Collection includes several turn of the century favorites, predominantly consisting of Buster Brown comics but containing other examples as well.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series by title listing.
Separated Materials:
Materials Located at the National Museum of American History, Division of Work and Industry
Medal award given to Charles Sumner Tainter, Exposition Internationale d'Electricite, Paris, 1881. See Accession #: ME.313452.02
Gold medal award given to Charles Sumner Tainter. Panama - Pacific Exposition, 1915. See Accession #: ME.313452.01"
Provenance:
Collection donated by Verna G. (Mrs. Curtis B.) Patterson,1983, December 21.
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.
Angle, Edward H. (Edward Hartley), 1855-1930 Search this
Former owner:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Medical Sciences Search this
Extent:
3.16 Cubic feet (9 boxes
)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Radiographs
Programs
Photographs
Minutes
Letters (correspondence)
Drawings
Date:
1893-1940.
Scope and Contents note:
Business and professional papers of Dr. Edward H. Angle, relating to his pioneering work in orthodontics. The papers include letters to and from Dr. Angle; photographs, subjects including Angle, his patients, equipment, skulls and jawbones and other demonstration photographs of orthodontic subjects, including some x-ray photographs (radiographs); notes and writings, including a book manuscript with photographs; drawings; printed material including meeting minutes and programs from the Edward H. Angle Society of Orthodontics; and several items appearing to have no relation to dentistry or orthodontics.
Arrangement:
Divided into 5 series: 1. Biographical, 1893-1940; 2. Correspondence, 1893-1939; 3. Photographs, 1915-1917; 4. Case Studies, 1906-1933; 5. Publications, 1889-1940.
Biographical/Historical note:
Dr. Angle was an early practitioner and innovator in the field of orthodontics. He is considered the founder of Orthodontics as the first specialization in dentistry.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Dr. Allan G. Brodie, Head of the Department of Orthodontics, University of Illinois, 1962.
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access 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.
United States of America -- New Jersey -- Union -- Summit
Scope and Contents:
The folder includes worksheets, maps and other information.
General:
Located at 50 Bedford Road, and owned by Mr. and Mrs. Henry A. Truslow, the house was designed by Arthur Ware, and gardens by Brinley and Halbrook of New York City. Mrs. Truslow was also a founding member of the Summit Garden Club in 1916. The large corner lot was recently subdivided and two houses built, resulting in the portico and side porch being removed from the original house. The lives of three generations of Truslow women, including Mrs. Truslow, were portrayed by her granddaughter, the late Jane Davison, in her book, "Fall of a Doll's House," recently revised as "To Make a House a Home." Additional photographs are in the Summit Garden Club Collection.
Persons associated with the garden include Mr. and Mrs. Henry A. Truslow (former owners, circa 1910s-1920s); Arthur Ware (architect); Brinley and Halbrook (landscape architects).
Related Materials:
Truslow Garden related holdings consist of 2 folders (3 lantern slides)
See others in:
Lois W. Poinier slide collection, circa 1920-1999.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
- FSg curatorial research specialist remark on Antoin Sevruguin photo manipulation reads, "Brush work visible all around the figures."
- Handwritten information on slip of paper (from a 1943-1944 cash book, produced by the Bathni Brothers, Tehran) reads, "330-331) Pictures of a play." [Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information]
- Myron Bement Smith handwritten caption in English reads, "47.P; Box 21.5: Picture of a play (330-331)." [Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P: Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran]
Arrangement:
According to Myron B. Smith handwritten document (Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran), Antoin Sevruguin's 696 glass negatives, at the time of their acquisition, were arranged into 61 boxes without any apparent organization. Today they are housed in archival document boxes, essentially duplicating the original arrangement, and stored on shelves. This glass negative was included into "Box 21."
Biographical / Historical:
Antoin Sevruguin is one of the early pioneers of commercial photography in Iran. He arrived in Iran from Tbilisi, Georgia in the mid 1870s to set up shop in Ala al-Dawla street in Tehran. From the early days, Sevruguin's studio was trusted both by the Qajar court and by foreign visitors to Iran. Highly regarded for their artistic ingenuity outside Iran, Sevruguin's photographs of 'ethnic types,' architecture and landscape, and depictions of daily life of Tehran found their way into foreign travelogues, magazines and books. As such, he stands alone in a relatively large group of early Iranian photographers for being recognized and celebrated outside the boundaries of the country. Antoin Sevruguin passed away in 1933, leaving behind only a fraction of his large collection of glass negatives, which is currently in the Archives of the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.
Local Numbers:
FSA A.4 2.12.GN.21.05
General:
Title and summary note are provided by Shabnam Rahimi-Golkhandan, FSg curatorial research specialist.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
Genre/Form:
Glass negatives
Collection Citation:
The Myron Bement Smith Collection, FSA A.04. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of Katherine Dennis Smith.
- Handwritten information on slip of paper (from a 1943-1944 cash book, produced by the Bathni Brothers, Tehran) reads, "A theatrical performance." [Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information]
- Myron Bement Smith handwritten caption in English reads, "47.P; Box 23.1: A theatrical performance." [Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P: Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran]
Arrangement:
According to Myron B. Smith handwritten document (Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran), Antoin Sevruguin's 696 glass negatives, at the time of their acquisition, were arranged into 61 boxes without any apparent organization. Today they are housed in archival document boxes, essentially duplicating the original arrangement, and stored on shelves. This glass negative was included into "Box 23."
Biographical / Historical:
Antoin Sevruguin is one of the early pioneers of commercial photography in Iran. He arrived in Iran from Tbilisi, Georgia in the mid 1870s to set up shop in Ala al-Dawla street in Tehran. From the early days, Sevruguin's studio was trusted both by the Qajar court and by foreign visitors to Iran. Highly regarded for their artistic ingenuity outside Iran, Sevruguin's photographs of 'ethnic types,' architecture and landscape, and depictions of daily life of Tehran found their way into foreign travelogues, magazines and books. As such, he stands alone in a relatively large group of early Iranian photographers for being recognized and celebrated outside the boundaries of the country. Antoin Sevruguin passed away in 1933, leaving behind only a fraction of his large collection of glass negatives, which is currently in the Archives of the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.
