Korean Affairs Institute press release, 1945

The collection contains the correspondence, diplomatic papers, and written work of United States diplomat William Franklin Sands. Additionally included are photographs, collected works, and some genealogical materials compiled by him and his sons. The entire collection spans from 1798 to 1984, but the bulk of materials date from 1896 to 1946.

It covers a wide range of subject matter, including, but not limited to: late 19th century imperial Japan, early 20th century imperial Korea, Panama and the construction of the Panama Canal, Guatemala, Mexico, Ecuador, the United Kingdom, World War I, Russia and the rise of the Bolsheviks, the southern United States industrial landscape, World War II, and Catholic religious and philosophical material.

Sands had over 700 correspondents throughout his life, including such notable individuals as: President William Howard Taft, President Theodore Roosevelt, President Harry S. Truman, Horace N. Allen (minister to Korea), Thomas F. Woodlock (editor of The Wall Street Journal and member of the Interstate Commerce Commission), and the diplomatic leaders of Panama, Guatemala, Mexico, Korea, and Japan.