Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Search Results

Collections Search Center
28 documents - page 1 of 2

Morris Jacks Papers

Engineer:
Jacks, Morris, 1899-  Search this
Names:
Empire State Building  Search this
Yankee Stadium (New York, N.Y. : 1923-2009)  Search this
Former owner:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry  Search this
Extent:
3 Cubic feet (6 boxes, 1 map-folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Reports
Blueprints
Legal documents
Color slides
Photographs
Date:
1929-1974
Summary:
Papers document consulting engineer Morris Jacks and his work with the Empire State Building, Yankee Stadium, and the Third Avenue Transit Corporation.
Content Description:
Papers document consulting engineer Morris Jacks and his work with the Empire State Building, Yankee Stadium, and the Third Avenue Transit Corporation. The collection consists of correspondence, appraisals, reports, blueprints, legal documents, and other notes about Jacks's work related to the valuation of structures.
Arrangement:
The Collection is arranged into 4 series.

Series 1: Personal Materials, undated

Series 2: Empire State Building, 1929-1975

Series 3: Third Avenue Transit Corporation, 1949-1955

Series 4: Yankee Stadium, 1945-1976
Biographical / Historical:
Morris Jacks was a practicing and consulting engineer who graduated from Washington University (St. Louis) in 1920. He supervised construction projects in Missouri and New York City and was president and chief engoneer of Sola Engineering Corporation which worked on excavations and foundations. Jacks also conducted appraisals and the valuation of structural improvements (buildings, fixtures, machinery, piping, and wiring) working for the City of New York , Board of Taxes and Assessments He also acted as an expert witness, providing testimony in state and federal court for legal cases involving construction costs and depreciations of buildings and equipment.
Provenance:
Immediate source of acquisition unknown.
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:
Engineering -- 20th century  Search this
Stadiums  Search this
Appraisals  Search this
Genre/Form:
Correspondence
Reports
Blueprints -- 20th century
Legal documents -- 20th century
Color slides -- 20th century
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- 1930-1950
Citation:
Morris Jacks Papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.1448
See more items in:
Morris Jacks Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8cc9f3aac-6b95-4219-82c9-bc010e58195c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1448

Leo Friedlander papers

Creator:
Friedlander, Leo, 1890-1966  Search this
Names:
National Sculpture Society (U.S.)  Search this
DeFrancisci, Anthony, 1887-1964  Search this
Ewing, Upton Clary  Search this
Keally, Francis, 1889-1978  Search this
Montana, Pietro, 1890-1978  Search this
Pope, Arthur Upham, 1881-1969  Search this
Warneke, Heinz (Heinrich), 1895-1983  Search this
Extent:
17.3 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 2 reels))
9 Items (rolled docs)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1900-1990
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence, photographs, writings, printed material, and motion picture film.
REEL 145: Ca. 40 letters to Friedlander, mostly about his work, and his interests as president of the National Sculpture Society, including letters from Francis Keally, Pietro Montana, Heinz Warneke, Anthony de Francisci, Arthur Upham Pope, and Upton Clary Ewing. Also included are photographs of Friedlander's sculptures; biographical notes; writings; a speech; and miscellaneous printed material.
REEL 3890: Biographical material; writings by Friedlander; reproductions of drawings by Friedlander; miscellaneous printed material; photographs of Friedlander, and of his works of art.
UNMICROFILMED: A resume; correspondence; scrapbooks, 3 short home movie film reels, drafts and final copies of his articles and speeches; published articles by Friedlander; reproductions of his work; photographs and negatives of art work, glass plate negatives, copper plates, and drawings, greeting cards, blueprints, and miscellaneous personal papers (ca. 1930-1950).
Biographical / Historical:
Sculptor; New York, N.Y.
Provenance:
Material on reel 145 donated 1971 by Friedlander's widow. Material on reel 3890 donated 1984 by Syracuse University. The bulk of the papers were donated in 1996 material by Gordon Friedlander, Friedlander's son, and a small portion were transferred from the National Collection of Fine Arts, 1979.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Topic:
Sculpture, American -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Decoration and ornament, Architectural  Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.frieleo
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9e9f03900-3cd4-4e77-8f8e-e7105578595e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-frieleo

John A. Roebling Collection

Creator:
Roebling, Charles Gustavus, 1849-1918  Search this
Roebling, Ferdinand W. (Ferdinand William), 1842-1917  Search this
John A. Roebling's Sons Company  Search this
Roebling, John Augustus, 1806-1869  Search this
Roebling, Washington Augustus, 1837-1926.  Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of History of Technology  Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering  Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry  Search this
Extent:
18.5 Cubic feet (62 boxes, 1 map-folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photograph albums
Specifications
Reports
Price lists
Photographs
Newsletters
Letterpress books
Correspondence
Blueprints
Ledgers (account books)
Genealogies
Notebooks
Patents
Date:
1836-1975
bulk 1930-1950
Summary:
Collection documents the work of the John A. Roebling's Sons Company, builders of bridges. The materials consist primarily of photograph albums documenting some of the bridges, tramways, ski lifts and chair lifts that Roebling's Sons Company was involved with. The documentation also includes specifications, patents, and reference materials about the engineering process of building bridges and bridges in general.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the work of the John A. Roebling's Sons Company, builders of bridges. The materials consist primarily of photograph albums documenting a variety of bridges, mostly in the United States. The documentation also includes specifications, patents, and reference materials about the engineering process of building bridges and bridges in general.

Series 1, Historical background materials, 1895-1958, is divided into two subseries: Subseries 1, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949 and Subseries 2, Newsletters, 1929-1931.

Subseries 1, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949, contains a variety of items related to the company such as historical narratives, correspondence, price lists, testing data, and a ledger with cost estimates. The correspondence is partially bound (pages 1 to 104) from a letter press book (handwritten and typescript) belonging to John A. Roebling's and Sons Company. William Hildebrand and Charles G. Roebling are the chief correspondents. The correspondence documents daily activities related to the design and erection of bridges as well as finances and supplies. Charles G. Roebling's notebook, undated, contains calculations and notes about various bridge projects.

Subseries 2, Newsletters, 1929-1931, contain copies of Blue Center and Wire Engineering, which were John A. Roebling's and Sons Company publications intended for employees. The newsletters were apparently used as scrapbooks, with black-and-white photographs pasted into the pages. Found among the pages of Blue Center are photographs of the Hudson River Bridge and in Wire Engineering, there are photographs of the Maysville, Kentucky Bridge.

Series 2, Photographs, 1926-1975, comprises the largest series in the collection. The photographs are primarily black-and-white and document aerial tramways, tramways for logging or mining, chair lifts, ski lifts, floods, and bridge construction projects. The latter makes up the majority. Most photographs were assembled into albums with corresponding captions and dates, and almost all of the photographs document bridges in the United States. There is one exception, the Yauricocha Tramway in Peru. In some instances, the captions are recorded on the back of the photographs, and others were recorded on album pages. The series is arranged alphabetically by name of bridge and/or project.