Local Numbers:
FSA A.4 2.12.GN.23.01
General:
Title and summary note are provided by Shabnam Rahimi-Golkhandan, FSg curatorial research specialist.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
Genre/Form:
Glass negatives
Collection Citation:
The Myron Bement Smith Collection, FSA A.04. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of Katherine Dennis Smith.
A New York bookseller, Warshaw assembled this collection over nearly fifty years. The Warshaw Collection of Business Americana: Accounting and Bookkeeping forms part of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Subseries 1.1: Subject Categories. The Subject Categories subseries is divided into 470 subject categories based on those created by Mr. Warshaw. These subject categories include topical subjects, types or forms of material, people, organizations, historical events, and other categories. An overview to the entire Warshaw collection is available here: Warshaw Collection of Business Americana
Scope and Contents:
Minimally covers the terminus of the wind-powered (sail) era and more fully documents the peak of the engine (steam) era of commercial cargo and passenger vesselsk, including freight and dockage services, maintenance and provisioning, ferry service, navigation (tug and tow) assistance, plus leisure cruising and touring. There is not a significant amount of material on battle or war ships. Includes both short distance routes such as lakes, rivers, and islets, and longer trans-oceanic crossings.
Documents within the collection consist of handbills, broadsides, leaflets, books, business cards, advertisements, insurance forms, wreck reports, passenger lists, baggage tags, freight manifests, rate cards, correspondence on letterhead stationery, booklets, newspaper clippings, postcards, menus, periodicals, manuals, photographs, engravings, woodcuts, sketches, bills of lading, receipts, catalogues, ledgers, journals, purchase orders, broadsides, brochures, custom forms, schedules, shipping and receiving documents, early steam guides, timetables, lithographs, announcements, etc. There are no navigational nautical maps. There is very little in the way of international import/export records. However, domestic and North American freight services are well-covered through invoices, bills of lading, manifests, and receipts for goods and services.
Some materials cover the history and development of steamships, particularly in the latter half of the nineteenth century with the iron screw replacing the wooden paddle steamer in the 1850s. The late 1860s brought the compound engine, which led to the steamship, previously used for the conveyance of mails and passengers, to compete with the sailing vessel in the carriage of cargo for long voyages. The 1870s brought improvements in accommodation for the passenger, with the midship saloon, conveniences in state-rooms, and covered access to smoke rooms and ladies cabins.
Ownership of specific lines and vessels was very fluid throughout shipping history, including the renaming of vessels. Mergers, dissolution, and absorption of fleets were frequent. Thus, researchers should independently seek out a more detailed history for any entity of particular interest.
The general maritime business series focuses on good and services related to maritime operations such as repair, shipbuilding, parts, ticket agents, chandlers, groceries, coal supply, dockage, wharfs/marinas, etc.
Operation records of named vessels contains primarily bills of lading and similar receipts for the movement of material goods or in-water services such as tow and tug assistance.
The largest series covering shipping lines and conglomerates offers a wide assortment of miscellaneous, nonexhaustive operation records for cargo and passenger lines and corporations, typically those with multiple holdings. These documents may include receipts, bills of lading, correspondence, and financial ledgers, plus promotional material for services and routes offered. Passenger sailings and luxury cruise documentation may contain menus, passenger lists, itineraries, shore excursion information, souveniers such as luggage tags, ticket stubs, and postcards. See also the subject category Menus, for additional examples of passenger and cruise ship menus.
When not associated with any of the above, general examples of materials related to the industry have been by arranged by their material type such as images, reports, and serial publications. More formal documentation, especially legal and reports, can be found here.
Narrative type materials related to lore, history, and building and design specifications have been sorted by subject. A scarce amount of material covers ships used for military service. Likewise, there are a few examples of maritime related material from the art world, mostly in the form of catalogues for exhibits or auction of paintings and scale models.
A note on vessel names: those used as contract carriers of mail and when in service, were entitled to unique prefix designations such as Royal Mail Ship (RMS.), otherwise, the ship name may be preceded by the more generic S.S. for single-screw steamer or steamship, SV for sailing vessel, PS for paddle steamer, RV for research vessel or similar type prefix. USS is the standard for the United States Navy commissioned ships while in commission, with HMS used for His/Her Majesty's Ship of the British Royal Navy.
Some of the major lines/companies represented in the collection include: American Line, American Steamship Company, Anchor Line, Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, Cunard-Anchor Line, Cunard Line, Cunard Steam Ship Company, Limited, Cunard White Star Line, Eastern Steamship Lines, Furness, Withy & Company, Hamburg American Line (HAPAG) / Hamburg Amerika Linie, Holland America Line (N.A.S.M. / HAL), Inman Line, International Mercantile Marine Company (IMM), International Navigation Company, North German Lloyd (Norddeutscher Lloyd Bremen), Panama Pacific Line, Peninsular and Oriental, Red Star Line, Royal Mail Steam Packet, U.S. Mail Steamship Company, United States Lines, White Star Line.
Arrangement:
Ships, Boats, and Vessels is arranged in three subseries.
Business Records and Marketing Material
General Maritime Businesses
Operation Records of Named Vessels
Shipping Lines/Conglomerates
Miscellaneous Business Records and Marketing Material
Genre
Keepsakes
Images
Ledger
Legal
News Clippings
Regulatory
Reports
Serial Publications
Stamps/Cigarette Cards
Associations and Societies
Images, Artwork, Racing, Technical Literature
Subject
Battleships, Warships
Destination Guides
Employment and Licensing
Insurance
Maritime History
Maritime Models and Art
Revue Generale Des Sciences
Warshaw Administrative Records
Related Materials:
Several other Warshaw Subject Categories may have closely related material such as Submarines and Transportation. For casual and recreational boating see Boats and Boating Equipment and Yachts. Other subject categories that may have related materials include: Canals, Dredging, Engines, Menus, Railroads (point of common transportation transfer), and Tours. .
