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Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm2018086267
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 L. Patrick Gray III were purchased from his family by the Library of Congress in 2018.
The papers of L. Patrick Gray III, particularly those relating to his work at the FBI, were removed from their original order and used as background and exhibits in hearings and court cases, as resource material for his memoir, and as examples to promote the sale of the papers prior to their arrival at the Library. During processing the collection was sorted and arranged into series to improve its organization and functionality for research use.
Digital files were received as part of the L. Patrick Gray Papers on a variety of digital storage media. Each digital storage media was assigned a unique digital ID number. Checksums and an inventory for all files on each media were generated using the Bagger tool (v2.8.1). Files were scanned for viruses and PII. Zipped files were unzipped using WinZip. Some zipped files were encrypted and decryption was not always successful. The donor backed up the content over time on multiple storage media, resulting in numerous duplicates. The duplicate files and extraneous materials were removed on a folder- or storage media-level, and therefore some duplicates remain across digital IDs.
Audiotapes have been transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division where they are identified as part of the L. Patrick Gray III Papers.
Copyright in the unpublished writings of L. Patrick Gray III in these papers and in other collections of papers in the Library of Congress has been dedicated to the public.
Restictions apply governing the use, photoduplication, or publication of items in this collection. Consult reference staff in the Manuscript Division for information concerning these restrictions. In addition, many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Digital files were created in a Windows operating system, version unknown. The content is primarily image files in .jpg and .tiff formats and text files in .doc, .txt, and .pdf formats. Audio files in .wav and .wma formats and moving image files in .VOB, .mp3, and .mp4 formats are also included.
Government regulations control the use of security classified material in this collection. Manuscript Division staff can furnish information concerning access to and use of classified materials.
Digital files were received as part of the papers of L. Patrick Gray. A digital ID number was assigned to each digital storage media. Researchers should use the digital ID number to request access copies of the files. Access to digital content is available onsite only in the Manuscript Reading Room and requires advanced notice. Researchers should consult reference staff in the Manuscript Division for more information.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container or digital ID number, L. Patrick Gray III Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Louis Patrick Gray III (1916-2005) span the years 1931-2008. The collection focuses on Gray's time as acting director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) during the administration of President Richard M. Nixon and the impact of this period on his life in the following years. The papers are organized into eight series: General Correspondence, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Legal File, Speeches and Writings, Alphabetical File, Closed, Classified, and Oversize.
While the L. Patrick Gray III Papers contain material relating to his military career in the United States Navy, his work as a lawyer in private practice, and his positions in the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and the Department of Justice in the early years of the presidency of Richard M. Nixon, the major focus of the papers is Gray’s experience as the acting head of the FBI, following the death of J. Edgar Hoover, from May 1972 to April 1973. The Watergate Affair is a key topic; the papers chronicle the FBI investigation into the break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, Gray’s actions at the time, and his recounting and explanation of these events during testimony at congressional hearings and before grand juries, while under investigation by the Watergate Special Prosecution Force, and in preparation for writing a book. The changes and tensions in the FBI following the death of J. Edgar Hoover are another topic covered in the material. The collection also chronicles Gray’s indictment, along with W. Mark Felt (associate director of the FBI), and Edward S. Miller (head of the FBI's Domestic Intelligence Division), for allegedly authorizing break-ins aimed at locating Weather Underground (Weatherman) fugitives while he was acting director of the FBI. Originals and copies of memoranda, reports, notes, testimony, and correspondence relating to Gray’s actions and those of others in the FBI in response to events in 1972 and 1973 appear in numerous series throughout the collection because Gray used documents from his personal FBI files as background and exhibits in hearings and legal proceedings and as resource material for a prospective memoir. Some documents contain dated comments written by Gray when he reviewed them in later years. Additional material was compiled by his son, Ed Gray, in the preparation of Gray’s posthumous memoir. W. Mark Felt figures prominently in the collection.
A small General Correspondence series contains letters received by Gray and copies of his responses. They are primarily of a personal nature and most date from the 1970s and 1980s. Correspondents include FBI agents and officials, figures from the Nixon administration, and friends. A number are letters of support and congratulations when the charges against Gray were dropped in 1980. A file of correspondence with W. Mark Felt also contains notes on telephone conversations and copies of letters Gray sent to his lawyer in response to one of Felt’s letters.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation series comprises files
generated during Gray’s year as acting director. Position papers on issues, practices,
and proposed changes at the FBI, memoranda to special agents in charge, notes Gray took
at meetings, and notes he added to routing slips illuminate the actions of the FBI under
his leadership. Information relating to the Watergate Affair is scattered throughout the
collection, but among the material found in this series is the Watergate detailed
memoranda file Gray used at his confirmation hearings, general investigation division
summaries of the break-in investigation, a compilation of questions and answers, and
digital files containing scans of the FBI’s Watergate file obtained through a Freedom of
Information Act request. Other files relate to the hijacking of aircraft, the George C.
