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Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs

Creator:
Henderson, Horace, 1904-1988  Search this
Lewis, Barbara  Search this
Lewis, Barry  Search this
Henderson, Fletcher, 1897-1952  Search this
Extent:
22.5 Cubic feet (82 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audiocassettes
Audiotapes
Manuscripts
Parts (musical)
Photographs
Date:
1930s-1980s
Scope and Contents:
The Fletcher and Horace Henderson Collection contains original scores and band books, loose sheet music, both original and published, from both Fletcher and Horace's libraries, playlists, lyrics, photographs, personal papers and correspondences, newspaper clippings, jazz publications, an oral history manuscript of an interview with Horace, audio tapes, and other personal memorabilia documenting the lives and careers of the two brothers as pianists, band leaders, and arrangers. The majority of the material dates from the mid 1920s to the early 1980s.

Series 1: Fletcher and Horace Henderson's Music ca. 1930s - 1980s Boxes 1-68. Original band books and scores, lyrics, playlists, loose music, and published music either arranged or used by Fletcher or Horace Henderson during their careers as pianists, band leaders, and arrangers. The series is organized into six subseries: Subseries 1A: Horace's Band Books, Subseries 1B: Loose Music, Subseries 1C: Original Scores, Subseries 1D: Lyrics, Suberies 1E: Playlists, and Suberies 1F: Published Music.

Suberies 1A, ca. 1940s -1980s, boxes 1-21. Horace Henderson Band Books. Each Band Book stands on its own, and is identified by the musician who used it or the location where the music was performed. Some performers include Gail Brochman, Eddie Calhoun, and George Reed. Many of the band books were used for performances at the Trianon Ballroom in Chicago.

Subseries 1B, ca. 1930s - 1980s, boxes 22-58. Music in boxes 22-54 comes from Horace Henderson's band library, and boxes 55-58 from Fletcher Henderson's band library. The music consists of full scores, piano scores, and parts arranged or used by Horace or Fletcher Henderson. Arranged alphabetically by title; FS - Full Score, PS - Piano Score, and P - Parts. * Indicates an overlap between loose music, and music known to have been performed at the Trianon Ballroom in Chicago. **Indicates an overlap between Horace and Fletcher's Libraries. The music is arranged alphabetically by music title.

Subseries 1C, ca. 1930s - 1940s, boxes 59-60. Original scores arranged by Fletcher Henderson, many for Benny Goodman and other bandleaders, including AHoneysuckle Rose@, AKing Porter's Stomp@, and AStealin' Apples@. There is also a complete band book written and arranged by Fletcher. Arranged alphabetically by title.

Subseries 1D, ca. 1940s - 1980s, box 61. Original lyrics used in performances by Horace Henderson's bands. Arranged alphabetically by title where identified.

Subseries 1E, ca. 1940s - 1980s, boxes 62-63. Playlists compiled in preparation for performances by Horace Henderson's orchestras, listing titles played at various performances. Un-arranged.

Subseries 1F, ca. 1920s-1980s, boxes 64-68. Published sheet music and books for piano/vocal parts. Includes art music, method books, popular music, fake books, and music book covers. Folders are arranged by type of publication, and the music is arranged alphabetically by title within each folder.

Series 2: Photographs, ca. 1920s - 1980s Boxes 69-70. Photographs documenting the lives of both Fletcher and Horace Henderson's personal lives and careers. Photographs are arranged by category including Fletcher Henderson Candids with Friends, Horace Henderson Candids, Performance Marquees, and both brothers with their orchestra. Some unique pictures include portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Henderson (Fletcher and Horace's parents), candids of Fletcher with Benny Goodman, and Horace with Lena Horne.

Series 3: Personal Papers and Correspondences, ca. 1920s - 1980s Boxes 71-78. Programs and broadsides, newspaper articles, letters, essays, publications, and other personal documents tracing the lives of Horace and Fletcher, as well as some personal items of their parents. The series is divided into six subseries: Subseries 3A: Programs and Broadsides, Subseries 3B: Newspaper Articles and Clippings, Subseries 3C: Personal Papers and Correspondences, Subseries 3D: Miscellaneous Publishings, Subseries 3E: Transcript of an Oral History Interview, and Subseries 3F: Henderson Family Scrapbook.

Subseries 3A, ca 1930s - 1980s Boxes 71-72. Contains broadsides and ad clippings promoting both Horace and Fletcher's performances, along with programs for various jazz festivals. There are also three sets of Las Vegas Programs, advertising the weekly happenings during the years Horace was performing there, mainly at the Riviera Hotel and Casino (1959-1961). These include; Ken's Spotlight Las Vegas, Fabulous Las Vegas Magazine, On The Go, and other miscellaneous circulations. Arranged by category (Fletcher's broadsides, Horace's broadsides, Programs), and by date within each set of publications or programs.

Subseries 3B, ca. 1950s - 1980s, Boxes 73 & 78. Contains newspapers, articles, and clippings, ranging from 1951 to 1986, documenting the lives of Fletcher, Horace, and some of their contemporaries (ie: Duke Ellington) through the eyes of the media. Arranged by categories; reference to Fletcher, Horace, or Miscellaneous. Box 73 contains the oversized articles.

Subseries 3C, ca. 1920s-1980s, Box 74. Contains letters, contracts, and other personal documents of Fletcher, Horace, and their parents. Also contains a copied photo collection of Horace, a manuscript of AHorace Henderson Presents his Interpretation of Jazz@, and an essay (author unknown) about Fletcher's influence on jazz.

Subseries 3D, ca. 1960s - 1980s, Box 75. Contains miscellaneous publishings collected from the various locations Horace lived and worked. Includes weekly circulations from Denver and the surrounding area where Horace lived from the mid sixties until his death, along with various music magazines that he subscribed to (ADownbeat@, AInternational Musician@). Arranged by date within each category.

Subseries 3E, ca. 1975, box 76. Contains the original transcript of the Oral History Interview of Horace Henderson, for the Smithsonian Institution, performed by Tom MacCluskey on April 9-12, 1975.

Subseries 3F, box 77. Contains a Henderson Family Scrapbook which includes photographs of Fletcher's and Horace's father and mother, and various newspaper clippings commending the careers of Mr. Henderson, Horace, and Fletcher. The scrapbook's original order has been maintained.

Series 4: Audio Tape Recordings ca.1970s - 1980s Boxes 79-80. Contains a collection of recordings of live performances of Horace's orchestra in various Denver area locations such as the Esquire Supper Club and the Petroleum Club. Also includes a sample tape, a brief Atest@ recording by Horace and Angel, a radio tribute to Horace, and a few miscellaneous mix tapes. The tapes are arranged by date when available. Box 79 contains the original copies, and box 80 contains the duplicates.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into four series.