Forms Part Of:
Forms part of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana.
Missing Title
Series 1: Business Ephemera
Series 2: Other Collection Divisions
Series 3: Isadore Warshaw Personal Papers
Series 4: Photographic Reference Material
Provenance:
Steamboats [Ships, Boats, and Vessels] is a portion of the Business Ephemera Series of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Accession AC0060 purchased from Isadore Warshaw in 1967. Warshaw continued to accumulate similar material until his death, which was donated in 1971 by his widow, Augusta. For a period after acquisition, related materials from other sources (of mixed provenance) were added to the collection so there may be content produced or published after Warshaw's death in 1969. This practice has since ceased.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Some items may be restricted due to fragile condition.
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.
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana Subject Categories: Ships, Boats, and Vessels, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Sponsor:
Funding for partial processing of the collection was supported by a grant from the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund (CCPF).
The papers, 1899-1962, of editor, lexicographer, author, and lecturer Everett Edward Thompson (1876-1962) primarily document his 1905 trip to Indonesia and subsequent lectures delivered from 1913-1919 and 1956. Portions of the papers are photocopies. Included are obituaries; a portrait photograph dated 1899; portions of a travel journal; announcements, notes, and 132 glass stereopticons assembled in preparation for lectures on Indonesia; a letter; printed material and clippings related to language and the Webster-Merriam dictionaries; and a handwritten copy of Irene Kuhn's 1961 news article on the early history of U.S. field teaching in the Philippines.
Scope and Contents:
The papers, 1899-1962, of editor, lexicographer, author, and lecturer Everett Edward Thompson (1876-1962) primarily document his 1905 trip to Indonesia and subsequent lectures delivered from 1913-1919 and 1956. Portions of the papers are photocopies. Included are obituaries; a portrait photograph dated 1899; portions of a travel journal; announcements, notes, and 132 glass stereopticons assembled in preparation for lectures on Indonesia; a letter; printed material and clippings related to language and the Webster-Merriam dictionaries; and a handwritten copy of Irene Kuhn's 1961 news article on the early history of U.S. field teaching in the Philippines. Total: 151 items
Arrangement note:
Series 1: -- Biographical Data
Series 2: -- Portrait Photograph
Series 3: -- Travel Journal
Series 4: -- Lecture notes and announcements
Series 5: -- Letter
Series 6: -- Printed Matter
Series 7: -- Lantern Slides
Biographical Information:
Editor, lexicographer, author, and lecturer Everett Edward Thompson was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in1876. He received an A.B. degree from Amherst College in 1899. From 1901-1905 Thompson fufilled an appointment to a government teaching position in the Philippines. In 1905 he traveled from Manila to Singapore, and then to Burma, India, Ceylon, Java, the Straits Settlements, and Japan. From 1905 to 1909 he was part of the editorial staff of the G&C Merriam Company, publisher of the Webster-Merriam dictionaries, Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1907 he married Emily Lecretia Bettes and two years later in 1909 received an M.A. from Amherst College where he wrote a thesis on, "The Spanish Element in the English Language." From 1910-1920 Thomspon served as editor of foreign language textbooks, American Book Company, New York City. In 1920 he received honorary doctor of letters (Litt. D) from Syracuse University. That same year Thompson rejoined the Webster dictionary editorial staff of G&C Merriam Company, Springfield, Massachusetts where he remained until 1949. Everett Edward Thompson died 1962 March 24 in Springfield, Massachusetts.
1876 June 20 -- Born in Springfield, Massachusetts
1899 -- Received A.B. degree from Amherst College
1901-1905 -- Appointed government teaching position in the Philippines
1905 -- Traveled from Manila to Singapore, and then to Burma, India, Ceylon, Java, the Straits Settlements, and Japan
1905-1909 -- Joined editorial staff of the G&C Merriam Company, publisher of the Webster-Merriam dictionaries, Springfield, Massachusetts
1907 -- Married Emily Lecretia Bettes
1909 -- Received M.A. from Amherst College. Thesis on, "The Spanish Element in the English Language."
1910-1920 -- Editor of foreign language textbooks, American Book Company, New York City
1913 -- Birth of son Ronald
1920 -- Received honorary doctor of letters (Litt. D) from Syracuse University
1920-1949 -- Re-joined the Webster dictionary editorial staff of G&C Merriam Company, Springfield, Massachusetts
1962 March 24 -- Died in Springfield, Massachusetts
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of Asian Art Archives by Everett Edward Thompson's son, Ronald Thompson, in 1991.
Everett Edward Thompson Papers, FSA.A.1991.05. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. Gift of Ronald Thompson, 1991.
Collection consists of correspondence, photographs, and artifacts documenting Meyer Later, a World War I veteran who served with the United States Army in France between September, 1918 and April, 1919.
Scope and Contents:
Series 1, Personal Correspondence, 1917-1919, consists of Later's personal letters to his family, his brother Abe, and his brother-in-law Bob North dating from January, 1917 to April, 1919. Most of the letters detail his endeavors in areas of eastern France, including Dijon, Paris, and Buzancy. Also included is Later's discharge letter addressed from Commander-in-Chief John J. Pershing.
Series 2, Photographs, 1919, contains six photographs taken in various areas of France of Later and other soldiers. One photograph documents Later with other soldiers in Fromereville, France dated January 31, 1919. Another is a group photograph taken in Dijon, France dated May 8, 1919.
Series 3, United States Army Materials, 1918-1919, consists of the pay record bBook and an Army leave permit related to Later's service in the United States Army.
Series 4, Memorabilia, 1919, contains one silver dog tag with Later's first and last name and a seven digit serial number. Also included are four silk-embroidered handkerchiefs from Paris in 1919.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into four series.
