Search Results

Creator:

Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company  Search this

Consolidation Coal Company  Search this

Donor:

Bethlehem Steel Corporation  Search this

Extent:

23 Cubic feet (99 boxes)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Photograph albums

Date:

1885-1940s

Summary:

The collection documents the building, operation and daily life of coal mining communities in Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio between 1911 and 1946. The collection is a valuable for the study of mining technology and the social conditions of the time period and regions.

Scope and Contents:

The collection consists mostly of photographs depicting Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company mines and mining towns in Maryland, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Subjects include worker housing, schools for miners' children, gardens, churches, recreational facilities, health services, company stores, safety, mining machinery, construction of mines and related structures, and the interiors of mines.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into two series.

Series 1: Background Materials, 1904-1933

Series 2: Photographs, 1885-1940s

Subseries 2.1: Photograph Albums, 1885-1932

Subseries 2.2: West Virginia Division, 19091-1917

Subseries 2.3: Glass Plate and Film Negatives, 1911-1940s

Subseries 2.4: Numbered Photographs, 1911-1930

Subseries 2.5: Miscellaneous, 1913, 1916

Historical Note:

The Consolidation Coal Company was started in 1864 to mine bituminous coal deposits in Maryland's Cumberland region. it expanded by acquiring other mine companies as well as rail and other transportation companies. It went into receivership in 1932. The Pittsburgh Coal Company, founded in 1900, took over the firm in 1945 and formed the Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company.

The Consolidation Coal Company (Maryland)

The Consolidation Coal Company was incorporated in Maryland on March 8, 1860, for the purpose of effecting a merger of a number of coal operators mining the Georges Creek basin in Allegany County, Maryland. Because of the Civil War, during which Confederate armies frequently blocked the region's only outlet to market, the company was not actually organized until April 19, 1864. Starting life as the dominant operator in this small but significant coal field, "Consol" rose to become the nation's top producer of bituminous coal.

The Georges Creek or Cumberland Coal Field, occupying part of the triangle of western Maryland, contained a high-quality, low-volatile bituminous steam coal which was also, thanks to the Potomac River, the coal of this type most accessible to Eastern markets. Coal had been mined in the region beginning in the 1700s, and the first coal company, the Maryland Mining Company, had been incorporated in 1828. However, large-scale development could not occur until the mid-1840s, after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reached Cumberland and provided reliable transportation. This also coincided with the development of ocean steam navigation and a rapid growth in the number of railroad locomotives and stationary steam engines. Cumberland coal was ideal for ship bunkering, and much of the output was shipped to New York Harbor. Naturally, New York capitalists and manufacturers played a leading role in developing the field. Lewis Howell's Maryland and New York Iron and Coal Company rolled the first solid U.S. railroad rail at its Mount Savage mill in 1844. The Consolidation Coal merger was put together by New Yorkers such as William H. Aspinwall, Erastus Corning, the Delanos and Roosevelts, and the Boston financier John Murray Forbes, who already had substantial investments in the region.

Upon its formation, the Consolidation Coal Company acquired the properties of the Ocean Steam Coal Company, the Frostburg Coal Company, and the Mount Savage Iron Company totaling about 11,000 acres. The last named company brought with it control of the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad, which connected the mines to the Baltimore & Ohio and later the Pennsylvania and Western Maryland railroads. In 1870, Consol absorbed the Cumberland Coal and Iron Company of 1840, the next largest operator in the field, and gained an additional 7,000 acres. Further purchases from the Delano interests gave it over 80 percent of the entire Cumberland Field.

Soon after its hated rival, the Pennsylvania Railroad, gained access to the Cumberland Coal Field, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad began purchasing large blocks of Consolidation Coal stock to protect its traffic base in 1875, eventually gaining a 52 percent interest. A B&O slate of directors was elected in February 1877, with Charles F. Mayer of Baltimore as president, and the company offices were moved from New York to Baltimore.

Until the turn of the century, Consolidation Coal's mining operations were confined to the small soft coal region of western Maryland. The company purchased the 12,000 acre Millholland coal tract near Morgantown, W.Va. in 1902 and acquired controlling interests in the Fairmont Coal Company of West Virginia and the Somerset Coal Company of Pennsylvania the following year. These acquisitions boosted Consolidation's annual production more than six-fold in only three years. The company purchased the 25,000 acre Stony Creek tract in Somerset County, Pa., in 1904. The Fairmont Coal Company purchase included a joint interest in the North Western Fuel Company, which owned and operated docks and coal distribution facilities in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

In 1906, the Interstate Commerce Commission held a formal investigation of rail ownership of coal companies, which resulted in the passage of the Hepburn Act and its "Commodities Clause," which prohibited railroads from dealing in the commodities they hauled. In anticipation of the new regulations, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad sold its entire holdings of Consolidation stock to a Baltimore syndicate headed by Consol president Clarence W. Watson, J. H. Wheelwright and H. Crawford on April 26, 1906. At the time of the B&O's divestiture, the aggregate annual output of Consolidation's mines totaled more than 10 million tons and the company controlled more than 200,000 acres. The John D. Rockefeller interests began purchasing Consol securities in 1915, eventually securing a controlling interest. The company's offices were returned to New York City in May 1921.

After the B&O divestiture, Consol began expanding into the Southern Appalachian coal fields, which were just being opened by railroads on a large scale. The mines in this region yielded a low volatile coal that provided an ideal fuel source for stationary steam engines, ships, and locomotives. Of equal importance, operators in the remote mountains had been able to resist unionization and thus achieve lower operating costs, while all of Consol's previous holdings had been in the so-called "Central Competitive Field" to the north, which had been unionized in the 1890s. Consolidation Coal purchased 30,000 acres in the Millers Creek Field of Eastern Kentucky in 1909 and 100,000 acres in the Elkhorn Field the next year. In February 1922, Consol secured a long term lease and option on the Carter Coal Company, whose 37,000 acres straddled the borders of Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky. In 1925, Consol became the nation's largest producer of bituminous coal, excluding the captive mines of the steel companies.

