Mechanical and Civil Engineering, Division of [former name], NMAH, SI. Search this
Work and Industry, Division of, NMAH, SI Search this
Extent:
1 Cubic foot (3 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- Transportation
Date:
1928-1949.
Scope and Contents note:
One cubic foot of reports on tunnels, including several in the New York subway system.
Arrangement:
1 series.
Biographical/Historical note:
A civil engineer, King worked on several New York City subway tunnels, among other projects.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Marion King Schlefer.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
History of Technology, Division of, NMAH, SI Search this
History of Technology, Division of, NMAH, SI Search this
Mechanical and Civil Engineering, Division of [former name], NMAH, SI. Search this
Work and Industry, Division of, NMAH, SI Search this
Extent:
1 Cubic foot (5 Boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Technical literature
Diagrams
Contracts
Photographs
Financial records
Specifications
Reprints
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- Transportation
Date:
1903-1969
Summary:
The collection relates to Maevis' work on the New York subway system.
Scope and Contents:
The collection relates to the construction of the New York subway system. Included are diagrams; photographs of workers and of demolition, excavation, and dredging in the tunnels; reprints from professional engineering journals on topics relating to the subway construction; contracts; volumes containing budget information listing the costs for various elements for specific parts of the system; invitations for bids from contractors; and a bound volume of "Public Service Record", a monthly publication of the New York City Public Service Commission.
Arrangement:
The collection was processed by Alison Oswald, archivist, 2018.
Biographical / Historical:
Maevis was a civil engineer who worked on the New York subway system, and who published frequently on engineering topics.
Provenance:
The original provenance of the collection is unknown, and is recorded as "collected for NMAH".
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority Search this
San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (Calif.) Search this
Extent:
5 Film reels
5 Cubic feet (11 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Film reels
16mm films
Motion pictures (visual works)
Reports
Place:
Detroit (Mich.)
Texas
Brooklyn Bridge (New York, N.Y.)
Fremont (Neb.)
Columbus (Neb.)
New York
Boston (Mass.)
Chicago (Ill.)
Death Valley
Date:
1906-2003
bulk 1906-1918
Summary:
Collection documents the engineering firm of Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas through reports prepared for a variety of clients.
Scope and Contents:
These records contain reports (some containing photographs and full size drawings folded) from the New York engineering firm of Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas. Included are typewritten and printed reports for a variety of clients. The bulk of the reports relate to power and transportation. The collection includes five 16mm motion picture films, relating to the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART).
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.
Series 1: Background Materials, 1960-2003
Series 2: Reports, 1906-1918
Series 3: Moving Image, 1960 and undated
Biographical / Historical:
On January 1, 1885, William Barclay Parsons (1859-1932) and his younger brother Henry de Berkeley Parsons founded a consulting engineering firm in New York City. The brothers combined their talents as civil and mechanical engineers to create a firm that would making a lasting mark on designing and constructing infrastructure. Among the firm's most notable projects were the original IRT line of the New York City Subway, the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART), the Cape Cod Canal, and the charting the course of a railway in China from Hankow (Wuhan) to Canton (Guangzhou). The firm also designed and built large water supply systems, railroads, hydro-electric dams, refrigeration warehouses, marine terminals, and conducted survey work. Through the years, the firm diversified its engineering competence and knowledge by adding partners: Eugene A. Klapp (b. 1867), chief engineer and bridge specialist; Henry M. Brinckerhoff (b. 1868), a traction engineer; Walter J. Douglas (b. 1872), structural engineer and bridge specialist; and Maurice Quade (1900-1966), structural engineer. The firm had several name changes and became known as Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas with both domestic and foreign offices. Today the company operates in the fields of strategic consulting, planning, engineering, construction management, infrastructure and community planning. Parsons Brinckerhoff was acquired by WSP Global in 2014.
Sources
Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas Notes, December 1960.
Bobrick, Benson. Parsons Brinckerhoff The First 100 Years. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, 1985.
