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Society for the History of Technology Records

Author:
Society for the History of Technology  Search this
Kranzberg, Melvin, Dr., 1917-1995  Search this
Names:
American Association for the Advancement of Science  Search this
American Council of Learned Societies  Search this
National Science Foundation  Search this
Extent:
353 Cubic feet (378 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Business records
Newsletters
Correspondence
Photographs
Floppy disks
Date:
1956-2017
Summary:
The Society for the History of Technology Records (SHOT) consists of documents relating to SHOT from its inception in 1958- [0ngoing]. The collection is divided into two subgroups: Subgroup I, General Records, 1956-2009 which consist of papers generated and received by Melvin Kranzberg in his various roles as an officer of SHOT, as well as papers of other SHOT officers. Subgroup II,Technology and Culture Records, 1958-2009, consists of documents relating to the Society's journal, Technology and Culture. T & C is a quarterly publication containing articles of interest to and written by historians and students of technology.

The records consist of material generated by Melvin Kranzberg in his role as founding editor-in-chief (1959-1981), first at Case Western Reserve and later at Georgia Institute of Technology, and was succeeded at the National Museum of American History by Robert Post (1981-1996) whose editorial assistants were Brooke Hindle, Helena Wright, Jeffrey Stine, Art Molella and Joan Mentzer. When the museum ended its support of the journal, it moved to the Henry Ford under the editorship of John Staudenmaier (1996-2010) and after that to the University of Oklahoma under the editorship of Suzanne Moon (2010-2020).
Scope and Contents:
The collection is divided into two subgroups: Subgroup I, General Records, 1956-2009 which consist of papers generated and received by Melvin Kranzberg in his various roles as an officer of SHOT, as well as papers of other SHOT officers. Subgroup II,Technology and Culture Records, 1958-2009, consists of documents relating to the Society's journal, Technology and Culture. T & C is a quarterly publication containing articles of interest to and written by historians and students of technology. The records consist of material generated by Melvin Kranzberg in his role as editor-in-chief, 1959-1981 and by succeeding T&C editors. The Melvin Kranzberg Papers (AC0266) consist of the personal papers of Dr. Kranzberg from his undergraduate years at Amherst College through his professional career. The collection documents his involvement with development of the new field of history of technology and his role as principal founder of the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT); work as consultant and advisor to domestic and international agencies, colleges, and universities; personal affiliations, lectureships, publications; and teaching and administrative activities for more than forty years as a college professor.

Subgroup I: General Records, 1956-2009, consists of documents relating to SHOT from its inception in 1958 to 2009, papers generated and received by Melvin Kranzberg in his various roles as an officer of SHOT, as well as papers of other SHOT officers.

The General Records are divided into ten series based on the functions of this professional organization of scholars interested in the history of technology. Series one through three document committees and officers and their correspondence regarding day-to-day activities of the Society. Financial records and preparation for annual membership meetings and other more specialized meetings comprise other series. Newsletters and brochures describing SHOT's activities and the records of SHOT's relationships with other professional associations (such as the American Association for the Advancement of Science) complete the General Records.

Series 1: Organizational Records, 1956-1984, consists of materials documenting organizing work, including membership, officers, finances, publicity and drafting of a constitution for SHOT. Included are minutes of meetings to accomplish these purposes as well as for the first general membership meeting held in December, 1958. Papers incorporating SHOT and a history of the organization as of 1976 are included. These records are organized into three categories: the initial conceptualization and creation of SHOT; support activities in the early period; the constitution and history of SHOT. The material is arranged chronologically.

Series 2: Records Of Councils, Committees, and Other Groups, 1959-1989, consists of the records of SHOT councils, committees and other organizational groups. The Executive Council consists of nine elected voting members in addition to the officers of the Society, past presidents of the Society, and the editor-in-chief of the Society's journal. The Executive Council directs the affairs of the Society. In order to reflect the composition of the Society as an interdisciplinary organization which draws from both academe and the factory and industrial laboratory, the Executive Council has been made up of a combination of academicians and practicing engineers and industrialists.

Subseries 2.2a: Executive Council, 1959-1963; 1968; 1975-1978; 1983-1987, contain memoranda to the Executive Council from Melvin Kranzberg, Secretary, 1959-1974; correspondence to and from Secretary Carroll Pursell, 1975-1978; reports; minutes; and other memoranda regarding the SHOT Brochure and Museum Exhibit Awards Program. In addition, Series 5 contains the minutes of many Executive Council meetings, 1958-1992.

Subseries 2.2b: Advisory Council, 1960-1961, is composed of SHOT members selected on the basis of their distinquished scholarship or eminent service to the development of technological studies. The Advisory Council is consulted from time to time regarding the affairs of the Society. These records contain memoranda to the Advisory Council requesting advice, and a list and addresses of Council members as of March, 1961.

The Subseries 2.2c: Nominating Committee,1961-1984, is composed of three Society members appointed by the president; they serve for three years in rotation, one member being added and one retiring each year. Their duties are to nominate persons for the various offices, Executive Council, and the Advisory Council. In addition they make nominations to the Executive Council of candidates for corresponding membership. These records contain correspondence among Society officers, members and potential members of the Nominating Committee; memoranda to the Nominating Committee regarding the work of the committee; lists of officers and council members of the Society; and nominations and ballots.

The Subseries 2.2d: Editorial Committee,1980-1987, is chosen by members of the Executive Council and generally oversees and has ultimate responsibility for the Society's journal, Technology and Culture. The editor-in-chief of the journal is the chairman of the Editorial Committee. The records contain correspondence of the committee; annual reports of the committee; memoranda; and the editor's reports.

The Subseries 2.2e: Documents Committee,1961-1970; 1979-1985 mission was to monitor the preservation of important documents and archival materials that are or may be of value to historians of technology. A primary function is the encouragement of the maintenance and preservation of scientific and technological archives. These records contain correspondence to and from the chairman of the committee, Mel Kranzberg, and others regarding the committee's work and status.

The Subseries 2.2f: Program Committee, 1959; 1961; 1968; 1971; 1983-1984, has charge of arrangements for SHOT's annual meetings, any special meetings of the Society, and any other programs sponsored by the Society. For example, the committee has the responsibility of organizing SHOT sessions at annual meetings of the American Historical Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science and History of Science Society, among others. These records contain correspondence and memoranda among members of the committee--and with Kranzberg--regarding program sessions and participants at various meetings and other committee business and priorities; the program of the SHOT 1983 annual meeting; and various program reports, 1959-1985.

Subseries 2.2g: Other Committees, 1961-1987, consist of correspondence and memoranda regarding the myriad aspects of various small SHOT committees' work. Among the committees are: Fellowship Committee; Aims and Goals Committee; Industrial Archeology Committee; Electricity and Electronics Archives Committee; Bicentennial Committee; SHOT Research Committee; Technical Studies Committee; Museum Committee; Monograph Committee; Ad Hoc Committee on Library Services; Technical Studies and Educational Committee; Sites Committee; the Endowment Committee; and the Bibliographic Committee, which was organized to prepare an annual list of books and articles with critical comments or references to reviews when available. The bibliography is published annually in Technology and Culture. An analytical index is prepared annually to accompany the bibliography.

Subseries 2.2h: Officers and Committee Appointments, 1963;1966; 1970-1977; 19080; 1982, contains lists of SHOT committee officers, as well as correspondence and memoranda regarding committee and SHOT officers' appointments and acceptances.

Since SHOT's inception in 1958, members have formed special interest groups (SIGs) for the purpose of bringing together scholars and professionals with interests in specific fields of the history of technology.

Subseries 2.2i: Special Interest Groups, 1961-1988, material includes correspondence, memoranda, newsletters, directories, reports of chairmen, and articles of various special interest groups. These special interest groups are composed of SHOT members who have a common interest, e.g., women's roles in technological history and military technology.

The Subseries 2.2j: Awards Committee (Committee on Honors), 1961-1988, was an advisory committee created to establish conditions and to recommend recipients for various SHOT medals and awards, such as the Usher, Dexter and da Vinci. The power to confer the awards rests with the Executive Council of SHOT. The committee is also responsible for developing citations for the medals and carrying out the nomination process for awards. These records contain correspondence between committee members and Kranzberg regarding awards to recipients, vitae of award recipients, and edited copies of the "awards/honors section" of Technology and Culture.

The Subseries 2.2k: Leonardo da Vinci Medal, 1966-1986, is the Society's highest honor, presented to an individual who has greatly contributed to the history of technology through research, teaching, publications, and other activities. This material consists mostly of correspondence among officers of SHOT and the medal recipients. Also included is biographical material on three recipients of the medal. Photographs of the medal are also included.

The Subseries 2.2l: Dexter Prize, sponsored by the Dexter Chemical Corporation of New York City, is an annual prize of $1,000 dollars for the best book on the history of technology. This material is mainly correspondence regarding the establishment of the prize, development of the plaque, correspondence to and from the recipients, a photo of one recipient, and original illustrations of the plaque.

The Subseries 2.2m: Robinson Prize, 1968-1987, was established by the Executive Council and is awarded annually. It consists of a certificate and a check for $150 dollars for the best paper presented at a SHOT annual meeting by a person under thirty years of age. The material includes correspondence and memoranda regarding this prize. In addition, copies of many submission papers are included.

The Subseries 2.2n: Levinson Prize, 1984-1986, is awarded for an author's first manuscript intended for publication. There is a cash award of $250 dollars and an appropriate plaque. Included is correspondence to and from SHOT officers regarding the establishment and the awarding of this prize.

Subseries 2o: Miscellaneous Awards, 1984-1986, consists of correspondence and memoranda related to various small awards and prizes, including the Usher prize, a special certification award for meritorious work not covered by established prizes, and the IEEE Life Member's Prize in Electrical History, administered by SHOT.

Series 3: Correspondence, 1963-1988, contains correspondence of SHOT officers and is divided into three subseries: general correspondence, correspondence of SHOT presidents, and correspondence dealing with particularly important subjects. The general correspondence deals with routine administrative matters from 1966-1988. The presidential letters and the letters to which they reply relate to the official responsibilities of the SHOT president 1978-1986. The final category contains correspondence, 1975-1985, on subjects such as preparations for commemoration of the 500th anniversary of Columbus' voyage and the offer of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History to be the repository for the records of SHOT.

Series 4: Financial Records (Budget), 1959-1993, consists of financial statements and bank records, 1960-1993, including reports of SHOT treasurers to the membership and to appropriate committees regarding SHOT finances, as well as bank statements, check stubs, and other records of transactions and investments. Copies of required reports to the Internal Revenue Service, 1960-1991 are filed separately as is the general correspondence of SHOT Treasurers, 1985-1991. Financial reports on individual SHOT Meetings, 1976-1993 consititute a final category.

Series 5: Meetings, 1958-1992, contains minutes of the Executive Council and annual general membership meetings, as well as records of preparatory work for annual meetings of SHOT, and is arranged chronologically. Records of other membership meetings concerned with particular subjects are listed separately. Correspondence relating to a conference on "Critical Issues in the History of Technology" organized by SHOT in Roanoke, Virginia in 1978, is also included.

Series 6: Secretary's Membership Records, 1958-1984, consists of reports and correspondence to and from officers and members of SHOT, and is arranged chronologically. Included are inquiries from prospective members, responses by the SHOT secretary, statistics of membership, questionnaires, and invitations to join SHOT.

Series 7: Newsletter, 1958-1997, contains the SHOT newsletter and records of its publication and is arranged chronologically for 1977-1989. Materials for the years preceding 1977 include the actual newsletters for 1958-1964, arranged chronologically, and the rough draft of the 1960 newsletter. Series 9 contains additional copies of the SHOT newsletter.

Series 8: Publication of Monographs, 1961-1984, contains correspondence and committee meeting minutes relating to editorial review, printing problems and royalties. These are arranged by subject.

Series 9: SHOT Professional Relations with Other Organizations, 1964-1988, consists of materials documenting SHOT's numerous official contacts with other professional societies, including joint meetings, correspondence, and minutes. These records are arranged chronologically. Papers relating to the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Council of Learned Societies are grouped separately.

Series 10, Officers Files, 1958-2009, contains materials submitted periodically by former officers of SHOT, beginning in the mid-1980s. Included are documents relating to their administrative functions, as well as their correspondence conducted while in office. Received material which obviously fits into the body of the collections has been so incorporated, in the order of their donation.

Subgroup II: Technology and Culture Records, 1958-1995, consists of documents relating to the Society's journal, Technology and Culture. T & C is a quarterly publication containing articles of interest to and written by historians and students of technology. The records consist of material generated by Melvin Kranzberg in his role as editor-in-chief, 1959-1981 and by succeeding T&C editors.

The papers are divided into ten subseries according to the editorial and other activities involved in producing T & C. In addition to the Organizational Records, 1958-1962, the Technology and Culture records include book reviews, editorial reviews of articles, indexes and tables of contents, printing (by the University of Chicago Press), costs, promotions, and special projects.

Series 1: Organizational Records, 1958-1962 , contains correspondence, minutes of meetings and memoranda relating to the creation of the quarterly journal, T&C, and its first issue. the series includes records of a membership poll to choose the journal's name. A speech by Melvin Kranzberg in 1981 entitled "Quirks and Jerks of Editing Technology and Culture" outlines the early considerations in publication and later editorial problems.

Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-1988, is restricted and contains articles and reviews of articles submitted to T&C for publication. This material is arranged alphabetically by correspondent. The folder dates represent the dates of all the correspondence in the folder. The older date usually represents the date when the correspondence was initiated regarding the submission of an article to T&C. However, the latest date does not always represent correspondence regarding a submission to T&C, since Kranzberg sometimes included general correspondence in the folders.

All articles went through a refereeing process, during which referees wrote recommendations, either for or against publication. These judges wrote their recommendations with the understanding that their identities and their evaluations would remain confidential. In order to maintain the confidentiality of all parties, this separate correspondence series and the confidential referee reviews have been restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the correspondence. Exceptions will be made if written permission is obtained from SHOT's Editorial Board.The majority of folders contain correspondence between Kranzberg and the referees about articles, but not the articles themselves. The judges' recommendations contain a great deal of information. Some papers were revised two, three, or more times in preparation for publication and referees' reports follow each revision.

Series 3: Book Reviews, 1969-1995, consists of drafts of reviews which appeared inT&C with correspondence relating to those reviews. The material is arranged chronologically according to theT&C issue in which they appeared.

Series 4: Editorial Review of Articles, 1960-1993, consists of drafts of articles considered for publication and other editorial material, for example, exhibit reviews, communications, notes and announcements, correspondence (with authors and reviewers; the latter included comments on the draft articles) and email printouts. The material is arranged alphabetically by name of author and is restricted. Judges wrote their recommendations with the understanding that their identities and their evaluations, would remain confidential. In order to maintain the confidentiality of all parties, this series and the confidential referee reviews have been restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the correspondence. Exceptions will be made if written permission is obtained from SHOT's Editorial Board.

Series 5: Indexes (Cumulative) and Tables of Contents, 1965-1987 (Boxes 54-56), contains tables of contents of each quarterly edition of T&C, 1965-1981, together with cumulative indexes through 1987.

Series 6: Technology and Culture Printing and Costs, 1959-1994, consists of correspondence with printers of the T&C quarterly journal (primarily the University of Chicago Press), including instructions for printing and negotiation of costs. Also included are arrangements for reprints, cover designs and membership lists. Correspondence relating to campaigns to promote sales of T&C and annual reports of revenues and costs is arranged chronologically.

Series 7: Special Projects, 1962-1986, includes materials documenting miscellaneous projects related to T&C and its editing and publication, and is arranged chronologically.

Series 8: Technology and Culture Editor, 1982-1995, consists of records of the editor documenting the functions of soliciting, reviewing, refereeing and giving final approval for articles and book reviews appearing in T&C. Correspondence with members of SHOT and others is arranged alphabetically. Letters relate to proposed articles and comments on them, as well as other subjects. Also included is correspondence relating to Post's own publications, exhibits, and public presentations, assessments of grant applications, records of his involvement in the affairs of the National Museum of American History and other museums, and correspondence with other periodicals with which he was editorially involved, such as Invention and Technology and Railroad History.

Series 9: Published Files, 1982-1994,contains edited typescript (as submitted to publisher) for articles, research notes, conference reports, organizational notes, reviews, obituaries, and all other material published in Technology and Culture for one calendar year. Correspondence with authors, advisory editors, referees (between two and five for each article), and editorial and production staff of the University of Chicago Press is also included. The materials are arranged chronologically by year. These files are closed for thirty years from the date of the last correspondence in the individual folder. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.

Series 10: Office Business Files, 1983-2007, consists of files from the Technology and Culture offices. Many of the files relate to the journal's redesign, editors, and search for a university press to publish the journal.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into two subgroups.

Subgroup I: General Records, 1956-2009

Subgroup II:Technology and Culture Records, 1958-2010

Subgroup I: General Records, 1956-2009

Series 1: Organizational Records, 1956-1984

Subseries 1.1a: Conceptualization and Creation of SHOT, 1956-1959

Subseries 1.1b: Support Activities, 1958-1972

Subseries 1.1c: Constitution and History of SHOT, 1958-1976

Series 2: Records of Councils, Committees, and Other Groups, 1959-1989

Subseries 2.2a: Executive Council: 1959-1963; 1968; 1975-1978; 1983-1987

Subseries 2.2b: Advisory Council, 1960-1961

Subseries 2.2c: Nominating Committee, 1961-1984

Subseries 2.2d: Editorial Committee, 1980-1987

Subseries 2.2e: Documents Committee, 1961-1970; 1979-1985

Subseries 2.2f: Program Committee, 1959; 1961; 1968; 1971; 1983-1984

Subseries 2.2g: Other Committees, 1961-1987

Subseries 2.2h: Officers and Committee Appointments, 1963;1966; 1970-1977; 19080; 1982

Subseries 2.2i: Special Interest Groups, 1961-1988

Subseries 2.2j: Awards Committee (Committee on Honors), 1961-1988

Subseries 2.2k: Leonardo da Vinci Medal, 1966-1986

Subseries 2.2l: Dexter Prize, 1968-1987

Subseries 2.2m: Robinson Prize (Joseph J. Corn, Chair), 1979-1989

Subseries 2.2n: Levinson Prize, 1984-1986

Subseries 2.2o: Miscellaneous Awards, 1984-1986

Series 3: Correspondence, 1963-1988

Subseries 3.3a: General, 1963-1988

Subseries 3.3b: President's, 1977-1986

Subseries 3.3c: Other, 1975-19853a. General, 1963-1988

Series 4: Financial Records (Budget), 1959-1993

Subseries 4a: General, 1959-1991

Subseries 4b: Treasurer's Reports to the Internal Revenue Service, 1959-1991

Subseries 4c: Treasurer's Correspondence, 1962-1991

Subseries 4d: Meetings (Financial Records), 1973-1993

Series 5: Meetings, 1958-1992

Subseries 5.5a: Annual, 1958-1992

Subseries 5.5b: Other, 1965-1982

Series 6: Secretary's Membership Records, 1958-1984

Series 7, Newsletter, 1958-1997

Series 8: Publication of Monographs, 1961-1984

Series 9: SHOT Professional Relations with Other Organizations, 1964-1988

Subseries 9.9a: AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 1966-1985

Subseries 9.9b: ACLS (American Council of Learned Societies), 1973-1985

Subseries 9.9c: Other Professional Affiliations, 1968-1986

Series 10: Officers' Files, 1958-2009

Subseries 10.10a: John B. Rae Files, 1958-1988

Subseries 10.10b: Bruce Seely Files, 1984-1995

Subseries 10.10c: Alex Roland Files, 1986-1996

Subseries 10.10d: Russell I. Fries Files, 1991-1993

Subseries 10.10e: James C. Williams Files, 1993-1998

Subseries 10.10f: Susan Smulyan Files, 1986-1994

Subseries 10.10g: Ruth Schwartz Cowan Files, 1991-1994

Subseries 10.10h: Molly Berger Files, 1976-2001

Subseries 10.10i: William Leslie Files, 1989-2003

Subseries 10.10j: Terry Reynolds Files, 1993-2002

Subseries 10.10k: Joyce Bedi Files, 1984-2009

Subseries 10.10l: Carroll Pursell Files, 1965-2004

Subgroup II:Technology and Culture Records, 1958-2012

Series 1: Organizational Records, 1958-1962

Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-1988

Series 3: Book Reviews, 1969-1995

Series 4: Editorial Review of Articles, 1960-1993

Series 5: Indexes (cumulative and tables of contents), 1965-1987

Series 6:Technology and Culture, 1959-1994

Series 7, Special Projects, 1962-1986

Series 8, Technology and Culture Editor, 1982-2010

Series 9: Published Files, 1982-1994

Series 10: Office Business Files, 1983-2007

Series 11:Technology and Culture (journal), 1992, 1994, 2005-2012
Biographical / Historical:
The Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) was formed in 1958 to encourage the study of the development of technology and its relations with politics, economics, labor, business, the environment, public policy, science, and the arts. The Society is incorporated in the State of Ohio as a nonprofit educational organization. Membership is international, open to individuals, organizations, corporations, and institutions interested in the purposes and activities of the Society. An international society, SHOT meets annually in North America or Europe and also sponsors smaller conferences focused on specialized topics, often jointly with other scholarly societies and organizations. The Society's quarterly journal, Technology and Culture, is published by the Johns Hopkins University Press (http://www.techculture.org/). In addition to Technology and Culture, SHOT publishes a quarterly newsletter and, jointly with the American Historical Association, a booklet series, Historical Perspectives on Technology, Society, and Culture.