Series 3, Specifications, 1855-1962, consists of printed textual documents (both bound and loose) that contain information for bidders, proposals, contracts, and bonds, and the detailed specifications. This series is arranged alphabetically by bridge name.

Series 4, Reports, 1928-1938, contains bound reports (both progress and final) detailing problems, requirements, research, manufacture, plant installation, cable equipment, strand adjustments, and Roebling Company developments. This series is arranged alphabetically by bridge/and/or project.

Series 5, Patent materials, 1849-1952, consists of issued patents (to a variety of individuals) for cable and cable appliances, cables, and cable apparatus, cableways and tramways, and grips. The patents are arranged by subject area, then by patent number.

Series 6, Reference materials, 1836-1964, contains a wide range of materials—articles, biographical files, drawings, photographs, newspaper clippings, advertising, correspondence, notes—documenting all aspects of bridges. This series is arranged alphabetically by topic.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.

Series 1, Historical background materials, 1895-1958, undated

Subseries 1, Biographical, 1900-1958, undated

Subseries 2, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949

Subseries 3, Newsletters, 1929-1931

Series 2, Photographs, 1926-1975

Series 3, Specifications, 1855-1962

Series 4, Reports, 1928-1938

Series 5, Patent materials, 1849-1952

Series 6, Reference materials, 1836-1964
Biographical / Historical:
John Augustus Roebling (1806-1869) was the founder and proprietor of John A. Roebling's Sons Company. Born in Mühlhausen, Germany, he was a civil engineer famous for his wire rope suspension bridge designs, in particular, the design of the Brooklyn Bridge. Roebling married Johana Herting in 1836 and they had nine children: Washington A. Roebling (1837-1926); Laura R. Methfessel (1840-1873); Ferdinand W. Roebling (1842-1917); Elvira R. Stewart (1844-1871); Josephine R. Jarvis (b. 1847); Charles Gustavus Roebling (1849-1918); Edmund Roebling (1854-1930); William Roebling (b. 1856, d. 1860); and Hannah Roebling (died in infancy). Roebling's three sons, Washington Augustus Roebling; Ferdinand William Roebling and Charles Gustavus Roebling, worked for the company.

Roebling's Sons Company was active in the design and manufacture of wire rope used in the erection of suspension bridges since the 1840s. Roebling devised a system of spinning the wires together where weights and swivels turned the wire coils in the opposite direction from the twisting, thereby removing kinks. Method of and Machine for Manufacturing Wire Rope (US Patent # 2,720) issued on July 16, 1842. Roebling would adapt this wire rope to his suspension bridge principle. In 1848, he established a company—John Roebling's Sons Company—in Trenton, New Jersey, to manufacture his wire rope. Roebling manufacturing plants were sold in 1952 to the Colorado Fuel and Iron (CF&I) Company of Pueblo, Colorado. In 1968, the Crane Company purchased the CF& I.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center

George S. Morison Collection (AC0978)

Modjeski and Masters Company Records (AC0976)

Materials at Other Organizations

The Rutgers University, Special Collections and University Archives

Roebling family papers, cicra 1820s-1950s
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Blair Birdsall, former chief engineer at John A. Roebling's Sons Company in 1981.
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 -- New York (N.Y.)  Search this
Bridge construction industry -- United States  Search this
Bridges -- Design and construction  Search this
Iron industry and trade -- United States  Search this
Iron industry and trade -- Colorado  Search this
Wire industry -- New Jersey  Search this
Suspension bridges -- Design and construction  Search this
Ski lifts  Search this
Wire-rope industry -- New Jersey  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photograph albums
Specifications
Reports
Price lists
Photographs -- 20th century
Newsletters -- 1920-1940
Letterpress books
Correspondence
Blueprints
Ledgers (account books)
Genealogies
Notebooks
Patents
Citation:
John A. Roebling Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0981
See more items in:
John A. Roebling Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8419ecb5a-d411-4efa-b829-43d8cc9002ec
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0981
Online Media:

Every Minute Counts, garment workers on the home front, New York [black-and-white photoprint]

Photographer:
Joseph, Katherine  Search this
Names:
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.  Search this
Collection Creator:
Joseph, Katherine  Search this
Hertzberg, Suzanne  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (7-7/8" x 10".)
Type:
Archival materials
Black-and-white photographic prints
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
1942
Scope and Contents:
Women garment workers, New York City. "Every Minute Counts" banner on wall.
Arrangement:
Box No. 5.
Local Numbers:
AC0944-0000051.tif (AC Scan No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Gloves required with unprotected photographs.
Collection Rights:
Copyright held by donor. Written permission required prior to obtaining reproductions. Consult with Archives Center staff for contact information. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Garment workers  Search this
Topic:
Labor unions  Search this
Textile industry  Search this
Genre/Form:
Black-and-white photographic prints -- Silver gelatin -- 1900-1950
Collection Citation:
Katherine Joseph Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Katherine Joseph Papers
Katherine Joseph Papers / Series 2: Photographic Negatives and Prints / 2.1: Garment workers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep856387179-2a0b-472d-b2e0-b771972a8705
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0944-ref571

[Franklin Roosevelt with cast members of "Pins and Needles at the White House" : black-and-white photoprint]

Photographer:
Joseph, Katherine  Search this
Composer:
Rome, Harold, 1908-  Search this
Names:
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.  Search this
United States. Department of Agriculture  Search this
Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945  Search this
Collection Creator:
Joseph, Katherine  Search this
Hertzberg, Suzanne  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (7-7/8" x 10".)
Type:
Archival materials
Black-and-white photographic prints
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
1938
Scope and Contents:
President Franklin D. Roosevelt and International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) president David Dubinsky with cast members of the ILGWU revue "Pins and Needles." Left to right: Ruth Rubenstein, Rose Newmark, Lynn Jaffe, Millie Weitz, Ann Brown, and Nettie Harari at the White House, March 3, 1938.
Biographical / Historical:
This Broadway revue was originally written for and performed by members of the ILGWU, "who sang out for all the people fighting for jobs, housing, a minimum wage, immigrants' rights and economic justice, and performed sketches that satirized the European fascists and the U.S. right-wing reactionaries who rose up against FDR's New Deal," according to presenters. Subtitled "A Musical Revue in Two Acts, 19 Scenes." Sketches by Arthur Arent, Marc Blitzstein, Emanuel Eisenberg, Charles Friedman, Harold J. Rome and David Gregory. Music and lyrics mostly by Harold J. Rome. First produced in New York 11 June 1936 at the Labor Stage Studios. Opened 27 November 1937 at the Labor Stage Theatre; Second edition (Pins and Needles 1939) opened 20 April 1939, moved 26 June 1939 to the Windsor Theatre; renamed Pins and Needles 1939 in August 1939, renamed Pins and Needles 1940 in September 1939; Third edition (New Pins and Needles) opened 25 November 1939, and closed 22 June 1940 after a total of 1108 performances. (See http://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_p/pinsneedles.htm.)
Local Numbers:
AC0944-0000051.tif (AC Scan No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Gloves required with unprotected photographs.
Collection Rights:
Copyright held by donor. Written permission required prior to obtaining reproductions. Consult with Archives Center staff for contact information. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Occupation:
Garment workers  Search this
Topic:
Musical theater  Search this
Labor unions  Search this
Textile industry  Search this
Genre/Form:
Black-and-white photographic prints -- Silver gelatin -- 1900-1950
Collection Citation:
Katherine Joseph Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Katherine Joseph Papers
Katherine Joseph Papers / Series 3: Photographic Prints / 3.4: Subjects / Pins and Needles
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8c85d8cf5-17a1-4863-9205-95204f1116c7
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0944-ref578

