Record Groups 103 - 188
- Introduction
- Alphabetical List of Record Groups
- Numerical List of Record Groups
- Subject Index (A through Z)
- Record Groups 4 through 48
- Record Groups 52 through 96
- Record Groups 103 through 188
- Record Groups 202 through 293
- Record Groups 304 through Donated Materials
Record Group 103
Records of the Farm Credit Administration
The Farm Credit Administration (FCA) was established March 27, 1933, as an independent agency to consolidate the functions of various Federal agencies concerned with agricultural credit. It established production credit corporations and created banks for cooperatives as a source of credit for farmers. From 1939 to 1953, the FCA was part of the Department of Agriculture but again became an independent agency thereafter. The Administration supervises and coordinates the activities of the Farm Credit System, a cooperative association of Federal land banks, intermediate credit banks, and other institutions financing farmers, ranchers, rural homeowners, owners of farm-related businesses, commercial fishermen, and of banks for cooperatives making loans of all kinds to agricultural and marine cooperatives. The System was created to provide dependable and adequate credit in response to the Great Depression and farm crisis of the 1930's. See RG 96 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1934-49
Volume: 33 cubic feet
Records of the Surplus Property Division, Federal Farm Mortgage Corporation, 1936-49. The records relate to disposal of tracts of agricultural and forest land in the New England States under the Surplus Property Act of 1944. (Federal land banks functioned as agents for the Farm Credit Administration in these proceedings.) The tracts sold were often located on military installations (such as radio range stations and training camps). Included are appraisal reports, correspondence, lists of the legal descriptions of tracts and the names of their former owners, and title opinions.
Records of the Aroostook Production Credit Association, 1934-42. The records document loans to potato farmers in Aroostook County, Maine, and consist of case files including correspondence, credit analyses, foreclosure and bankruptcy data, loan agreements, and property inspection reports.
Finding Aids
Daniel T. Goggin, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of
the Farm Credit Administration, NC 28 (1963).
Restrictions
Access to some loan case files may be restricted because of personal
privacy concerns.
Record Group 111
Records of the Office of the Chief Signal Officer
Administrative History
The Signal Corps, administered by the Chief Signal Officer, was provisionally
established by War Department General Order 73 of March 24, 1863.
Records Description
Dates: 1942-45
Volume: less than 1 cubic foot
Records of the Boston Signal Depot. The records document office procedures and organization, and the procurement, storage and issuance of signal supplies and equipment. The records are general correspondence.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Record Group 112
Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army)
Administrative History
The Office of the Surgeon General was established by an act of April
14, 1818. The office is the headquarters of the Army Medical Department,
whose mission is to maintain the health of the Army and conserve its fighting
strength. Components of the Office include the Medical Corps, Dental Corps,
Veterinary Corps, Medical Service Corps, Army Nurse Corps, and Army Medical
Specialist Corps.
Records Description
Dates: 1950-62
Volume: 1 cubic foot
Records of the U.S. Army Hospital, Fort Devens, Massachusetts, and Murphy Army Hospital, Waltham, Massachusetts. The records document hospital administration and operation and consist of general orders, organizational planning files, and reports.
Finding Aids
List of folder titles.
Record Group 114
Records of the Natural Resources Conservation Service
Administrative History
The Soil Conservation Service was established in the Department of
Agriculture (USDA) in 1935, replacing the Soil Erosion Service which had
been established in 1933, and acquiring duties from other Government agencies.
In 1937, it began to provide technical and other assistance to farmers
in soil conservation districts organized under State laws. In 1938, the
SCS was given responsibility for farm forestry programs; in 1944, it was
given responsibility for assisting in water conservation programs; and
in 1952, it was authorized to assume the soil survey previously run by
other USDA units. The SCS conducted soil and snow surveys, river basin surveys,
investigations, and watershed and flood control activities; assisted local groups in planning
and developing land and water resources; and provided technical help to landowners
and operators participating in USDA's agricultural conservation, cropland
conversion, and cropland adjustment programs.