Series 1, Personal Correspondence, 1918-1919
Series 2, Photographs, 1919
Series 3, United States Army Materials, 1918
Series 4, Memorabilia, 1917-1919
Biographical / Historical:
Meyer Later was born on August 12, 1895, in Hartford, Connecticut. He grew up in a family of six brothers and three sisters and was known by family and friends as a charming and comical individual. He was educated in Hartford, Connecticut and was drafted into the United States Army in 1918 during World War I. He served between the fall of 1918 and the spring of 1919. During the war, Later was stationed in northern and eastern France including Dijon, Fromereville, and Buzancy. After the war, Later worked with his father and six brothers at the Morris Packing Company, the family's meat packing business in Hartford. Later died in New York, New York in 1984.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Stephanie Later, November, 2008.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Lockwood Greene Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Sponsor:
Preservation of this collection was made possible in part by a generous gift from CH2M HILL.
Consists of a group of six volumes acquired either by gift or purchase by Duncan Schiedt. Most of the volumes are dated and are in relatively good condition. It is unknown who created the scrapbooks. The volumes were maintained by Schiedt as a group and are arranged in chronological order with dated materials first and then undated volumes at the end.
Scrapbook number one dates from 1901-1908 and contains theater programs, travelogues and other types of ephemera relating to subjects such as circuses including the Carl Hagenbeck Circus and Show Company and Ringling Brothers. Of particular interest is information relating to the Iroquois Theatre fire in Chicago, Illinois on December 30, 1903. Of 1,602 patrons, at least 602 were reported dead as a result of the fire. It has been suggested that the high casualty rate was due to a lack of stairways and exits for each balcony. The improper use of the fire curtain and the failure of doors to open also contributed to the deadly event. There is a program for The Earl of Pawtucket at Powers' New Theatre. Other subjects include information relating to Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Chicago, Milwaukee, Steamships and Christopher Columbus. In addition there is some information relating to the 1906 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
Scrapbook number two dates from 1908-1912 and consists primarily of theatre and concert programs. There are also a few Burton Holmes Travelogues. Burton Holmes combined his photography and film with stories of his travels to create what he referred to as these travelogues. Through the travelogues audiences experienced places some would never have the chance to actually visit. In addition there is a New York Hippodrome souvenir book for the 1911-1912 season.
Scrapbook number three dates from 1910s-1920 and includes advertisements and theatre programs from Washington, DC, New York and Illinois including the George M. Cohavis Grand Opera House, Garrick Theatre, Ziegfeld Follies and the Metropolitan Opera House. There is a copy of Victory Travelogues by Burton Holmes (1918), Newman Traveltalks (1919) and a copy of E. E. Meredith's Show Book (1916).
Scrapbook number four dates from 1920-1946 and consists primarily of theatre and film programs from New Jersey, New York, Washington, D C, Illinois, Ohio and Wisconsin. There is also information relating to the Yale-Princeton football game, Newman Travel talks, Burton Holmes' Travel Talks, Ruth Saint Denis and Ted Shawn (1927), The Great Ziegfeld (1936), Thanksgiving service in Minneapolis (1937) and Saint Paul's Church located in Milwaukee.
Scrapbook number five dates from 1920s-1930s and contains programs, photographs, promotional and publicity materials primarily documenting the activities of Harry A. Yerkes. Yerkes was a marimba player, inventor, and recording manager who assembled recording sessions in the early years of jazz. He was associated with the musical group the Happy Six and there is information about them found among these materials. In addition, there is a small amount of material relating to the musical group Bobbie Grice and the Fourteen Bricktops and a Varsity Records listing.
Scrapbook number six dates from the 1930s-1950s and includes photographs, programs and promotional items from Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, Wisconsin, Camp Rucker, Alabama and Arkansas relating primarily to jazz. There is also information on the musical group the Crimson Stompers and drummer Walt Gifford.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Duncan Schiedt Jazz Collection, 1900-2012, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Sponsor:
Processing and encoding funded by a grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources.
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005 Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994 Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on cellulose acetate film sheet, [possibly nitrate] 10" x 8".)
Container:
Box 316
Culture:
African Americans -- Washington (D.C.) Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans
Date:
undated
1911-1922
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 12948
Posed studio portrait of Miller in morning suit with his hand resting on the back of a chair. Ink on negative: "12948 Prof K. Miller - 1 - B & W - 8 x 10". Ink on envelope: "Kelly Miller standing". No edge imprint. Pencil retouching of face and hands.
Biographical / Historical:
Miller was Head, Dept. of Education, College of Liberal Arts, and Dean of the Graduate School, Howard University.
Exhibitions Note:
Reproduction print exhibited in "The Scurlock Studio and Black Washington: Picturing the Promise," NMAAHC Gallery, NMAH, January 30 - November 15, 2009; image reproduced in exhibit's companion book.
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.
Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits -- African American men -- 1910-1920 Search this
Portraits -- African American men -- 1920-1930 Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1910-1930 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
Sponsor:
The collection was acquired with assistance from the Eugene Meyer Foundation. Elihu and Susan Rose and the Save America's Treasures program, provided funds to stabilize, organize, store, and create digital surrogates of some of the negatives. Processing and encoding funded by a grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources.
The papers document Leo H. Baekeland, a Belgian born chemist who invented Velox photographic paper (1893) and Bakelite (1907), an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile plastic. The papers include student notebooks; private laboratory notebooks and journals; commercial laboratory notes; diaries; patents; technical papers; biographies; newspaper clippings; maps; graphs; blueprints; account books; batch books; formula books; order books; photographs; and correspondence regarding Baekeland, 1887-1943.
Scope and Contents:
Baekeland documented his life prolifically through diaries, laboratory notebooks, photographs, and correspondence. These constitute the bulk of the collection. The Bakelite company history is also incompletely documented in this collection through Baekeland's correspondence, the commercial laboratory notebooks, and some company ledgers.
