The water supply at the Nestorian refugee camp. Baghdad, 1927.

Location

Baghdad, Iraq

Year

1927

Item Detail

Water was available for only four or five hours each morning when Acheson inspected the Assyrian refugee camp on June 26. His diary described a temporary shortage. The inscription used the name “Nestorian refugee camp” for the settlement, while the diary called it Assyrian.

Context

Barclay Acheson, an ordained minister, became Near East Relief’s Associate General Secretary in 1922. He visited its orphanages that summer and in 1923 assumed direction of relief work in Greece, Syria, and the Caucasus. Based in Athens during the population exchange between Greece and Turkey, he had become Director of Overseas Operations by 1925. His inspections addressed children’s care, education, and placement outside orphanages. He later served as Executive Secretary of the Near East Foundation until leaving for full-time work at Reader’s Digest in 1937.

This photograph is part of Acheson’s collection documenting Near East Relief and the Near East Foundation. The photographs recorded orphanage life, nursing, vocational training, refugee settlements, and the journeys between relief stations. His surviving diaries recorded the visits and administrative decisions that accompanied this work. The Thompson/Acheson family donated the material to the Near East Foundation, which subsequently transferred it to the Rockefeller Archive Center. NERHS used digital files retained in NEF’s Acheson holdings.

View in the Digital Archive

  • Holding Institution

    Rockefeller Archive Center

  • External Link
    https://dimes.rockarch.org/objects/WbyLXQZW48MeVVkmmsGo3s

  • Attribution

    Rockefeller Archive Center. Near East Foundation records. Barclay Acheson, Series 12.

  • Rights

    This material is protected by copyright. Permission has been granted for its non-commercial research and educational display by NERHS. Uses beyond this permission may require permission from the rights holder. Users are responsible for determining rights status and compliance with applicable law. If you believe you hold rights in this material or have information about rights holders not currently reflected, please contact [email protected].

  • Notes

    Photo verso, scan FA406_S12_B009_325:
    “Water Supply, Nestor-
    ian Refugee Camp,
    Baghdad.
    June 26, 1927.
    B.C.P. 10”

    Sources for the Item Detail

    • Barclay Acheson, Diary 1927 Part 2, June 26, 1927, stamped p. 208: “they have water for four or five hours each morning.” https://neareastrelief.org/asset/89017/

    About this group

    Barclay Acheson Collection, Rockefeller Archive Center.

    • Near East Foundation, A Lasting Impact: The Near East Foundation Celebrates a Century of Service (2015), p. 36, ‘Barclay Acheson’: “Associate General Secretary for NER in 1922” and “By 1925, Acheson had become the Director of Overseas Operations.” https://neareast.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/A-Lasting-Impact-.pdf#page=43

    • Barclay Acheson, Diary 1927 Part 2, June 26, 1927, stamped p. 208: “went with Bridgeman to see the so-called Assyrian refugee camp” https://neareastrelief.org/asset/89017/

    • Barclay Acheson, Diary 1927 Part 2, July 11, 1927, stamped p. 265: “I went to the orphanage and took some interesting pictures of the children building playhouses.” https://neareastrelief.org/asset/89017/

The water supply at the Nestorian refugee camp. Baghdad, 1927.