Series III. Curatorial and Administration Files, 1934-2016, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents Note
The Curatorial and Administration Files series includes records of the museum curatorial staff, principally Mary C. Black (1970-1982), Holly Hotchner (1989-1994), and Annette Blaugrund (1989-1995). The series also holds records of the museum staff's recommendations to the Board Museum Collections Committee. In large part, the files include correspondence concerning proposed exhibitions, general exhibition scheduling, research inquiries, offers of objects for accession, object surveys, and other museum matters. Hotchner's files, especially, also include conservation and general administration matters. Although the bulk of the files date from the 1980s to 1990s, there is a set of files from as early as 1939, the point in time when N-YHS first began to expand and professionalize its museum staff. These early files include accession notes, loan records, and other museum matters.
Arrangement Note
The series is organized in the following subseries:
Subseries III.A. General Files
Subseries III.B. Museum Collections Committee Files RESTRICTED
Subseries III.C. Mary Black Files
Subseries III.D. Holly Hotchner Files
Subseries III.E. Annette Blaugrund Files
Subseries III.F. Margaret (Margi) Hofer Files RESTRICTED
Subseries III.G. Various Curatorial Files
Access Restrictions
Portions of the series are restricted. See the Access Restrictions note at the subseries level.
Subseries III.A. General Files, 1934-1966, 1985-2001
Extent
Scope and Contents Note
This subseries includes files from the Museum Department that have a mix of subject matter and that seem to have been created over time by various staff members, or perhaps by a single but no longer identifiable staff member (i.e., of mixed or uncertain provenance). Additional materials will likely accrue to the subseries over time. As of 2016, there are two "sets" of records in the subseries, designated in the container list simply as "Set A" and "Set B."
Set A includes files that combine both registrar and curatorial matters. The bulk of these files span 1939-1949, dating from the earliest days when N-YHS expanded its museum professional staff. The principal contributors to these files appear to be Carolyn Scoon (Registrar and later Assistant Curator, ranging from the 1940s to about 1966) and H. Maxson Holloway (Curator during part of the 1940s). The date range of the files extends to the 1960s so correspondence to Director R.W.G. Vail and others do appear, in addition to Scoon. The correspondence primarily concerns offers of objects accepted and declined, inquiries regarding objects, loans to and from N-YHS for exhibitions, photograph permissions, and other object-related matters. The subseries includes extensive information about accessions in the form of correspondence, accession receipts, lists, appraisals, and acknowledgements. Library accessions are reflected in these records to a significant degree as well as those of the museum. Donors/correspondents are noted in the container list below when they are represented in a file by substantive documentation or lengthy object lists.
Set B includes more recent (1993-2002) files of inquiries and declined accession offers.
Arrangement Note
The subseries includes various sets of general files produced by the Museum Department over time and these are presented in roughly chronological order or in the order they were accessioned into the archives. The start of each discrete set is labeled in the container list as "Set A," "Set B," and so forth. The arrangement of each set varies, as follows:
Set A follows original order. This was alphabetical by correspondent, though some collection names, if different from the donor, were used to determine filing. Set A has a complete A-Z run that is followed by a second A-Z run. These have overlapping content and the second run simply appears to be additional related documents found at a later time.
Set B follows original order. This was chronological, with folders of correspondence for each month. At the end of the set are folders of declined offers, arranged alphabetically by the offering correspondent or object. Regardless of the fact that these particular files were segregated in the original files, correspondence concerning declined offers can also be found in the main run of Set B.
Processing Information Note
The Set A documents were processed likely in the 1990s. Set B was processed by archivist Larry Weimer in 2016 to a minimal extent; those documents remain in their original folders. The contents of both sets were described by Weimer in 2016 and integrated in a finding aid with other museum records.
Set 1, 193x-196x
Museum/Registrar Files. A, 1939-1965
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Arkenburgh, Arnold, Andre, Agnew, Ainslie, American Museum of Natural History (loan of Catlin paintings for N-YHS's 1941 exhibition), auction receipts from Gimbel's.
Museum/Registrar Files. B (2 folders), 1939-1956
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Blake, Belknap, Bennet, Beekman, Berry, Oscar Barck (Field Exploration), Boardman, Barlow, Brainard.
Museum/Registrar Files. Blair, Mrs. J. Insley (2 folders), 1934-1942
Museum/Registrar Files. C (2 folders), 1939-1949
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Cox, Connor, Cooper Union (loan for 1941 exhibition of textiles at N-YHS), Clement, Corell, Constant, Constantine.