Arrangement:
Series 1: Reference Materials, 1863-1868 and undated
Subseries 1.1: Biographical, 1880-1965
Subseries 1.2:Company History, 1910-1961
Subseries 1.3: Related Interests, 1863-1968 and undated
Series 2: Published and Unpublished Writings (by Leo H. Baekeland), 1884-1945
Series 3: Correspondence, 1888-1963
Subseries 3.1: Personal Correspondence, 1916-1943
Subseries 3.2: Charitable Donations, 1916-1938
Subseries 3.3: Family Correspondence, 1888-1963
Subseries 3.4: Clubs and Associations, 1916-1943
Series 4: Diaries, 1907-1943
Series 5: Reading and Lecture Notes, 1878-1886
Series 6, Laboratory Notebooks, 1893-1915
Series 7: Commercial Laboratory Notebooks, 1910-1920
Series 8: Bakelite Company, 1887-1945
Series 9, Patents, 1894-1940
Series 10: Bakelite Corporation Ledgers, 1910-1924; 1935; 1939
Series 11: Photographs, 1889-1950 and undated
Subseries 11.1: Photographs, 1889-1950 and undated
Subseries 11.2: Film Negatives, 1900-1941 and undated
Subseries 11.3: Photoprints, 1894-1941
Subseries 11.4: Stereographs, 1888-1902 and undated
Subseries 11.5: Film and Glass Plate Negatives, 1899-1900 and undated
Series 12: Audio Materials, 1976
Biographical / Historical:
Leo Hendrik Baekeland was an industrial chemist famous for his invention of Bakelite, the first moldable synthetic polymer, and for his invention of Velox photographic paper. Baekeland's career as an inventor and innovator was punctuated by an urge to improve existing technologies and a willingness to experiment both meticulously and daringly. Born in Ghent, Belgium in 1863, Baekeland was a distinguished chemistry student and became a young professor at the University of Ghent. He had a long standing interest in photography and sought to further photographic technology with his expertise in chemistry. In 1887 he obtained his first patent for a dry plate which contained its own developer and could be developed in a tray of water. With the support of a business partner/faculty associate, Jules Guequier, he formed a company named Baekeland et Cie to produce the plate, but the venture failed due to lack of capital.
On August 8, 1889, he married Celine Swarts, daughter of his academic mentor Theodore Swarts, Dean of the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Ghent. After his wedding he travelled to different countries using a traveling scholarship he had been awarded two years previously. His travels ended in the United States where he was offered a job researching chemical problems associated with manufacturing bromide papers and films with A. and H.T. Anthony and Company, a photographic supply producer. Leo and Celine Baekeland had three children: George, Nina and Jenny (1890-1895).
He left Anthony and Company in 1891 to be a consulting chemist. During that time he invented a photographic print paper using silver chloride which could be developed in artificial light instead of sunlight and thus offered more flexibility and consistency to photographers. In 1893, with financial support from Leonard Jacobi, a scrap metal dealer from San Francisco, he formed the
Nepera Chemical Company in Yonkers, New York, to manufacture "gaslight" paper under the trade name Velox. The paper became quite popular and the company expanded its operations after its first three years. Finally, George Eastman bought the company for a reported $750,000 which afforded Baekeland the time to conduct his own research in a laboratory he set up on his estate, "Snug Rock," in Yonkers.
Baekeland worked on problems of electrolysis of salt and the production of synthetic resins. He was hired as a consultant to work with Clinton P. Townsend to perfect Townsend's patented
electrolytic cell. Baekeland's work there contributed to the success of the Hooke Electrochemical Company which began in operations in Niagara Falls in 1905.
Simultaneously, in 1902 Baekeland began researching reactions of phenol and formaldehyde, and by 1907 was able to control the reactions and produce a moldable plastic (oxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride) which he named Bakelite. Although the process was not perfected for another couple of years, Baekeland applied for a patent for Bakelite right away.
He announced his discovery to the scientific community in 1909, and in 1910 formed the General Bakelite Company. Bakelite was a thermosetting resin that, unlike Celluloid became permanently solid when heated. It was virtually impervious to heat, acids, or caustic substances. It could be molded into a wide variety of shapes and was an excellent electric insulator that came to replace hard rubber and amber for electrical and industrial applications. It was also suitable for a wide variety of consumer products such as billiard balls, jewelry, pot handles, telephones, toasters, electric plugs, and airplane instrument knobs.
Two companies challenged Bakelite with significant competition, Condensite Corporation of America and Redmanol Chemical Products Company. Bakelite finally merged with these two companies in 1922 to become the Bakelite Corporation. Union Carbide finally bought the corporation in 1939.
Baekeland sustained his interest in photography by taking numerous photographs throughout his lifetime. He also devoted much of his spare time to professional societies and received various
honorary degrees and awards such as the Perkin Medal. He had several hobbies such as boating, wine and beer making, and, exotic plants. He also traveled extensively throughout the world, which is documented in his diaries and photographs.
Baekeland spent his final years mostly in his Coconut Grove, Florida home where he became increasingly eccentric until his mind failed him and he was institutionalized. He died in 1943 at the age of eighty.
Scope and Content: Baekeland documented his life prolifically through diaries, laboratory notebooks, photographs, and correspondence. These constitute the bulk of the collection. The Bakelite company history is also incompletely documented in this collection through Baekeland's correspondence, the commercial laboratory notebooks, and some company ledgers.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Albany Billiard Ball Company Records (AC0011)
Celluloid Corporation Records (AC0009)
J. Harry DuBois Collection on the History of Plastics (AC0008)
Materials at Other Organizations
The Hagley Museum and Library, Manuscripts and Archives Department in Delaware also several related collections including: the Directors of Industrial Research Records, 1929 -982; the Du Pont Viscoloid Company, Survey of the Plastics Field, 1932; The Society of the Plastics Industry, 1937-1987; the Roy J. Plunkett Collection, 1910-1994 (inventor of Teflon); and the Gordon M. Kline Collection, 1903.
Separated Materials:
The National Museum of American History, Division Medicine and Science has several artifacts associated with Baekeland including the original "Bakalizer" the apparatus in which Bakelite was first made. See accession numbers: 1977.0368; 1979.1179; 1981.0976; 1982.0034; 1983.0524; 1984.0138.
