1. | Title: | Richard Joel Russell Notebooks (1938, 1952) | |
Dates: | 1938 - 1952 | ||
Extent: | 4 volumes | ||
Locations: | Adapazarı | Ankara | Assa | Izmit | Tiznit | Amsterdam | Andalsnes | Arles | Baton Rouge | Berlin | Bingen | Bonn | Cannes | Chioggia | Cologne | Copenhagen | Florence | Geneva | Grasse | Grenoble | Hamburg | Haugesund | Heerlen | Heidelberg | Helsinki | Innsbruck | Kiel | Koblenz | Kristiansund | Limburg | Lom | Lyon | Mainz | Marseille | Mittenwald | Montmajour | Montgomery | Munich | Odda | Oettingen in Bayern | Oslo | Paris | Pisa | Porvoo | Rotterdam | Rovigo | s-Hertogenbosch | Saint-Gilles | Saint-Louis | Sassnitz | Savannah | Seljestad | Stockholm | Strasbourg | Stuttgart | Tampere | Tyssedal | Utrecht | Valkenburg | Valldalen | Venice | Veracruz | Verdun | Verona | Versailles | Zurich | ||
Abstract: | The Richard Joel Russell papers contain a two-volume travel diary of geographer and geologist Richard Joel Russell provides a detailed, on-the-ground account of the Europe on the eve of World War II. The diary follows Russell from a skiing strip in Norway through Berlin to Paris and into both Italy and Austria. These volumes document how Nazi and fascist propaganda comes to shape even prosaic affairs, such as going to the theater. Researchers interested in Europe at the threshold of World War II will be richly rewarded by this extraordinary pair of volumes.; The papers also contain two geological notebooks pertaining to Russell's 1952 expeditions. These volumes ought to interest researchers examining the Russell's research and the geology or geography of Morocco and Turkey. | ||
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Russell's 1938 travel diary begins with attention to sightseeing and recreation (skiing) in Norway, but, within a few entries, they begin to record news from the south. "We are listening to radio news with interest, as Hitler has taken over Austria and there is a huge meeting of workers in Paris today, apparently ready to stir things up," he writes on 3/14. "I expect to go ahead with all summer plans, but the situation at least looks as if there may be some ugly clouds develop on the horizon." Russell ultimately continues in his travels, which carry him through some of Europe's largest cities. First, he books a rail ticket to Paris, that takes him through Berlin. While in Germany, he attends a vaudeville performance bookended with Nazi propaganda films, a passage excerpted in Selected Quotations (4/3). From Paris he continues to Marseille and then Florence, where Adolf Hitler is slated to visit. "The station at Florence is new & modernistic--it is one of the finest I have seen south of Stuttgart, probably the finest," writes Russell on 4/26. "Hitler is to visit Florence and passports are being scrutinized as never before." Several days later, he recounts the fanfare accompanying Hitler's arrival: "Hitler passes in the morning, so Italian & German flags hang from windows along the whole route. At [Brenner], the border station, there were red carpets in the station--he will apparently cross the border on float" (5/2). Russell continues onto Austria and Innsbruck, where he cannot escape Nazi changes. In Innsbruck, he writes that the "Jewish shops are designated" (5/2), and he finds himself "Awakened to the singing of marching troops up the Swastika bannered avenue" (5/3). Russell discusses the changes with two friends—Anna and Hans—both of whom appear critical of the Nazis. He fears for Hans's Steinmeyer organ business (excerpted in Selected Quotations). From Innsbruck, Russell travels to the Nazi strongholds of Munich and Vienna. In Munich, he notes a celebration for "2000 years of German culture" (7/5). In Vienna, he notes the tenuous alliance between Italy and Germany. "The Germans are going to get mighty tired of their allies, in fact the ordinary 'man-on-the-street' is already has little to say when you mention the boys wearing the red & green ribbons, who exhale garlic fumes and crowd the street cars," Russell writes on 7/10. "Few people understand Italian and few Italians know any German. The whole alliance is repulsive to most Germans I think." Russell's two geological notebooks begin in mid-August 1952 and contain notes concerning his travels throughout Morocco, such as Tiznit and various other small towns and villages. The second volume, dated October 1952, contains notes from Turkey, including excursions to Ankara, Adapazarı, and Izmit. Russell provides studious observations concerning sand dunes, bedrock, and beaches highways and roads settlements and ruins and his various modes of travel. For example, in a passage describing the journey between Notfia to Aoreora, he writes, "6-wheel-drive Dodge, 2-ton "personnel carriers had no difficulty, but a common automobile would find the road from difficult to impassable." Elsewhere, he provides careful sketches of topography, and occasionally, even qualitative assessments of destinations. For example, he describes Assa as "an interesting and populous oasis" which was only "pacified" in the late-1930s. | |||