Leo Friedlander papers, 1900-1990

Creator:
Friedlander, Leo, 1890-1966  Search this
Subject:
Ewing, Upton Clary  Search this
Keally, Francis  Search this
Montana, Pietro  Search this
Warneke, Heinz (Heinrich)  Search this
DeFrancisci, Anthony  Search this
Pope, Arthur Upham  Search this
National Sculpture Society (U.S.)  Search this
Citation:
Leo Friedlander papers, 1900-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Sculpture, American -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Decoration and ornament, Architectural  Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Theme:
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)7189
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209326
AAA_collcode_frieleo
Theme:
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209326

Jerome Milkman scrapbooks, 1930-[ca. 1959]

Creator:
Milkman, Jerome, 1884-1964  Search this
Subject:
Cranch, Christopher Pearse  Search this
Ernst, Jimmy  Search this
Feininger, Lyonel  Search this
Frasconi, Antonio  Search this
Hunt, William Morris  Search this
O'Hara, Eliot  Search this
Smith, David  Search this
Tworkov, Jack  Search this
Citation:
Jerome Milkman scrapbooks, 1930-[ca. 1959]. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Autographs -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Caricatures and cartoons  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Theme:
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)9047
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211238
AAA_collcode_milkjero
Theme:
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211238

Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt papers, 1909-1989

Creator:
Nordfeldt, Bror Julius Olsson, 1878-1955  Search this
Subject:
Ficke, Arthur Davison  Search this
Forsyth, Constance  Search this
Hale, John Douglass  Search this
Hanley, Harriet  Search this
Jonson, Raymond  Search this
Lester, William  Search this
Mayor, A. Hyatt (Alpheus Hyatt)  Search this
Nordfeldt, Emily Abbott  Search this
Passedoit, Georgette  Search this
Saint-Gaudens, Homer  Search this
Walker, Hudson D. (Hudson Dean)  Search this
Albinson, Dewey  Search this
Bidwell, Watson  Search this
Knee, Gina  Search this
Candell, Victor  Search this
Catlin, Stanton L. (Stanton Loomis)  Search this
Cheney, Sheldon  Search this
Coke, Van Deren  Search this
Cook, Howard Norton  Search this
Davison, Edward L.  Search this
Devree, Howard  Search this
Dickerson, William Judson  Search this
Arthur H. Hahlo (Firm)  Search this
Harriet Hanley Gallery (Minneapolis, Minn.)  Search this
Passedoit Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Type:
Sketchbooks
Citation:
Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt papers, 1909-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Expressionism (Art)  Search this
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Theme:
Sketches & Sketchbooks  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)9089
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211282
AAA_collcode_nordbror
Theme:
Sketches & Sketchbooks
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211282

Cleo Dorman scrapbook

Creator:
Cleo, 1908-1990  Search this
Subject:
Cleo  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago. School  Search this
Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Cranbrook Academy of Art  Search this
Type:
Albums
Date:
1927-1950
Citation:
Cleo. Cleo Dorman scrapbook, 1927-1950. Cleo (Cleo Dorman) papers, 1924-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Artists' models  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA)15778
See more items in:
Cleo (Cleo Dorman) papers, 1924-1999
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_item_15778
Online Media:

Works of Art, Africa, Italy, Spain, New York City

Collection Creator:
Valentine Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Container:
Box 1, Folder 44
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
circa 1940
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Valentine Gallery records, circa 1890-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Valentine Gallery records
Valentine Gallery records / Series 1: Artists Files / 1.1: Louis Eilshemius / Photographs
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9e4c63c92-5306-4b16-9159-edf5819da116
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-valegall-ref58

Morgan and Marvin Smith Audiovisual Collection

Creator:
Smith, Morgan and Marvin, b. 1910  Search this
Names:
Anacostia Community Museum  Search this
Center for African American History & Culture (U.S.)  Search this
Smith, Marvin, 1910-2003  Search this
Extent:
481 Sound recordings (203 audio cassette sound recordings ; 6 vinyl sound recordings ; 272 open reel 1/4" sound recordings)
1 Floppy disc
209 Video recordings (21 16mm film prints ; 188 video recordings)
23 Linear feet (27 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Floppy discs
Video recordings
Place:
Harlem (New York, N.Y.)
Date:
circa 1954-1990
bulk 1970-1980
Scope and Contents note:
Morgan and Marvin Smith, twin brothers who lived and worked in Harlem, NY, are regarded as the premiere photographers of the area from the 1930s-1950s. The two brothers pursued many creative outlets outside of photography, including painting, film, and
Related Archival Materials note:
Morgan and Marvin Smith's photograph collection is housed at the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in New York City.
Provenance:
This collection was donated to the Center for African American History and Culture, a Smithsonian Initiative which operated in the 1990s before merging with the Anacostia Museum.
Restrictions:
Use of the materials requires an appointment. Many materials in the collection are inaccessible due to their obsolete formats and fragile state. Please contact the archivist at ACMarchives@si.edu.
Occupation:
Artists  Search this
Topic:
African Americans  Search this
African American photographers  Search this
Music  Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Sound recordings
Citation:
Morgan and Marvin Smith Audiovisual Collection, Anacostia Community Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
ACMA.09-012
Archival Repository:
Anacostia Community Museum Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/qa717481d36-0c02-418d-9a67-b523b149f9cf
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-acma-09-012

Billie Holiday -- NYC [photoprint, black-and-white,]

Photographer:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Names:
Holiday, Billie, 1915-1959  Search this
Collection Creator:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on paper.)
Container:
Box 2, Folder 7
Culture:
African Americans -- 1940-1950  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
1949
Scope and Contents:
Holliday singing into microphone with smoke swirling around her. Title below image, signed at lower right.
Local Numbers:
00044503.tif (AC Scan No.)
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
The Archives Center does not own the rights to the Leonard photographs. All requests for permission to use these photographs for non‑museum purposes must be addressed to: Herman Leonard Photography, LLC, 530 South Lake Avenue #503, Pasadena, CA 91101 (818) 509-8987.
Topic:
Smoke  Search this
African American singers -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz musicians -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Collection Citation:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection, 1948-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection / Series 2: 16" x 20" Prints
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a2e126d7-6ca1-477f-908e-8b04ef966030
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0445-ref81

Sarah Vaughan -- NYC [photoprint, black-and-white,]

