1. Home
  2. Research
  3. Almanac

October 25, 1972

Introduction

This almanac page for Wednesday, October 25, 1972, pulls together various records created by the federal government and links to additional resources which can provide context about the events of the day.

Previous Date: Tuesday, October 24, 1972

Next Date: Thursday, October 26, 1972

Schedule and Public Documents

  • The Daily Diary files represent a consolidated record of the President's activities. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    The President's day began at The White House - Washington, D. C.

  • The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents made available transcripts of the President's news conferences; messages to Congress; public speeches, remarks, and statements; and other Presidential materials released by the White House.

    Digitized versions can be found at HathiTrust.

  • Each Public Papers of the Presidents volume contains the papers and speeches of the President of the United States that were issued by the White House Office of the Press Secretary during the time period specified by the volume. The material is presented in chronological order, and the dates shown in the headings are the dates of the documents or events. In instances when the release date differs from the date of the document itself, that fact is shown in the text note.

    To ensure accuracy, remarks have been checked against audio recordings (when available) and signed documents have been checked against the original, unless otherwise noted. Editors have provided text notes and cross references for purposes of identification or clarity.

  • The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other Presidential documents.

Archival Holdings

Any selection of archival documents will necessarily be partial. You should use the documents and folders identified below as a starting place, but consult the linked collection finding aids and folder title lists and the collections themselves for context. Many documents to be found this way do not lend themselves to association with specific dates, but are essential to a complete understanding of the material.

  • Selective document listing

    President's Office Files

    The President's Office Files consists of materials drawn together by the Special Files Unit from several administrative subdivisions within the White House Office. It is the handwriting and sensitive papers sent to the Staff Secretary that now comprise much of the President's Office Files. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    President's Personal File

    The President's Personal File is essentially a President's secretary's file, kept by Rose Mary Woods, personal secretary to the President, for two purposes: (1) preserving for posterity a collection of documents particularly close to the President, whether because he dictated or annotated them, or because of the importance of the correspondent or the event concerned and (2) giving appropriate attention–letters of gratitude, invitations to White House social events, and the like–to members and important friends and supporters of the Nixon administration. This generalization does not describe all the varied materials of a file group which is essentially a miscellany, but it does identify the reason for the existence of the file group's core. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

  • The H. R. Haldeman Diaries consists of seven handwritten diaries, 36 dictated diaries recorded as sound recordings, and two handwritten audio cassette tape subject logs. The diaries and logs reflect H. R. Haldeman’s candid personal record and reflections on events, issues, and people encountered during his service in the Nixon White House. As administrative assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, Haldeman attended and participated in public events and private meetings covering the entire scope of issues in which the Nixon White House engaged in during the years 1969-1973. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

  • The National Archives Catalog is the online portal to the records held at the National Archives, and information about those records. It is the main way of describing our holdings and also provides access to electronic records and digitized versions of our holdings. 

    The Catalog searches across multiple National Archives resources at once, including archival descriptions, digitized and electronic records, authority records, and web pages from Archives.gov and the Presidential Libraries. The Catalog also allows users to contribute to digitized historical records through tagging and transcription.

    Nixon Library Holdings

    All National Archives Units

National Security Documents

  • The President's Daily Brief is the primary vehicle for summarizing the day-to-day sensitive intelligence and analysis, as well as late-breaking reports, for the White House on current and future national security issues. Read "The President's Daily Brief: Delivering Intelligence to Nixon and Ford" to learn more.

  • The Foreign Relations of the United States series presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. Visit the State Department website for more information.

    Vol. IX, Vietnam, October 1972-January 1973

    Paris Negotiations Collapse, October 24-December 13, 1972

    Vol. XVII, China, 1969-1972

    China, March-December 1972

    • 259. Message From the Government of the People’s Republic of China to the Government of the United States, New York, October 25, 1972

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 850, President’s File—China Trip, China Exchanges. No classification marking. A typewritten notation on the first page reads: “Handed to J. Fazio by Mrs. Shih, October 25, 1972, New York.” At this meeting, Fazio handed over a copy of a 3-page note entitled “Message to the Government of the DRV on Behalf of the President of the United States,” which was a response to a DRV message of October 24. Fazio also extended an invitation from Kissinger to Ch’iao Kuan-hua and Huang Hua for dinner in New York on November 1. Fazio’s memorandum for the record of the October 25 meeting and the U.S. message are ibid. See Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, vol. E–13, Document 165.

