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Baxter Art Gallery records, 1962-1997

Creator:
Baxter Art Gallery  Search this
Subject:
Smith, David R. (David Rodman)  Search this
Schwartz, Lillian  Search this
Belloli, Jay  Search this
Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts  Search this
California Institute of Technology  Search this
Citation:
Baxter Art Gallery records, 1962-1997. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Motion pictures (visual works)  Search this
Space photography  Search this
Theme:
Art Gallery Records  Search this
Art organizations  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)8504
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)210681
AAA_collcode_baxtart
Theme:
Art Gallery Records
Art organizations
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_210681
Online Media:

Baxter Art Gallery records

Creator:
Baxter Art Gallery  Search this
Names:
California Institute of Technology  Search this
Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts  Search this
Belloli, Jay  Search this
Schwartz, Lillian  Search this
Smith, David R. (David Rodman), 1923-  Search this
Extent:
17 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1962-1997
Summary:
The records of the Baxter Art Gallery measure 17 linear feet and date from 1962 to 1997. The collection documents the activities of the gallery founded by Professor David Smith in 1971 on the campus of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California. Documentation includes administrative records, business correspondence, programs and events, exhibition files, and printed material, as well as three films by artist Lillian Schwartz shown at the gallery. The bulk of the collection (9.7 linear feet) consists of Exhibition Files, which document nearly every exhibition held at the gallery from 1971 to 1985. Of note are detailed records regarding "25 Years of Space Photography," the last exhibition held at Baxter Art Gallery in 1985 which toured internationally through 1997. Also included are records of the Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts, which was founded by former director Jay Belloli after Baxter Art Gallery closed.
Scope and Contents:
The records of the Baxter Art Gallery measure 17 linear feet and date from 1962 to 1997. The collection documents the activities of the gallery founded by Professor David Smith in 1971 on the campus of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California. Documentation includes administrative records, business correspondence, programs and events, exhibition files, and printed material, as well as three films by artist Lillian Schwartz shown at the gallery. The bulk of the collection (9.7 linear feet) consists of Exhibition Files, which document nearly every exhibition held at the gallery from 1971 to 1985. Of note are detailed records regarding "25 Years of Space Photography," the last exhibition held at Baxter Art Gallery in 1985 which toured internationally through 1997. Also included are records of the Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts, which was founded by former director Jay Belloli after Baxter Art Gallery closed.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 7 series.

Series 1: Administrative Records, 1970-1987 (Boxes 1-4, Box 21; 3.4 linear feet)

Series 2: Business Correspondence, 1969-1988 (Box 4, Box 21; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 3: Programs and Events, 1971-1986 (Boxes 4-5, Box 21; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1968-1997 (Boxes 5-14, Box 21, FC 17; 9.7 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1962-1989 (Box 14, Box 21, OV 16, OV 23; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 6: Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts Records, 1981-1990 (Boxes 14-15, Boxes 21-22, OV 23; 1.6 linear feet)

Series 7: Motion Picture Film, circa 1970, circa 1975 (FC 18-20; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Baxter Art Gallery (1971-1985) was an art exhibition space at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California founded by Professor David Smith.

David R. Smith, professor of Literature, established an exhibition program for Caltech in 1968 as part of the Institute Programs Committee. In 1971 Baxter Art Gallery was formally established as part of the new Donald E. Baxter Hall of the Humanities and Social Sciences. The majority of the exhibitions focused on contemporary art, with a special interest in Southern California artists and art and technology. David Smith became the first gallery director. After years of struggling to find funding for exhibitions, in 1977 the gallery received sponsorship from the Pasadena Art Alliance. The establishment of Friends of the Baxter Art Gallery around this time allowed for more educational programs around the exhibitions, such as lectures, informal talks, films, tours, and performances.

Michael H. Smith served as director from 1977 to 1982, followed by Jay Belloli, director from 1982 to 1985. In 1984 the closing of the gallery was announced, despite outcry from faculty and the public. The last exhibition "25 Years of Space Photography" was held at the gallery from May 22 to September 2, 1985. That exhibition continued to tour internationally to over 50 museums under the curatorship of Jay Belloli.

After Baxter Art Gallery closed Belloli established the Pasadena Gallery of Contemporary Arts and worked to find a new exhibition space. This gallery in collaboration with the Pasadena Arts Workshop became the Armory Center for the Arts in 1989 and Belloli served as Director of Gallery Programs.
Provenance:
The records were donated in 1986 by the Baxter Art Gallery via David Smith and Jay Belloli, Directors, and in 1991 by David Grether, chair of the Division of Humanities at the California Institute of Technology. Additional records were donated in 2011 and 2019 by Jay Belloli.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Motion pictures (visual works)  Search this
Space photography  Search this
Function:
Art galleries, University and college -- California
Citation:
Baxter Art Gallery records, 1962-1997. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.baxtart
See more items in:
Baxter Art Gallery records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw92ed49ae7-3a0b-41ef-b06c-78185ad17790
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-baxtart
Online Media:

Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation records

Creator:
Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation  Search this
Director:
Heye, George G. (George Gustav), 1874-1957  Search this
Dockstader, Frederick J.  Search this
Names:
Ford-Bartlett East Greenland Expedition 1930  Search this
Harriman Alaska Expedition (1899)  Search this
Hendricks-Hodge Expedition (1917-1923).  Search this
Huntington Free Library  Search this
Hyde Exploring Expedition (1902-1903)  Search this
Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation  Search this
Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research  Search this
Collector:
Barrett, S. A. (Samuel Alfred), 1879-1965  Search this
Churchill, Clara G.  Search this
Churchill, Frank C. (Frank Carroll), 1850-1912  Search this
Davis, Edward H., b. 1862  Search this
Emmons, George Thornton  Search this
Gridley, Marion E. (Marion Eleanor), 1906-1974  Search this
Harrington, M. R. (Mark Raymond), 1882-1971  Search this
Harvey, Byron  Search this
Harvey, Fred  Search this
Hodge, Frederick Webb, 1864-1956  Search this
Johnson, Frederick, 1904-1994  Search this
Keppler, Udo J., 1872-1956  Search this
Lothrop, S. K. (Samuel Kirkland), 1892-1965  Search this
Pepper, George H. (George Hubbard), 1873-1924  Search this
Skinner, Alanson, 1886-1925  Search this
Speck, Frank G. (Frank Gouldsmith), 1881-1950  Search this
Stiles, William F., 1912-1980  Search this
Verrill, A. Hyatt (Alpheus Hyatt), 1871-1954  Search this
Waterman, T. T. (Thomas Talbot), 1885-1936  Search this
Wildschut, William  Search this
Former owner:
Burnett, Edwin K.  Search this
Force, Roland W.  Search this
Extent:
400 Linear feet
Culture:
Indians of North America  Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Administrative records
Photographs
Annual reports
Field notes
Correspondence
Ledgers (account books)
Minutes
Date:
1890-1998
Summary:
These records document the governance and programmatic activities of the Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation (MAI) from its inception in 1904 until its sublimation by the Smithsonian Institution in 1990. The types of materials present in this collection include personal and institutional correspondence, individual subject files, minutes and annual reports, financial ledgers, legal records, expedition field notes, research notes, catalog and object lists, publications, clippings, flyers, maps, photographs, negatives and audio-visual materials. These materials span a varied range of subjects relating to the activities of the museum which are more fully described on the series level.
Scope and Contents:
These records document the governance and programmatic activities of the Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation (MAI) from its inception in 1904 until its sublimation by the Smithsonian Institution in 1990. The types of materials present in this collection include personal and institutional correspondence, individual subject files, minutes and annual reports, financial ledgers, legal records, expedition field notes, research notes, catalog and object lists, publications, clippings, flyers, maps, photographs, negatives and audio-visual materials. These materials span a varied range of subjects relating to the activities of the museum which are more fully described on the series level.
Arrangement:
The MAI, Heye Foundation records have been arranged into 21 series and 50 subseries: Series 1: Directors, 1908-1990 (1.1: George Gustav Heye, 1863-1962, 1.2: Edwin K. Burnett, 1943-1960, 1.3: Frederick Dockstader, 1950-1976, 1.4: Alexander F. Draper, 1972-1977, 1.5:Roland W. Force, 1963-1990, 1.6: George Eager, Assistant Director, 1977-1990) Series 2: Board of Trustees, 1916-1990 (2.1: Board of Trustee Minutes, 1916-1990, 2.2: Individual Board Correspondence, 1943-1990, 2.3: Subject Files, 1917-1990) Series 3: Administrative, 1916-1989 (3.1: Subject Files, 1904-1991, 3.2: Personnel, 1956-1991, 3.3: Legal, 1900-1989, 3.4: Task Force, 1976-1986, 3.5: George Abrams, 1980-1991) Series 4: Financial, 1916-1990 (4.1: Ledgers, 1900-1962, 4.2: Correspondence, 1905-1985, 4.3: Subject Files, 1916-1990) Series 5: Expeditions, 1896-1973Series 6: Collectors, 1872-1981Series 7: Registration, 1856-1993Series 8: Collections Management, 1937-1988Series 9: Curatorial, 1963-1990 (9.1: Curatorial Council, 1973-1990, 9.2: Gary Galante, 1979-1991, 9.3: Mary Jane Lenz, 1974-1994, 9.4: James G. E. Smith, 1963-1990, 9.5: U. Vincent Wilcox, 1968-1984, 9.6: Anna C. Roosevelt, 1973-1988) Series 10: Exhibits, 1923-1991 (10.1: MAI Exhibits, 1923-1990, 10.2: Non-MAI Exhibits, 1937-1991) Series 11: Public Programs, 1935-1990Series 12: Publications, 1904-1994 (12.1: Annual Reports, 1917-1989, 12.2: Publications by MAI, 1904-1990, 12.3: Publications by Other Sources, 1881-1990, 12.4: Administration, 1920-1988, 12.5: Archival Set of Official Publications, 1907-1976) Series 13: Public Affairs, 1938-1991Series 14: Development, 1927-1991 (14.1: Administration, 1979-1990, 14.2: Donors, 1978-1990, 14.3: Fundraising, 1973-1990, 14.4: Grants, 1970-1990, 14.5: Subject Files, 1976-1990) Series 15: Other Departments, 1914-1990 (15.1: Archives, 1914-1990, 15.2: Conservation, 1972-1989, 15.3: Education, 1921-1990, 15.4: Indian Information Center, 1977-1989, 15.5: Museum Shop, 1947-1989, 15.6: Photography, 1918-1990, 15.7: Physical Anthropology, 1919-1956) Series 16: Huntington Free Library, 1926-1991Series 17: Museum Relocation, 1969-1992 (17.1: Subject Files, 1979-1990, 17.2: American Museum of Natural History, 1980-1987, 17.3: Dallas, Texas, 1984-1987, 17.4: Smithsonian Institution, 1979-1990, 17.5: U.S. Custom House, 1977-1990, 17.6: Other Locations, 1974-1987) Series 18: MediaSeries 19: PhotographsSeries 20: Miscellaneous, 1837-1990Series 21: Oversize, 1873-1972 (21.1: Maps, 1873-1975, 21.2: Miscellaneous, 1884-1982)
History of the Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation:
The Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation was established by wealthy collector George Gustav Heye in 1908. Heye began collecting American Indian artifacts as early as 1897 and his collection rapidly increased over the next several years. Based in New York, Heye bought collections and documentary photographs, sponsored expeditions, and traveled and collected items himself. In addition, once MAI was established he sponsored numerous expeditions across the Western Hemisphere, including North American, Canada, South America and Central America.

