The Cold War: A Family
Perspective
Letters from Harry to Bess
Grade Level
This lesson(s) can be used,
applied and adapted for grades 7-12
depending on choice of depth and
discussion desired.
Time Frame
Depending on the number of
slides used and the depth of discussion,
the lesson(s) can range from one day to
five lessons.
Goals/Objectives
After an examination and reading
of letters from President Harry S. Truman
to his wife, Bess, students will be able to
come to a consensus as to the true
feelings President Harry S. Truman had
regarding specific Cold War events such
as the Marshall Plan, the Truman Doctrine,
the Korean War, the creation of the state
of Israel, and several other events.
National American History
Standards
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Standard 1 (B) Identify in historical
narratives the temporal structure of a
historical narrative or story.
Standard 3 (D) Identify in historical
narratives the temporal structure of a
historical narrative or story.
Standard 3 (D) Consider multiple
perspectives.
National American History
Standards
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Standard 3 (J) Hypothesize the influence
of the past.
Standard 3 (B) Compare and contrast
differing sets of ideas, values,
personalities, behaviors, and institutions.
Standard 4 (A) Identify problems and
issues in the past.
Materials Required
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PowerPoint Program
Copies of letters from PowerPoint Slides
Pencils/Pens
Teacher Directions/Background
Information
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The teacher should prepare students with
the definition and origin of the term Cold
War.
The teacher should identify and discuss
the presidency of Harry S. Truman in
relation to WWII and today.
If time permits, an examination of the
man, Harry S. Truman would benefit.
Lesson Activity/Description
After a discussion of the Cold War
and Harry S. Truman, students will
examine the personal letters the President
wrote to his wife Bess to glean insight and
interpret meaning to the event being
discussed in the letter. Students can
hypothesize and argue as well as interpret
if the excerpt encourages them to dig
deeper.
Primary Sources
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Letter excerpts found on slides in this
presentation or complete letters found in
sources identified on the bibliography
slide.
Vocabulary List
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Cold War
Korean War
Iron Curtain
Reparations
Warsaw Pact
Marshall Plan
Israel
Truman Doctrine
Potsdam
Democrat
Republican
Missouri
Independence
Washington, DC
Vice-President
USSR
Important People
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Harry S. Truman
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Bess Truman
Margaret Truman
Joseph Stalin
Winston Churchill
George VI
General Douglas MacArthur
Suggestions for Additional Activities
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The amount of letters available in the
sources listed in the bibliography are
limitless and one could choose any event
from Truman’s presidency to investigate.
Students could seek out the letters from
other prominent individuals from this
period and compare their thoughts and
feelings to those of Harry S. Truman.
Bibliography
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Ferrell, Robert H. Dear Bess. W.W. Norton
Co., New York, 1983.
Ferrell, Robert H. Off the Record. Harper
and Row, New York. 1980.
Truman Presidential Library.
www.trumanlibrary.org.
(The White House)
June 7, 1945
Dear Bess:
…Yesterday was a hectic day. Had both
good news and bad. Stalin agreed to our
interpretation of the veto at San Francisco and a
reconsideration of the Polish question, but we
lost the election in Montana and the Republicans
are jubilant over it. …
Berlin
July 16, 1945
Dear Bess:
We arrived in Berlin yesterday afternoon about three
o’clock. Were received with all the honors possible. The
Russians, British and our own ambassadors and
ministers met us at the airport. I reviewed the troops
drawn up as a guard of honor and then we were taken
to a house in Potsdam, where I am told the head of the
movie colony lived before the Russians came in. He is
not available for interview now. Most of us believe that
he is somewhere between here and Siberia on probably
special duty. ….
Berlin
July 18, 1945
Dear Bess:
…The conference room is about forty by sixty and we
sit at a large round table-fifteen of us. I have four and
they each have four, then behind me are seven or eight
helpers. Stalin moved to make me the presiding officer
as soon as we sat down and Churchill agreed.
It makes looking over the Senate seem tame. …
Anyway a start has been made and I’ve got what I came
for-Stalin goes to war August 15 with no strings on it. …
I’ll say we end the war a year sooner now, and think of
the kids who won’t be killed! That is the important thing.
…
Polish Marshall Zymirski
Berlin
July 25, 1945
Dear Bess: … We have accomplished a very great
deal in spite of it all. … We have a setup for the
government of Germany and we hope we are in
sight of agreement on reparations. So you see
we have not wasted time. There are some things
we can’t agree to. Russia and Poland have
gobbled up a big chunk of Germany and want
Britain and us to agree. I have flatly refused. …
Berlin
July 31, 1945
Dear Bess: … The whole difficulty is reparations.
Of course the Russians are naturally looters and
they have been thoroughly looted by the
Germans over and over again and you can
hardly blame them for their attitude. The thing I
have to watch is to keep our skirted clean and
make no commitments. The Poles are the other
headache. …
Diary
March 16, 1948
… I am still hopeful and working with everything I
have to make the United Nations work. Our
European Recovery program and the proper
strengthening of our Military setup is the only
hope we have for peace in the world. That I am
asking from the Congress. … It is the most
serious situation we have faced since 1939. I
shall face it with everything I have. …
Truman Letters:
A Cold War
Family Perspective