During the Great Depression, Consolidation Coal experienced serious financial difficulties and was forced into receivership on June 2, 1932. The Rockefellers liquidated their holdings at a loss, and the Carter Coal Company was returned to the Carter heirs in 1933. Consol was reorganized and reincorporated in Delaware as the Consolidation Coal Company, Inc. on November 1, 1935, and was able to retain its position as one of the nation's top coal producers. Eventually, stock control passed into the hands of the M.A. Hanna Company group of Cleveland, dealers in coal and iron ore. Although production reached record levels during the Second World War, management feared a recurrence of the collapse that had followed World War I. It also faced the prospect of increased competition from oil and natural gas and the loss of traditional markets such as home heating and locomotive fuel. As a result Consol opened negotiations with another large producer, the Pittsburgh Coal Company, which was the dominant operator in the Pittsburgh District.

The Pittsburgh Coal Company

The Pittsburgh Coal Company was a product of the great industrial merger movement of the late 1890s. In 1899, two large mergers were effected in the Pittsburgh District.

The Monongahela River Consolidated Coal and Coke Company was incorporated in Pennsylvania on October 1, 1899 to merge the properties of over 90 small firms operating mines along the Monongahela River south of Pittsburgh. Some of these operations dated to the early 1800s, and all of them shipped coal down the Ohio-Mississippi River system by barge from close to the mine mouth, or later by the railroads built along the river banks. The combination controlled 40,000 acres of coal land, 100 steam towboats, 4,000 barges, and facilities for handling coal at Cincinnati, Louisville, Vicksburg, Memphis, Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

The Pittsburgh Coal Company was incorporated in New Jersey as a holding company on September 1, 1899 and acquired the properties of over 80 operators located in the areas back from the river on both sides of the Monongahela south of Pittsburgh. The combination was engineered by some of the most prominent Pittsburgh industrialists, including Andrew W. Mellon, Henry W. Oliver, and Henry Clay Frick. It controlled over 80,000 acres and six collector railroads, the longest of which was the Montour Railroad. Most of its output was shipped by rail, with a large share being transferred to ships on the Great Lakes for distribution throughout the industrial Midwest. The company owned coal docks and yards at Chicago, Cleveland, Duluth, West Superior, Sault Ste. Marie, Ashtabula, Fairport and Thornburg. Subsequently, the company expanded in southwestern Pennsylvania and the Hocking Valley of Ohio through the lease of the Shaw Coal Company in 1901 and the purchase of the Midland Coal Company in 1903. Most of the properties were vested in a separate Pittsburgh Coal Company, an operating company incorporated in Pennsylvania.

Unlike the Consolidation Coal Company, which had grown by gradual accretion, the Pittsburgh Coal Company had been created in a single stroke. As with many mergers of the period, its capitalization probably contained a high percentage of "water" in anticipation of profits from future growth. Unfortunately, the years after the merger saw explosive growth in the coal fields of Southern Appalachia instead. Although farther from major consuming centers, they enjoyed several advantages. The coal itself was superior, low-volatile with higher BTU content and altogether cleaner than the high-volatile coals of Ohio and the Pittsburgh District. As already noted, the southern mines were also non-union. With the inroads of Southern Appalachian coal, the Pittsburgh Coal Company continuously lost ground in the crucial Lake and western markets from 1900 to 1915. The company's capitalization proved unwieldy in the unsettled economic conditions following the Panic of 1907. A reorganization plan was devised under which a new Pittsburgh Coal Company was incorporated in Pennsylvania on January 12, 1916 by merging the old Pittsburgh Coal Company of Pennsylvania and the Monongahela River Consolidated Coal and Coke Company. The old holding company was then liquidated and the stock of the new operating company distributed to its stockholders. Dissension between the common and preferred stockholders delayed consummation of the plan until July 16, 1917.

The Pittsburgh Coal Company, which had all its operations in the Central Competitive Field, had a much more difficult time than Consolidation in breaking the 1923 Jacksonville Agreement with the United Mine Workers in 1925-1927 and reverting to non-union status. The three-year struggle ended the company's ability to pay dividends. Pittsburgh Coal survived the Depression without receivership but with ever-increasing arrearages on its preferred stock. By the end of World War II, its managers were just as eager as those at Consol to attempt greater economies through merger. The Pittsburgh Coal Company and the Consolidation Coal Company merged on November 23, 1945, with exchange ratios of 65 to 35 percent. Pittsburgh Coal Company, the surviving partner, changed its name to the Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company.

The Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company

After the merger, the M.A. Hanna Company interests of Cleveland became the dominant factor in Pitt-Consol's affairs. Hanna had transferred its pre-merger Consol stock to its subsidiary Bessemer Coal & Coke Corporation in 1943. This led to a restructuring whereby Pitt-Consol acquired Hanna's share of the North Western-Hanna Fuel Company in April 1946 and the Hanna coal properties in eastern Ohio on June 16, 1946 These included large reserves of strippable coal that accounted for about 20 percent of the state's production. Pitt-Consol later acquired Hanna's holdings of coal land in Harrison, Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio, on December 30, 1949. It purchased the New York Central Railroad's 51 percent interest in the Jefferson Coal Company, giving it full control, in 1952 and merged it into the Hanna Coal Company Division.

Pitt-Consol sold its last major railroads, the Montour Railroad and the Youngstown & Southern Railway to the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad on December 31, 1946. The Northwestern Coal Railway had been sold to the Great Northern system, and the Cumberland & Pennsylvania Railroad had been sold to the Western Maryland Railway in May 1944.

In addition, a new Research and Development Division was created to fund projects aimed at developing more efficient production methods, new outlets for coal consumption, coal-based synthetic fuels and chemical byproducts. A new coal gasification plant opened at Library, Pa., in November 1948, and the company began the manufacture of a smokeless fuel briquette under the trademark "Disco" at Imperial, Pa., in 1949. An experimental coal slurry pipeline was built in Ohio in 1952.