From 1908 to 1917 Heye housed his artifacts on temporary loan at the University of Pennsylvania's University Museum, Pennsylvania, in lofts on East 33rd Street in New York City, and at other depositories. In 1917, the collections moved from his apartment to their permanent museum location at Audubon Terrace, at 155th Street and Broadway in New York City. The museum, containing ethnographic and archaeological collections from North, Central and South America, opened to the public in 1922. Less than ten years later, Heye completed a storage facility in the Pelham Bay area of the Bronx, known as the Research Branch. Heye served as Chairman of the Board and Museum Director until his death in 1957. After growing concern about the financial and other management of the collections came to a head, the museum became part of the Smithsonian Institution in 1989 and in 1994 opened exhibit space in the U.S. Customs House at Bowling Green near New York City's Battery Park. The Cultural Resources Center in Suitland, Maryland later opened in 1999 and the main Washington, DC museum opened in 2004.

Please visit the following links for more information about the history of the museum; History of the Collection, Collections Overview, and Significance of the Collection. Moreover, for information about how the museum currently cares for and exhibits the collection, please see the Conservation department and recent entries regarding Exhibitions and Conservation on the NMAI Blog. In addition, see portions of the NMAI Archive Center's collections highlighted in the SIRIS Blog.
Related Materials:
In 2004, the Huntington Fee Library, once part of the MAI/Heye Foundation, was transferred to the Cornell University Library Rare Book and Manuscript Collection. While this collection mainly contained books, it also contained a significant amount of archival materials. The Huntington Free Library's Native American Collection contains outstanding materials documenting the history, culture, languages, and arts of the native tribes of both North and South America, as well as contemporary politics and human rights issues are also important components of the collection. Further information about the collection and links to finding aids can be found here: rmc.library.cornell.edu/collections/HFL_old.html.
Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Rights:
Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. Permission to publish or broadcast materials from the collection must be requested from the National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiarchives@si.edu.
Topic:
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Peru  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Tennessee  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- New York (State)  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Panama  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- New Jersey  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- New Mexico  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Missouri  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Nevada  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- California  Search this
Indians of South America  Search this
Indians of Central America  Search this
Pre-Columbian objects  Search this
Museum exhibits  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Texas  Search this
Museums -- Collection management  Search this
Archaeological expeditions  Search this
Ethnological expeditions  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology)  Search this
Museums -- Acquisitions  Search this
Museums -- Curatorship  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Cuba  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Ecuador  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Arkansas  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Canada  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Guatemala  Search this
Excavations (Archaeology) -- Haiti  Search this
Genre/Form:
Administrative records
Photographs
Annual reports
Field notes
Correspondence
Ledgers (account books)
Minutes
Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation Records, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAI.AC.001
See more items in:
Museum of the American Indian/Heye Foundation records
Archival Repository:
National Museum of the American Indian
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sv412df8cf1-44c0-41fd-9101-eefb477e5aef
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmai-ac-001
Online Media:

Aleš Hrdlička papers

Creator:
Hrdlička, Aleš, 1869-1943  Search this
Correspondent:
American Association of Physical Anthropologists  Search this
Names:
American Journal of Physical Anthropology  Search this
Army Medical Museum (U.S.)  Search this
Hyde Exploring Expedition (1902-1903)  Search this
Institute of Population  Search this
International Congress of Americanists  Search this
Panama-California Exposition (1915 : San Diego, Calif.)  Search this
Smithsonian Institution. Department of Anthropology. Division of Physical Anthropology  Search this
Extent:
206.71 Linear feet (294 boxes, 138 folders, 9 rolled items, and 4 folios)
Culture:
Indians of North America  Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Place:
Saint Lawrence Island (Alaska) -- Archaeology
Australia
Alaska -- Archaeology
Mexico -- Anthropology
Florida -- Archaeology
Egypt -- Archaeology
Czechoslovakia
Peru -- Physical anthropology
Kodiak Island (Alaska)
Date:
1875-1966
bulk 1903-1943
Summary:
The papers of Aleš Hrdlička, curator in the Division of Physical Anthropology, Department of Anthropology, United States National Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, offer considerable insight into the development of physical anthropology in the first half of this century. The papers include honors bestowed on Hrdlička, autobiographical notes, correspondence with many of the leading anthropologists of the day, anthropometric and osteometric measurements and observations (forming most of the collection), extensive photographs of Hrdlička's field work, manuscripts, research materials, and "My Journeys" (essentially a diary Hrdlička kept of his field work). In addition, there is material of a personal nature. The papers date from 1875 to 1966, but the bulk of the materials date from 1903 to 1943, the time of Hrdlička's career at the USNM.
Scope and Contents:
This collection is comprised of both professional and personal materials. The professional material includes honors bestowed on Hrdlička, autobiographical notes, correspondence with many of the leading anthropologists of the day, anthropometric and osteometric measurements and observations (forming most of the collection), extensive photographs of Hrdlička's field work, manuscripts, research materials, and "My Journeys" (essentially a diary Hrdlička kept of his field work). The personal material primarily consists of correspondence with his first wife (Marie Dieudonnée Strickler) and other family members, but there are also financial records. The papers date from 1875 to 1966, but the bulk of the materials date from 1903 to 1943, the time of Hrdlička's career at the United States National Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Hrdlička investigated all major questions confronting physical anthropologists of his day (the fossil record of early humans, the arrival of humans in the Americas, human variation, evolution, and eugenics) and made valuable contributions in all these areas. Hrdlička's interests in the establishment of physical anthropology as a distinct and important field, the welfare of the Czech people, early hominids, and variation within the human species are all documented in the collection as are the services he performed for various United States government agencies. He pursued field studies in many different parts of the world, but there are relatively few field notes as such among his papers. There is instead the edited journal "My Journeys," photographs, and physical anthropological forms. There is also relatively little material on his administrative involvement in the USNM. There is no material from Hrdlička's time at the Pathological Institution of the New York State Hospitals; after he resigned, fire destroyed the anthropological records Hrdlička collected as a member of the staff. There are materials in the collection which contradict, or at least complicate, many long-held criticisms of Hrdlička, particularly claims that he was racist and opposed feminist ideas. The collection contains materials of interest to genetic research, including anthropometric measurements, hair clippings and fingerprints.