Museum/Registrar Files. D, 1940-1960
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Dietrich, von Drehle, Dyer, Day.
Museum/Registrar Files. De Groot, Adelaide Milton, 1940-1947
Museum/Registrar Files. E, 1939-1953
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Erwin, Van Horne Ellis.
Museum/Registrar Files. F, 1939-1958
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: de Luze Foley, Stuyvesant Fish.
Museum/Registrar Files. G, 1939-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Greenwood, Guernsey, Norvin Green, Richard Gosman estate, Gruver, Gilder.
Museum/Registrar Files. H (2 folders), 1939-1962
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Hand, Marian S. Hornor (loan of objects for N-YHS's 1942 St. Nicholas exhibition), Edgar C. Hyman Co., Havemeyer, Healy, Hirsch (loan of Benjamin West-related paintings by N-YHS to Allentown Art Museum), Hazen Hyde, Hudson River Line, Hanrick.
Museum/Registrar Files. I-J, 1939-1963
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Irwin, Jackson.
Museum/Registrar Files. L, 1939-1959
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Ellouise Baker Larsen, Landauer, Rita Lawrence.
Museum/Registrar Files. M-N (2 folders), 1939-1966
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Marwick, Macomber & Co. and other institutions/museums beginning with M (loan of textiles for N-YHS 1941 exhibition), Megrue, McKesson, Murphy, Newton, Catherine Mackie, Merritt, Abbie C. Miller, Mott.
Museum/Registrar Files. O-Q, 1939-1966
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Overton, Odell, Walter S. Poor, Prentis, F.E. Ogden (includes original photographs and descriptions of donated models of New York buildings), Beecher Ogden, O'Conor, Paltsits.
Museum/Registrar Files. R, 1939-1965
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Richards, Roudin, Root, Katherine Rogers, Francis Rogers, Rives.
Museum/Registrar Files. S-T (3 folders), 1939-1962
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Saint Nicholas Society, Turner, Taylor, Stahl & Sherwood (loan of objects for 1942 N-YHS New York Stage exhibition), list of silver stored in the vault at July 16, 1941, Ruth Ulmann Samuel, Sheean, Tomlinson Collection, Skillin, Schermerhorn, Sealy (Edward Wyer letterbook), Sherwood, Squier, Tinker, Tyler (Gallatin).
Museum/Registrar Files. U-V, 1939-1949
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Verplanck, Voorhies.
Museum/Registrar Files. W-Z (2 folders), 1939-1966
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Ziller, Zabriskie, Wheeler (Abeel kas, with original photograph), Garrett Winter, Louis C. Wills, Helen Wright, Wetherby, Whittemore.
Museum/Registrar Files. A, 1954-1957
Scope and Contents Note
Includes: Van Wyck Anthony, Douglas Anderson, Frederick B. Adams.
Museum/Registrar Files. B, 1948-1962
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Natalie K. Blair.
Museum/Registrar Files. Beekman, 1948-1958
Museum/Registrar Files. Belmont, 1955-1962
Museum/Registrar Files. C, 1935-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Charles Halsey Clark, Carey, Chanler.
Museum/Registrar Files. D, 1950-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Davis, Deavenport.
Museum/Registrar Files. Eberstadt, 1956
Museum/Registrar Files. E-G, 1948-1962
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: De Luze Foley, Ferguson, Stuyvesant Fish, Protestant Episcopal Church.
Museum/Registrar Files. Gallatin, 1951-1954
Museum/Registrar Files. H-K, 1934-1964
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Horn, Harbord, Jay, James Foundation, Haacker, Herrick, Irwin, Keppler, Kimball.
Museum/Registrar Files. Hanks, 1959-1963
Museum/Registrar Files. Hanna, 1950
Museum/Registrar Files. Havemeyer (3 folders), 1949-1961
Museum/Registrar Files. Kilroe, 1948-1950
Scope and Contents Note
Includes a booklet with original bookplates and descriptions, 1905-1944.
Museum/Registrar Files. K, 1939-1967
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Enit Kaufman, R. Keith Kane.
Museum/Registrar Files. L, 1939-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Landauer, Linsley.
Museum/Registrar Files. Livingston, 1950-1960
Museum/Registrar Files. Lockman, 1955-1958
Museum/Registrar Files. M-P, 1948-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: McKim Mead & White, Paltsits, Hudson River Day Line (A.V.S. Olcott), McKay.
