Relief & Refugees

Among the most dramatic consequences of war, revolution and political and social upheaval are population displacement and famine. The Hoover Institution is a truly exceptional place for documenting and studying the causes and consequences of forced migrations, internal and external displacement, exile and émigré politics and matters associated with aid and relief to refugees.

Beginning with the displacement and hunger caused by the German invasion of Belgium in the First World War and aid to famine-stricken populations in Soviet Russia, East Europe and the Near East, the Hoover Institution has sought to document the activities of aid agencies such as the Commission for the Relief of Belgium, the American Relief Administration, the International Rescue Committee, the Aid Refugee Chinese Intellectuals organization, the American Emergency Committee for Tibetan Refugees and other societies and individuals involved in aid to help better understand the causes and results of such monumental human tragedies.

Numerous collections of individuals and organizations at the receiving end of aid, those caught up in the experience of exile and displacement, provide depth and breadth to this topic.

COMMISSION FOR RELIEF IN BELGIUM RECORDS (1914–30) - Organization for provision of relief to Belgium during World War I

COMMISSION FOR RELIEF IN BELGIUM RECORDS (1939–47) - Organization for provision of relief to Belgium during World War II

PAULA GILLETT COLLECTION - Autobiographical essays by immigrant and refugee children in California public schools, relating to their lives in their native countries, their journeys to the United States, and their experiences in adjusting to life in the United States and to American schools. Many of the children came from East Asia and Southeast Asia.

AMERICAN RELIEF ADMINISTRATION EUROPEAN OPERATIONAL RECORDS - US relief agency operating in Europe, 1919–23

AMERICAN RELIEF ADMINISTRATION RUSSIAN OPERATIONAL RECORDS - US relief agency operating in Soviet Union, 1921–23

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE RECORDS - International organization for aid to refugees

AID REFUGEE CHINESE INTELLECTUALS RECORDS - US relief organization

AMERICAN EMERGENCY COMMITTEE FOR TIBETAN REFUGEES RECORDS - US relief organization

UNRRA CHINA OFFICE RECORDS - International organization for World War II relief

FINNISH RELIEF FUND RECORDS - US organization during World War II

NATIONAL COMMITTEE ON FOOD FOR THE SMALL DEMOCRACIES RECORDS - US relief organization

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RELIEF & REFUGEES LIBRARY & ARCHIVES MATERIALS