Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm70052449
Collection material in English
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
The papers of Charles O’Neil, naval officer, were deposited in the Library of Congress in 1954 and 1969 by the Naval Historical Foundation and converted to a gift in 1998.
The O’Neil Papers were processed in 1966 by A. Dixon and J. McElroy and the finding aid was revised in 2011.
In 1967 the Library published
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Charles O’Neil is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
The papers of Charles O’Neil are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Charles O’Neil Papers, Naval Historical Foundation Collection, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Charles O’Neil (1842-1927) span the years 1833-1927, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the period 1872-1922. In his long naval career, O’Neil advanced from volunteer enlisted man’s status in 1861 to that of a rear admiral in 1897. Alternating duty at sea and ashore, O’Neil was involved with a variety of naval activities, most of which are documented in these papers. They are composed mainly of diaries, correspondence, subject files, photographs and miscellaneous material. The collection is organized into seven series: Diaries; General Correspondence; Official Correspondence; Subject File; Speech, Article, and Book File; Miscellany, and Oversize.
There is an almost complete set of diaries extending from 1872 to 1927. The entries in the diaries relate not only to O’Neil’s direct personal interests, but also reflect upon the general problems of the navy and of naval service in the over fifty-year span of recorded notations. Especially interesting are O’Neil’s comments on various events in the Spanish-American War, including such incidents as the blowing up of the
The correspondence in the collection covers the greater part of O’Neil’s naval career. There is a considerable amount of family correspondence and, during his retirement years, a large number of exchanges with former shipmates and with Confederate officers who had been his adversaries during the Civil War.
The years from 1897 to 1904, when O’Neil was chief of the Bureau of Ordnance, are most fully documented. Letterpress books in the Official Correspondence and material in the Subject File series trace O’Neil’s role as a pioneer in naval ordnance and in the development of armor plating. Interspersed throughout the collection are ordnance data, including reports, tests, experiments, and memoranda on a wide variety of technical subjects. Correspondence with individuals and companies supports this ordnance material. As chief of the Bureau of Ordnance, O’Neil communicated with congressmen and cabinet officers, and the papers document, the congressional investigations of the Gathman high explosive controversy from 1913 to 1915. Correspondents in the collection include George Dewey, Eugene Hale, John Davis Long, William H. Moody, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, and John W. Weeks.
O’Neil’s sea duty included service in most of the overseas squadrons that the navy maintained from 1861 to 1896. Coverage of O’Neil’s early naval career, 1861 to 1872, is sparse. A few items in the genealogical files are the only documentation on O’Neil’s first few years of naval service. But from 1872 to 1896, when O’Neil was usually alternating duty at sea and ashore, his career as a naval officer is more fully covered. Especially interesting are his activities as commander of the
The papers indicate that O’Neil made several unsuccessful attempts to prepare his memoirs for publication. A great many of his fragmentary notes are to be found in the Miscellany series. Similarly, a large number of notes and fragments on his genealogical research into the O’Neil and the Francis families are in the genealogical files. Although he composed many articles pertaining to his memoirs, only one appears to have been published, “Engagement between the
This collection is arranged in seven series:
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm70052449
Diaries.
Arranged chronologically.
Letters received a few copies of letters sent supplemented by memoranda and reports.
Arranged chronologically.
Letterpress books of copies of letters to and from O’Neil as chief of the Bureau of Ordnance.
Arranged chronologically.
Correspondence, memoranda, reports, printed matter, statistics, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
Handwritten and typewritten drafts of O’Neil’s autobiography. An article and untitled speeches are included.
Organized by type of writing or title.
Biography file, financial papers, photographs, printed matter, and scrapbooks of genealogical material, and of newspaper clippings.
Organized by type of material.
Photographs.
Described according to the series and container from which they were removed.