During the 1950s and early 1960s, Pitt-Consol made many changes in its coal holdings, selling high-cost or less desirable properties, diversifying its reserves across many different coal fields, rationalizing property lines to permit large mechanized underground or strip mines and forming joint ventures with steel companies to secure guaranteed customers. Pitt-Consol acquired the Jamison Coal and Coke Company in 1954 and the Pocahontas Fuel Company, Incorporated, a large producer of low-volatile Southern Appalachian coal, in 1956. In the latter year, it sold its Elkhorn Field properties to the Bethlehem Steel Corporation. As Pittsburgh District operations became less central, the corporate name was changed back to Consolidation Coal Company in April 1958.

The Consolidation Coal Company, CONOCO and CONSOL Energy, Inc.:

Consol continued to expand into the early 1960s. On April 30, 1962, it absorbed the Truax-Traer Coal Company of Illinois. Truax-Traer also mined lignite in North Dakota, a low-grade but low-sulfur coal that was taking a greater share of the power generation market as environmental laws placed greater restrictions on high-sulfur coal from the Central Competitive Field. The following year Consol acquired the Crozer Coal and Land Company and the Page Coal and Coke Company, owners of additional reserves of low-volatile, low-sulfur steam coal in southern West Virginia.

In 1966, just two years after the company marked its centennial, Consolidation Coal was acquired by the Continental Oil Company (Conoco). This was part of a general trend whereby U.S. oil companies extended their reach by acquiring coal reserves and large coal producers. In turn, Conoco was acquired by E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company in 1981. This purchase was motivated by DuPont's desire to obtain better control of chemical feedstocks in an era of high oil prices. Consolidation Coal was not a major factor in the Conoco acquisition and did not really fit into DuPont's strategy, especially after coal and oil prices declined. As a result, it was quickly sold off when DuPont was restructured a decade later. In 1991, a new holding company CONSOL Engery, Inc. was incorporated as a joint venture of DuPont Energy Company and the German energy conglomerate Rheinisch-Westfalisches Elektrizitatswerk A.G., through its wholly owned subsidiaries Rheinbraun A.G. and Rheinbraun U.S.A. GmbH. Consolidation Coal Company became a wholly-owned subsidiary of CONSOL Energy, Inc. DuPont eventually sold most of its half interest, so that by 1998, Rheinbraun affiliates owned 94% of CONSOL Energy stock, while DuPont Energy retained only 6%. CONSOL Energy purchased the entire stock of the Rochester & Pittsburgh Coal Company on September 22, 1998. CONSOL Energy stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "CNX" in 1999, with an initial public offering of more than 20 million shares.

CONSOL Energy produced more than 74 million tons of coal in 1999, accounting for approximately 7% of domestic production. The company currently operates 22 mining complexes, primarily east of the Mississippi River.

Source

Historical note from the Consolidation Coal Company Records, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh

Related Materials:

Materials in the Archives Center

The Archives Center holds a number of collections that document coal.

Coal and Gas Trust Investigation Collection (AC1049)

Hammond Coal Company Records (AC1003)

Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company Records (AC0071)

Lehigh Valley Coal Company Records (AC1106)

Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company Records (AC0282)

Materials in Other Organizations

Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh

CONSOL Energy, Inc. Mine Maps and Records Collection, 1857-2002

AIS.1991.16

The CONSOL Energy Inc. collection contains coal mine maps, related documents and topographical information, as well as surface maps and detailed information on mine accidents. Additionally, there are technical drawings, outside notes on multiple mines, traverse and survey books, information on companies and railroads with which CONSOL conducted business, and a variety of non-print materials including photographs, negatives and aperture cards. Digital reproductions of selected material are available online.

CONSOL Energy Inc. West Virginia and Eastern Ohio Mine Maps and Records Collection, 1880-1994

AIS.2004.22

The CONSOL Energy Inc. West Virginia and Eastern Ohio Mine Maps and Records Collection contains coal mine maps as well as surface maps and detailed information on mine accidents in West Virginia and Eastern Ohio. Additionally, there are technical drawings, related documents, traverse and survey books, publications and photographs.

Consolidation Coal Company Records, 1854-1971, bulk 1864-1964

AIS.2011.03

The Consolidation Coal Company (Consol) was created by the merger of several small operators mining the Georges Creek coal basin in Allegany County, Maryland. The company expanded rapidly in the early twentieth century through the purchase of substantial tracts in the coal fields of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Kentucky as well as docks and distribution facilities in the Great Lakes region. By 1927, Consol was the nation's largest producer of bituminous coal. Following a merger with the Pittsburgh Coal Company in 1945, the company pursued a policy of acquiring companies which afforded opportunities for greater diversification while selling off unprofitable lines. In addition, a new research and development division was created to fund projects aimed at developing more efficient production methods and new outlets for coal consumption. The records of the Consolidation Coal Company and its affiliated companies are arranged in seven series. Minute books and contract files provide the most comprehensive documentation in this collection.

Provenance:

Donated to the National Museum of American History in 1987 by Bethlehem Steel Corporation.

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:

Mining corporations  Search this

Mining -- West Virginia  Search this

Mining -- Pennsylvania  Search this

Mining -- Maryland  Search this

Company towns  Search this

Mining -- Kentucky  Search this

Mines -- West Virginia  Search this

Mines -- Pennsylvania  Search this

Mines -- Maryland  Search this

Mines -- Kentucky  Search this

Mining and minerals industry  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs -- Black-and-white negatives -- 20th century

Photographs -- 20th century

Photograph albums -- 20th century

Citation:

Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company photographs and other materials, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.1007

See more items in:

Pittsburgh Consolidation Coal Company photographs and other materials

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep86027ae9f-9a84-4277-adcf-d0b5e919ac6a

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1007

Artist:

An-My Lê, born 1960  Search this

Sitter:

Janet Wolfenbarger, born 1958  Search this

Associated Person:

Michael Kane  Search this

Medium:

Inkjet print

Dimensions:

Image/Sight: 74.3 × 99.7 cm (29 1/4 × 39 1/4")

Frame: 77 × 102.4 × 4 cm (30 5/16 × 40 5/16 × 1 9/16")

Type:

Photograph

Place:

United States\Virginia\Arlington\Arlington

Date:

2019 (printed 2021)

Topic:

Costume\Jewelry\Earring  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Medal  Search this

Interior  Search this

Costume\Jewelry\Ring  Search this

Artwork\Painting  Search this

Costume\Dress Accessory\Neckwear\Tie  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Star  Search this