Series 1: Horace and Fletcher Henderson's Music, 1954-1955

Series 2: Photographs, 1942-1977

Series 3: Horace and Fletcher Henderson's Personal Papers, 1937-1987

Series 4: Horace Henderson Audio Tapes, 1978-1983, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Fletcher Hamilton Henderson, Jr. (a.k.a. Smack) was born on December 18, 1897 in Cuthbert, Georgia. He was born into a middle class black family, and as a child studied European art music with his mother, a piano teacher. His sister later became the head of the music department at the Tuskeegee Institute in Alabama, and his younger brother, Horace, would eventually follow in his footsteps as a jazz musician, arranger, and band leader. Horace W. Henderson (a.k.a. Little Smack) was born on November 22, 1904. He also studied piano with his mother and sister, and like his brother, began formal music training as a teenager. Fletcher Henderson attended Atlanta University where he earned a degree in chemistry and math in 1919.

In 1920, Fletcher Henderson moved to New York City to find a job as a chemist. Because employment in this field was hard to come by, especially for African Americans, he began working as a song demonstrator for the Pace Hardy Music Company. Shortly after Fletcher Henderson's arrival Harry Pace founded Pace Phonograph Corporation to produce records on the Black Swan label in 1921. Fletcher joined Pace's music team and was responsible for contracting and leading a jazz bands to accompany the label's singers.

In 1924, Fletcher's orchestra, under the direction of Don Redman, began to perform at Club Alabam (sic) on New York City's Broadway Avenue. That same year he and the band was offered a job performing at the Roseland Ballroom, where the band remained for ten years and gained national fame. His band was no different than the hundreds of dance bands, springing up across the country in response to the growing demand for social dance music, such as Count Basie's Orchestra, King Oliver and his Dixie Syncopators, and McKinney's Cotton Pickers. Don Redman left the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra in 1927 to direct McKinney's Cotton Pickers. However the music collaboration of Redman and Henderson had by then established what would become the "standard" big band arrangement for several decades, specifically the dynamic interplay between the brass and reed sections of the orchestra that included interspersed solos made famous by such esteemed soloists of the band as Louis Armstrong and Coleman Hawkins. Some of the band's most notable recordings made between 1924 and 1925 include Copenhagen and Sugarfoot Stomp.

By this time Horace Henderson had formed his own college jazz band in 1924, The Wilberforce Collegians, after transferring from Atlanta University to Wilberforce University to pursue a music degree. His older brother sent him arrangements and piano parts used by the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra for performances by the Collegians. Later that year Horace Henderson left the university to travel and perform with his band in New York City. His newly formed band included such notable musicians as Benny Carter and Ben Webster. While in New York he also began playing as a guest musician in his brother's band and learning from such legends of jazz as Coleman Hawkins, Buster Bailey, Louis Armstrong, and Don Redman that were working for the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra. During a Smithsonian Institution sponsored oral history interview with Tom MacCluskey, Horace recalled late night jam sessions at Hawkins' (Hawk) apartment where they would play through pieces from "Fletch's" library and analyze each individual's performance. We would "stop and discuss what had transpired during that session, you know, that particular tune. And man, that was a lesson...It was a session that was actually to help everybody, so that they would try things out and take another tune, and use these particular little points that Hawk would tell 'em.'"

Until the 1930s, the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra was the principal model for big jazz bands. However, his management of the band and its finances led to frequent band break-ups. In 1934, severe financial problems forced Fletcher to sell some of his best arrangements to Benny Goodman. Horace Henderson and others suggested Goodman's rapid rise in popularity among swing bands for white audiences was largely due to Fletcher Henderson's innovative band arrangements. Fletcher Henderson continued to lead bands until 1939 when he joined Goodman's orchestra as a full time staff arranger. In 1941 he returned to band leading and arranging, but suffered a severe stroke in 1950. Fletcher was partially paralyzed from the stroke, and died on December 29, 1952.

Horace, also, formed many bands throughout the 1930s and 40s, and became a sideman for leaders such as Don Redman (1931-33) and, most notably, his brother. He was a pianist and arranger for Fletch's band intermittently between 1931 and 1947. During this time, Horace spent a lot of time in Chicago with Fletcher's band at the Grand Terrace, and formed his own band at Swingland. Horace also worked as a freelance arranger for Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Earl Hines3. From November 1942 through August 1943, Horace was the leader of the 732nd Military Police Band in Joliet, Illinois. The position was first offered to Louis Armstrong, who turned it down and recommended Horace for the position. After leaving the army, he played with Fletcher's band for two years. Horace began writing for Charlie Barnet in 1944, where he first came across Lena Horne. During a job at the Paramount, Charlie had Called Horace to say that his vocalist had laryngitis, and he needed a new singer. Horace went to the Apollo in Harlem in search of some talent, and they sent him to the Regent where he could find Lena Horne. She joined Charlie's show the next day, and from there went on to fame. Horace joined her for an extended tour as a pianist and arranger, and later worked with Billie Holiday3.

Horace moved to Denver with his wife, Angel, in the late 1960s. The Horace Henderson Combo performed at many nightclubs and resorts in the Denver area, including Estes Park, the Broadmoor Hotel, and the Petroleum Club. He began playing the organ in 1970 because the clubs didn't want to pay for four or five piece bands, and with an organ to replace the piano, a bass player was no longer necessary3. Horace continued to lead bands in the Denver area until his death on August 29, 1988.

Although both brothers had a major impact on the future of jazz, Horace is often thought of merely as a shadow to his more celebrated brother. Fletcher Henderson's career as a pianist, bandleader, and arranger is one of the most important in jazz history. Bands of leaders such as Count Basie, Charlie Barnet, Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, and Benny Goodman all played arrangements, which were either written or influenced by Fletcher Henderson. Fletcher constantly surrounded himself with the most talented musicians of his era, and patterned the basic formula, which were imitated throughout the big band era. However, at least thirty of Fletcher's arrangements, many for Benny Goodman, are accredited as Horace's work. His arrangement Hot and Anxious was based on the traditional riff that later became the basis for Glenn Miller's In the Mood. Christopher Columbus is the most notable example of Horace's potent piano style, which is often noted to be stronger than his brother's. Although the brothers had differences, Horace insists that they did not involve music. Fletcher's style and success had a huge influence on Horace's career, and he was incredibly grateful for all his brother taught him. In an interview in April of 1975, he was quoted as saying, "I idolize his way of thinking because he was successful. You don't fight success, you join it." 3

Sources

1. Biographical information derived from The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, edited by Barry Kernfeld (New York: Macmillan Press Ltd, 1988). 2. The Pace Phonograph corporation was the first African-American-owned recording company in the United States. Historical information derived from The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Black Music; Biographical Dictionary of Afro-American and African Musicians, by Eileen Southern (USA: Greenwood Press, 1982).

