247. Editorial Note
In January 1960, Chancellor Adenauer approached the Embassy in Bonn about the possibility of an informal visit to Washington immediately before he received an honorary degree from the University of California on March 17. The White House, on January 22, approved the idea and set March 15 as the date for discussions between the Chancellor and the President.
Adenauer arrived in New York on March 12, attended various functions in New York and Princeton, New Jersey, and reached Washington at 10:30 p.m. on March 14. Following conversations with the President and Secretary of State Herter on March 15, various social functions, and an address at the National Press Club on March 16, the Chancellor left Washington for the West Coast where he spent several days vacationing. On March 24, he arrived in Japan for an official State visit.
The most extensive collection of documentation on his visit to Washington is in Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 64 D 559, CF 1610–1612. An extensive amount of documentation on the conversation with the President is in the Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, International File. Some additional documentation is in Department of State, Central Files 396.1–PA, 611.62A, and 762.00.