Photographer:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Names:
Vaughan, Sarah, 1924-1990  Search this
Collection Creator:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on paper.)
Container:
Box 2, Folder 10
Culture:
African Americans -- 1940-1950  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
1950
Scope and Contents:
Vaughan sitting on bench, singing from sheet music. Title below image, signed at lower right.
Local Numbers:
00044505.tif (AC Scan No.)
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
The Archives Center does not own the rights to the Leonard photographs. All requests for permission to use these photographs for non‑museum purposes must be addressed to: Herman Leonard Photography, LLC, 530 South Lake Avenue #503, Pasadena, CA 91101 (818) 509-8987.
Topic:
African American singers -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz musicians -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Collection Citation:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection, 1948-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection / Series 2: 16" x 20" Prints
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a493d764-983a-4583-b7d6-c322fc0b24f3
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0445-ref98

[Dinah Washington singing into microphone] [photoprint, black-and-white

Photographer:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Names:
Washington, Dinah, 1924-1963  Search this
Collection Creator:
Leonard, Herman, 1923-2010  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on paper.)
Container:
Box 9, Folder 1
Culture:
African Americans -- 1940-1950  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
[1950?]
Scope and Contents:
Title below image at left, signed at lower right.
Local Numbers:
00044506.tif (AC Scan No.)
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
The Archives Center does not own the rights to the Leonard photographs. All requests for permission to use these photographs for non‑museum purposes must be addressed to: Herman Leonard Photography, LLC, 530 South Lake Avenue #503, Pasadena, CA 91101 (818) 509-8987.
Topic:
Women in jazz  Search this
Microphones  Search this
African American singers -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz musicians -- 1940-1950  Search this
Jazz  Search this
Women in music  Search this
Collection Citation:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection, 1948-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection / Series 2: 16" x 20" Prints
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82da3f7e3-87cc-4bc0-8559-fc570fbe4318
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0445-ref99
Online Media:

Paul Cadwell Banjo Collection

Creator:
Cadwell, Paul, 1889-1985  Search this
Reed, Frances  Search this
Names:
American Banjo Fraternity.  Search this
Bowen, Bill  Search this
Bradbury, Frank  Search this
Cadwell, Joyce  Search this
Denton, Harry  Search this
Farland, Alfred  Search this
Van Eps, Fred, 1878-1960  Search this
Former owner:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Musical History  Search this
Extent:
12 Cubic feet (28 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sheet music
Sound recordings
Photographs
Ephemera
Correspondence
Place:
New York (N.Y.)
Date:
1883-1980
Summary:
The bulk of the collection is music for the five-string banjo, often with piano and/or second banjo accompaniments. Almost no sheets have cover illustrations. Many editions are British and rarely have copyright dates.
Scope and Contents note:
The collection documents banjoist Paul Cadwell (1889 1985). Most of the material originally belonged to him; exceptions to this include photographs of Frances Reed (Cadwell's first wife), travel ephemera of Frances Reed, banjo music of William Brewer, and banjo history writings of Brewer. British banjoist William Brewer corresponded regularly with Cadwell through the 1950s. Though they never met, a close friendship developed between the men. After Brewer's death, Brewer's son mailed his father's banjo materials to Cadwell (see correspondence from Basil Brewer). Series 8, "Reed Travel Ephemera," is largely unrelated to both Cadwell and the banjo most items date from before Reed's marriage to Cadwell. This series is unprocessed as of this writing. Most of Cadwell's audio recordings (both discs and tapes) fell outside the museum's collections scope and so were not kept. A complete inventory, however, has been attached at the end of this register.

The bulk of the collection consists of music for the five string banjo, often with piano and/or second banjo accompaniments. The Cadwell and the Brewer banjo music have been placed in separate subseries. The Cadwell music is organized alphabetically by title of composition; much of this material is fragile and a majority of the music is in manuscript rather than published scores. The Brewer subseries maintains his careful organization: alphabetical by composer or arranger separating the American from the British composers/ arrangers. Almost no sheets have cover illustrations. Many of the editions are British (which rarely give a copywrite date).

Bluegrass and folk banjo music from the second half of the 20th century, when written, was written in tablature. "Classic" five-string banjo music is written in standard notation with some adaptations. The Brooks and Denton compositions were given in both standard notation and tablature and an arrangement of "Dueling Banjos" is in tablature. All other banjo compositions are written in standard notation. Some compositions are in C notation, others were transposed to A. Earlier in the 19th century, the banjo sounded in A and the music was written in A. With the technological changes in banjo construction of the late 19th century, the pitch of the banjo went up and generally sounded in C. The British were quick to switch to C notation, but American banjoists, wedded to tradition, were slow to make the change.

Cadwell had music in both C and A notation; presumably, he could play both. Adaptations to standard notation include the following indications for which finger should pluck the string: + = thumb, = first finger, = second finger. "12 B " indicates that the marked section should be played using a barre at the 12th fret. A sixteenth note flag up high G (high E in A notation) is used when the note should be played on the short thumb string.

Most of the music is for standard five-string banjo. There is a small amount of music for four-string tenor or plectrum banjo (as well as a few selections for mandolin and guitar). Two forms of the five string banjo appear in the music collection: the banjeurine and the zither banjo. The banjeurine was popular in banjo clubs, slightly smaller, tuned higher, and usually played lead. The zither banjo is peculiar to Britain. The two highest strings are of metal and the lower strings of the "classic" standard gut, nylon, or wound silk. The banjo has a resonator, but unlike American banjos with resonators, the head sits flush with the resonator. Many of the British compositions are labeled for zither banjo and are intended to take advantage of the peculiarities of that instrument's sound.
Arrangement:
The collection has been organized into the following series:

Series 1: Correspondence, 1941-1976 Series 2: Photographs, circa 1895-1980 Series 3: Ephemera, 1922-1978 Series 4: Banjo Music, circa 1883-1975 Series 5: Magazines and Journals, 1886-1977

Series 6; Banjo History Sources, circa 1951-1975

Series 7: Audio Recordings, circa 1895-1976

Series 8: Reed Travel Ephemera, circa 1930-1970

The Cadwell music is organized alphabetically by title of composition; much is fragile and in manuscript rather than published scores. The Brewer subseries maintains his careful organization: alphabetical by composer or arranger, separating American from British composers/arrangers.
Biographical/Historical note:
Paul Cadwell was born in 1889 in Westfield, New Jersey. He lived nearly all of his life in New Jersey and New York City. He began playing banjo at the age of ten. His first teacher was Fred Van Eps, a young man who already had been making commercial recordings of banjo ragtime and popular tunes. Van Eps continued to record frequently through the 1920s.

From the 1880s to the 1910s most American Universities and all of the Ivy League schools had banjo clubs. These organizations played orchestra style with various sizes of banjos. Cadwell played with college banjo clubs at both Princeton (class of 1910) and Harvard Law School. After law school, Cadwell studied for a time in England at Trinity College, Oxford. He spent his adult life working as a lawyer and in various business dealings.