Melvin Kranzberg was the driving force behind the organization of SHOT. He chaired its Executive Council, 1958-1959, and also served as secretary of the organization, 1959-1974; vice president, 1981-1982; president, 1983-1984; and chairman of the editorial committee, 1985-1988. From 1959 to 1981, he was editor-in-chief of SHOT's quarterly journal, Technology and Culture (T&C). In addition to his long, intimate involvement with SHOT, Kranzberg, as a professor at Case Institute of Technology and Georgia Institute of Technology, 1952-1988, was deeply engaged in studying aspects of technological development over the course of human history. Kranzberg participated in many scholarly committees and other organizations, both domestic and international. He also contributed to governmental commissions and international bodies. His correspondence, speeches and published articles constitute the Melvin Kranzberg Papers, 1934-1988 (AC0266), in the National Museum of American History's Archives Center.

The Archives Center was officially designated the respository for the SHOT records and the editorial records of Technology and Culture in October 1994.
Related Materials:
Material in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Melvin Kranzberg Papers (AC0266)

Personal papers of Dr. Kranzberg from his undergraduate years at Amherst College through his professional career. Collection documents his involvement with development of the new field of history of technology and his role as principal founder of the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT); work as consultant and advisor to domestic and international agencies, colleges, and universities; personal affiliations, lectureships, publications; and teaching and administrative activities for more than forty years as a college professor.

S. Colum Gilfillan Papers (AC0461)

Gilfillan was a charter member of SHOT in 1958. The papers include correspondence with Melvin Kranzberg concerning articles that he published in SHOT's journal, Technology and Culture.

Materials in Smithsonian Institution Archives

Brooke Hindle Papers, 1944-1985 (RU 7363)

These papers document Hindle's teaching career; his tenure as an academic dean, historian, and professor of science and technology at New York University; his service as president of SHOT; and, to a lesser extent, his years as director of the National Museum of the History of Technology (NMHT). Papers consist of correspondence and memoranda with historical, scientific, and technological institutes and societies concerning research; correspondence and memoranda with prominent historians of science and technology, particularly Carl Bridenbaugh, Whitfield J. Bell, and A. Hunter Dupree; historical research proposals, manuscripts, publications, index cards, and related material; biographical information; slides and photographs of scientific illustrations and portraits of historic American figures; files concerning his presidency of SHOT and as a member of various visiting committees to review academic programs in the history of science and technology; and copies of course materials prepared during his teaching career at New York University.
Provenance:
Dr. Melvin Kranzberg donated the collection on August 29, 1988.
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.

Subgroup II: Technology and Culture Records

Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-1988

Files are restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the correspondence. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.

Series 4: Editorial Review of Articles, 1960-1993

Files are restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the review. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.

Series 9: Published Files, 1982-1994

Files are restricted for thirty years from the date of the last correspondence in the individual folder. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Technology  Search this
Genre/Form:
Business records -- 1950-2000
Newsletters -- 21st century
Correspondence -- 1940-2000
Photographs -- Phototransparencies -- 1950-2000
Newsletters -- 20th century
Correspondence -- 2000-2010
Floppy disks
Citation:
Society for the History of Technology Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0400
See more items in:
Society for the History of Technology Records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8219ae1e0-46cd-4bdd-9f90-8bdc4b36adef
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0400

Ricki Covette Burlesque Collection

Creator:
Covette, Ricki  Search this
Donor:
Jewell, Irene  Search this
Extent:
2 Cubic feet (6 boxes, 2 map folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Brochures
Certificates
Clippings
Decals
Letters (correspondence)
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Theater programs
Date:
1940ā€“2002
bulk 1950sā€“1970s
Summary:
Scrapbooks and posters documenting the burlesque career of Irene Jewell (stage name Ricki Covette), who at 6'8" was billed as "The World's Tallest Exotic Dancer."
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of eight scrapbooks and five posters documenting the burlesque career of Irene Jewell (stage name Ricki Covette), who at 6'8" was billed as "The World's Tallest Exotic Dancer." The albums contain clippings; letters; certificates; photographs, including photographs of her act; ephemera, such as postcards, travel brochures, postcards, and decals, from her travels; advertisements; and theater programs.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into two series.

Series 1: Scrapbooks

Series 2: Posters
Biographical / Historical:
Born in 1925 in rural Alberta, Canada, Irene Jewell aspired to become a singer and dancer. Moving to the United States in the 1950s, Jewell began a thirty-year career in show business, including theater, small parts in television and film, but especially burlesque, under her stage name "Ricki Covette." Billed as "The World's Tallest Exotic Dancer" at 6'8" and the "Glamazon," Covette's career spanned the peak of burlesque's popularity; her career highlights included headlining at clubs, including an 82-week stint at the ShoBar in New Orleans, Louisiana, and a solo act world tour in Japan, the United Kingdom, and the Americans. Besides her burlesque career, Covette also had parts in theater, including playing the role of Gymnasia in the 1963-1964 tour of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and appearing in the 1966 film The Swinger. After she left show business, she started a successful second career as a real estate broker in the Los Angeles area and travelled with her husband, cinematographer Stuart Jewell, shooting footage of nature and culture. In 2010 she appeared in Leslie Zemeckis's documentary, Behind the Burly! Covette died in February 2016.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2014 by Irene Jewell (stage name Ricki Covette).
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Social Security numbers are present and have been rendered unreadable and redacted. Researchers may use the photocopies in the collection. The remainder of the collection has no restrictions.
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.
Topic:
Burlesque (Theater) -- 1920-1970  Search this
Burlesque shows -- 1920-1970  Search this
Postcards -- 20th century  Search this
Striptease -- 1920-1970  Search this
Stripteasers -- 1920-1970  Search this
Genre/Form:
Advertisements -- 20th century
Brochures -- 20th century
Certificates -- 20th century
Clippings -- 20th century
Decals
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Photographs -- 1950-2000
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Theater programs -- 1950-2000
Citation:
Ricki Covette Burlesque Collection, 1940ā€“2022, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1335
See more items in:
Ricki Covette Burlesque Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8447243f0-1217-4a84-81b0-d5612eaf8621
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1335
Online Media:

METCO Inc. Materials

Creator:
Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (Boston, Mass.)  Search this
Extent:
2.5 Cubic feet (1 box, 8 map folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Brochures
Handbooks
Posters
Place:
Boston (Mass.) -- Social conditions
Massachusetts -- 20th century
Massachusetts -- 21st century
Date:
1977 - 2014
Scope and Contents:
The collection includes: annual METCO Parent Handbooks which detailed the services METCO provided and provided other information for parents of children attending the METCO supported schools, 1977-2004; event programs from METCO gatherings, 2007-2014; flyers and handouts; and posters, including 7 hand-made posters created to be displayed at meetings, featuring photographs and articles on some of the school districts METCO served.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
The Racial Imbalance Act of 1965 was passed by the Massachusetts General Court. It made the segregation of public schools illegal in Massachusetts, and stated that any public school in the Commonwealth whose student body was composed of over 50% of minority races was "racially imbalanced." The Boston School Committee was required to achieve "the complete integration of the Boston Public Schools" before September 1966. Significant civil unrest followed court-ordered busing to achieve the aims of this legislation, especially during the years 1974-1976. Against this background, METCO was started in 1966. METCO's mission was to enable voluntary integration in public schools in Metropolitan Boston, by enabling students who lived in the city to attend schools in the more affluent suburban areas, and provide better educational opportunities for minority students.
Provenance:
Collection donated by METCO Inc., through Jean McGuire, Director, 2016
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.
Topic:
Busing for school integration -- Massachusetts -- Boston Metropolitan Area  Search this
Education  Search this
Race relations  Search this
School integration  Search this
Schools  Search this
Genre/Form:
Brochures
Handbooks
Posters -- 1950-2000
Citation:
METCO Inc. Materials, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1410
See more items in:
METCO Inc. Materials
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a8d58c15-d65b-461e-93b4-5ee5174c8c81
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1410

Lester Shanks Collection of Covered Bridge Photographs and Ephemera

Collector:
Shanks, Lester  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet (16 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Maps
Slides (photographs)
Photograph albums
Books
Picture postcards
Photographs
Ephemera
Travel brochures
Pamphlets
Newsletters
Postcards
Place:
Switzerland
Baltimore (Md.) -- 19th century
Date:
1876-2010
bulk 1973-2008
Summary:
The collection is comprised of the results of Shanks's research on covered bridges, mostly in America but also covered bridges in Canada and Switzerland. Included are albums containing color photographs of covered bridges, slides of covered bridges, postcards depicting covered bridges; maps, and guidebooks; newsletters, magazines, and newspaper clippings on the subject of covered bridges.
Scope and Contents:
The collection is comprised of the results of Shanks's research on covered bridges, mostly in America but also covered bridges in Canada and Switzerland. Included are albums containing color photographs of covered bridges, slides of covered bridges, postcards depicting covered bridges; maps, and guidebooks; newsletters, magazines, and newspaper clippings on the subject of covered bridges.

Series 1, Photograph Albums, 1963-2006, consists of bound albums of black-and-white and color photographs by Shanks documenting covered bridges in the United States and other countries. The series is arranged geographically and then alphabetically. Some of the states have documentation preceding the photographs which lists the counties where the covered bridges he photographed were located. Shanks assigned a number to each state and each county for organization purposes. The number 35-04-03 means Ohio-Ashtabula County-third photograph in the group. The majority of photographs are identified.

In some instances, correspondence, brochures, fliers for covered bridge activities, invitations to covered bridge events, and copies or portions of Covered Bridge Topics, a quarterly journal published by the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, containing articles and information relating to covered bridges, are also included. Wooden Covered Spans, the newsletter for the Theodore Burr Covered Bridge Society of Pennsylvania is also present. The covered bridge photographs from Switzerland were taken by Leonard Reich.

Series 2, Slides, 1971-1997, consists of color slides taken by Shanks documenting covered bridges in Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Quebec, Canada, and Switzerland. The slides depict bridge interiors, side elevations, landscape views surrounding the bridge, river views, views of the road leading up to the bridge, and restoration work. Each slide is labeled with the name of the state/country/province, county and/or township, date, name of bridge and in some instances, the name of the river the bridge spans. Other numbers such as 38-63-22 are also present on the slides and represent a numbering system Shanks applied to his slides, which are keyed to states and counties. Shanks assigned a Roman numeral and Arabic numeral system to some of the slides (e.g. I-1 to I-100) and (13-1 to 13-100). This arrangement has been retained and while there is no key to it, the slides are arranged chronologically.

Series 3, Guide Books, 1876-2009, consists of bound guide books about covered bridges. The most significant of the guide books is theThe Stranger's Guide in Baltimore and its Environs, 1876. This small pocket guide book contains sketches of public buildings, monuments, notable localities, resorts, and suburban drives. The guide book is intended to show strangers where to go and what to see when in Baltimore.

Series 4, Maps, 1850, 1982, contains two maps for the city of Baltimore and Baltimore County, Maryland.

Series 5, National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, Inc, 2005-2010, consists of copies of the Covered Bridges Topics, the official magazine for the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, Inc. (N.S.P.C.B.) and the newsletter for the N.S.P.C.B.

Series 6, Newsclippings, 2006, 2008, consists of two articles fromThe Post Standard, New York about covered bridges.

Series 7, Postcards, 1963-1985, consists of color postcards of covered bridges from a variety of locations in the United States. The postcards are arranged alphabetically by state. Some bear cancelled postmarks, but the majority are blank.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into seven series.

Series 1, Photograph Albums, 1963-2006

Series 2, Slides, 1971-1977

Series 3, Guide Books, 1876-2009

Series 4, Maps, 1850, 1982

Series 5, National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, Inc., 2005-2010

Series 6, News clippings, 2006, 2008

Series 7, Postcards, 1963-1985
Biographical / Historical:
Shanks, an employee of Baltimore Gas and Electric for over 40 years, was a covered bridge enthusiast and collector. He set a goal of photographing every covered bridge in America. Lester Shanks died October 10, 2010.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Bridges (series), circa 1818-1940 (AC0060)

Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Bridges: stereographs, circa 1868-1902 (mostly circa 1875-1880) (AC0060)

Beata Drake Covered Bridge Collection, 1954-1981 (AC0998)

Raymond E. Wilson Covered Bridge Collection, 1958-1974 (AC0999)

Samuel E. Reed Bridge Collection, 1947-1964 (AC1001)

Lucinda Rudell Covered Bridge Collection, 1942-1979 (AC1028)

Robert Bagby Stereographs and Lantern Slides, 1919; circa 1940-1960 (AC1185)
Provenance:
Donated by Eunice C. Shanks on August 11, 2011.
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.
Topic:
Bridges -- Switzerland  Search this
Covered bridges -- Switzerland  Search this
Covered bridges -- United States  Search this
Bridges -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Maps -- 20th century
Slides (photographs) -- 1950-2000
Photograph albums -- 20th century
Books
Picture postcards -- 20th century
Photographs -- 20th century
Ephemera -- 19th century
Travel brochures
Photographs -- Color transparencies -- Acetate film -- 20th century
Ephemera -- 20th century
Pamphlets -- 1950-2000
Newsletters -- 2000-2010
Postcards
Citation:
Lester Shanks Collection of Covered Bridge Photographs and Ephemera, 1876-2010 (bulk 1973-2008), Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1244
See more items in:
Lester Shanks Collection of Covered Bridge Photographs and Ephemera
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8e43d1ed5-4784-475c-afb4-35ff22e3db80
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1244

Julia Child Award Winners Collection

Creator:
AndrĆ©s, JosĆ©, 1969-  Search this
Bayless, Rick  Search this
Feniger, Susan  Search this
Meyer, Danny  Search this
Milliken, Mary Sue  Search this
PĆ©pin, Jacques, 1935-  Search this
Author:
Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946-  Search this
Bush, Laura  Search this
Obama, Barack  Search this
Obama, Michelle  Search this
Names:
Child, Julia, 1912-2004  Search this
Extent:
2.5 Cubic feet (10 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audio cassettes
Brochures
Business cards
Letters (correspondence)
Menus
Photographs
Receipts (financial records)
Date:
1952-2019
Summary:
The collection documents the recipients of the Julia Child Award which is given to an individual (or team) who has made a profound and significant difference in the way America cooks, eats and drinks.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in one series by name of award recipient.
Historical:
Created by The Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts in 2015, the Julia Child Award is given to an individual (or team!) who has made a profound and significant difference in the way America cooks, eats and drinks.

The Foundation presents the annual award in association with the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History at a gala event held each fall in Washington, D.C.

Each year, the recipient receives a uniquely designed award engraved with his/her name and year of honor. In addition, the Foundation makes a $50,000 grant to the food-related non-profit of the recipient's choosing.

Source

The Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts (https://juliachildaward.com/award/ last accessed on April 7, 2021)
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives Center in 2015 by Jacques PĆ©pin.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Social Security numbers are present and have been rendered unreadable and redacted. Researchers may use the photocopies in the collection. The remainder of the collection has no restrictions.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Some materials 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.
Topic:
Cooks  Search this
Chefs -- New York  Search this
Illustrations  Search this
Notebooks  Search this
Restaurateurs  Search this
Schematic drawings  Search this
Genre/Form:
Audio cassettes
Brochures
Business cards
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Letters (correspondence) -- 21st century
Menus
Photographs -- 21st century
Photographs -- 1950-2000
Receipts (financial records)
Citation:
Julia Child Award Winners Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1371
See more items in:
Julia Child Award Winners Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep80072c501-b34e-4e6a-9651-9349fce56965
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1371
Online Media:

Claude Williams Papers

Creator:
Williams, Claude, 1908-2004  Search this
Fouse-Williams, Blanche Y.  Search this
Extent:
1 Electronic discs (CD)
13 Cassette tapes
4.66 Cubic feet (14 boxes, 3 map- folders)
Container:
Map-folder 1
Map-folder 3
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Electronic discs (cd)
Cassette tapes
Letters (correspondence)
Photographs
Programs
Posters
Scrapbooks
Financial records
Awards
Business records
Audiotapes
Articles
Manuscripts
Date:
1920-2005
Summary:
Business and personal papers, photographs, and audio recordings of Claude "Fiddler" Williams, an award-winning jazz fiddler. Although Williams played music for almost a century the materials in this collection date largely from 1970 to 2005.
Scope and Contents:
This collection documents the later life and career of jazz violinist Claude "Fiddler" Williams. Materials include correspondence, photographs, unpublished writings, awards, business records, financial records, programs and a few music manuscripts. There is one scrapbook and several audio recordings. There are also an autographed poster from 1997 honoring five inductees to the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, including Claude Williams, Merle Haggard, Patti Page, Woody Guthrie and Eddie Burris. While there are some materials from Williams's youth, the vast majority of the collection dates from 1970. Williams's second wife, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, was vigilant about saving his papers. She also managed his career for the last few years of his life. This accounts for the increased volume of materials documenting his later years. Materials generally are arranged in chronological order within series and subseries.

Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated, is divided into seven subseries and includes business records, information relating to tours and performances, awards and certificates, business and personal correspondence, financial papers, articles and newspaper clippings, and biographical information.

Subseries 1, Events, 1977-2004, undated, includes contracts, copies of newspaper clippings, performance programs, brochures, ticket stubs, travel itineraries, travel receipts, correspondence, materials regarding his work as a fiddle teacher, advertisements for performances, a certificate of recognition, and napkins saved from a Washington Education Television Association (WETA) performance at the White House in 1998. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 2, Itineraries, 1990-2001, includes lists and correspondence detailing locations, musicians, travel and lodging plans, and financial compensation for William's performances. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002, contains awards and certificates of appreciation from the Steamboat Delta Queen, Annual Black Musicians Conference, Kansas City Chapter of the International Association of Jazz Record Collectors, and the Manhattan School of Music, as well as an invitation to a reception honoring Kansas City Jazz musicians from the Consul General of Japan. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 4, Correspondence, 1975-2004, consists of information relating to travel arrangements, tours, remuneration, music recordings, press kits, contracts, public television performances, involvement with the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as Williams's Smithsonian Folkways recording. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005, includes information about travel and payment, hotel bills and receipts, invoices for performances, music recordings sales, royalty statements and copies of checks. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 6, Press, 1973--005, undated, includes magazines, newspaper clippings and articles, about Williams's performances and music, appearances and jazz festivals, as well as the Kansas City Jazz scene. Magazine titles include Kansas City Magazine , Missouri Alumnus , The Masters Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program , Jazz Ambassador Magazine , Kansas City Ambassador to Jazz , The Mississippi Rag , Fiddler Magazine , Jazz News , Jazz Times , Living Blues , Blues Access , and Kansas City . Materials are arranged by type and then in chronological order.

Subseries 7, Music, 1989-1995, undated, contains thirteen audio tape recordings, one CD, sheet music and set lists of music performed by Williams. There is an audio recording of Black and Blue: A Musical Revue , a Folk Master performance at Carnegie Hall. Williams's work with James Chirillo, an appearance on Birdflight , as well as recordings of live and studio performances are also included among these materials. There is a copy of Williams's CD Swingtime in New York and an interview from1992. Materials are arranged in chronological order.

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978--005, undated, is divided into two subseries and contains letters, cards, postcards, invitations, copies of email, and requests for information and interviews. Most of the correspondence was addressed to Williams but there are materials that were sent to Blanche Williams. The correspondence is generally from fans, friends and family.

Subseries 1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated, consists of birthday cards from school age children, postcards, copies of newspaper clippings, White House and other government correspondence, congratulations or birthday wishes, as well as personal correspondence from friends inquiring about Williams's health and well-being. Also included is a draft for a chapter in a book on Claude Williams's contributions to jazz. Requests relating to research about Williams are also included. Materials are arranged in chronological order. Materials are arranged first by type followed by general correspondence in chronological order.

Subseries 2, Miscellaneous, undated, contains ephemera, autographs, affiliates list, well-wishes to Blanche Williams, a funeral program, mailing lists, lists of affiliated organizations, and a Count Bassie autograph.

Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated, includes personal and professional photographic prints and negatives of Williams. Subjects include performances and festivals, headshots and publicity, images of other musicians, family, friends, and posters with photographs created for his funeral. The majority of these photographs are of performances. Materials are arranged by subject.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.

Series 1, Business Records, 1973-2005, undated

Subseries 1.1, Events, 1977-2004, undated

Subseries 1.2, Itineraries, 1990-2001

Subseries 1.3, Awards and Certificates, 1978-2002

Subseries 1.4, Correspondence, 1975-2004

Subseries 1.5, Financial Papers, 1990-2005

Subseries 1.6, Press, 1973-2005, undated

Subseries 1.7, Music; 1989-1995, undated

Series 2, Personal Papers, 1978-2005, undated

Subseries 2.1, Correspondence, 1978-2005, undated

Subseries 2.2, Miscellaneous, undated

Series 3, Photographs, 1977-2004, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Claude "Fiddler" Williams, 1908-2004, was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, the son of a blacksmith. His musical gifts developed at a very early age, and he quickly became adept at the guitar, banjo, mandolin and cello, learning mostly by ear, without formal training. After hearing the jazz violinist Joe Venuti, the violin became his instrument of choice, and it remained so for the rest of his life. He migrated to Kansas City in 1927 and toured with several territory bands. Additionally Williams toured with the Twelve Clouds of Joy and the Cole Brothers, and in 1936, joined Count Basie's band as the first guitarist. After he was fired from Count Basie's band because John Hammond thought Williams's guitar solos were taking too much attention away from Basie, he went back to the violin (or "fiddle" as he preferred to call it) and focused exclusively on it for the rest of his life. Later he started his own band and toured with several jazz groups working for a short time with the Works Progress Administration (WPA). His band appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Nice Jazz Festival, and the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folk Life. Williams received numerous honors and awards, including induction into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, a proclamation from the city of Kansas City, and a 1998 National Heritage Fellowship which included a $10,000 award. President Bill Clinton invited him to perform at one of the parties celebrating his first inauguration. Williams continued to tour and perform until well into his nineties. He also gave instruction at Mark O'Connor's annual fiddle camp to young violinists. Mr. Williams died in April 2004.
Separated Materials:
Artifacts donated to the Museum's Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) include a suit and violin. See accession numbers: 2005.3105 and 2007.3020.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Claude Williams's widow, Blanche Y. Fouse-Williams, in 2005.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.

Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow.

Technical Access: Do not use original materials when available on reference audio tapes.
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.
Topic:
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Jazz -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Jazz musicians -- United States  Search this
Violinists  Search this
Musicians -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Photographs -- 2000-2010
Programs
Posters -- 1950-2000
Scrapbooks
Financial records
Awards
Business records -- 20th century
Audiotapes
Articles
Photographs -- 20th century
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Citation:
Claude Williams Papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0909
See more items in:
Claude Williams Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82736f8a2-824b-43e6-96c8-6449a163c087
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0909
Online Media:

U.S. Savings Bond Stamp Collection

Donor:
Gottlieb, Rosalie F.  Search this
Designer:
Luchton, Bernard, 1924-1970  Search this
Extent:
1 Cubic foot (2 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Publicity photographs
Photographs
Pamphlets
Scrapbooks
Posters
Brochures
Date:
1949-1970
Summary:
Collection consists of dvertising materials relating to Bernard Luchton's development of U.S. Savings Bond Stamps, including scrapbooks, posters, drawings, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of savings bond stamp campaign materialsā€”posters, pamphlets, and brochuresā€”primarily from the late 1950s to the early 1960s, to promote the purchase of savings bonds. There are also photos and news about publicity events and displays at bond stamp rallies. Many of the savings bond campaign slogans talk about "planning for your future" and "keep freedom in your future." The scrapbooks provide examples of various savings bond stamp campaigns and some include a poster, volunteer canvasser's guide and chairman's guide promoting each campaign. The collection is arranged into three seriesā€”Background Information, Scrapbooks, and Miscellaneous.
Arrangement:
Divided into 3 series

Series 1: Background Information, 1949, 1956

Series 2: Scrapbooks,1950s-1960s

Series 3: Miscellaneous, 1950-1970
Biographical / Historical:
Bernard M. Luchton (1924-1970) was an exhibits specialist with the Department of Labor and later joined the Department of Treasury as Art Director for the Treasury's Savings Bond Division. He designed the 1958 25-cent U.S. Savings Stamp (Minute Man).
Provenance:
Collection donated by Rosalie F. Gottlieb, December 27, 2000.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research and 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.
Topic:
Savings stamps  Search this
Savings bonds  Search this
advertising -- 1950-2000  Search this
Rallies  Search this
Genre/Form:
Publicity photographs
Photographs -- 1950-2000
Pamphlets -- 1950-2000
Scrapbooks -- 1950-2000
Posters -- 1950-2000
Brochures -- 1950-2000
Citation:
U.S. Savings Bond Stamp Collection, 1949-1970, Archives Center,National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0758
See more items in:
U.S. Savings Bond Stamp Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep831c9aa0d-87ba-46a6-aab0-11387d353df2
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0758

North American Water and Power Alliance Records

Creator:
North American Water and Power Alliance.  Search this
Ralph M. Parsons Corporation (Pasadena, Calif.)  Search this
Extent:
0.6 Cubic feet (2 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Reports
Correspondence
Videotapes
Brochures
Place:
Ogallala Aquifer
Great Lakes (North America)
Date:
1964-1990
Summary:
The collection contains executive reports, promotional material, correspondence, articles and publications documenting the North American Water and Power Alliance (NAWAPA), which was a large-scale, transcontinental water transfer plan designed by the Ralph M. Parsons Corporation in 1964.
Scope and Contents:
The collection contains a promotional video, correspondence, plans, studies, reports, articles, newspaper clippings, and newsletters, which document the North American Water and Power Alliance (NAWAPA), a large scale, transcontinental water transfer plan designed by the Ralph M. Parsons Corporation in 1964 to collect excess water from the northwestern part of the North American continent and distribute it to deficient areas of Canada, the United States and Mexico.

Series 1: Plans and Studies, 1964-1989, is arranged topically and contains conceptual studies, executive plans, summaries, and papers and presentations about the NAWAPA project. The conceptual plans (Volumes One, Two and Five), detail the engineering, financial, and sociogeopolitical aspects of the project, while the other materials provide overall background and context for the project's conception.

Series 2: Correspondence, 1974-1990, is arranged chronologically and contains letters and interoffice memoranda about the NAWAPA project. The contents of the letters primarily relate to efforts to gain federal government support for the NAWAPA. The majority of the correspondence was created by Joseph Volpe, Jr., Vice-President of Parsons Corporation and W.E. Leonhard, Chairman and CEO of Parsons Corporation. Correspondence from congressional representatives such as Senator Fran E. Moss (D-Utah) and Representative Harold T. (Bizz) Johnson (D-California) are present. There are some tax returns, letters and interoffice memoranda concerning the dissolution of the NAWAPA Foundation Inc., which was a subsidiary of the Parsons Corporation.

Series 3: Reference Materials, 1964-1990, is arranged topically and contains brochures, articles, publications, newspaper clippings, notes, and audio visual materials documenting the NAWAPA project and water issues. Materials from the National Water Alliance, National Democratic Policy Committee (Water from Alaska), and the Water Policy Report of the Western Governors' Association are represented. The NAWAPA promotional video tape on 1/2" VHS, circa 1964, was originally shot on 16mm color film and produced by the Ralph M. Parsons Corporation. The film depicts still images of landscapes, mostly rivers and reservoirs, and engineering projects such as dams, hydroelectric power plants and irrigation systems. The film is narrated and discusses the importance of the NAWAPA project. A digital surrogate (RDVD 1052.01) of the videotape exists.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into three series.

Series 1: Plans and Studies, 1964-1989

Series 2: Correspondence, 1974-1990

Series 3: Reference, 1964-1990
Biographical / Historical:
The North American Water and Power Alliance (NAWAPA) was a large-scale, transcontinental water transfer plan designed by the Ralph M. Parsons Corporation in 1964. The Parsons Corporation was founded in 1944 to provide engineering, procurement and construction services for government, petrochemical, and infrastructure clients. In the early 1960s, Parsons invested its own financial resources to study and develop a conceptual plan for NAWAPA, which would divert fresh water from Alaska to water-deficient areas of seven Canadian provinces, thirty-three U.S. states, and three Mexican states. The total projected investment was about a hundred billion dollars with construction estimated to take approximately twenty years.

Although the NAWAPA project was never realized, the Parsons Corporation (http://www.parsons.com) continues to provide engineering, construction, technical, and management services to private industries and government agencies.
Provenance:
Immediate source of acquisition unknown. Found in the Division of Engineering and Industry, now known as the Division of Work and Industry, National Museum of American History.
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 intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Lobbying  Search this
Water-power  Search this
Water transfer  Search this
Engineering -- 20th century  Search this
Conservation of natural resources  Search this
Genre/Form:
Reports
Correspondence -- 1950-2000
Videotapes
Brochures -- 1950-2000
Citation:
North American Water and Power Alliance Collection, 1964-1990, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1052
See more items in:
North American Water and Power Alliance Records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep83ac8161f-a63c-4b56-bec2-51e43cdee1fa
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1052

Tupperware, A Household Word in Homes Everywhere! [brochure]

Creator:
Tupperware Home Parties  Search this
Collection Creator:
Damigella, Ann.  Search this
Damigella, Thomas  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Ink on paper., 10" x 8.25".)
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Brochures
Advertisements
Date:
1957
Scope and Contents:
Page 30: "A Tupperware Career. Put Yourself in the Tupperware Picture." Page contains four reproductions of black-and-white photographs and one reproduction of a color photograph, with text. The pictures show women who sell Tupperware, and are arranged and captioned to look like a scrapbook page.
Local Numbers:
01058313.tif (AC Scan, p. 30 of brochure)
General:
In Box 1, Folder 1.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the fils are 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:
Most items have copyright and/or trademark restrictions. Tupperware films: Most duplication and use of films in commercial and non-commercial productions requires written permission from the Tupperware Corporation. See repository for details.
Topic:
Tupperware Home Parties -- 1950-1960  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1950-1960 -- Reproductions
Brochures -- 1950-2000
Advertisements -- 1950-1960
Collection Citation:
Ann and Thomas Damigella Collection, 1951-1997, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Ann and Thomas Damigella Collection
Ann and Thomas Damigella Collection / Series 1: Catalogs / "Tupperware Home Parties," 44-page catalogue
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82ef6a451-d3f1-4a58-8e46-6183259e9438
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0583-ref765

Arnold Mesches papers

Creator:
Mesches, Arnold, 1923-  Search this
Names:
New York University  Search this
Ciment, Jill, 1953-  Search this
Danto, Arthur Coleman, 1924-  Search this
Marshall, Kerry James, 1955-  Search this
Miami Dade College  Search this
Miller, Henry, 1891-  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this
Siqueiros, David Alfaro, 1896-1974  Search this
Storr, Robert  Search this
Wayne, June, 1918-2011  Search this
Zinn, Howard, 1922-2010  Search this
Extent:
13.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Collages
Diaries
Drawings
Sketches
Date:
1939-2015
Summary:
The papers of New York City and Gainesville, Florida based painter Arnold Mesches (1923-2016) measure 13.6 linear feet and date from 1939-2015. The collection documents Mesches' politically-engaged career and work process through biographical material, correspondence, writings, gallery and exhibition files, project files, subject files, teaching files, personal business records, printed material, and photographic material. Project files comprise a bulk of the collection and include grant files, activism files, project notebooks, and over 100 art project files containing drawings, source material, and photographic material for individual artworks.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York City and Gainesville, Florida based painter Arnold Mesches (1923-2016) measure 13.6 linear feet and date from 1939-2015. The collection documents Mesches' politically engaged career and work process through biographical material, correspondence, writings, gallery and exhibition files, project files, subject files, teaching files, personal business records, printed material, and photographic material.

Biographical material includes addresses, family papers, interview transcripts, life documents, identification cards, a residency file, resumes, biographical statements, and travel records. Correspondence is both personal and professional in nature and is with wife, novelist Jill Ciment, family, friends, artists, museums, galleries, and magazines. Notable correspondents include Arthur Danto, Robert Storr, June Wayne, and Howard Zinn. Single items of correspondence are from Kerry James Marshall, Henry Miller, Robert Motherwell, and Ben Shahn.

Writings include manuscripts of unpublished novels and short stories, autobiographical writings, recordings of dreams, introductions to artists, a journal, memorials, project proposals, statements on art and politics, notes from Mesches' psychotherapy sessions, as well as numerous outlines, fragments, and notes.

Gallery and exhibition files document dozens of Mesches' gallery and museum exhibitions, including his 2013 retrospective at Miami Dade College, Arnold Mesches: A Life's Work.

Project files consist of grant files, activism files, project notebooks, and art projects. Activism files pertain to the Los Angeles Peace Tower, Arts Coalition for Freedom of Expression, and the pardon of muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros. Project notebooks contain preliminary sketches, technical notes including color palette and paint formulas, Polaroids of in-process works, and source material. Over 100 art project files further detail individual works, and include preliminary drawings in pen, pencil and charcoal, as well as collages, source material, and Polaroids. Several of Mesches' serial works are well represented here, including Anomie, Comings Attractions, and The FBI Files.

Subject files consist of a sequence of alphabetical files maintained by Mesches as reference material. Teaching files document posts at New York University and other institutions and include course descriptions, lists of materials, course notes, newsletters, reference articles, and correspondence.

Personal business records include documentation related to donations, Mesches' estate, gallery representation, inventories, properties, artwork shipment, supplies, and website design.

Printed material documents Mesches' career as both political illustrator and fine artist. Found here are brochures, leaflets, and Frontier and The Nation magazines featuring illustrations by Mesches. Calendars, newsletters, clippings, announcements, exhibition catalogs, and press releases document Mesches' gallery and museum exhibitions.

Photographic material includes hundreds of photographic prints, contact sheets, slides, and negatives of Arnold Mesches, Mesches' family and friends, studio, and artworks from his seven decade long career.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as ten series.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1960s-2012 (0.2 linear feet, Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1949-2014 (0.8 linear feet, Box 1)

Series 3: Writings, 1958-2013 (1.1 linear feet, Box 2-3)

Series 4: Gallery and Exhibition Files, 1979-2015 (0.8 linear feet, Box 3)

Series 5: Project Files, 1950s-2014 (5.3 linear feet, Box 3-8, 15, OV 16-19)

Series 6: Subject Files, 1939-2000s (1.3 linear feet, Box 8-9)

Series 7: Teaching Files, 1992-2004 (0.2 linear feet, Box 9-10)

Series 8: Personal Business Records, 1983-2015 (0.5 linear feet, Box 10)

Series 9: Printed Material, 1950s-2000s (1.5 linear feet, Box 10-11, 15, OV 20)

Series 10: Photographic Material, 1940s-2010s (1.9 linear feet, Box 12-15)
Biographical / Historical:
Arnold Mesches (1923-2016) was a painter in New York, New York and Gainesville, Florida. Born in the Bronx and raised in upstate Dunkirk, New York, Mesches studied advertising design in high school before moving to Los Angeles in 1943 to study art at the Jepson Art Institute and Chouinard Art Institute.

Mesches began his career as a scenic painter for Hollywood while honing his own style as a fine artist and illustrator influenced by the political landscape and social realism. As a result of his political activity and involvement in the Communist Party, the FBI opened a file on Mesches in the 1950s, and began tracking his activities. The file, obtained by Mesches through a Freedom of Information Act request in 1999, became the basis for one of his most famous series, The FBI Files.

Throughout his life, Mesches was a socially-oriented figurative painter working in an expressionist style, mining the daily news and the current political landscape for subject matter, including the Cold War, the trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, and the Vietnam War. Mesches was also one of the organizers of the 1966 Peace Tower artwork in Los Angeles and contributed illustrations to Frontier magazine throughout the 1950s, and The Nation magazine from 1960s-1980s.

In the early 1980s, Mesches relocated to New York City with wife, novelist Jill Ciment.

Mesches held several teaching posts over the course of his career, including at the New School, New York University, and the University of Florida.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives of American Art in 2017 by Jill Ciment, Mesches' widow.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference 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.
Occupation:
Painters -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Painters -- Florida  Search this
Topic:
Art -- Political aspects  Search this
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Painting -- Technique  Search this
Politics in art  Search this
Interviews  Search this
Photographs  Search this
Transcripts  Search this
Genre/Form:
Collages
Diaries
Drawings
Sketches
Citation:
Arnold Mesches papers, 1939-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.mescarno
See more items in:
Arnold Mesches papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9415d73fe-0b7a-41fc-a1a6-7ac35ec38ac6
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-mescarno
Online Media:

George W. Sims Papers

Author:
Sims, George W.  Search this
Collector:
National Anthropological Archives  Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life  Search this
Extent:
5 Cubic feet (22 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Manuscripts
Audiotapes
Scrapbooks
Slides (photographs)
Place:
Carmel (Calif.)
Panama Canal (Panama)
California
Date:
1896-1981.
Summary:
Collection documents Sims's activities as a traveler and his interest in historic restoration. It includes forty-one notebooks, 6,000 color slides, a smaller number of photographic prints, forty-one stereo view cards, and three boxes of personal papers and ephemera. While some images are personal, the majority form a documentary record of various subjects and places and provide biographical information on Sims.
Scope and Contents:
These papers document Sims's activities as a traveler and his interest in historic restoration. They consist of forty-one notebooks, Series 1-4; and three boxes, Series 5-9, of personal papers and ephemera. Series 5-7 are particularly valuable for biographical information. Series 10 includes 6,000 color slides, a smaller number of photographic prints, and forty-one stereo view cards. The total volume of the collection is approximately eleven linear feet.

The notebooks cover the years 1896, 1908-1913, 1918, and 1934-1976. The notebooks are written in a documentary styles that is enhanced by literary touches and perceptive details. The subjects include visits to several national parks, the Boronda adobe, and travel on most continents.

The 6,000 35mm slides that Sims took between 1944 and 1976 portray the use of the automobile in travel, national and international touring, and family travel. They are organized by either trip or location. They document his collecting, research, and restoration interests, and complement his written and artistic work. In technique, Sims's photographs are at least a cut above amateur photography. The slides remain in the order in which the Archives Center received them. In some cases they are organized, captioned, and numbered as a slide program. In other cases, while they are captioned they are not part of a specific slide program that Sims organized. Usually the identification in the Detailed Container List represents Sims' s own captions, which have been copied from the slide sleeves.

While some images are personal, the majority form a documentary record of various subjects and places. All the slides are dated and labeled or captioned, either on box inserts or on the slides themselves. The slides are generally organized by trip. Of particular interest is the documentation of Sims's restoration of the Boronda adobe. These slides are well captioned and show the step by step process.

The slides include many early Kodachromes from the 1940s in excellent condition. These represent the few examples of this type in the Museum. Although these slides are not extraordinarily rare, they are a very early example of the color process.

There are also black and white prints and a few color prints. Some of these document an automobile trip along the California coast in the 1930s. All the black-and-white prints portray the photographer for Sims's concern to document his travels adequately and in a meaningful way.

The three document boxes of supplemental material includes articles, correspondence (for example, a letter to Sims from the Henry Ford Museum thanking him for donating an oral history of a motoring trip he had taken), business cards, certificates of achievement, hotel ephemera, news clippings (Series 12), published travel accounts, printed travel brochures, and audio tapes (Series 11), in which Sims recounts many of his trips over the years. This material is valuable because it provides biographical information on Sims. It also may be useful for exhibits and research. Much of the materialā€”the hotel ephemera and the printed travel brochures and accountsā€”is similar to ephemera in the Warshaw Collection.

Sims's photographs are similar in content to two other collections in the Archives Center. The Clyde W. Stauffer Family Photographic Album portrays family automobile trips across the United States between 1935 and 1940. The Donald Sultner Welles Collection of travel slides documents locations throughout the United States and around the world.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into 12 series.

Series 1:Notebooks, 1896-1975

Series 2: Political Notes, 1964-1976

Series 3: Comments on Vietnam, 1954-1975

Series 4: Moon Landings, 1969-1976

Series 5: Scrapbooks, 1896-1981, undated

Series 6: Correspondence, 1920-1987

Series 7: Biography, 1911-1938

Series 8: Published Material, 1927-1966

Series 9: Artifacts, 1913-1937

Series 10: Photographs, circa 1936-1962

Series 11: Audio Materials

Series 12: Newsclippings, undated
Historical:
Boronda Adobe

In 1946 George W. Sims purchased the old Boronda adobe in the Carmel Valley of California, and over the next ten years he restored it.

