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Collection Number: 03842

Collection Title: Mark F. Ethridge Papers, 1931-1981.

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.


This collection was processed with support from the Randleigh Foundation Trust.

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Size 6.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 5400 items)
Abstract Mark F. Ethridge was a journalist of Louisville, Ky. Papers chiefly consist of professional correspondence and speeches of Ethridge relating to his career in journalism, principally as editor and publisher of the Louisville, Ky., Courier-Journal and Times, 1936-1963; editor of New York Newsday, 1963-1965; and instructor in journalism at the University of North Carolina. In addition to newspaper affairs, these papers reflect many social and political issues of the times, including race relations, southern economic development, national elections and Democratic Party affairs, freedom and responsibility of the press, World War II, the Cold War, the creation of Israel, the spread of Communism in postwar Europe, and international peace. A separate series, chiefly 1945-1947, relates to Ethridge's fact-finding missions on behalf of the United States State Department and the United Nations to several Balkan countries, especially Bulgaria, Rumania, and Greece.
Creator Ethridge, Mark F. (Mark Foster), 1896-1981.
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Mark F. Ethridge Papers #3842, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Received from Mark Ethridge of Moncure, N.C., in October 1973.
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: Suzanne Ruffing, April 1996

Encoded by: Joseph Nicholson, February 2006

Revised by: Dawne Howard Lucas, July 2021

This collection was processed with support from the Randleigh Foundation Trust.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse 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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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

1896 Born in Meridian, Miss.
1913 Reporter for Meridian Star.
1931-1933 Managing editor of The Telegraph in Macon, Ga.
1933-1934 Assistant general manager of The Washington Post.
1934-1936 President and publisher of The Times Dispatch in Richmond, Va.
1936-1963 Publisher at The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Ky.
1945-1948 Appointed to represent the State Department on a special mission to investigate the political scene in the Balkans.
1954-1967 Trustee for the Ford Foundation.
1963-1965 Editor of Newsday, Long Island, N.Y.
1963-1969 Instructor of journalism at the University of North Carolina.
1981 Died in Moncure, N.C.
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

These papers document the professional life of Mark Foster Ethridge. Correspondence includes some family letters, but pertains primarily to his newspaper work and politics. Correspondence and speeches touch on numerous social and political issues and events that were prominent in public discussions during his career, including American race relations, the Second World War, Southern development, elections and Democratic Party positions, freedom of the press, federal regulation of broadcasting, the Cold War (especially in the Balkans), and the United Nations. There is a separate series for the time when Ethridge was in the Balkans for the government. Also included is one yearbook and photographs from his career.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series Quick Links

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 1. Correspondence, 1916-1981.

About 1800 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Correspondence of Ethridge chiefly relating to political issues and his newspaper and government work. There are also letters about giving, commentary on, and requests for copies of speeches. Letters from 1939 to 1941 and again in 1953 and from 1956 to 1958 discuss civil liberties, Ethridge's support for educating African-Americans and economic and social concerns of the South. Integration is discussed in 1956 and 1964.

Ethridge's correspondence about newspaper affairs relates primarily to conflicts between the FCC and the National Broadcasting Company in 1942; a 1945 trip to the Pacific concerning the education of American newspaper publishers on affairs in the Pacific; another trip to Japan in 1961 focussing on Japanese newspapers. In 1965, there are letters relating to Ethridge's becoming a fellow of Sigma Delta Chi, the professional journalism society.

Compilation of material on Turner Catledge, Mississippi native and managing editor of the New York Times occurred in 1960 as well as discussions about various other journalism personalities in conjunction with the Ethridge's Pulitzer Prize Memorial lecture. In 1962, Ethridge accepted a lectureship at UNC's School of Journalism and in 1963 became editor of Newsday.

Ethridge commented on politics throughout his papers. Included are remarks denouncing the manner in which Harry Truman was nominated in 1944 and critiquing the New Deal. In 1963, he commented on Lyndon Johnson and the Kennedy assassination. In 1966, Adlai Stevenson requested that Ethridge join a national committee to organize and support a Stevenson Institute for International Affairs.

Although most letters, 1945-1947, are personal, some correspondence overlaps with items filed with the Balkans Materials. In 1949 and 1953, there is discussion of Nicola Petrov, leader of the democratic opposition to Communism in the Balkans. Communism remains a major topic after Ethridge's trip to the Balkans until 1955, when Ethridge discussed the case of Carl Braden of Louisville, who was affiliated with Communism.