There are a few items in the collection which are dated earlier than the collection's date span. These are publication dates, and the folders containing the items have been dated accordingly, but they have not affected the dates of the series or collection. There are also a few items which are dated after Hrdlička's death. These dates reflect the fact that the collection was added to by the Department of Physical Anthropology after Hrdlička's death and have been taken into account when formulating dates for the series and collection.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged in 37 series:

(1) Miscellaneous Personal Papers, 1875-1940

(2) Early Personal Correspondence, 1883-1919

(3) Correspondence, 1885-1953

(4) News Clippings and Printed Matter, 1893-1953

(5) Financial Papers, 1910-1943

(6) Journeys to the Southwestern United States and Mexican Indians, 1898-1919

(7) Journeys to the Dakota, Chippewa, Kickapoo, and Shawnee, 1916-1917

(8) Florida Survey, 1918, 1918-1927

(9) Alaska Archeological Expeditions, 1912-1938 (bulk 1926-1938)

(10) Panama-California Exposition Expeditions, 1912-1914

(11) Journey to Egypt, Europe, and Russia, 1908-1909

(12) Journey to South America, 1910, 1910-1912

(13) Journey to the Far East, 1920, 1900-1930

(14) Journey to Australia, Java, India, South Africa, and Europe, 1924-1925

(15) Anthropometric Measurements of Indians Taken at the United States National Museum, 1904-1905, most undated

(16) Bone Studies, 1893-1929, most undated

(17) Old Americans, 1914-1930

(18) Children Who Run on All Fours, 1928-1936

(19) Early Man Studies, 1906-1930

(20) European Ethnic History, 1908-1938

(21) Miscellaneous Research Notes, 1887-1930

(22) Manuscripts of Writings, 1901-1944, most undated

(23) Writings by Other Authors, 1877-1942

(24) Anthropometry, undated

(25) "From My Journeys", 1898-1938

(26) -- American Journal of Physical Anthropology -- , 1918-1931

(27) American Association of Physical Anthropologists, 1924-1931

(28) International Congress of Americanists, 1900-1928

(29) Institute of Population, 1942

(30) Department of Anthropology, 1914-1943

(31) Lecture Notes, 1920-1932

(32) Maps and Charts, 1900-1932

(33) Miscellany, 1895-1954

(34) Index Cards, 1899-1948

(35) Bibliographic Index, undated

(36) Physical Anthropology Folios, undated

(37) Photographs, 1887-1944
Biographical Note:
Aleš Hrdlička was born in Bohemia in 1869 and came to America when he was thirteen. As a young man, he was trained in medicine at New York's Eclectic Medical College and the New York Homeopathic Medical College, receiving degrees from each. His first professional work was as a private practitioner, but he gave that up in 1894 when he joined the staff of the New York State Hospital for the Insane at Middletown. There, in addition to other duties, he began studies of the physical characteristics of inmates. This set in motion developments that would eventually lead him to become one of the world's most prominent anthropologists who has sometimes been referred to as "the founder of physical anthropology in America."

In 1896, in preparation for a research appointment with the Department of Anthropology in the Pathological Institute of the New York State Hospitals, Hrdlička went to Paris and studied with Leon Manouvrier. After his return to America, he worked for a short period with the Pathological Institute and came into contact with G.S. Huntington of the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York. Hrdlička arranged and studied Huntington's large collection of skeletal material, thus gaining knowledge of a well-documented collection representing largely normal persons of European ancestry. He came to the attention of Frederic Ward Putnam, of the American Museum of Natural History, who arranged for his first anthropological field studies.

It was thus that Hrdlička became a member of the Hyde Expeditions to the American Southwest and northern Mexico. In 1898, he traveled to Mexico with Carl Lumholtz to study the Tarahumaras, Huichols, and neighboring tribes. In subsequent years, he returned to Mexico and the Southwest alone and studied physical characteristics and medical conditions of several American Indian tribes. With this experience and examinations of the Trenton and Lansing skeletal material for Putnam, Hrdlička came fully into the world of anthropology. In 1903, he was appointed head of the newly formed Division of Physical Anthropology in the United States National Museum.

While in his position at the Smithsonian, Hrdlička returned to the Southwest for studies of Pima and Apache children in 1905 and, in the following year, traveled to Florida to examine allegedly ancient remains of man. In 1908, he worked among a number of Indian tribes, including the Menominee, Oglala Dakota, Quinailt, Hupa, and Mohave, in a study of tuberculosis among them. In 1909, he traveled to Egypt with an expedition of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in order to study living Egyptians and to examine remains of Egypt's past population. The following year took him to Argentina, Peru, and Mexico. In the first of these, he again examined allegedly ancient remains of man. In Peru, he made a large collection of skeletal material near Trujillo, at Pachamac, and in the Chicama Valley.

From 1912-1914, Hrdlicka undertook a physical anthropological exhibit for the Panama-California Exposition in San Diego and, for this, traveled to eastern Siberia, Mongolia, Peru, and Florida. He also examined fossil remains of man in Europe and directed field work of other anthropologists in South and East Africa, St. Lawrence Island in Alaska, the Philippines, eastern Siberia, and the Ukraine. In 1915, for the Department of Justice, he assessed the racial makeup of Chippewas on the Leech Lake and White Earth reservations in Minnesota and also studied Dakota Indians. In 1917, his field work was directed toward white American families with longtime residence in the United States. In 1918, he carried out a survey of ancient sites in eastern Florida for the Bureau of American Ethnology. In 1920, he traveled to Hawaii, Japan, Korea, and Manchuria in connection with an appointment to lecture at the Peking Union Medical College. As director of the American School for Prehistoric Studies in France, he again studied fossil remains of man in Europe in 1922 and 1923. In 1925, he carried out work in India, Ceylon, Java, Australia, South Africa, and Europe. In 1927, he was again in Europe to deliver the Huxley Memorial Lecture before the Royal Anthropological Society in Great Britain. Between 1929 and 1938, he traveled frequently to Alaska to carry on an anthropological survey. In 1939, he traveled to Russia and Siberia.

Beginning with much of the skeletal collection of the Army Medical Museum, which had been transferred to the Smithsonian in 1898 before he was appointed there, Hrdlička amassed a bone collection that included, among many other specimens, the Huntington collection, casts of fossil remains of man, and a large and diverse North American collection. He also gathered a large collection of human brains. Over three hundred publications resulted from his study of this material, his field work, and his study of specimens in other museums. In addition, he was involved in many other activities. For United States government agencies, he provided services ranging from examinations of human remains for law enforcement officials to providing information and opinions concerning national origins and traits that were needed to interpret laws and form foreign policy. During World War II, he also advised government officials on policies to be pursued with certain national groups following the war.

In 1918, Hrdlička founded the American Journal of Physical Anthropology and remained its editor until 1942. In 1928, he was the major force behind the organization of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists and served as its president from 1928 to 1932. He was also president of the Anthropological Society of Washington in 1907, the American Anthroplogical Association from 1925 to 1927, and the Washington Academy of Sciences from 1928 to 1929. He was chairman of Section H of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1918 and secretary of the Committee on Anthropology of the National Research Council in 1917. From the 1920s to the 1940s Hrdlicka was a member of the American Eugenics Society and prepared exhibits for various eugenics congresses. In addition, Hrdlička was a member of the American Philosophical Society and the National Academy of Sciences. He represented the Smithsonian at several international gatherings of scholars, including meetings of the International Congress of Americanists.

Chronology

1869 March 29 -- Alois Ferdinand Hrdlička (Aleš Hrdlička) born in Humpolec, Bohemia

1882 September -- Emigrated to New York City

1888 -- While stricken with typhoid, met M. Rosenbleuth, a physician who arranged for Hrdlička to enroll at the Eclectic Medical College of New York City

1892 -- Enrolled in the New York Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital Published first article, "Scheme of Examination (Medical)," Publications of the Eclectic Medical College Graduated first in his class from the Eclectic Medical College

1894 -- Graduated first from his class from the Homeopathic Medical College Became research intern at the State Homeopathic Hospital for the Insane in Middletown, New York, where he began his studies in physical anthropology Passed state board examination (allopathic)

1895 -- Joined staff of the Pathological Institute of the New York State Hospitals as associate in anthropology

1896 -- Studied anthropology under Leon Manouvrier in Paris

1896 August 6 -- Married Marie Stickler (Dieudonnée)

1898 March-July(?) -- Accompanied Carl Lumholtz on his expedition to northern Mexico, sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), and visited the Tarahumara, Huichol, and Tepecan Indians

1899 Spring -- Resigned from the Pathological Institute to take charge of physical and medical anthropological research on the Hyde Expeditions of the AMNH to the southwestern United States

1899 August -- Hyde expedition for the AMNH to Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, to excavate the site of Pueblo Bonito and to conduct somatological surveys among the Indians; visited Grand Gulch caves in southern Utah; included visits to the Navahos and southern Utes

1900 -- Hyde expedition for the AMNH to New Mexico, Arizona, and southern Colorado to conduct somatological surveys among the Indians; included visits to the Apaches, Yumas, and Pueblo Indians

1902 January-September -- Hyde expeditions for AMNH to southwestern Arizona, New Mexico, and northern Mexico to conduct somatological surveys; included visits to the Tepecanos, Papagos, Opatas, Pimas, Yaquis, Mayos, Huichols, Otomis, Tepehuanes, Maricopas, Yumas, Yavapais, Paiutes, Walapais, and Havasupais

1902 October-December -- Hyde expedition for the AMNH to Mexico for Hrdlička to complete his somatological investigations; included visits to the Tepehuanes, Coras, Huichols, "Nahuas," "Aztecs," and Tarascans

1903 May 1 -- Became assistant curator in charge of the new Division of Physical Anthropology, Department of Anthropology, at the United States National Museum, Smithsonian Institution

1905 -- Expedition under the auspices of the Bureau of American Ethnology to Arizona and New Mexico to complete the observations on the tribes of this region; Hrdlička especially studied Apache and Pima Indian children

1906 February -- Expedition to western Florida to investigate remains of alleged ancient man

1907 -- President of the Anthropological Society of Washington

1908 -- Expedition to Indian schools and reservations in Wisconsin, Washington, California, Arizona, and South Dakota to study tuberculosis for a report to the International Congress of Tuberculosis

1908 December - 1909 May -- Traveled to Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Hungary, Bohemia, Russia, Poland, and Germany to examine human skeletal remains from an excavation in Egypt by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and to study peoples of the Near East

1910 March 28 -- Promoted to curator in the Division of Physical Anthropology

1910 April-September -- Attended the 17th International Congress of Americanists in Buenos Aires and Mexico City Traveled to Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Mexico, and Panama

1912 -- Planned and directed seven expeditions for the physical anthropology exhibit at the Panama-California Exposition held at San Diego in 1915; expeditions included Hrdlička to Siberia and Mongolia and later to Peru; Riley D. Moore to St. Lawrence Island, Alaska; Philip Newton to the Philippine Islands; Vojtech Suk to Africa; Stanislaw Poniatowski to eastern Siberia; Kazimir Stolyhwo to the Birusa caves in Siberia and to the Ukraine; and Jindřich Matiegka to Bohemia