The Boronda adobe was built above the Carmel River in 1832 by JosƩ Manuel Boronda on his 7,000 acre Rancho de Los Laureles land grant. JosƩ was the son of Don Manuel Boronda, the first schoolteacher in California. JosƩ was married to Juana Cota of Santa Barbara. The sixty-four foot long house has adobe walls twenty-seven inches thick and hand-hewn redwood beams. Senor and Senora Boronda lived there with their fifteen children. It was in this house that Senora Boronda reputedly made a new cheese much liked by her neighbors and today known as Monterey Jack cheese. She eventually produced enough to sell to the surrounding community.

The Boronda family sold the ranch and adobe to Nathan W. Spaulding in the late 1860s or early 1870s. He was a mayor of Oakland, California. The next owner was the Pacific Improvement Company in the early 1880s, the forerunner of Del Monte Properties Company. A small cheese factory was built to commercialize the product under the name "Monterey Jack." Nevertheless, the adobe eventually became abandoned as a house. Before Sims purchased it the adobe was used as a shelter for dairy cows.

Sims plastered the outside walls to protect the soft adobe bricks and whitewashed the interior walls. The original dirt floor was covered with a floor of two-inch clear, heart redwood, random planks. It slopes downhill as does the roof of the house. The entire house follows the topography of the site. Sims left several cables stretching across the crudely raftered ceiling to support the walls.

Sims reroofed the house with one hundred year old roof tiles from the old Vasquez adobe in Monterey, California. He also constructed a workshop on the cement foundation of the old cheese factory and milk barn, added a carport, and built a fence protected patio of the Mexican type, adjacent to a Spanish garden with gravel paths. The patio walls were made of adobe created from Carmel Valley soil.

The first floor of the adobe consists of a long living room, a kitchen, a bedroom, and a bath. An inside staircase was added and leads to the second floor living room, two bedrooms, and a bath. All of the rooms on the main floor are on a different level. The kitchen at one end of the house is thought to date to the 1790s when the land belonged to the Carmel Mission.
Biographical / Historical:
George W. Sims (1896-1986) was a tax lawyer, certified public accountant, world traveler, and collector of pre-Columbian objects. He spent his childhood in Fairfax County, Virginia. At age seventeen he began the study of law at the Washington College of Law (now American University), and worked at night as a telephone company traffic manager. He was employed as a clerk in the Panama Canal Zone by the Panama Railroad Company, Commissary Branch, from 1915-1916. Sims left Washington, DC, because he needed money for school and received a better salary in Latin America. "The pay was 25% higher there [Panama] than in the U.S.A., because the risks of Yellow Fever were great, and work and living conditions less satisfactory than at home." (Box 8, folder 6) This was the first of his many trips to other countries. He then returned to Washington and graduated from law school.

Between 1918-1919 he served as sergeant first class in the aviation section of the Signal Corps. He was stationed for a time at the Vichy (France) Hospital Center, a part of the United States Base Army Hospital, No. 115. After the war Sims did graduate work in accounting at Benjamin Franklin University in the District of Columbia, studying at night. During the day he worked in the Navy Department's communications section.

In 1919 Sims and a few friends traveled west on one of the early automobile trips across the United States. In July he visited Fresno, California. He returned that same year to Washington, DC, and "made plans for making the West (and Fresno) his permanent home." In January, 1924, Sims returned with his wife to fulfill those plans and thus began his long time love affair with the West and California." (Scrapbooks: Vol. 38, Box 8, folder 2)

After his first wife Katherine died in 1946, Sims spent much time on world cruises. His destinations included North, South, and Central America, Eastern and Western Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Islands. Between 1946 and 1956 he also purchased and restored the 1832 Boronda adobe in Carmel, California.

Sims married Emma Marenchin Sims on her birthday November 2, 1971 in Santa Barbara, California. Prior to her marriage Mrs. Sims (1914-? ) worked in the public health field after graduating from Western Reserve University in Cleveland. She remarked, "My world opened up when I married George." Sims died in 1986.
Provenance:
Collection donated by George W. Sims, January 10, 1985.
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.
Topic:
Travel photography  Search this
Adobe houses  Search this
Pre-Columbian objects  Search this
Vichy France  Search this
Audio tapes  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 20th century
Manuscripts
Audiotapes
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Slides (photographs) -- 1950-2000
Photographs -- Phototransparencies -- 20th century
Citation:
George W. Sims Papers, 1896-1981, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0127
See more items in:
George W. Sims Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep85d82cdde-b7ee-4b6e-b9f6-6698d75d53d0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0127
Online Media:

Miss America 1951 Papers

Creator:
Betbeze, Yolande  Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Sports, Entertainment and Leisure  Search this
Extent:
4.5 Cubic feet (12 boxes, 1 map folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Letters (correspondence)
Programs
Paper dolls
Interviews
Clippings
Awards
Photographs
Magazines (periodicals)
Advertisements
Date:
1910 - 2003
Summary:
Yolande Betbeze was crowned Miss America in September, 1950. During and after her reign she was influential in both the Civil Rights and Feminist movements. Her papers document her reign as Miss America, her life after Miss America, and the Miss America pageant itself.
Scope and Contents:
Scope and Content: This collection documents the life of Yolande Betbeze who reigned as Miss America 1951. Though the collection focuses heavily on the year of her reign from September 1950 to September 1951, it also includes information about her life before winning the Miss America pageant, the Miss Alabama and Miss America pageants of 1950, and her life post-Miss America. Visual imagery in the collection documents life and fashion in the 1950s through 2000. Newspaper articles offer evidence of the culture of the 1950s. This collection contains newspaper clippings, magazine articles, photographs, awards, and memorabilia of Miss America pageants throughout the twentieth century in the form of booklets, brochures, and paper dolls.

Series 1, Miss America Reign, 1950-1951, 1994, undated, includes newspaper articles, magazine articles, and awards from the House of Representatives, programs and brochures relating to Ms. Betbeze's activities as Miss America. All publicity articlesā€”whether promotional or editorial-are included in this series. Betbeze traveled extensively during her reign, and her trips are documented here. Also included in this series are her visits to military installations, promotion of Miss America pageant sponsors, promotion of her own opera career, and most importantly her verbal attacks against the objectification of women in pageants while she wore the Miss America crown.

Subseries 1, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1950-1951, undated,

includes newspaper clippings about Betbeze during her reign as Miss America, documenting nearly every event she attended and delving into her love life and home life. The clippings are arranged by month and year from September 1950 through September 1951. The newspaper articles from Betbeze's reign that are without a date are arranged by topic behind the dated clippings. This subseries also includes several articles published in magazines about Betbeze during her reign. The articles are arranged in chronological order by year behind the newspaper clippings.

Subseries 2, Awards, 1950, includes awards given to Betbeze by the House of Representatives after she was named Miss America in Atlantic City, as well as an award by the town of Chickasaw naming Betbeze an honorary citizen.

Subseries 3, Programs and Brochures, 1950-1951, includes mini-photo books of Betbeze from her reign as Miss America, as well as pageant programs from pageants she attended as Miss America. It also includes programs and brochures of events she attended and participated in as Miss America, such as her Coronation Ball and a Symphony in Fashion runway show. The materials are arranged with the photograph books first, followed by pageant programs, then programs from various events.

Subseries 4, Promotional Advertisements, 1950-1951, includes promotional advertisements for Nash Automobile, the Official Car Company of Miss America, and Everglaze Fabric. These advertisements are arranged in chronological order.

Subseries 5, Materials Related to Miss America Reign, 1950-1951, 1994, includes material relevant to Betbeze's reign as Miss America, such as her schedule book from September 1950 to September 1951 and a 1994 interview regarding her life, her reign, and her beliefs. The materials are arranged in chronological order by year.

Series 2, Post-Miss America Reign, 1951-2001, undated, documents Betbeze's life after her reign as Miss America through newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and Betbeze's copy of pageant judging guidelines for Miss America 1957. It also documents the changing view of women from the 1950s through the turn of the twenty-first century. Betbeze pursued a career in opera after Miss America, but this career ended with her marriage to Matthew Fox. Materials also relate to her marriage to Matthew Fox, her relationship with Cherif Guellal, her life in Georgetown in Washington D.C in the 1960s, and her participation in later Miss America pageants.

Subseries 1, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1952-2001, undated, includes newspaper clippings and magazine articles about Betbeze after her reign as Miss America. They document her relationships, lifestyle, causes, and career. The clippings are arranged chronologically by year. The magazine articles are arranged chronologically by decade behind the newspaper clippings.

Subseries 2, Miss America Activities, 1957, comprises of Betbeze's copy of judging guidelines from the 1957 Miss America Pageant. It includes a schedule of events and the judging criteria for each woman, illustrating the changing perception of women in the United States of America from the 1950s through the twenty-first century.

Series 3, Photographs, 1950-2000, undated, documents Betbeze's life from the 1940s to the turn of the twenty-first century. It includes several photographs from her childhood and teen years. The majority of the series focuses on her reign as Miss America, including photos of her travels, glamour photos, publicity photos, and candid shots. It also includes photographs of Betbeze after her reign. There are negatives for several of the photographs. Photographs are arranged by topic.

Subseries 1, Pre-Miss America Reign, 1949-1950, contains Betbeze's life as a teenager and the Miss Alabama pageant. The photographs are arranged by topic.

Subseries 2, Miss America Reign, 1950-1951, undated, provides visual evidence enhancing the printed materials in the other series. It includes photographs of Betbeze's travels throughout the United States, Europe, Mexico, and the Caribbean. It also includes glamour photographs, candid shots, and publicity events that she attended as Miss America. There are a few photographs of her in a swimsuit. The photographs are arranged by topic.

Subseries 3, Post-Miss America Reign, 1951-2001, includes photographs of Betbeze in later life, especially at Miss America pageants in the 1990s. The photographs are arranged by topic.

Series 4, Materials Related to Miss America Pageants, 1910-2003, undated, documents the institution of the Miss America Pageant and its development throughout the twentieth century and into the twenty-first. It includes memorabilia from Atlantic City, the pageants, and Miss America advertisements. It includes official pageant yearbooks and correspondence to Betbeze regarding the seventy-fifth anniversary of Miss America, including a booklet about the pageant. It also includes Miss America Through the Looking Glass (1985), a book documenting the Miss America Pageant from its inception to the 1980s.

Subseries 1, Official Pageant Yearbooks, 1946-2003, comprises of Official Pageant Yearbooks. They illustrate the changing fashions and culture surrounding the pageant. They are arranged in chronological order by year.

Subseries 2, Miss America Memorabilia, 1910-2001, undated, consists of memorabilia of the Miss America Pageant and Atlantic City. The materials include a package for a hairnet from the 1920s, advertisements using the Miss America label for Lucky Strike cigarettes, sheet music for the Miss America and Miss Alabama official songs, Miss America Through the Looking Glass, various stickers advertising the pageant and Atlantic City, Miss America paper dolls, cards and postcards. The memorabilia is arranged in chronological order by year.

Subseries 3, Seventy-fifth Anniversary of Miss America, 1995, includes correspondence between pageant directors and Betbeze regarding the seventy-fifth Anniversary of the Miss America Pageant, as well as a brochure about the pageant. The materials are arranged by type; first is the correspondence regarding the seventy-fifth anniversary, then the brochure advertising Miss America.

Series 5, Yolande Betbeze Personal Papers, 1949-1999, undated, documents life behind-the-scenes through telegrams and letters from friends and fans, invitations and Betbeze's schedule book as Miss America. It includes magazine articles and newspaper clippings from her pre-Miss America years, and the layout of an interview she gave in 1994.

Subseries 1, Personal Correspondence, 1950-1995, undated, consists of personal letters between Betbeze and her friends, including Lenora Slaughter, the head of the Miss America Pageant when Betbeze was Miss America. It also includes fan-mail and autograph requests. The correspondence is arranged chronologically by year.

Subseries 2, Telegrams, 1950-1951, consists of telegrams that Betbeze received as Miss America. They consist of well wishes for her reign, birthday, and Christmas. The telegrams are arranged chronologically by year.

Subseries 3, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1949-1950, consists of newspaper clippings and magazine articles saved by Betbeze. They include reviews of her performance as Musetta in La Boheme in Mobile in 1949 and articles about Matthew Fox. The clippings are arranged chronologically by month and year. The magazine articles are arranged by year behind the newspaper clippings.
Arrangement:
Tyhe collection is divided into five series.

Series 1: Miss America Reign, 1950-1951, 1994, undated

Subseries 1.1, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1950-1951, undated

Subseries 1.2, Awards, 1950

Subseries 1.3, Programs and Brochures, 1950-1951

Subseries 1.4, Promotional Advertisements, 1950-1951

Subseries 1.5, Materials Related to Miss America Reign, 1950-1994

Series 2: Post Miss America, 1952-2001, undated

Subseries 1, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1952-2001, undated

Subseries 2, Miss America Activities, 1957

Series 3: Photographs, 1950-2000, undated

Subseries 3.1, Pre-Miss America Reign, 1949-1950

Subseries 3.2, Miss America Reign, 1950-1951, undated

Subseries 3.3, Post Miss America Reign, 1951-2001

Series 4: Materials Related to Miss America Pageants, 1910-2003, undated

Subseries 4.1, Official Pageant Yearbooks, 1946-2003

Subseries 4.2, Miss America Memorabilia, 1910-2001, undated

Subseries 4.3, Seventy-fifth Anniversary of Miss America, 1995

Series 5: Yolande Betbeze Personal Papers, 1949-1999, undated

Subseries 5.1, Personal Correspondence, 1950-1995, undated

Subseries 5.2, Telegrams, 1950-1951

Subseries 5.3, Newspaper Clippings and Magazine Articles, 1949-1950
Biographical / Historical:
Yolande Betbeze, Miss America 1951, was born in 1929 in Mobile, Alabama. Her mother was of Basque ancestry, so Yolande ended up with a foreign sounding name and dark European looks, quite different from the general populace of Mobile. Early on she aspired to become a famous opera singer, and took voice lessons throughout her teenage years. In 1949 she starred as Musetta in Puccini's La Boheme, through the Mobile Opera Guild.

In 1950, Yolande entered the Miss Mobile Beauty Pageant, hoping to win and continue to state and national levels to receive a scholarship to study voice in New York City, or even abroad. When she entered the pageant she gave her age as 21, but at her next birthday in late 1950 (presumably her 22nd) she confessed that she had lied about her age. Really, she was 20 when she entered the Miss America pageant, and this was her 21st birthday. She was crowned Miss Mobile, then Miss Alabama. In September 1950, she made her way to Atlantic City to compete for the title of Miss America. Newspapers in Alabama raved about her. Even journalists in the north predicted that Yolande would be crowned the next Miss America. In an interview, pageant director Lenora Slaughter says that from the moment she saw her she felt that Yolande would be crowned the next Miss America. During preliminaries, Yolande won first place in the swimsuit competition, while Miss Connecticut won first place in the talent competition. Nonetheless, Yolande wowed them with her singing. When she won the title of Miss America, her schedule quickly filled with singing engagements.

On September 9th, 1950, Yolande Betbeze was crowned Miss America. She became an overnight success due to her grace, poise, beauty, and talent. However, she had received an education at a convent school, and felt a bit squeamish about 'cheesecake poses' in a bathing suit. Every Miss America had done a swimsuit tour, even though it wasn't in their contracts that they must, and Yolande was expected to follow in their footsteps. But she wanted to be an opera star, not a pin-up girl, she declared. After winning Miss America, she refused to pose in a swimsuit unless she was going swimming.

The Catalina Swimwear Company, a sponsor of the Miss America pageant, did not like Yolande's stance on swimsuits. They contended that the Miss America pageant had become less focused on the beauty of the contestant and more on their talents and personality. They wanted to bring beauty back. They pulled their sponsorship and created a new pageant line which now includes Miss Universe, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA. This pageant focuses only on the physical beauty of a competitor. Even today there is no talent portion, and even the interview portion has been diluted.

Another issue of the Miss America pageant involved the marriage of a Miss America. Though Yolande had no plans to marry, or even a boyfriend, the papers certainly wanted to know the details surrounding her love-life and ability to marry with the title Miss America. Yolande explained that she received an extra $4000 for staying single throughout the year, but if she wanted to marry she could ask permission from the 18 pageant directors. "Wouldn't it be easier to wait a year?" she asked.

Her year as Miss America was an eventful one. She traveled throughout the United States, the Bahamas, Mexico, France, and Italy. She met with Congressmen, foreign leaders, opera stars, and famous fashion designers. According to Lenora Slaughter, Yolande had the fullest schedule of any Miss America to that date. Everyone agreed that she had put class into the Miss America pageant.

After her reign, she was succeeded as Miss America by Colleen Kay Hutchins, originally Miss Utah. The two became friends and Yolande was in Colleen's wedding some years later. Yolande took up philanthropic causesā€”fighting for racial equality in the pageants, for instance. She also marched in civil rights demonstrations, participated in sit-ins, and marched in a feminist demonstration in Atlantic City. In 1954 she married a motion picture and television producer, Matthew Fox. They had one daughter before his death in 1964. After she was widowed, Yolande moved to Georgetown in the District of Columbia, where she lives to this day.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

The Miss America 1943 [Jean Bartel] Photographs, 1943-1944 (AC0902)
Separated Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry, Natiuonal Museum of American Historu holds artifacts related to this collection: the Miss America crown, scepter, and sash of 1950-1951, worn by the donor, and the Miss Alabama sash and Miss America ribbon of 1950-1951.
Provenance:
Donated by Yolande Betbeze in 2005.
Restrictions:
The 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. Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark.
Topic:
Beauty contests -- United States  Search this
Beauty contestants  Search this
Genre/Form:
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Programs
Paper dolls
Interviews
Clippings -- 20th century
Awards
Photographs -- 1950-2000
Magazines (periodicals) -- 20th century
Advertisements -- 20th century
Citation:
Miss America 1951 Papers, 1949-2000, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0888
See more items in:
Miss America 1951 Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep831c413c2-0f80-442d-96bb-d1c263de59a7
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0888
Online Media:

John Clifford Shaw Papers

Topic:
JOHNNIAC computer
JOSS (Electronic computer system)
Creator:
Shaw, J. Clifford (John Clifford), 1922-1991  Search this
Names:
ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency)  Search this
Association for Computing Machinery.  Search this
Dartmouth College  Search this
Digital Equipment Corporation  Search this
IBM (International Business Machines)  Search this
Massachusetts General Hospital  Search this
UCRL (University of California Radiation Lab)  Search this
Extent:
20.5 Cubic feet (59 boxes, 4 oversize folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Technical reports
Diagrams
Notes
Memorandums
Place:
Palo Alto (Calif.)
Pittsburgh (Pa.)
Santa Monica (Calif.) -- 1950-1980
Cambridge (Mass.)
Date:
1933-1993
bulk 1950-1971
Summary:
The John Clifford Shaw papers contain reports, research notes, correspondence, memorandum, and diagrams documenting Shaw's development of one of the earliest list processing languages (IPL) and an early interactive, time sharing program, the JOHNNIAC Open Shop System (JOSS). The collection also contains printed material on the RAND Corporation and the evolution of the artificial intelligence and electronic computer industry in the 1950s and 1960s. In addition there is biographical material documenting Shaw's personal interests, family, and academic career.
Scope and Contents:
The John Clifford Shaw Papers contain reports, research notes, correspondence, memoranda, and diagrams documenting Shaw's development of one of the earliest list processing languages (IPL) and an early interactive, time sharing program, the JOHNNIAC Open Shop System (JOSS). The collection also contains printed material on the RAND Corporation and the evolution of the artificial intelligence and electronic computer industry in the 1950s and 1960s. In addition, there is biographical material documenting Shaw's personal interests, family, and academic career.

Series 1: Shaw's Career at Rand, 1950-1971, documents Shaw's most significant work. The subseries are arranged by specific projects and illustrate his pioneering work on programming languages, interactive time-sharing systems, heuristic problem solving, logic programming, stored programs, and artificial intelligence. This work included his role in the development of the JOHNNIAC computer and programs such as the Logic Theorist (LT), General Problem Solver (GPS), and the JOHNNIAC Open-Shop System (JOSS).

The materials include technical reports, research notes, correspondence, memorandum, coding sequences, and system tests. In addition, there are reports documenting the collaborative nature of the NSS team's work on human problem solving, computer simulation of human thinking, and complex information processing. The subject files in Series 1 document the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) role in the JOSS research and other work done by Shaw.