    Vol. XIX, Part 1, Korea, 1969-1972

    Republic of Korea Troops in Vietnam and Force Modernization, April 1971-December 1972

    Vol. XXXVI, Energy Crisis, 1969-1974

    March 16, 1972-March 6, 1973

    Vol. XXXIX, European Security

    Prelude to Negotiations, June 1972-November 1972

    • 116. Memorandum From the Executive Secretary of the Department of State (Eliot) to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), Washington, October 25, 1972

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 247, Agency Files, MBFR and CSCE, 1972. Secret. On October 26, Sonnenfeldt forwarded Eliot’s memorandum to Kissinger. In the covering memorandum, Sonnenfeldt wrote: “Having at long last solved the flank participation issue, we plan to answer the Soviet note given to you in Moscow.” Sonnenfeldt predicted: “Delivery of our note and its content will undoubtedly leak. Since virtually the entire scenario will then have appeared in the press, a joint Soviet-American announcement strikes me as an anti-climax.” Sonnenfeldt recommended that Kissinger concur in the Department of State scenario and “approve a unilateral U.S. announcement” that it was “accepting the Finnish invitation for November 22” and was planning “to attend the first MBFR talks in January.” Kissinger initialed his approval of both recommendations.

    Vol. E-1, Documents on Global Issues, 1969-1972

    U.S. Policy Towards Terrorism, Hijacking of Aircraft, and Attacks on Civil Aviation: The Olympic Attack and the Anti-Terrorism Initiatives, September−December 1972

    Vol. E-10, Documents on American Republics, 1969-1972

    Nicaragua

    • 516. Memorandum of Conversation, Managua, October 25, 1972., Managua, October 25, 1972

      Political Officer Cheek met with Archbishop Obando y Bravo to discuss the political role of the Church and increased confrontation with the state. Obando y Bravo indicated that the Church had an obligation to fight injustice and other evils, and criticized the Government of Nicaragua for acts of violence against the population.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL 15–7 NIC. Confidential. It was repeated to Guatemala, San Salvador, San José, Tegucigalpa, and USCINCSO for POLAD. It was transmitted to the Department as an Enclosure to Airgram A–104 from Managua, November 3, which is published as Document 517.

    Vol. E-13, Documents on China, 1969-1972

    • 163. Memorandum for the Record, New York, October 25, 1972, 4:30-4:55 p.m., New York, October 25, 1972, 4:30-4:55 p.m.

      Deputy Director of the White House Situation Room Fazio and Shih Yen-hua of the Chinese Mission to the UN exchanged notes concerning the war in Vietnam and a dinner engagement between U.S. and Chinese officials.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 850, President’s File-China Trip, China Exchanges, Oct 24, 1972-Dec 31, 1972. Top Secret; Sensitive. Drafted by Fazio on October 26. For the text of the note Shih Yen-hua handed to Fazio, see Document 259, Foreign Relations, 1969-1976, volume XVII. Attached are three U.S. messages, two of which bear the handwritten notation: “Handed to Mrs. Shih by J. Fazio, 10/25/72, NYC.” The last message bears the handwritten notation: “Read to Mrs. Shih by J. Fazio, 10/25/72, NYC.”

  • The Kissinger telephone conversation transcripts consist of approximately 20,000 pages of transcripts of Kissinger’s telephone conversations during his tenure as Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (1969-1974) and Secretary of State (1973-1974) during the administration of President Richard Nixon. Visit the finding aid for more information.

    Digitized versions can be found in the National Archives Catalog.

Audiovisual Holdings

Context (External Sources)