Adlai Stevenson and the Cuban Missile Crisis

Adlai Stevenson served his country in numerous capacities, including a stint in the State Department where he served as Deputy Delegate to the Preparatory Commission of the United Nations Organization in 1946. After serving one-term as Governor of Illinois (1949-1953) and two unsuccessful runs for President of the United States (1952 and 1956), he was appointed by John F. Kennedy as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations in 1960. He served the nation in this capacity until his untimely death in 1965. During his tenure at the UN, he was at the forefront during numerous crises, including the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. After the United States discovered offensive nuclear missiles in Cuba, Stevenson confronted Soviet Ambassador Valerian Zorin in an emergency meeting of the Security Council, challenging him to admit the existence of the missiles. To hear the heated exchange between the two men on the potential brink of nuclear war, click on the left-most portion of the device beneath Stevenson's portrait, left.

Visit the Mudd Manuscript Library's  Adlai Stevenson Papers online finding aid for more information on the collection.