Provenance:
The bulk of the collection was donated to the National Museum of American History's Division of Physical Sciences in November, 1981, by Celine Karraker, Leo H. Baekeland's granddaughter.
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.
The papers of painter and naturalist, Abbott Handerson Thayer, and the Thayer family date from 1851 to 1999, with the bulk of the material dating from 1881 to 1950, and measure 5.12 linear feet. Thayer's painting career, interest in concealing coloration (camouflage) in nature, and relationships with artists, patrons, family, and friends are documented through correspondence, writings, scattered legal and financial records, printed materials, and a scrapbook. Photographs are of Thayer, his family, studio, and friends, including artists. The collection also contains family papers created by his second wife, Emma Beach Thayer, his son Gerald, his daughters Mary and Gladys, and Gladys' husband David Reasoner, who managed Thayer's estate after his death.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of painter and naturalist, Abbott Handerson Thayer, and the Thayer family date from 1851 to 1999, with the bulk of the material dating from 1881 to 1950, and measure 5.12 linear feet. Thayer's painting career, interest in concealing coloration in nature, and relationships with artists, patrons, family, and friends are documented through correspondence, writings, scattered legal and financial records, printed materials, and a scrapbook. Photographs are of Thayer, his family, studio, and friends, including artists. The collection also contains family papers created by his second wife, Emma Beach Thayer, his son Gerald, his daughters Mary and Gladys, and Gladys' husband David Reasoner, who managed Thayer's estate after his death.
Scattered Biographical Material includes a brief autobiographical statement and chronology by Abbott Thayer, lists of artworks by Abbott Thayer and Gladys Thayer Reasoner, and biographical information about Thayer's granddaughter, Jean Reasoner Plunket. Two linear feet of family correspondence includes Abott Thayer's correspondence with patrons Charles L. Freer and John Gellatly; with many artists, several of whom were close friends, including Samuel Colman, Thomas Millie Dow, Daniel Chester French, Richard Meryman, Everton Sainsbury, Louis Agassiz Fuertes, and E. M. Taber; and former students, such as Ben Foster and Barry Faulkner; and with other friends, many of them prominent members of society, such as Samuel Clemens, Royal Cortissoz, Edward Waldo Emerson, and Stanford White. Also found is Thayer's correspondence with scientists and naturalists discussing his theories on protective coloration in nature. Correspondence of his second wife Emma Beach Thayer, his first wife, Kate Bloede Thayer, his daughter, Gladys Thayer Reasoner, her husband and executor of Thayer's estate, David Reasoner, and other family members are also included in the papers.
Writings and notes by Thayer record his thoughts on concealing coloration, nature, restoration of artwork, and other topics. Writings by others include those by Emma Beach Thayer, daughters Mary and Gladys, and Thayer scholars. The collection also contains correspondence of David Reasoner and other family members, as well as financial and legal documents regarding the estate of Abbott Handerson Thayer and Emma Beach Thayer. Additional financial and legal material includes ledgers, accounts statements, bills, a patent granted to Thayer and Gerome Brush, legal agreements, property deeds, and a map of Thayer's property.
Printed material include books, including one written by Theodore Roosevelt in response to Thayer's book on concealing coloration. Also found are newspaper and magazine clippings, and exhibition announcements and catalogs. Photographs are of Abbott Thayer, his wife Emma; his studio and home in Dublin, New Hampshire; friends, including Rockwell Kent and Ralph Waldo Emerson; and of unidentified people. Artwork includes a few drawings by Thayer, drawings and paintings by his children, and sketchbooks belonging to David Reasoner and Jean Reasoner Plunket. The collection also includes one large scrapbook kept by David Reasoner documenting Abbott Thayer's artwork.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 10 series. Glass plate negative is housed separately and closed to researchers.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1878 - circa 1966 (Box 1; 7 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1867-1987 (Box 1-3; 2.0 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1888-1945 (Box 3; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 4: Estate Papers, 1921-1954 (Box 3-4; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 5: Other Financial Records, 1889-1957 (Box 4; 7 folders)
Series 6: Legal Records, 1891-1927 (Box 4; 4 folders)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1851, 1896-1999 (Box 4-5; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographs, circa 1861-1933 (Box 5, MGP 2; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 9: Artwork, 1887 - circa 1940s (Box 5-6, 8; 8 folders)
Series 10: Scrapbook, circa 1910-1920 (Box 7; 0.3 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849-1921) was born in Boston to Dr. William Henry Thayer and Ellen Handerson Thayer. After his birth his family moved to Woodstock, Vermont, and in 1855 settled in Keene, New Hampshire. As a child Thayer developed a love of nature that was encouraged by his close family, which included three sisters, Ellen, Margaret, and Susan. At the age of fifteen he was sent to the Chauncy Hall School in Boston, and while there he met Henry D. Morse, an amateur animal painter. Under Morse's instruction Abbott developed his skill in painting birds and other wildlife and began painting animal portraits on commission. In 1867 he moved to Brooklyn, New York and attended the Brooklyn Academy of Design where he studied under J. B. Whittaker for two years. In 1868 he began showing his work at the National Academy of Design and enrolled there in 1870, studying under Lemuel Wilmarth. He met many emerging artists during this period, including his future first wife, Kate Bloede and his close friend, Daniel Chester French. Thayer became part of progressive art circles, showing his work at the newly formed Society of American Artists, while continuing to develop his skill as an animal and landscape painter.