Museum/Registrar Files. Murdock, Undated
Museum/Registrar Files. Murphy (Prentis), 1953-1957
Museum/Registrar Files. Quistgaard, 1951-1965
Museum/Registrar Files. R, 1954-1961
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: Rockwell, Katherine R. Rogers, Rutledge.
Museum/Registrar Files. Ramage, 1947
Museum/Registrar Files. Stuart, 1944
Museum/Registrar Files. Townsend, 1959
Museum/Registrar Files. Vail, R.W.G., 1958-1960
Museum/Registrar Files. Varick Papers, 1960-1961
Museum/Registrar Files. Von Kienbusch, 1956-1960
Museum/Registrar Files. V-Z, 1948-1960
Scope and Contents Note
Includes, among others: G. Creighton Webb, Davenport West, Westervelt, Welch, Zabriskie.
Correspondence re: possible future gifts and bequests, 1948-1980, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes correspondence with James C. Daily (1948), Anna Marvin (1962), Nellie Kingsland (1967), and others.
Set 2
Museum Correspondence (7 folders), 1992 June, 1993 February-1996 April
Museum Correspondence (5 folders), 1996 May-1997 June
Museum Correspondence (5 folders), 1997 July-1998 December
Museum Correspondence (5 folders), 1999 January-2000 May
Museum Correspondence (4 folders), 2000 July-2001 March
Museum Correspondence (4 folders), 2001 April-2002 May
Declined Offers (2 of 5 folders), 1995-2001
Declined Offers (3 of 5 folders), 1985-2001
Subseries III.B. Museum Collections Committee Files, 1977-2013, inclusive
Extent
Access Restrictions
N-YHS restricts Board of Trustee and Executive Office files for 50 years following the departure of a President and Chief Executive Officer. This subseries includes files related to Board and Board Committee matters, and so is restricted accordingly. Records from 1977-1982 (from the administraton of James Heslin) are restricted until 2033. Records from 1983-1988 (from the administration of James B. Bell) are restricted until 2039. Files holding the records of Bell's successors will be opened in subsequent years. While the restriction applies, these records may be used only by, or with the permission of, the President and Chief Executive Officer, the head of the Museum Department, or their designee.
Subseries III.C. Mary Black Files, 1940, 1968-1983
Extent
Scope and Contents Note
The subseries includes files maintained by and for Mary Childs Black (referred to as "MCB" in many of the documents), who was Curator of Painting, Sculpture and the Decorative Arts at N-YHS from 1970 through 1982. Black was an authority on American folk art. Prior to joining N-YHS, she had been the Director of the Museum of American Folk Art in New York (1964-1970) and Director of the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Collection at Williamsburg (late 1950s-1964).
Black's records primarily include two overlapping sets of files, one ordered by subject and the other ordered chronologically. The chronological files generally hold only correspondence and the topics include proposed and executed exhibitions, publication and other projects, research inquiries, professional exchanges, offers of objects for accession, and other museum professional matters. The subject files also hold correspondence concerning the same general and even particular matters, but also hold a broader range of documentation, such as photographs, research notes on artists and other topics, drafts of articles and other writings, etc. The container list includes a complete list of the subject files, using the original label headings. These first two sets were processed and described in 2016; in 2021, additional materials from Black's files were transferred to the archves and these were described broadlt at the box level and are found at the end of the container list.
It appears that many files related to specific exhibitions might have been removed from these records and boxed separately. For files of exhibitions during Black's tenure, at least many of which were surely from Black's office, see Series II. Exhibitions, Subseries A. General Files.
Although the bulk of the material dates from the years of Black's tenure at N-YHS, there is a set of 1940s correspondence between the United States Trust Company of New York and the Museum of the City of New York concerning the bequest of a Trumbull portrait to MCNY, subsequently renounced in favor of N-YHS (see the Trumbull subject file).
Arrangement Note
The subseries opens with the alphabetically arranged subject files followed by the chronological correspondence files. The subseries concludes with descriptions of content of boxes added to the finding aid in 2021.
Processing Information Note
Portions of the Mary Black files have been processed over time. It appears that many artist reference files, which are part of the subject files, were refoldered, likely in the 1990s. Minor processing appeared to have been done with other subject files. The chronological correspondence files were refoldered, likely in the early 2000s. In September 2016, archivist Larry Weimer made minor refinements in the arrangement, but principally focused on completing an inventory and description to integrate the files with the overall Museum Department record group. Little additional physical processing was done in 2016 so most of the subject files remain in their original folders.
