NB: Each letter is numbered consecutively in chronological order, and each separately dated entry within a letter is designated with a decimal number. "Pioneer Refs." denotes the page numbers where a letter was previously transcribed in Pioneer to the Past (Charles Breasted, 1943). "Archive" denotes the current location of the letter. "Location" denotes the place where the letter or entries were written or mailed. All letters are typewritten unless specifically described as "handwritten." A listing of abbreviations follows the index. This index is still under development and subject to modification.
| No. | Date | Pages | Entry Dates | Pioneer Refs. |
Archive | Remarks/Contents | Location | Recipient |
| 1.00 | 08/18/19 | 1 | -- | X | CIT | written on train on OI letterhead; mentions travel arrangements; states project goals; names personal contacts | Chicago/New York (train) | Hale |
| 2.00 | 08/31/19 | 3 | -- | X | OIM | -- | London (Imperial Hotel) | family |
| 3.01 | 09/02/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | -- | London (Imperial Hotel) | family |
| 3.02 | -- | 09/03/19 | X | handwritten postscript; no signature | ||||
| 4.00 | 09/11/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | -- | London (Imperial Hotel) | family |
| 5.01 | 09/14/19 | 3 | -- | 244-246 | OIM | guest of Lord Carnarvon at Highclere Castle; sends Gen. Allenby copy of History of Egypt; 1st page of letter handwritten; remaining 3 typed; on light blue Highclere Castle letter bond, 6-13/18 x 10-3/16; enclosure is a pamphlet-clipping of drawing of "Thaxted catechists" CB intermixes contents of this letter with those of 9/29/19 | Newbury, Highclere Castle | family |
| 5.02 | -- | 9/15/19 am | X | -- | London | |||
| 5.03 | -- | 9/15/19 pm | X | handwritten postscript asking why CB does not write | ||||
| 6.01 | 09/19/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | written on train; receives letter from Gen. Allenby | Oxford/London (train) | CB |
| 6.02 | -- | 09/20/19 | X | contains copy of letter of introduction for JHB by Hogarth to Allenby | London | |||
| 6.03 | -- | 09/22/19 | X | visited H.G. Wells & family | ||||
| 7.00 | 09/21/19 | 5 | -- | X | OIM | handwritten on note paper imprinted "Easton Glebe, Dunmowe", 4-7/16 x 7 | Dunmowe (H. G. Wells' house) | FHB |
| 8.00 | 09/23/19 | 4 | -- | X | OIM | handwritten on note paper imprinted "Authors' Club", 4-7/16 x 7; written during lunch at Authors' Club | London | FHB |
| 9.00 | 09/25/19 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | written on OI letterhead | London (Imperial Hotel) | Judson |
| 10.01 | 09/25/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | salutation = "my dear dear boy;" opines on French & English scholars | London (Imperial Hotel) | CB |
| 10.02 | -- | 09/26/19 | X | applies for a pistol permit for Mesopotamia; assessment of Oxford's ANE program; poor state of affairs between Lacau and British scholars in Egypt | ||||
| 11.01 | 09/29/19 | 3 | -- | 244 | OIM | written on train; CB conflates with 9/14 & intermixes contents! | Highclere/London (train) | family |
| 11.02 | -- | 9/29/19 pm | X | letter completed in London hotel; weekend vist to Carnarvons at Highclere Castle; meets colonial officials with anti-French sentiments; great railroad strike | London (Imperial Hotel) | |||
| 12.00 | 10/01/19 | 3 | -- | X | OIM | handwritten on note paper imprinted "Authors' Club", 4-7/16 x 7; notes FHB's letter of 9/7 arrived 9/22 during railroad strike | London | FHB |
| 13.00 | 10/06/19 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | request for Prof. Luckenbill to depart Chicago early | London (Imperial Hotel) | Judson |
| 14.00 | 10/07/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | salutation = "my dear dear boy;" letter of introduction to Lady Lloyd, Bombay (wife of Sir George Lloyd, British Governor of Bombay) | London (Imperial Hotel) | CB |
| 15.01 | 10/09/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | travels London/Boulogne | Boulogne | FHB |