Series 2: Rand Environment, 1951-1986, is arranged into three subseries containing technical reports that document other computer related research being conducted at RAND during Shaw's tenure. These materials are not directly related to his work, including reports documenting defense related research. The series contains memoranda and correspondence illustrating the internal workings and daily operations at RAND from 1950 to 1971 and various sets of annual reports, progress reports, and newsletters from 1960 to 1971. In addition, there are historical materials commemorating RAND anniversaries, profiles of the company, and indexes to RAND publications and abstracts.

Series 3: Computer Industry, 1947-1973, consists of printed matter that documents developments at other institutions and companies engaged in artificial intelligence and programming research. The printed matter includes reports, manuals, brochures, and reprints of articles about research by other institutions, companies, and individuals. Also, there are materials from trips, conferences and seminars attended by Shaw.

Series 4: Consulting Work, 1972-1990, comprises Shaw's work after he left RAND in 1971. It consists of reports and reprints from companies and institutions for which Shaw worked or from those he saw as potential clients. Of particular interest are the research notes, on note cards and 8.5" x 11" paper that illuminate Shaw's ideas and thoughts regarding artificial intelligence and programming languages during this period.

Series 5: Biographical Information, 1933-1993, consists of printed matter regarding Shaw's life and accomplishments. It contains resumes, list of publications and lectures, salary history, and the outline for a book on JOSS. Material on Shaw's personal life includes information about his family, personal correspondence with Herbert Simon, Allen Newell and his wife, Marian, Chuck Baker, Edward Feigenbaum, and correspondence from authors requesting information or comment on future publications. Additionally, there are reprints and clippings that reveal Shaw's personal interests in political issues such as the Pentagon Papers, Watergate, the making of the hydrogen bomb, and Star Wars Defense Technology.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into five series.

Series 1: Shaw's Career at Rand, 1950-1971

Subseries 1.1: JOHNNIAC, 1950-1968

Subseries 1.2: Logic Therorist [See also Complex Information Processing], 1956-1963

Subseries 1.3: General Problem Solver (G.P.S.) and Heuristic Problem Solving, 1955-1967

Subseries 1.4: Chess Program, 1954-1973

Subseries 1.5: Complex Information Processing (C.I.P.), 1953-1972

Subseries 1.6: Information Processing Languages (IPL), 1956-1977

Subseries 1.7: JOHNNIAC Open Shop System (JOSS), 1959-1977

Subseries 1.8: Subject Files, 1954-1971

Series 2: Rand Environment, 1951-1986

Subseries 2.1: Related Papers and Reports (RM-Series), 1951-1972

Subseries 2.2: Reports and Papersā€”General, 1949-1971

Subseries 2.3: RAND Material, 1948-1988

Series 3: Computer Industry, 1947-1973

Series 4: Consulting Work, 1972-1990

Series 5: Biographical Information, 1933-1993
Biographical / Historical:
John Clifford Shaw (1922-1991) was born in Southern California. Shaw went to Fullerton High School, the same high school as Richard Nixon. Shaw's English teacher was Nixon's high school debate team coach. Shaw attended Fullerton Junior College from 1939 until February 1943. At the same time, he worked as a timekeeper at the Douglas Aircraft Company, where he was responsible for time-card calculations and reports. He served in the Army Air Force for three years during World War II as a navigation instructor and then aircraft navigator in the 4th Emergency Rescue Squadron in Iwo Jima, Japan. Shaw returned to California in 1947 and began working for the Beneficial Standard Life Insurance Company as an assistant to the actuary, compiling actuarial calculations of premium rates, reserve liabilities, and annual reports. Shaw and his wife Marian had four children: Doug (b. 1948), David (b. 1950), Donna (b. 1952), and John (b. 1962). By 1948, Shaw received his Bachelor's degree in Mathematics from UCLA and in 1950 joined the newly formed RAND Corporation as a mathematician.

The RAND Corporation evolved during the years after World War II amidst the escalating Cold War. Project RAND was originally carried out under a contract with the Douglas Aircraft Company. RAND was incorporated in May 1948. RAND, a California nonprofit corporation, was one of the earliest Cold War "think tanks" that functioned as an interdisciplinary research and development facility; it received large sums of money from the Air Force and Atomic Energy Commission. Throughout the 1950s, other agencies such as the Department of Defense, the Atomic Energy Commission, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) solicited scientific and foreign policy research from RAND. During Shaw's tenure (1950-1971), money flowed into RAND and enabled many scientists and researchers, including Shaw and his colleagues in the Math and Numerical Analysis Department, to explore new avenues of discovery.

Shaw's early work at RAND involved administrative matters, such as improving the processes of company management through automation of the computation and calculation techniques. This work included collaboration with Allen Newell on a radar simulator. In the mid-1950s, Newell and Shaw, and later Dr. Herbert Simon of the Carnegie Institute of Technology, formed the team known by the mid-1950s in the artificial intelligence field as NSS (Newell, Shaw, and Simon). The NSS team broke much ground in the field of artificial intelligence, programming languages, computer simulation of human problem solving, and man-machine communication. The radar simulator project involved studying how humans made decisions and whether one could design a program that could simulate human decision-making. While Newell and Simon concentrated on the human behavior aspect, Shaw focused on creating a programming language that would implement Simon and Newell's concepts.

When Shaw began working in 1950, RAND was using six IBM 604 calculators to satisfy its scientific computing needs. In the early 1950s, RAND decided that it needed more computational power to accomplish projects for the Air Force and decided to build a Princeton-type computer named JOHNNIAC, after computer designer John von Neumann. The Princeton Class computer was considered state-of-the-art and was running at RAND by the first half of 1953. William Gunning was the project leader and Shaw worked on the selection of the instruction set and the design of the operator's console. The JOHNNIAC became the basis for Shaw's work on conversational time-sharing in the 1960s.

During the early 1950s, the dynamic of the innovative process was at work as Shaw and Newell in California, and Simon in Pittsburgh, were theorizing about human decision making, programming languages, and how computers could be manipulated to process information more productively. Air Force funding enabled Shaw and his colleague's considerable intellectual and academic freedom to explore various hypotheses. In the mid-1950s, NSS began forming the theoretical basis for what they called Complex Information Processing (C.I.P.). C.I.P was the basis for the three main computer programs developed by NSS: the Chess Program, Logic Theorist (LT), and the General Problem Solver (GPS). By 1954, Shaw's focus was on utilizing the power of the JOHNNIAC to develop a viable language that could simulate human behavior.

In early 1954, Newell left RAND for Pittsburgh to work with Simon; Shaw remained at RAND. The NSS team focused on creating programs that would enable a machine to exhibit intelligent behavior and "think" like a human. Chess and the Logic Theorist (LT) were the first programs that evolved from their work. Shaw dealt with the programming aspects, as Simon devoted his time to human thinking processes for chess, logic, and problem solving. Newell, who was still employed by RAND, was the middle man who worked both in programming and human behavior. He flew back to California every couple of months in 1954 and 1955 to confer with Shaw. Because of language limitations, the chess program was temporarily put aside as NSS decided to finish the LT. Known as IPL (Information Processing Language), the language developed by Shaw was one of the first list processing languages. Through experimentation with assemblers, compilers, and interpreters, Shaw developed list processing sequences that allowed the computer to arrange and store data more effectively. The effectiveness stemmed from links that formed the lists. From a storage point of view, lists were inefficient. Shaw translated Simon and Newell's ideas into IPL. The IPL interpreter was able to compile and translate higher level language statements into machine language. The interpreters process the statements and carry out the indicated operations without generating machine code which must then be executed. Although not specifically programmed so, one of LT's innovative characteristics was that it proved mathematical theorems from Whitehead and Russell's Principia Mathematica, including a proof from Theorem 2.85 that the authors had missed. This was the most fascinating aspect of the program because LT was not programmed to find alternative proofs.

The NSS team's work on the LT was completed by the end of 1955, and it perfected the program language in the winter and spring of 1956. LT was one of the earliest programs to investigate the use of heuristics in problem solving. It was capable of discovering and working out proofs for theorems in symbolic logic. In the summer of 1956, NSS presented the LT program to the artificial intelligence community at the Dartmouth Artificial Intelligence Conference. Relatively unknown at the time, NSS excited the conference with the LT and the possibilities it opened in the study of programming languages and artificial intelligence.

The NSS team continued to focus on developing artificial intelligence. By 1957, NSS had constructed the General Problem Solver (GPS) program that attempted to demonstrate various human thinking processes in a variety of environments. At RAND and Carnegie Tech, studies were conducted that had human subjects think aloud in hopes of identifying human problem solving techniques and simulating them in GPS. NSS codified some human problem solving techniques such as means-end analysis, planning, and trial and error. Through the end of the 1950s, NSS produced improved versions of the IPL language and studied heuristic methods of decision making.

By 1960, when the JOHNNIAC was of insufficient computing power to support the level of computation needed, and IPL had been reprogrammed for the IBM 7090, List Processing (LISP), a high-level programming language had overtaken IPL as the language of choice for Artificial Intelligence research. Shaw's interests had shifted towards attempting to simplify the use of computers for all types of computer users. Simon and Newell continued to study how they could simulate human cognitive processes on a computer. Until this point, a user would have to be adequately trained in programming or need assistance from a programmer to use a computer like JOHNNIAC. Shaw was interested in programming the JOHNNIAC so RAND staff could utilize the computer for small as well as large scientific computations. The JOHNNIAC was available for experimental research projects because RAND owned a newer IBM 7090 (acquired in 1960) which handled the bulk of RAND's production computing load. Although JOHNNIAC was no longer state-of-the-art by this time, its major appeal was its reliability and capability for experimentation.

These factors were the impetus for the initiation of the JOHNNIAC Open-Shop System (JOSS) project in November 1960. JOSS was intended to be an easy to use, on-line, time sharing system. The JOSS research, conducted under the Information Processor Project, was formalized in 1959 as part of the RAND Computer Science Department and was heavily funded by the Air Force. The innovative character of JOSS was in the ease of use for the non-programmer, its remote access capabilities, the establishment of an interactive environment between user and computer, and the capability for RAND scientists and engineers to use the computer without an intermediary programmer. It was hoped that the JOSS project would bridge the communication gap between man and machine. JOSS's user language achieved this goal. It featured a small set of English verbs and algebraic symbols which did not need a programmer as intermediary between user and computer. During 1961-1962, Shaw selected the character set that would be used to write JOSS programs, its syntax, and grammar. The conversational environment included a Model B IBM Electric Typewriter. Tom Ellis and Mal Davis directed the hardware configurations and Ike Hehama, Allen Newell, and Keith Uncapher participated in the project discussions with Shaw.

The very limited JOSS experiments on the JOHNNIAC began in May 1963, with five consoles, one connected to the JOHNNIAC and four others located in the offices of various RAND staff. By June, a schedule of operations was in place and by January 1964, JOSS was fully implemented. The use of JOSS by RAND staff was higher than expected as users taught other users how to run the system. However, Shaw and the other designers worried that JOHNNIAC's hardware placed limitations on speed and storage which might taint the evaluation of JOSS. In July 1964, a second version of JOSS was proposed on a more powerful computer. C.L. Baker was named project head, and Shaw focused on developing the programming language for JOSS II.

After accepting numerous bids to replace JOHNNIAC, a contract was signed with Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) promising the installation of a PDP-6 computer and thirty consoles at RAND. The installation was completed by October 31, 1965. At the Fall Joint Computer Conference in Las Vegas in December 1965, the first demonstration of remote use of JOSS II was given. JOHNNIAC was retired on February 18, 1966, with Willis Ware delivering a eulogy and Shaw loading a final JOSS I program. By the end of 1966, JOSS II was available to users 24 hours a day, seven days a week on the new PDP-6/JOSS computer, which had thirty times the speed and five times the storage capacity as the JOHNNIAC version. In April 1967, the maintenance and improvement of JOSS II was transferred from the development group to a small staff under G.W. Armending. In 1971, at age 49, Shaw left the RAND Corporation.

In 1971, Shaw took a one-year appointment as a Research Associate in the Information Science Department at the California Institute of Technology. In 1972, he began working as a consultant which he continued for the rest of his professional career. Much of his work in the 1970s and 1980s consisted of formulating new ideas on operations research, video games, man-machine interfaces, interactive computer systems, time-sharing, information architecture design, and artificial intelligence. During the 1980s, Shaw also became more involved in church-related activities.

Shaw's work on creating the Information Processing Language in the 1950s and the JOSS program in the 1960s were the two major contributions he made to the fields of programming and artificial intelligence. His IPL-I programming language is one of the earliest examples of list processing languages now in widespread use. The JOSS program was one of the first easy-to use, remotely accessible, interactive programs that allowed non-programmers to utilize the power of a computer.
Related Materials:
Material in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Computer Oral History Collection, AC0196

Material in Other Institutions

Charles Babbage Institute

L.A. County Museum

For RAND reports see www.RAND.org
Provenance:
The collection was donated by John Clifford Shaw's eldest son, Doug Shaw, March 1997.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Computer programmers  Search this
Topic:
Mathematicians  Search this
Computers -- military applications  Search this
Decision making -- Mathematical models  Search this
System analysts  Search this
Online data processing  Search this
Computer industry -- 1950-1980 -- United States  Search this
Computational linguistics  Search this
Computer industry -- 1950-1980 -- Soviet Union  Search this
Mathematical models  Search this
Programming languages (electronic computers) -- 1950-70  Search this
Iph (Computer Program Language)  Search this
List processing (Electronic computers)  Search this
Job Control Language (Computer program language)  Search this
GPS (General Problem Solver)  Search this
Problem solving -- Data processing  Search this
Logic machines  Search this
Time-sharing computer systems  Search this
Heuristic programming  Search this
Logic programming  Search this
Genre/Form:
Correspondence -- 1950-2000
Technical reports -- 1950-1980
Diagrams
Notes -- 1950-1980
Memorandums -- 1950-1980
Citation:
John Clifford Shaw papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0580
See more items in:
John Clifford Shaw Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8616f61b8-12a5-4770-872a-4cc2f003669a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0580
Online Media:

Maid of Cotton, Valerie Bendall, 1984. [color]

Collector:
Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange  Search this
Names:
Bendall, Valerie  Search this
Collection Creator:
Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange  Search this
National Cotton Council  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Ink on paper., 15-3/4" x 9".)
Type:
Archival materials
Brochures
Scope and Contents:
"You could be the 1985 Maid of Cotton", 1985 application and brochure.
Arrangement:
Box No. Blue file box.
Local Numbers:
AC1176-0000050.tif (AC Scan No.)
Exhibitions Note:
Displayed in Archives Center exhibition, "The Experience of a Lifetime: The Maid of Cotton Story, 1939-1993", from December 1, 2010 to March 25, 2011. Craig Orr, curator.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the negatives are 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.
Topic:
Beauty contestants  Search this
Beauty contests -- United States  Search this
Cotton industry  Search this
Cotton textile industry  Search this
Genre/Form:
Brochures -- 1950-2000
Collection Citation:
Maid of Cotton Records, 1939-1993, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Maid of Cotton Records
Maid of Cotton Records / Series 1: Organizational and Pageant Files / 1.1: Maid of Cotton Files / Valerie Rhea Bendall
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep83d984517-781c-47f2-8c01-2ee4a8211ec1
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-1176-ref731

[Nyae Nyae Tourism Brochures]

Collection Collaborator:
McElwee, Ross  Search this
Blitz, Daniel  Search this
Bishop, John Melville  Search this
Baker, Peter  Search this
Ritchie, Claire  Search this
Young, Robert  Search this
Terry, John  Search this
Galvin, Frank  Search this
Bestall, Clifford  Search this
Gardner, Robert  Search this
Asch, Timothy, 1932-1994  Search this
Marshall, Lorna  Search this
Collection Creator:
Marshall, John, 1932-2005  Search this
Container:
Box 4
Type:
Archival materials
Text
Date:
1996
Collection Restrictions:
The John Marshall Ju/'hoan Bushman Film and Video Collection is open for research. Please contact the Archives for availabilty of access copies of audio visual recordings. Original audiovisual material in the Human Studies Film Archives may not be played. Materials relating to Series 6 Production Files are restricted and not available for research until 2048, 2063, 2072. Kinship diagrams in Series 13 are restricted due to privacy concerns. Various copyrights and restrictions on commercial use apply to the reproduction or publication of film, video, audio, photographs, and maps.
Collection Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use. Information on reproduction and fees available from repository.
Collection Citation:
The John Marshall Ju/'hoan Bushman Film and Video Collection, 1950-2000, Human Studies Film Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
John Marshall Ju/'hoan Bushman film and video collection
John Marshall Ju/'hoan Bushman film and video collection / Series 8: Nyae Nyae Development Foundation & Advocacy Files
Archival Repository:
Human Studies Film Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pc9f4171431-f6c1-4433-ac6f-58ae70b68c48
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-hsfa-1983-11-ref698

Robert Ledley Papers

Creator:
Ledley, Robert S.  Search this
National Biomedical Research Foundation. Georgetown University  Search this
Names:
Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial Scanner  Search this
Computer-Assisted Tomography Scanner  Search this
National Biomedical Research Foundation. Georgetown University  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Manuals
Patents
Photographs
Design drawings
Correspondence
Articles
Diagrams
Slides (photographs)
Notes
Motion pictures (visual works)
Albums
Date:
1972-1990
Summary:
The Robert Ledley Papers document the development of the first whole-body diagnostic imaging system, the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner by Ledley in 1973. Also included is material relating to Ledley's company, Digital Science Information Corporation (DISCO), as well as the public and medical communities' reactions to the scanner.
Scope and Contents:
The Robert Ledley Papers document the development of the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner, Ledley's company Digital Science Information Corporation (DISCO), as well as the public and medical communities' reactions to the scanner. The collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1, ACTA Scanner I Schematics, 1973-1975; Series 2, ACTA Scanner I [Computer and Electronics], 1973; and Series 3, ACTA Scanner Tomograph Mechanics, 1973-1974 document the development and design of the ACTA scanner through drawings, notes, memoranda, and product information. More detailed information about these materials is located in the control file. All oversize drawings have been moved to flat storage for preservation concerns.

Series 4, ACTA Scanner Operating Instructions, 1975, is the operating manual created for the scanner used in Ledley's Georgetown lab.

Series 5, ACTA Articles, Clippings, and Press Releases, 1973-1979, is comprised of the aforementioned materials relating to the ACTA Scanner. Newspaper clippings illuminate the public's perception of the scanner, and scientific pieces highlight the medical community's reaction. Ledley's published articles on the scanner and related topics are included.

Series 6, Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) material, 1973-1981, documents Ledley's career and his company. A biographical sketch, list of articles, textbooks, and patents highlight Ledley's achievements. Invoices, receipts, contracts, and correspondence illuminate the financial situation at DISCO and the relationship between the company and Pfizer.

Series 7, Computer manuals, 1972-1975, documents the computer systems and software that were used with the ACTA Scanner.

Series 8, Photographic material, 1973-1978, includes an album of photographs depicting the ACTA Scanner and images of the scans it created. This album was disassembled due to preservation concerns. This series also includes a collection of slides featuring the scanner and related equipment in use and images of the scans it created. A detailed description of each photograph and slide is included in the control file.

Series 9, ACTA Scanner film, [1974?], is a 16mm narrated film describing the creation of the scanner, its components, the way they work, the scanner in use, and images of the scans produced.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged into nine series.

Series 1, ACTA Scanner I Schematics, 1973-1975

Series 2, ACTA Scanner I [Computer and Electronics], 1973

Series 3, ACTA Scanner Tomograph Mechanics, 1973-1974

Series 4, ACTA Scanner Operating Instructions, 1975

Series 5, ACTA Articles, Clippings, and Press Releases, 1973-1979

Series 6, Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) material, 1973-1981, undated

Series 7, Computer manuals, 1972-1975

Series 8, Photographic material 1973-1978

Subseries 1, Photographs, 19731978

Subseries 2, Slides, 1974

Series 9, ACTA Scanner film [1974?]
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Steven Ledley was born in Flushing Meadows, New York in 1926. He received a D.D.S. degree from New York University College in 1948. While attending dental school, he simultaneously studied at Columbia University; he earned a M.A. in Theoretical Physics in 1949. He volunteered for the army and was sent to the U.S. Army Medical Field Service School in Fort Sam Houston, Texas.1 After completing his service, Ledley held a wide variety of research and academic positions in physics, electrical engineering, and medicine.

Ledley was a physicist within the External Control Group of the Electronic Computer Laboratory of the National Bureau of Standards from 1953-1954. He was an operations research analyst within the Strategic Division of the Operations Research Office at Johns Hopkins University from 1954-1956. Ledley went on to become an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at The George Washington University from 1956-1960 while also serving as a consultant mathematician at the National Bureau of Standards Data Processing Systems Division, 1957-1960. At this time, Ledley also worked part time at the National Research Council's National Academy of Sciences from 1957-1961. Ledley became the president of the National Biomedical Research Foundation in 1960, a position he still holds today. He was an instructor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine from 1960-1963. He returned to The George Washington University's Department of Electrical Engineering in 1968 where he was a professor until 1970. He then became a professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1970. In 1974, Ledley also became a professor in the Radiology Department at the Georgetown University Medical Center. In 1975, he became the director of the Medical Computing and Biophysics Division at Georgetown University Medical Center.

