Andrew W. Cordier papers, 1918-1975

Summary Information

Abstract

The large collection covers all aspects of Cordier's life. It contains letters, memoranda, reports, cables, printed materials and photographs, mostly pertaining to his tenure at the United Nations and Columbia University.

At a Glance

Call No.:
Ms Coll\Cordier,MS#1589
Bib ID:
4078651 View CLIO record
Creator(s):
Cordier, Andrew W (Andrew Wellington), 1901-1975
Repository:
Rare Book and Manuscript Library
Physical Description:
160 linear feet (202520 items in 347 boxes)
Language(s):
English .
Access:
You will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account.

The following boxes are located off-site: Boxes 1-346. You will need to request this material from the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.

Certain files have been closed by the United Nations, by special order of the Secretary-General.

During March 1991, the status of all materials which had previously been closed to the public was reviewed with respect to the declassification policies outlined in the two attached letters from U.N. Chief Archivist Alf Erlandsson. Under these guidelines, code cables, items captioned "Top Secret" or "Strictly Confidential" and certain personal records remain closed.

In May 2016, The United Nations declassified the entire contents of Boxes 175-184. These materials are now available for research use.

In most cases, materials for which restrictions remain in force have been removed from the regular collection and placed in specially marked boxes at the end of the series. The only exception to this practice involves boxes which contain restricted materials exclusively. These have been sealed with red string and lef in sequence with the rest of the collection.

In the box list, those subject folders from which restricted materials have been removed are marked with an asterisk (*). In addition, dummies have been placed in those folder explaining the nature and quantity of the restricted materials removed. Sealed boxes (containing only restricted materials) are indicated with a number sign (#).

Description

Summary

Correspondence, manuscripts, documents, printed material, and photographs of Cordier. The papers cover three periods of Cordier's life: the early years, especially undergraduate and graduate school, as a professor at Manchester College in Indiana, and as a member of the U.S. State Dept.; the United Nations period, as a member of the Secretariat, and including the files of the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation and working files for the publication of THE PUBLIC PAPERS OF THE SECRETARIES-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS; and the Columbia University period, containing Cordier's personal and working files during the time of his deanship and presidency. Among the prominent correspondents are Dag Hammarskjöld, Trygve Lie, Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., Chester W. Nimitz, Lester B. Pearson, Nelson A. Rockefeller, Carlos P. Romulo, Eleanor Roosevelt, Adlai E. Stevenson, and Harry S. Truman.

Arrangement

The papers are organized in 11 series, with one supplement series. The arrangement and list of the material in Boxes 39-202 is adapted from the work done on the files in Cordier's office.

Using the Collection

Restrictions on Access

You will need to make an appointment in advance to use this collection material in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room. You can schedule an appointment once you've submitted your request through your Special Collections Research Account.

The following boxes are located off-site: Boxes 1-346. You will need to request this material from the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at least three business days in advance to use the collection in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library reading room.

Certain files have been closed by the United Nations, by special order of the Secretary-General.

During March 1991, the status of all materials which had previously been closed to the public was reviewed with respect to the declassification policies outlined in the two attached letters from U.N. Chief Archivist Alf Erlandsson. Under these guidelines, code cables, items captioned "Top Secret" or "Strictly Confidential" and certain personal records remain closed.

In May 2016, The United Nations declassified the entire contents of Boxes 175-184. These materials are now available for research use.

In most cases, materials for which restrictions remain in force have been removed from the regular collection and placed in specially marked boxes at the end of the series. The only exception to this practice involves boxes which contain restricted materials exclusively. These have been sealed with red string and lef in sequence with the rest of the collection.

In the box list, those subject folders from which restricted materials have been removed are marked with an asterisk (*). In addition, dummies have been placed in those folder explaining the nature and quantity of the restricted materials removed. Sealed boxes (containing only restricted materials) are indicated with a number sign (#).

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.

Preferred Citation

Andrew Wellington Cordier Papers. Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Columbia University.

Related Archival Materials

For the records of the Office of the Columbia University President, see Central Files (UA#0001). In addition, see also the Andrew Cordier Papers at the Columbia University Archives (UA#0145); the University Protest and Activism Collection (UA#0007) and the Joint Committee on Disciplinary Affairs Records (UA#0006).

Accruals

Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. Contact rbml@columbia.edu for more information.

Ownership and Custodial History

Gift of Andrew W. Cordier, 1975, 1979& 1980; transferred from the Lehman Library, 1977; gift of Doreen Geary, 1982.

About the Finding Aid / Processing Information

Columbia University Libraries, Rare Book and Manuscript Library

Revision Description

2009-06-26 File created.

2011-09-14 EAD file created directly from PDF by Patrick Lawlor

2014-04-18 XML document instance revised by Catherine C. Ricciardi

2016-05-12 XML document instance revised by Catherine C. Ricciardi

2019-05-20 EAD was imported spring 2019 as part of the ArchivesSpace Phase II migration.

Biographical / Historical

Andrew Wellington Cordier was born in Canton, Ohio in 1901. He died on Long Island in 1975. Cordier was educated at Manchester College in Indiana (1923-44); the Univ. of Chicago; and the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva.

From 1944 to 1946 he worked at the U.S. Dept. of State, after which he joined the United Nations, eventually serving as Executive Assistant to the UN secretaries general. He was a chief negotiator for the United Nations in the Congo in 1960. In 1962 he left the UN to become Dean of the School of International Affairs (SIA) at Columbia University. He served as acting President of Columbia in the years 1968 and 1969; later he was appointed President (1969-70). After leaving the Columbia presidency, Cordier returned to his position as Dean of SIA and served until 1972.

In 1970 Cordier was awarded the Alexander Hamilton medal, the university's highest honor.

Subject Headings

The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches for other collections at Columbia University, through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, and through ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.

All links open new windows.

Genre/Form
Accounts CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Addresses CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Albums (books) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Announcements CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Appointment books CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Articles CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Awards CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Bibliographies CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Biographies (literary works) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Calendars (documents) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Clippings (Information Artifacts) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Contracts CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Directories CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Financial records CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Interviews CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Invitations CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Itineraries CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Lectures CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Manuals (instructional materials) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Memorandums CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Notebooks CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Passports CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Personnel records CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Phonograph records CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Photographic prints CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Plaques (flat objects) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Press releases CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Programs (documents) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Reports CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Syllabi CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Tape recordings CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Theses CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
blueprints (reprographic copies) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
minutes (administrative records) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Name
Columbia University -- Presidents CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Columbia University. School of International Affairs. Office of the Dean CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Hammarskjöld, Dag, 1905-1961 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Lie, Trygve, 1896-1968 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Lodge, Henry Cabot, Jr., 1902-1985 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Manchester College (North Manchester, Ind.) CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Nimitz, Chester W (Chester William), 1885-1966 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Pearson, Lester B CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Romulo, Carlos P (Carlos Peña), 1899-1985 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Roosevelt, Eleanor, 1884-1962 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Stevenson, Adlai E (Adlai Ewing), 1900-1965 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Truman, Harry S., 1884-1972 CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
United Nations. Secretary-General CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
United States. Department of State CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Subject
College administrators CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
College presidents CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Diplomats CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Education, Higher -- United States CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
International agencies CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
International cooperation CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Motion pictures CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
Peace CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID
World politics CLIO Catalog ArchiveGRID