HENRY F. HOLTHUSEN PAPERS
The papers of Henry F. Holthusen were given to the Herbert Hoover
Presidential Library on August 14, 1989 by Lenore Sutter Holthusen (Mrs. Henry F.).
Literary properties in the unpublished writings of Henry F. Holthusen have been given
to the United State of America by Mrs. Holthusen. The donation of literary properties
applies to any collection given to the United States in which the unpublished writings of
Henry F. Holthusen may appear.
The collection has been processed and was made available for research in
August, 1990.
Biographical Note
1894
Born in New York City on August 3.
1915-17
Entered Columbia University; graduates from Columbia Law School
with LL.B in 1917.
1917
Entered firm of Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft. Enlists in
U.S. Army when United States enters World War I. After meritorious
service in Judge Advocate General's Office is promoted to major.
1920-34
Returned to private legal practice. Establishes law partnership of House,
Holthusen and Mc Closkey in 1927 which is followed by the establishment
of Holthusen and Pinkham in 1934.
1931-33
Appointed Minister to Czechoslovakia by President Hoover but not
confirmed by the Senate. Counsel to Latvian and Estonian governments.
1934-53
Partnership with Spencer Pinkham flourishes. Firm successfully
represents many important clients in civil matters involving business
mergers, financial restructuring and etc. Clients include: Chrysler-
Dodge, Bethlehem Steel, Cities Service, Fox-Loew, Title Guaranty &
Trust Company, Budd Corporation, Capeheart-Farnsworth, and
Monon Railroad.
1947 Counsel and consultant to U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
Visited 23 European countries as part of survey of economic conditions
and the effectiveness of the United States Information Agency and Voice
of America.
1947-55
Continued to serve as a consultant to the Foreign Relations Committee
at the request of senators Karl E. Mundt and Bourke B. Hickenlooper.
1950-62
Headed delegations to Australia, Egypt, Guatemala, India, Japan,
Thailand, and Turkey to advise those nations on the establishment of
educational television networks.
1953
Married Lenore Adeline Sutter on October 10.
1953-54
General Counsel to the Senate Committee on Banking during its
investigation of the Export-Import Bank.
1968-71
Civilian inspector of the U.S. foreign service.
1971
Died in New York City on September 19.
Scope and Content Note
Henry F. Holthusen was born in New York City on August 3, 1894. After
graduating from the Columbia University Law School in 1917, he became a member
of the prestigious New York firm Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft. He served as
an expert in maritime law in the Judge Advocate General's Office during World War I
and was promoted to the rank of Major in recognition of his services. After the war he
returned to the practice of law, becoming a successful trial lawyer and counsel in
many important corporate mergers and refinancing ventures. Except for a few records
concerning his service in the Judge Advocate General's Office, this early period of
Holthusen's public service is virtually undocumented in the personal papers received
by the Hoover Library. The most important excep-tion being files which reflect his
participation in Republican Party activities between 1942 and 1947.
Holthusen's major public service came in the postwar years 1947-71 when he
served as a consultant to several committees of the United States Senate and the
State Department. His activities for this period are reflected in files containing
correspondence, clippings, reports, maps and charts, and printed matter. Initially
sought out by senators Karl E. Mundt (R-SDak) and Bourke B. Hickenlooper (R-IA),
Holthusen would event-ually serve as a consultant to the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee (1947-62), the Senate Special Committee to investigate foreign aid and
technical assistance programs (1956), and the Senate Banking Committee during its
study of international banking practices and the operations of the Import-Export
Bank in 1953-55.
In 1947 Holthusen visited 23 European countries to help the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee evaluate the effectiveness of the Voice of America and the U.S.
Information Agency. Later trips took him to virtu-ally every part of the globe in the
service of the Senate, the State Department and several foreign governments. In 1968
the State Department designated him as a civilian inspector of the foreign service,
sending him to engage in inspections in Portugal, France, Senegal and Switzerland.
Many of Holthusen's trips during the early 1950's were undertaken at the request of
countries that were attempting to develop educational tele-vision networks. Although
these trips entailed long absences from his family, he was convinced that these networks
would provide an effective means of explaining the benefits of democracy and raising
the political awareness of the general population.
Volume: 10.5 linear feet. Inclusive dates: 1942-69 (bulk: 1947-65).
