Guide to the Papers of Herbert Feith, 1946-2001

Summary

Collection number:

MS 9926

Extent:

17.7 metres and (116 ms boxes + 1 ms carton)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Herb Feith, National Library of Australia, MS 9926, [series and/or file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Part available for research; part not available for research until 2026. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

The bulk of MS 9926 comprises Herbert Feith's papers relating to Indonesian politics and society, which were accumulated during the course of his long career. There is a large series of correspondence, much of which is with other noted Indonesianists; writings by Feith, including drafts of his books, conference papers and articles; subject and research files; lecture notes; writings by others on related topics; and cuttings, many of which are from Indonesian newspapers (115 boxes, 1 carton).

Biographical Note:

Herb Feith was an Indonesian scholar, a political scientist and a peace activist.

Provenance:

The bulk of the papers were donated to the Library in 2002 by Herb Feith's widow, Betty, and his son, David Feith. Also in 2002, smaller groups of papers were donated by Professor John Legge, Dr Gerry van Klinker and Daniel S. Lev.

Arrangement:

Feith kept the bulk of his papers in titled files and this arrangement has been retained by the Library. The files have been grouped into series determined by the Library. Unless otherwise indicated, within each series files and papers have been placed in chronological order.

Dr Jemma Purdey, Feith's biographer and a National Library Harold White Fellow, provided invaluable assistance in identifying series and grouping of files.

Related

Separated Material:

The Monash University Archives has a collection of Herb Feith's personal, research, teaching and administrative papers. The collection comprises approximately 14.5m (80 boxes) and includes files associated with the administration of the Politics Department. Material is predominantly from the 1960s and 1970s. Research and teaching files are largely related to Indonesia but there are also significant sections on Bangladesh and New Guinea. These files contain memos and newspaper cuttings, impressions and ideas noted on small cards, and segments of correspondence with brief typed notes. Lecture notes from Dr Feith's years at the University of Melbourne are also included along with numerous files documenting student political activities at Monash. There is also an extensive collection of correspondence with family, friends and colleagues.

The collection is housed in the Monash University Archives on the Clayton Campus, call number MON 78.

Conditions Governing Access:

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1821074).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Herb Feith, National Library of Australia, MS 9926, [series and/or file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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