| 15.02 | -- | 10/10/19 | X | handwritten postscript above signature | Paris | |||
| 16.01 | 10/11/19 | 3 | -- | X | OIM | description of Fismes, WWI battlefield | Paris | family |
| 16.02 | -- | 10/13/19 | X | -- | ||||
| 17.00 | 10/18/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | written on train; purchasing antiquities in Paris | Montreux (Orient Express) | family |
| 18.00 | 10/24/19 | 2 | -- | X | OIM | written on boat; mailed in Brundisi | SS Baron Call (Venice/Bari) | family |
| 19.00 | 10/25/19 | 1 | -- | X | OIM | written on boat; mailed in Bari | SS Baron Call (Bari/Alex) | family |
| 20.00 | 11/02/19 | 4 | -- | X | OIM | contains copies of letters from Arthur Balfour and Lord Curzon, British Foreign Ministers; describes sea journey to Alexandria; anti-British rioting in Egypt; mentions death of JHB's mother-in-law prior to 9/24; FHB is short of funds | Cairo (Continental Hotel) | family |
| 21.01 | 11/06/19 | 3 | -- | X | OIM | meets Prof. Golenischeff several times | Cairo (Shepheard's Hotel) | family |
| 21.02 | -- | 11/10/19 | 246-247 | recounts fancy ball of 11/8 where JHB meets Gen. Bols (Allenby's chief of staff); discuss dangers of French insistence on taking Syria | ||||
| 21.03 | -- | 11/11/19 | -- | negotiating purchases from dealers; mentions E. W. Budge; recounts visit to Gen. Bols' office 11/10 & Allenby's return; requests prints of all RAF aerial photos of Egypt, Palestine and Syria | ||||
| 21.04 | -- | 11/12/19 am | -- | Armistice Day ball 11/11 | ||||
| 21.05 | -- | 11/12/19 noon | -- | handwritten postscript on the left side of the letter acknowledging letters from home | ||||
| 22.01 | 11/30/19 | 7 | -- | -- | OIM | -- | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 22.02 | -- | 12/01/19 | 247-250 | handwritten postscript above salutation | ||||
| 23.00 | 12/05/19 | 2 | -- | 250 | OIM | -- | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 24.00 | 12/07/19 | 3 | -- | X | JRL | written on OI letterhead; refers to HPJ's letters of 10/3/19 & 10/30/19 & letter to Edgar Goodspeed on Greek treatise | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | Judson |
| 25.00 | 12/10/19 | 5 | -- | 250-253 | OIM | carbon of letter to Elizabeth M. Anderson regarding purchase and naming Papyrus Milbank (enclosed in letter 12/13 to FHB); describes anti-British terrorism Egypt & Egyptian anger against British colonial policies; travel plans finalized for journey to Mesopotamia | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | EMA |
| 26.01 | 12/13/19 | 4 | -- | -- | OIM | contained carbon of 12/10 to EMA & Lady Allenby's handwritten invitation to lunch & horseback riding (?); describes RAF efforts to make aerial photos of Giza area for JHB | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 26.02 | -- | 12/14/19 | 253-254 | -- | ||||
| 26.03 | -- | 12/15/19 | 254 | handwritten postscript "12/14"[sic] under signature | ||||
| 27.00 | 12/19/19 | 2 | -- | 254-255 | OIM | recounts horseback riding with the Allenby's previously on 12/14; Allenby describes poor treatment of King Feisal by the French; JHB meets with R. Greg, Dir.-Gen. Foreign Office; attempted assassination of Egyptian PM | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 28.01 | 12/20/19 | 12 | -- | 255-? | OIM | notation: "Rec'd Jan. 20th; handwritten on two sizes of paper: pp. 1-4 on 8.5x11" quadrille rule; pp. 5-12 on 3-hole loose-leaf, 12.6x19.6cm quadrille-ruled notebook paper | Abu Qirqas (sugar factory rest house) | FHB |
| 28.02 | -- | 12/22/19 am | -- | 8:30 am; written at breakfast; confirm JHB carrying firearms | Abu Qirqas (garden) | |||
| 28.03 | -- | 12/22/19 pm | -- | 2:00 pm, written on train, traveling with the Greggs | Abu Qirqas/Balianeh (train) | |||
| 28.04 | -- | 12/23/19 | -- | written in dining room of steam powered irrigation plant | Balianeh (irrigation plant) | |||
| 28.05 | -- | 12/24/19 am | -- | 7:45 am, written on train | Balianeh/Cairo (train) | |||
| 28.06 | -- | 12/24/19 am | -- | 10:15 am, back in Cairo | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | |||