1912 May-Summer -- Traveled to London to attend 18th International Congress of Americanists Traveled to Siberia and Mongolia for the Panama-California Exposition

1912 September -- Traveled to Geneva for the 14th International Congress of Prehistoric Anthropology and Archaeology

1913 January-April -- Expedition to Peru as part the effort for the Panama-California Exposition

1914 November 18 - 1915 January 18 -- Attended Panama-California Exposition

1915 May -- Research for the Department of Justice at the White Earth and Leech Lake reservations in Minnesota to determine non-Indian mixture among Chippewas

1915 December -- Served as General Secretary for the 19th International Congress of Americanists held in Washington

1916 Fall -- Traveled to Florida to examine remains of supposed ancient man

1917 March-July -- Served as Secretary on the Committee on Anthropology of the National Research Council

1917 Summer -- "Old American" research at Yale University, Harvard University, and the University of Virginia and in Tennessee

1917 August -- Sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, traveled to Oklahoma to visit the Shawnee Agency in eastern Oklahoma and the Kickapoo Indians in McCloud to search for adequate samples of pure blood Indians

1918 -- Elected to the American Philosophical Society Served as Chairman of Section H of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Founded the American Journal of Physical Anthropology and became its long-time editor Surveyed prehistoric sites on the southwest coast of Florida

1918 October 8 -- Death of his wife Marie

1920 -- Anthropometry published by the Wistar Institute Elected an honorary fellow of the Royal Anthropological Society of Great Britain

1920 Summer -- Married Mina (Vilemina) Mansfield

1920 January-May -- Visited Japan, Korea, Manchuria, northern China, Mongolia, and Hawaii Lectured at Peking Union Medical College in China

1920 Fall -- Visited Minnesota Chippewa (at the White Earth Reservation?) to help the Department of Justice setter the question of mixed and pure bloods among the Chippewa

1921 -- Elected to the National Academy of Sciences

1922 -- Visited Spain, France, Germany, Moravia, and England Awarded honorary Sc.D. degree from the University of Prague Chairman of the American delegation to the 20th International Congress of Americanists in Rio de Janiero

1923 -- Served three and one-half months as Director of the American School in France for Prehistoric Studies Visited England, Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, Bohemia, Austria, Croatia, and Italy

1925 -- The Old Americans published by Williams and Wilkins Co.

1925 March-October -- Traveled to Australia, Java, India, South Africa, and Europe on a trip sponsored by the Buffalo [New York] Society of Natural Science to obtain cranial measurements of Australian aborigines and Tasmanians, to investigate the Rhodesian Man site in South Africa, to survey the field of early man, and to collect data to support his hypothesis about the peopling of the Earth

1925-1926 -- President of the American Anthropological Association

1926 -- Awarded honorary Sc.D. degree from University of Brno and D.Nat.Sc. degree from Brunn University

1926 May-September -- First fieldwork in Alaska: reconnaissance down the Yukon River to its mouth, around the Bering Sea and through the Bering Strait along the Alaskan coast to Point Barrow

1927 -- Received Huxley Memorial Medal and gave Huxley Lecture on "the Neanderthal Phase of Man" before the Royal Anthropological Society of Great Britain

1928 -- Helped found the American Association of Physical Anthropologists (AAPA)

1928-1929 -- President of the Washington Academy of Sciences

1928-1932 -- Served as first president of the AAPA

1929 -- Fieldwork in Alaska: surveyed the Yukon River from Tanana to its mouth, to St. Lawrence and the Diomede Islands, to Cape Prince of Wales, up to Point Barrow and back to Unalaska Awarded honorary Sc.D. degree from Charles University, Prague

1930 -- Published The Skeletal Remains of Early Man, Vol. 83 Smithsonian Miscellaneous collections Published "Anthropological Survey in Alaska," Forty-sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, pp. 21-374

1930 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: surveyed the Kuskokwim River from Bethel down river to Apogak and up river to Stony River

1931 -- Children Who Run on All Fours published by McGraw-Hill Book Co.

1931 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: excavated at Our (Jones) point site, trial excavations at Chief's Point and other sites, and a survey of Kodiak Island

1932 -- Kober Foundation lecturer of Georgetown University

1932 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: excavated at Our (Jones) Point site, trial excavations at Chief's Point and other sites, and a survey of Kodiak Island

1934 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: excavated at Our (Jones) Point site and surveyed Cooks Inlet sites and the mainland opposite the Our Point site

1935 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: excavated at Our (Jones) Point site

1936 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: excavated at Our (Jones) Point site and surveyed the Dutch Harbor caves, some of the Aleutian Islands, and the mummy cave on Kagamil Island

1937 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: surveyed the Aleutian Islands and Commander Islands

1938 Summer -- Fieldwork in Alaska: surveyed the Aleutian Islands, Dutch Harbor caves, and Commander Islands

1939 April 4 -- Testimonial dinner given by the American Association of Physical Anthropologists in honor of his 70th birthday

1939 April-June -- Recuperated in London hospital after suffering a coronary occlusion

1942 March 31 -- Retired from curatorship at United States National Museum, becoming an associate in anthropology

1942 December -- Resigned as editor of the American Journal of Physical Anthropology

1943 -- Alaska Diary published by Cattell Press

1943 September 5 -- Died of heart attack

1944 -- Anthropology of Kodiak Island published by Wistar Institute

1945 -- The Aleutian and Commander Islands and Their Inhabitants published by Wistar Institute

1969 -- Tenth Anthropological Congress of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences dedicated to Hrdlička in the 100th anniversary year of his birth

Selected Bibliography

1908 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Physiological and Medical Observations Among the Indians of Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. Bulletin 34, Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1908.

1912 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Early Man in South America. Bulletin 52, Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1912.

1919 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Physical Anthropology: Its Scope and Aims. Philadelphia: The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, 1919.

1920 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Anthropometry. Philadelphia: The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, 1920.

1925 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. The Old Americans. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1925.

1930 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. The Skeletal Remains of Early Man. Vol. 83, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections. City of Washington: The Smithsonian Institution, 1930. Hrdlička, Aleš. Anthropological Survey in Alaska. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1930.

1931 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Children Who Run on All Fours, and Other Animal-like Behaviors in the Human Child. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1931.

1943 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Alaska Diary, 1926-1931. Lancaster, PA: The Jacques Cattell Press, 1943.

1944 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. Anthropology of Kodiak Island. Philadelphia: The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, 1944.

1945 -- Hrdlička, Aleš. The Aleutian and Commander Islands and Their Inhabitants. Philadelphia: The Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, 1945.
Related Materials:
Additional material in the National Anthropological Archives relating to Aleš Hrdlička can be found in the papers of William Louis Abbott, Henry Bascom Collins, Herbert William Krieger, and Frank Spencer; records of the American Anthropological Association, Bureau of American Ethnology, Department of Anthropology of the United States National Museum (National Museum of Natural History), Science Service, Anthropological Society of Washington, and the United States Army Medical Museum (anatomical section, records relating to specimens transferred to the Smithsonian Institution); and glass negatives of Indians collected by the Bureau of American Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution illustrations.

Additional related photographs can be found in Photo Lot 8, Division of Physical Anthropology collection; Photo Lot 9, Photographs of Indians for the Panama-California Exposition, San Diego; Photo Lot 24, Bureau of American Ethnology, United States National Museum photographs of American Indians; Photo Lot 70, Department of Anthropology portrait file; Photo Lot 78, Miscellaneous negatives; Photo Lot 97, Division of Ethnology collection ("USNM" Collection); Photo Lot 73-26B, Aleš Hrdlička photographs relating to the Panama-California Exhibition; Photo Lot 73-26G, Miscellany; Photo Lot 77-48, Group portraits of International Congress; Photo Lot 79-38, Division of World Archeology collection; Photo Lot 83-41, Division of Physical Anthropology collection of photographs of human bones; and Photo Lot 92-46, Anthropology lantern slides.

Related films can be found in the Human Studies Film Archive under the accession numbers HSFA 1982.2.1, 1982.2.2, 1986.12.1, and 2015.13.1.

Hrdlička's extensive collection of reprints is maintained in the Division of Physical Anthropology.

Frank Spencer's doctoral dissertation "Aleš Hrdlička, M.D., 1869-1943: A Chronicle of the Life and Work of an American Physical Anthropologist" (1979) is the only book length biography of Hrdlička. The Frank Spencer papers, 1836-1999, are available at the NAA and contain original correspondence between Hrdlička and his first wife, Marie Strickler; his childhood report card from 1869; copies of family photos obtained from Lucy Miller, Hrdlička's niece; and an audio recording of Hrdlička speaking at Wistar Institute.

Further material may be found in the Smithsonian Institution Archives.