Artist's Effects\Frame  Search this

Janet Wolfenbarger: Female  Search this

Janet Wolfenbarger: Military and Intelligence\Air Force\Officer\General  Search this

Portrait  Search this

Object number:

NPG.2022.147.1

Restrictions & Rights:

Usage conditions apply

Copyright:

© An-My Lê

Background painting credit: Veteran’s Pass, by Michael Kane, Courtesy, United States. Department of the Air Force Art Collection

See more items in:

National Portrait Gallery Collection

Exhibition:

20th Century Americans: 2000 to Present

On View:

NPG, South Gallery 341

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm49ff8d93c-b712-40b3-be79-7741b3f215ca

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:npg_NPG.2022.147.1

Artist:

An-My Lê, born 1960  Search this

Sitter:

Ann Elizabeth Dunwoody, born 14 Jan 1953  Search this

Associated Person:

Ulysses Simpson Grant, 27 Apr 1822 - 23 Jul 1885  Search this

William Tecumseh Sherman, 8 Feb 1820 - 14 Feb 1891  Search this

Medium:

Inkjet print

Dimensions:

Image/Sheet/Mount: 76.3 × 101.6 × 2.3 cm (30 1/16 × 40 × 7/8")

Frame: 77 × 102.4 × 4 cm (30 5/16 × 40 5/16 × 1 9/16")

Type:

Photograph

Place:

United States\Virginia\Arlington\Arlington

Date:

2019 (printed 2021)

Topic:

Costume\Jewelry\Earring  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Medal  Search this

Interior  Search this

Costume\Jewelry\Ring  Search this

Artwork\Painting  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Star  Search this

Artist's Effects\Frame  Search this

Ann Elizabeth Dunwoody: Female  Search this

Ann Elizabeth Dunwoody: Military and Intelligence\Army\Officer\General  Search this

Portrait  Search this

Credit Line:

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; acquisition made possible through partial Federal support from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center

Object number:

NPG.2022.148.1

Restrictions & Rights:

Usage conditions apply

Copyright:

© An-My Lê

See more items in:

National Portrait Gallery Collection

Exhibition:

20th Century Americans: 2000 to Present

On View:

NPG, South Gallery 341

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4dfd74b20-e901-4250-b975-8187b400c90a

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:npg_NPG.2022.148.1

Artist:

An-My Lê, born 1960  Search this

Sitter:

Michelle Janine Howard, born 30 Apr 1960  Search this

Medium:

Inkjet print

Dimensions:

Image/Sheet/Mount: 76.2 × 101.6 × 2.3 cm (30 × 40 × 7/8")

Frame: 77 × 102.4 × 4 cm (30 5/16 × 40 5/16 × 1 9/16")

Type:

Photograph

Place:

United States\Virginia\Arlington\Arlington

Date:

2019 (printed 2021)

Topic:

Symbols & Motifs\Medal  Search this

Interior  Search this

Costume\Dress Accessory\Neckwear\Tie  Search this

Printed Material\Map  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Star  Search this

Symbols & Motifs\Seal  Search this

Michelle Janine Howard: Female  Search this

Michelle Janine Howard: Military and Intelligence\Navy\Officer\Admiral  Search this

Portrait  Search this

Credit Line:

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; acquisition made possible through partial Federal support from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center

Object number:

NPG.2022.149.1

Restrictions & Rights:

Usage conditions apply

Copyright:

© An-My Lê

See more items in:

National Portrait Gallery Collection

Exhibition:

20th Century Americans: 2000 to Present

On View:

NPG, South Gallery 341

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

GUID:

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm477c1e7ad-c74c-4d93-be7d-37e6164b7c91

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:npg_NPG.2022.149.1

Creator:

Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971  Search this

Subject:

Wildenstein, Felix  Search this

Phillips, Duncan  Search this

Hays, Lee  Search this

Untermeyer, Louis  Search this

Zigrosser, Carl  Search this

Robeson, Paul  Search this

DuBois, W.E.B. (William Edward Burghardt)  Search this

Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano)  Search this

Ruggles, Carl  Search this

Stefansson, Vilhjalmur  Search this

Nearing, Helen  Search this

Nearing, Scott  Search this

Pach, Walter  Search this

Rasmussen, Knud  Search this

Reeves, Ruth  Search this

Seeger, Pete  Search this

Daniel, Charles  Search this

Cleland, T. M. (Thomas Maitland)  Search this

Davies, Arthur B. (Arthur Bowen)  Search this

Chamberlain, J. E.  Search this

Boyesen, Bayard  Search this

Chase, William Merritt  Search this

Freuchen, Peter  Search this

Gellert, Hugo  Search this

Gottlieb, Harry  Search this

Hartley, Marsden  Search this

Fitzgerald, James  Search this

Keller, Charles  Search this

Miller, Kenneth Hayes  Search this

Henri, Robert  Search this

Jones, Dan Burne  Search this

United American Artists  Search this

United Office and Professional Workers of America  Search this

United Scenic Artists  Search this

National Farmers' Union (U.S.)  Search this

National Maritime Union of America  Search this

American Artists' Congress  Search this

Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Artists League of America  Search this

Citizens' Committee for Government Arts Projects  Search this

Farmers Union of the New York Milk Shed  Search this

Federal Art Project  Search this

Federal Writers' Project  Search this

Macbeth Gallery  Search this

International Workers Order  Search this

Type:

Poems

Sketches

Business records

Photographs

Drawings

Citation:

Rockwell Kent papers, circa 1840-1993, bulk 1935-1961. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Designers -- New York (State)  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Politics and culture  Search this

Authors -- New York  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States -- Political aspects  Search this

Dairy farms  Search this

Federal aid to the arts  Search this

Illustrators -- New York (State)  Search this

Illustration of books  Search this

Works of art  Search this

Art and war  Search this

Commercial art  Search this

World War, 1939-1945 -- Art and the war  Search this

Theme:

Lives of artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)9557

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211757

AAA_collcode_kentrock

Theme:

Lives of artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211757

Photographer:

Druse, Kenneth  Search this

Extent:

18.75 Cubic feet (15 boxes, Approximately 45,000 images: 35,000 transparencies + 10,000 35mm slides.)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Notes

Slides (photographs)

Articles

Transparencies

Date:

1978-2005

Summary:

The Ken Druse Garden Photography Collection contains approximately 45,000 film transparency and 35mm slide images, dating from 1978 to 2005, of gardens, garden features, and flora photographed by garden writer and photographer Ken Druse. The photographic images document numerous private and public gardens throughout the United States and a few in Canada. Many have appeared in Druse's own books and articles as well as those by other writers. Approximately half of the collection is arranged according to specific garden, the other half by garden feature. A small portion of the collection consists of slide lectures given by Druse. Some images are identified with general captions and dates. Images documenting specific gardens are sometimes accompanied by handwritten notes, garden descriptions, and articles. Annotations appearing on certain images indicate the publication in which they appeared. The collection includes 'outtakes' or bracketed images that give insight into Druse's photo shooting process.

Biographical Note:

Ken Druse is a garden photographer and author of over a dozen books and numerous newspaper and magazine articles on garden-related topics. His images appear in his own books and articles as well as those by other writers. He received the Sarah Chapman Francis Medal for Literary Achievement from the Garden Club of America in 2004 for his garden writing. He highlights the work of numerous gardeners, garden designers, and horticulture experts on his website and podcast.

Druse's books include Making More Plants: The Science, Art, and Joy of Propagation; Planthropology: The Myths, Mysteries, and Miracles of My Garden Favorites; The Collector's Garden: Designing with Extraordinary Plants; and The Passion for Gardening: Inspiration for a Lifetime.

Provenance:

Ken Druse donated his collection of garden transparencies and slides to the Archives of American Gardens in 2013.

Restrictions:

Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.

Rights:

Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.

Topic:

Gardens -- United States  Search this

Gardens -- Canada  Search this

Genre/Form:

Notes

Slides (photographs)

Articles

Transparencies -- 20th century

Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Ken Druse garden photography collection

Sponsor:

Cataloging of this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.

Identifier:

AAG.DRU

See more items in:

Ken Druse garden photography collection

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/kb6766010f8-2336-463d-b952-a88e27fd06bc

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aag-dru

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:

1940–2002

bulk 1950s–1970s

Summary:

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.

Scope and Contents:

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."

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, 1940–2022, 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

Creator:

Nesbitt, Saul, 1920-1993  Search this

Names:

Archway Cookies, Inc.  Search this

Borden's Farm Products Co. of Illinois  Search this

Campbell Soup Company  Search this

Cooper-Hewitt Design Archive  Search this

Eastman Kodak Company  Search this

Florists' Telegraph Delivery Association  Search this

Franco American Food Co.  Search this

Lever Brothers and Unilever, ltd.  Search this

National Distillers and Chemical Corporation  Search this

Nesbitt Associates, Ltd.  Search this

P. Ballantine & Sons  Search this

Philip Morris Incorporated  Search this

Revlon, Inc.  Search this

Schick (Firm)  Search this

Scott Paper Company  Search this

Seagram Company  Search this

Collector:

Cooper-Hewitt Design Archive  Search this

Extent:

3.5 Cubic feet (11 boxes)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Slides

Sketches

Transparencies

Press releases

Correspondence

Photographs

Media lists

Blueprints

Drawings

Clippings

Client lists

Samples

Date:

1951-1984, undated

Summary:

Collection primarily consists of photographic materials including color slides, color and black & white transparencies, and black & white photographs; press releases, articles, correspondence, press releases, client lists, and surveys documenting the life and work of packaging, industrial, and graphic designer Saul Nesbitt.

Scope and Contents:

Series 1, Background and Biographical Information, 1951-1984

Consists of Nesbitt's resume, an artist/designer statement, list of clients and accomplishments of Nesbitt Associates, Ltd., press releases, articles, and photographs of the designer.,The materials in this collection document Nesbitt's work from 1951 through 1984.

Series 2, Records of the Public Relations Office, 1955-1963

Includes press releases and clippings describing some Nesbitt's products, his theories on consumer motivation, and the results of his surveys, as well as correspondence with members of the press.

Series 3, Correspondence, dates

Contains general office communications

Series 4, Photographic Materials, 1951-1981

Consists of color slides, color and black and white transparencies, and black and white photographs of most of Nesbitt's designs for packaging from 1951-1981.

Series 5, Samples, undated

Includes three samples of fitted presentation boxes designed by Nesbitt, as well as a prototype for a design award for Parsons School of Design in New York, and two "Multiplication" cubes commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Oversized materials include books jackets and booklets designed by Nesbitt, as well as some renderings for packaging designs done in color.

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged into five series:

Series 1, Background and Biographical Information, 1951-1984

Series 2, Records of the Public Relations Office, 1955-1963

Series 3, Correspondence, dates

Series 4, Photographic Materials, 1951-1981

Series 5, Samples, undated

Biographical / Historical:

Saul Nesbitt was a packaging, industrial, and graphic designer born in New York City on August 10, 1920. He was a student of sculptor Chaim Gross and studied art at many New York institutions including: Art Students League; New York University (NYU); Columbia University; Pratt Institute of Art; and the New School.

Nesbitt served in the United States Army from 1942 to 1945 where he worked as a cartographer and as the head of the visual aid section in a military intelligence training center. In 1945, he joined the staff of Harper's Bazaar magazine where he was an illustrator assisting art director Alexey Brodovich. In 1946, Nesbitt was hired by the industrial design studio of Raymond Loewy as a handletterer and packaging designer.

Saul Nesbitt worked with Lippincott Industrial Design from 1948 to 1951. He opened his own design studio, Nesbitt Associates, Ltd. in 1951. The firm specialized in package design, trademarks, and corporate identities. Some of his most recognizable designs were for the label for Campbell's Soup and the Florists' Telegraph Delivery (F.T.D.) Winged Mercury 'Interflora' figure, still used today. Nesbitt's other clients included: Franco American; Revlon; Ballantine Beer; Borden; Champion spark plugs; Kodak; Phillip Morris cigarettes; Schick razors; and Archway cookies. In addition, Nesbitt developed the "Karry Kit" for Ballantine Beer which came to be widely used and known as the six pack.