After his schooling, Cadwell continued to perform on the five string banjo. In the 1920s he organized and performed in minstrel shows for the American Legion and the Masonic Lodge. During the 1930s he played occasionally on the "Dutch Masters" radio hour as a member of the "Van Eps Trio." Cadwell began his involvement with American folk music in the 1940s playing for the American Folk Dance Society and on NBC radio for "Music of the New World." During the 1950s, Cadwell became involved in the folk music revival and he befriended revivalist and bluegrass musicians, notably Roger Sprung.

In 1949, a group of older "finger style" five string banjoists created a formal organization; the American Banjo Fraternity (ABF) still meets twice a year in Lewistown, Pennsylvania though the original banjo notables are now deceased. Paul Cadwell, Fred Van Eps, Alfred Farland, Harry Denton, Bill Bowen, and Frank Bradbury (names familiar to fans of this style of banjo playing) were all members. Cadwell was a bit younger than the others and also had never made his living playing vaudeville or making commercial recordings as had these other men. The heyday of their music surely had passed, but they banded together to keep the tradition.

Cadwell sensed in the folk revival of the 1950s a revitalization of the five string banjo. Most of the other ABF members saw these young banjo players as a threat to their music; they played with metal stringed instruments and with what seemed to them a simplistic technique. The correspondence in series 1 traces the painful conflict between Cadwell and the ABF members over the folk music revival. Cadwell continued to perform in folk revival events into the 1970s.

Cadwell married Frances Reed in 1956 (they had been a couple, though, for many years). Many of the photographs in series 2 and most of the travel ephemera of series 8 were hers. In 1965 he married Joyce. Paul Cadwell died in 1985.
Related Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds related musical instrument parts (banjo head, banjo strings, and banjo bridges).
Provenance:
Collection donated by Joyce Cadwell, 1991.
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
Musicians  Search this
Musical groups  Search this
Banjo  Search this
Banjoists  Search this
Banjo music  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sheet music
Sound recordings
Photographs -- 20th century
Ephemera
Correspondence -- 1930-1950
Citation:
Paul Cadwell Banjo Collection, 1883-1980, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0387
See more items in:
Paul Cadwell Banjo Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep846ad02c1-4f9e-41f6-8dac-380417b9a14a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0387

Steinway & Sons Records and Family Papers

Creator:
Steinway, William  Search this
Steinway, Henry Ziegler  Search this
Steinway family  Search this
Steinway & Sons  Search this
Krüsi, Bartholomew, Rev.  Search this
Names:
CBS  Search this
German Presbyterian Church (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Lehman, Lilly  Search this
Steinway, Fred T., 1860-1927  Search this
Steinway, Henry (Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg), 1797-1871  Search this
Steinway, John  Search this
Steinway, Theodore (C.F. Theodore Steinweg), 1825-1889  Search this
Former owner:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Musical History  Search this
Extent:
6 Cubic feet (12 boxes, including photographs and microfilm)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Business records
Diaries
Catalogs
Correspondence
Microfilms
Photographs
Minute books
Business letters
Love letters
Letters
Letter books
Place:
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
Date:
1857-1919
Summary:
Records of the Steinway & Sons piano company and a daily diary of William Steinway, a key figure in the rise of the company to international prominence in the nineteenth century. The records document overall operations of the company, individual piano serial numbers, and the business and personal life of William Steinway, a prominent figure in New York business, politics, and musical life.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of an original diary (and microfilm copies) kept by William Steinway and microfilm copies of nineteenth century business records of Steinway & Sons. There also are business and family photographs and some miscellaneous documents.
Arrangement:
Series 1, William Steinway Diary, 1861-1896

Series 2, Steinway Business Records, 1858-1910

Series 3, Steinway Family Materials, 1877-1882

Series 4, Rev. Bartholomew Krüsi Materials, 1857-1919
Biographical / Historical:
Heinrich Engelhard Steinway (Steinweg) (born 1797, Wolfshagen, Germany; died 1871, New York City) made his first piano in 1836. In 1850 he immigrated to America and settled in New York City with his wife, three daughters, and four of his five sons. He and his sons Charles, Henry, Jr., and William at first worked for various New York piano makers until 1853 when they formed the partnership of Steinway & Sons. One year later Steinway & Sons' square pianos won first prize at the Metropolitan Mechanics Institute Exhibition (held at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.) and in 1855 won the Gold medal for the best piano (an over-strung iron-frame square piano) in the American Institute Fair at the Crystal Palace in New York City. In 1859, Henry, Jr. patented (patent no. 26,532, December 20, 1859) a design for a one-piece over-strung iron frame for the grand piano that won praise, a gold medal, and international recognition at the 1867 Paris Exposition.

The firm faced a crisis in 1865 when two of Heinrich's sons died: Henry (born 1831), who was responsible for the first seven patents, and Charles (born 1829). The family prevailed on the eldest son, C. F. Theodor (1825 1889), to sell his partnership as a piano manufacturer in Braunschweig, Germany, and to join his family in New York City. Not eager to sever all his ties in Germany, Theodor spent time in both countries until his death, contributing technical innovations that resulted in forty-one patents. One of these patents was for the duplex scale in 1872. Several of the following generation worked with the firm, including Fred T. Steinway (1860-1927), son of Charles, who served in London, Hamburg, and New York City.

C. F. Theodor Steinway's technical skills were matched by the entrepreneurial skills of his brother William (1835 1896). William was a creative businessman who played the piano, sang tenor, and supported the musical life of New York City. His promotional and marketing techniques, and his cultivation of eminent musicians and association with aristocratic patrons, helped to make Steinway & Sons so successful. William Steinway was prominent in New York City social and political life.

In 1880, Steinway & Sons opened a Hamburg branch. The firm was sold in 1972 to CBS. Subsequent owners include the Birmingham Brothers (Steinway Musical Properties, 1985-1995) and Steinway Musical Instruments, Inc. (1995-).
Related Materials:
Materials at the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Industry on Parade (NMAH.AC.0507)

Reel # 156, Before the Concert, 1953. Making pianos. Steinway and Sons, Long Island, New York.

N W Ayer Advertising Agency Records (NMAH.AC.0059)

Contains advertising proof sheets for Steinway & Sons from 1900 through 1963. The Piano series of the Warshaw Collection of Business Americana contains five folders of material on Steinway. The Industry on Parade Film Collection has a short, 1953 film (reel #156) on Steinway's manufacture of pianos in its Long Island plant. The Sohmer & Company Records contain three folders of trade literature from Steinway. These include catalogs, pamphlets, and booklets on the Steinway family genealogy and on the Steinway piano used at the White House. Sohmer, also a New York City piano manufacturer, collected copies of competitors' sales catalogs and other publications.

