James Hugh Keeley, Jr. Papers, 1898-1975 (mostly 1921-1975)

Contents and Arrangement

Expanded View

Only show materials containing online content

Collection Overview

Creator:

Keeley, James H. (James Hugh), 1895-1990

Title:

James Hugh Keeley, Jr. Papers

Repository:

Public Policy Papers

Permanent URL:

http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/ms35t862x

Dates:

1898-1975 (mostly 1921-1975)

Size:

59 boxes and 2 items

Storage Note:

Mudd Manuscript Library (scamudd): Box 1-57

Language:

English

Abstract: The James H. Keeley Jr. papers document Keeley's career in the Foreign Service from 1920 through the 1960s. Over the course of his career, Keeley served in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Canada, Greece, Belgium, and Italy.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

Consists primarily of correspondence but also includes writings, clippings, various personal records, and photographs that document Keeley's career in the Foreign Service. Series 1 contains personal and office correspondence that details the foreign service world and the political climate in countries where Keeley was stationed. Series 2 is not extensive and supplements Series 1. Most of the material details Keeley's work as consul general in Athens, Greece (1946-1947) and his involvement in the Allied Mission for Observing the Greek Elections and also includes official and family correspondence. Series 3 documents Keeley's personal life. Of specific interest are drafts of articles Keeley wrote, including those about life in Damascus (circa 1924-1928). The first subseries of Series 4 contains correspondence between Keeley and his immediate family. The second subseries contains correspondence between both Keeley and his wife, their siblings, parents and extended family. Series 5 contains personal and family photographs and a photo album that documents family life in Damascus, including the Druze revolt of 1925. Photos of Bedouins in Syria (circa 1923) and Palestinian scenes after the earthquake of 1927 are included.

Collection Creator Biography:

Keeley, James H. (James Hugh), 1895-1990

James H. Keeley, Jr. (1895-1990) was born in Curwensville, Pennsylvania. He attended the Military School of Aeronautics, Princeton University, in 1917, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the American University of Beirut in 1931. After serving as a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War I, Keeley worked in the restaurant business until 1920 when he joined the Foreign Service.

Keeley's early career in the Foreign Service featured a series of postings in the Middle East: vice consul at Istanbul, Turkey, 1920-1923; consul at Damascus, Syria, 1923-28; and consul at Beirut, Lebanon, 1928-1931. From there Keeley moved to Montreal, where he served for four years, and then to Salonika, Greece, where he was consul from 1936-1939. After the outbreak of war in Europe, Keeley returned to Washington, where he held a variety of State Department posts, including chief of the Special War Problems Division from March 1943-September 1944.

In the fall of 1944 Keeley returned to Europe, serving in Antwerp and then Athens until 1947. In 1948 Keeley was named American minister to Syria, which made him the chief American diplomatic representative in Syria at that time. Keeley held this position until 1950.

In 1950 Keeley returned to the United States, spending two years as a fellow in international relations at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and the 1952-53 academic year as chairman of the Near East Seminar at the State Department Foreign Service Institute. In June 1953 he became consul-general in Palermo, Italy, and served there until his retirement in the early 1960s.

Keeley married Mathilde Vossler in December 1922. They had three sons: Hugh Morgan ("Budge"), Edmund LeRoy ("Mike"), and Robert.

Collection History

Acquisition:: Gift of Keeley's sons, Edmund and Robert, and his daughter-in-law, Darlene Keeley in 1996 (ML1996-1).
Appraisal: No information about appraisal is available for this collection.
Sponsorship:: These papers were processed with the generous support of Edmund and Robert Keeley and Princeton University's Department of Hellenic Studies.
Processing Information: This collection was processed by Grace Kashangaki in 1999 and Helene van Rossum in 2002. Finding aid written by Grace Kashangaki in 1999 and Helene van Rossum in 2002. The materials were arranged into series and sub-series and collection-level and series-level descriptions were created within this time frame. Restricted materials were removed during processing, re-housed in separate boxes and listed as restricted in the finding aid.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material: