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Mss:78 1924-1946 M158

McKittrick, Thomas Harrington, 1889-1970. Papers, 1924-1946 (inclusive): A Finding Aid

Baker Library

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Harvard Business School, Boston, MA 02163
March 2008

© 2008 President and Fellows of Harvard College

Descriptive Summary

Repository: Baker Library, Harvard Business School
Call No.: Mss:78 1924-1946 M158
Creator: McKittrick, Thomas Harrington, 1889-1970.
Title: Thomas Harrington McKittrick papers, 1924-1946 (inclusive)
Quantity: 11.2 linear ft. (3 vols., 2 boxes, 9 cartons)
Abstract: Chiefly papers relating to the Bank for International Settlements. Includes correspondence, files of Central Banks, monthly and quarterly reports, and statements. There are also earlier files relating to McKittrick's years with Lee, Higginson as well as some personal papers.

Processing Information:

Processed: 1998

Provenance:

Gift of Marjorie Benson McKittrick, 1969

Access Restrictions:

Appointment necessary to consult collection.

Preferred Citation:

Cite as: Thomas Harrington McKittrick Collection. Baker Library Historical Collections. Harvard Business School.

Biographical Note:

American-born banker Thomas Harrington McKittrick (1889-1970) spent the greater part of his professional life in Europe. He is noted for serving as president of the Switzerland-based Bank for International Settlements throughout World War II.
Harrington was born in St. Louis, the son of Thomas Harrington and Hildegarde Sterling McKittrick. Graduating from Harvard in 1911, he began his banking career in St. Louis. He joined the National City Bank of New York in 1916, assigned to assist in opening a branch of the bank in Genoa. After service with the American Expeditionary Force in Europe (1918-1919) McKittrick spent two years in the New York office of Lee, Higginson & Company. In 1922 he transferred to Lee, Higginson’s London affiliate, Higginson & Company, becoming a partner in 1924. Higginson & Company shut down most of its operations in 1939, ending McKittrick’s association with the firm. Later that year he was elected president of the Bank for International Settlements in Basle, remaining in that position until 1946.
The Bank for International Settlements, founded in 1930, is a central banking institution, owned and controlled by the central banks of a number of industrialized nations. It’s primary purposes are, according to Article 3 of its original Statutes, “to promote the co-operation of central banks and to provide additional facilities for international financial operations…”
On leaving the B.I.S. in 1946, McKittrick joined The Chase National Bank in New York, where he remained until his “retirement” in 1954. Later he traveled to India for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development as well as becoming president and chairman of the Continental American Fund Incorporated until reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70 in 1959.
McKittrick married Marjorie Benson in 1921. They had four children: Marjorie Sterling, Elisabeth Benson, Mary and Frances Anne.

Scope and Content Note:

The largest part of this collection consists of correspondence and subject files relating to McKittrick’s time as president of the Bank for International Settlements. The collection also includes correspondence covering his years with Higginson and Company. There are also personal financial records as well as family correspondence.
The correspondence has been kept in its original order and falls into three categories. The first is “family”, which concerns personal matters exclusively and is part of Series 1, Personal Papers. “Business and personal,” covers a variety of subjects. An example of this would be an exchange of letters with a business associate of McKittrick’s that not only discusses banking matters but congratulates the associate on the birth of a son. The third category is “business,” which contains correspondence that pertains only to business topics.
A small amount of material is, because of its size, housed separately at the end of the collection. Those folders so noted in the container list.

Series Outline

The collection is arranged in the following series:

Detailed Description of the Collection

Additional catalog entries

The following catalog entries represent persons, organizations, and topics documented in this collection. An entry for each appears in the Harvard On Line Library Information System (HOLLIS) and other automated bibliographic databases. THIS IS NOT AN INDEX.
Authors:
McKittrick, Thomas Harrington, 1889-1970.
Aldrich, Winthrop W. (Winthrop William), b. 1885.
Frazer, Leon.
Subjects:
Finance.
Banks and banking.
Banks and banking, International
Investment banking.
Letters.
Reports.
Bank for International Settlements.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Lee, Higginson and Company.
Svenska, tandsticks AB.
Bankers.
Basel (Switzerland),
London (England),
New York (N.Y.)

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