The University of Alaska Anchorage holds diaries relating to Hrdlička's Expeditions to Alaska in 1936, 1937, and 1938 in the Alan G. May papers. The finding aid for this collection is avialable online at https://archives.consortiumlibrary.org/collections/specialcollections/hmc-0690/ and a trascription of May's diaries from the expeditions is available online at https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/handle/11122/11850
Provenance:
Hrdlička bequeathed his papers to the Smithsonian Institution. The Division of Physical Anthropology maintained them until they were deposited in the National Anthropological Archives in the 1960s. Some papers have come into the collection since then, most recently in 2018. These new accretions came to the collection through Donald Ortner, David Hunt, T. Dale Stewart, the Department of Anthropology, and the University of Alaska.
Restrictions:
Access to the Aleš Hrdlička papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Topic:
Human evolution  Search this
Physical anthropology  Search this
Children -- Physical anthropology  Search this
anthropometry  Search this
Ethnology  Search this
Fossil hominids  Search this
Citation:
Aleš Hrdlička papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NAA.1974-31
See more items in:
Aleš Hrdlička papers
Archival Repository:
National Anthropological Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nw3d88b75be-491f-4f90-b56a-104765d885eb
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-naa-1974-31
Online Media:

The explicit material inquiries on the intersection of curatorial and conservation cultures edited by Hanna B. Hölling, Francesca G. Bewer, Katharina Ammann

Editor:
Hölling, Hanna  Search this
Bewer, Francesca G (Francesca Gabrielle),) 1960-  Search this
Ammann, Katharina  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource
Type:
Electronic resources
Electronic books
Date:
2019
Topic:
Museums--Collection management--Philosophy  Search this
Museums--Curatorship--Philosophy  Search this
Museum conservation methods--Philosophy  Search this
Art--Conservation and restoration  Search this
Antiquities--Collection and preservation  Search this
Material culture--Philosophy  Search this
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS--Museum Administration & Museology  Search this
REFERENCE--General  Search this
TRAVEL--Museums, Tours, Points of Interest  Search this
Call number:
AM133 .E97 2019 (Internet)
Restrictions & Rights:
1-user
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1145453

Curating under pressure international perspectives on negotiating conflict and upholding integrity edited by Janet Marstine and Svetlana Mintcheva

Editor:
Marstine, Janet  Search this
Mintcheva, Svetlana  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource (xxiv, 238 pages) illustrations (some color)
Type:
Electronic resources
Electronic books
Date:
2021
Topic:
Art and society  Search this
Curatorship  Search this
Intellectual freedom  Search this
Censorship  Search this
POLITICAL SCIENCE / Censorship  Search this
ART / General  Search this
Call number:
N72.S6 C87 2021 (Internet)
Restrictions & Rights:
1-user
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1145703

A companion to curation edited by Brad Buckley and John Conomos

Editor:
Buckley, Brad 1952-  Search this
Conomos, John  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource (xliv, 471 pages)
Type:
Electronic resources
Electronic books
Date:
2020
Topic:
Art museums--Curatorship  Search this
Call number:
N408 .C655 2020 (Internet)
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1146108

A companion to curation edited by Brad Buckley, John Conomos

Editor:
Buckley, Brad 1952-  Search this
Conomos, John  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource
Type:
Electronic resources
Date:
2019
Topic:
Art museums--Curatorship  Search this
Call number:
N408 .C655 2020 (Internet)
Restrictions & Rights:
1-user
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1147554

Pangmulgwan ŭi kŭl ssŭgi chŏnsi ŭi ch'ŏŭm put'ŏ kkŭt kkaji p'iryo han kŭl ssŭgi e kwanhayŏ Kungnip Chungang Pangmulgwan, Kungnip Pangmulgwan Munhwa Chaedan kihoek ; chiŭni ChOng MyOng-hmi [and nine others]

Title:
박물관 의 글 쓰기 : 전시 의 처음 부터 끝 까지 필요 한 글 쓰기 에 관하여 / 국립 중앙 박물관, 국립 박물관 문화 재단 기획 ; 지은이 정 명희 [and nine others]
Author:
Chŏng, Myŏng-hŭi  Search this
Project director:
Kungnip Chungang Pangmulgwan (Korea)  Search this
Kungnip Pangmulgwan (Korea) Munhwa Chaedan  Search this
Physical description:
279 pages color illustrations 21 cm
Type:
Books
Place:
Korea (South)
Date:
2023
Topic:
Museums--Curatorship  Search this
Korean language--Rhetoric  Search this
Coréen (Langue)--Rhétorique  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1164652

William C. Sturtevant papers

Topic:
Handbook of North American Indians
Creator:
Sturtevant, William C.  Search this
Names:
National Museum of Natural History (U.S.)  Search this
Six Nations  Search this
Extent:
220 Linear feet (The total extent of the collection is 191.41 linear feet (consisting of 473 document boxes and 2 record boxes) plus 254 sound recordings, 94 computer disks, 42 card file boxes, 85 oversize folders, 9 rolled items, 18 binder boxes, and 3 oversize boxes. Of the total extent, 4.79 linear feet (14 boxes) are restricted.)
Culture:
Indians of North America -- Southeast  Search this
Indians of North America  Search this
Iroquois  Search this
Seminole  Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Realia
Research
Notes
Office files
Theses
Slides (photographs)
Sound recordings
Exhibition catalogs
Field notes
Clippings
Correspondence
Photographs
Microfilms
Newsletters
Manuscripts
Memorandums
Articles
Card files
Books
Artifacts
Negatives
Date:
1952-2007
Summary:
This collection contains the professional papers of William Curtis Sturtevant and documents his activities as Curator of North American Ethnology at the National Museum of Natural History, his work as the editor-in-chief of the Handbook of North American Indians, his research among the Seminole and Iroquois people, and other professional activities. The collection is comprised of books, sound recordings, research and field notes, realia, artifacts, clippings, microfilm, negatives, slides, photographs, manuscripts, correspondence, memorandums, card files, exhibition catalogs, articles, and bibliographies.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains the professional papers of William Curtis Sturtevant and documents his activities as Curator of North American Ethnology at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History, his work as the editor-in-chief of the Handbook of North American Indians, his research among the Seminole and Iroquois people, and his involvement in various professional activities. The collection is comprised of research and field notes, sound recordings, realia, clippings, negatives, slides, prints, published and unpublished writings, correspondence, memorandums, conference papers and meeting notes, card files, exhibition catalogs, articles, bibliographies, student files such as class notes and papers from Sturtevant's years as an anthropology student, teaching materials including lecture notes and exams, daily planners, passports, military records, artwork including prints and lithographs, maps, and computer files.

The materials in this collection document Sturtevant's career as a preeminent North American ethnologist, museum curator, university professor, his role as General Editor of the Handbook of North American Indians, and his contributions to the field of Anthropology. From his early work with the Seminole Indians of Florida to his forays into Burma, and his decades-long study of how Native Americans have been depicted in artistic and popular culture, Sturtevant's diverse intellectual interests are represented in his research files. A copious note taker, Sturtevant captured his observations and opinions of everything from meetings with colleagues to museum exhibits. Sturtevant's commitment to the anthropological profession can be found in the notes and programs of the many conferences, symposiums, and lecture series he attended and at which he presented. He also held numerous leadership positions in various professional associations and sat on the board of directors/trustees for several cultural organizations including Survival International and the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation. Sturtevant was respected for his vast knowledge of indigenous peoples and he received a voluminous amount of correspondence from colleagues who often included copies of their papers and grant proposals. He kept many of these works, which, it appears he used as reference material. Sturtevant's own work is reflected in his writings; he published over 200 scholarly papers, articles, and books.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
This collection is organized in 14 series: 1. Correspondence, 1951-2008; 2. Research Files, 1851, 1860s, 1880s, 1890, 1939-2006; 3. Writings, 1952-2006; 4. Professional Activities, 1952-2006; 5. Smithsonian, 1954-2008; 6. Handbook of North American Indians, 1971-2007; 7. Biographical Files, 1933-2007; 8. Student Files, 1944-1985; 9. Subject Files, 1902-2002; 10. Photographs, 1927-2004; 11. Artwork, 1699-1998; 12. Maps, 1949-1975; 13. Sound Recordings, 1950-2000; 14. Computer Files, 1987-2006.
Biographical/Historical note:
William C. Sturtevant (1926-2007), preeminent North American ethnologist, museum curator, and university professor, was best known for his contributions to Seminole ethnology, as curator of North American Ethnology in the Department of Anthropology at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History, and for his work as the general editor of the Handbook of North American Indians.

Sturtevant's passion for studying Native peoples began at a young age. In third grade "after a class on American Indians, he asked his father what kind of people study Indians, and his father replied, 'Anthropologists.' Sturtevant decided then that he would make anthropology his career" (Merrill 11). After graduating with honors from the University of California at Berkeley in 1949, Sturtevant went on to Yale University to complete his graduate work in anthropology. When it came time to decide on what area of North America he should focus his research, one of his faculty members at Yale, Irving Rouse, "suggested he consider the Seminoles of south Florida. By the end of his first fieldwork season, Sturtevant was convinced that the dearth of ethnographic information about these Seminoles and their status as one of the least acculturated of all North American Indian societies justified ethnographic research among them and offered the possibility of making an important contribution to North American ethnology" (Merrill 13). Sturtevant spent the summers of 1950 and 1951 conducting preliminary fieldwork among the Mikasuki-speaking Seminole and in 1952 he took up temporary residence at Big Cypress Reservation to undertake research for his dissertation, "The Mikasuki Seminole: Medical Beliefs and Practices." This work focused on Seminole medicine, but also included Sturtevant's analysis of Seminole worldview, religion, history, inter-ethnic relations, material culture, economy, kinship, language, and social organization.