Materials at Other Organizations

The LaGuardia and Wagner Archives at LaGuardia Community College/CUNY is the largest repository of Steinway materials. It holds extensive business records as well as personal papers and photographs. The Steinway family loaned seventy folders of Steinway family correspondence to the National Museum of American History in October, 1984, and a program of transcription and translation was begun by the Steinway Diary Project. The original correspondence was transferred to the Archives Center in August 1985 and, at the request of Henry Z. Steinway, transferred to the LaGuardia and Wagner Archives in March, 1990. Additional Steinway materials are at the New York Historical Society, the University of Maryland Performing Arts Library, and other repositories. The control file for this collection has further information on the location of Steinway materials.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Culture and the Arts (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) holds several Steinway and Sons pianos.
Provenance:
Henry Z. Steinway donated the William Steinway diary on April 2, 1996.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Researchers must use positive microfilm copy of diary. Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.
Rights:
Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Reproduction permission from Archives Center: fees for commercial use.
Topic:
Keyboard instruments -- Manufacturing  Search this
Travel  Search this
Politics -- New York (N.Y.)  Search this
Church Interiors  Search this
Piano  Search this
Piano makers  Search this
Genre/Form:
Business records
Diaries
Catalogs
Correspondence -- 1930-1950
Microfilms -- Negative
Photographs -- 1850-1900
Minute books
Business letters
Love letters
Letters
Letter books
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- 1900-1910
Citation:
Steinway and Sons Piano Company Collection, 1857-1919, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0178
See more items in:
Steinway & Sons Records and Family Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8ded45715-d45f-4f3e-8a9b-dd3ce334c6b1
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0178
Online Media:

Carlos de Wendler-Funaro Gypsy Research Collection

Photographer:
Alland, Alexander, Sr. (Alexander Landschaft), 1902-1989  Search this
Author:
Kaslov, Steve, ca. 1888-1949 (King of the Red Bandanna Romany Gypsies )  Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Community Life  Search this
Names:
Jura, Chaiko (Gypsy leader)  Search this
Kaslov, Pupa  Search this
Kaslov, Steve, ca. 1888-1949 (King of the Red Bandanna Romany Gypsies )  Search this
Extent:
4.3 Cubic feet (15 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Journals
Dissertations
Scrapbooks
Manuscripts
Place:
West Virginia -- 1930-1950
New Jersey -- 1930-1950
Maspeth (Queens, Long Island, N.Y.) -- 1930-1950
New York (N.Y.) -- photographs -- 1930-1950
Date:
circa 1920-1975
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of 4.3 cubic feet of manuscript, print, and photographic materials created or collected by Carl de Wendler-Funaro (1898-1985) in pursuit of his interest in Gypsy life and culture. (Carlos de Wendler-Funaro used several forms of his name; he wrote mostly as Carl de Wendler-Funaro.) The -collection was brought to the attention of the Division of Community Life, National Museum of American History, by Matt T. Salo and donated to the Smithsonian by Dr. de Wendler-Funarol's widow, Cornelia de Funaro, in May 1985, through Richard E. Ahlborn, Curator.

The number and breadth of the photographic materials, especially, the accompanying documentation and their representation of many Gypsy groups in a single time period, make this collection an important resource for research.

Print and Manuscript Materials

The print and manuscript materials in the collection are organized-into six series: (1) materials for which Carl de Wendler-Funaro is author, co-author or editor; (2) materials about de Wendler-Funaro; (3) correspondence; (4) journals, books, or extracts from them, by various authors; (5) newspaper and magazine articles; (6) photomechanical images from newspapers, magazines, and books.

The manuscript materials include drafts of portions of planned books, reading notes, and Gypsy language notes and transcriptions. De Wendler-Funaro seems to have planned two books. One was to have been a book of his photographs, with accompanying essays describing his encounters with Gypsies, the other a work on Gypsies, especially those in the United States. The major element of the second book was to have been the history of the Rom in this country as told by Steve Kaslov. The second work was to have included the manuscripts, 'The Last Caravan,' on Romnichels in the United States; 'Romanian Gypsies in Maspeth Village,' on the Ludar; 'Hungarian Gypsies,' orx these musicians in the United States; and some folk tale materials. Several outlines for the two books are in the collection.

The draft materials written with Steve Kaslov include an account of the Gypsy leader Chaiko Jura. The account, which seems to approach legend at some points, describes his immigration to the United States, adventures in this country, and death. Also among the draft materials, and intended to follow in the proposed book, is what may be termed an official biography of Steve Kaslov (c. 1888-1949). Apparently tentatively entitled "The Ways of my People,' the manuscript recounts a few incidents, told at length, in the experiences of Kaslov's family and social network from about 1900 to about 1938.

De Wendler-Funaro's notes suggest that the Kaslov biography was dictated to an unnamed lawyer in the early 1930s and given to de Wendler-Funaro in 1934. Kaslov dictated the story of Chaiko to de Wendler-Funaro. (Perhaps this is the source of a statement in the New York Sun, June 20, 1941, that Kaslov had written two books.)

The okaslov manuscripts' are written mostly in a variety of American English common among American Rom. Parts of the biographical section are written in the first person, others in the third. Cultural material includes descriptions of weddings, funerary ritual, business transactions, conflicts and conflict resolution. As factual sources the manuscripts are unreliable: dates, for example, are only very approximate; birth places for Steve Kaslov and his family are incorrect.

Evidence in the manuscripts indicates that de Wendler-Funaro hoped, through 1976, to publish these texts in some form. Apparently Kaslov made a first attempt to publish in 1940, when he sent a draft to Eleanor Roosevelt. Mrs. Roosevelt sent the manuscript on to George Bye, a literary agent, who returned it in 1941 as unpublishable, calling it a Oterribly disorganized manuscript .... [Kaslov] is now working with a doctor (de Wendler-Funarol who claims to be an author but the results are very unhappy' (Correspondence in FDR Library).

Correspondence in the collection (series 3) includes letters to and from de Wendler-Funaro; drafts of letters by Steve Kaslov, soliciting aid for Gypsy education; and correspondence between the U.S. Consulate in Matamoros, Mexico, and the U.S. Department of State. According to Mrs. de Funaro, Carl de Wendler-Funaro destroyed his other correspondence before his death.

Many of the books, journals, articles, and extracts in the collection (series 4)- are materials upon which de Wendler-Funarol's dissertation is based. They include typed transcriptions of published articles as well as printed matter; dates of the materials range from 1554 to 1979.

The collection includes about 2,000 photoprints, including multiple copies, and 2,000 negatives. These materials are organized into eleven series: (7) photographs by de Wendler-Funaro: Gypsies in the United States; (8)photographs by de Wendler-Funaro: Gypsies outside the United States; (9) heirloom photographs'; (10) photographs by other creators; (11) photographs ;rom commercial agencies; (12) photographs of non-Gypsies; (13) photocopies, of numbered photos, in numerical order; (14) negatives; (15) contact sheets made from negatives from by the Smithsonian Office of Printing and Photographic Services, 1986; (16) scrapbook sheets; (17) slides made from negatives and prints by the Smithsonian Office of Printing and Photographic. services, 1986.

