Records of the Office of Defense Transportation [ODT]
(Record Group 219)
1934-52 (bulk 1940-49)
Table of Contents
- 219.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY
- 219.2 RECORDS OF THE ADVISORY COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL OF
NATIONAL DEFENSE
1940-41
19 lin. ft.
- 219.3 RECORDS OF THE OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR
1941-49
212 lin. ft.
- 219.4 RECORDS OF TRANSPORT DEPARTMENTS
1942-49
585 lin. ft.
- 219.4.1 Records of the Highway Transport Department
- 219.4.2 Records of the Railway Transport Department
- 219.4.3 Records of the Waterway Transport Department
- 219.4.4 Records of the Liquid Transport Department
- 219.5 RECORDS OF DIVISIONS
1940-49
162 lin. ft.
- 219.5.1 Records of the Division of Puerto Rican Transport
- 219.5.2 Records of the Information Division
- 219.5.3 Records of the Division of Transport Personnel
- 219.5.4 Records of the Division of Materials and Equipment
- 219.5.5 Records of the Division of Rates
- 219.5.6 Records of the Division of Storage
- 219.5.7 Records of the Manpower and Materials Division
- 219.6 RECORDS OF ODT FIELD OFFICES
1942-46
191 lin. ft.
- 219.6.1 Records of the Office of the General Counsel
- 219.6.2 Records of the Railway Transport Department
- 219.6.3 Records of the Waterway Transport Department
- 219.6.4 Records of the Division of Storage
- 219.6.5 Records of the Liquid Transport Department
- 219.6.6 Records of Federal Managers
- 219.7 RECORDS OF THE MOTOR CARRIER CLAIMS COMMISSION
1946-52
9 lin. ft.
- 219.8 CARTOGRAPHIC RECORDS (GENERAL)
1934-44
7 items
Established: In the Office for Emergency Management by EO 8989, December 18, 1941.
Predecessor Agencies:
Transportation Division, Advisory Commission to the Council of National Defense (1940-41)
Functions: Coordinated and directed the utilization of domestic
transportation facilities during World War II. Alleviated postwar
freight car shortages, operated seized transportation properties,
and handled unsettled claims.
Abolished: Effective July 1, 1949, by EO 10065, July 6, 1949, pursuant to the Second Decontrol Act of 1947, as amended (62 Stat. 342), June 4, 1948.
Successor Agencies: Interstate Commerce Commission as liquidator.
Finding Aids: National Archives and Office of Defense Transportation, comps., "Office of Defense Transportation Records Retirement Program" (Apr. 1945).
Security-Classified Records: This record group may include material that is security-classified.
Related Records: Record copies of publications of the Office of Defense Transportation in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government.
Subject Access Terms: World War II agency.
219.2 RECORDS OF THE ADVISORY COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL OF
NATIONAL DEFENSE
1940-41
History: Council of National Defense established by an act of August 29, 1916 (39 Stat. 649); organized March 3, 1917. Advisory Commission, including an Adviser on Transportation and a Transportation Division, established by Presidential approval, May 29, 1940, of council regulation implementing provisions of the 1916 act calling for advisory body on the national defense program. Transportation Division abolished upon establishment of ODT, 1941. SEE 219.1.
Textual Records: Correspondence, reports, and other records relating to transportation, 1940-41.
219.3 RECORDS OF THE OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR
1941-49
Textual Records: Reading and historical files, 1941-49. Records of the deputy director, 1941-44. Records of the general counsel, 1941-49. Reports and correspondence relating to railroad and trucking companies seized by the government, 1942-45. Subject file of reports, 1942-46.
219.4 RECORDS OF TRANSPORT DEPARTMENTS
1942-49
219.4.1 Records of the Highway Transport Department
Textual Records: Minutes of meetings with government agencies, 1942-44. Correspondence and other records maintained by the Executive Assistant, ca. 1942-45. Correspondence with motor carriers, 1942-45. Reports of equipment needs for various cities; and correspondence on taxicab requirements, 1942-45, of the Division of Equipment and Research.
219.4.2 Records of the Railway Transport Department
Textual Records: Reports, correspondence, and memorandums, 1942- 45. Reports, correspondence, and other records of departmental sections, 1942-49.