In 1954, while he was finishing his dissertation, Sturtevant made the transition from student of anthropology to professional anthropologist. He was hired as an instructor in Yale's Anthropology Department and began his career in museum work as an assistant curator of anthropology at the Yale Peabody Museum. After receiving his PhD from Yale in 1955, Sturtevant moved on to the Smithsonian Institution, where he accepted a position as a research anthropologist at the Bureau of American Ethnology (BAE). This position afforded Sturtevant the chance to continue to explore his many research interests in ways that a full time professorship or museum curatorship could not. Over the next ten years he studied the Catawba in South Carolina; the Seneca and Cayuga nations of the Iroquois League in New York, Oklahoma, and Ontario; continued his work with the Seminole; visited European museums to examine early ethnographic examples and possible European prototypes of eastern North American Indian material culture; and spent a year in Burma. In 1963, Sturtevant and his wife, Theda Maw, the daughter of a prominent Burmese family, took their three young children to Burma so that they could visit with Maw's family. Sturtevant took this as an opportunity to branch out from his Native American research and spent the year visiting neighborhoods in Rangoon and villages in the surrounding countryside, examining archival materials, studying the Burmese language, learning about Burmese clothing and other aspects of the culture, and taking photographs. He also collected 386 items of clothing and other objects for the Smithsonian.

When Sturtevant returned from Burma, he found the BAE had been dissolved. In 1965, he was transferred from the now-defunct BAE to the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), where he became curator of North American Ethnology, a position he held for the next forty-two years. During his tenure at NMNH Sturtevant oversaw all the North American ethnology collections, planned exhibitions, served on committees, and sponsored interns and fellows. One of Sturtevant's primary duties at NMNH was serving as the General Editor of the Handbook of North American Indians, "a major multi-volume reference work summarizing anthropological, linguistic, and historical knowledge about native peoples north of Mexico" (Jackson). Each volume was designed to represent a geographic or topical area of Americanist study. As General Editor, Sturtevant selected volume editors, chapter authors, oversaw office staff, and proofread manuscripts over the course of production.

Besides focusing on the Handbook, much of Sturtevant's time was taken up by responsibilities he held outside the Institution. Sturtevant was extremely involved in professional anthropological associations and held many leadership positions. Fresh out of graduate school, he began a three-year term on the Board of Governors of the Anthropological Society of Washington in 1957. He later became a member of the executive committee of the Florida Anthropological Society, served as book-review editor and associate editor of the American Anthropologist from 1962-1968, was a member of the American Anthropological Association's Committee on Anthropological Research in Museums and was both vice president and president of the committee once it became the Council for Museum Anthropology, was on the American Anthropological Association's Committee on Archives, served three terms on the Board of Trustees of the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation from 1976-1982 and was appointed to a fourth term between 1984 and 1986, and sat on the Board of Directors of Survival International from 1982-1988. He was President of the American Society for Ethnohistory, the American Ethnological Society, the American Anthropological Association, and the Anthropological Society of Washington. Sturtevant also taught classes at Johns Hopkins University as an adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology, served as a consultant on exhibits at other museums, and reviewed manuscripts for scholarly publications.

Sturtevant remained active in the profession throughout his later years. After divorcing Theda Maw in 1986, he married Sally McLendon, a fellow anthropologist, in 1990 and they undertook several research projects together. Sturtevant was recognized for his dedication and contributions to the field of anthropology in 1996 when he was awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters by Brown University, and in 2002 when his colleagues published a festschrift in his honor, Anthropology, History, and American Indians: Essays in Honor of William Curtis Sturtevant.

Sturtevant died on March 2, 2007 at the Collingswood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Rockville, MD after suffering from emphysema.

Sources Consulted

Estrada, Louie. 2007. William C. Sturtevant; Expert on Indians. Washington Post, March 17. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/16/AR2007031602273.html, accessed August 31, 2012.

Jackson, Jason Baird. 2007. William C. Sturtevant (1926-2007). http://museumanthropology.blogspot.com/2007/03/william-c-sturtevant-1926-2007.html, accessed August 31, 2012.

Merrill, William L. 2002. William Curtis Sturtevant, Anthropologist. In Anthropology, History, and American Indians: Essays in Honor of William Curtis Sturtevant. William L. Merrill and Ives Goddard, eds. Pp. 11-36. Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.

1926 -- Born July 26 in Morristown, NJ

1944 -- Entered the University of California at Berkeley as a second-semester freshman

1944 -- Attended summer school at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico in Mexico City where he took courses on Mexican archaeology and South American ethnology

1945 -- Drafted into the United States Navy

1946 -- Received an honorable discharge from the Navy with the rank of pharmacist's mate third class and returned to UC Berkeley

1947 -- Attended the University of New Mexico's summer field school in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

1949 -- January: Received his Bachelor's degree with honors in anthropology from UC Berkeley

1949 -- Began graduate studies at Yale University

1950-1951 -- Spent the summers of 1950 and 1951 in Florida conducting fieldwork among the Mikasuki-speaking Seminole

1951 -- Conducted his first research study of the Iroquois, a classification of Seneca musical instruments, their construction and use, with Harold Conklin

1952 -- May: Moved to Big Cypress Reservation in Florida to conduct research for his dissertation. He focused on Seminole medicine, but also collected physical anthropological data such as blood-type frequencies, handedness, and color blindness

1952 -- July 26: Married Theda Maw

1954 -- Hired by Yale University as an instructor in the Department of Anthropology and as an assistant curator of anthropology in the Yale Peabody Museum

1955 -- Received PhD in anthropology from Yale University

1956 -- Joined the staff of the Smithsonian Institution's Bureau of American Ethnology (BAE) as a research anthropologist

1957 -- Began a three-year term on the Board of Governors of the Anthropological Society of Washington

1957 -- Traveled to Rock Hill, South Carolina to collect linguistic data from Sam Blue, the last member of the Catawba tribe to have maintained some proficiency in the Catawba language. While there, he made a small collection of Catawba pottery for the United States National Museum

1957-1958 -- Spent seven weeks continuing his research among the New York Seneca

1959 -- Returned to Florida to study Seminole ethnobotany. He also collected ethnographic materials, especially objects made for the tourist market, which he deposited in the United States National Museum

1959-1960 -- Member of the executive committee of the Florida Anthropological Society

1960 -- July and August: Visited 17 European museums to examine early ethnographic examples and possible European prototypes of eastern North American Indian material culture

1961-1962 -- Spent the summers of these years conducting ethnographic fieldwork among the Seneca-Cayuga in Oklahoma

1962 -- October: Visited the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, Canada to conduct fieldwork among the Seneca and Cayuga there

1962-1968 -- Book-review editor and associate editor of the American Anthropologist

1963 -- October: Spent the year in Burma; visited neighborhoods in Rangoon and villages in the surrounding countryside, examined photographs in several archives, studied the Burmese language, and read extensively about the country's history and culture. Assembled notes on Burmese clothing and other aspects of the culture, took hundreds of photographs, and made a collection of 386 items of clothing and other objects for the Smithsonian

1964 -- Visited Inle Lake in the Southern Shan States southeast of Mandalay, where he examined local approaches to artificial island agriculture

1964-1981 -- Became a member of the American Anthropological Association's Committee on Anthropological Research in Museums, which became the Council for Museum Anthropology in 1974. Sturtevant was the Council's first vice president, serving two terms between 1974 and 1978, and was its president from 1978 to 1981

1965 -- Became curator of North American Ethnology in the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History after the dissolution of the BAE

1965-1966 -- President of the American Society for Ethnohistory

1966 -- Named the editor of the Handbook of North American Indians

1967-1968 -- Fulbright scholar and lecturer at Oxford University's Institute of Social Anthropology

1969 -- Began serving on the American Anthropological Association's Committee on Archives

1974-1989 -- Adjunct Professor in the Department of Anthropology at Johns Hopkins University

1976-1982 -- Served three terms on the Board of Trustees of the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation and was appointed to a fourth term between 1984 and 1986

1977 -- President of the American Ethnological Society

1980-1981 -- President of the American Anthropological Association

1981 -- Spent part of the spring semester at the University of California Berkeley as a Regents Lecturer

1982-1988 -- Board of Directors of Survival International

1986 -- Divorced Theda Maw

1986-1987 -- Smithsonian Fellow at Oxford University's Worcester College

1990 -- Married Sally McLendon

1992 -- President of the Anthropological Society of Washington

1996 -- Awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters at Brown University

2007 -- Died March 2 in Rockville, MD
Related Materials:
Other materials relating to William C. Sturtevant at the National Anthropological Archives are included in the following collections:

Manuscript 4504

Manuscript 4595

Manuscript 4806

Manuscript 4821

Manuscript 4972

Manuscript 7045

Photo Lot 59

Photo Lot 79-51

Photo Lot 80-3

Photo Lot 81R

Photo Lot 86-68 (6)

Photo Lot 86-68 (7)

American Society for Ethnohistory records

Committee on Anthropological Research in Museum Records

Handbook of North American Indians records

Records of the Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History

Gordon Davis Gibson Papers, Sound Recordings

SPC Se Powhatan Confederacy Mattapony BAE No # 01790700

DOE Oceania:Amer Poly:Hi:Hawaiian Helmet:Sturtevant 04913800

DOE Oceania:Amer Poly:Hi:Hawaiian Helmet:Sturtevant 04913900

DOE Oceania:Amer Poly:Hi:Hawaiian Helmet:Sturtevant 04914000

Negative MNH 1530

Negative MNH 1530 B

Sturtevant is listed as a correspondent in the following NAA collections:

