MISSOURI STATE ARCHIVES
The Foundation of the CIA: Harry Truman, The Missouri Gang, and the Origins of the Cold War

Presented by:
Richard E. Schroeder

Publish Date:
Thursday, May 17, 2018, 7 p.m

Presentation Length:
72 minutes 09 seconds (72:09)

Description:
In The Foundation of the CIA: Harry Truman, The Missouri Gang, and the Origins of the Cold War, author Richard E. Schroeder focuses on American intelligence efforts during the first half of the 20th century. Late to the art of intelligence, the United States created a new model during World War II combining information collection and analytic functions into a single organization—the Office of Strategic Services or OSS. At the end of the war, despite entrenched institutional resistance, President Harry Truman and a small group of advisors developed a new, centralized agency—the CIA—directly subordinate and responsible to the president. Instrumental to its creation was a group known colloquially as the “Missouri Gang,” which included not only Truman, but fellow Missourians Clark Clifford, Sidney Souers and Roscoe Hillenkoetter, all of whom were deeply committed to establishing the United States as a global superpower during the first years of the Cold War. Join us as Schroeder presents new material and fresh perspective on American National Intelligence practices during this turbulent time.