Petroski, Henry. "William Barclay Parsons," American Scientist, Volume 96, No. 4, July-August 2008, pp. 280-283.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Series: Streetcars and Subways (AC0060)
Materials at Other Organizations
New York Public Library
William Barclay Parsons papers, 1880-1939
Collection consists of correspondence, lecture notes, and materials used in preparation of Parsons's book, Engineers and Engineering in the Renaissance, published in 1939. Correspondence, 1881-1900, relates to his student days at the Columbia University School of Mines, appointments to various railroads, and activity as Columbia trustee. Notes on lectures about mining at Columbia, 1880-1881, are illustrated with drawings and plates. Materials used in the preparation of Parsons's book include final typescript, proofs, illustrations, maps, notebooks, and other source materials.
Columbia University
Papers, 1899-1915
Correspondence including letters from Grover Cleveland, Gilbert Parker, and printed monographs and magazine articles. Mr. Parsons' diaries of Panama Canal years and World War I have been catalogued as book manuscripts.
Provenance:
The initial collection was donated in 1967, presumably by the firm of Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas, to the Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering, National Museum of History and Technology (now the National Museum of American History).
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Williams, J. Scott (John Scott), b. 1877 Search this
Extent:
13.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Lantern slides
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Date:
1895 - circa 2007
Summary:
The records of the National Society of Mural Painters measure 13.1 linear feet and date from 1895 to circa 2007. The activities of the society are documented through administrative files, membership files, correspondence, committee files, exhibition and competition files, artist files, financial and legal records, printed material, a scrapbook, and photographic materials.
Scope and Contents:
The records of the National Society of Mural Painters measure 13.1 linear feet and date from 1895 to circa 2007. The activities of the society are documented through administrative files, membership files, correspondence, committee files, exhibition and competition files, artist files, financial and legal records, printed material, a scrapbook, and photographic materials.
Administrative files include meeting minutes and agendas, historical information, and newsletter drafts, and the organization's constitution and by-laws. Membership files contain correspondence with members about their applications and acceptance or denial of membership, member voting ballots, and lists of members. General correspondence is with artists, members, organizations, universities, and federal commissions, and documents a wide varity of NSMP activities; additional correspondence is scattered throughout other series. Correspondence is with Charles Baskerville, Arthur Covey, Allyn Cox, Dean Fausett, Ruth Fortel, Edward Lanning, Everett Molinari, Jack Stewart, and Helen Tredwell, as well as with the American Federation of Arts, the Commission of Fine Arts on War Memorials, Fine Arts Federation, and the U. S. Capitol Historical Society.
Committee files document the work of various NSMP standing and ad hoc committees. Exhibition and competition files include correspondence, photographs, catalogs, itineraries, and printed materials for the NSMP's 1976 U.S. Bicentennial celebration projects, including the "Freedom Murals," "Caravan of Freedom," and "Momentous Events in American History." Additional files document the Red Cross Canteen Project, Federal Art Project, the Municipal Art Society exhibition in 1940, New York City subway murals, and other competitions and public art mural projects.
Artist files primarily date from the 1960s through the 1990s and often include biographies, resumes, correspondence, and photographs of works of art. Financial and legal records include the NSMP treasurer's files, ledgers, and miscellany. Also found in the records are printed materials; a mixed media scrapbook dating from 1923-1935; photographs of meetings, events, exhibitions, and works of art; photo collages of members with examples of their works of art. There are also lantern slides of Francis D. Millet in his studio and with his murals, and of J. Scott Williams with his art work.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 10 series reflecting the original order of the records.
Series 1: Administrative Files, 1895-circa 2007 (2.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 2: Membership Files, 1915-2001 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)
Series 3: Correspondence, 1912-2001 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 4-5)
Series 4: Committee Files, 1909-1960s (0.3 linear feet; Box 5)
Series 5: Exhibition and Competition Files, 1917-1998 (2.0 linear feet; Boxes 5-7)
Series 6: Artist Files, 1915-1990s (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 7-8, 18)
Series 7: Financial and Legal Records, 1895-1996 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 8-10)
Series 8: Printed Material, 1915-2000 (0.9 linear feet; Boxes 10-11)
Series 9: Scrapbook, 1923-1935 (0.2 linear feet; Box 11)
Series 10: Photographic Material, circa 1900-1997 (2.5 linear feet; Boxes 12-18)
Since its founding, the NSMP has collaborated with the Fine Arts Section of the Treasury Department, the federal WPA Arts Project, and the design boards of several World's Fairs. As a member of Artists for Victory, NSMP coordinated the execution of murals for barracks and camps, as well as many triptych alterpieces.