The Richard Joel Russell papers contain a two-volume travel diary of geographer and geologist Richard Joel Russell provides a detailed, on-the-ground account of the Europe on the eve of World War II. The diary follows Russell from a skiing strip in Norway through Berlin to Paris and into both Italy and Austria. These volumes document how Nazi and fascist propaganda comes to shape even prosaic affairs, such as going to the theater. Researchers interested in Europe at the threshold of World War II will be richly rewarded by this extraordinary pair of volumes.; The papers also contain two geological notebooks pertaining to Russell's 1952 expeditions. These volumes ought to interest researchers examining the Russell's research and the geology or geography of Morocco and Turkey. View Full Description in New WindowRussell's 1938 travel diary begins with attention to sightseeing and recreation (skiing) in Norway, but, within a few entries, they begin to record news from the south. "We are listening to radio news with interest, as Hitler has taken over Austria and there is a huge meeting of workers in Paris today, apparently ready to stir things up," he writes on 3/14. "I expect to go ahead with all summer plans, but the situation at least looks as if there may be some ugly clouds develop on the horizon." Russell ultimately continues in his travels, which carry him through some of Europe's largest cities. First, he books a rail ticket to Paris, that takes him through Berlin. While in Germany, he attends a vaudeville performance bookended with Nazi propaganda films, a passage excerpted in Selected Quotations (4/3). From Paris he continues to Marseille and then Florence, where Adolf Hitler is slated to visit. "The station at Florence is new & modernistic--it is one of the finest I have seen south of Stuttgart, probably the finest," writes Russell on 4/26. "Hitler is to visit Florence and passports are being scrutinized as never before." Several days later, he recounts the fanfare accompanying Hitler's arrival: "Hitler passes in the morning, so Italian & German flags hang from windows along the whole route. At [Brenner], the border station, there were red carpets in the station--he will apparently cross the border on float" (5/2). Russell continues onto Austria and Innsbruck, where he cannot escape Nazi changes. In Innsbruck, he writes that the "Jewish shops are designated" (5/2), and he finds himself "Awakened to the singing of marching troops up the Swastika bannered avenue" (5/3). Russell discusses the changes with two friends—Anna and Hans—both of whom appear critical of the Nazis. He fears for Hans's Steinmeyer organ business (excerpted in Selected Quotations). From Innsbruck, Russell travels to the Nazi strongholds of Munich and Vienna. In Munich, he notes a celebration for "2000 years of German culture" (7/5). In Vienna, he notes the tenuous alliance between Italy and Germany. "The Germans are going to get mighty tired of their allies, in fact the ordinary 'man-on-the-street' is already has little to say when you mention the boys wearing the red & green ribbons, who exhale garlic fumes and crowd the street cars," Russell writes on 7/10. "Few people understand Italian and few Italians know any German. The whole alliance is repulsive to most Germans I think." Russell's two geological notebooks begin in mid-August 1952 and contain notes concerning his travels throughout Morocco, such as Tiznit and various other small towns and villages. The second volume, dated October 1952, contains notes from Turkey, including excursions to Ankara, Adapazarı, and Izmit. Russell provides studious observations concerning sand dunes, bedrock, and beaches highways and roads settlements and ruins and his various modes of travel. For example, in a passage describing the journey between Notfia to Aoreora, he writes, "6-wheel-drive Dodge, 2-ton "personnel carriers had no difficulty, but a common automobile would find the road from difficult to impassable." Elsewhere, he provides careful sketches of topography, and occasionally, even qualitative assessments of destinations. For example, he describes Assa as "an interesting and populous oasis" which was only "pacified" in the late-1930s. | |||
Selected Quotations
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Subjects: | Americans Abroad | Austria--History--1918-1938. | Diaries. | Europe. | Expedition | Fascism. | France--History--1914-1940. | Geography. | Geology. | Germany--History--1933-1945. | Hitler, Adolf, 1889-1945. | Italy--History--1914-1945. | Morocco - Description and travel. | Nazis. | Propaganda. | Science. | Travel. | Turkey--Description and travel. | World War II. | ||
Collection: | Richard Joel Russell papers, [ca. 1930s-1971] (Mss.B.R91,.d,.m,.n) | ||
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