Nesbitt was known for his revealing studies and surveys of the buying needs and preferences of the "average American housewife" and consumers in general. His opinions on what he referred to as "underpackaging" were widely publicized in professional magazines and journals. In 1984, Nesbitt retired from the design field and went to California to resume his career as a sculptor until his death in 1993 at the age of seventy-three.

Related Materials:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

NW Ayer & Sons, incorporated Advertising Agency Records, NMAH.AC.0059

Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, NMAH.AC.0060

Alan and Elaine Levitt Advertisement Collection, NMAH.AC.0303

Marlboro Oral History and Documentation Project, NMAH.AC.0198

Campbell Soup Advertising Oral History and Documentation Project, NMAH.AC.0367

Caroline R. Jones Papers, NMAH.AC.0552

Virgil Johnson Collection of Cigarette Packages, NMAH.AC.0645

Revlon, Incorporated Advertising Collection, NMAH.AC.0939

Landor Design Collection, NMAH.AC.0500

Albert W. Hampson Commercial Artwork Collection, NMAH.AC.0561

Borden Company 1939 New York World's Fair Collection, NMAH.AC.1063

Smithsonian Institution

Archives of American Art

Esta Nesbitt Papers, circa 1942-1981

Smithsonian Institution Archives

Archives Collection Management Records, 1989-2006

Provenance:

Collection donated by the designer's wife, Mrs. Saul Nesbitt, in 1994.

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.

Occupation:

Industrial designers  Search this

Packaging designers  Search this

Graphic designers  Search this

Topic:

Consumers -- Research  Search this

Consumers' preferences -- United States  Search this

Housewives as consumers  Search this

Labels -- Design  Search this

Corporate image -- Design  Search this

Logos (Symbols) -- Design  Search this

Graphic arts -- United States  Search this

Design, Industrial -- United States  Search this

Packaging -- Design  Search this

Genre/Form:

Slides

Sketches

Transparencies

Press releases

Correspondence

Photographs -- 20th century

Media lists

Blueprints

Drawings

Clippings

Client lists

Samples -- 1920-2000

Citation:

Saul Nesbitt Papers, 1951-1984, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.1275

See more items in:

Saul Nesbitt Papers

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep857e2f039-d3d5-4307-a474-a5e5072e4e74

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1275

Editor:

Pfeiffer, Ingrid  Search this

Host institution:

Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt  Search this

Louisiana (Museum : Humlebæk, Denmark),)  Search this

Physical description:

419 pages illustrations (some color), facsimiles, portraits (some color) 30 cm

Type:

Exhibitions

Expositions

Exhibition catalogs

History

Catalogues d'exposition

Place:

20th century

Date:

2020

20th century

20e siècle

Topic:

Surrealism  Search this

Women artists--History  Search this

Surréalisme  Search this

Femmes artistes--Histoire  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Malerei  Search this

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_1158323

Artist:

Adams, Robert 1937-  Search this

Author:

Greenough, Sarah 1951-  Search this

Writer of afterword:

Williams, Terry Tempest  Search this

Host institution:

National Gallery of Art (U.S.),.)  Search this

Nevada Museum of Art  Search this

Subject:

Adams, Robert 1937-  Search this

Physical description:

332 pages illustrations 30 cm

Type:

Exhibitions

Expositions

Exhibition catalogs

Catalogues d'exposition

Place:

United States

États-Unis

Date:

2021

20th century

21st century

20e siècle

21e siècle

Topic:

Landscape photography  Search this

Photographie de paysages  Search this

PHOTOGRAPHY / General  Search this

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_1158636

Editor:

Pelizzari, Maria Antonella  Search this

Sherman, Arden  Search this

Writer of foreword:

Brooks, LeRonn P  Search this

Author:

Hunter College Art Galleries  Search this

Hunter East Harlem Gallery  Search this

Physical description:

171 pages illustrations (some color) 26 cm

Type:

Pictorial works

Ouvrages illustrés

Photography, Artistic

Place:

New York (State)

New York

New York (État)

Harlem (New York, N.Y.)

Harlem

Date:

2022

Topic:

African American neighborhoods  Search this

African Americans--Social life and customs  Search this

African Americans--Social conditions  Search this

Streets  Search this

Street photography  Search this

Photography, Artistic  Search this

Rues  Search this

Photographie artistique  Search this

Quartiers noirs américains  Search this

Noirs américains--Mœurs et coutumes  Search this

Noirs américains--Conditions sociales  Search this

Photographie de rue  Search this

art photography  Search this

HISTORY / Americas (North, Central, South, West Indies)  Search this

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_1158949

Editor:

Chiu, Melissa  Search this

Johnson, Betsy (Curator)  Search this

Contributor:

Roberts, Claire 1959-  Search this

Schell, Orville  Search this

Smith, Karen (Art historian)  Search this

Warsh, Larry  Search this

Issuing body:

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden  Search this

Physical description:

ix, 225 pages (some folded) illustrations (chiefly color), portraits 29 cm

Type:

Books

Pictorial works

Exhibition catalogs

Photobooks

Illustrated works

Catalogues d'exposition

Livres de photographies

Place:

China

Chine

Date:

2023

20th century

21st century

20e siècle

21e siècle

Topic:

Photography--History  Search this

Photography, Artistic--History  Search this

Photographie--Histoire  Search this

Photographie artistique  Search this

Photography  Search this

History  Search this

Photography, Artistic  Search this

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_1163665

Creator:

National Museum of African American History and Culture  Search this

Type:

YouTube Videos

Uploaded:

2014-05-08T15:37:25.000Z

YouTube Category:

Education  Search this

Topic:

African Americans  Search this

See more by:

WatchNMAAHC

Data Source:

National Museum of African American History and Culture

YouTube Channel:

WatchNMAAHC

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:yt_ZDDUotEYCEA

Creator:

National Portrait Gallery  Search this

Type:

YouTube Videos

Uploaded:

2018-11-20T22:04:56.000Z

YouTube Category:

Education  Search this

Topic:

