JAPAN AND AMERICA, c1930-1955
THE PACIFIC WAR AND THE OCCUPATION OF JAPAN
Series One: The Papers of General Robert L Eichelberger (1886-1961) from the William R Perkins Library, Duke University

Part 3: Correspondence (Boxes 5-27)

Eichelberger's correspondence files, 1903-1961 provide scholars with a vast array of revealing personal and official letters. The bulk of the material is for the years 1942-1961.

There are many war-time letters from General Eichelberger to his wife, Emma Gudger Eichelberger, describing the fighting in the Pacific, the nature of his relations with General Douglas MacArthur, the condition and morale of troops as well as the difficulties of jungle life.

The correspondence contains much material on General Douglas MacArthur and events in Japan after 1945. There are letters to and from MacArthur, to and from Eichelberger's military colleagues (such as Brigadier General Clovis Byers and Major General R K Sutherland) and to and from friends and family. 

• In correspondence and dictations after the war Eichelberger reflects upon his military career and various people, including Generals Douglas MacArthur, George Marshall, Clovis Byers, Dwight D Eisenhower and
  Robert C Richardson.
• After leaving Japan, Eichelberger served for approximately six years in the War Department and then in the Pentagon as an advisor on the Far East. He was also very active on numerous committees and on American political matters from 1948 through to 1961. There are many interesting letters to friends and colleagues during this period, in America, Europe, Australia and Japan, dealing with the situation in the Far East - especially Japan and Korea but also Cuba, Berlin and the communist threat; politics and economics, both in Japan and America, as well as many other subjects. All these letters reveal a deep respect for Eichelberger's views and opinions.
• Letters for the earlier period, c1903-1941 deal with his upbringing and education at Ohio State University, his graduation from the US Military Academy at West Point, his three years on the War Department General Staff in Washington DC, his experiences in Siberia from 1918 to 1920 serving as Assistant Chief of Staff, Operations Division, and Chief Intelligence Officer with the American Expeditionary Forces, life at the American Embassy in Tokyo in 1920 followed by a year in China and the Philippines on military intelligence activities, as well as his perceptive comments on developments during the inter-war period.