The original photographs by Carlos de Wendlet-Funaro span the,period 1922 to 1966, but the majority were taken from about 1932 to about 1942. More than half the photographs are of the Rom group of Gypsies in the United States, and most of these were taken in New York City from about 1938 to about 1942. Other original photos by de Wendler-Funaro are of other Gypsy groups in the United States -- Ludar, Romnichels, 'Black Dutch,w and Hungarian musicians -- as well as of Gypsies in Mexico, Holland, Germany, Austria, France, England, and Hungary. Photographs by other creators include copies of portraits collected from Gypsy families, photos by other photographers, and commercial news photographs collected by de Wendler-Funaro.

De Wendler-Funaro seems to have used the photographs to gain access to Gypsy families and communities (many photos show Gypsies examining albums and sets of pictures). Some photographs were published in his 1937 article, and in two articles by Victor Weybright (1938a, 1938b). De Wendler-Funaro apparently also used lantern slides made from these photographs in lectures on the subject of Gypsies; a handbill advertising his availability on the lecture circuit is part of the collection.

Manuscript drafts for book outlines, introductions, and accompanying essays show that de Wendler-Funaro long nurtured hopes of publishing a popular tool-, 'Incorporating his photographs. To this end he numbered and captioned more than a hundred of these; a partial list of captions is part of the manuscript files. For the most part, the captions are not very helpful in understanding Gypsy cultures. Photocopies of these pictures with captions, in numerical order, are in box 8. With some exceptions, most of the photographs can be used to study costume, personal ornament, and kinesics; these will not be listed separately as subjects in the inventory. The photos of the Rom in New York City show several types of traditional costume, contemporary modish dress, and a wide range of variations on both. Taken together with the "heirloom photos' collected from the same group, they show change and variety in men's and women's dress.

In the photographs of individuals and groups one may compare, for example, sitting positions of women with relation to costume and use (or non-use) of chairs.

Most of the photographs of Rom taken in New York City show Gypsies relaxing on stoops or in the street during the summer, a common pastime in their neighborhoods. They contain little culturally specific information other than that discussed above.

Information on housing is most clearly represented in photographs of camps, in which the type of tent and, to some extent, the relationships of tents, are visible. All the tents shown appear to be commercially made. Since it was the practice to raise the tent walls in good weather, many photos also show tent interiors, with wooden platform floors used on non-grassy sites (Rom) or linoleum as a ground cloth (Romnichel). The use of featherbeds; either alone (Rom) or with bedsteads (Romnichel) is documented.

There are few photographs showing the use of interior space in urban storefront or apartment dwellings (Rom). The photographs taken in the Maspeth, Long Island, 'Gypsy village' show exteriors of the shacks built@by the Ludar.

Of cooking and heating equipment, the cast-iron or sheet-metal stoves of the Romnichels are most evident. The Rom are shown using a variety of equipment, the traditional trivet (Mexico), the Coleman-type camp stove (U.S), and the pot-bellied coal stove (New York City).

Photographs of autos and trucks, auto-drawn luggage trailers (Romnichels in the North), and horse-drawn wagons (by the horse and mule trading Romnichels in the South) reveal something of the transport of people and goods.

A few photographs show subjects at work, but most work pictures are static demonstrations or mere associations with productive enterprise. There are demonstrations of coppersmithing and fender repair work (Rom), and manufacture of rustic furniture (Romnichels), as well as posed demonstrations of palm-reading. Romnichels in the South are shown posing with horses and mules. The business that appears most frequently is fortune-telling, through photographs of roadside business tents (Romnichel); amusement, fair, and resort-area tents and stands (Rom); and canvas facades, banners and signs carrying the fortune-teller's message.

Ritual life is poorly represented in the photographs. There are some photos of a funeral procession, and one interior shot of a funeral; two photos of a saint's-day feast; one of a memorial feast; and one set taken in preparation for Christmas festivities. Curiously, there are no photographs of Rom weddings. The dearth of pictures of rituals and celebrations, which form so important a part of Rom life, may be due to difficulties with interior lighting.

Because of internal and other inconsistencies, exact dating of the photographs is often difficult. Discrepancies of as much as ten year occur in some of the dates in de Wendler-Funaro's notes.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into seventeen series.
Biographical / Historical:
According to information supplied by Mrs. de Funaro, Carl de Wendler-Funaro was born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 12, 1898. After attending Boys' High School and Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, he attended the University of Illinois and Cornell University, receiving a bachelor's degree in entolomology from Cornell in 1923. Subsequently he taught foreign languages at New York University, the McBurney School of the YMCA in New York City, Newark Academy and Wagner College. He began graduate work in the late 1930s, and in 1958 earned a doctorate from Columbia University with a dissertation on 'The Gitano in Spanish Literature' (a copy is in the collection, Box 1, folders 2 and 3). De Wendler-Funaro retired from teaching in 1963; he died in Tucson, Arizona on February 15, 1985.

Carl de Wendler-Funaro was an avid amateur collector of insects, especially Coleoptera, as well as shells, minerals, stamps and coins; his insect collections were donated to the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

De Wendler-Funaro's interest in Gypsies, according to his manuscripts, began in childhood. The manuscripts and one published article indicate that this interest continued to be personal, rather than professional,,,,apd @hat,,he, did not pursue his contacts with Gypsies systematically. (it was, not, 'until' the late 1940s that anthropologists began systematic studies of GYPSY.@ cultures.) It appears that de Wendler-Funaro sought out Gypsies in fairgrounds, amusement parks and urban storefronts, collecting specimens of language and taking photographs. Irving Brown's letter to de Wendler-Funaro (1929), and de Wendler-Funarol's article in Leisure (1937) refer to his visits to amusement parks. Some of his Romnichel (English Gypsy) subjects recall him as the man who drove along the roads, stopping to take pictures wherever he saw a tent. About 1938 de Wendler-Funaro became involved with a Committee on Gypsy Problems of the Welfare Council, a social service agency of New York City. This involvement may have been an outgrowth of his association with Steve Kaslov, styled by some a Gypsy king. De Wendler-Funaro seems to have served as Kaslov's amanuensis.
Gypsies in the United States:
Several groups, all known to outsiders as "Gypsies," live today in the United Sates. In their native languages, each of the groups refers to itself by a specific name, but all translate their self-designations as 'Gypsy' when speaking English. Each had its own cultural, linguistic, and historical tradition before coming to this country, and each maintains social distance from the others. An overview of these groups and their interethnic relations is presented in "Gypsy Ethnicity: Implications of Native Categories and Interaction for Ethnic Classification," by Matt T. Salo.

Rom

The Rom arrived in the United States from Serbia, Russia and Austria-Hungary beginning in the 1880s, part of the larger wave of immigration from southern and eastern Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Primary immigration ' ended, for the most part, in 1914, with the beginning of the First World War and subsequent tightening of immigration restrictions (Salo and Salo 1986). Many people in this group specialized in coppersmith work, mainly the repair and retinning of industrial equipment used in bakeries, laundries, confectionaries, and other businesses. The Rom, too, developed the fortune-telling business in urban areas.