In 1935, regional offices had been established to supervise conservation work in large geographic areas, and in 1938-39 area offices were created to assist the regional offices. State offices replaced area offices in 1942. Regional offices were discontinued in 1954, and the SCS then relied on State offices to give technical and administrative supervision to local units.
The Soil Conservation Service was abolished pursuant to a 1994 act that reorganized the Department of Agriculture. Its functions were acquired by the newly established Natural Resources Conservation Service, whose mission--performed through a system of regional offices--is to provide technical and financial assistance to land users and government units with the aim of sustaining agricultural activities and protecting natural resources. See RG 48, RG 57, RG 77, RG 90, RG 145, RG 382, and RG 414 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1940-67
Volume: 2 cubic feet
Records of the Northeastern Resources Committee, River Basins Division, 1957-67. The committee consisted of representatives of the New England State governors and several Federal agencies. Its work was a pioneering effort at Federal-State-local-private coordination in the conservation, development, and use of water and related land resources in New England. There is some documentation of the closely related Inter-Agency Committee on Water Resources (IACWR), an all-Federal organization. The records consist of general correspondence, minutes of meetings, and various annual, quarterly, and periodic reports.
Records of the Civilian Conservation Corps camp, Poultney, Vermont, 1940-42. The records document camp activities, and include correspondence, memorandums, minutes, reports, and schedules of classes.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Entry 170 in Guy A. Lee and Freeland F. Penney, comps., Preliminary
Checklist of the Records of the Soil Conservation Service, 1928-1943,
PC 52 (1947).
Record Group 118
Records of U.S. Attorneys
Administrative History
The Judiciary Act of September 24, 1789, made provision for U.S. attorneys
and marshals who are appointed by the President and have functioned under
the general supervision of the Department of Justice since its creation
in 1870.
U.S. attorneys investigate violations of Federal criminal laws, present evidence to grand juries, prosecute Federal criminal cases, and serve as the Federal Government's attorney in civil litigation in which the United States is involved or has an interest. U.S. marshals execute and serve writs, processes, and orders issued by U.S. courts, U.S. commissioners or magistrates, and commissions. They also notify the Department of Justice of defiance of Federal authority. See RG 21 and RG 276 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1866-1976
Volume: 106 cubic feet
- Connecticut, 1947-60;
- Maine, 1866-1945;
- Massachusetts, 1928-76;
- New Hampshire, 1903-66;
- Rhode Island, 1943-65;
- Vermont, 1909-67.
Nontextual records include photographs and other exhibit material.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Related Microfilm Publications
M699, Letters Sent by the Department of Justice: General
and Miscellaneous, 1818-1904;
M700, Letters Sent by the Department
of Justice Concerning Judiciary Expenses, 1849-1884.
Restrictions
Access to some investigative case files may be restricted because of
law enforcement needs or personal privacy concerns.
Record Group 119
Records of National Youth Administration
Administrative History
The National Youth Administration (NYA) was established within the
Works Progress (later Work Projects) Administration by an Executive order
of June 26, 1935. In 1939, it was transferred to the new Federal Security
Agency, and in 1942 was moved to the War Manpower Administration. By the
end of 1944, it had been liquidated under authority of an act of July 12,
1943.
The NYA conducted two major employment-training programs for needy young people between the ages of 16 and 24. The agency was headed by an administrator, who determined basic policies with the assistance of an advisory committee appointed by the President. Operations in the field were directed by a network of regional, State, and area offices, assisted at each level by advisory committees. See RG 69 and RG 211 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1935-43
Volume: 6 cubic feet
Records of the Massachusetts State office and the Boston regional office. The records relate to project work and the vocational training program, facilities and supplies, meetings and conferences, pay and personnel matters, and Boston regional director Gerald Barnes. Included are correspondence, publications and publicity materials, press clippings, and reports. Nontextual records include photographs.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Entry 331 in Virgil E. Baugh, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the
Records of the National Youth Administration, NC 35 (1963).
