Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Extent:
1 Sound recording
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
1975
General note:
DPA number RA.75.101
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1975 Festival of American Folklife, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Papers relate to Mr. Faust's diverse career, including information on advertising in the 1920s, including two marketing studies from 1920 1922 of Sabetha, Kansas; his War Production Board experience, 1943-1944, which demonstrates the magnitude of that operation, its contribution to the war effort, and the extensive involvement of the American public in the salvage effort; and correspondence relating to his employment with and retirement from the Mutual Broadcasting Company, 1945-1948. These papers constitute a personal record of a successful career which reached its peak with important wartime civilian service.
Scope and Contents note:
These papers all relate to Mr. Faust's career and readily divide into three series: (1) his years with the Curtis Publishing Company, 1918 1943, which contains information on advertising in the 1920s; (2) his War Production Board experience, 1943 1944, which demonstrates the magnitude of that operation, its contribution to the war effort, and the extensive involvement of the American public in the salvage effort; and (3) correspondence relating to his employment with and subsequent retirement from the Mutual Broadcasting Company, 1945 1948. Some of his other papers undoubtedly became part of the final records of both the Curtis Publishing Company and the War Production Board. Mr. Faust's papers constitute a personal record of a successful career which reached its peak with important wartime civilian service.
Arrangement:
Divided into 3 series.
Series 1: Curtis Publishing Company, 1918-1943
Series 2: War Production Board, 1943-1944
Series 3: Mutual Broadcasting Company, 1945-1948
Biographical/Historical note:
Herbert M. Faust spent more than 24 years with the Curtis Publishing Company, from 1918 to 1943. Starting as a salesman in Chicago for Country Gentleman, a magazine published by Curtis, he later became manager of the Cleveland office of the Saturday Evening Post, manager of Curtis' Detroit Advertising Branch, and then manager of the New York Advertising Branch. His final position with the company was as Advertising Manager.
He left Curtis in September 1943 to join the War Production Board as a "dollar a year" man but was quickly transferred to the Federal payroll. The function of the War Production Board was to exercise general direction over the war procurement and production programs of all Federal departments and agencies. Mr. Faust served as Director of the Salvage Division of the War Production Board. During his tenure, there was a very heavy emphasis on paper salvage and much of the material in his papers relates to it.
In November 1944, Mr. Faust left the War Production Board to assume a position as manager of the central division of the Mutual Broadcasting System in Detroit, Michigan. He was employed there until his resignation in January 1949, following which he and his wife moved to California.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Judith A. Crocker, July 1, 1991.
Gift of Judith A. Crocker, Mr. Faust's granddaughter.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
This series consists of records of Mr. Faust's years with Curtis Publishing, include interesting information about advertising in the late 1920s. Of special interest are two marketing studies, from 1920 and 1922, of Sabetha, Kansas, which was selected as being representative of the typical rural American town. The studies consist of a descriptive narrative, charts, maps, photographs, and a profile of the town's businesses and economic life.
Also of interest is a 1929 publication, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Saturday Evening Post. In addition to providing some historical information and explaining how the magazine is printed and distributed, this special publication documents the magazine's circulation and advertising revenue for 1928. It compares the total amount of advertising in the Saturday Evening Post with all other U.S. publications; lists the 100 leading companies in the nation that advertised and provides statistics on where they advertised, how much they spent on advertising, and what kind of advertising they did. In addition, it shows the total amount of advertising carried in the Saturday Evening Post compared to other publications, organized by category of firm that advertised (e.g., automotive, cameras, furniture, refrigeration, etc.).
In addition to career related items and a few personal mementoes, this series includes three issues of separate Curtis Publishing employee magazines (Curtis Folks, September 1923; The Curtis Go Getter, December 1937; and The Curtisman, November 1944). Also included is a December 7, 1929 issue of the magazine advertised as "The Greatest Saturday Evening Post Ever Issued;" evidently, it was printed with new, 45 ton presses that allowed it to be run off in three weeks (whereas one old style flat bed press would have taken 75 years!).
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.
Collection Citation:
Herbert M. Faust Papers, 1918-1949, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Herbert M. Faust Papers, 1918-1949, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
