Guide to the William A. Reuben Papers TAM 289 (R-7771E)

Descriptive Summary

Creator:	Reuben, William A.
Title:	William A. Reuben Papers
Dates:	1923-2003
Abstract:	William A. Reuben (1916-2004) was a graduate of Columbia University and a World War II combat veteran. After the war Reuben began his career as an investigative journalist. Reuben's first book on the Alger Hiss trials, The Honorable Mr. Nixon, was published in 1956. Shortly after this, Reuben began his reexamination of the Hiss case evidence, a task that would occupy him for the rest of his life. In 1974, as part of this work, he filed a Freedom of Information Act request for FBI documents related to the case. The release of such documents, and the information they provided, enabled Alger Hiss to prepare a lawsuit seeking to overturn his conviction based on an alleged pattern of misconduct by the Bureau and the prosecutor, Thomas F. Murphy. The collection consists of correspondence, reference materials, drafts of several unpublished book-length works by Reuben, copies of FBI and other government files, and copies of court records. Also included are one box of audiotapes and one boxes of research notes. NOTE: This collection is stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. NOTE: For series one, researchers should use the microfilm (R-7771E).
Quantity:	22.5 linear feet (24 boxes)
Call Phrase:	TAM 289 (R-7771E)

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Historical/Biographical Note

William A. Reuben (1916-2004) was born in Cleveland, Ohio and educated at the Wharton School, the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia University (Graduate Faculty of English). Reuben served as a lieutenant with the 45th Infantry Division in World War II and received three Purple Hearts.After the war Reuben began his career as an investigative journalist and later served as national publicity director for the American Civil Liberties Union. He wrote numerous articles for Scribner's, Vogue, the National Guardian, the Nationand Rights, the journal of the National Emergency Civil Liberties Foundation and published a number of books and pamphlets, including, "To Secure Justice in the Rosenberg Case" (1951); The Atom Spy Hoax(New York: Action Books, 1955); The Honorable Mr. Nixon and the Alger Hiss Case(New York: Action Books, 1956); The Mark Fein Case(New York: Dial Press, 1967); and "Footnote on an Historic Case: In Re Alger Hiss, No. 78 Civ. 3433" (New York: The Nation Institute, 1983).

As a founder and Provisional Chairman of the Committee to Secure Justice in the Rosenberg Case, Reuben was active in the endeavor to bring national attention to the cases of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg and Morton Sobell. Shortly after publication of The Honorable Mr. Nixon, Reuben began his reexamination of the Hiss case evidence, a task that would occupy him for the rest of his life. In 1974, as part of this work, he filed a Freedom of Information Act request for FBI documents related to the case. In the lawsuit growing out of this request, filed by the New York City firm of Rabinowitz, Boudin and Standard, and sponsored by the National Emergency Civil Liberties Foundation, the plaintiffs obtained more than 300,000 pages of copies of documents from the files of the FBI and other agencies. The release of these documents, and the information they provided, enabled Alger Hiss to prepare a lawsuit aimed at overturning his conviction, based on an alleged pattern of misconduct by the Bureau and the prosecutor, Thomas F. Murphy. Although Hiss's petition did not prevail, the thousands of documents released by the government offered an invaluable look at the politics and tactics of J. Edgar Hoover's FBI in the 1940s and 1950s.

William Reuben died of natural causes on Monday, May 31, 2004, in New York City, at the age of 88.

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Scope and Content Note

Series I: Alger Hiss Materials, 1948-1994, contains correspondence with Alger, Isabel and Tony Hiss, correspondence regarding Whittaker Chambers, and other correspondence between Reuben and scholars, journalists, research assistants and others interested in the Hiss Case. The collection also includes research materials pertaining to the Hiss Case. Note: Series I. Alger Hiss Materials, 1948-1994 was microfilmed as part of the collection, "Alger Hiss Papers at the Tamiment Library," (Thomson Gale Publishers). NOTE: Researchers should use the microfilm (R-7771E).

Series II: Subject Files, 1923-2003, consists primarily of material gathered in the course of Reuben's research on Alger Hiss and Whittaker Chambers, including Edward H. Fearon's trial evidence regarding the Hiss family's Woodstock typewriter, files on the history of espionage, legal records pertaining to Reuben's and Hiss's attempts to obtain the release of government documents, and several drafts of Reuben's unpublished manuscripts on Hiss and Chambers..