Administrative file, 1949-1965, Records of the Bureau of American Ethnology

John Lawrence Angel Papers

James Henri Howard Papers

Donald Jayne Lehmer Papers

John Victor Murra Papers

Records of the Society for American Archaeology

Albert Clanton Spaulding Papers

Waldo Rudolph Wedel and Mildred Mott Wedel Papers

Copies of sound recordings made by William C. Sturtevant can be found at The California Language Archive at UC Berkeley in two collections, The William Sturtevant collection of Creek/Seminole sound recordings, which includes 31 minutes of Northern Muskogean linguistic field recordings from 1951, and The William Sturtevant collection of Mikasuki sound recordings, which includes 33 minutes of Mikasuki linguistic field recordings from 1951. Two sound tape reels of Seminole music Sturtevant recorded in Florida in 1951 can be found at Wesleyan University's World Music Archives. Folk songs on these recordings include "Scalping Sickness," "Bear Sickness with blowing," "Bear sickness without blowing," "Lullaby," "Feather Dance," "Snake Dance," and "Crazy Dance." Performers include Josie Billie, Lee Cypress, Harvey Jumper, Boy Jim, Charlie (Johnny?) Cypress, Little Tiger Tail, Billy Ossiola, and Charlie Billy Boy.
Separated Materials:
One video tape, "Seminole History and Tradition", was transferred to the Human Studies Film Archives. Series 2.2, Tukabahchee Plate: Glass negative of spectrogram from FBI (Box 135), removed for storage with other glass plate negatives.
Provenance:
These papers were transferred to the National Anthropological Archives by the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History.
Restrictions:
Files containing Sturtevant's students' grades have been restricted, as have his students' and colleagues' grant and fellowships applications. Restricted files were separated and placed at the end of their respective series in boxes 87, 264, 322, 389-394, 435-436, 448, 468, and 483. For preservation reasons, his computer files are also restricted. Seminole sound recordings are restricted. Access to the William C. Sturtevant Papers requires an apointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Topic:
Ethnology  Search this
Botany  Search this
Anthropology  Search this
Archaeology  Search this
Indians of North America -- Northeast  Search this
History  Search this
Linguistics  Search this
Genre/Form:
Realia
Research
Notes
Office files
Theses
Slides (photographs)
Sound recordings
Exhibition catalogs
Field notes
Clippings
Correspondence
Photographs
Microfilms
Newsletters
Manuscripts
Memorandums
Articles
Card files
Books
Artifacts
Negatives
Citation:
William C. Sturtevant papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NAA.2008-24
See more items in:
William C. Sturtevant papers
Archival Repository:
National Anthropological Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nw3b2223e72-e872-41c5-ae7b-abd0b27eaf6a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-naa-2008-24
Online Media:

Jeremy Stone Gallery records

Creator:
Jeremy Stone Gallery (1982-1991)  Search this
Stone, Jeremy  Search this
Names:
Lark, Sylvia, 1947-1990  Search this
Leonard, Joanne  Search this
Extent:
10.4 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1970-2005
bulk 1979-1996
Summary:
The Jeremy Stone Gallery records measure 10.4 linear feet and date from 1970 to 2005, with the bulk of the records dating from 1979 to 1996. The records shed light on the gallery's operations through administrative records, artist files, and printed material. Also present in the collection are scant personal and professional papers documenting Jeremy Stone's career before opening the gallery in 1982 and after closing it in 1991.
Scope and Contents:
The Jeremy Stone Gallery records measure 10.4 linear feet and date from 1970 to 2005, with the bulk of the records dating from 1979 to 1996. The records shed light on the gallery's operations through administrative records, artist files, and printed material. Also present in the collection are scant personal and professional papers documenting Jeremy Stone's career before opening the gallery in 1982 and after closing it in 1991.

Administrative files mainly consist of correspondence between the Jeremy Stone Gallery and other museums and galleries regarding exhibitions, artists, and artwork; between the gallery and artists; and between the gallery and art-collecting individuals and corporations. Also present in this series are some exhibition files and financial records. Artist files include correspondence, newspaper clippings, exhibition records, resumes, price lists, artwork images, mailing lists, collector lists, and inventories. Printed material includes exhibition reviews, announcements, and press releases. Some negatives and photographs of artwork, as well as snapshots from events, are also present.

Jeremy Stone's personal and professional papers document her practice as a private art dealer and expert in appraisals and acquisitions. Most of the artists she handled were initially represented by the Jeremy Stone Gallery, including Sylvia Lark, Barbara Pierce, Kyung Sun Cho, Richard Sheehan, and Pia Stern. Files include correspondence, sales records, price lists, images of artwork, and some printed material. Also found in this series is material related to Stone's guest curatorship at the Sunne Savage Gallery for its exhibition, 30 Years of Box Constructions (1979); and articles written by and about Jeremy Stone.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as four series.

Series 1: Administrative Records, 1982-1991 (Box 1-3; 2.5 linear feet)

Series 2: Artist Files,1970-2003, bulk 1982-1991 (Box 3-9; 6 linear feet)

Series 3: Printed Material, 1982-1991 (Box 9-10; .5 linear feet)

Series 4: Jeremy Stone Personal and Professional Papers, 1979-2005 (Box 10-11; 1.4 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
The Jeremy Stone Gallery was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1982 by Jeremy Stone.

The daughter of New York art dealer, gallerist, and collector Alan Stone, Stone became involved in the art world working part-time in her father's gallery during high school and college. After graduating, Stone held internships and positions as a researcher, guest curator, and consultant for projects at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Richard L. Nelson Gallery at the University of California, Davis. In 1979, Stone curated her first exhibition, 30 Years of Box Constructions, at the Sunne Savage Gallery. Stone opened the Jeremy Stone gallery shortly after moving to San Francisco in 1981. She exhibited modern and contemporary art by emerging and mid-career American artists. Artists include Sylvia Lark, Marshall Crossman, Susan Hauptman, Guy Diehl, Stanley Goldstein, and many more. Stone curated and mounted over 80 exhibitions until the gallery closed its doors in 1991. Stone subsequently worked as an art consultant, curating exhibitions and supporting attorneys with legal cases concerning art and artists' works. She currently serves on the faculty at the San Francisco Art Institute.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2016 by Jeremy Stone, founder of the gallery.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Women art dealers  Search this
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- California -- San Francisco
Citation:
Jeremy Stone Gallery records, 1970-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.jereston
See more items in:
Jeremy Stone Gallery records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f29ab8ca-7c16-47d1-8b9e-6524154d789f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-jereston

Jeremy Stone Personal and Professional Papers

Collection Creator:
Jeremy Stone Gallery (1982-1991)  Search this
Stone, Jeremy  Search this
Extent:
1.4 Linear feet (Box 10-11)
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1979-2005
Scope and Contents:
Found here are correspondence files that shed light on Jeremy Stone's practice as a private art dealer and expert in appraisals and acquisitions. Most of the artists Stone handled were initially represented by the Jeremy Stone Gallery, including Sylvia Lark, Barbara Pierce, Kyung Sun Cho, Richard Sheehan, and Pia Stern. Thus, in addition to correspondence, these files include sales records, price lists, images of artwork, and some printed material. Other correspondence is with peers and colleagues relating to Stone's position as a San Francisco Art Institute board member and as a member of professional organizations. Also found in this series are price lists, correspondence, a catalog, announcement, and clippings related to Stone's guest curatorship at the Sunne Savage Gallery for its exhibition, 30 Years of Box Constructions (1979); articles written by and about Jeremy Stone; and brochures, catalogs, and invitations from the Bridging the Community Through Art gala and auction to support education programs at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco.
Collection Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Jeremy Stone Gallery records, 1970-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.jereston, Series 4
See more items in:
Jeremy Stone Gallery records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw96815a70e-79d0-40db-9836-7976657888a3
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-jereston-ref95

James J. Rorimer papers

Creator:
Rorimer, James J. (James Joseph), 1905-1966  Search this
Names:
Allied Forces. Supreme Headquarters. Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section  Search this
Cloisters (Museum)  Search this
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.). Board of Trustees  Search this
Rorimer, Katherine S.  Search this
Valland, Rose  Search this
Extent:
2.3 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Date:
1921-1982
bulk 1943-1950
Summary:
The papers of curator and museum director James J. Rorimer measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1921 to 1982, with the bulk from 1943-1950. The papers include documentation of James J. Rorimer's World War II service in the Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section of the U.S. Army and his activities protecting historic and cultural sites from bombing, and locating and recovering art work and cultural icons stolen by the Nazis. Found within the papers are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, writings include draft versions of Rorimer's book Safe-Keeping or Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, financial records, photographic materials including a photo album containing photographs of European art work and cultural sites where Rorimer worked, newsclippings and additional printed materials, and one scrapbook of clippings dating from World War II.
Scope and Contents note:
The papers of curator and museum director James J. Rorimer measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1921 to 1982, with the bulk from 1943-1950. The papers include documentation of James J. Rorimer's World War II service in the Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section of the U.S. Army and his activities protecting historic and cultural sites from bombing, and locating and recovering art work and cultural icons stolen by the Nazis. Found within the papers are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, writings include draft versions of Rorimer's book Safe-Keeping or Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, financial records, photographic materials including a photo album containing photographs of European art work and cultural sites where Rorimer worked, newsclippings and additional printed materials, and one scrapbook of clippings dating from World War II.

Scattered biographical materials include a college transcript and various certificates. Much of the correspondence is comprised of army directives but also includes some personal letters from Rorimer's wife Katherine.

Writings by Rorimer include several handwritten manuscripts and drafts of his book Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, which was originally titled Safe-Keeping. There is one folder of miscellaneous financial records, mostly dating from Rorimer's time in the army. There is also one folder of minutes of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Board of Trustees meetings.

Photographic materials include black and white photographs, negatives, contact prints, postcards, and one photo album. The photograph album was given to Rorimer from the headquarters of the Office of Military Government in Baden-Wurttemberg and is titled War Damage in Wurtemmberg: A Selection of Photographs. Many of the photographs document bomb damage to European cultural monuments and historic sites. There are photographs of Nazi stolen art repositories discovered by Rorimer and fellow Monuments Men at Buxheim monastery and Neuschwanstein castle, art recovery and transportation, and restitution work at Wiesbaden Central Collecting Point. Photographs of people, such as Edith Standen, Rose Valland, and Rorimer, are scattered throughout the series.