Record Group 121
Records of the Public Buildings Service
Administrative History
Federal construction activities outside the District of Columbia were
performed by individual agencies and, to some extent, by special commissions
and officers appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury until 1853, when
a Construction Branch was created in the Department of the Treasury. The
Branch later became the Bureau of Construction in the Office of the Supervising
Architect, and that office, in turn, was transferred in 1933 to the Public
Buildings Branch of the Procurement Division. The Public Buildings Administration
was created in the Federal Works Agency in 1939 by consolidating the Public
Buildings Branch and the National Park Service's Branch of Buildings Management.
The latter branch had inherited responsibilities for Federal construction
in the District of Columbia from the Office of Public Buildings and Public
Parks of the National Capitol.
An act of June 30, 1949, abolished the Public Buildings Administration and transferred its functions to the newly established General Services Administration (GSA). The Public Buildings Service was established December 11, 1949, by the Administrator of General Services to assume the functions once assigned to the Public Buildings Administration.
The Public Buildings Service designs, constructs, manages, maintains, and protects most Federally-owned and -leased buildings. It is also responsible for the acquisition, utilization, and custody of GSA real and related personal property. See RG 181, RG 269, RG 270, and RG 291 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1932-78
Volume: 70 cubic feet
Records of the Office of the Director of Regional Financial Management,
1943-76. The records are real property case files which document the
disposal, through sale or donation, of Federal property in New England
such as airfields, forts and other former military installations, hospitals, lighthouses,
post offices, and other lands and buildings to State and local governments
or private individuals. Included are correspondence, deeds, historical
narratives, and reports of survey and title searches.
Nontextual records
include occasional maps and photographs.
Records of the Operational Planning Staff, 1950-78. The records
relate to acquisition and management of urban renewal sites and government
buildings, including the Government Center, Boston, in New England cities.
They contain socio-economic, historical, and environmental impact data.
The records are construction planning files including appraisal reports,
correspondence, and title documents.
Nontextual records include
a few maps and photographs.
Records of the Boston Regional Office, 1932-46. The records relate to Boston coastal and harbor defenses, primarily at Gallop's Island and Fort Ruckman. They are nontextual records, including blueprints, drawings, and tracings.
Records of the Design and Construction Branch, 1950-67. The records relate to significant Federal buildings in New England, such as the Customs House, Providence, Rhode Island; the John F. Kennedy Federal Building, Boston, Massachusetts; and the Arsenal, Watertown, Massachusetts. The records also document border patrol stations, courthouses, customs houses, post offices, and parking facilities. They are nontextual records including architectural drawings and blueprints.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory including a list of sites.
Record Group 127
Records of the U.S. Marine Corps
Administrative History
The U.S. Marine Corps was created by an act of July 11, 1798, which
authorized the Commandant of the Corps to appoint an adjutant, a paymaster,
and a quartermaster. Around those three staff officers and the Commandant
the branches of Marine Corps Headquarters developed. Although the Corps
was at first subject to both Army and Navy regulations, an act of June
30, 1834, placed it under exclusive Department of the Navy control, except
for units detached by Presidential order for Army service. A staff system
in the Headquarters organization was begun in 1918 when the first of many
sections and divisions was created in the Office of the Commandant. When
Headquarters was reorganized along General Staff lines in 1952, the Division
of Plans and Policies was abolished and its sections, G-1 through G-4,
were elevated to divisional status under assistant chiefs of staff.
The Commandant of the Marine Corps is directly responsible to the Secretary of the Navy for all administrative and operational matters affecting the Corps. These include providing amphibious forces for service with the fleet in seizing and defending advanced naval bases, and conducting land operations essential to a naval campaign. Other duties include providing detachments to serve on naval ships and to protect property of naval activities. See RG 181 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1828-1938
Volume: 75 cubic feet
- Boston, Massachusetts, 1828-1938;
- New London, Connecticut, 1910-11;
- Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 1824-26, 1896-1908.