Two subgroups of the Rom, the Kalderash ('coppersmiths') and, Machwaya natives of machva,' a county in Serbia) appear in the photographs iiv, this collection. De Wendler-Funaro identified some, but not all, Kalderash as, 'Russian Gypsies.' Another group he identified as "Russian Gypsies' seem, to,, be the Rusniakuria ('Ruthenians'), who in New York are known as musicians and singers.

Ludar

The Ludar, or "Romanian Gypsies,' also immigrated to the United States during the great immigration from southern and eastern Europe between 1880 and 1914. Most of the Ludar came from northwestern Bosnia. Upon their arrival in the United States they specialized as animal trainers and show people, and indeed passenger manifests show bears and monkeys as a major part of their baggage. Most of de Wendler-Funarols photographs of this group were taken in Maspeth, a section of the borough of Queens in New York City, where the Ludar created a village of home-made shacks that existed from about 1925 to 1939, when it was razed. A similar settlement stood in the Chicago suburbs during the same period. One of de Wendler-Funarols manuscripts, "Romanian Gypsies at Maspeth Village,' (box 1, folder 9), and a letter from Ammiee Ellis, a social worker (box 2, folder 2), refer to this settlement.

Romnichels

The Romnichels, or English Gypsies, began to come to the United States from England in 1850. Their arrival coincided with an increase in the demand for draft horses in agriculture and then in urbanization, and many Romnichels worked as horse-traders. After the rapid decline in the horse trade following the First World War, most Romnichels relied on previously secondary enterprises, 'basket-making,* including the manufacture and sale of rustic furniture, and fortune-telling. Horse and mule trading continued to some extent in southern states where poverty and terrain slowed the adoption of tractor power (Salo and Salo 1982).

Photoprints in box 6, folders 2 through 10, correspond with de Wendler-Funarols trip described in his manuscript 'In Search of the Last Caravan' (box 1, folder 10). Discrepancies between this manuscript and the photos should be noted. De Wendler-Funarols notes date this trip variously between 1931 and 1945. I have dated it about 1940. Although one man appears as a frequent subject in the largest set of photos (box 6, folders 22 and 23), in the manuscript, de Funaro mentions having missed meeting him.

'Black Dutch'

Gypsies from Germany, whom de Wendler-Funaro refers to 'as Chikkeners (Pennsylvania German, from the German Zigeuner), sometimes refer to themselves as wblack Dutch.w They are few in number and claim to have largely assimilated to Romnichel culture. They are represented in de Wendler-Punarols photographs by a few portraits of one old man and briefly referred to in the manuscript mIn Search of the Last Caravan.*

Hungarian Gypsies

The Hungarian musicians also came to this country with the eastern European immigration. In the U.S. they continued as musicians to the Hungarian and Slovak immigrant settlements.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Mrs. Cornelia de Funaro, June 26, 1985.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Photographs by de Wendler-Funaro are available for reproduction. Fees for commercial use. Permission to reproduce photographs by Alexander Alland must be granted by the photographer's estate; other photographs may have copyright restrictions.
Topic:
Funeral rites and ceremonies -- manuscripts -- Gypsies  Search this
Wagons, Gypsy -- 1920-1980  Search this
Weddings -- manuscripts -- Gypsies  Search this
Orthodox Eastern Church -- Photographs -- 1920-1980  Search this
Tents -- Photographs -- 1920-1980  Search this
Housing -- Photographs -- Wagons -- 1920-1980  Search this
Bears -- performing -- 1920-1980 -- Maspeth (N.Y.)  Search this
Housing -- Photographs -- Tents -- 1920-1980  Search this
Labor and laboring classes -- Photographs -- 1920-1980  Search this
Coppersmiths -- 1930-1950  Search this
Musicians -- 1930-1950  Search this
Furniture-making -- 1930-1950  Search this
Horse-trading -- 1930-1950  Search this
Fortune-telling -- 1930-1950  Search this
Training -- Animals -- 1930-1950  Search this
Collectors and collecting  Search this
Gypsies -- 1920-1980 -- United States  Search this
Costume -- Gypsies -- 1920-1980  Search this
Portraits -- Gypsies  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 1900-1950
Journals -- 1930-1950
Dissertations
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Photographs -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film -- 1930-1950
Manuscripts -- 1920-1970
Citation:
Carlos de Wendler-Funaro Gypsy Research Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0161
See more items in:
Carlos de Wendler-Funaro Gypsy Research Collection
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep81652b515-d673-490f-aca9-f85fdc91a42f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0161
Online Media:

[Studio portrait of Mr. Lee B. Lok. Black-and-white photoprint]

Photographer:
Junyoon Studio  Search this
Creator:
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Collection Creator:
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (13" x 9".)
Type:
Archival materials
Studio portraits
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
[1942.]
Scope and Contents:
Studio name in English imprinted vertically on mount near bottom left of print, accompanied by Chinese.
Local Numbers:
1994.3135 (NMAH Acc.)

AC0555-0000004.tif (AC Scan)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
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:
Chinese Americans  Search this
Genre/Form:
Studio portraits -- Chinese American men
Collection Citation:
Lee Chinese American Family Papers, circa 1915-1970, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers / Lee Family Family Photograph Album
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8f8c9f890-1c64-438d-b0bb-ca234843c079
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0555-ref531

[Mr. Lee B. Lok at his store, Quong Yuen Shing & Co. Photoprint]

Photographer:
Ettlin Studio  Search this
Creator:
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Collection Creator:
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (10" x 8")
Type:
Archival materials
Place:
Chinatown (New York, N.Y.)
New York (N.Y.) -- 1890-1920
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Date:
[ca. 1917-1918.]
Scope and Contents:
Mr Lee B. Lok in his store Quong Yuen Shing & Co, selling and buying World War I liberty bonds.
Local Numbers:
1994.3135 (NMAH Acc.)

AC0555-0000001.tif (AC Scan)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
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:
World War, 1914-1918 -- Photographs  Search this
Liberty bonds  Search this
Stores, Retail  Search this
Chinese Americans  Search this
Collection Citation:
Lee Chinese American Family Papers, circa 1915-1970, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers / Lee Family Family Photograph Album / 2 unidentified photoprints, 8 x 10": (1) A highly decorated Chinese interior with ten male figures and (2) a portrait of 3 young women.
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep85afb26fc-434b-4f84-b484-fafe9e15a760
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0555-ref532

[Lee children in 1948 at the Golden Age Club in New York. Photograph.]

Creator:
Ettlin Studio  Search this
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Collection Creator:
Mead, Virginia Lee  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (10" x 8")
Type:
Archival materials
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Local Numbers:
1994.3135 (Nonacc. No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
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:
Chinese Americans  Search this
Collection Citation:
Lee Chinese American Family Papers, circa 1915-1970, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
See more items in:
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers
Lee Chinese-American Family Papers / Lee Family Family Photograph Album
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep827b838ef-27ec-45fb-afc2-03344cb6ce0a
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0555-ref533

Modify Your Search







or


Narrow By