Ethridge was nominated by Truman in 1948 to the board of inquiry relating to a labor dispute in the coal industry. In 1949, Ethridge served as U.S. Representative to the Conciliation Commission for Palestine, and papers of this year include policy statements and letters from Truman about Middle East economic and refugee problems. Between 1950 and 1951, Ethridge worked with Cyril Black on writing a chapter on negotiations with the Russians in the Balkans for a book by the World Peace Foundation. From 1961 to 1966, there is information about the Ford Foundation.

Folder 1

1916-1932

Folder 2

1933

Folder 3

1934-1935

Folder 4

1938

Folder 5

1939

Folder 6

1940

Folder 7-8

Folder 7

Folder 8

1941

Folder 9

1942

Folder 10

1943

Folder 11-14

Folder 11

Folder 12

Folder 13

Folder 14

1944

Separated Folder SEP-3842/1

Letter from Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Mark Ethridge regarding his speech "For What the Hell Should We Apologize?," 21 November 1944

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 15-17

Folder 15

Folder 16

Folder 17

1945

Folder 18-19

Folder 18

Folder 19

1946

Folder 20

1947

Separated Folder SEP-3842/2

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge regarding Bulgarian politician Nikola Petkov, 19 August 1947

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 21-23

Folder 21

Folder 22

Folder 23

1948

Separated Folder SEP-3842/3

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge regarding an injunction in a miners' strike case, 3 April 1948

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Separated Folder SEP-3842/4

Order appointing Mark Ethridge as Chairman of the United States Advisory Commission on Information, 10 August 1948, and a letter from Eleanor Roosevelt to Mark Ethridge regarding an editorial, 28 December 1948

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 24-27

Folder 24

Folder 25

Folder 26

Folder 27

1949

Separated Folder SEP-3842/5

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge with condolences for the passing of Ethridge's mother, 25 March 1949

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Separated Folder SEP-3842/6

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge accepting Ethridge's resignation from the Conciliation Commission for Palestine, 24 June 1949

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 28-29

Folder 28

Folder 29

1950

Separated Folder SEP-3842/7

Letter from Eleanor Roosevelt to Mark Ethridge, 9 October 1950

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 30-32

Folder 30

Folder 31

Folder 32

1951

Separated Folder SEP-3842/8

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge, 18 April 1951

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Separated Folder SEP-3842/9

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Mark Ethridge asking him to serve as a member on the Commission on Internal Security and Individual Rights, 27 July 1951

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 33

1952

Folder 34-35

Folder 34

Folder 35

1953

Folder 36

1954

Separated Folder SEP-3842/10

Letter from Eleanor Roosevelt to Mark Ethrdige asking him to serve on the Board of the National Issues Committee, 5 February 1954, and a letter in reply to his declination of the position, 12 February 1954

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 37-39

Folder 37

Folder 38

Folder 39

1955

Folder 40

1956

Separated Folder SEP-3842/11

Letter from John Steinbeck to Mark Ethridge asking for gift ideas for James Pope, 15 May 1956

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 41

1957

Separated Folder SEP-3842/12

Letter from Lyndon B. Johnson to Mark Ethridge regarding Johnson's speech in New York, 10 June 1957

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 42-44

Folder 42

Folder 43

Folder 44

1958

Separated Folder SEP-3842/13

Letter from Eleanor Roosevelt to Mark Ethridge and his wife inviting them to a talk by Aubrey Williams for the Southern Conference Educational Fund, 6 February 1958

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 45

1959

Folder 46-48

Folder 46

Folder 47

Folder 48

1960

Folder 49-51

Folder 49

Folder 50

Folder 51

1961

Folder 52-55

Folder 52

Folder 53

Folder 54

Folder 55

1962

Folder 56-67

Folder 56

Folder 57

Folder 58

Folder 59

Folder 60

Folder 61

Folder 62

Folder 63

Folder 64

Folder 65

Folder 66

Folder 67

1963

Separated Folder SEP-3842/14

Letter from Harry S. Truman to Dean Eagle about honoring Mark Ethridge, 3 September 1963

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 68-77

Folder 68

Folder 69

Folder 70

Folder 71

Folder 72

Folder 73

Folder 74

Folder 75

Folder 76

Folder 77

December 1964

Separated Folder SEP-3842/15

Letter from Lyndon B. Johnson to Mark Ethridge regarding an editorial, 22 October 1964

Restriction to Access: The original item is not available for immediate or same day access. Please contact staff at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu to discuss options.