Additional materials were transferred to the archives in 2018-19 and added to the finding aid in 2021 by Larry Weimer. These largely remain as received from the museum with no further processing.
A. General, 1976-1979
Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, Williamsburg, 1978-1982
Abigail Adams Smith Museum, 1981
Abrams, Harry N., Inc., 1977
Acknowledgements of Books, Catalogs, Etc., 1981
Paintings, Furniture, Etc. in Storage, Paterson, NJ, 1969-1970
Albany Institute of History & Art, 1976-1982
Alland Collection (Bracklow Photographs), 1981-1982
American Antiquarian Society, 1970s
American Art & Antiques, 1979
American Craft Museum, 1981
American Indian Relations, New York, 18th Century, Undated
American Society of Interior Decorators (Designers), 1980-1981
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1978
Amerika Haus Berlin, 1976-1977
Amon Carter Museum of Western Art, 1972-1982
Andrews, Faith (Mrs. Edward Deming), 1980-1981
Annual Report, 1972-1975
Antiques World, 1981-1982
Architectural Renderings, 1980
Archives Reference & Research Advisory Board (New York City), 1981
Aron, Bill (Photographer), 1978
Art on the Road, 1980
Art Commission (New York City), 1980-1981
Art Institute of Chicago, 1981
Associate Curator. Job Description, 1981
Association of Historians of American Art, 1981
Astoria Motion Picture & Television Foundation, 1981-1982
Audio-Visual & Films, 1975-1977
B. General, 1971-1979
Bank of New York, 1979
Beard, Rick, 1980-1981
Belmont (That Belmont Look), 1981
Bailey, Rosalie Fellows, 1979-1981
Bemis, William Otis. Biography, 1970s
Bicentennial, 1972-1973
Bicentennial Information Network (BINET), 1974
Black, Mary Childs, 1974-1982
Scope and Contents Note
Includes miscellaneous memos, file inventory, a biographical sketch, and other documents.
Black Watch (Commander Force), 1979
Blackburn, Roderic, 1974
Boscobel Restoration, 1979
Bradford Manuscript Exhibition, 1977
Breaking Ground Exhibition, 1981-1982
Bridges, Charles, 1981
Brighton Beach Project, 1976
Brochures, 1973
Brodsky. Gotham Medley, 1982
Brooklyn Bridge, Modern Photographers Look At, 1981-1983
Brown, O.J. (artist), 1977
Bryan Collection. Sale (2 folders), 1978-1979
Bundy, Horace, 1971
Burton, Charles (artist), 1979
C. General, 1971-1980
Cabinetmaker (New York) and His Use of Space Exhibition, 1975-1976
Calyo, Nicolino (artist), 1978-1981
Caplan, Frank & Theresa (Creative Playthings) / Institute & Museum of Fantasy & Play, 1978-1982
Carriage Collection, 1977
Central Park, 1977
Scope and Contents Note
Includes offer by Hirschl & Adler Galleries of oil painting by Richards.
Chambers, Thomas (artist), 1979-1980
Chambers, Winthrop (artist), 1980
Channel 13, 1977-1980
Childs Gallery, 1978-1982
Christmas Museum Proposal, 1978
Cole, Lyman Emerson, 1971
Cole, Thomas (artist), 1979-1981
Complaint Letters re: Exhibitions, 1981
Computers & Word Processing. Museum, 1982
Conservation, N-YHS, 1981
Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Design, 1976-1977
Crafft, R.B. (artist), 1971
Crawford, Joyce, 1981
Crawford, Thomas (artist), 1981
D. General, 1976-1980
Damages, Insurance, 1970
Decker, Malcolm, 1975
Delanoy (artist), 1980-1981
Denby, Mrs. William, 1976-1977
DePeyster Limner, 1971
Dexter Hall, 1968-1973
Dover Publications, 1971-1977
Draper, Ruth (accession sheets), 1977
Dunn, Malcolm (appraiser), 1982
Durand, Asher B. (artist), 1976-1980
Durand, John (artist), 1980-1981
Duyckincks (4 folders), 1973-1981
E. General, 1979
Eagles, 1970s
Earle, Ralph (artist), 1977-1980
Eastern Mass. Artist, 1982
Edson, Almira, 1982
Education, 1970-1973
1890 House, 1977
English Folk Art, 1978
Entrance Fees, 1980
Erastus Salisbury Field Exhibition, 1981-1982
European Painting, 1972
Evaluations from Museum Workshop Program's Exhibition Workshop, 1978
Exhibition Files (schedules, plans, proposals, etc.) (8 folders), 1973-1982
F. General, 1973-1979
Farancz, Alan (Paintings Restorer), 1970s
Field, Erastus Salisbury, 1970-1978
Film Project, Historic New York, Hudson River Film Co., 1980
Fisher / Fitch, 1981
Flint Institute of Arts, 1976
Folk Art (3 folders), 1971-1982
Foote, Mary (artist), 1973-1974
Francis, Undated
Freake Limner, Undated
Freenan, George (artist), 1981
Frost, J.O.J (artist), 1971
Frymire, Jacob (artist), 1982
G. General, 1972-1979
Gallery Association of New York State, 1977-1980
Gallery at the Old Post Office, 1982
Scope and Contents Note
Concerns Manhattan Observed and Breaking Ground exhibitions.