| 29.00 | 12/28/19 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | written on OI letterhead; notes receiving HPJ's cable about $25000 gift; recounts horseback riding with Gen. & Mrs. Allenby | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | Judson |
| 30.00 | 12/30/19 | 2 | -- | 257-258 | OIM | notation: "Received Jan. 27th" | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 31.00 | 01/06/20 | 2 | -- | -- | OIM | -- | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 32.01 | 01/14/20 | 5 | -- | -- | OIM | -- | Cairo (Villa Mandofia) | FHB |
| 32.02 | -- | 01/15/20 | -- | contains RAF flight-order to fly over & photograph pyramids | ||||
| 32.03 | -- | 01/16/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 33.00 | 01/25/20 | 3 | -- | -- | OIM | handwritten postscript under signature | Luxor (MMA House) | FHB |
| 34.00 | 02/18/20 | 3 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; written on boat | SS Benares (Suez Canal) | FHB |
| 35.00 | 02/18/20 | 2 | -- | X | JRL | written on boat on OI letterhead; marked "Confidential"; acknowledges HPJ's message re. $25000; needs $25000 more; lists great objects still for sale | SS Benares (Port Said) | Judson |
| 36.01 | 02/19/20 | 6 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; written on boat | SS Benares (Red Sea) | FHB |
| 36.02 | -- | 02/21/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 36.03 | -- | 02/29/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 36.04 | -- | 03/01/20 | -- | handwritten postscript under signature | ||||
| 37.01 | 03/03/20 | 7 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; written on boat | SS Torilla (Indian Ocean) | family |
| 37.02 | -- | 03/04/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 37.03 | -- | 03/06/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 37.04 | -- | 03/07/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 37.05 | -- | 03/08/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 37.06 | -- | 03/09/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 37.07 | -- | 03/10/20 | -- | type-written section below signature | ||||
| 38.00 | 03/14/20 | 4 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided | Basra, GHQ | family |
| 39.00 | 03/18/20 | 1 | -- | -- | OIM | closing & signature in pencil | Ur Junction | family |
| 40.01 | 03/21/20 | 23 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; written on boat; tightly handwritten on 3-holed, loose-leaf, quadrille-ruled notebook paper, 12.6x19.6 cm | (MS) Ballia (Shatt el-Hai) | CB |
| 40.02 | -- | 3/21/20 pm | -- | written on train | Kala`at el-Sikka | |||
| 40.03 | -- | 03/24/20 | -- | -- | (MS) Ballia (Shatt el-Hai) | |||
| 40.04 | -- | 03/25/20 | -- | -- | Euphrates | |||
| 40.05 | -- | 03/26/20 | -- | -- | Nasiriyeh | |||
| 41.01 | 03/27/20 | 20 | -- | -- | OIM | -- | Ur Junction | FHB |
| 41.02 | -- | 3/27/20 pm | -- | written on train | below Samâwa | |||
| 41.03 | -- | 03/28/20 | -- | -- | Diwâniya | |||
| 41.04 | -- | 03/29/20 | -- | date rendered European style "29/3" | ||||
| 41.05 | -- | 03/30/20 | -- | -- | Hillah, Babylon | |||
| 41.06 | -- | 3/31/20 am | -- | -- | Babylon | |||
| 41.07 | -- | 3/31/20 pm | -- | -- | Hillah | |||
| 41.08 | -- | 04/01/20 | -- | -- | Babylon | |||
| 41.09 | -- | 4/2/20 am | -- | -- | ||||
| 41.10 | -- | 4/2/20 pm | -- | -- | Hillah | |||
| 41.11 | -- | 04/04/20 | -- | -- | Babylon | |||
| 41.12 | -- | 04/05/20 | -- | -- | Hillah | |||
| 42.01 | 04/07/20 | 4 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided | Baghdad (Gen. Hambro's) | FHB |
| 42.02 | -- | 04/08/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 42.03 | -- | 4/9/20 am | -- | -- | ||||
| 42.04 | -- | 4/9/20 pm | -- | -- | ||||
| 42.05 | -- | 04/10/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 42.06 | -- | 04/12/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 43.00 | 04/13/20 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | cablegram requesting $50000; written in cipher with decrypted transcription below in pencil; pencilled notation, "see tel. Apr. 27, 1920" (= copy forwarded to JD Rockefeller II); attached is memo with list of 5 names as possible donors | "Bagdad" [sic] | Judson |
