Howard Lee Haag papers

The Howard Haag Papers contain correspondence, writings, printed matter, and other papers of Howard Lee Haag, secretary of the Y.M.C.A. in Harbin (Manchuria), Manila, Tokyo, and Bridgeport, Connecticut. The bulk of the papers concern Haag's stay in Manchuria, where he and his wife, Florence Haines, were stationed from 1921 to 1935. The particular interest of the collection lies in eye-witness descriptions of conditions in Manchuria and Siberia during that period, and of the Russian refugee community which grew up in Harbin after the Russian Revolution. It was among these Russians that Haag's work lay, although he also made trips in China and Japan during his fifteen years in Manchuria. The papers describe not only the day to day life of Harbin but also the warfare and political upheaval caused by the struggle for supremacy among the U.S.S.R., Japan, and China.

A smaller amount of material, mostly routine, deals with Haag's work in the Philippine Islands from 1935 until 1941, and in Japan from 1950 until 1954, as well as work with the Y.M.C.A. in Bridgeport from 1942 to 1950 and from 1954 until his retirement in 1961.

The papers are divided into five series: CORRESPONDENCE, WRITINGS, Y.M.C.A. PAPERS, PRINTED MATTER, and MEMORABILIA. CORRESPONDENCE is separated into two chronologically arranged sections, General Correspondence (1921-1961) and Family Correspondence (1916-1952), the latter being further divided into Outgoing and Incoming. The incoming family correspondence consists of letters to the Haags while they were stationed in Harbin and deals with family matters; the rest of CORRESPONDENCE deals largely with the Haag's work in Harbin and and other Y.M.C.A. stations. These letters provide insight into the working of the Y.M.C.A. in Harbin and its financial difficulties, into local economic and social conditions, and into the Haags' daily life. Especially interesting are descriptions of the interactions of the Russian and Chinese communities, and the struggles of the Russian refugee community with their Soviet antagonists. The general correspondence contains correspondence with Y.M.C.A. secretaries in China, Japan, and the Soviet Union. Some of the most interesting letters were written by Brackett Lewis, Y.M.C.A. secretary in Vladivostok in the 1920s describing the Bolshevik take-over of that city. The general correspondence also contains a small number of letters from Haag's work in the Philippines and in Bridgeport, and a somewhat larger selection from his years in Japan. These letters are largely routine.

The writings of Howard Haag are arranged chronologically (1921-1961, n.d.). Few were ever published, and many are in draft form. The series begins with notebooks (1921 to 1935) dealing in the main with Harbin. These contain addresses, notes on such topics as Christianity, Russian history, Y.M.C.A. work, photography, and radios, as well as outlines for devotional services, meditations, and quotations. Interspersed with these are sporadic diary entries covering most of Haag's time in Harbin. The first notebook. (1921-1925) covers the Haags' initial journey to Harbin via Japan and China and the first few years in Manchuria, the second, title "Vol. I," (1926-1927) describes trips to Barim and Mukden in Manchuria in 1926. "Vol. II" (1927-1933) begins a description of another trip to Barim in 1927 which is continued in "Vol. III" (1927-1933). "Vol. II" also covers the Haags' journey to the United States in 1929 via the Soviet Union, Berlin, Prague, Rome and Paris, and provides interesting vignettes of these cities on the eve of World War II. Finally, the fourth notebook is devoted to a trip from Harbin to Japan via Korea in 1935. All four notebooks contain frequent references to local conditions, politics, and to the Soviet-Sino-Japanese conflicts of the era.

WRITINGS contains, in addition, newspaper articles (1921-1942) by Haag, most of which are published excerpts from his letters to his parents from Harbin; there are also several articles about the Philippines. A sequence of essays and notes, some in the form of informal sketches, others diary-like notes, fragments of quotations, and so forth, describe Harbin, Y.M.C.A. work in various other countries, and other topics such as Communism, Christianity, and politics. A longer essay, "On the Manchurian - Soviet Border," reports on aid to Russian refugees in northeastern Manchuria, and is illustrated by a sequence of photographs. There is also a lengthy draft manuscript, "Manchuria, A Backward Glance," compiled by Haag from letters and notes written while he was stationed in Harbin. WRITINGS also contains outlines for a variety of speeches (1942-1960), mostly devotional talks given to Y.M.C.A. and similar organizations; others discuss Manchuria and Japan. Finally, Haag's examination papers for the Eastern Association School (1924) on the Y.M.C.A. and the church in America complete the series.

Series III contains a small assortment of papers relating to Haag's work for the Y.M.C.A. from 1921 to 1961, Included are reports, statements, memoranda, conference materials, printed matters, and memorabilia. Over half of the material, including several documents in Russian, concern Harbin. All Y.M.C.A. correspondence is located in General Correspondence.

Series IV, PRINTED MATTER, is composed of books, including several published by the League of Nations and by the Manchoukuo government, articles, and so forth, reflecting Haag's interests. They are arranged by subject, and topics range from Manchuria and Sino-Japanese relations to Communism and religion.

The last series, MEMORABILIA, contains newspaper clippings about Haag (1921-1961), programs and other souvenirs (1924-1956), two maps of Manchuria, and biographical material on Haag. The largest portion of the series, however, consists of sixty-seven photographs and postcards, almost all from Manchuria in the 1920s and 1930s. The most interesting of these are pictures of Russian refugees (1931) which illustrate the essay "On the Manchurian-Soviet Border." There is also a photograph album from a Chinese temple near Harbin.

Howard Haag donated his papers to Yale University in 1971.