3. Interview with Horace Henderson, April 2-12, 1975, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
Provenance:
The Fletcher and Horace Henderson collection was acquired by the museum in December of 2001, donated by Barbara and Barry Lewis.
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:
Music -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Audiocassettes
Audiotapes
Manuscripts -- Music -- 20th century
Parts (musical)
Photographs -- 20th century
Citation:
Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs, 1930s-1980s, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0797
See more items in:
Fletcher and Horace Henderson Music and Photographs
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8b519292b-04b8-413a-a057-0c9c19f26b75
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0797
Online Media:

Katherine Joseph Papers

Creator:
Joseph, Katherine  Search this
Hertzberg, Suzanne  Search this
Names:
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.  Search this
Roosevelt, Eleanor, 1884-1962  Search this
Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945  Search this
Extent:
1 Sound disc (33 1/3 RPM)
1 Cubic foot (4 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound discs
Photographs
Place:
Mexico
Date:
1938-1944, 1962
bulk 1941
Summary:
Papers document Katherine Joseph's career as staff photographer for the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union. The papers contain negatives and prints taken in Mexico, and some photographs of a White House event in 1938, featuring Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt; and images of American workers on the home front during World War II.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of negatives and photographs from Ms. Joseph's career as staff photographer for the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union. There are also images taken in Mexico, and some photographs of a White House event in 1938, featuring Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt; images of American workers on the home front during World War II; correspondence and travel notes.

Series 1, Historical Background, 1941, undated, consists of correspondence and travel notes from a photojournalistic trip to Mexico in 1941.

The correspondence is organized into three sections, Tayoltita in Northwest Mexico, the 1941 Colima, Mexico earthquake, and Thelma Goldman. In addition to the correspondence there are typescript captions for some of the photographs and annotated drafts of travel notes detailing the Mexico trip.

Series 2, Photographic Negatives and Prints, [1941?] and undated, consists of negatives and prints for garment workers and the photojournalistic trip to Mexico. The negatives and prints are housed together in 4" x 5" envelope enclosures. Captions and other information about the negative/print is provided on the envelope. The majority of negatives and prints are undated, and there is no arrangement.

Series 3, Photographic Prints, 1938, 1941 and undated, is further divided into four subseries topically: Subseries 1, International Ladies Garment Workers Union; Subseries 2, Labor; Subseries 3, Mexico and Subseries 4, Subjects. The photographs are 8" x 10" black-and-whites taken by Katherine Joseph and some by Harry Rubenstein, another journalist. The photographs are arranged topically. Some of the photographs have captions and/or annotations, and almost all bear a stamp "photo by Katherine Joseph."

Series 4, "Pins and Needles" (audio disc), 1962, consists of one (1) 33 1/3 RPM audio disc from the Pins and Needles twenty-fifth anniversary. Pins and Needles was originally produced by the Cultural Division of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union under the leadership of Louis Schaffer. The music and lyrics for Pins and Needles was composed by Harold Rome in 1936–1937. The revue had its public debut on November 27, 1937 at the New York Labor Stage, which had been created when the ILGWU leased the Princess Theater and renovated the space for union cultural performances. Because of their factory jobs, cast and crew could rehearse only at night and on weekends, and initial performances were presented only on Friday and Saturday nights. The original cast was made up of cutters, basters, and sewing machine operators. Pins and Needles satirized current events and cultural trends from a pro-union standpoint. Pins and Needles went on to become the longest-running musical of the 1930s, with 1108 New York performances and multiple national tours.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into five series.

Series 1: Historical Background, 1941, undated

Series 2: Photographic Negatives and Prints, 1941 and undated

Series 3: Photographic Prints, 1938, 1941 and undated

Subseries 3.1: International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU), undated

Subseries 3.2: Labor, undated

Subseries 3.3: Mexico, undated

Subseries 3.4: Subjects, 1938, 1941, 1944 and undated

Series 4: Photographic Prints and Negatives, 1938-1944

Series 5: Sound Recording, 1962
Biographical / Historical:
Katherine Joseph (1909-1990) was active as a professional photographer from approximately 1937 to 1944. Much of her time was spent as a staff photographer for the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU) in New York City. Her photographs documented workers on the shop floors and union, community, political, and cultural activities. One of Joseph's most notable assignments was a 1938 visit to the White House where she photographed the cast of ILGWU's Broadway revue, "Pins and Needles," performed for President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the invitation of Eleanor Roosevelt. After the Second World War, Joseph left her photographic career to look after her family. In 1941, Joseph undertook a photojournalistic tour of Mexico with two friends, Thelma Goldman, and Andrée Vilas Graham, made possible by the gift of a Willys-Overland Americar to Joseph and her two friends as part of of publicity campaign for the Americar.

Willys-Overland Motors, was an American automobile company founded by John North Willys in 1908 and best known for its design and production of military Jeeps during World War II.

The Americar that Joseph and her friends drove to Mexico was a powder blue Model 441 which they nicknamed "Willy.". Their south-of-the-border road trip held only one obligation, to send back to the United States photographs featuring themselves and "Willy" against the Mexico landscape. Katherine Joseph took photographs and Thelma Goldman and Andrée Vilas-Graham wrote about their travels using a portable typewriter. When the women arrived in Mexico City they secured press passes from the Minister of Information.

Joseph returned to New York as America was gearing up to enter the war and resumed working for the ILGWU in 1942. Her New York images from this period chronicle the Home Front contributions of the garment industry to the war effort. In July 1944 Joseph covered the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where Franklin D. Roosevelt won an unprecedented fourth-term nomination and Harry S. Truman was chosen as his running mate over the incumbent vice-president, Henry Wallace. This was to be Joseph's last professional assignment before, like millions of American women, she gave up her career to devote herself to family life.
Related Materials:
Materials at Other Organizations

A master's thesis written by Suzanne Herzberg is available through the University of Southern California's Digital Library. The thesis does not form part of the Katherine Joseph Papers held by the Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Author retains sole copyright; use of copyrighted material requires author's permission.

Herzberg, Suzanne. "Photo by Katherine Joseph." (master's thesis, University of Southern California, 2002), 217 pages.

Hertzberg, Suzanne. Katherine Joseph Photographing an Era of Social Significance. Bergamot Books, 2016.