Folder 78-86

Folder 78

Folder 79

Folder 80

Folder 81

Folder 82

Folder 83

Folder 84

Folder 85

Folder 86

1965

Folder 87-91

Folder 87

Folder 88

Folder 89

Folder 90

Folder 91

1966

Folder 92-93

Folder 92

Folder 93

1967

Folder 94-95

Folder 94

Folder 95

1968

Folder 96

1969

Folder 97-98

Folder 97

Folder 98

1970

Folder 99

1971

Folder 100

1972-1981

Folder 101

Undated

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 2. Speeches, 1931-1968.

About 1400 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Speeches, many published later or incorporated into editorials, given by Ethridge on political matters, the newspaper business, Southern affairs, and related topics. Letters discussing some speeches may be found in Series 1.

Folder 102

14 January 1931, "The Inside of the Newspaper"

Folder 103

13 September 1931, "Capitalism on the Defense"

Folder 104

23 January 1936

Folder 105

15 July 1936, "The Changing Newspaper"

Folder 106

11 December 1936, "Perils of the Press"

Folder 107

4 June 1937, Commencement Speech, University of Kentucky

Folder 108

1937, "America's Obligations to Its Negro Citizens"

Folder 109

16 May 1938, Federal Communications Bar Association

Folder 110

12 October 1938, "The South and Its Prospects"

Folder 111

1939, Farm Tenancy

Folder 112

1939, The Second Reconstruction

Folder 113

11 May 1939, "Perils of the Press"

Folder 114

1940, Government and Radio

Folder 115

7 February 1940, "Anti-Lynching Bill"

Folder 116

22 May 1940, "How to Sell Newspapers"

Folder 117

20 July 1940, "Opening of a Newspaper Plant"

Folder 118

October 1940, "The South's Place in the World"

Folder 119

21 January 1941, "Economic Consequences of a Hitler Victory"

Folder 120

7 March 1941, Latin America Speech

Folder 121

21 March 1941, "Promoting Newspapers by Means of News, Editorial and Practical Management"

Folder 122

14 May 1941, "A Fair Deal for Radio"

Folder 123

4 December 1941, "Interpretation of the Spirit of Democracy"

Folder 124

1941, Farm and Home Improvement

Folder 125

13 May 1942, "The South"

Folder 126

1 June 1942, "The Peace We Must Make"

Folder 127

1942, "The Race Problem in War"

Folder 128

1942, Frankfurt Speech

Folder 129

1942, Fort Knox Speech

Folder 130

1943, Czechoslovakia

Folder 131

17 February 1944, "Free Enterprise"

Folder 132

15 May 1944, "For What the Hell Should We Apologize?"

Folder 133

June 1944, Collegiate School Speech

Folder 134

7 December 1944, Mellett Memorial Address

Folder 135

16 February 1945, "The Hope of the South"

Folder 136

March 1946, Freedom of the Press in Eastern Europe

Folder 137

12 April 1946, Freedom of the Press

Folder 138

28 September 1946, "Problems of the South"

Folder 139

5 May 1948, Balkans

Folder 140

7 June 1948, "The U.S. as a World Power"

Folder 141

6 February 1950, Amherst Speech

Folder 142

10 May 1950, International Peasants Union

Folder 143

February 1951, Georgia Press Institute

Folder 144

July 1952, Institute of Public Affairs, University of Virginia

Folder 145

7 November 1952, Indiana State Conference on Social Work

Folder 146

2 June 1953, "Of Whom Shall I Be Afraid?"

Folder 147

October 1953, Mississippi Library Association

Folder 148

25 June 1954, Naturalization Speech

Folder 149

15 February 1955, "Can the Press Help Build a Free World?"

Folder 150

24 May 1955, National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters

Folder 151

1955, Radio Free Europe

Folder 152

20 February 1956, University of Florida

Folder 153

February 1958, Coronado, Calif.

