FBI Records on Leon Davidson Offer Insight into Cold War

FBI records recently obtained through the Freedom of Information Act responsive to Dr. Leon Davidson indicate that in 1950 the Bureau investigated reports the scientist who helped develop the atomic bomb was a member of the Communist Party. The information provided to FBI was almost certainly false that implicated Davidson as a Russian asset. The subsequent investigation conducted by the FBI nonetheless demonstrates both its responsibility to substantiate or disprove tips it received, as well as widespread fear of Communist infiltration. The records obtained by Expanding Frontiers Research provide insight into intelligence agency operations of the Cold War era.

A Sep. 13, 1950, FBI memo documented how Earl Davis of Albuquerque informed FBI that “Leon Davidson was a card carrying member of the Communist Party.” The nature of the Bureau's relationship with Davis was not clarified. An Oct. 15, 1950, FBI report, shown below, suggests FBI received the information by telephone from Davis. He seems to have learned about the circumstances from his sister in Illinois, who heard it from a Bob Schroeder.

FBI soon determined Bob Schroeder lived in New Jersey. Running the rumor down was assigned urgency due to Davidson's employment history, which involved substantial clearance leading up to his work that included Los Alamos National Laboratory, a Department of Energy facility in Nevada.

The FBI file shows how previous investigations of Davidson were revisited for repeat verification. This includes information about the chemical engineer's work and family life, leading to surveillance of his residence and telephone activity. Phone surveillance led to tracking down names and addresses of Davidson's contacts, then alerting corresponding field offices to search records, investigate the contacts and so on. Similar scrutiny was given to individuals Davidson requested to be issued passes to visit him at Los Alamos. In some instances, such investigations led to Davidson's in-laws, as one might expect.

1995 aerial view of Los Alamos

A takeaway from the records could be considered the problematic nature of relying heavily on witness testimony to conduct investigations and form assessments. Information was collected from many people described as associates, co-workers and “reliable” confidential informants. This included checking with informants within the Communist Party, who reported no knowledge of Davidson. In many cases, however, conflicting information was provided to the FBI. Any number of questions might arise about subjective interpretations of those interviewed and what their reasons were for distrusting or disliking Davidson. In one instance, a woman identified as a former neighbor described him as untrustworthy but conceded she couldn't recall why she concluded that was the case.

FBI also documented a dynamic that was no doubt common: Scientists employed in secret weapons research were often conflicted and had reservations about certain aspects of their work. A Plant Protection Officer at a secure chemical facility, while discussing an associate of Davidson, explained to the Bureau there was a grave question as to whether primary loyalty was to the United States or the world of science. Scientists consistently advocated the sharing of atomic secrets with the world, the officer told the FBI:

From a 1950 FBI report, Title: Leon Davidson

The FBI file was obtained as the result of submitting a FOIA request to the Bureau, which referred EFR to the National Archives and Records Administration. NARA subsequently advised of the existence of some 200 responsive pages of which Leon Davidson was the subject. NARA further stated the records were compiled as part of a domestic security investigation from 1950-1967. Requests for over 50 pages typically take substantially longer to process than those under 50 pages, so the request was reduced to the first 50 pages of the file. The final FOIA response from NARA explained nine of the 50 pages were withheld in full.

The NARA system for processing FOIA requests consists of categories, or tracks. The "Simple" track is requests that require 50 pages or less to be reviewed. Simple requests typically take a few months or less. The "Tier 1" track contains requests that require 51-700 pages to be processed. The current wait time is an estimated 39 months but may take longer.

Records processed by NARA under the Freedom of Information Act may be viewed at no charge at its facility in College Park, MD. An appointment is required.

"Reproductions," or copies, may be ordered in pdf, disc, and hard copy. The current fee for a reproduction is 80 cents per page, and that applies to a pdf delivered electronically. The National Archives and Records Administration does not accept requests for fee waivers, as fees are deemed reasonable through legislation and apply only to creating reproductions, not processing.

The latest records were obtained as part of an ongoing research project conducted by Expanding Frontiers Research, using the Freedom of Information Act and other resources. A resulting master folder on Dr. Davidson is accessible to the public as it continues to be compiled.