Rouben Chublarian papers , 1949-1974

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Chublarian, Rouben, -1975
Title
Rouben Chublarian papers
Dates
1949-1974 (inclusive)
Quantity
2.25 linear feet, (2 containers)
Collection Number
Coll 130
Summary
Rouben Chublarian (d. 1975) was an Armenian writer who entered the United States in 1950 after having fled from Russia to Germany during World War II. The Collection includes outgoing and incoming correspondence, unidentified letters, articles, manuscripts, and miscellaneous items such as newspaper clippings.
Repository
University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
UO Libraries--SCUA
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene OR
97403-1299
Telephone: 5413463068
spcarref@uoregon.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time.

Additional Reference Guides

See the Collective Name Index to the Research Collection of Conservative and Libertarian Studies for a cross-referenced index to names of correspondents in this collection, if any, and 37 related University of Oregon collections, including dates of correspondence. See index instructions on use.

See the Current Collection Guide for detailed description and requesting options.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Rouben Chublarian, an Armenian writer, entered the United States as a displaced person in 1950 under the aegis of the American Committee to Aid Homeless Armenians and the Armenian Relief Society. He had fled Stalinist-controlled Russia to Germany during World War II, where, in his view, Nazi mistreatment was preferable to the policies of Stalin. Once in the United States, he took up residence in Philadelphia, where he remained until his death from cancer in 1975.

Chublarian became a naturalized citizen in 1955, and in 1961 received the George Washington Honor Award Medal from the Freedoms Foundation for his essay, "Khruschev's Appeal." He was also an honorary member of the International Mark Twain Society, and a regular contributor to The Hairenik Weekly, a Boston newspaper printed in English for Armenian and Russian ethnic groups. His novels, short stories, and essays published by vanity presses bear the dominant theme of the struggle against totalitarian structures. His aim was "to take some bricks form the ugly foundation of communism." (new release, United community Campaign, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April 25, 1955).

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection is compromised of the remainder of the author's works that survived water damage to the family apartment. It consists of correspondence; manuscripts of five books; unidentified manuscripts and manuscript fragments; short stories, essays, and speeches in English, German, Russian and Armenian; and, newspaper clippings.

Chublarian's writings focus on the war against communism, the plight of displaced persons, and what he perceived to be the weakness in American policies toward communism. It was his contention that American attitudes and policies abetted the spread of communism in all parts of the world. In a series of open letters to such notable people as Lord Bertrand Russell and the Most Reverend John J. Krol, Archbishop of Philadelphia, he presents his view of communism, its perpetrators and sympathizers, and methods of effective resistance. Believing that the press could not be relied upon to disseminate the ideas of anti-communists, Chublarian sent his writings to factories, the offices of mayors, prominent politicians and their wives, foreign dignitaries, educators, student associations of colleges and universities, and various other organizations requesting members to distribute the material.

Some items of interest within the collection are Chublarian's open letter to Lord Bertrand Russell, dated September 1966, which attacks Lord Russell's appeal to Moscow during the escalation of the Vietnam war; a manuscript for a historical novel, City of Oil, published in 1953 and considered "the first full-size English-language work printed by an Armenian author formerly a ædisplaced person'" (The Hairenik Weekly, December 17, 1953); and, a manuscript for a short story, "Hasideh, Fasideh and Asideh: A Tale of Ancient Buhkara", translated by Chublarian and Bo Ingerman, complete with eleven pen and ink drawings.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Anti-communist movements--United States
  • Authors, Armenian--United States
  • Conservatives--United States
  • Political refugees--United States

Personal Names

  • Russell, Bertrand, 1872-1970