In 1972, the British company Electric and Musical Industries Limited (EMI) released a medical imaging machine for use on smaller areas of the body that were positioned under a water tank. In 1973, Ledley developed the Automatic Computerized Transverse Axial (ACTA) X-ray Scanner (US Patent #3,922,552). This machine was a whole-body diagnostic medical imaging system. He was awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health for an engineering equipment project, but the money was never received due to budget cuts. Ledley looked elsewhere for funding. He consulted with Georgetown staff and discovered a neurosurgeon had asked to buy a head scanning machine from EMI. Ledley did not think the images in EMI's brochure appeared clear, and he offered to create a similar machine for half the price. Georgetown agreed to fund this project for $250,000. Ledley secured the services of a machinist at a local machine shop, an electronic engineer, and a programmer/mathematician to assist in the project.2 The ACTA Scanner debuted in February, 1974 and did not require the use of a water tank.

Following the creation of the ACTA Scanner, Ledley organized Digital Information Science Corporation (DISCO) in order to manufacture the system. DISCO began producing scanners as orders were received. Due to financial constraints, DISCO was forced to request $100,000 upon receipt of the order, $100,000 when the scanner was halfway completed, and the final $100,000 payment upon delivery3. In 1975, Pfizer purchased the rights to manufacture the ACTA Scanner from DISCO for $1.5 million.

Ledley is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He has earned numerous awards and honors for his work. In 1997, he received the National Medal of Technology from President William Jefferson Clinton for his pioneering work on the whole-body CT diagnostic X-ray scanner. He also founded the Pattern Recognition Society and Computerized Tomography Society.

Sources

1 Ash, J., D. Sittig, and R. Ledley. "The Story Behind the Development of the First Whole-body Computerized Tomography Scanner as Told by Robert S. Ledley." Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 2006 Sep-Oct (2006), 465-469, http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1561796. (accessed June 24, 2009).

2 Ibid.

3 Ibid.
Separated Materials:
An ACTA Scanner and numerous accessories were donated to the Division of Medicine and Science in 1984.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Robert S. Ledley on September 18, 1984.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Medical innovations  Search this
Inventors  Search this
Inventions -- 20th century  Search this
Biology  Search this
History of science and technology  Search this
Digital Information Science Corporation  Search this
Diagnostic imaging  Search this
Medicine  Search this
Medical technology  Search this
Medical radiology  Search this
Whole body imaging  Search this
Tomography  Search this
Radiology  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuals -- 1970-1990
Patents
Photographs
Design drawings
Correspondence -- 20th century
Articles -- 20th century
Diagrams
Slides (photographs) -- 1950-2000
Notes
Motion pictures (visual works) -- 20th century
Albums
Citation:
Robert Ledley Papers, 1972-1984, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1135
See more items in:
Robert Ledley Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b394c960-d574-4b92-a59f-83868a5cd581
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1135
Online Media:

Donald H. Sultner-Welles Collection

Collector:
Sultner-Welles, Donald H. (Sultner, Donald Harvey), 1914-1981  Search this
Printer:
Janus, Allan  Search this
Interviewee:
Hanfstaengl, Erna  Search this
Names:
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra  Search this
Chautauqua Institute  Search this
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation  Search this
Holland-America Cruises  Search this
Hitler, Adolf, 1889-1945  Search this
Extent:
87.6 Cubic feet (331 boxes, 2 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Passports
Photographs
Travelogs
Receipts
Ephemera
Files
Filmstrips
Lecture notes
Personal papers
Silver-dye bleach process
Contracts
Notebooks
Prints
Press releases
Ships' passenger lists
Project files
Magnetic tapes
Posters
Postcards
Vertical files
Dye destruction process
Travel diaries
Letters (correspondence)
Professional papers
Bank statements
Correspondence
Audiotapes
Series 12.
Clippings
Card files
Concert programs
Dye destruction photoprints
Biography files
Awards
Business records
Birthday cards
Date:
circa 1790-1981
bulk 1945-1980
Scope and Contents:
This collection is primarily the work of one individual, Donald Harvey Sultner, known professionally as Donald Sultner-Welles (1914-1981). The collection forms a written and visual record of Sultner's family, life, and career from 1913-1980. Its major strength is Sultner's photographic documentation of the world during his travels, ca. 1950-1980. Work by other photographers and artists, correspondence, greeting cards, and contemporary memorabilia and ephemera are included, along with fewer than fifty examples of earlier materials, ca. 1790-1900, collected by Sultner.

The entire collection reflects Sultner's lifework and interests. Housed in boxes the collection is organized into eleven series: Personal Papers; Professional Papers; Lecture Materials; Biographical Materials; Transparencies; Photoprints; Photonegatives; Prints, Drawings, Mixed Media; Audio Tapes; Miscellaneous; and Steve Eyster Addenda. The arrangement within each series is based as closely as possi-ble on Sultner's own organization of the materials. However, in several instances similar materials were found separated and have been placed together. In addition, obvious filing mistakes and spelling errors have been corrected. The spelling of geographic place names is based on Official Standard Names prepared by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, Office of Geography, U.S. Department of the Interior. Not all names given by Sultner were found in the gazetteers, so there may be errors.

The bulk of the collection consists of 2-1/4-inch by 2-1/4-inch color transparencies (Series 5). However, the manuscript materials (Series 1-4) provide a detailed complement to the transparencies. For example, from the mid-1950s until the late 1970s, Sultner kept a travel diary (Se-ries 1). Written on the backs of postcards, this stream-of-consciousness journal reflects not only his daily trips, but his impressions of the countries and thoughts on his photography. A juxtaposition of cards with images is especially useful in understanding what Sultner photographed as well as why and how he photographed it. Sultner's professional corre-spondence (Series 2) documents the various types of groups before which he performed and equipment manufacturers dealt with for cameras, projectors, and so on. Notes, drafts, and final lectures (Series 3) present the performance side of Sultner. This material, when viewed with tapes of concerts and slides, begins to recreate the photo-concert as Sultner presented it. Scrapbooks (Series 4), kept by Sultner from the 1940s to the 1980s, present Sultner's life and career in chronological fashion.

The transparency portion of the collection (Series 5), containing over 87,000 images, is especially rich because of its documentation of the countries of the world. People are seen at their daily tasks, such as washing clothes, marketing, shopping, and eating. Cities are documented as they changed over the years. Two areas in particular will be of spe-cial interest to European and Asian researchers. The first is Sultner's USIS Asian tour in 1959. He visited Japan, Java, India, Korea, the Phil-ippines, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. The serene, prewar cities and coun-tryside of Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam evince nothing of the devastation to come in the 1960a and 70s.

The second area of interest is Sultner's passion for documenting archi-tecture. As a guest of the German government in 1954, Sultner documented the devastation of World War II and photographed both the reconstruction of bombed buildings and the construction of buildings reflecting "new" postwar architectural styles. In addition to photographing post-WW II styles, throughout his career Sultner documented Palladian, baroque and Rococo architecture. This interest manifested itself in several of his lectures.

A third subject area of interest to Sultner was gardens. Among his first lectures following his USIS tour was "Gardens of the World." Sultner de-veloped this theme into an ongoing commitment to ecology, culminating in a filmstrip, "The Time is Now" (Series 10), prepared for the Hudson River Conservation Society in the 1960s. Carl Carmer, a noted author, wrote the text for the filmstrip. Sultner's taped interviews, lectures, and program music (Series 9) complement the transparencies. During his USIS-sponsored Asian tour in 1959, Sultner recorded impressions of his trip on tape. Interviews with people living in the countries he visited, radio interviews, and his own personal reflections are included. Of particular interest are his "No Harm Asking" interviews in Manila (tape #2), his interview of two French hotel managers in Saigon discussing post-French control conditions (tape #9), and--perhaps the most unusual--his discussion with Erna Hanfstaengl about her personal relationship with Adolf Hitler (tape #107). Scripts for lectures (Series 3) round out the documentation of Sultner's profes-sional work.

Because of the arrangement of the transparencies, it is necessary to check several areas for the same subject. For example, Vietnam images are in the "World" section alphabetically under Vietnam (box 81). Sult-ner also lectured on Vietnam, so there are Vietnamese images in the "framed subjects" (Boxes 137-138). Another example, perhaps more compli-cated, but more common to Sultner, was his distinguishing between images of unidentified "People" and identified "Portraits." Transparency stud ies of human beings will be found under the subseries "People." "Subjects --Portraits," various countries in the subseries "World," and "Lectures." There are also individuals in the black-and-white photoprints (Series 6), and photonegatives (Series 8). The painter and print-maker Charles Shee-ler appears in a number of locations, as does tenor Roland Hayes. Another area of complexity with regard to people concerns the transparencies and negatives. Sultner interfiled his transparencies and negatives of iden-tified individuals. For appropriate storage, these two different formats have been arranged in separate series. Therefore, instead of container lists for the two series, there is a combined alphabetical index to both (pp. 166-206).

Of tangential interest are the photoprints (Series 6), etchings, wood-cuts, and other prints (Series 8) collected by Sultner. One particular subseries of interest contains photographs presented to Sultner by Asian photographers during his 1959 tour. Over 45 images were given to Sultner and represent the standards of camera-club photography in the 1950s. Thesecond subseries consists of over 25 prints by the Italian-American art-ist Luigi Lucioni (1900- ). For further information on this artist,see The Etchings of Luigi Lucioni, -A Catalogue Raisonne', by Stuart P.Embury (Washington, 1984). Lucioni also painted Sultner's portrait in1952 and the "People" section of the transparencies contains a number of images of Lucioni at work. Another significant category is the Japanese prints, including two by a major nineteenth-century artist, Ando Hiro-shige (1797-1858).
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eleven series.

Series 1: Personal Papers, 1923-1981

Series 2: Professional Papers, 1954-1980

Series 3: Lecture Materials, 1952-1980

Series 4: Biographical Materials, 1954-1980

Series 5: Transparencies, 1947-1980

Series 6: Photoprints, 1913-ca. 1980

Series 7: Photonegatives, 1929-1981

Series 8: Prints, Drawings, Mixed Media, ca. 1790-1979

Series 9: Audio Tapes, 1947-1980

Series 10: Miscellaneous, 1947-1980

Series 11: Steve Eyster Addenda, 1937-1980
Biographical / Historical:
Donald Harvey Sultner was bom in York, Pennsylvania, on April 13, 1914, the son of Lillian May Arnold Sultner and Harvey A. Sultner. In 1923 Sultner attended the Lewis Institute in Detroit, Michigan, to overcome a speech impediment. He entered the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1932 and graduated in 1936. Sultner studied merchandising and sang in the glee club, then under the direction of composer Harl MacDonald. Sultner, a baritone, continued his interest in music and studied voice with Reinald Werrenrath and with Florence Benedict and Bruce Benjamin in New York City. In the late 1940s and early 1950s he appeared in concert with accompanists at schools, clubs, and resort hotels along the East Coast. It appears that photography was always an important part of Sultner's life. Using a small format (120) camera, he recorded his vacation travels around the United States and Canada, parties, and his family. While living in New York, Sultner continued photographing friends and family and began photographing the famous people he encountered on his concert tours. In the early 1950s he began taking 2-1/4-inch by 2-1/4-inch color transparencies (slides) of landscapes and architecture as he traveled giving concerts.

Sultner, who had taken the stage name of "Sultner-Welles," began what was to be his lifework as a professional "photo-lecturer" in 1952. He illustrated his talks on nature, art, architecture, and the environment with his color slides. In 1954 Sultner toured West Germany as a guest of the Bonn government, and in 1959 he lectured in Asia under the auspices of the U.S. State Department. He was dubbed the "camera ambassador." Constantly adding new material to his collection of slides, Sultner traveled extensively throughout the United States, speaking before garden clubs, cultural organi-zations, and schools. He also appeared aboard various ships of the Holland-America line during a number of cruises abroad.

Sultner had established his performance style by the early 1960s. He expanded his lectures to include a combination of art, words, and music. The expanded presentation resulted in the "photo-concert," a unique synthesis of light and sound that Sultner frequently per-formed with a symphony orchestra. The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra commissioned "Concertino for Camera and Orchestra" by Eric Knight with Sultner in mind. The world premiere was in Baltimore in March 1979. While he spoke on many art, garden, and architectural topics, Sultner specialized in subjects relating to the baroque and rococo periods and Palladian architecture.

Sultner died of cancer in York, Pennsylvania, on March 25, 1981, at the age of 67.

1914 -- April 13, born York, Pennsylvania.

1929 -- In Detroit at Lewis Institute to overcome a speech impediment.

1932 -- To University of Pennsylvania.

1935 -- Summer trip to Roanoke (VA), Picketts, Hershey (PA); fall trip to New England for fraternity (AXP) convention.

1936 -- Spring glee club trip; graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania; summer trips to Newport News (VA), northern trip to Canada, Picketts (PA).

1937 -- Fall trip to Williamsburg (VA), Duke University (NC); Sultner family begins building "Glen Hill" (Dover, PA).

1938 -- Summer at home, and Picketts (PA), Camp Pratt.

1939 -- Spring trip to Washington, D.C.; September trip to The Homestead (WV), Hot Springs (WV), Virginia; Lake Mohonk (NY).

1940 -- Summer trip to New Orleans, Blowing Rock (NC); winter trip to Skytop Club (NY); fall trip to Atlantic City (NJ), Philadelphia (PA), Annapolis (MD).

1941 -- Winter 1941-42 appearance in "Hit the Deck." Lake Mohonk (NY) with Ted Walstrum (Sept. 22-23); Skytop Club (NY) (February); summer trip to Canada, Lake Chazy (NY) (Aug. 17-23).

1942 -- Spring in Atlantic City (NJ); summer to Buck Hill Falls, Lakes Chazy and Mohonk.

1943 -- Summer trip to Mohonk (NY).

1944 -- Summer: To Toronto (Ontario), Muskoka Lake, Bigwin Island, Montreal (Quebec), Mohonk (NY).

1945 -- Summer: To Winnepesauke (ME), Woodstock (NY), Ogunquit (ME), Bridgeport (CT).

1946 -- To Mohonk (NY), Ogunquit (ME), Old Saybrook (CT), Nantucket (RI).

1947 -- Singing tour of Canada and New England; winter-spring tour to Georgia and Florida.

1948 -- To Florida and Nassau, Feb.-Mar., Vermont, July-Aug.; Nassau-Havana-Miami-Bermuda, October.

1949 -- Singing tour of North and South Carolina.

1950 -- Summer trip to South.

1951 -- To District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, [New Jersey?], New York, Vermont.

1952 -- January 9: first public photo-concert, Pennsylvania Academy of the Arts, Philadelphia; trips to Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont.

1953 -- To Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont.

1954 -- Guest of German government for a study tour in the fall. To District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia.

1955 -- To Holland; Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia.

1956 -- To California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia.

1957 -- Holland-America Cruise to Germany, Austria, Italy. To Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia.

1958 -- Holland-America Cruises to Germany, Austria, Holland, Italy, Switzerland. To Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota., Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Wisconsin.

1959 -- United States Information Service (USIS)-sponsored tour of Asia: Burma, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaya, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam. Also visited Austria, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Greece, Iran, Italy, Spain; Alaska, California, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania.

1960 -- Holland-America Cruise to Austria, Belgium, Caribbean, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Morocco. To Arizona, California, Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin.

1961 -- To Canada, France, Germany, Switzerland; Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode.Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin.

1962 -- Portfolio, "Autumn in Vermont," with introduction by Carl Carmer, published in Autumn issue of Vermont Life. Holland-America Cruise to Denmark, England, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Sweden. To Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia.

1963 -- Holland-America Cruise to Caribbean, Canada, Sweden, Thailand. To Alabama, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, N;w York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington.

1964 -- Holland-America Cruise to Germany, Canada, England, Holland, Wales. To Delaware, District of Columbia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia.

1965 -- Holland-America Cruise to Austria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Holland, Portugal, Wales. To Arkansas, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Indiana, Kentucky, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia.

1966 -- Holland-America Cruise to Caribbean, Germany, France, Holland, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland. To New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia.

1967 -- Holland-America Cruise to Caribbean, Austria, Denmark, England, Germany, Holland, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Wales. To Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia.

1968 -- To Germany; Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia.

1969 -- To England, France, Germany, Holland, Switzerland; Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia.

1970 -- Holland-America Cruise to Caribbean, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden. To Alabama, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia.

1971 -- Holland-America Cruise to Caribbean, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Portugal, Sweden. To Alabama, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania.

1972 -- Holland-America Cruise to Asia, Pacific, Caribbean, Africa, Austria, Italy, Japan, Thailand, Turkey. To California, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia.

1973 -- Holland-America Cruise to Austria, Denmark, Germany, Holland, Iceland, Sweden. To California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont.

1974 -- To Germany, Switzerland; California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia.

1975 -- To Austria; California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia.

1976 -- To Canada; Connecticut, District of Columbia, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah.

1977 -- To Canada, Germany; New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia.

1978 -- To Scotland; Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina.

1979 -- To England; Florida.

1980 -- To Florida.

1981 -- March 25: Sultner dies of cancer, York, Pennsylania.
Introduction:
The Donald H. Sultner-Welles Collection, ca. 1790-1981, came to the National Museum of American History in 1982 from the estate of Mr. Sultner. The collection was created by Sultner over his adult life and represents one of the most extensive collections of color transparencies created by one individual and held in a public repository. Sultner's emphasis was on world culture. He took the majority of his photographs in the eastern United States, western Europe, and Asia. Gardens, architecture, and people are the three major subject areas represented in the collection. Of additional interest are Sultner's taped impressions of his 1959 United States Information Service (USIS)-sponsored Asian tour. The collection occupies 309 boxes and covers more than 83 cubic feet.

The Donald H. Sultner-Welles Collection is open to researchers in the Archives Center, third floor east, of the National Museum of American History, between 12th and 14th Streets, on Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20560. The Archives Center is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Written and telephone (202/357-3270) inquiries are welcome and researchers are encouraged to contact the Archives Center before their arrival. The FAX number is 202/786-2453.

This is the eleventh in a series of occasional guides to collections in the Archives Center. Finding aids to other collections are available. The Guide to Manuscript Collections in the National Museum of History and Technology (1978) and an updated compilation contain brief descriptions of all archival holdings in the Museum. All current Archives Center holdings are available for search on the Smithsonian Institution Bibliographic Information System (SIBIS), an online database.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but a portion of the collection 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.