When Katherine Joseph died in 1990, her daughter discovered a trove of memorabilia from her mother's life as a Roosevelt-era photographer for the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU). Ms. Joseph's photographs celebrate the golden age of organized labor, from her iconic image of the ILGWU's Pins and Needles White House performance to her sensitive portraits of men and women at work. Her images from a 1941 journey to Mexico reveal a nation caught in the high-stakes political crossfire between the superpowers of the day. She photographed marketplaces, artists' colonies, and Acapulco's posh set as well as a secret gold mine, a historic labor convention, American movie stars on a "Goodwill Fiesta" tour, and a devastating earthquake. Returning to New York, Ms. Joseph documented labor's home front efforts and the historic 1944 Democratic Convention that put Harry Truman on the ballot. Hertzberg's book tells a remarkable story that preserves a legacy of historical, artistic, and feminist significance.
Separated Materials:
Materials in National Museum of American History, Division of Political History (now Division of Political and Military History

Division holds some materials related to the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union
Provenance:
Donated by Suzanne Hertzberg and Richard Hertzberg, daughter and son of Katherine Joseph, February 20, 2007.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
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.
Topic:
Textile industry  Search this
Labor unions  Search this
Labor  Search this
Photographers -- New York  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 1930-1940
Citation:
Katherine Joseph Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0944
See more items in:
Katherine Joseph Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a8b88197-c3fa-43af-bfec-54d3e30e070c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0944
Online Media:

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

Dorothy Liebes papers

Creator:
Liebes, Dorothy  Search this
Names:
Bigelow-Sanford Carpet Company  Search this
E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. Textile Fibers Department  Search this
Golden Gate International Exposition (1939-1940 : San Francisco, Calif.)  Search this
Morin, Relman, 1907-1973  Search this
Wright, Frank Lloyd, 1867-1959  Search this
Extent:
24.7 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Diaries
Drawings
Interviews
Date:
circa 1850-1973
bulk 1922-1970
Summary:
The papers of weaver, textile designer, and consultant Dorothy Liebes date from circa 1850-1973 (bulk 1922-1970) and comprise 24.7 linear feet. Through biographical material including a sound recording of an interview, family and general correspondence, writings including a draft of Liebes's autobiography, subject files providing detailed records of her influential consulting work, financial and legal files, printed material, scrapbooks, artwork, textile samples, and photographic material picturing a wide variety of career and personal activities, the collection provides rich and extensive documentation of Liebes's career and personal life.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of weaver, textile designer, and consultant Dorothy Liebes date from circa 1850-1973 (bulk 1922-1970) and comprise 24.7 linear feet. Through biographical material including a sound recording of an interview, family and general correspondence, writings including a draft of Liebes's autobiography, subject files providing detailed records of her influential consulting work, financial and legal files, printed material, scrapbooks, artwork, textile samples, and photographic material picturing a wide variety of career and personal activities, the collection provides rich and extensive documentation of Liebes's career and personal life.

Biographical material consists of awards, biographical notes, membership and identification cards, passports, a will, and a sound recording of a 1945 interview with Liebes.

Correspondence is personal with family and friends, and general with friends and colleagues including artists, and fellow weavers and designers. Notable correspondents include Dorr Bothwell, Daren Pierce, Beatrice Wood, and Frank and Olgivanna Lloyd Wright.

Diaries and calendars record Liebes's busy professional and personal life, with notations on daily activities and, beginning in 1952, detailed notes by staff recording activities at the studio on days when Liebes was absent.

Writings by Dorothy Liebes include notes, drafts, and manuscripts of published and unpublished writings, including an autobiography, speeches, and drafts for an unpublished book on weaving.

Subject files contain correspondence, printed material, photographs, and miscellaneous items in varying combinations, and focus heavily on Liebes's consulting work for businesses in the textile industry, including her work with DuPont, Bigelow-Sanford, Goodall, Dow, and others. The files document the importance of her work as a colorist and show how she successfully adapted craft weaving to machine methods. Furthermore, they record how Liebes used her marketing instincts and broad media appeal to rebrand the image of companies such as DuPont from one of chemistry and utility, to one that represented high style and glamor in durable and practical fabrics that were affordable and desirable in home furnishings. Other subject files document organizations, individuals, and topics of interest to Liebes, including files recording her involvement with arts and crafts organizations, her role as director for the Decorative Arts Display at the Golden Gate Exposition in 1939, her work as director of the Red Cross's Arts and Skills workshop, scattered exhibition records, and files on weavers and weaving. Files on Liebes's extensive promotional work for multiple clients are also included here, as are files documenting Liebes's relationship with Relman Morin, such as correspondence and scattered records of Morin's career as a Pullitzer Prize winning journalist.

Financial and legal records are comprised of accounting records from the 1930s-1940s, financial summaries, investment statements, personal and business inventories, personal and business tax returns, and some legal records.

Printed material includes advertisements, articles, and exhibition announcements and catalogs, recording Liebes's career. This material is supplemented by thirty-three bound scrapbooks of printed publicity material, photographs, and documents recording Liebes's career in substantial depth.

Artwork by Dorothy Liebes consists of designs, feather weavings, a small hooked composition, and tapestry samples. Artwork by others includes prints by Dorr Bothwell, designs by Lawrence J. Colwell, and painted sketches of clothing designs by Daren Pierce. Two linear feet of samples consist primarily of textile swatches primarily designed by Dorothy Liebes Studio, Inc.

Photographic material includes professional portraits of Liebes and others, photos of Liebes at events and parties, with staff and other weavers, at work in her studio, and traveling. Of note are a series of pictures taken at Taliesin West with Frank and Olgivanna Wright, Relman Morin, and others. Photographic material also provides examples of Liebes's design work in homes, hotels, offices, and elsewhere, and shows her work pictured in exhibitions and showrooms. Photographs of other subjects include portraits of unidentified women by Man Ray and Consuela Canaga.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 11 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1934-circa 1970 (Box 1, OV 23; 0.28 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1922-1973 (Boxes 1-2; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 3: Diaries and Calendars, 1948-1971 (Boxes 2-4; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 4: Writings, 1920-circa 1971 (Boxes 4-5; 1.05 linear feet)

Series 5: Subject Files, circa 1933-1971 (Boxes 5-13, 20, OVs 23, 59; 8.43 linear feet)

Series 6: Financial and Legal Records, circa 1935-1972 (Box 13, 20; 0.6 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1897-1971 (Boxes 14, 20-21, OV 38; 1.1 linear feet)

Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1933-1972 (Box 21-22, 24-36; 5 linear feet)

Series 9: Artwork, circa 1920s-circa 1960s (Boxes 14, 22, OVs 23, 39, 42, RD 37; 1.24 linear feet)

Series 10: Samples, circa 1850-1855, circa 1930s-circa 1970 (Boxes 15-16; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 11: Photographic Material, circa 1875, circa 1897-circa 1970 (Boxes 17-19, 36, OVs 38, 40-41; 2.0 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
California and New York weaver, textile designer, and consultant Dorothy Wright Liebes (1899-1972) was known for distinctive textiles featuring bold color combinations and unusual textures achieved through the use of materials such as glass rods, sequins, bamboo, grass, leather, ribbon, wire, and ticker tape. Her work with companies in the synthetic fiber industry to make craft weaving compatible with man-made fabrics and machine looms, produced an innovative and exciting new aesthetic in interior design that was both functional and affordable, and made Liebes a mid-century household name.