Finding Aids
Entries 97-102, 104, and 115 in Fred G. Halley, comp., Preliminary
Checklist of the Records of the U.S. Marine Corps, 1798-1944, PC 50
(1946).
Record Group 136
Records of the Agricultural Marketing Service
Administrative History
The Agricultural Marketing Service was established in the Department
of Agriculture in 1939 to consolidate agricultural marketing and related
activities such as collecting and interpreting agricultural statistics,
performing market inspection and grading services, and establishing official
grade standards for many farm products. Its predecessors included the Bureau
of Agricultural Economics. The Service was discontinued in 1942 and its
functions performed by other agencies. A new Agricultural Marketing Service
was established in 1953 and was renamed the Consumer and Marketing Service
between 1965 and 1972.
Records Description
Dates: 1934-40
Volume: less than 1 cubic foot
Records of the Boston Office, Licensing and Enforcement Section, Agricultural Adjustment Administration. The records document accounting and auditing activities, and include correspondence and reports.
Finding Aids
Entry 48 in Virgil E. Baugh, Preliminary Inventory of the Records
of the Agricultural Marketing Service, NC 118 (1965).
Record Group 145
Records of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service
Administrative History
The Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) had its beginnings in the
Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA) established in the Department of Agriculture
under the Adjustment Act of May 12, 1933. After numerous changes by statute and
reorganizations by the Department of Agriculture, the ASCS was established on June 5,
1961.
The ASCS is the agency that administers commodity and related land use programs designed for voluntary production adjustment, resource protection, and price, market, and farm income stabilization.
Records Description
Dates: 1936-82
Volume: 3 cubic feet
Records of the Vermont State Office pertaining to Federal cost-sharing with farmers in a number of closely-related programs (e.g. Agricultural Conservation, Forestry Incentive, and Rural Environmental Assistance) to increase food production and make better use of soil, forage, water, and woodland resources. They are State and county handbooks.
Records of county agents, Newport County, Rhode Island, pertaining to work of the county agricultural agent, home demonstration agent, and 4-H Club agent. These agents were cooperative Federal employees whose mission was to teach and demonstrate sound practices in agriculture and home economics, and foster the general improvement and development of rural living. Records include correspondence, reports, transcripts of radio broadcasts, and a few news articles and press releases.
Record Group 147
Records of the Selective Service System
Administrative History
An Executive order of September 23, 1940, established the Selective
Service System to provide an orderly, just, and democratic method of obtaining
men for military and naval service. Except between December 5, 1942, and
December 5, 1943, when it was placed under the jurisdiction of the War
Manpower Commission, the System was responsible to the President.
The System operated through a director and national headquarters, regional boards, State headquarters, medical and registrant advisory boards, boards of appeal, and local boards. There was a local board for each county, and one for each unit of 30,000 people in urban areas. Through the local boards the System registered, classified, and selected for induction male citizens and aliens subject to service.
Records Description
Dates: 1940-47
Volume: 80 cubic feet
- DSS Form 1, "Registration Card," for individuals born in Connecticut, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont, between April 28, 1877, and February 16, 1897 ("Fourth Registration");
- DSS Form 301, "Application by Alien for Relief from Military Service" for all New England States except Massachusetts;
- DSS Form 304, "Alien's Personal History and Statement" for all New England States except Massachusetts.
Records of the Massachusetts State Headquarters, Boston, and Local Board #104, Turners Falls, Massachusetts. The records document board activities and include bulletins, circulars, and minute books.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Entry 61 in Richard G. Wood, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the
Records of the Selective Service System, 1940-1947, PI 27 (1951).
