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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 4.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 3600 items) |
| Abstract | Aaron Stanton Merrill of Natchez, Miss., became a U.S. Navy officer in 1912 and retired as vice admiral in 1947. The collection contains official and personal papers of Merrill particularly concerning his career in naval intelligence. The collection includes a diary and other papers related to his activities as an intelligence officer in Asia Minor, 1920-1921; papers in China, 1925-1927; diary in Santiago, Chile, 1936-1938; World War II dispatches and battle orders; log book as commandant of the 8th Naval District, 1946-1947; other diaries; personal files, 1939-1947; and various other items. |
| Creator | Merrill, Aaron Stanton, 1890-1961. |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Biographical Information
Aaron Stanton Merrill of Natchez, Miss., became a U.S. Navy officer in 1912 and retired as vice admiral in 1947.
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Scope and Content
The collection contains official and personal papers of Aaron Stanton Merrill particularly concerning his career in naval intelligence. The collection includes a diary and other papers related to his activities as an intelligence officer in Asia Minor, 1920-1921; papers in China, 1925-1927; diary in Santiago, Chile, 1936-1938; World War II dispatches and battle orders; log book as commandant of the 8th Naval District, 1946-1947; other diaries; personal files, 1939-1947; and various other items.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Family and Personal Papers, 1912-1943.
Series 1 contains a brief sketch of Merrill's career through 1932, an "Officer's Record of Fitness," documenting his activities and performance between 1912-1946, family letters from Merrill to his mother in Natchez between 1913 1921, his senior paper and thesis done at the Naval War College in 1939, articles he wrote on fishing and hunting, and miscellaneous personal correspondence for 1923, 1929, and 1943.
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Series 2. Naval Papers
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Subseries 2.1. General Files, 1921-1950.
Arrangement: chronological.
General files are arranged chronologically, and contain primarily correspondence and memoranda, with scattered orders, reports, and other items interfiled. These files cover the years 1921-1950, with the bulk in 1946-1947.
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Subseries 2.2. Intelligence Reports, Ship's Logs, and Other Items, 1936-1947.
Arrangement: alphabetical by subject.
Items include intelligence reports, background files, and other information on Germany, 1919; Turkey and Greece, especially the treatment of Russian Refugees by the Turks, 1919-1923; China, 1925-1928; and the Solomon Islands, 1943-1946. Other items are ship's logs for the U.S.S. Williamson (1931) and the U.S.S. Barry (1935); orders; World War II dispatches and bombardment reports; speeches by Merrill; and reports of the activities of the U.S.S. Montpelier during World War II. Merrill's log as commandant of the 8th Naval District appears in 1946-1947.
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Series 3. Diaries, 1917-1938.
Arrangement: chronological.
Diary kept by Merrill in 1917 while on duty near Ireland; between 1921-1922, while an intelligence officer in Asia Minor and travelling on leave in Western Europe; in 1930, while aboard the U.S.S. Williamson; and between 1936-1938, while in Santiago, Chile.
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Series 4. Clippings and Printed Materials, 1917-1950.
Newspaper clippings, 1917-1950, mostly about Merrill's career; his retirement activities in and around Natchez, Miss.; and his marriage to Louise Witherbee in 1922. A few clippings also appear on Louise's social activities. Included is a scrapbook of clippings, 1938, concerning Merrill's service in Chile.
Printed materials are mainly Navy publications, including a war diary of the U.S.S. Montpelier, 1942-1945; combat narratives for the Solomon Islands, 1943; and the Navy's official story of the Second Battle of the Philippines, 1945.
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Series 5. Pictures, 1912-1947.
Photographs pertain mostly to Merrill's naval service and include portraits in uniform as a young officer and pictures of Merrill with other officers.
Image P-1592/1-3
P-1592/1P-1592/2P-1592/3 |
Merrill in uniform, ca. 1912-1947 #01592, Series: "5. Pictures, 1912-1947." P-1592/1-3 |
| Image P-1592/4 |
Unidentified man and woman with a moose, undated #01592, Series: "5. Pictures, 1912-1947." P-1592/4 |
Image P-1592/5-11
P-1592/5P-1592/6P-1592/7P-1592/8P-1592/9P-1592/10P-1592/11 |
Merrill with other officers and civilians, 1946 #01592, Series: "5. Pictures, 1912-1947." P-1592/5-11 |
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Items Separated
Processed by: Jill Snider, August 1992
Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008
This collection was rehoused under the sponsorship of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Office of Preservation, Washington, D.C., 1990-1992.
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