Wallace assassination attempt, the American Indian Movement occupation at Wounded Knee,
South Dakota, and the Weatherman. Also included are a compilation of press clippings
about Gray and the FBI during that period, congratulatory correspondence, and letters
sent to Gray after the withdrawal of his nomination. Some documents that had once been
part of Gray’s FBI files are now part of other series. The Legal
File series contains documents Gray used as exhibits when he testified before
the Watergate hearings of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign
Activities, as documentation submitted in response to the investigation by the Watergate
Special Prosecution Force, and as part of his defense in the
The Legal File series documents Gray’s involvement in
congressional hearings, grand juries, investigations, and federal and civil legal cases
in the years after his resignation from the FBI that stemmed from his tenure as acting
director. Gray's relationship with his lawyers is evident throughout the series. Notes
Gray wrote for his lawyers describe his memories and thoughts about the issues under
consideration and explain the documents he reviewed to prepare for testimony or plan his
legal defense. His detailed notes of telephone conversations and correspondence with his
attorneys recount his feelings about the legal investigations and prosecution as well as
statements about him in the press. Gray’s files are supplemented by those kept by his
lawyer, Stephen H. Sachs. The bulk of the files relate to the Watergate Affair and
The Speeches and Writings series features writings, recordings, and resource material that Gray created and compiled for a book project he began in the 1970s and early 1980s but discontinued until the end of his life when his son, Ed Gray, resumed work on the memoir and published
The Alphabetical File series contains material pertaining to other phases of Gray’s life, including his tenures as executive assistant to secretary of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Robert Finch, and assistant attorney general for the Department of Justice's Civil Division. Appointment books, photographs, and a scrapbook supplement those files. A grouping of military papers document Gray’s twenty-year career in the United States Navy and includes copies of Gray’s letters to friends and relations that provide details about his family life. Files from the Pat Gray Legal Defense Fund document the effort by United States Naval Academy classmates and other supporters to ease the financial burden of years of legal defense. A press problems file reveals Gray's reaction to statements about him in the press, and his annotations in books written by others about the FBI offer Gray's thoughts on their accounts of him and his tenure there. Material from the last year of Gray's life focuses on his private and public response to W. Mark Felt's announcement in 2005 that he was "Deep Throat," the informant who assisted Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein with their reporting on the Watergate Affair.
The remaining series comprises a Closed segment of material relating to grand jury testimony, Classified documents, and Oversize items.
This collection is arranged in eight series:
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm2018086267
The General Correspondence series contains letters received by Gray and copies of his responses, primarily of a personal nature, and mostly dating from the 1970s and 1980s. A few notes about telephone conversations and other related material are filed with the correspondence.
Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation series comprises files generated during Gray’s year as acting director from May 1972 to April 1973. Types of material include correspondence, memoranda, reports, daily logs, notes, press clippings, and digital files.
Arranged alphabetically by topic, name, or type of material and therein chronologically.
The Legal File documents Gray’s involvement in congressional hearings, grand juries, investigations, and federal and civil legal cases in the years after his resignation from the FBI that stemmed from his tenure as acting director. Types of material include correspondence, memoranda, legal papers, notes, FBI documents used as exhibits, discovery documents, background material, statements, transcripts, and lawyer's files.
Arranged alphabetically by topic or type of material.
The Speeches and Writings series features the writings, recordings, and resource material that Gray created and compiled for a book project he began in the 1970s and early 1980s but discontinued until the end of his life, when his son, Ed Gray, resumed work on the memoir. Ed Gray's files relating to
Arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein chronologically or numerically.
The Alphabetical File series contains material pertaining to other phases of Gray’s life, including his twenty-year career in the United States Navy, his tenure as executive assistant to the secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and as assistant attorney general for the Civil Division at the Department of Justice, and his private legal practice. Types of material include correspondence, memoranda, appointment books, certificates, printed matter, photographs, a scrapbook and other memorabilia, and digital files.
Arranged alphabetically by topic, name, or type of material and therein chronologically or in reverse chronological order.
The Closed series contains transcripts and notes about grand jury testimony pertaining to the Watergate Affair and the methods used to locate Weatherman fugitives while Gray was acting director of the FBI.
Arranged according to the series, containers, and folders from which the items were separated.
Correspondence, memoranda, notes, and hearing transcripts pertaining to the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and testimony before the House Committee on Armed Services Special Subcommittee on Intelligence and a Senate Committee on Appropriations subcommittee regarding aspects of the investigation of the Watergate Affair.
Arranged according to the series, containers, and folders from which the items were separated.
Certificates, photographs, a scrapbook documenting Gray's experience as executive assistant to the secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and as assistant attorney general for the Civil Division at the Department of Justice, and a bumper sticker from that period.
Arranged according to the series, containers, and folders from which the items were separated.