| 44.01 | 04/13/20 | 12 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; contains many of JHB's hand-penned corrections & interlineations to typed text | Kala`t Shirgat | FHB |
| 44.02 | -- | 4/14/20 am | -- | JHB carrying firearms | Kala`t Shirgat (Gen. Fraser's) | |||
| 44.03 | -- | 4/14/20 pm | -- | -- | Mosul | |||
| 44.04 | -- | 04/15/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 44.05 | -- | 04/16/20 | -- | date "April 15" [sic] | ||||
| 44.06 | -- | 04/18/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 44.07 | -- | 04/19/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 44.08 | -- | 04/20/20 | -- | -- | Qiyarah (Guyyarah) | |||
| 44.09 | -- | 04/21/20 | -- | -- | Shirgat Rest Camp | |||
| 44.10 | -- | 04/22/20 | -- | written on train | Shirgat | |||
| 44.11 | -- | 4/22/20 pm | -- | written on train; only time, "5:30 pm," at head of paragraph to denote new entry | Baiji Station | |||
| 44.12 | -- | 04/23/20 | -- | -- | Baghdad (Willingdon Hostel) | |||
| 45.01 | 04/25/20 | 4 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; 1st mention of Salihiya invitation | Baghdad (Maj. Bowman's) | FHB |
| 45.02 | -- | 04/26/20 | -- | handwritten postscript after signature, enclosing separate notes to children & FHB | ||||
| 46.00 | 04/26/20 | 1 | -- | -- | OIM | handwritten on note paper (12.5x20 cm); enclosed with 4/25 letter; folded into 3rds with name on vso. | Baghdad | AB |
| 47.00 | 04/26/20 | 1 | -- | -- | OIM | handwritten on note paper (12.5x20 cm); enclosed with 4/25 letter; folded into 3rds with name on vso. | Baghdad | JB, Jr. |
| 48.01 | 04/26/20 | 2 | -- | -- | OIM | handwritten on note paper (12.5x20 cm); 2-sided; enclosed with 4/25 letter; folded into 3rds with name crammed on vso. | Baghdad | CB |
| 48.02 | -- | 04/27/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 49.00 | 04/27/20 | 1 | -- | -- | OIM | touching "love letter"; handwritten on note paper (12.5x20 cm); enclosed with 4/25 letter; folded into 3rds with name on vso. | Baghdad | FHB |
| 50.00 | 04/28/20 | 1 | -- | -- | OIM | only 1/2-page letter (typed) | Baghdad | FHB |
| 51.01 | 04/29/20 | 19 | -- | -- | OIM | double-sided; 1 line to announce dinner | Hit (post commander's tent) | FHB |
| 51.02 | -- | 04/30/20 | -- | entering dangerous war zone; very many of CB's corrections & deletions in blue & red pencil | Upper Euphrates "above Haditha" | |||
| 51.03 | -- | 4/30/20 pm | -- | -- | "10 miles above Haditha" | |||
| 51.04 | -- | 05/02/20 | -- | -- | Anah (Capt. Shellswell's) | |||
| 51.05 | -- | 05/04/20 | -- | "April" [sic]; excavating Salihiya protected by Indian troops | Salihiya | |||
| 51.06 | -- | 05/05/20 | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey; depart into noman's land | Meyyadin | |||
| 51.07 | -- | 05/06/20 | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey; captured by tribesmen | Der el-Zor | |||
| 51.08 | -- | 05/07/20 | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey; meeting Abu Hayyal tribe; warnings to the West | Tibni (khan) | |||
| 51.09 | -- | 5/8/20 am | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey | Kishlak Ma'dan (khan) | |||
| 51.10 | -- | 5/8/20 pm | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey | Kishlak Sabkha (khan) | |||
| 51.11 | -- | 05/09/20 | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey; "pig stye", very bad conditions | el-Hammam (khan) | |||
| 51.12 | -- | 05/11/20 | -- | Salihiya/Aleppo journey; incredibly filthy conditions | Nahr el-Dahab (khan) | |||
| 51.13 | -- | 5/12/20 am | -- | early arrival Aleppo; inventory of Mesopotamian artifacts purchased | Aleppo (Baron's Hotel) | |||
| 51.14 | -- | 5/12/20 pm | -- | military/political troubles in N. Syria (French vs. Turks) | ||||
| 51.15 | -- | 05/13/20 | -- | forwards cable to Chicago Tribune via H. Nelson, Beirut, reporting the first successful crossing of the desert by non-Arabs | ||||