Subject File
Box Contents
1
Banking and Currency Committee
See:
1. Senate Banking and Currency Committee
2. Trips: Banking and Currency Committee
Berggren Invention, 1954
Capehart, Homer l955-56
See Also:
1. Foreign Aid: Capehart Report, 1956
2. Trips: Foreign Relations Committee: Europe, 1957
Commerce Department: Assistant Secretaryship, 1955
Donaldson, Ray S. 1954-56
DuMont Dispatch, 1953
Export-Import Bank of U.S. 1953-70
Foreign Aid
General
1955-69
Undated
Capehart Report, 1956
Reports and Printed Matter
Foreign Aid Study Committee
1956
April--September
October
November
Foreign Claims Commission, 1961
2
Griffis, Stanton, 1947-55
Guaranty Trust Company, 1955
Hickenlooper, Bourke B. 1942-65 and undated
Higgins, Andrew J. 1947-52
Higgins Boats in WWII, 1944
Holthusen, Henry Frank
Biographical Data
1924-41
1944-72
Undated
Czechoslovakian Appointment
Correspondence, 1933
Clippings, 1932-33 and undated
Speeches
1946-60
Undated
World War I Service in JAGO
Holthusen, Lenore (Mrs. Henry F.), 1957
3
Holthusen Personal Miscellaneous Correspondence, 1954-63 and undated
House & Senate Reports, 1953-54
Institute of Current World Affairs, 1953-64
International Broadcasting Organization Bulletin, 1947
International Finance, Investment and Trade, 1954 and undated
Italy: Sport Fishing Industry, 1955
Japan
Economic Conditions, 1949-52
Miscellaneous, 1952
See Also:
1. Television: Worldwide Network Plan: Japan
2. Trips: Foreign Relations Committee 1957
3. Trips: Foreign Relations Committee 1962: Far East--
Japan
Korean War
Psychological Warfare Leaflets
No. 1001-3002
No. 5050-9015
Mansfield, Mike 1955-57
Medium-Wave Radio, 1951-60 and undated
Mundt, Karl E.
See Also: Television: Worldwide Network Plan: Mundt Speeches
1948-52
1960-69 and undated
National Machine Tool Builders, 1954
New York Board of Trade Meeting, 1954
Photographs
Political Miscellaneous, 1948-49
4
Pompo, Francesco 1952-54
Postwar Conferences of Big Three, 1947
Psychological Warfare, 1951-55
Publisher's Notebook Columns
1946-52
1953-62
Republican Politics
1942-43
1944-45
1946-47
Rosenblat, Sol 1948-53
Senate Banking Committee, 1953-55 and undated
See Also: Trips: Banking and Currency Committee, 1954
Smith, Lawrence H. 1954-56
State Department
See Also: Trips: State Department
Foreign Service Inspectors
General, 1961-71 and undated
Briefing Materials
5
France
Handbook
Portugal
Correspondence, 1968 and undated
Briefing Material
Miscellaneous
International Broadcasting Service, 1953
Printed Materials (2 folders)
Strauss, Lewis L. 1948-56 and undated
Studebaker-Packard Merger, 1954
Television: Michigan State College, 1951-53
Television: Miscellaneous
Television: Worldwide Network Plan
Correspondence and Memoranda
1950
6
April--June
July--August
September--December
1951
1952
1953-54 and undated
Austrailia, 1952
Clippings, 1950-58 and undated
Congressional Record, 1950-56 and undated
Educational Uses, 1952
Egypt
Correspondence, 1951-60
7
Holthusen Report (4 folders)
Photographs
Printed Matter
Financial Arrangements, 1954
8
Guatemala, 1952-54 and undated
India
Correspondence and Memoranda
1951
1959-60
1961-62 and undated
Clippings and Printed Matter, 1959-60 and undated
Miscellaneous
Japan
Correspondence and Memoranda
1950
1951
July--September
October
November--December
1952
January--March
9
April--June
July--September
October--December
1953
January
February--June
1954-59 and undated
Bills, etc. 1951
Clippings,
1950-51
1952-59 and undated
Miscellaneous
Photographs
See Also: oversized scrapbooks in box
at end of collection.
Printed Matter
10
Latin America
1954-55
1956-61
Legislation, 1947-51 and undated
Mundt, Karl E.
Correspondence, 1950
Speeches
1950
1951 and undated
Pan American Network, 1952 and undated
Philippines, 1952-53 and undated
Printed Matter
Sarnoff Speeches, 1950
Television Opportunities
1951-52
1953-55 and undated
11
Television Standards
Thailand, 1954
Turkey
Correspondence
1951
1952-53
Clippings, 1952
Holthusen Report, 1951
Printed Copy
Drafts
12
Miscellaneous
World Television Foundation
Trips
Banking and Currency Committee, 1954
Foreign Relations Committee
1947
1950 Far East
Correspondence
Miscellaneous
1951
1952
1953
1955-56
1957 Europe
Correspondence and Memoranda
Bills, etc.
Diaries
Photographs
1962 Far East
Correspondence and Memoranda
13
Bills, etc.
Burma
Greece
India
Correspondence and Memoranda
Clippings and Printed Matter
Photographs
Italy
Japan
Photographs and Post Cards
Turkey
1963 Latin America
Correspondence
14
Miscellaneous
Photographs
State Department
See Also: State Department: Foreign,Service Inspector
Correspondence and Memoranda, 1959-60
Expenses
Photographs and Post Cards
Souvenirs and Miscellaneous
United States Information Service (and USIA), 1948-70 and undated
Voice of America
1947-52
1953
February--May
June--November
1955-60 and undated
15
Miscellaneous
16
Printed Matter
17
Printed Matter
18
Duplicates
19
Duplicates
20
Historical Newspapers and Magazines
21
Japanese Scrapbooks--oversized