Born Dorothy Wright in Santa Rosa, California, Liebes was the daughter of chemistry professor Frederick L. Wright and teacher Bessie Calderwood Wright. She studied art, education, and anthropology at San Jose State Teachers College and the University of California, Berkeley. During her college years, a teacher encouraged her to experiment with weaving and textile design since many of her paintings resembled textiles.

Liebes was a teacher for several years before deciding to pursue a career in textile design. She then studied weaving at Hull House in Chicago and traveled to France, Italy, Guatemala, and Mexico to learn the traditional weaving forms of those cultures. Upon her return to the United States, Liebes opened her first professional studio for weaving and textile design on Powell Street in San Francisco; Dorothy Liebes Design, Inc. was established in 1934, and eventually employed a staff of weavers. Liebes moved her studio to 545 Sutter Street in 1942.

Her first client in the industry was Goodall-Sanford Mills, with whom Liebes worked as a consultant for more than a decade. As her client base expanded, she decided to open a New York studio and maintained both studios until 1948 when she closed her San Francisco operation and relocated to New York City.

Liebes became a color and design consultant to corporations such as DuPont, Dow, and Bigelow-Sanford and tested and promoted newly developed synthetic fibers. She advised textile chemists in the development of fibers that were versatile enough to produce many different textures and worked with engineers and technicians to develop new machines that could reproduce the irregularities of hand-loomed fabrics. Liebes became a sought-after speaker by textile industry and consumer groups, and sometimes taught workshops on color and design.

Liebes's commissions included the United Nations Delegates Dining Room, the Persian Room at the Plaza Hotel and the King of Saudi Arabia's traveling royal throne room. Between 1937 and 1970, Liebes participated in more than thirty solo and group exhibitions at the San Francisco Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, de Young Museum, Cranbrook Museum, Detroit Institute of Art, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Museum of Contemporary Crafts, and other venues. She received prizes and awards from institutions and corporations such as Lord and Taylor, Neiman-Marcus, the Paris Exposition, the American Institute of Decorators, the American Institute of Architects and the Architectural League. She was also awarded the Elsie de Wolfe Award and an honorary degree from Mills College in 1948.

Liebes's other notable activities included her work a director of the Decorative Arts Display for the 1939 San Francisco World's Fair, which she credited with establishing her as an authority in the field, and her work as organizer and director of "Arts and Skills," a Red Cross occupational therapy project that included training in weaving for soldiers injured in World War II. In the 1950s, she worked with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, journeying though the southwest to study Indian schools and weaving techniques.

Liebes was married to businessman Leon Liebes from 1928 until their divorce in 1940 and continued to use the name Liebes for the remainder of her life. In 1948, she married Pulitzer prize winning Associated Press special correspondent Relman "Pat" Morin.

During the last year of her life, Dorothy Liebes was semi-retired due to a heart ailment. She died in New York City on 10 September 1972.
Provenance:
Gift of the Estate of Dorothy Liebes through Relman Morin, 1972, and Ralph Higbee, 1973-1974.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.

Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Textile designers -- California -- San Francisco  Search this
Textile designers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Weavers -- California -- San Francisco  Search this
Weavers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Art consultants -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Women textile designers  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Diaries
Drawings
Interviews
Citation:
Dorothy Liebes papers, circa 1850-1973. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.liebdoro
See more items in:
Dorothy Liebes papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9512b8d71-3c95-4e72-96be-0af0437f2a5f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-liebdoro
Online Media:

Newcomb Carlton / President of Western Union Tel. Co. / April 15, 1914--June 1, 1933 [portrait]

Collector:
Western Union Telegraph Company  Search this
Names:
Carlton, Newcomb  Search this
Collection Creator:
United Telegraph Workers.  Search this
Western Union Telegraph Company  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Ink on paper., 9.6" x 7.4")
Container:
Box 753, Folder 2
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Portraits
Photographs
Studio portraits
Date:
Circa 1933
Scope and Contents:
Photomechanical reproduction of a studio portrait photograph.
Local Numbers:
AC0205-0000139.tif (AC Scan)
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but Series 11 and films are stored off-site. Special arrangements must be made to view some of the audiovisual materials. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Executives  Search this
Telegraph, Wireless  Search this
Genre/Form:
Portraits -- Men
Photographs -- 1930-1940 -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Reproductions
Studio portraits
Collection Citation:
Western Union Telegraph Company Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Western Union Telegraph Company Records
Western Union Telegraph Company Records / Series 23: Photographs / 23.8: People / Western Union Presidents (Newcomb Carlton, R. C. Cowry, Thomas Eckert, J.L. Egan, Norvin Green, William Orton, Henry L. Potter, Hiriam Sibley, Thomas Vail, Roy Barton White A.N. Williams). Also included, but not a president is Edward Creighton.
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep897753b00-abcf-49c1-9221-70473baffb10
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0205-ref11436

A. N. Williams / President of Western Union Tel. Co. [sic] [black-and-white photoprint]

Collector:
Western Union Telegraph Company  Search this
Names:
Williams, A.N.  Search this
Collection Creator:
United Telegraph Workers.  Search this
Western Union Telegraph Company  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on paper., 9.6" x 7.6")
Container:
Box 753, Folder 2
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Portraits
Photographs
Date:
Circa 1940
Scope and Contents:
Mounted on board.
Local Numbers:
AC0205-0000148.tif (AC Scan)
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but Series 11 and films are stored off-site. Special arrangements must be made to view some of the audiovisual materials. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Telegraph, Wireless  Search this
Genre/Form:
Portraits -- Men
Photographs -- 1930-1940 -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin
Collection Citation:
Western Union Telegraph Company Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
Western Union Telegraph Company Records
Western Union Telegraph Company Records / Series 23: Photographs / 23.8: People / Western Union Presidents (Newcomb Carlton, R. C. Cowry, Thomas Eckert, J.L. Egan, Norvin Green, William Orton, Henry L. Potter, Hiriam Sibley, Thomas Vail, Roy Barton White A.N. Williams). Also included, but not a president is Edward Creighton.
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a4162036-db68-4d46-b9cf-58841ee0edeb
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0205-ref11444

Mr. James Armstrong [formal group] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Agfa (Firm)  Search this
Names:
Armstrong, James.  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
February 9, February 28, October 12
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 47954
Caption on negative: "47954 Mr. James Armstrong 22-8x10 reg. 1 glossy" Group portrait of men and women in formal dress, women carrying flowers. "Feb. 9", "Feb. 28", and "Oct. 12" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Agfa Safety Film" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Weddings -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
African American weddings  Search this
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Evening dress  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: A - Azzarone
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8829242da-226b-4193-8440-76e3e3ea7d1a
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref2042