Portraits  Search this

See more by:

NatlPortraitGallery

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

YouTube Channel:

NatlPortraitGallery

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:yt_GA_ZmWKzXIE

Creator:

National Portrait Gallery  Search this

Type:

YouTube Videos

Uploaded:

2018-11-20T17:39:10.000Z

YouTube Category:

Education  Search this

Topic:

Portraits  Search this

See more by:

NatlPortraitGallery

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

YouTube Channel:

NatlPortraitGallery

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:yt_IKxsyQsBpk4

Creator:

National Portrait Gallery  Search this

Type:

YouTube Videos

Uploaded:

2016-10-28T14:04:44.000Z

YouTube Category:

Education  Search this

Topic:

Portraits  Search this

See more by:

NatlPortraitGallery

Data Source:

National Portrait Gallery

YouTube Channel:

NatlPortraitGallery

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:yt_LcISix6SAFI

Creator:

Gray, Cleve, 1918-2004  Search this

Subject:

Richter, Hans  Search this

Marin, John  Search this

Lipchitz, Jacques  Search this

Pollock, Jackson  Search this

Grace, Louise N.  Search this

Gray, Francine du Plessix  Search this

Duchamp, Marcel  Search this

Dillenberger, Jane  Search this

Gabo, Naum  Search this

Ernst, Jimmy  Search this

Davis, Jim  Search this

Calder, Alexander  Search this

Barzun, Jacques  Search this

Weber, Nicholas Fox  Search this

Smith, David  Search this

Villon, Jacques  Search this

Pratt Institute  Search this

Rhode Island School of Design  Search this

Neuberger Museum of Art  Search this

Jacques Seligmann & Co  Search this

Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this

Connecticut. Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film  Search this

Princeton University  Search this

Berry-Hill Galleries  Search this

Type:

Poems

Articles

Photographs

Reviews (documents)

Notes

Illustrations

Notebooks

Sketches

Drafts (documents)

Video recordings

Sound recordings

Interviews

Manuscripts

Paintings

Prints

Watercolors

Drawings

Lectures

Citation:

Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this

Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Protest movements -- United States  Search this

Designers  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women sculptors  Search this

Theme:

Lives of artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)9567

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211768

AAA_collcode_grayclev

Theme:

Lives of artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211768

Creator:

Riesman, Paul  Search this

Extent:

1.25 Linear feet

Culture:

Fula (African people)  Search this

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Place:

Africa, West

Burkina Faso

Date:

1966-1978

Summary:

The Paul Riesman papers include material on the Fula peoples of West Africa from Riesman's research in Burkina Faso during the 1960s and 1970s. Riesman's research among the Fula peoples is primarily focused on social life and child-rearing practices. The collection consists of fieldnotes, journals, correspondence, and photographs.

Scope and Contents:

The Paul Riesman papers reflect Riesman's anthropological fieldwork among the Fula peoples of West Africa. Riesman began his fieldwork in Burkina Faso in 1966 while earning his PhD from the University of Paris. Throughout the late 1960s and 1970s Riesman resided among the Fula peoples, primarily researching social life and child-rearing practices. Riesman's research is documented in this collection through extensive fieldnotes which encompass Fula culture and Riesman's own personal reflections on life, an aspect of research which Riesman employed in his introspective approach to anthropology. Additionally, there is both personal and professional correspondence between Riesman and others. This collection contains fieldnotes, journals, and correspondence. Also present are five photographs of Riesman taken during his fieldwork.

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

Biographical / Historical:

Paul Hastings Riesman (1938 – 1988) was an anthropologist who studied the Fula peoples of West Africa and was active from the mid to late 20th century. Following the footsteps of his father, American sociologist David Riesman, Paul Riesman graduated from Harvard University in 1960 with a B.A. in Social Relations. After completing his undergraduate degree, Riesman began his fieldwork in Burkina Faso among the Fula peoples while earning his PhD in Ethnology from the University of Paris. While researching Fula social life and child-rearing practices, Riesman also studied how the ethnographer's personal and cultural backgrounds are implicated in anthropological research. Riesman continued his fieldwork after earning his PhD in 1970 and would return to Burkina Faso frequently for research after becoming Associate Professor at Carleton College and later, Chair of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology.

Paul Riesman died of an aneurysm at the age of 50 in 1988. Following his death, colleagues helped to complete Riesman's unpublished manuscript on child-rearing practices based on his research among the Fula.

Related Materials:

The Carleton College Archives holds the Paul H. Riesman papers.

Provenance:

Received from Suzanne Riesman in 1998.

Restrictions:

Access to the Paul Riesman papers requires an appointment.

Rights:

Contact the repository for terms of use.

Citation:

Paul Riesman papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution

Identifier:

NAA.1999-05

See more items in:

Paul Riesman papers

Archival Repository:

National Anthropological Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nw3baabd847-eff2-4f0d-917e-6c9f2d701f5f

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-naa-1999-05

Names:

Bristol School (Washington, D.C.)  Search this

Fairmont Seminary (Washington, D.C.)  Search this

United States Naval Academy  Search this

Donor:

Jarvis, Carol  Search this

Extent:

1 Cubic foot (3 boxes)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Calling cards

Correspondence

Dance cards

Drawings

Greeting cards

Menus

Newsletters

Paintings

Photographs

Postcards

Programs

Report cards

Telegrams

Tickets

Scrapbooks

Date:

1912-1940, undated

Summary:

Collection contains a scrapbook that details the experiences and correspondence of Edith Lee, a student at Fairmount Seminary in the 1910s in Washington, DC.

Scope and Contents:

This collection consists of the loose pages and covers of the scrapbook Lee created using materials from her time at Fairmount seminary and is extremely fragile. The pages are not in chronological order, but for the most part have materials from 1912 to 1916. The scrapbook is annotated by Lee and filled with her drawings. It contains a wide range of correspondence, including telegrams and letters, photographs, postcards, watercolor paintings and other drawings, dance cards (including a metal bangle with a dance list), ribbons and other textiles, and a variety of three-dimensional objects. There are cartoons and fashion sketches, as well as watercolor paintings that she made. The scrapbook mainly focuses on recording the events Lee attended and messages she received, though there are many photographs of her and her friends in casual and costume dress. It includes photographs of Rock Creek Park in D.C. It includes tickets and a program for a women's suffrage march held in 1913 in D.C. There is also a Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) pamphlet. The scrapbook offers a look at society practices between women in Washington at the time.