Series III: Files Obtained under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 1930s-1970s. Most of these materials were obtained by attorney Victor Rabinowitz in response to his FOIA requests and litigation on behalf of Alger Hiss and/or William Reuben. The series also contains redacted FBI and other government files collected by William Reuben during his research for the Hiss and Chambers manuscripts.

Series IV: Note Cards, Undated. One box of handwritten and typed note cards relating to individuals and subjects of interest to Reuben for his research for the Hiss and Chambers manuscripts, as well as notes for other research projects and articles.

Series V: Audio Cassettes, 1948-1996. This series contains 46 audiotapes including 30 cassette tapes and sixteen micro-cassettes. Eighteen of the cassette tapes are identified as being interviews and radio programs collected by William Reuben, including Reuben presenting at the University of New York, Paul Berman interviewing Ronald Radosh and presentations by Sender Garlin and Michael Parenti at the University of Colorado; twelve of the cassette tapes are unlabelled. Nine micro-cassettes are labeled as containing interviews Reuben conducted with Raisha Vasilievna and Professors Dubovsky and Goldvin in Moscow, and with Grete Fuchs in Dresden; seven of the micro-cassettes are unlabeled.

Series VI: U.S.A. v. Alger Hiss, 1949. This box of court transcripts from Alger Hiss's first trial consists of copies of material also found in the John Lowenthal Papers (Tamiment #190).

NOTE: This collection is stored offsite and advance notice is required for use.

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Arrangement

Folders (and cards) are arranged alphabetically by topic in Series I-IV.

Organized in six series:

Series I: Alger Hiss Materials, 1948-1994.
Series II: Subject Files, 1923-2003.
Series III: Files Obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, 1930s-1970s.
Series IV: Note Cards, Undated.
Series V: Audio Cassettes, 1948-1996.
Series VI: USA v. Alger Hiss, 1949.

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Related Archival Material

Related materials providing biographical information on Alger Hiss and information on the Hiss case can be found in the following collections in this repository (researchers must use microfilm where indicated):

Agnese Nelms Haury Papers, TAM 163 (Series 1, Boxes 1 and 2 on microfilm, Film R-7771D)

John Lowenthal Papers, TAM 190 (Series 1, Boxes 1-5 on microfilm, Film R-7771C)

Alger Hiss Family Papers, TAM 314 (on microfilm, Film R-7771B: Series 1, Boxes 1-3; Series 2, Boxes 4-5; and Series 3, Box 6)

A published guide to the microfilmed portions of these collections is available at this repository (call number REF E743.5.H55 P38 2006).

The Alger Hiss Defense Collection housed at the Harvard Law School Library, Harvard University consists of 115 boxes of materials amassed by Hiss's lawyers and additional materials related to Hiss's defense donated by Hiss researchers and supporters. The first three series of the Alger Hiss Defense Collection (Hiss Defense Files Series I, Hiss Defense Files Series II, and Hiss-Chambers Subject Files) are available at this repository on microfilm (Film R-7771A) and have an associated published guide (call number REF E743.5.H55 P37 2006). Materials excluded from the microfilm are available to researchers who use the collection on site at the Harvard Law School Library at Harvard University.

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Other Finding Aids note

The microfilmed portion of this collection (Series I, Box 1) and the microfilmed portions of several other collections related to Alger Hiss at this repository form the microfilm edition of the Papers of Alger Hiss (comprised of Film R-7771B, R-7771C, R-7771D, and R-7771E). A published guide to the Papers of Alger Hiss microfilm edition is available at this repository (call number REF E743.5.H55 P38 2006).

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

NOTE: This collection is stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Researchers must use microfilm for Series I, Box 1 (R-7771E). There is a published guide for the microfilmed portion of the collection (call number REF E743.5.H55 P38 2006). The guide also details portions of other collections related to Alger Hiss at this repository which have been microfilmed.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish materials must be obtained in writing from the:
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 998-2630
Fax: (212) 995-4225
E-mail: peter.filardo@nyu.edu

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Access Points

Administrative Information

Provenance

The William A. Reuben Papers were donated to the Tamiment Library by Mr. Reuben in 2002.

Preferred Citation

Published citations should take the following form:

Identification of item, date; Collection name; Collection number; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.

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