Thayer and Kate Bloede were married in 1875. They moved to Paris and he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts, first under Henri Lehmann, and then with Jean-Léon Gérome. While in Europe he befriended fellow artists Everton Sainsbury, Thomas Millie Dow, George de Forest Brush, and Dwight Tryon. His daughter Mary was born in 1876 and his son William Henry in 1878. The family returned to America in 1879 and settled in his parent's home in Brooklyn, where he changed his focus to portraits. After the tragic deaths of William Henry in 1880 and of their second son, Ralph Waldo, in 1881, the family led a migratory existence living in various parts of New England. In 1881 while living in Nantucket they met Emmeline (Emma) Beach (1850-1924) who would become close friends with Abbott and Kate and would be known as "Addie" to the family. In 1883 their son Gerald was born and in 1886 their daughter Gladys was born. In 1887 Thayer settled his family in Keene, New Hampshire, and began teaching a small group of students. Around this time his wife began suffering from severe depression and went to a sanatorium in 1888. She died in 1891 and that fall Thayer married Emma Beach who had helped to care for him and his children during his wife's illness.
Despite family tragedies, Thayer became a leader in the New York art world during the 1880s and 1890s. He was a successful portraitist and painted allegorical figures of angels, women, and children, which were popular among collectors of this period, including his patrons Charles Lang Freer and John Gellatly. He often used his children as models, especially his eldest daughter, Mary.
In the late 1880s one of Thayer's students, Mary Amory Greene, built a house and studio for the Thayer family on her land in Dublin, New Hampshire, and in 1901 the family settled there permanently. Many of Thayer's artist friends lived nearby, such as Richard Meryman and George de Forest Brush, and the Thayer family frequently entertained prominent visitors such as Edward Waldo Emerson and Samuel Clemens. Abbott Thayer taught painting to his children, and Gerald and Gladys both became artists and art educators. Gladys married David Reasoner, a student of Abbott Thayer who later became his assistant. Other students of Thayer included Rockwell Kent, Ben Foster, Barry Faulkner, and Louis Agassiz Fuertes.
Greatly influenced by transcendentalism and the spirituality of nature, Thayer again began to paint landscapes, especially of nearby Mount Monadnock. He was very interested in the study of protective coloration in the wild, and was an advocate for nature conservation and bird sanctuaries. He published the book Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom in 1909 with his son Gerald, but encountered much resistance to his theories. Thayer also wrote about how his camouflage theories could be applied to military warships and uniforms. These theories failed to gain widespread government interest and after suffering from nervous exhaustion, he spent the rest of his life painting landscapes at his home in Dublin, until his death in 1921.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art holds several collections related to Abbott Handerson Thayer. These include research material on Abbott Handerson Thayer and other artists, 1895-1990, donated by Thomas B. Brumbaugh; the Abbott Handerson Thayer letter and drawings to Caroline Peddle Ball, circa 1890-1893; "The Drawings of Abbott Thayer", by Elizabeth Robins Pennell, circa 1921; and the Nelson and Henry C. White research material, 1898-1978, which includes many letters, photographs, and other material originally belonging to the Thayer family.
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reels 48 and 3417) including a diary kept by Thayer, a "Family Record" written by William Henry Thayer, correspondence, printed material, photographs, and original artwork by Abbott Handerson Thayer. Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Anne Whiting, a niece of Abbott Handerson Thayer, loaned the Archives of American Art material for microfilming in 1971 and Jean Reasoner Plunket, Thayer's granddaughter, loaned original artwork for microfilming in 1985. The rest of the Abbott Handerson Thayer and Thayer Family papers were donated in 1999 by Abbott Thayer's great-grandson, John Plunket, who received the papers from his mother Jean Reasoner Plunket. In 2005 Bruce Gimelson donated additional material purchased from the relatives of Emma Beach Thayer.
Restrictions:
The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
Rights:
Reel 3417 (art works): Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from Jean Reasoner Plunket. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Abbott Handerson Thayer and Thayer Family papers, 1851-1999 (bulk 1881-1950). Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005 Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994 Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on glass, 7" x 5".)
Culture:
African Americans -- Washington (D.C.) Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans
Date:
Ca. 1910-1920
Scope and Contents:
Self-portrait of the young Addison Scurlock with his future wife Mamie,seated on rocks in an outdoor setting; she holds a straw hat. No ink on negative. No edge imprint. Retouched. No Scurlock number.
Arrangement:
In box 4.3.1.
General:
13.5" x 10.5" print of this image is number 80 in "Corcoran" prints.
7" x 5" print of this image is located in 1.1.A10, Folder 10.
Exhibitions Note:
"Corcoran" print exhibited in "The Scurlock Studio and Black Washington: Picturing the Promise," NMAAHC Gallery, NMAH, January 30-November 15, 2009; image reproduced in exhibit's companion book.
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.
Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
Sponsor:
The collection was acquired with assistance from the Eugene Meyer Foundation. Elihu and Susan Rose and the Save America's Treasures program, provided funds to stabilize, organize, store, and create digital surrogates of some of the negatives. Processing and encoding funded by a grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources.
This collection documents, in correspondence, publications, forms, paperwork, drawings, newspaper clippings, diplomas and photographs, the operations and products of the Frick Company of Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, manufacturers of steam-powered engines (portable, stationary, and traction), sawmills, threshing machines, grain separators and other mechanized agricultural harvesting implements, refrigeration, mechanical cooling systems, and ice making plants, from its founding in 1852 through 1961.
Scope and Contents:
This collection documents the founding and business operations of the Frick Company* of Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, manufacturers of portable, stationary, and traction engines, threshing machines, sawmills, and refrigeration and ice making machinery. The collection covers the period from 1852 to 1961, with the bulk of the material dating from 1860-1873 and from 1880 through the 1920s and illuminates the evolution of mechanized agriculture and refrigeration technology from the mid-nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century.
The largest portion of the collection contains photographs of Frick engines and refrigeration machinery, taken both in the foundry and in various installations worldwide, as well as original drawings of Frick machines, parts, and components used to illustrate catalogs and trade publications. Another large portion of the collection is correspondence, containing communication from clients ordering Frick products for their farms or businesses, as well as receipts and correspondence from local and regional suppliers of raw materials and components for the construction of Frick products.
The collection also contains numerous examples of operational paperwork from the 1880s-1890s, such as letterheads, order forms, contracts, test logs, and timesheets, as well as a significant amount of trade literature largely from 1880-1920, such as price lists, catalogs, product pamphlets, and advertising material.