Record Group 155
Records of the Wage and Hour Division
Administrative History
The Public Contracts Division was created to administer the Walsh-Healey
Public Contracts Act of June 30, 1936, which required Government supply
contracts exceeding $10,000 to stipulate minimum wage, overtime pay, safety,
and health standards. The Wage and Hour Division was established in the
Department of Labor to administer the minimum wage, overtime compensation,
equal pay, and child labor standards provisions of the Fair Labor Standards
Act of June 25, 1938. The two divisions were consolidated in 1942, and
their area of responsibility was expanded by subsequent legislation. For
related records covering the World War II period, see RG 202.
Records Description
Dates: 1939-62
Volume: 154 cubic feet
Records of the Boston regional office. The records relate to investigations of business establishments to determine their compliance with wage-hour and public contract laws, and Federal enforcement of fair labor standards laws. They are samples of closed investigative and inspection case files, which include correspondence, exhibits such as payroll and accounting records, reports, transcripts of interviews with claimants, wage computation sheets, wage report summaries, and related data.
Finding Aids
List of investigative case files.
Entry 2 in Herbert J. Howitz, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the
Records of the Wage and Hour and Public Contracts Divisions, NC 77
(1964).
Record Group 156
Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance
Administrative History
The Ordnance Department was established as an independent bureau of
the War Department by an act of May 14, 1812. It was responsible for the
procurement and distribution of ordnance and equipment, the maintenance
and repair of equipment, and the development and testing of new types of
ordnance. The Department was abolished in 1962, and its functions were
transferred to the U.S. Army Materiel Command.
Among the field establishments maintained by the Ordnance Department within the United States have been armories, arsenals, and ordnance depots, district offices, and plants. See RG 338 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1794-1962
Volume: 456 cubic feet
- Boston Ordnance District, Massachusetts, 1918-20, 1936-52;
- Bridgeport Ordnance District, Connecticut, 1918-19; 1929-32 ;
- Champlain Arsenal, Vermont, 1828-65;
- Kennebec Arsenal, Maine, 1831-1901;
- Scituate Proving Ground, Massachusetts, 1918-21;
- Springfield Armory, Massachusetts, 1794-1952;
- Springfield Ordnance District, Massachusetts, 1947-50;
- Watertown Arsenal, Massachusetts, 1820-1962;
- other ordnance plants and foundries, 1882-1944.
Nontextual records include photographs, architectural drawings, and a few site maps. Finding Aids
- Draft inventory.
- Entries 1185-1187, 1300-1321, 1350-1414, 1544, 1546, 1547, 1620-1624, 1654, 1659-1664,1668- 1670, and 1688 in Evelyn Wade and Garry D. Ryan, comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Textual Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance. Part II: Records of Ordnance Field Installations, NM 59 (1965).
Record Group 163
Records of the Selective Service System (World War I)
Administrative History
The Selective Service System, under the direction of the Office of
the Provost Marshal General, was authorized by an act of May 18, 1917,
to register and induct men into military service. Much of the management
of the draft was left to the States, where local draft boards were established
on the basis of 1 for every 30,000 people. These boards, appointed by the
President on the recommendation of the State Governor, registered, classified,
inducted, and delivered to mobilization camps men who were eligible for
the draft. Legal and medical advisory boards assisted the local boards
and registrants, and district boards were established to pass on occupational
exemption claims and to hear appeals. The Office of the Provost Marshal
General worked with local and district boards through Selective Service
State Headquarters. Classification ceased shortly after the armistice in
1918, and by May 31, 1919, all Selective Service organizations were closed
except the Office of the Provost Marshal General, which was abolished July
15, 1919.
Records Description
Dates: 1917-19
Volume: 85 cubic feet
Records of primarily local but some district boards relating to inductees, deserters, and delinquents, including appeals of New England district board decisions on agricultural and industrial exemptions. The records are correspondence, indexes, and lists.
Finding Aids
Draft inventory.
Related Microfilm Publications
M1509, World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration
Cards, 1917-1918 (New England States only).