A small number of letters and photographs are restricted until the year 2031. Identification list in box.
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.
Topic:
Portraits -- 20th century  Search this
Lecturers  Search this
Photographers  Search this
Gardens -- Photographs -- 1300-1980  Search this
Architecture -- Photographs -- 1300-1980  Search this
Travel photography -- 1950-2000  Search this
Genre/Form:
Passports
Photographs -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film
Travelogs
Receipts -- 20th century
Ephemera
Files
Filmstrips
Lecture notes
Personal papers -- 20th century
Silver-dye bleach process
Contracts
Notebooks
Prints
Press releases
Ships' passenger lists
Project files
Magnetic tapes
Posters
Postcards
Vertical files
Dye destruction process
Travel diaries
Letters (correspondence) -- 20th century.
Professional papers
Bank statements
Correspondence -- 1930-1950
Photographs -- Phototransparencies -- 20th century
Audiotapes -- 1940-1980
Series 12. -- Cibachrome (TM)
Photographs -- 20th century
Clippings
Card files
Concert programs
Dye destruction photoprints
Biography files
Awards
Business records
Birthday cards
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0145
See more items in:
Donald H. Sultner-Welles Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8c00c15e0-d905-4a3c-ab89-6fbd2f9c5f7d
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0145
Online Media:

Division of Community Life World's Fairs Collection

Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life  Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Political History  Search this
Vogel, Robert M.  Search this
Names:
Ameriflora '92 (Columbus, Ohio)  Search this
Centennial Exhibition (1876 : Philadelphia, Pa.)  Search this
Century of Progress International Exposition (1933-1934 : Chicago, Ill.)  Search this
Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Jubilee (Genova, Italy: 1992)  Search this
Expo '93 (Stuttgart, Germany)  Search this
Expo '93 (TaejoĢ†n-si, Korea)  Search this
ExposicioĢn Universal de 1992 (Seville, Spain)  Search this
Exposition universelle et internationale (1958 : Brussels, Belgium)  Search this
Floriade Zoetermeer (The Hague, Netherlands: 1992)  Search this
Golden Gate International Exposition (1939-1940 : San Francisco, Calif.)  Search this
New York World's Fair (1939-1940 : New York, N.Y.)  Search this
New York World's Fair (1964-1965)  Search this
Salon International de l'Aeronautique et de l'Espace (Paris, France: 1991)  Search this
World's Columbian Exposition (1893 : Chicago, Ill.)  Search this
Donor:
Annis, Esther Pauline  Search this
Carmody, Stella  Search this
Coppola, John  Search this
Frick, Margaret  Search this
Grossman, Walter  Search this
Hallwig, Elizabeth Ann  Search this
Hallwig, O.Morton  Search this
Holt, C.W.  Search this
Krause, Roy  Search this
Landor, Josephine  Search this
Landor, Walter  Search this
Lindsay, Elizabeth R.  Search this
Meggars, Edith R.  Search this
Shafer, Mary C.  Search this
Sheppard, Stephen  Search this
Willcutts, Viola E.  Search this
Former owner:
Warner, Peter M.  Search this
Extent:
3.3 Cubic feet (11 boxes, 12 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Programs
Clippings
Leaflets
Stickers
Guidebooks
Brochures
Commemoratives
Schedules
Stationery
Fans
Calendars
Postcards
Shopping bags
Press releases
Tickets
Certificates
Bumper stickers
Pamphlets
Maps
Catalogs
Date:
1876-1993
Summary:
Collection documents World's Fairs from 1876 to 1993.
Scope and Contents:
The collection is a compilation of gifts from numerous donors, of printed materials and ephemera relating to World's Fairs.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series chronologically by fair.
Provenance:
Collected from numerous donors by the Division of Community Life (now called the Division of Home and Community Life.) A number of items in the collection were also collected for the National Museum of American History by the Division. Donors include Viola E. Willcuts, Peter M. Warner, Edith B. Meggars, Elizabeth R. Lindsay, C.W. Holt, Walter Grossman, Margaret Frick, Peter M. Warner, Esther Pauline Annis, Roy Krause, Ameriflora, Expo '92, Expo '93, Colombo, O. Morton Hallwig and Elizabeth Ann Hallwig, Mary C. Shafer, Robert Vogel, John Coppola, Stella M. Carmody, Walter and Josephine Landor, and Stephen Sheppard.
Restrictions:
The 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.
Topic:
Exhibitions  Search this
World's fairs  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- Color transparencies -- 1950-2000
Programs
Clippings
Leaflets
Stickers
Guidebooks
Brochures
Commemoratives
Schedules
Stationery
Fans
Calendars
Postcards
Shopping bags
Press releases
Tickets
Certificates
Bumper stickers
Pamphlets
Maps
Catalogs
Citation:
Division of Community Life World's Fairs Collection, 1876-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1132
See more items in:
Division of Community Life World's Fairs Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82197e99b-7898-4422-9249-ca8c9abf0798
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1132

Southern Agriculture Oral History Project Records

Director:
Daniel, Pete  Search this
Interviewee:
Accardo, Paul  Search this
Aguirre, Gloria Olmos  Search this
Allen, David  Search this
Anderson, Adra  Search this
Anderson, Walter  Search this
Andrews, John William  Search this
Ardoin, Leslie  Search this
Bailey, Charles  Search this
Bailey, Howard Taft  Search this
Baird, George E., Jr.  Search this
Baronet, Joe  Search this
Bell, Walter M.  Search this
Bennett, Novella  Search this
Bennett, W.J.  Search this
Benson, Dick  Search this
Benton, Aubrey  Search this
Benton, Ina Belle  Search this
Blackstock, Tom  Search this
Blackstock, Velva  Search this
Blanchard, J.F.  Search this
Booth, Mrs. N.J.  Search this
Booth, N.J.  Search this
Bosselman, Willie  Search this
Bossleman, Norman  Search this
Bowman, Wilbert A.  Search this
Bradford, Nara N.  Search this
Bradford, Norwood)  Search this
Brantley, L.D.  Search this
Breaux, Jessie Al., Sr.  Search this
Brinkley, Johnnie  Search this
Brinkley, Lucile  Search this
Broussard, Sam  Search this
Brown, Gordon  Search this
Brown, Mamie  Search this
Bunting, Benny  Search this
Bunting, Joe  Search this
Burkett, Ben  Search this
Burkett, Bennie F.  Search this
Bush, Miller  Search this
Byers, Ruby  Search this
Byers, Sanford  Search this
Caesar, Clarence  Search this
Carline, Herman C.  Search this
Carnahan, Cotton  Search this
Carter, Ethel H.  Search this
Castleberry, Guy W.  Search this
Caughron, Kermit  Search this
Caughron, Rex  Search this
Caughron, Roy  Search this
Cazer, Garland  Search this
Ceras, Delfino  Search this
Claffery, Clegg, Sr.  Search this
Clapp, Clyde  Search this
Clark, Fletcher Talmadge  Search this
Clayton, WIlliam P.  Search this
Cockerham, Lester  Search this
Cockerham, Marie  Search this
Cole, Buster  Search this
Coleman, Harold  Search this
Coleman, Mrs. Harold  Search this
Colvin, R.C.  Search this
Comeaux, Lewis  Search this
Connell, Alton  Search this
Cromertie, John L.  Search this
Crosby, Ruth  Search this
Crosby, Victor  Search this
Cummins, Mary Lee  Search this
Cummins, W.R.  Search this
Cunningham, Tom  Search this
Daniel, Florentine  Search this
Davies, W. J. K.  Search this
Davis, Fredda  Search this
Davis, Otto  Search this
Davis, Pauline  Search this
Delasbour, Anna  Search this
Derbigney, Durrell  Search this
Dillard, John T.  Search this
Dorminy, Henry Clayton  Search this
Dove, Dorothy  Search this
Ducrest, Jesse  Search this
Dulaney, T.W.  Search this
Elam, Edward  Search this
Feilke, Mabel  Search this
Felknor, Jessie F.  Search this
Finchum, Amos  Search this
Finchum, Eva  Search this
Fleming, Arthur B.  Search this
Fletcher, Mrs. Merle Ford  Search this
Flores, Roque Olmos  Search this
Foster, Jim  Search this
Foster, Vergie  Search this
Friesen, Viola Liechty  Search this
Gardner, C.E.  Search this
Garrich, Carl  Search this
Gay, Andrew  Search this
George, Leler  Search this
Gosney, Jessie  Search this
Gosney, Kenneth  Search this
Gray, Leonard  Search this
Gray, Wardell  Search this
Green, Alone  Search this
Green, Clarence  Search this
Griffin, A.C.  Search this
Griffin, Grace  Search this
Hahn, E.L.  Search this
Hall, Joe  Search this
Haransky, Charlotte  Search this
Harper, Woodrow, Sr.  Search this
Harrington, A.M.  Search this
Harris, Edna  Search this
Harris, John, Rev.  Search this
Harris, Robert B.  Search this
Hawkins, Charlie  Search this
Hemphill, Elvin  Search this
Hemphill, Mattie  Search this
Hill, Frank  Search this
Jefcoat, Laz  Search this
Jensen, Olga B.  Search this
Johnson, Herbert  Search this
Kilby, T.H.  Search this
Knight, Martin  Search this
Koen, Eulah  Search this
Lamson, Alfred Ellis  Search this
Landry, Steve  Search this
Lane, Clyde D.  Search this
Laney, John B.  Search this
Langley, Nellie  Search this
Latoilas, Donald  Search this
Lawrimore, Rufus B.  Search this
Leary, Mrs. Stillman  Search this
Leary, Stillman  Search this
Legnon, Hilton  Search this
Legnon, Lena Porrier  Search this
Lenius, Jane  Search this
Lewis, Bobby  Search this
Lewis, Dorothy  Search this
Lewis, Ralph  Search this
Littlejohn, Andrew  Search this
Loewer, Arthur  Search this
Long, Welchel  Search this
Lowder, Clayton  Search this
Lowder, Kathy R.  Search this
Mangum, O.L.  Search this
Martin, Lillian  Search this
McBrayer, Loomis  Search this
McCarty, Ben  Search this
McGee, Dean  Search this
Mercer, Midi  Search this
Minchew, Edna  Search this
Mire, John  Search this
Mohamed, Ethel Wright  Search this
Moody, Edgar  Search this
Morris, Edward  Search this
Murphree, Leo  Search this
Murray, Lurline S.  Search this
Nacquin, Leo  Search this
Nix, Agnes  Search this
Nix, Joe  Search this
Parker, Jonah  Search this
Patout, William A.  Search this
Patterson, Vanona  Search this
Pender, Bessie  Search this
Petticrew, Donald  Search this
Player, C.B., Jr.  Search this
Porter, Virginia  Search this
Proffitt, Harry, Jr.  Search this
Purvis, Clyde  Search this
Redmond, Virgie  Search this
Reed, Bunice  Search this
Reed, Howard  Search this
Rice, Frank  Search this
Richardson, Rosetta  Search this
Rivers, Marion  Search this
Roberts, Gerti  Search this
Roberts, James  Search this
Rodriguez, Ignacio  Search this
Rountree, G. Emory  Search this
Rucker, William  Search this
Salas, Maria  Search this
Sarten, Della  Search this
Scoggins, Lillie  Search this
Scroggins, Alma M.  Search this
Seidenschwarz, Rosie  Search this
Seidenstricker, L.F.  Search this
Seidenstricker, Laverne  Search this
Serrano, Adolofo  Search this
Serrano, Edith  Search this
Serrano, Lidia  Search this
Shannon, Jack  Search this
Shepherd, Grady  Search this
Sims, Lavana  Search this
Sizemore, Martiel  Search this
Skinner, Annie  Search this
Skinner, Jarvis  Search this
Smith, Ethel  Search this
Smith, George  Search this
Soileau, Rouseb  Search this
Spicer, J.M.  Search this
Spivey, Wayland  Search this
Starke, Granville  Search this
Steen, Albert  Search this
Stowers, J.W.  Search this
Strange, Fred  Search this
Strohl, Carl  Search this
Strohl, Mary  Search this
Sumner, Ruby C.  Search this
Temple, Effie  Search this
Thomas, Lottie  Search this
Thompson, Mioma  Search this
Thresto, Chuck  Search this
Tomlinson, Clifton  Search this
Turner, Mrs. O.C.  Search this
Van Houten, Rosetta  Search this
Van Houten, Rudy  Search this
Vickers, Lloyd  Search this
Vidrine, Levie A.  Search this
Walton, W.W.  Search this
Watson, Mary  Search this
Welborn, S.L.  Search this
Wells, Arnalee  Search this
Wells, Homer, Dr.  Search this
White, Wallace  Search this
Wigley, Mabry  Search this
Willey, Gretchen  Search this
Willey, John F.  Search this
Winskie, Dent  Search this
Woodard, Henry  Search this
Yohe, Alma M.  Search this
Yohe, Perry  Search this
Young, Walter  Search this
Interviewer:
Jones, Lu Ann  Search this
Extent:
27.2 Cubic feet (83 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Project files
Questionnaires
Black-and-white photographic prints
Place:
Arkansas -- Agriculture
Mississippi -- Agriculture
Georgia -- Agriculture
South Carolina -- Agriculture
Tennessee -- Agriculture
Virginia -- Agriculture
North Carolina -- Agriculture
Louisiana -- Agriculture
Date:
1986-1991, undated
Summary:
An extensive collection of oral histories conducted by Lu Ann Jones throughout the southern United States between 1985-1991. A few oral histories were conducted by Pete Daniel in the early 1980s. Subjects include all facets of agriculture in the south.
Scope and Contents note:
The collection is divided into four series. Series 1: Oral History Transcripts, 1982-1991 are transcribed versions of the oral interviews. Correspondence and/or notes pertaining to the interviewed individual collected or written by the interviewer are filed in this series following the transcription. The majority of the oral histories were done by Lu Ann Jones between1985-1991. There are a few interviews done by Pete Daniel in the early 1980s and some reference copies of oral histories done elsewhere. This series is divided into eight sub-series: Sub-series 1.1: Arkansas, Sub-series 1.2: Georgia, Sub-series 1.3: Louisiana, Sub-series 1.4: Mississippi, Sub-series 1.5: North Carolina (including transcripts of the Mexican Workers Project in English and Spanish), Sub-series 1.6: South Carolina, Sub-series 1.7: Tennessee, and Sub-series 1.8: Virginia. Files are arranged alphabetically by state and there under by name; within the file materials are arranged chronologically. Interview files may contain transcribed copies of the oral history interviews and subsequent draft copies with corrections by the interviewer or subject. The file also may contain distillations or edited versions of the interview done by the researcher for possible publication. Correspondence and notes files may include Life History Forms, correspondence, newspaper articles, interviewer's notes, business cards, and paper copies of photographs. Signed releases are on file in the registrar's office, NMAH, with copies in the control file of the Archives Center.

Series 2: Project Files and Reference Materials, 1928-2004 contain notes and correspondence kept by Jones in support of the oral history project. This series is divided into four sub-series: Sub-series 2.1: State Files, Sub-series 2.2: Project and Reference Files, 1985-1991, Sub-series 2.3: Reference Publications, Pamphlets and Articles, 1928-2004 and Sub-series 2d: Computer Floppy Disks, 1985 and undated. This series include bills, receipts, photo orders, travel brochures, reference materials, articles, correspondence, fundraising proposals and materials, USDA Extension Service bulletins, product cookbooks, and ephemera. These materials are valuable in documenting the methodology of the oral history project. They are also valuable in detailing the funding and maintenance of the project over its five-year lifespan. There is also a great deal of information on black farmers. This series is arranged alphabetically by state and county or by article/publication title and within the file chronologically.

Series 3: Photographic Prints and Slides, 1987-1991 documenting the individuals interviewed, their homes and businesses, and geographic locations that were studied as part of the oral history project. The series is arranged numerically then chronologically by year. This series is followed by detailed photographic descriptions arranged alphabetically by state then subject. Photograph files contain photographs taken by a Smithsonian photographer or Jones and any copies of photographs supplied by the subject. Most of the photographs are black and white.

Series 4: Original Interview Tapes and Reference Compact Discs (CD), 1986-1991 are the original tapes of the individual interviews conducted by Jones. This series is divided into eight sub-series. Reference numbers for CDs matching the original tapes are noted after the tapes. CDs 495-497 are for the Smithsonian Photographer's Show: Sub-series 4.1: Arkansas, Sub-series 4.2: Georgia, Sub-series 4.3: Louisiana, Sub-series 4.4: Mississippi, Sub-series 4.5: North Carolina (within this sub-series are the transcripts of the Mexican Workers Project there may be an English language transcription as well as one in Spanish), Sub-series 4.6: South Carolina, Sub-series 4.7: Tennessee and Sub-series 4.8: Virginia and Sub-series 4.9: Miscellaneous and Duplicates, within the sub-series tapes are arranged alphabetically by subject.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into four series:

Series 1, Oral History Transcript

Series 2, Project Files

Series 3, Photographic Prints and Slides

Series 4, Original Oral History Interview Tapes and Reference Compact Discs (CDs) are the original interview tapes and the accompanying reference copy cds.
History:
The history of the American South is intricately entwined with the history of agriculture in North America. Until very recently, post 1950, the South was predominately rural and agricultural in both its production and culture. By the 1980s American agriculture, and particularly agriculture in the south, was under attack on various fronts especially cultural, financial, and technological. This assault threatened the very existence of the small and family farm. Many small farming operations went bankrupt and the face of American agriculture was becoming more corporate. It was amidst these troubling times that the Agricultural Division of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History undertook a massive project to document southern agriculture through oral history.

Through the efforts of NMAH staff, Pete Daniel, curator and project director, LuAnn Jones, researcher, and with countless support from staff photographers and personnel, Jones conducted approximately 159 interviews of individual persons, couples and sometimes small groups, in eight southern states over a five year period, 1986-1991. The project was funded by a series of grants from various sources. Not only were oral histories taken but also substantial documentary photographs and slides of the many interviewees. The interviews ranged from individual farmers to individuals at companies and corporations involved with agriculture. The range of crops discussed included tobacco, cotton and rice. The project interviewed a wide range of subjects: male, female, black, white, and Mexican. The project has contributed to at least two books, Mama Learned Us to Work: Farm Women in the New South by LuAnn Jones and Like a Family: The Making of a Southern Cotton Mill World by Jacquelyn Dowd Hall and others of which Jones was a contributing author.
Related Collections:
Materials in the Archives Center

Warshaw Collection of Business Americana (NMAH.AC.0060)

Kulp Collection of Account Books, 1755-1904 (NMAH.AC.0149)

Robinson and Via Family Papers (NMAH.AC.0475)

William C. Kost Farm Records (NMAH.AC.0481)

Timothy B. Bladen, Southern Maryland Photoprints (NMAH.AC.0767)
Provenance:
A transfer from the Division of History of Technology (Agriculture), NMAH, July 2001
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. 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.
Topic:
Farm life -- 20th century  Search this
Farmers -- Arkansas  Search this
Agricultural laborers  Search this
Agriculture -- History  Search this
Periodicals  Search this
Farmers -- Georgia  Search this
Farmers -- Louisiana  Search this
Farmers -- Mexico  Search this
Farmers -- Mississippi  Search this
Farmers -- North Carolina  Search this
Farmers -- South Carolina  Search this
Farmers -- Tennessee  Search this
Farmers -- Virginia  Search this
Genre/Form:
Project files
Questionnaires
Black-and-white photographic prints -- Silver gelatin -- 1950-2000
Citation:
Southern Agriculture Oral History Project Records, 1985-1992, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0773
See more items in:
Southern Agriculture Oral History Project Records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8d5503365-fe60-4501-9a93-da8df9a4bb7e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0773
Online Media:

Nordic Ware records

Topic:
Bundt Brand Bakeware
Creator:
Nordic Ware Division, Northland Aluminum  Search this
Donor:
Dalquist, H. David  Search this
Dalquist, Dorothy  Search this
Extent:
28 Cubic feet (53 boxes and 25 oversize folders )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Photographs
Legal records
Catalogs
Financial records
Design drawings
Place:
Minneapolis (Minn.)
Date:
1940-2006
Summary:
Records of a family-owned manufacturing firm, best known for kitchenware products including the Bundt Pan and Micro-Go-Round. The collection richly documents the entrepreneurial spirit of the Minnesota firm and its history of product innovation through technical files, marketing materials, and administrative and financial records.
Scope and Contents:
The Nordic Ware collection consists of approximately twenty-eight cubic feet of records from the Northland Aluminum Company, most dealing with its Nordic Ware business. The Dalquist family recognized the importance of record keeping, and this collection documents very well the evolution of an entrepreneurial, family-owned American business from its earliest years.

Of particular interest for researchers may be the Pillsbury and Bundt Cake Pan dual marketing strategies, showcased mainly in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, the introduction of ethnic cookware into American Culture through such dishes as the Rosettes and Timbales set and Taco dinner kit, the segmentation of product lines by price level to target consumers of differing incomes, and the issue of a trademarked term like "Bundt" becoming generic as seen in Series 6, Legal Records, 1962-1978. Series 4, Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994, provide in-depth documentation of the technical development of several of Nordic Ware's innovative products.

Series 1: Historical and Background Materials, 1940s-2006

These materials provide a history of Dave Dalquist as an entrepreneur and how this led to his ownership of Northland Aluminum Products and the Nordic Ware brand. There are histories put together by the company as well financial summaries for some years. The series contains The Nordic Ware Saga, a book edited and produced by the Dalquist family, and America at Home: A Celebration of Twentieth-Century Housewares. Both books have valuable background information on the company and how it fits into the housewares industry. There also are materials from the original business, Plastics for Industry. An undated marketing booklet, published about 1990, briefly describes the company's history and its product line and corporate structure. Additional company history is found in six installments written by Dave Dalquist under the title "From the Skipper" and covering the years 1946 to l985.

Series 2: David Dalquist Files, 1963-1993

David Dalquist, the president and founder of the company, kept these files in his office and home. Dalquist had no formal filing system and preferred to group records together as he used them. This order has been maintained as much as possible to the folder level. Several files contain information and notes from Dalquist's attendance at the National Housewares Shows and the meetings held there with his sales representatives. The annual Housewares Shows in Chicago were key events in this industry and Nordic Ware made them a high priority. The sales meetings materials include speeches Dalquist delivered. This series reveals Dalquist's involvement with every aspect of the company. It portrays an entrepreneur who began with an engineering degree, very limited capital, and no business experience. Dalquist built a multi-million dollar company while insisting on high ethical and business standards.

The several companies owned by the Dalquist family are documented in these files. There is a merger agreement between Northland Metal Finishers and Northland Aluminum. The records show the company went through several phases and had several brands besides Nordic Ware, including Minnesota Ware, DuNord, and Norcast.