Printed materials include newspaper and magazine clippings, mostly related to The Cloisters or the activities and achievements of the Monuments Men. Printed materials also includes bulletins, brochures, and press releases. There is also a war-time scrapbook and two handbooks of maps showing historic monuments and sites in France and Germany.
Arrangement note:
The collection is arranged as 7 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1942-1946 (Box 1, 4; 8 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1927-1982 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1946-1950 (Box 1; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 4: Financial Records, 1943-1946 (Box 1; 1 folder)

Series 5: Administrative Files, 1940 (Box 1; 1 folder)

Series 6: Photographic Materials, 1921-1966 (Box 1-2, 4; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Materials, 1923-1966 (Box 3-4, OV 5-6; 0.7 linear feet)
Biographical/Historical note:
James J. Rorimer (1905-1966) was a museum director and curator of medieval art working in New York City. Rorimer was the primary force and first director of The Cloisters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. During World War II, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section protecting cultural sites and recovering stolen art work.

James J. Rorimer was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1905 and attended the University School there until he left in 1921 in order to study abroad in Europe. He studied at the Ecole Gory in Paris for two years, then returned to the United States to finish his studies at the University School in Cleveland. In 1927, Rorimer graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. Soon after, he began working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City where he worked his way up from a position as an assistant to Head Curator of Medieval Art, a position he filled from 1934 to 1955, director of The Cloisters, and eventually director and trustee of the museum.

Rorimer was heavily involved with the planning and development of The Cloisters, working closely with the architect Charles Collens. When The Cloisters opened in 1938, Rorimer worked there as a curator and later became the first director in 1949. During this time, Rorimer developed a professional relationship with John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who donated to New York City a large tract of land, a portion of which was given to the Metropolitan Museum as a location to build The Cloisters. The Cloisters' collections evolved into a world renown collection of medieval art under Rorimer's curatorship and directorship.

As the director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1955-1966, Rorimer nearly doubled membership and attendance, raised a substantial amount of endowment funding, renovated almost half of the galleries, and increased the exhibition space.

Rorimer married Katherine Newton in 1942. They had two children, Anne and Louis.

During World War II, from 1943 to 1946, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army's Monuments, Fine Art and Archives (MFAA) Section. The "Monuments Men" of the U.S. Army were charged with locating and protecting historical sites, monuments, artwork, and buildings from Allied bombing. Towards the end of the war, the section led recovery efforts to locate and retrieve Nazi stolen art works and other cultural heritage items. Rorimer served as a MFAA officer in Normandy and Paris, and, while in Germany, was promoted to chief of the MFAA Section of the 7th Army Western Military District.

While in Paris, Rorimer worked closely with Rose Valland, an employee of the Jeu de Paume Museum in Paris who spied on the Nazis and recorded in detail the movements of artwork stolen by members of the Nazi party, including Hermann Wilhelm Goering and Joseph Goebbels. With Valland's assistance, Rorimer discovered a large cache of stolen and confiscated artwork at the Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. He and his team also recovered other artwork, European antiquities, and cultural icons that were stored in nearby salt mines. Rorimer and the other Monuments Men arranged the recovery and removal of the cache of stolen goods.

Rorimer received numerous awards for his work during World War II including, the French Cross of War in 1945, Chevalier in 1947, and officer of the French Legion of Honor in 1957. Rorimer wrote about his work as a Monuments Man in his book Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, published by Abelard Press in 1950. James J. Rorimer died in 1966.
Related Archival Materials note:
Among the holdings of the Archives of American is an oral history interview with Anne Rorimer, James' daughter, conducted in 2010 by the Archives of American Art. The Archives also holds the papers of several members of the World War II Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Section of the U.S. Army, including S. Lane Faison, Walker Hancock, Walter Horn, Thomas Carr Howe, George Stout, and Otto Wittman. as well as oral history interviews with some of them.

The official government records for James Rorimer's service during World War II in the MFAA Section of the U.S. Army are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration.

James J. Rorimer Papers, 1927-1966, are also located at Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries.
Provenance:
The James J. Rorimer papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by his wife, Katherine Serrell Rorimer, in 2 installments in 1983.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Art treasures in war -- France  Search this
Art treasures in war -- Germany  Search this
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Art thefts -- Germany -- History -- 20th century  Search this
Cultural property -- Protection -- Europe -- History -- 20th century  Search this
Curators -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
World War, 1939-1945 -- Art and the war  Search this
Genre/Form:
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Citation:
James J. Rorimer papers, 1923-1982, bulk 1943-1950. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.rorijame
See more items in:
James J. Rorimer papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw91203946f-18c7-44f6-8a73-79cc5e80b894
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-rorijame
Online Media:

Pieces of a nation South Sudanese heritage and museum collections Zoe Cormack and Cherry Leonardi (eds)

Title:
South Sudanese heritage and museum collections
Editor:
Cormack, Zoe  Search this
Leonardi, Cherry  Search this
Physical description:
214 pages illustrations (chiefly color), maps, portraits 27 cm
Type:
Books
Place:
South Sudan
Soudan du Sud
Date:
2021
2011-
Topic:
Material culture  Search this
Cultural property--Protection  Search this
Museums--Acquisition  Search this
Museums--Curatorship  Search this
Culture matérielle  Search this
Musées--Acquisition  Search this
Antiquities  Search this
Politics and government  Search this
Politique et gouvernement  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1155024

Bishop Correspondence, 1921-1922: Correspondence from John Lodge to Carl Bishop involving a curatorship at the Freer, Lodge's determination to not comply with Dr. Walcott's wishes that he leave the Boston Museum for the Freer Gallery; Carl Bishop's acc...

Container:
Box 3 of 23
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Accession 03-018, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Central Files
See more items in:
Central Files
Central Files / Box 3
Archival Repository:
Smithsonian Institution Archives
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-sia-fa03-018-refidd1e1215

Letterpress book. Volume 24, 1908 March 5 - August 10

Collection Creator:
Freer, Charles Lang, 1856-1919  Search this
Container:
Box 49, Folder 2
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
Collection Citation:
Charles Lang Freer Papers. FSA A.01. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of the estate of Charles Lang Freer.
See more items in:
Charles Lang Freer Papers
Charles Lang Freer Papers / Series 2: Correspondence / 2.2: Charles Lang Freer Letterpress Books, 1892-1910
Archival Repository:
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/dc364c67075-7991-4508-ace9-45fb0729fc2a
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-fsa-a-01-ref664
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The Nightcrawler king memoirs of an art museum curator William Fagaly

Author:
Fagaly, William  Search this
Subject:
New Orleans Museum of Art  Search this
Physical description:
xii, 353 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates color illustrations 24 cm
Type:
Biography
Biographies
Autobiography
Autobiographies
Place:
Louisiana
New Orleans
Louisiane
La Nouvelle-Orléans
Date:
2021
Topic:
Museums--Curatorship  Search this
Art  Search this
Art museum curators  Search this
Conservateurs de musée d'art  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1155360

Recoding the museum digital heritage and the technologies of change Ross Parry

Author:
Parry, Ross  Search this
Physical description:
xv, 166 pages illustrations 25 cm
Type:
Books
Date:
2007
Topic:
Museums--Data processing  Search this
Museums--Technological innovations  Search this
Museums--Information technology  Search this
Museums--Curatorship  Search this
Museums--Philosophy  Search this
Virtual museums  Search this
Digital media  Search this
Musées--Informatique  Search this
Musées--Innovations  Search this
Musées--Technologie de l'information  Search this
Musées--Philosophie  Search this
Musées virtuels  Search this
Médias numériques  Search this
Datenverarbeitung  Search this
Information und Dokumentation  Search this
Informationstechnik  Search this
Museum  Search this
Neue Medien  Search this
Computer--Museum  Search this
Museum--Elektronische Medien  Search this
Elektronische Medien--Museum  Search this
Museum--Technischer Fortschritt  Search this
Technischer Fortschritt--Museum  Search this
Museum--Computer  Search this
Museiteknik  Search this
Digitalisering  Search this
Informationsteknik  Search this
Geschichte 1980-2006  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_824839

Museum of Modern Art Curatorship

Collection Creator:
Selz, Peter Howard, 1919-2019  Search this
Container:
Box 11, Folder 12-15
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1958-1967
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Peter Howard Selz papers, 1929-2018, bulk 1950-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Peter Howard Selz papers
Peter Howard Selz papers / Series 3: Professional Files
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw99c70403e-daa6-44c1-835c-325c03ed5681
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-selzpete-ref326

Writings and Notes

Collection Creator:
Constable, W. G. (William George), 1887-1976  Search this
Extent:
2 Linear feet (Box 13-14)
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1910-1974
Scope and Contents:
Writings consist of Constable's published articles on art, exhibition catalog introductions, and articles submitted for the Encyclopedia of World Art. Essay drafts include writings and translations from Constable's early university years, in addition to later essays that touch on concerns of museum curatorship. The series also includes miscellaneous writing notes, bibliographies, and drafts and research material related to Art Collecting in the United States, Art History and Connoisseurship, and The Painter's Workshop.
Arrangement:
Materials are arranged by document type and retain their original order within each folder.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Glass plate negatives are housed separately and not served to researchers.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
W.G. Constable papers, 1905-1983, bulk 1920-1976. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.conswmgp, Series 4
See more items in:
W.G. Constable papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw92f701df8-fd38-49c5-943c-c783e42b2451
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-conswmgp-ref436

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