a guide - The George C. Marshall Foundation

TO THE RESEARCHER
PROVENANCE
The primary objective of the George C. Marshall Foundation
in issuing this guide to the George C. Marshall Papers is
to make the contents of the collection widely known to researchers.
Generally accepted research use of the collection is
unrestricted.
The researcher is cautioned that the Foundation, as exclusive
custodian of the Marshall Papers, expressly prohibits
unauthoriz.ed reproduction of this material by any institution
or individual. With the exception of brief extracts, permission
to publish any unpublished material from the Marshall Papers
must be secured from the George C. Marshall Foundation.
The researcher is further cautioned that neither the Foundation's
exclusive ownership of the collection nor authorization
to publish materials in the collection constitutes a conveyance
of copyright not held by the Foundation. It is the responsibility
of the author or his publisher to secure permission from the
owner of those copyrights.
The following is a suggested citation: George C. Marshall
Papers, George C. Marshall Library, Lexington, Virginia.
With the exception of isolated fragments, the papers of
George C. Marshall begin in 1932 when Marshall was over
fifty years old and his years of army service numbered thirty.
Marshall apparently did not keep extensive files of personal
papers before this time. Such papers began to accumulate in
quantity only after he came to Washington, D.C., in 1938.
Throughout his career, Marshall allowed many papers that
might have been included in his private files to become part of
official records. He also adopted a policy of refraining from
"expressing views on national or international affairs in personal
or semi-official correspondence."
These conditions lend an unevenness to the research value
of the papers. Large sections include correspondence with
prominent military, political, and diplomatic figures of the
United States and Allied Powers. Many other parts of the
papers are less rich; some are routine in content. Researchers
are urged to consult the publication Manuscript Collections
of the George C. Marshall Library: A Guide for related
collections. The Marshall Foundation National Archives
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