There are several published company histories, technical drawings/blueprints of Frick products, diplomas awarded to Frick machinery presented at expositions and fairs (including the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, 1893), full-color posters advertising Frick & Co., agent supplies (including telegraph cipher code books), accounting paperwork, payroll records, communications with shareholders, and significant documentation of the highly publicized labor dispute/strike at Frick in 1946.
This collection would be of interest to researchers in the areas of: agricultural machination and invention in the nineteeth century, steam and horse-powered engines, the development of refrigerating and ice making equipment in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, business operations and financial transactions in the nineteenth century, Pennsylvania history and companies, industrial photography, and nineteenth and twentieth centuries industrial trade literature.
*The name of the company was modified several times over the history of its operation, variations including George Frick, Frick & Bowman, Frick & Co., and Frick Company, depending on the time period in question. Efforts have been made to align the description of the materials throughout the collection with the correct company name at the time of their creation.
Arrangement:
This collection is divided into six series:
Series 1: Publications, 1852, 1874-1875; 1880-1932; 1942-1943; 1953; 1961
Founded in 1852 by engineer and inventor George Frick (1826-1892), Frick Company has been an innovative machinery design leader in many areas of the agricultural and refrigeration industries over the last 160 years. Frick began building steam engines and threshing machines in a small shop in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania.
Frick quickly gained a reputation for quality in the growing field of mechanized agriculture. His designs for early portable engines--transported and driven by horsepower--soon evolved into self-propelling, steam-powered vehicles that could be driven into the fields and then used to run the grain separating, cleaning and bagging machines that were revolutionizing the farming industry, increasing production at exponential rates.
In addition, Frick's stationary engines were put to use in mills of all kinds (grist, flour, paper, and woolen) to augment or replace their dependence on unreliable natural water power, including sawmills, of which Frick was soon building a line of portable, steam-driven versions. Between the mid-1850s and the early 1870s, the company continued to expand, outgrowing three different shops before building the final location of the works in Waynesboro. George Frick himself was continuously active in the company through the end of the nineteenth century as a mechanical engineer and product designer, as well as a frequent consultant, traveling to confer with clients on specifications for their orders.
Beginning in 1872, George Frick's business and personal life took a downturn with the deaths in quick succession of both his oldest son Frank and his new business partner C.F. Bowman, as a result of a typhoid fever epidemic that swept through the area. Additionally, the financial Panic of 1873 nearly closed Frick's company along with thousands of other American businesses that year, but thirteen local businessmen formed a partnership, putting forth the necessary capital to keep the manufacturing plant afloat. George Frick sold his controlling interest to the partnership, but remained as general manager of the company.
After this brief period of struggle, Frick and Company began again to expand its product line as well as its reputation. The new works in Waynesboro were modern and efficient, enough to warrant a feature article in Scientific American in 1881. The following year, the company built its first refrigeration machine, and a whole new direction of production opened up. Automatic and traction engines were still in demand, being constantly improved and updated, but refrigeration was the new frontier. Frick rose to become one of the leaders in development of high quality, durable, and functional refrigeration machinery. George's son A.O. Frick, now an engineer with the company, partnered with Edgar Penney, another design engineer, to develop the Corliss engine line, which would run the large ammonia compressors, creating what was called a refrigeration machine. They were intially used to power ice plants, which were being built all over the world after the mild winter of 1890 tipped the natural ice industry into decline. They also used cold storage/mechanical cooling units, of which breweries and meat packing plants were the earliest adopters, followed by cold food stores, florist shops, and fur storage, as well as the dairy and shipping industries. The Armour Packing Plant in Kansas City, Missouri was the proud owner of "The Largest Ice Machine in the World," built by Frick and shipped by train via specially-reinforced rails in 1896. At the turn of the twentieth century, hotels, restaurants, hospitals and industrial plants soon began to rely on refrigeration units for daily operations, and Frick's business was booming.
As gas-powered engine technology began taking over in the first decades of the twentieth century, Frick moved away from steam engines and focused on more specialized farm equipment such as dehydrators, peanut pickers, combines, balers and silo fillers. Their line of sawmills was also still in high demand. But increasingly, Frick was focused on steadily refining and improving its refrigeration equipment. Ammonia, while highly efficient as a coolant, had its dangerous downsides: it could be fatal if leaked, and could contaminate plant ice easily. Although many of Frick's ammonia compression refrigeration machines were still in use forty or more years after installation and were still preferred for industrial use, the technology needed to improve in order to be viable for the general public. Several publicized accidents led eventually to the preferred use of chloroflorocarbons as a coolant, and Frick developed enclosed-type CO2 compressors and eventually freon units. Other Frick refrigeration products included machinery for making dry ice, air conditioning units, and temperature controls for test plants, as well as marine refrigeration (developed during the First World War) for shipping food between continents. Frick did contract work for the US military during and following World War II, and was a major company involved in the development of quick-freezing systems to support the growing frozen food industry starting in the late 1940s.
Frick Company positioned itself as a permanent leader in the food production and distribution industry by the 1950s. The company is still in operation today, though it has been purchased several times, most recently by Johnson Controls, which maintains a product line bearing the name Frick.
Related Materials:
The Archives Center holds several collections that may be of interest to researchers in relation to the Frick Company Collection.
For related material on Corliss engines, see the following collections:
Chuse Engine and Manufacturing Company Records (AC 1088)
For related material on threshing machines and agricultural machinery, see the following collections:
John K. Parlett Collection (AC 3066)
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana (AC 0060)
For related material on refrigeration machinery, see the following collections:
Madison Cooper Papers (AC 1105)
Nickerson and Collins Photography (AC 1044)
Southwork Foundry and Machine Company Records (AC 1107)
Separated Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry holds artifacts related to this collection. See acquisition numbers AG79A09.1, MC 319243.12 and .13, and 58A9.
Provenance:
Collection donated by the Frick Company, through Terry Mitchell in 1961.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
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.