Sgt. C.J. Henry [group portrait; 1 of 2] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Defender (film manufacturer)  Search this
Names:
Henry, C.J., Sgt.  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
1944 February 19, March 13
[ca. 1940]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48043
Caption on negative: "48043 Sgt. C.J. Henry 3-8x10 reg." Group portrait of two men and two women, one man in military uniform. "Feb. 19, 1944" and "Mar. 13" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Defender Safety Base" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
African American military personnel  Search this
Uniforms, Military -- 20th century.  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1940-1950 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: H - Hztech
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep85cc3c4aa-15a8-4c87-a6f4-5a4411eddd95
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref30702

Miss Lewis Johnson [group portrait] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Eastman Kodak Company (film manufacturer)  Search this
Names:
Johnson, Lewis, Miss  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Culture:
African Americans -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
December 24, July 15
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48002
Caption on negative: "48002 Miss Lewis Johnson 1-8x10 reg." Men, women, and young girl in semi-formal dress, one man in naval uniform. "Dec.24" and "July 15" without year on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Eastman-Safety-Kodak" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Original catalog statement identified subject as Miss Lewis Griffin.
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Weddings -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
African American weddings  Search this
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Evening dress  Search this
African American military personnel  Search this
Uniforms, Military -- 20th century.  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: J - Juvanovech
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep87850dcca-2dac-472d-942b-76294312ef27
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref37462

Lt. and Mrs. JS.[?] McCune [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Defender (film manufacturer)  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
undated
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48003
Caption on negative: "48003 Lt. and Mrs. JS.[?] McCune 6-8x10 reg. vignt." Portrait of man and woman, man in military uniform. Retouching on faces. "Defender Safety Base" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
African American military personnel  Search this
Uniforms, Military -- 20th century.  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: M - Mysich
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8a3b6406c-44eb-4eef-a7c4-9a2b221ed5c5
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref46967

Mr. and Mrs. Parker Wesley [group portrait] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Agfa (Firm)  Search this
Names:
Wesley, Parker  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
February 14, March 19
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48005
Caption on negative: "48005 Mr. and Mrs. Parker Wesley 6-8x10 reg." Group portrait of two men and two women "Feb. 14" and "Mar. 19" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Agfa Safety Film" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: W - Wynter
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep83d6fb4b3-d678-4790-8506-c54819df6416
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref74570

Mr. and Mrs. Parker Wesley [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Agfa (Firm)  Search this
Names:
Wesley, Parker  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 292
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
February 14, March 19
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48005
Caption on negative: "48005 Mr. and Mrs. Parker Wesley 3-8x10 reg." Portrait of man and woman. "Feb. 14" and "Mar. 19" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Defeder Safety Base" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Series 8: Business Records, Subseries 8.1: Studio Session Registers are restricted. Digital copies available for research. See repository for details.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.5: Black and white negatives in cold storage arranged by job number / Scurlock client negatives: W - Wynter
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8686bd522-4746-44ac-b51f-bff5df214956
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-05-ref74574

The Bottom Rail. Addresses and Papers on the Negro in the Lowlands of Mississippi and on Inter-Racial Relationships in the South During Twenty-Five Years [book]

Author:
Jones, Laurence C., Dr.  Search this
Collector:
Piney Woods School  Search this
Publisher:
Fleming H. Revell Company (N.Y.)  Search this
Names:
Jones, Laurence C., Dr.  Search this
Collection Creator:
Cron, Rosalind  Search this
International Sweethearts of Rhythm  Search this
Piney Woods School  Search this
Moon, Dixie Hardy  Search this
Hughes, Cathy  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Ink on paper., 7-1/2" x 11".)
Culture:
African Americans -- Mississippi  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Portraits
Books
Place:
Mississippi
Scope and Contents:
Laurence C. Jones, Founder and Principal of Piney Woods Country Life School, Piney Woods, Miss. A portrait of Mr. Jones is on the left with the inscription, "In the joy of spraying a human orchard, Laurence C. Jones".
Arrangement:
Series #1: Piney Woods School
Local Numbers:
AC1218-0000102.tif (AC Scan No.: title page and frontispiece portrait)
Exhibitions Note:
Displayed in Archives Center exhibition, "Women and Jazz: The International Sweethearts of Rhythm, 1937-1949", from March 25, 2011 through May 31, 2011. Craig Orr, curator.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
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:
Race relations  Search this
Schools  Search this
Genre/Form:
Portraits -- African American men
Books -- 1930-1940
Collection Citation:
International Sweethearts of Rhythm Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
See more items in:
International Sweethearts of Rhythm Collection
International Sweethearts of Rhythm Collection / Series 3: Dixie Hardy Moon Materials / "The Bottom Rail" by Laurence C. Jones
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep870d6b747-03d7-4928-a2eb-ed21e61ad9e9
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-1218-ref646

Charles Rivers Photographs

Creator:
Rivers, Charles, 1904-1993  Search this
Names:
Chrysler Building (New York, N.Y.) -- Pictorial works  Search this
Empire State Building -- Construction--1929-1930  Search this
Pathe News  Search this
Bates, Ruby  Search this
Extent:
0.5 Cubic feet (4 boxes )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Albums
Place:
New York (N.Y.) -- 1920-1930
Washington (D.C.) -- 1960-1970
Date:
1929-1963
bulk 1929-1930
Scope and Contents:
The collection contains: twenty-nine silver gelatin photoprints mounted on Fome-Core, Masonite, and cardboard, ranging in size from 5-1/2" x 9-1/4" to 10-11/16" x 13-13/16"; three 5" x 7" unmounted silver gelatin photoprints; a scrapbook which originally contained 56 silver gelatin photoprints, ranging in size from 2" x 3" to 7-1/2" x 9-1/2"; and silver gelatin film negatives (presumably acetate) for the prints. The scrapbook includes a New York Daily News clipping about Rivers: "Builds a Bridge to Students" by Anthony Burton (dated May 12, 1970 by Rivers) with a photograph showing him speaking to a crowd, Most of the photographs depict the construction of the Chrysler and Empire State Buildings--iron workers on the job and relaxing during breaks, and pictures of the buildings at various stages of completion. Other subjects are: a demonstration to prevent World War II (1935), a color photoprint of the Civil Rights March and Demonstration in Washington, D.C. (1963), and two magazine clippings from a Soviet publication, New Times, in which Rivers's prize-winning "Self Portrait" (1930) was reproduced.