Record Group 165
Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs
Administrative History
A War Department General Staff was authorized by Congress on February
14, 1903, to include a Chief of Staff, a General Council, and three divisions,
which, after frequent reorganizations, developed into the Personnel Division
(G-1), the Military Intelligence Division (G-2), the Organization and Training
Division (G-3), the Supply Division (G-4), and the War Plans Division (Operations
Division after 1942). The General Staff was a separate and distinct staff
organization with supervision over most military branches, both line and
staff. Its duties were to prepare plans for national defense and mobilization
of military forces in time of war, to investigate and report on questions
affecting Army efficiency and preparedness, and to give professional aid
to the Secretary of War, general officers, and other superior commanders.
Under provisions of the National Security Act of 1947, the War Department became the Department of the Army within the newly created National Military Establishment, which was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949. See RG 38 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1918-19
Volume: 12 cubic feet
Records of the Boston and New Haven district offices of the Plant
Protection Section, Military Intelligence Division. The records document
the work of the Military Department of the Northeast, which, along with
other police and intelligence agencies, inspected plants and warehouses
of companies producing goods for the war effort. There is documentation
of alleged seditious behavior or pro-German sentiment among employees;
anarchists; the International Workers of the World union; Bolshevik activity;
and strikes and labor unrest. Also included are descriptions of the company's buildings
and the goods and services it provided, and lists of employees and officials. The
records are primarily correspondence.
Nontextual records include
blueprints and plans.
Finding Aids
Entries 118-121 in Harry W. John and Olive K. Liebman, comps., Preliminary
Inventory of the Textual Records of the War Department General and Special
Staffs, NM 84 (1967).
Record Group 181
Records of Naval Districts and Shore Establishments
Administrative History
Soon after its establishment in 1798, the Department of the Navy created
navy yards and other fleet service shore establishments. A system of naval
districts for the United States, its territories, and possessions was not
formally established, however, until 1903. This system was supervised by
the Bureau of Navigation until 1915 when it became the responsibility of
the Chief of Naval Operations. By the end of World War II, the districts
exercised almost complete military and administrative control over naval
operations within their limits, including naval shipyards, stations, training
stations, air installations, and advance bases. See RG 24, RG 71, and RG
127 for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1811-1974
Volume: 2123 cubic feet
- Connecticut:
- U.S. Naval District Base, New London, 1917-19;
- U.S. Navy Submarine Base, New London, 1940-52; 1956-61;
- Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Construction, and Repair, Groton, 1958-68;
- Maine:
- Brunswick Naval Air Station, 1942-53;
- Massachusetts:
- Commandant and Assistant Chief of Staff, 1st Naval District, Boston, 1903-61;
- Industrial Manager, 1st Naval District, Boston, 1951-65;
- Public Works Officer, 1st Naval District, Boston, 1939-65;
- Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion, and Repair, 1st Naval District, Boston, 1966-68;
- Port Director, Boston, 1940-47;
- Commander, Boston Navy Yard, 1815-1968;
- South Weymouth Naval Air Station, 1944-53;
- Squantum (Boston) Naval Reserve Aviation Base, 1930-43;
- New Hampshire:
- Commander, Portsmouth Naval Base, 1893-1966;
- Commander, Portsmouth Navy Yard, 1815-1966;
- U.S. Naval Prison, Portsmouth, 1908-40, 1961-74;
- Rhode Island:
-
U.S. Naval Base, Newport, 1956, 1966-72;
- U.S. Naval Training Station, Newport, 1894-1952;
- Naval Air Rework Facility, Quonset Point, 1941-73;
- Miscellaneous naval activities in New England, 1941-68.
Nontextual records include drawings of ships, buildings, and materials at the Boston Navy Yard, 1856-92, and photographs of naval facilities in New England, 1939-70.
Finding Aids
- Draft inventory.
- Records of Naval Districts and Shore Establishments in the Regional Archives Part of Record Group 181, SL 58 (1991).