Although limited, the scrapbook does have information on Fairmount Seminary itself, mostly relating to its teachers. Assistant Principal Judith Steele is noted most often, and the scrapbook includes an image of her. It also has several programs and booklets pertaining to the Naval Academy, including copies of the Log of the US Navy. It also has programs and invitations for Winter Hops and Middies Dances held at the academy. It contains materials from Triple 6 fraternity's Christmas balls. It also contains Lee's short correspondence with John Sharp Williams, a Representative from Tennessee. The collection provides insight for research on girls' education in the early 20th century, particularly the culture girls developed at boarding schools. It also has a unique lens on early 20th century history of Washington, D.C. The collection may also be useful in the study of the history of the Navy Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

The scrapbook is in poor condition as many of the pages are brittle, torn, and unable to support the weight of the objects attached. The pages are no longer bounded to the covers of the scrapbook. Scrapbook pages have been interleaved with paper to prevent the tranfer of acid from newspaper clippings, telegrams, etc. The scrapbook is also housed into two boxes to better manage the weight of the object. Researchers should handle the book with extreme caution and care.

Arrangement:

Collection is arranged into one series.

Biographical / Historical:

This scrapbook belonged to Edith Youdale Lee and chronicles the time she spent at Fairmount Seminary in Washington, D.C. It was an Episcopal school for girls, offering two years worth of college work preparatory to college. It was located in Northwest Washington and ceased operation in the 1940s. For most of its life, the seminary was headed by Arthur Ramsay. Several influential figures spoke at the seminary during Edith's time, including Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan and eugenicist David Starr Jordan. The seminary offered women diplomas and certificates, with focus on literature, music, art, and some mathematics. It advertised itself as a "city school with country sports" where students would take trips into outdoor areas in Washington D.C. It also appears to have some loose connection to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, as Fairmount students frequently attended dances and events at the academy. Fairmount hosted students from across the South, Northeast, and Midwest, as well as the odd student from California.

Edith Youdale Lee (later Brown) was born in 1898 in Memphis, Tennessee to Anna Youdale Lee (1860-?) and Robert Edward Lee. Her father died shortly after her birth in 1900. She was the youngest of three siblings, and her oldest brother Everett Dean Lee was involved in the cotton linting business. Her sister Louise (1887-1952) married Wilkie C. Thacker (1890-1956). She and her mother, Anna, lived in several locations in Memphis but spent extended time living in the Gayoso Hotel. Her mother is listed as the head of household for much of Edith's young life, and they were wealthy enough to employ a servant. In 1912, she began studying at Fairmount Seminary, where she graduated with a certificate in 1916. She met her future husband Midshipman Leon Fredrick Brown (1895-?) while living in D.C. They were married in 1917 and had a daughter, Edith, in 1918. Brown remained in the Navy for some time, before the family moved to Los Angeles, CA, where he worked for an insurance company. Information on Edith herself is unfortunately limited.

Related Materials:

Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Archives Center Scrapbook Collection, NMAH.AC.0468

Celia K. Erskine Scrapbook of Valentines, Advertising Cards, and Postcards, NMAH.AC.0136

Provenance:

Donated to the Archives Center in 2017 by Carol Jarvis, who acquired it from a family member, who acquired it from a thrift store.

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:

Women -- Education  Search this

Genre/Form:

Calling cards

Correspondence -- 20th century

Dance cards

Drawings

Greeting cards

Menus

Newsletters

Paintings

Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- 20th century

Postcards

Programs

Report cards

Telegrams

Tickets

Telegrams

Scrapbooks

Citation:

Edith Youdale Lee Scrapbook, 1912-1940, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.

Identifier:

NMAH.AC.1415

See more items in:

Edith Youdale Lee Scrapbook

Archival Repository:

Archives Center, National Museum of American History

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8d8a2befd-711e-442b-8881-0cce1b3aa08c

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-1415

Extent:

8.77 Cubic feet (24 containers (22 letter boxes, 2 flat boxes))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1940s-2000s

Summary:

The Radar Collection [Blom] consists of approximately 5 cubic feet of maintenance guides for radar systems, wartime equipment catalogs and guides, periodicals, photographs and audio/visual materials.

Scope and Contents:

This collection conists of approximately 9 cubic feet consists of Western Electric maintenance guides for radar systems, wartime equipment catalogs and guides, periodicals, photographs and audio/visual materials.

Arrangement:

This collection is organized into five series according to material type:

Series 1: Technical Manuals, Handbooks and Catalogs, 1942-1995

Series 2: Other Publications and Miscellaneous, 1940-2006

Series 3: Photographs and Negatives, 19402, 1950s and undated

Series 4: Oversize, 1945

Series 5: Audiovisual, undated

Biographical / Historical:

Jacob Michael Blom (1944--2023) was born in Amsterdam and emigrated to the United States in 1952. From an early age, Blom had a keen interest in science and attended the Neward College of Engineering. In 1966, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. According to his family, he spent countless happy hours in his 3,500 square foot workshop, which was filled with radar sets, navigation equipment, countermeasures equipment, radar test equipment, many spare parts and over a thousand original equipment manuals and other reference materials which he began collecting in 1960. He was also a Senior Vice President of the Mitre Corporation. Mr. Blom passed away in 2023.

Provenance:

Heather Ramos, Gift, 2023, NASM.2024.0005

Restrictions:

No restrictions on access

Rights:

Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.

Topic:

Aeronautics  Search this

Radar in aeronautics  Search this

Radar  Search this

United States Navy -- 20th century  Search this

Citation:

Radar Collection [Blom], Acc. NASM.2024.0005, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

NASM.2024.0005

See more items in:

Radar Collection [Blom]

Archival Repository:

National Air and Space Museum Archives

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/pg23f2bf6d3-404b-4122-8625-186ce81b59e4

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-nasm-2024-0005