Arthur L. Wharton papers

Content Description

This collection contains photographs, photo albums, letters, certificates, and a program belonging to Arthur L. Wharton and his wife, Betty Lou Golden Wharton, relating to Arthur's career as a mapmaker for the Central Intelligence Agency and documenting their family life.  Arthur's career in the Central Intelligence Agency is represented here by five documents and two photographs. The documents include a printed certificate of commendation from the CIA's National Intelligence Survey Program and a typed letter of commendation dated July 10, 1962, awarded to Wharton, "for his excellent performance as Cartographic Draftsman in the Office of Research and Reports, CIA." Another pair of documents include a certificate celebrating Arthur's ten years of service to the CIA, dated September 18, 1963; and the accompanying program for the Third Annual CIA Awards banquet at which Arthur received his "Longevity Certificate." Arthur's CIA awards are accompanied by two copies of an 8 x 10 inch photograph featuring Wharton, shaking hands with Ray S. Cline. Cline (1918-1996) was head of the CIA's Directorate of Intelligence, the agency's analytical branch. " Accompanying Arthur's CIA material are two photograph albums and a group of loose photos of various sizes, some in the photographer's studio folders. Most of the 136 photographs are without captions, with the earliest dated 1930 and the latest dated 1959. The images feature Arthur and Betty Lou along with various friends and relatives. Three are identified as having been taken in Arthur's parents' home country of Guyana [Guiana], two of which show losses from the major fire in the capital city of Georgetown in 1945 which started in Booker's Drug Store. The family photographs are accompanied by a small group of letters and notes, mainly sent to Betty Lou. There are two notes from Colorado College, one signed by the Dean of Women Louise Fauteaux in 1946, when Betty Lou Golden was a student there. Her family lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the time. Arthur Wharton was a special and accomplished member of the CIA, serving at a time when few other Black people worked there.

Acquisition Type

Purchase

Provenance

Purchased from McBride Rare Books, 9 April 2024.

Language of Description

English

Restrictions Apply

Yes

Access Restrictions

The collection is fragile and contains photographs. Please handle it with gloves.