219.4.3 Records of the Waterway Transport Department
Textual Records: Reports, memorandums, and correspondence, 1942- 45. Correspondence with water carriers and the War Production Board, 1942-45.
219.4.4 Records of the Liquid Transport Department
Textual Records: Records relating to the transportation of petroleum and petroleum products, 1942-45. Correspondence and related records of the adviser on state barriers, 1942-45. Correspondence of the Pipeline Division with major pipeline companies, 1942-45. Correspondence of the Tank Truck Division, 1942-45.
219.5 RECORDS OF DIVISIONS
1940-49
219.5.1 Records of the Division of Puerto Rican Transport
Textual Records: Correspondence of the ODT Director with the regional director, and reports on the conservation and utilization of Puerto Rican transportation facilities, 1942-45. Executive orders and correspondence about U.S. Government administration and operation of the American Railroad Company of Puerto Rico, 1943-44.
219.5.2 Records of the Information Division
Textual Records: Correspondence, photographs, press releases, and news clippings, 1942-45.
219.5.3 Records of the Division of Transport Personnel
Textual Records: Orders, reports, correspondence, and memorandums, ca. 1942-46.
219.5.4 Records of the Division of Materials and Equipment
Textual Records: Reports, correspondence, and memorandums relating to railroads and other transportation companies, 1942- 49.
219.5.5 Records of the Division of Rates
Textual Records: Correspondence with government agencies and private carriers regarding rate problems and rate legislation before Congress, 1942-45.
219.5.6 Records of the Division of Storage
Textual Records: Correspondence, 1942-45. Correspondence of the Merchandise Warehouse Section, 1940-46.
219.5.7 Records of the Manpower and Materials Division
Textual Records: Subject-numeric general files, statistical reports, and correspondence, ca. 1946-49.
219.6 RECORDS OF ODT FIELD OFFICES
1942-46
219.6.1 Records of the Office of the General Counsel
Textual Records: Case files of the attorneys in Atlanta (in Atlanta), Boston (in Boston), Chicago (in Chicago), Dallas (in Fort Worth), New York (in New York), and San Francisco (in San Francisco), 1944-45.
219.6.2 Records of the Railway Transport Department
Textual Records: Correspondence of the southern (in Atlanta) and western (in Chicago) regional offices, 1942-46.
219.6.3 Records of the Waterway Transport Department
Textual Records: Correspondence of the offices in New Orleans (in Fort Worth), New York (in New York), San Francisco (in San Francisco), and Seattle (in Seattle), 1942-45.
219.6.4 Records of the Division of Storage
Textual Records: General files of field offices in New Orleans (in Fort Worth), New York (in New York), San Francisco (in San Francisco), and Seattle (in Seattle), 1942-45.
219.6.5 Records of the Liquid Transport Department
Textual Records: Records of Tank Car Service Sections in Houston (in Fort Worth), Los Angeles (in Los Angeles), and San Francisco (in San Francisco), 1942-45.
219.6.6 Records of Federal Managers
Textual Records: Records of the Des Moines, Kansas City, and Omaha Operating Sections, 1942-45 (in Kansas City). Carrier files and records of the Minneapolis Operating Section, 1942-45 (in Chicago).
219.7 RECORDS OF THE MOTOR CARRIER CLAIMS COMMISSION
1946-52
History: Established by an act of July 2, 1948 (62 Stat. 1222), to hear and determine existing claims against the United States of certain motor carriers for losses and damages resulting from ODT seizure and control or operation of their properties during the period 1944-45. Terminated December 31, 1952, pursuant to acts of July 11, 1951, and March 14, 1952 (65 Stat. 116 and 66 Stat. 25).
Textual Records: Minutes, 1949-52. Correspondence and administrative subject files, 1949-52. Reading file, 1950-52. Records relating to the legislative history of the commission, 1946-52.
219.8 CARTOGRAPHIC RECORDS (GENERAL)
1934-44
Maps: Plan of railroad terminal at Toledo, OH, 1934 (1 item). Diagrammatic maps showing shipments of bituminous coal on the Great Lakes, 1941 (2 items). Maps and diagrams relating to railroad traffic and flow of pipeline oil in the northeastern United States, ca. 1943 (3 items). Map of the Missouri and Arkansas Railway, 1944 (1 item).
Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States. Compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.
3 volumes, 2428 pages.
This Web version is updated from time to time to include records processed since 1995.
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