NSMP organizes exhibitions and conductes competitions. In celebration of its one hundredth anniversary, a centennial exhibition was held in October 1995 at the Art Students League. Society members work with other organizations, actively sponsoring legislation for the development and commission of public works of art. Still active today, the current president is Jeff Greene.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reel NSM1) including 83 photographs of mural paintings and mural studies, and 25 exhibition boards showing sculptures, mosaics, and mural paintings with the artist's name, medium, title, and location listed. Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
The National Society of Mural Painters lent materials for microfilming in 1963 and donated records in 1965-1966. The National Society of Mural Painters, via President Jeff Greene, gave papers in 2009.
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.
On Monday, June 25th,ten Per Cent of All Ticket Sales on the Subway and Elevated Will Go to the Red Cross War Fund . Interborough Rapid Transit Company.
Other Image(s): A subway car with the name "Interborough" on it
Local numbers:
Princeton Poster# 9705
General:
Issued by: Interborough Transit Co.
Issued for: 1st Red Cross War Fund
Artist(s): Anon
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Copyright status of items varies. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Princeton University Posters Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Sponsor:
Digitization of the Princeton University Poster Collection was a collaboration of Google Arts and Culture and the Smithsonian Institution's Digitization Program Office. Catalog records were transcribed by digital volunteers through the Smithsonian Institution Transcription Center.
The papers contain correspondence, reports, drawings, blueprints, cost estimates, contracts, specifications, regulations, legal documents, photographs, profiles, diagrams, clippings, and publications concerning projects which Forgie worked on, especially the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels, the Midtown Hudson Tunnels in New York City. Also included are publications and patents on subaqueous tunneling, subway stations, and bridges, and material on the Forgie submarine.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.
Series 1: Professional Papers, 1892-1945
Series 2: Projects, 1914-1957
Series 3: Publications, 1856-1952
Series 4: Drawings, 1888-1951
Biographical / Historical:
James Forgie (1868-1958) was born in Longside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Forgie graduated from Gordon's Technical College, Aberdeen, Scotland (1881-1885) and apprenticed in the office of civil engineer George Gordon Jenkins from 1885-1889. Forgie came to the United States in 1902 to work as a chief assistant engineer to the Pennsylvania Railroad on tunnels in New York City. He joined the private engineering practice with partners Charles M. Jacobs and J.Vipond Davies of Jacobs and Davies, Inc. from 1909-1923. Forgie was awarded the Tedlford Gold Medal from the Institute of Civil Engineering (British) in 1915 in recognition of his paper "The Laxaxalpam Aqueduct Tunnels in Mexico." He authored numerous articles about tunneling and consulted as a an expert witness and arbitrator in many legal cases involving tunneling. Forgie was a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Institute of Civil Engineers of Canada, and New York Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Forgie married Martha Maitland Thom (1868-1936) in 1895. They had four children: Martha (b. 1900), Wilhelmina (b. 1902), James (b. 1904), and Christina (b. 1906). Forgie later married Anne McDougall (b. 1872) in 1937.
Related Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History:
The Foundation Company Records (AC0974)
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Series: Tunnels (AC0060)
Herbert S. Grassman Papers (AC0955)
Penn Station, New York Photographs (AC1048)
Lawrence Talma Smith Papers (AC0988)
Silas H. Woodward Papers (AC1038)
Alfred Maevis Collection (AC0954)
William R. Hutton Papers (AC0987)
Montgomery C. Meigs Papers (AC0984)
Henry Grattan Tyrrell and Mary Maude Knox Tyrrell Papers (AC0948)
Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas Records Collection (AC0969)
Chicago Surface Lines Drawings (AC0212)
Grand Central Terminal Collection (AC1071)
Modjeski and Masters Company Records (AC0976)
Thomas Norrell Railroad Photographs Collection (AC1174)
Separated Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry holds a model of a Ram for driving tunnel shields (1933). It was used in driving the Union Tunnel for the Pennsylvania Railroad, 1933-1934 by James Forgie. See accession #MC.329243.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Mrs. James Forgie.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
