Warren Christopher papers, 1927-2011

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Summary

Creators:
Christopher, Warren
Abstract:
The Warren Christopher papers document the career of an American statesman who held government posts under three presidents, most notably serving as secretary of state during the first term of Bill Clinton's administration (1993-1997). The largest part of the collection relates to this period and mainly concerns the public side of Christopher's time as head of the State Department. In particular, there are press releases, speeches, and photographs relating to official trips and meetings. There are also materials in the papers pertaining to Christopher's other government posts, as well as to his long career as a lawyer with a major firm in Los Angeles. The last part of the collection contains numerous video recordings of speeches by Christopher, as well as of his appearances before committees of the U.S. Congress.
Extent:
35 manuscript boxes, 12 oversize boxes, 1 cassette (19.4 Linear Feet)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Warren Christopher papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives

Background

Scope and content:

The Warren Christopher papers document the career of an American statesman who held government posts under three presidents, most notably serving as secretary of state during the first term of Bill Clinton's administration (1993-1997). The largest part of the collection relates to this period and mainly concerns the public side of Christopher's time as head of the State Department. In particular, there are press releases, speeches, and photographs relating to official trips and meetings. There are also materials in the papers pertaining to Christopher's other government posts, as well as to his long career as a lawyer with a major firm in Los Angeles. The last part of the collection contains numerous video recordings of speeches by Christopher, as well as of his appearances before committees of the U.S. Congress.

As secretary of state, Christopher was directly involved in the negotiations that led to the 1995 Dayton Agreement that ended the civil war in Bosnia. He also facilitated the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization that resulted in the establishment of the Palestinian Authority. While the Christopher papers do not reveal the inner workings of these diplomatic undertakings, they do contain information on the general lines of American diplomacy during Christopher's term in office.

Christopher had previously served as deputy secretary of state during the Carter administration, and he played a major role in efforts to resolve the Iranian hostage crisis, helping to secure the release of those Americans held captive in Iran. He also led the Carter administration's successful efforts to have the Panama Canal treaties ratified by the U.S. Senate.

Prior to this, Christopher had been appointed deputy attorney general by Lyndon Johnson. In this position, he led the government response to the Detroit riots in 1967. He already served on an official commission that investigated the 1965 Watts riots in Los Angeles. Later he was chairman of a commission set up in response to the 1991 Los Angeles riots.

Christopher was an important figure on the national level in the Democratic Party. He headed the search that led to Bill Clinton's selection of Al Gore as his vice presidential running mate in 1992; he also headed the presidential transition team for Clinton after his election victory. In the controversy surrounding the outcome of the 2000 presidential election, Christopher served as Al Gore's representative during the recount of the vote in Florida.

Significant parts of the collection detail these other aspects of Christopher's public career. These materials consist largely of correspondence, reports, press releases, and photographs.

Biographical / historical:
Date Event
1925 October 27
Born, Scranton, North Dakota
1943-1946
Served in U.S. Navy
1949
Awarded J.D. degree, Stanford Law School
1950-1967
Practiced law with firm of O'Melveny and Myers
1965
Member, Governor's Commission on the Los Angeles Riots
1967-1969
U.S. deputy attorney general
1974-1975
President, Los Angeles County Bar Association
1977-1981
U.S. deputy secretary of state
1991
Chairman, Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department
1993-1997
U.S. secretary of state
1998
Author, In the Stream of History: Shaping Foreign Policy for a New Era
2001
Author, Chances of a Lifetime
2011
Died
Acquisition information:
Materials were acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives in 2014.
Physical location:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.

Terms of access:

For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Warren Christopher papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives

Location of this collection:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003, US
Contact:
(650) 723-3563
hooverarchives@stanford.edu
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