Series 3: Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004 The Marketing and Sales Records focus mainly on the promotion of the Nordic Ware Brand and the sale and distribution of products, especially to the retail trade industry. There is evidence of how Nordic Ware presented its products to the industry and of other types of promotions to build brand awareness. These records are divided into three subseries: Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995; Subseries 2, Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004; and Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992

Subseries 3.1: General and Department Records, 1967-1995

Dave Dalquist initially handled most of the company's marketing and sales, but as the company grew, a separate department was created. Among other things, this department created sketches of new product ideas that employees submitted as part of the New Product Idea meetings periodically scheduled by Dave Dalquist. Several files contain this artwork and a design notebook. There are also the files of Doug White, a Vice President of Marketing and Sales. Other art renderings, such as line art used in catalogs, are in this series.

Subseries 3.2: Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004

This subseries consists both of advertising geared towards the trade industry and that aimed at the consumer to promote brand image and sales. A 1970s scrapbook is a record of cross-promotional offers in which Nordic Ware and other firms advertised their products together in a single advertisement. The scrapbook also documents Nordic Ware products offered as sales premiums. The advertisements are organized by the brand co-featured in the advertisement. The Bundt Pan was the predominant Nordic Ware product in these advertisements. The Pillsbury file is especially important as it shows the building of the dual marketing arrangement which allowed Bundt Pans to be packaged with Pillsbury mixes. Nordic Ware received national publicity that it would otherwise have been difficult to generate. The Bundt Pan was integrated into magazine recipes and articles and included in mentions of other brands. These records document the remarkably brief time in which the Bundt Pan achieved national recognition.

The trade market was critical to Nordic Ware. The Sales Guides, 1982-2004, were given to regional sales representatives with information on sales promotions and incentives to representatives for sales of Nordic Ware products in specific markets. The Guides also have product descriptions, so that each representative was fully familiar with the products. Along with these guides, Nordic Ware put out trade catalogs, also found in this subseries. Although there is no master list of the catalogs, many have been hand-dated by Nordic Ware employees. Many of the models in the catalogs and the advertisements were members of the Dalquist family, neighbors, and other acquaintances.

Subseries 3.3: Public Relations, 1948-1992

These materials mainly document a series of campaigns created by Sara Jean Thomas, a public relations contractor. She worked with the marketing and sales department to build the Nordic Ware brand and to create a series of television and radio product promotions in the form of household hints. Several scripts are included here along with details of the overall campaigns. There also are files documenting the reach of these promotions. Other materials include a press kit for Chef Tell, a celebrity chef who represented Nordic Ware products for several years and who made appearances at its booth at the National Housewares Shows. New product press releases (with photographs) and general public relations files (1986-1989), along with the Marketing Communication Plans (1987-1989), give details on the planning of other public relations efforts. The trade press clippings scrapbook documents mentions of Nordic Ware and its products, competitors' advertising, and general developments in the house wares industry. Trade press clippings also are found in Series 8, subseries 4.

Series 4: Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994

The Engineering Department was vital to the success of Nordic Ware. Records in this series reveal the process by which a new product idea was developed, built, tested, and turned into a saleable product. Museum staff members selected the records in this series, occupying about five cubic feet, from a much larger group of files, roughly twenty-five feet in extent. The criteria for selection included substantive information on the design development of new products, especially those requiring substantial engineering work, and on product re-design to create cost efficiencies and resolve product problems.

Subseries 4.1: General Records, 1969-1992

These records deal with general departmental business and include incoming and outgoing correspondence and general files kept by individual engineers. They also provide operational information such as source for production materials, work orders processing, and treatment of employee issues in the department.

Subseries 4.2: Laboratory Notebooks, 1972, 1984-1993

Engineers in the department kept these notebooks mainly for developing design ideas and working out the technical logistics of bringing the designs into production. The notebooks also served as evidential records for patent disputes. The engineers signed and dated the pages of their notebooks as proof of when ideas were conceptualized and who recorded them.

Subseries 4.3: Product Files, 1976-1993, undated

These records originally were organized by product number, but no index to the numbering system accompanied the records so files of like products were grouped together. The Micro-Go-Round, Oven-Aire, and Wok are the most thoroughly documented. The records include blueprints at various stages of the products development, work orders for research and development, outside quotations, invoices, quality control tests and guidelines, memoranda to and from other company offices about product development, and other types of operational materials. Most of these products had multiple versions, and evidence of ongoing testing and modification is seen in the records.

These records document some of the innovation that made Nordic Ware an important presence in the housewares industry. The Micro-Go-Round was a particularly revolutionary product at the time, and the records show how the company recognized a need for the product and did what was necessary to develop it, although it had little or no experience with microwave technology. Micro-Go-Round records also are found in Subseries 5 of this series. The Oven-Aire required extensive development efforts to bring to fruition. The idea behind this product was to make conventional ovens cook more evenly and operate like a convection oven. The records include photographs of the original working model, tests done in some of the engineers' home kitchens, and comparison photographs of foods cooked with and without the device. Though the product never took off in the market, the invention and development process is documented here from the perspective of the several parties who worked on it. To a much more limited degree, records for some of the other products -- like the Popgun Popcorn Popper and the Supremer Ice Creamer --demonstrate the design and development process. There is even information about packaging design for some of the products.

Subseries 4.4: New Product Ideas Files, 1976-1993

These records document Nordic Ware's efforts to identify and develop a stream of new products and to involve employees in that process. They include product ideas submitted from outside the firm but primarily relate to New Product Meetings at which employees shared their own ideas. The meetings often included voting for the best ideas and for those that would be most feasible to manufacture. Most of the files contain original artwork, usually brought to the meeting by the marketing department. They also include lists of product ideas and who submitted them, ballots for the voting on the best ideas, and notes taken at the meetings. Several files have memoranda to the employees encouraging submission of ideas outside the annual meeting cycle. Related materials are found in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995.

Subseries 4.5: General Research and Development, 1976-1993

This subseries mainly contains files on the development of microwave cookware products and the Micro-Go-Round. Dr. T.K. Ishii, a leading researcher in microwave technologies from Marquette University, served as a consultant to Nordic Ware. He advised on technical problems and explained processes to the Nordic Ware engineers to enable them to develop products. Other materials deal with the application and certification process for Underwriters Laboratories, an independent organization that tested products and certified them as meeting its safety standards.

Subseries 4.6: Patent Materials, 1950-1994

Many records in this subseries deal with the patent application process. An outside legal firm submitted Nordic Ware's applications and negotiated with the Patent Office. The records include correspondence surrounding patent disputes and sworn affidavits by engineers submitted as proof of their work. Several reference files of non-Nordic Ware patents are in this subseries. Many were sent by the law office to Nordic Ware engineers to keep them current on new developments.

Subseries 4.7: Trade Associations, 1977-1994

These records reflect the participation of Engineering Department staff in trade associations, especially The Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. Lloyd Keleny and several others were involved with the Microwave Oven Cookware Committee. The Society was concerned with the absence of standards for microwave ovens and the resulting problem that cookware used in these ovens was not always effective. The Committee gathered data and encouraged the microwave industry to recognize that consistency was needed. There also are files from the Frankfurt International Housewares Fair, 1994. Nordic Ware tried to build its presence internationally, and fairs such as this were opportunities to meet foreign manufacturers and distributors. They also enabled the company to see what was happening on a global level.

Series 5: Financial Records, 1948-1982

These records include financial information for Nordic Ware and other Dalquist interests, including Maid of Scandinavia Company, when it was still joined with Northland Aluminum Products, and the Minnesota Brand of Cookware. The intermixing of financial reports, invoices and receivables, petty cash receipts, and bank statements for the various enterprises demonstrates the close relationship of all of the beginning operations of the Dalquist family. There are many examples of consolidated financial information in the records including the balance sheets, combined financial reports, income statements, and the audit reports. Of particular interest is the accounting ledger (1949-1950) for Plastics for Industry, the Dalquist brothers' original company. It has handwritten entries and shows the company's simplified bookkeeping system. It also provides important financial data on the startup capital and the progress in the first year of business.

Reports created by the research firm Dunn and Bradstreet contain information submitted by the Dalquists to prove their credit worthiness to lenders. Several loan agreements document the company's practice of borrowing money on future earnings in order to meet operating expenses and finance innovation. Machinery owned by Nordic Ware is listed in several factory inventories. The firm also leased machinery instead of buying in order to save money. Inventory summaries (1950-1978) detail the numbers and value of the unsold product then on hand.

Though Nordic Ware stock was never traded publically, there was an employee shareholder plan that included profit sharing. Records in this subseries document the evolution and operation of the plan, including one employee's case for a public offering of the company stock. At some point Dave Dalquist did consider making the company public but decided to maintain private ownership. The emphasis on taking pride and ownership in the company was often repeated in memoranda that Dalquist wrote to employees about stock options. The records show that he was very conscious of morale and high standards of work within the company.

Series 6: Legal Records, 1962-1978

The bulk of these records deals with trademark issues, especially Nordic Ware's creation, licensing, and protection of the "Bundt" mark. Included are copies of correspondence with the law firms that handled applications to the Patent and Trademark Office and correspondence from that office. Correspondence and legal papers document licensing negotiations with Pillsbury and others. In several instances Nordic Ware took legal steps when the Bundt Pan trademark was being misused.

Series 7: Recipes and Cookbooks, 1966-2004, undated

This series is comprised of a large selection of cookbooks and recipe files maintained by Dotty Dalquist and reflect her active role in business activities. She did much of her cooking and experimenting in a test kitchen in her own home and was integral to the preparation of foods to be photographed in Nordic Ware products. These photographs demonstrated the use of the products and were included in the advertisements, catalogs, and product or recipe brochures.

Subseries 7.1: Dotty Dalquist Recipe Files, bulk 1950s-1970s, mainly undated

Dotty Dalquist kept recipes, product booklets, notes, and other materials to aid in the development of her own recipes. She organized much of the material by food type, but she also had several files for specific Nordic Ware products. The Bundt Pan was a major product, and the files on it reflect that. As Nordic Ware sought new ways to promote the use of its products, Dalquist's development of new and inventive recipes was a major part of that effort.

Subseries 7.2: Bundt Pan Cookbooks, 1966-2004

Nordic Ware published several books by Dotty Dalquist to promote use of the Bundt Pan. Pillsbury and other firms also published their own books. Pillsbury incorporated its products into the recipes to promote the dual product relationship between the Bundt Pan and the Pillsbury brand of cake mixes. These books were sold in stores and added as premiums to go along with the purchase of the other products.

Subseries 7.3: Other Recipe and Public Relations Materials, 1970-1996, undated

Recipe contests and a cookbook were among the efforts to involve employees with the Nordic Ware products and to generate new recipes and ideas. These files include photographs and entries and correspondence about these employee activities.

A file of correspondence, mainly to and from Dotty Dalquist, concerns problems consumers encountered using specific recipes that she had published. Consumers also wrote about recipes they had tried on their own and could not get satisfactory results with a Nordic Ware product. Dalquist's problem-solving efforts were an example of the personal customer service in which Nordic Ware took pride.

Series 8: Non-Nordic Ware Reference Materials, 1940-2001, undated

The materials in this series were used by Nordic Ware as reference resources. They have been organized into subseries by type.

Subseries 8.1: Sponsored Cookbooks, 1943-1996, undated

Dotty Dalquist collected cookbooks published by a wide range of manufacturers and trade organizations. The cookbooks are arranged in alphabetical order by the name of the sponsor. Many companies, such as Pillsbury and General Foods, put out these kinds of books to promote their own brands. This may have influenced Dalquist's creation of her own Bundt Pan cookbook.

Subseries 8.2: Product Guides (some with recipes), 1940-1992, undated

These product guides, for appliances and other items used in Dotty Dalquist's kitchen, include use instructions and, often, recipes. Nordic Ware often included recipes in the print materials packaged with its products and associated with its advertising.

Subseries 8.3: Home and Food Related Ephemera, 1950-1980, undated

These materials include booklets of general household hints, recipe cards published by various organizations, and information on food processes.

Subseries 8.4: Periodicals, 1967-2001

Several scrapbooks in this subseries contain clippings from various trade publications. Some focus on Nordic Ware and Northland Aluminum Products in articles or advertisements while others contain industry, including competitors', product advertisements. There are several issues of trade periodicals with Nordic Ware related stories. Trade press clippings also are found in Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004, Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992.

Subseries 8.5: Newsletters, 1961, 1973-1987, undated

Most of these newsletters were for reference use with Nordic Ware's microwave cookware projects. With its extensive line of these microwave products, there was an active effort to stay up to date with the field. The firm also tried to find different kinds of foods and recipes that could be prepared using a microwave oven.

Series 9: Photographs, 1940s-2006, undated

This series consists of a wide range of photographic prints re-housed in archival sleeves and assembled into a single binder. The photographs are arranged roughly by image content and document the Dalquist family and employees; factory and offices scenes, including a series of black and white images by Mel Jacobsen, a commercial photographer; and product displays at trade shows and other locations. The photographs also include a few images of Nordic Ware products and of baked foods and black and white images of plastic molds created by Plastics for Industry. Most of the photographs are undated and many are unidentified. There is a View Master viewer with one viewing card containing photographs assembled for Nordic Ware's sixtieth anniversary in 2006. Series 2, David Dalquist Files, includes five photographs of foods baked in Bundt Pans. Series 3, Marketing and Sales Records, Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995, has photographs of a factory outlet store and product displays.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into nine series.

Series 1: Historical and Background Materials, 1940s-2006

Series 2: David Dalquist Files, 1963-1993

Series 3: Marketing and Sales Records, 1948-2004

Subseries 1, General and Department Records, 1967-1995

Subseries 2, Promotional and Trade Sales Materials, 1958-2004

Subseries 3, Public Relations, 1948-1992

Series 4: Engineering Department Records, 1950-1994

Subseries 1, General Records, 1969-1992

Subseries 2, Laboratory Notebooks, 1972, 1984-1993

Subseries 3, Product Files, 1976-1993, undated

Subseries 4, New Product Ideas Files, 1976-1993

Subseries 5, General Research and Development, 1950-1994

Subseries 6, Patent Materials, 1950-1994

Subseries 7, Trade Associations, 1977-1994

Series 5: Financial Records

Series 6: Legal records

Series 7: Recipes and Cookbooks

Subseries 1, Dotty Dalquist Recipe Files, 1950s-1970s, undated

Subseries 2, Bundt Pan Cookbooks, 1966-2004

Subseries 3, Other Recipe and Public Relations Materials, 1970-1996, undated

Series 8, Non-Nordic Ware Reference Materials

Subseries 1, Sponsored Cookbooks, 1943-1996, undated

Subseries 2, Product Guides (with some recipes), 1940-1992, undated

Subseries 3, Home and Food Related Ephemera, 1950-1980, undated

Subseries 4, Periodicals, 1967-2001

Subseries 5, Newsletters, 1961, 1973-1981, undated

Series 9: Photographs, 1940s-2006, undated
Biographical / Historical:
In 1946, the year he returned from Navy service in the Pacific, H. David (Dave) Dalquist (1918-2005) joined his brother Mark to launch a new manufacturing firm, Plastics for Industry, in Minneapolis. The two University of Minnesota graduates soon were making foundry patterns and industrial plastic products for area businesses, as well as aluminum consumer cookware. Among their earliest products were ebelskiver pans, krumkake irons, and rosette irons, essential kitchen tools for the area's large Scandinavian population. Their first employee, Donald Nygren, remained as head designer for many decades.

In 1950, the brothers bought Northland Aluminum Products, a small firm with a line of "Nordic Ware" products including griddles and steak platters. The same year, Dave Dalquist created a cast aluminum, fluted cake pan at the request of two local women, members of the Hadassah organization. The women sought to replicate a heavy mold used in Europe. Northland Aluminum registered the trademark "Bundt" for the new product and began to sell it to local department stores. (The women sold manufacturing "seconds" as a fund raiser for their group.) Mark Dalquist created a firm, Maid of Scandinavia, to market products by mail. It separated from Northland Aluminum in 1963. Over the years, Northland Aluminum increasingly used "Nordic Ware" to identify itself for marketing and public relations purposes.

Northland Aluminum created a subsidiary finishing and coating firm, Northland Color Anodizing Company, in 1962. In 1964, Northland became one of the first to license the use of Teflon from its inventor, DuPont, and non-stick products became an important part of the company's line. Northland also did coating work for many industries including medical, computer, and commercial food processing. For many years Northland also had a division to produce heads for video recording machines. Product sales reached $1,000,000 in 1964.

During the 1960s, Nordic Ware grew slowly, gradually increasing its product line to include specialty baking and cookware items and stove-top cookware. The company also expanded its production capacity and built its sales and marketing capabilities, including a national network of sales representatives working on commission. Dorothy Dalquist, Dave's wife, played a vital role in the company's history. She joined him at crucial annual sales conventions to demonstrate products, tested new products, and developed recipes for them in her home kitchen. Additionally, she represented the firm in public relations activities.

Although the Bundt Pan was only one of many Nordic Ware products, it became a national celebrity in 1966 when a Texas woman used it for her prize-winning Tunnel of Fudge Cake in the immensely popular Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. In 1970, Nordic Ware licensed the Bundt trademark to Pillsbury for use with a line of cake mixes. Customers received a cake pan at a small additional price with the purchase of the packaged mix. Although this pan was spun of light aluminum, not cast like the original models, the Pillsbury promotion was very successful. In addition to the classic Bundt design, the company began producing special designs, including a cathedral, a castle, a rose, a heart, and, in 2006, a stadium shaped pan. The Bundt Pan continues to be the most popular cake pan in America, and the company estimates it has sold sixty million pans over the past six decades.

Despite the steady popularity of the Bundt Pan, Dalquist and his firm knew that the spike in Bundt Pan sales resulting from the Pillsbury promotion was temporary, and they continued their strategy of seeking new products to buoy overall sales revenues. In 1978 Nordic Ware developed a "new thermoset plastic molding technology to create an extensive line of cookware designed to work in both conventional and microware ovens." In these same years, as microwave oven use rapidly spread, Nordic Ware developed its second celebrity product. Designed by the company's own engineers, the Micro-Go-Round was promoted in print and television advertising and is still its most successful product. Since then, Nordic Ware has introduced a wide range of new products, some of them successful (for example, nonstick Barbecue Grill Cookware), others not (including a device to create convection currents in a baking oven and a bicentennial cake platter). Northland Aluminum holds at least twenty-five patents for its products.

Today David Dalquist (born 1949) -- son of founder "Dave Dalquist" and, like his father, an engineer -- heads Nordic Ware. He has been involved with the company for his entire working life with major executive responsibilities since the early 1980s. David Dalquist's mother, Dotty, is on the Board of Directors and serves as Corporate Secretary. David's three sistersā€”Corrine, Linda, and Susanā€”are also involved in the business. The firm employs between 200 and 400 people and continues, as a point of pride, to manufacture its products in the United States. The family has refused numerous buyout offers. Nordic Ware has managed to design and market products for the large, low price retailers, including Wal-Mart, and for the upscale, specialty gourmet market. Williams-Sonoma, a leader in the latter field, has exclusive sales for a small number of new Nordic Ware products each year.

For its sixtieth anniversary, Nordic Ware produced a company history, H. David Dalquist, The Nordic Ware Saga: An Entrepreneur's Legacy (Kirk House Publishers, Minneapolis, 2006). The volume provides edited recollections of "Dave," many family members, and other employees drawn from oral history interviews. This finding aid is based largely on that information, other historical sources within the collection, and visits to Nordic Ware offices by National Museum of American History staff members Paula Johnson and Nanci Edwards (June 2006) and Paula Johnson and John Fleckner (August 2006).
Related Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry holds thirty-six objects from Nordic Ware (Accession # 2007.0034), including Bundt Pans in a variety of shapes, foundry patterns and molds for Nordic Ware products, a wood panel display of products manufactured by Plastics for Industry, three versions of the Micro-Go-Round, and other kitchenware products.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Dorothy M. Dalquist and H. David Dalquist in 2007.
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 intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Ethnic food industry  Search this
Cookery, American  Search this
Kitchen utensils  Search this
Aluminum  Search this
Kitchen utensil industry  Search this
Baked products  Search this
Bakery equipment and supplies industry  Search this
Baking pans  Search this
Baking  Search this
Genre/Form:
Correspondence -- 1950-2000
Photographs -- 2000-2010
Legal records
Catalogs
Correspondence -- 2000-2010
Financial records
Photographs -- 20th century
Design drawings -- 1950-2000
Citation:
Nordic Ware Collection, 1942-2006, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0980
See more items in:
Nordic Ware records
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep894dc31f0-f3a9-457d-9097-4906863295b5
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0980
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