contemporary newspaper clippings, government publications, and White House press releases. Also included in this series are materials (speeches, notes and correspondence) relating to Bell's work as a member of Adlai Stevenson's campaign staff in 1952. Material on the Truman/MacArthur relationship can be found in the Chronological Files, the Log Book of President Truman's trip to Wake Island, and in the folder entitled "MacArthur Documents, 1951."

Series 2. Kennedy/Johnson Years, 1960 –1966.
20 boxes: 14 -33.

Series 2.1. Transition, 1960 -1961.
About 75 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

This subseries contains memos and papers of Richard E. Neustadt, a report on the transition by Clark Clifford, and notes and materials relating to Bell's transition work.

Series 2.2. Bureau of The Budget, 1961 -1962.
About 2,000 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

This series contains material relating to the creation of federal budgets, including articles and interviews, speeches, testimony, correspondence, and notes on the preparation of the l96l State of the Union and Economic messages.

Series 2.3. Agency For International Development, 1963 -1966.
About 4,000 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical by subject, thereunder chronlogical.

The first part of this subseries is made up of materials relating to the creation of foreign aid legislation and programs, and materials relating to the internal structure of A.I.D. These materials are arranged alphabetically by subject matter. The material in the second part of this subseries has been filed chronologically under the following headings: Speaking Engagements, Congressional Testimony and Printed Hearings, Articles Written by Bell, and Press Releases and Clippings. Researchers should note that in the folders marked Congressional Testimony and Printed Hearings, 1963 -1966, “X” denotes folder, “Y” denotes printed volumes, and “Z” means that both are present in collection. Printed hearings are at the end of this subseries in boxes 29 through 32. Dates are of Mr. Bell's appearances at the hearings.

Series 3. Ford Foundation Years, 1966-1981.
34 -59 26 boxes.

These are materials created or accumulated by Bell while serving as Executive Vice President of the Ford Foundation. The materials have been arranged into seven subseries.  These subseries contain correspondence, reports, notes, memoranda, meeting minutes, and other research materials.

Series 3.1. Conferences.
Box 34.
About 100 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

Series 3.2. Foreign Aid Advisory Committees.
Boxes 35-37.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

Series 3.3. National Academy of Public Administration Panels.
Box 38.
About 200 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

Series 3.4. Presidential Commissions, Committees and Task Forces.
Box 39-54.
About 3,200 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical by subject.

Series 3.5. Science and Technology Committees.
Box 55-57.
About 1,200 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical by subject.

Series 3.6. United Nations Association of the United States of America.
Box 58.
About 300 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical.

Series 3.7. United Nations Capacity Study, 1968-1970.
Box 59.
About 400 items.
Arrangement: alphabetical by heading.