| 51.16 | -- | 05/15/20 | -- | -- | Kusseir | |||
| 51.17 | -- | 5/16/20 noon | -- | -- | Kusseir Station | |||
| 51.18 | -- | 5/16/20 pm | -- | -- | Baalbek | |||
| 51.19 | -- | 05/18/20 | -- | handwritten section above signature | Beirut (Nelson's house) | |||
| 52.00 | 05/19/20 | 4 | -- | X | JRL | written on OI letterhead; report of Mesopotamian journey; acknowledge receipt of HPJ's forwarded cable confirming $$ for Asian purchases; pencilled notation, "Mrs. Breasted, please return to H.P.J." (sent to her to read); attached is FHB's note | Beirut (Nelson's house) | Judson |
| 53.01 | 05/23/20 | 16 | -- | -- | OIM | Ali, houseboy; hand-penned postscript above salutation; notes he sent 4/29 letter registered | Beirut (Nelson's house) | FHB |
| 53.02 | -- | 05/25/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 53.03 | -- | 05/26/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 53.04 | -- | 05/28/20 | -- | plan for return; mentions HPJ's cables to JHB, lost in transit | Damascas (Palace Hotel) | |||
| 53.05 | -- | 05/29/20 | -- | first meeting and dinner with King Faisal; warnings to the West | ||||
| 53.06 | -- | 05/30/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 53.07 | -- | 6/3/20 am | -- | written on train | between Haifa & Jerusalem | |||
| 53.08 | -- | 6/3/20 pm | -- | closing & signature followed by more typed sections--obviously letter could not be posted, so he resumed it. | Jerusalem (Hotel Allenby) | |||
| 53.09 | -- | 06/05/20 | -- | p. 14, hand-penned postscript in vertical & lower horizontal margins followed by signature | ||||
| 53.10 | -- | 6/10/20 am | -- | -- | Cairo (Continental Hotel) | |||
| 53.11 | -- | 6/10/20 pm | -- | contains Allenby's letter to British PM & foreign minister requesting they interview JHB | ||||
| 54.00 | 06/04/20 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | cablegram stating HJP's Baghdad cable received; wants $$; recount plans to return home | Jerusalem (Hotel Allenby) | Judson |
| 55.01 | 06/15/20 | 5 | -- | -- | OIM | heavy CB corrections & editing; travels to England with Lady Allenby; Gen. Allenby charges JHB to report all in detail to PM and Foreign Minister; JHB receives diplomatic visas for Italy and France | Port Said docks, Allenby's train | FHB |
| 55.02 | -- | 06/16/20 | -- | final instructions from Gen. Allenby on issues to report to British gov't. | SS Mantua (Eastern Mediterranean) | |||
| 55.03 | -- | 06/19/20 | -- | -- | ||||
| 55.04 | -- | 06/20/20 | -- | mentions long letter to HPJ from Beirut; JHB plans to organize Mesopotamian Department of Antiquities for British | SS Mantua (Marseille) | |||
| 56.00 | 06/23/20 | 1 | -- | X | JRL | written on OI letterhead; report of JHB's final activities; plans to return via London to report to British gov't., then to Washington D.C. to report to Pres. Wilson and cabinet | SS Mantua (Bay of Biscay) | Judson |
| 57.00 | 11/09/20 | 2 | -- | X | CIT | written on OI letterhead; report of expedition results | Chicago | Hale |
| AB | Astrid Breasted, young daughter of James H. Breasted |
| CB | Charles Breasted, eldest son of James H. Breasted; author of Pioneer to the Past |
| CIT | California Institute of Technology |
| EMA | Mrs. Elizabeth M. Anderson, Greenwich, Connecticut, benefactor of the Oriental Institute |
| FHB | Frances H. Breasted, wife of James H. Breasted |
| Hale | Prof. George Ellery Hale, Ph.D., astronomer; friend of James H. Breasted |
| HPJ | Prof. Harry Pratt Judson, Ph.D., President of the University of Chicago |
| JB, Jr. | James Breasted, Jr., youngest son of James H. Breasted |
| JHB | Prof. James Henry Breasted, Ph.D., Director of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago |
| JRL | John Regenstein Library of the University of Chicago, Special Collections (Presidents' Papers) |
| Judson | Prof. Harry Pratt Judson, President of the University of Chicago |
| OI | Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago |
| OIM | Oriental Institute Museum of the University of Chicago |
| X | Letter is not included in Pioneer to the Past. |