Folder 154

20 March 1958, "A Call to the South"

Folder 155

26 August 1958, University of Missouri

Folder 156

4 December 1958, "Higher Education's Role in the Economy"

Folder 157

1958, Nieman Lecture, "Dynamics of Journalism"

Folder 158

29 May 1960, Pulitzer Memorial Lecture

Folder 159

1960-1961, Pulitzer Variations

Folder 160

21 October 1960, Dedication of Howell Hall

Folder 161

9 June 1961, South Carolina Press Association

Folder 162

June-July 1961, Japanese Newspaper Publishers

Folder 163

20 March 1962, "The Meaning of the News"

Folder 164

3 September 1962, Southern Newspaper Publishers Association

Folder 165

26 January 1963, Kentucky Press Association

Folder 166

May 1963, Texas Daily Newspaper Seminar

Folder 167

23 October 1963, "Compensatory Education"

Folder 168

1964, Chapel Hill Class of 1964

Folder 169

1964-1965, Texas and East Carolina Speeches

Folder 170

15 January 1966, North Carolina Press Association

Folder 171

12 February 1968, William Allen White Lecture

Folder 172

Undated, Atlanta Meeting

Folder 173

Undated, Louisville College Club

Folder 174

Undated, Holly Springs Speech

Folder 175

Undated, Richmond First Club

Folder 176

Undated, Sigma Delta Chi

Folder 177

Undated, University of Louisville, Librarians

Folder 178

Undated, University of Missouri, Journalism

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 3. Balkans Materials, 1945-1963.

About 700 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Correspondence, printed material, clippings, and notes from the period when Ethridge was appointed by Secretary of State James Byrnes to represent the U.S. State Department on a special mission to investigate the political scene in Bulgaria and Rumania, particularly with regard to Communism.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.1. Balkan Correspondence, 1945-1963.

About 400 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Primarily correspondence regarding official State Department business, reports by Ethridge on the situation in the Balkans, and statements about the mission. The reports, October-December 1945, focus on the Communist position in Rumania and Bulgaria. Ethridge became a representative for the Security Council Commission of Investigation for the U.S. State Department in 1946 on a Greek frontier mission for the United Nations. He left for Greece in January 1947 and reported on the border violations between Greece and the Balkan states. Most of the material from January to May 1947, deals with the Security Council Commission and the economic situation of Greece.

Material between June and July 1947, after Ethridge returned to the U.S., consists of schedules and itineraries as well as more information about Greece. Papers after his return include articles and statements about Ethridge's mission and U.S. foreign policy in the Balkans. In 1948 and 1954, there is information about the death of Nicola Petrov, leader of the democratic opposition to the Communist regime (see also Series 1, 1945-1947).

Folder 179-190

Folder 179

Folder 180

Folder 181

Folder 182

Folder 183

Folder 184

Folder 185

Folder 186

Folder 187

Folder 188

Folder 189

Folder 190

1945

Folder 191-192

Folder 191

Folder 192

1946

Folder 193-203

Folder 193

Folder 194

Folder 195

Folder 196

Folder 197

Folder 198

Folder 199

Folder 200

Folder 201

Folder 202

Folder 203

1947

Folder 205

1947, undated

Folder 206

1948-1963

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 3.2. Other Papers, 1947-1963.

About 200 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

Printed material, notes, and clippings pertaining to the Balkans.

Folder 207

1945-1946, Printed Material

Folder 208

1945-1946, Clippings

Folder 209-210

Folder 209

Folder 210

1947, Printed Material

Folder 211

1947-1952, Printed Material

Folder 212

1947, Clippings

Folder 213

1948-1963, Clippings

Folder 214

Undated, Notes

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 4. Printed Material, 1903-1981.

About 1200 items.

Arrangement: chronological.

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 4.1. Subject Files, 1930-1981.

About 500 items.

Arrangement: topical.

Folder 215

American Foreign Policy

Folder 216

Book Reviews

Folder 217

Turner Catledge

Folder 218

Civil Rights

Folder 219

Genealogical

Folder 220-221

Folder 220

Folder 221

Germany

Folder 222

Louisville

Folder 223-224

Folder 223

Folder 224

Middle East

Folder 225

Newspaper Business

Folder 226

Palestine

Folder 227

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Folder 228

Russia

Folder 229

The South

Folder 230

Southern Policy Committee

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 4.2. Articles and Clippings, 1903-1981.

About 700 items.

Primarily articles by Ethridge, many undated; articles about Ethridge; clippings of interest to him; and other printed material. Some of the editorials and articles are fragments.

Folder 231-236

Folder 231

Folder 232

Folder 233

Folder 234

Folder 235

Folder 236

Editorials and Articles by Ethridge

Folder 237-238

Folder 237

Folder 238

Articles about Ethridge

Folder 239-242

Folder 239

Folder 240

Folder 241

Folder 242

Clippings

Folder 243-244

Folder 243

Folder 244

Notes

Folder 245

Other Papers

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subseries 4.3. Yearbook, 1913.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Series 5. Pictures, 1945-1951.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Items Separated

Images (P-3842/1-8)

Separated folders (SEP-3842/1-15)

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