• Documents on the History of U.S. Foreign Relations
  • I am interested in doing research in Department of State records. Where can I find Department documents?
  • I am interested in information about the career of a former Department employee. Where can I find information on employee records?
  • I am interested in historical photographs of the Department of State. Where can I find them?
  • What is Foreign Relations of the United States?
  • I would like to purchase a FRUS volume. How can I do so?
  • What formats are FRUS volumes available in?
  • When will the FRUS volume on … be published?
  • Do I need to request permission to quote from a FRUS volume?
• About the Office of the Historian
  • How can I get a job in the Office of the Historian?
  • Does the Office of the Historian offer internships?
  • Can I receive updates on activities at the Office of the Historian?
• Department History
  • Why is the Department called the Department of State?
  • Why does the Department of State have possession of the Great Seal of the United States?
• Diplomatic Relations
  • When did the United States start/break off relations with …?
  • What country was the first to recognize the United States?
  • Who was the first U.S. Consul?
  • When was the first U.S. treaty signed?
  • What was the first U.S. treaty with a non-European nation?
  • What was the first U.S. treaty to be ratified under the Constitution?
  • When and where was the first U.S. consular post established?
• The Secretaries of State
  • How many Secretaries of State have there been?
  • Has any member of the Foreign Service served as Secretary of State?
  • Who was the first woman to serve as Secretary of State?
  • Who was the first African American to serve as Secretary of State?
  • Were there equivalents to the Secretary of State prior to the Constitution?
  • Who was the first Secretary of State to travel outside the United States while in office?
  • Who was the first Secretary of State to travel outside the United States on official business?
• Ambassadors and Chiefs of Mission
  • Who was the first Ambassador to …?
  • Who were the first U.S. Ambassadors?
  • How many U.S. Ambassadors have been killed by militants?
• The Foreign Service
  • What was the origin of the Foreign Service?
  • When was the Consular Service established?
  • When did U.S. consuls first receive a salary?
  • Who were the first professional consular appointees?
  • What was the forerunner of the Foreign Service Examination?
  • When was the present-day Foreign Service established?
• Women in the Foreign Service
• African Americans in the Foreign Service
• Diplomatic and Consular Posts, 1781-2010
• Department Personnel, 1781-2010