- Richard G. Wood, comp., Preliminary Checklist of the Records of the Boston Navy Yard, 1811-1942, PC 40 (1946).
- Entries 1-9, 60-132, 459-498, 716-718, and 796 in Harry Schwartz and Lee Saegesser, comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Textual Records of Naval Districts and Shore Establishments, NM 72 (1966).
Related Microfilm Publications
M89, Letters Received by the Secretary of the Navy From Commanding
Officers of Squadrons, 1841-1886;
M118, History of the Boston
Navy Yard, 1797-1874, by Commodore George H. Preble, U.S.N., 1875;
T1017, Historical Records of the Newport Naval Training Station,
Rhode Island, 1883-1948;
T1023, Plans of Buildings and Machinery
Erected in the Navy Yard, Boston, 1830-1840.
Restrictions
Access to some files or portions of documents may be restricted because
of national security classification.
Record Group 187
Records of the National Resources Planning Board
Administrative History
The National Resources Planning Board (NRPB) was established in the
Executive Office of the President by Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1939.
It inherited the functions of the National Planning Board of the Federal
Emergency Administration of Public Works (created July 20, 1933) and its
various successors. The NRPB and its predecessors planned public works,
coordinated Federal planning relating to conservation and efficient use
of national resources, and encouraged local, State, and regional planning.
The NRPB was abolished by an act of June 26, 1943.
Records Description
Dates: 1934-43
Volume: 103 cubic feet
Records of Victor M. Cutter, chairman of the New England Regional
Planning Commission. The records document projects financed through the
Work Projects Administration and its predecessors. Included are administrative
and general correspondence, administrative reference material, reports,
and statistical and census data.
Nontextual records include graphs
and maps.
- Draft inventory.
- Entries 1, 2, and 6-9 in Virgil E. Baugh, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Regional Offices of the National Resources Planning Board, PI 64 (1954).
Record Group 188
Records of the Office of Price Administration
Administrative History
The Office of Price Administration (OPA) originated in the Price Stabilization
and Consumer Protection Divisions of the Advisory Commission to the Council
of National Defense on May 29, 1940, and in their successor, the Office
of Price Administration and Civilian Supply, created in April 1941 and
redesignated the Office of Price Administration by an Executive order of
August 28, 1941. The OPA was given statutory recognition as an independent
agency by the Emergency Price Control Act of January 30, 1942. Under this
legislation the OPA attempted to stabilize prices and rents by establishing
maximum prices for commodities (other than agricultural products which
were under the control of the Secretary of Agriculture) and rents in defense
areas. It also rationed scarce essential commodities and authorized subsidies
for the production of some goods. Most of the price and rationing controls
were lifted between August 1945 and November 1946. See RG 245 and RG 253
for related records.
Records Description
Dates: 1941-47
Volume: 210 cubic feet
Records of the Administrator, Region 1; Information Office; Enforcement Division; Rationing Division; Price Division; Accounting Division; and selected local war price and rationing boards.The records relate to investigations of companies (case files), price levels, and rationing, and provide insight into the scope of OPA's activities and their impact on local life. Included are case files, correspondence, investigative and survey reports, price charts, and publicity materials.
Finding Aids- Entries 294-312 in Meyer H. Fishbein and Elaine C. Bennett, comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Accounting Department of the Office of Price Administration, PI 32 (1951).
- Entries 987-1006, and 1349 in Fishbein, Walter Weinstein, and Albert W. Winthrop, comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Price Department of the Office of Price Administration, PI 95 (1956).
- Entries 193-201, and 351 in Fishbein, et al., comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Rationing Department of the Office of Price Administration, PI 102 (1958).
- Entries 137-143 in Betty R. Bucher, comp., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Information Department of the Office of Price Administration, PI 119 (1959).
- Entries 202-215 in Fishbein and Bucher, comps., Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Office of Price Administration, PI 120 (1959).
M164, Studies and Reports of the Office of Price Administration, 1941-1946.