Most of these prints were made by Charles Rivers many years after the creation of the original negatives, probably ca.1970s 1980s. The collection is in generally good condition, except that many of the print surfaces are scratched.
Biographical / Historical:
Charles Rivers created a certain amount of confusion about his origins, whether accidentally or intentionally. Born Constantinos Kapornaros[1] (or Kostandinos Kapernaros)[2] in the small town of Vahos in Mani, an isolated area in the southern Peloponnesian region of Greece, on May 20, 1904, he emigrated to the United States as a child of five or six with his parents. His school record showed that he was enrolled in 1911 at the age of seven.[3] The family lived in Maine or New Hampshire, then Massachusetts, and later other locations in New York state. It is believed that his new name was derived from the Charles River in Boston.[4] The change may have been occasioned by a need to conceal his deep involvement in left-wing political and union activities.[5] Mr. Rivers settled in New York City in 1950 and resided there until 1993.[6] He sometimes identified his birthplace as Denver, Colorado,[7] but this may have been a fabrication or simplification, based on the fact that Greek church baptismal records were kept in Denver.[8] His sons James and Ronald believe that he never became an official American citizen. Late in life, in order to visit his birthplace, he was issued a passport, based on his school records, which stated that he was born in Denver. Rivers photographed the construction of the Chrysler Building (1929) and the Empire State Building (1930) in New York City. He was inspired to take up photography by seeing the work of the influential documentary photographer Lewis Hine, whose famous images of working children helped win passage of protective child labor laws. Rivers and Hine both photographed the Empire State Building and the men building it, yet Rivers apparently was unaware until years later that his idol had been present. Employed as an iron worker, Rivers traded his pail of tools for a Zeiss Ikon[9] camera during his lunch hour or when photographic opportunities arose. While the workers depicted in some of the photographs clearly are aware of the photographer's presence, Rivers's project presumably was conducted more or less surreptitiously. It is not known for certain if the paths of Rivers and Hine ever crossed, but his son Ron considers it unlikely: Hine photographed only the Empire State Building in connection with his "Men at Work" project,[10] not the earlier Chrysler Building, and Rivers did not work on the Empire State Building for a very long period. His self-portrait on the Empire State Building, "The Bolter-Up," may have been intended as a memento during one of his last days on that job.[11]

Rivers became unemployed in the Depression and consequently became involved in national efforts to create Social Security, unemployment insurance, and housing programs. These experiences apparently encouraged his active participation in politically leftist activities, as coverage about him in Soviet publications attests. A pacifist, in 1935 he was involved in demonstrations aimed at preventing World War II, and in the 1960s he took part in anti-Vietnam demonstrations and encouraged young people to continue such resistance.

In the 1950s Rivers worked in steel fabrication, in a chemistry lab as a technician, and briefly as a legislative aide for a New York state senator.

In 1986 Rivers submitted his 1930 self-portrait, posed on the Chrysler Building, to the International Year of Peace art contest sponsored by the New Times, published in Moscow: it was awarded a prize and diploma.

Mr. Rivers died in 1993, only two weeks after moving to Arlington, Texas to enter a nursing home near his sons' homes.

1. The page on Rivers in New York University=s Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives web site (http://laborarts.org/collections/item.cfm?itemid=82) --noted 5 June 2002), claims Rivers was born in 1905 and changed his name Ato resemble those of the Mohawk Indians working on the high steel of New York City=s skyscrapers and bridges".

2. This spelling is given in an e-mail from James Rivers to Helen Plummer, Aug. 19, 2002.

3. Ibid.

4. Telephone conversation between Ron Rivers and the author, 6 June 2002. Additional information was provided by Ron Rivers in electronic mail messages, 5 June and 12 June 2002.

5. James Rivers, op. cit.

6. Telephone conversation with Ron Rivers, 6 June 2002.

7. In a biographical statement for the Amon Carter Museum of Western Art (copy supplied by Helen Plummer), Charles Rivers called Denver his birthplace. The George Eastman House photographer database also included this apparently erroneous information, probably derived from the Amon Carter statement (telephone conversation with Helen Plummer, 3 June 2002).

8. Ron Rivers, telephone conversation, 6 June 2002.

9. Identified by Charles Rivers as the camera used in the skyscraper photographs: interview by Carol Sewell, "Photographer looked at U.S. from high view," Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dec. 27, 1986. Rivers also used a Rolleiflex, according to Ron Rivers (see note above), but the folding Zeiss Ikon camera would have been a more convenient addition to a lunchbox than the bulkier Rolleiflex. The collection negatives are not in the Rolleiflex square format, moreover.

10. See Judith Mara Gutman, Lewis W. Hine and the American social conscience. New York: Walker, 1967.

11. Ron Rivers, telephone conversation, 6 June 2002.
Related Materials:
Materials at the Smithsonian Institution

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Included Rivers's self-portrait, "The Bolter Up," in its summer 2002 exhibition, "Metropolis in the Machine Age," in the form of a new print made from a digital copy of the Archives Center's original negative. The author discussed the new print from the Rivers negative and other photographs in this exhibition in an invited gallery lecture, "The Skyscraper Photographs of Lewis Hine and Charles Rivers," Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, June 6, 2002.

Materials at Other Organizations

Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, Texas

See Barbara McCandless and John Rohrbach, Singular moments: photographs from the Amon Carter Museum, with select entries by Helen Plummer. Reproduction of a Rivers photograph, with description and analysis, p. 30. Additional information has been generously supplied by Ms. Plummer, curatorial associate, and Barbara McCandless, curator of photography, Amon Carter Museum of Western Art, Fort Worth Texas.

Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University

Museum of the City of New York

Some of his photographs were included in the Amon Carter Museum of Western Art exhibition, "Looking at America: Documentary Photographs of the 1930s and 1940s," December 1986.
Provenance:
The collection is a gift from Mr. Charles Rivers, 1989.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Archives Center claims copyright. Rights were conveyed to the Archives Center through a Deed of Gift signed by the donor.
Topic:
Self-portraits, American  Search this
Iron and steel workers -- 1920-1930 -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Construction workers -- 1900-1950 -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Structural steel workers -- 1920-1930 -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Labor unions  Search this
Civil rights demonstrations -- 1960-1970  Search this
Skyscrapers -- 1920-1930 -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Civil rights  Search this
Peace movements -- 1960-1970  Search this
Peace movements -- 1930-1940  Search this
Scottsoro boys case  Search this
Fires  Search this
Scottsboro Trial, Scottsboro, Ala., 1931  Search this
Self-portraits  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1900-1950
Scrapbooks -- 20th century
Albums
Photographs -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin -- 1970-1990
Citation:
Charles Rivers Photographs, 1929-1963, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Identifier:
NMAH.AC.0360
See more items in:
Charles Rivers Photographs
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep82c2fc0d6-34f9-422b-b6e3-c1d1072e975f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-nmah-ac-0360
Online Media:

Lester B. Rapp

Attribution:
John Mehnihan, active c. 1930 - 1940  Search this
Sitter:
Lester B. Rapp, born late 19th century  Search this
Medium:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
Not recorded
Type:
Painting
Date:
c. 1930-40
Topic:
Lester B. Rapp: Male  Search this
Lester B. Rapp: Politics and Government\Public official\Mayor  Search this
Lester B. Rapp: Politics and Government\Public official\Mayor\Rochester, NY  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
Owner: City of Rochester, City Hall
Object number:
NY770057
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
Catalog of American Portraits
Data Source:
Catalog of American Portraits
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4f04bc1a9-a9af-41a1-9e8a-cafa00bd852a
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_NY770057

Lorenzo Dow Turner

Creator:
Bedou, A. P. (Arthur P), 1882-1966  Search this
Names:
Turner, Lorenzo Dow, 1890-1972  Search this
Collection Creator:
Turner, Lorenzo Dow, 1890-1972  Search this
Container:
Box 19b, Folder 14
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Portraits
Place:
Tuskegee (Ala.)
Date:
1930-1940
Collection Restrictions:
Use of the materials requires an appointment. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
Topic:
African American professors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Portraits -- African American men
Collection Citation:
Lorenzo Dow Turner papers,Anacostia Community Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution, gift of Lois Turner Williams.
See more items in:
Lorenzo Dow Turner Papers
Lorenzo Dow Turner Papers / Series 5: Photographs, circa 1890–1974 / 5.1: Turner Portraits, circa 1906
Archival Repository:
Anacostia Community Museum Archives
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/qa743a98e9d-1ffb-4688-a931-7eff0bb09bd1
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-acma-06-017-ref694

Mr. James Armstrong [wedding] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Defender (film manufacturer)  Search this
Names:
Armstrong, James.  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 256
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 47954
Caption on negative: "47954 Mr. James Armstrong 2-8x10 reg. 1 glossy" Group portrait of bride and groom with man and woman. "Feb. 9", "Feb. 28", and "Oct. 12" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Defender Safety Base" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Weddings -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
African American weddings  Search this
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Evening dress  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number / Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number [cont.]
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8dca8d20e-d439-45be-bece-bba39e520a78
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-02-ref25089

Miss Anne Griffin [in group portrait] [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Defender (film manufacturer)  Search this
Names:
Griffin, Anne.  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Container:
Box 256
Culture:
African Americans -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
1944 February 12
[ca. 1930]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 47985
Caption on negative: "47985 Miss Anne Griffin 3-8x10 reg." Portrait of man and woman in formal dress, woman holding flowers. "Feb. 12" and "Mar. 3"without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Defender Safety Base" edge imprint.
General:
Box 618.004.065
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1940 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Evening dress  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1920-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film.
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number / Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number [cont.]
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep837edf41c-0133-4279-9fad-1ccd113585ba
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-02-ref25092

Miss Ann Griggs [photonegative]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Creator:
Defender (film manufacturer)  Search this
Names:
Griggs, Ann, Miss  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (Silver gelatin on cellulose acetate film sheet, 10 x 8 in.)
Container:
Box 257
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- African Americans -- 1930-1950
Date:
May 13, May 26 [ca. 1940]
Scope and Contents:
Job Number: 48455
Caption on negative: "49455 Miss Ann Griggs 3 8x10 reg." Portrait of 1 man and 3 women. "May 13" and "May 26" without year written on original envelope. Retouching on faces. "Defender Safety Base" edge imprint.
Exhibitions Note:
Reproduction photograph from this negative exhibited in "The Scurlock Studio and Black Washington: Picturing the Promise," NMAAHC Gallery, NMAH, January 30 - November 15, 2009; reprinted in exhibit's companion book.
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Portraits, Group -- 1930-1950 -- Washington (D.C.).  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1930-1950 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number / Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number [cont.]
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep88a0cb088-c55c-4cce-b333-ffbcd2174908
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-02-ref25136

[Fr. Divine (?) in group photo, with woman writing : acetate film photonegative.]

Photographer:
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Names:
Divine, Father, or Rev. (George Baker), ca. 1882-1965  Search this
Subseries Creator:
Scurlock, George H. (Hardison), 1919-2005  Search this
Scurlock Studio (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Scurlock, Addison N., 1883-1964  Search this
Custom Craft  Search this
Scurlock, Robert S. (Saunders), 1917-1994  Search this
Extent:
1 Item
Culture:
African Americans  Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Portraits
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- 1930-1950 -- Photographs
Scope and Contents:
Ink on negative edge: "25695 R.W. [Divine ?] 15 prints". No manufacturer's mark on film edge.
Biographical / Historical:
African-American religious leader, founder of the Peace Mission movement, b. probably near Savannah, Ga. and named George Baker. After preaching in the South, he moved to Harlem (1915) in New York City, became one of the neighborhood's biggest landlords, acquired wealth through other businesses, including restaurants and grocery stores, and began styling himself Major M. J. Divine, later Father Divine. Although once dismissed as a cult leader, he built the largest religious movement in northern ghettos during the Great Depression. His role as an early civil rights activist — he led anti-lynching campaigns, instituted economic cooperatives, and organized political action against racial discrimination — has come to be more appreciated. The movement spread beyond New York City to other places in the United States and abroad, sometimes after the group sent whites to purchase property in segregated areas. During the 1940s, his health and influence declined, but his movement symbolized the progressive spirit in the black church and helped define the church's active role in the civil rights movement. See Sara Harris, Father Divine (rev. ed. 1971); Kenneth E. Burnham, God Comes to America (1979); Robert Weisbrot, Father Divine (1984); Jill Watts, God, Harlem U.S.A. (1992). The Columbia Encyclopedia, Fifth Edition Copyright ©1994, 1995 Columbia University Press.
Addison Scurlock probably photographed Father Divine in 1932, according to research by Professor Leonard Primiano, Cabrini College (e-mail Aug. 6, 2010).
General:
From negative storage Box D.
Subseries Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.

Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives. Special arrangements required to view negatives due to cold storage. Using negatives requires a three hour waiting period. Contact the Archives Center at 202-633-3270.
Subseries Rights:
When the Museum purchased the collection from the Estate of Robert S. Scurlock, it obtained all rights, including copyright. The earliest photographs in the collection are in the public domain because their term of copyright has expired. The Archives Center will control copyright and the use of the collection for reproduction purposes, which will be handled in accordance with its standard reproduction policy guidelines. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Offices  Search this
Organizations  Search this
Cults and nonconventional religious groups  Search this
African American clergy  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs -- 1930-1940 -- Black-and-white negatives -- Acetate film
Portraits -- African American men
Subseries Citation:
Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Smithsonian Institution
See more items in:
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number
Scurlock Studio Records, Subseries 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number / 4.2: Black and white negatives in freezers arranged by job number / Divine (Reverend) and Wife
Archival Repository:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ep8f0c3ef74-469a-45de-923d-b7cbcb0021cc
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-nmah-ac-0618-s04-02-ref27230

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