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{
    "localId": "2825653",
    "label": "Butterfield Interview Transcript - \"Salient\" Portions",
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    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2825653"
}

{
    "id": "2825653",
    "sourceUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2825653",
    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "Butterfield Interview Transcript - \"Salient\" Portions",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2825653",
    "collections": [
        "Alexander P. Butterfield Papers",
        "Alexander Butterfield Interview Notes and Transcript"
    ],
    "subjects": [
        "Governmental investigations",
        "Watergate Affair, 1972-1974"
    ],
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{
    "url": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2825653",
    "naId": 2825653,
    "coverageEndDate": {
        "logicalDate": "1973-07-31",
        "month": 7,
        "year": 1973
    },
    "coverageStartDate": {
        "logicalDate": "1973-07-01",
        "month": 7,
        "year": 1973
    },
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    "recordType": "description",
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{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "document",
    "url": "https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/ford/grf-0187/648225/2825653.pdf",
    "mediaId": "5c1131903ba84a97",
    "ocrText": "The original documents are located in Box 1, folder \"Interview Transcript of \"Salient\"\nPortions\" of the Alexander P. Butterfield Papers, 1973 at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential\nLibrary.\nCopyright Notice\nThe copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of\nphotocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Gerald R. Ford donated to the United\nStates of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.\nWorks prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public\ndomain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to\nremain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid\ncopyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.\nat\nthe\nGerald\nR.\nFord\nPresidential\nLibrary\nthis stenographic notebook the\ninterview of Alexander Builefield\nby Watergate Commutee staff on\nFriday, July 13, 1973\nAt was in this interview that\nMr Butterfield stated that\nthere is tape in the oval office 11\nthe accompanying 15pages of\nhand- consion notes represent\nmy veriration pronscription of\nthe salient portions of this\ninterview. the transcription\nwas made the day after\nMarismine ABraya\nAugust 25, 1974\nCERALE\nFORD\nORIGINAL RETIRED TO\nSPECIAL DOCUMENTS FILE\nthere is tape in the oval\noffice. Its Keps by the Ld &\nonly 4 Sd men know about 20.\nthis was pus in about\n2½ years ago - as the 18 month\npoint. the Presidens is very his-\ntory oriented about the rule he is\ngoing to play, and is not subtle\nabout is.\nHigby came to me t said\nthe President wants you to ges to- -\ngether w/the SS Y have the Oval\noffice, Cabines Room of EDB ses up\nfor taping.\nORIGINAL RETIRED TO\nSPECIAL DOCUMENTS FILE\nl got the technical security\npeople - Wong was in charge then\n- they did the sureping there\nTSD are the type that go to\nChina. they said OK. & did\nis on a weekend when the Presi-\nGERALD\ndent was our of town.\nLIBERA REFORD\nthere's a locater system\nin the White House. Steve Bull\nme and Haldeman had locater\nlights on our desks. Only activated\nby the Sd when the President\nwas in the Oval office\nthe taping devise. in\nthe Oval office is not running\nbut is triggered when you stars\nGERALD\ntalking\nR.\nFORD\nthis is all something\nP know the President didn's\nwant revealed Bus you're\nasped me & D full I should\nbe honest. l was told noone\nwas to know this\nA had a switch pus\non my phone which activated\nthe Cabines Room where he mes\nwy groups of 12 or more\nQuestion\nRe- - who Knew of the\ntaping system?\nOnly Higby Haldeman\nWong SS - Zoomwo\nCERRID\nLIBRATY FORD R\nGERALD\nLIBRARY FORD .4\nlocated under the White House.\nGERALD\nLISTATE FORD à\nQuestion\nWho Knew of the raping system\nonly Haldeman Highy Wong (SS)\nZumwalt (SS) & the telephone specialist\nQuestion\nwas Dean\n?\nl feel certain. Higly in\nmy own private thoughts.\nQuestion\nWho changed the tapes?\nthe secres service changed\nthe Hapes @ least once a day.\nQuestion\nwhere is the master units\nlocated?\ntheyre located under the White Hour House\nTweston\nRe - location of recording\ndevices?\nCERALD\nHERARY\n&\nFord\nPresidents telephone in the\nLincoln Room, Oval office, EDB\nInner office, Presidents telephone\nin his study 0 Camp David\nthere is a storage\nproblem on the vapes\nZumwals takes the rape\noff\nWhen Low Sims came\nall Wong said was 'f told\nhim about the thing\nLIBRARY FORD\ny\nHas always\nin the\nEOB with locks on them that\nno one Knows about.\nAnd I told my secretary\nmary sidley.\nGERALD\nLIBRATA FORD\nthe Cabines Room can be\ncut off.\nEOB is activated by locater\nlight\nIn the Oval office -all\n20 takes is sound\nIn those offices tapes\nof the cabines room the sound\nis not so good\nGERALD\nFORD LERARY y\nthe whole idea was historical\nQuestion\nDo you recall any memos\nthat this was done in the Johnson\nAdministration?\nl have heard that LBJ\nhad a lot of things recorded -\n& the SS indicated that they\nplayed these tape games before\nQuestion\nwere there transcriptions\never made of the tapes or did he\never request a tape ?\nno- - not to my Knowledge.\nDean would not know\nabout is\nL\numwals put the tapes\n2n the storage area\nALD\nLIBRATY FORD\nRuestan\nWhere are the tapes located\nphysically?\nOne place is in the main\ncorridor back of the stair behind\nan iron gate\nQuestion\nBav\nWould you say that\nthis material was being processed\nfor the Archives?\nHe said to Holdeman\nthat the smartest thing to do\nis to get 4 or 5 trustworthy\npeople ( to do nothing but\nTranscribe to tapes for the\nprchives\nthey planned for Trudy\nBrown to be in charge of this\nthere is not cus-off.\nQuestion\ncould it be cris-off in\nthe oval office.\nno.\nno the SS activates\nS/A\nWe're getting beyond\nvicinity of & conversation\nS/A\nL\nthe plan was that is would\nbe typed?\nGERALD\nLIBRATE FORD\nyes\nZumwals dated the Hapes.\nHe takes whole thing off at the\nend of the day\nQuestion\nto your knowledge there\nis no manual cutoff\nno manual cub off.\nin oval office which\nis activated when the light is on\nreflecting the President's being in\nthe room.\nI have heard them &\nthere is nothing wrong w/ the\ntapes @ all (re oval office etc )\nthe tapes are very bad\n& almoso inaudible in the\nCabines Room\nGERALD\nFORD\nthe President never\ninquired about the tapes.\nQuestion\nHas President ever re -\nquested that Sd. not activate\nlocater light?\nno.\nthe President has had\nCabines meetings of didn't wans\nanyone in there And Dwas\nsure that he didn't want that\nrecorded\nGERALD\nFORD .-\nAo camp David the taping\ndevice is on the phone 0 in the\nstudy called Aspin\nthe SS was concered\nabout that because if state\nvisitors come they stay in\nthere. they have their own\nsecurity guards\nIt might be taken off\n& removed\nthis information was\nnot in session w/ Special\nProsecutor\nGERALD\nLIBRATE FORD\nWhen Haig was appointed\nI yold him about that since\nhe had Haldimans functions\nof he said \"I know, I\nknow about that.\""
}