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Collection Overview

Title:
Robert V. Keeley Papers
Repository:
Public Policy Papers
Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dc1r66jb78z
Dates:
1918-2008
Size:
23 boxes
Storage Note:
Mudd Manuscript Library (scamudd): Boxes O-000009, S-000216 to S-000238
Language:
English

Abstract

Robert Vossler Keeley ('51) was a U.S. Foreign Service member and writer who served in a number of posts. The Robert V. Keeley Papers consist of reports, correspondence, writings, journals, and photographs from the breadth of Keeley's career, including his Foreign Service postings in Uganda, Cambodia, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and Greece, as well as correspondence and other materials created and kept by Robert Keeley's wife, Louise Keeley.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Description:

The Robert V. Keeley Papers consist of reports, correspondence, writings, journals, and photographs from the breadth of Keeley's Foreign Service Career, including his postings in Uganda, Cambodia, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and Greece. Additionally, there is a significant amount of correspodence, journals, and other materials from Keeley's education and early career, as well as some files from his career immediately following retiring from the Foreign Service. There are also three boxes of correspondence and other materials created and kept by Robert Keeley's wife, Louise Keeley.

Collection Creator Biography:

Keeley

Robert Vossler Keeley '51 was a U.S. Foreign Service member and writer who served in a number of posts. The son of diplomat James Hugh Keeley, Jr. and brother of writer and Princeton Professor Edmund Keeley, Robert Keeley was educated abroad and attended Princeton University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English literature in 1951. He married Louise Benedict Schoonmaker, with whom he had two children, in 1951. Keeley served in the U.S. Coast Guard during the Korean War. His early Foreign Service career assignments were in Uganda, Cambodia, and on the Interagency Task Force for the Indochina Refugees. Later, Keeley served as Ambassador to Mauritius (1976-1978), as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs (1978-1980), and as Ambassador to Zimbabwe (1980-1984) and Greece (1985–89). Additionally, Keeley had postings in Jordan and Mali. Later in his career, Keeley was active in the American Foreign Service Association, and wrote two memoirs based on his experiences in Greece and Uganda. He also founded the Five and Ten Press, which published his own work. Keeley died in 2015.

Collection History

Acquisition:

The collection was donated by Christopher Keeley in 2015 and 2018. The accession numbers associated with these donations are ML-2015-031, ML-2015-042, and ML-2018-015.

Appraisal

Approximately 30 boxes of materials deemed non-archival were separated from the original accessions prior to processing.

Processing Information

The collection was processed and the finding aid written by Will Clements in 2022.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. For quotations that are fair use as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission to cite or publish is required. For those few instances beyond fair use, patrons must submit the Publication and Broadcast Form. In addition to completing this form for Princeton, researchers are responsible for determining who may hold the copyright and obtaining approval from them.

Credit this material:

Robert V. Keeley Papers; Public Policy Papers, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dc1r66jb78z
Location:
Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library
65 Olden Street
Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
(609) 258-6345
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Storage Note:
Mudd Manuscript Library (scamudd): Boxes O-000009, S-000216 to S-000238