OSS: Intro

The Office of Strategic Services (OSS)

Formation

William J. "Wild Bill" Donovan, pictured right, traveled around Europe in the early years of the war, meeting with intelligence officials and learning about the new Special Operations Executive. He firmly believed that the US should invest more resources into creating an intelligence organization that would be prepared for war. With an imminent threat of war on the horizon, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was being encouraged by intelligence agents including Britain's William Stephenson and Donovan himself to create an intelligence agency. Roosevelt founded the White House Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI) in July 1941 and named Donovan as the head of the organization.

Following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, a more concerted effort was put into building a new intelligence organization, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) replaced COI in June 1942 to coordinate espionage activities during World War II.

The new agency began recruiting a number of prominent lawyers, business people, and Ivy Leaguers, so much so that people dubbed the OSS "Oh So Social."

OSS: Body

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WWII Activities

There were various branches within the agency but seven primary branches were:

Research and Analysis (R&A) — processed received intelligence
Research and Development (R&D) — created and built useful espionage devices
Secret Intelligence (SI) — recruited foreign agents and built networks
Special Operations (SO) — assisted resistance fighters and sabotaged the enemy by running guerrilla campaigns
Operational Group (OG) — small, specially trained groups of soldiers who trained and fought alongside resistance fighters
Counterintelligence Branch (X-2) — collected intelligence on Axis espionage efforts; coordinated with the SOE
Morale Operations (MO) — created "black" propaganda or disinformation

Less experienced than their British intelligence counterparts, the OSS turned to the SOE to learn and implement some intelligence tactics. At its peak in 1944, roughly 8,500 men and 4,500 women had served in the agency, 7,500 of which were overseas.

OSS: Conclusion

After the War

Precursor to the CIA

The OSS was officially dissolved in October 1945, and Donovan was given only 10 days to dismantle the agency. But the established Secret Intelligence and Counterintelligence branches would lend themselves to the formation of the Central Intelligence Agency in 1947.

Four CIA directors came from the OSS, and other employees included SOE and OSS spy Virginia Hall.

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