Gershinowitz, George, 1982
Gifford, Sanford Robinson, 1981
Gift/Donation Refusals, 1980-1981
Gill, Jill (2 folders), 1975-1981
Glass Files, 1976-1977
Goelet List, Undated
Gracie Mansion (3 folders), 1982
Scope and Contents Note
Includes Black's edited typescript for her "Gracie Mansion: A History of the Mayor's House" and related matter.
Gracie Mansion (4 folders), circa 1977-1981, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes, among other documents, blueprints of the preliminary plans for Gracie Mansion prepared by William C. Shopsin
Greeley & Forest Forgeries. Research, Undated
Greenleaf, Benjamin (artist), 1981
Greitzer, Carol (councilwoman), 1981
Guy, Francis, 1981
H. General, 1971-1979
Hartwell / Haspel (artists), Undated
Heaton, John, 1972-1980
Herot, George (artist), 1975
Herring, James (artist), 1975
Hicks, Edward, 1970-1980
Hirschl & Adler Galleries, 1979-1982
Hoelzer, Hiram (restorer), 1974
Holsapple / Hopkins / Hovey, 1981
Holt, Henry, 1978-1982
Horton, Carolyn (restorer), 1978
Hudson Valley Dutch Museum Survey, 1982
Hudson Valley Studies, 1977
Huntington, Daniel, 1970
Hyde de Neuville, Baroness, 1972-1977
I. General, 1976-1979
Iconography, 1979
Importance of Being Hyphenated, 1981
Insley, Albert, 1982
Interior Design Fair New York City, 1979
Internal Revenue Service, 1981-1982
International Celebration of Art, 1981
International Center for Photography, 1978
International Exhibitions Foundation, 1982
Interoffice Memos, 1976-1977
Inventories. N-YHS Manuscript Collection, Undated
J. General, 1980-1981
Jarvis, John Wesley, 1981
John Judkin Memorial, 1978-1981
Justus Dalee, 1974
K. General, 1973-1978
K and L. General, 1978-1979
L. General, 1979-1983
Kaplan Fund (2 folders), 1979-1982
Kern, Arthur, 1979-1982
Kilburn, Lawrence, 1981
Kindig, Paul E. / Pennsylvania Butter Prints, 1982
Kingston, NY, History of, 1974
Knickerbocker Birthday, 1979
Landscape Catalog, 1971-1982
Lesueur, 1974
Lewis, Jerry (Federal Hall Chairs), 1982
Lighting Fixtures. Case, 3rd Floor West Corridor, Undated
Limners of the Upper Hudson, 1968-1978
Love Galleries, 1982
Lynes, Russell, 1981
Lyons, Louis and Paul Hollister (Glass), 1977
M. General, 1978-1979
Maentel, Jacob (2 folders), 1971-1980
Magriel, Paul, 1980
Manhattan Now (Manhattan Observed), 1981
Marling, Jacob, 1977
Minnigerode, Marietta (artist), 1980
Movers (Global), 1977
Moynihan, Daniel Patrick, 1981
MTA Bus Ex. / Dover Book, 1982
MTA. N-YHS Station, 1979
Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute, 1978-1982
Museum of American Folk Art, 1971-1972
Museum of the City of New York, 1979
N. General, 1976-1980
National Gallery of Art, 1979-1982
National Trust for Historic Preservation, 1982
Nehemiah Partridge Exhibition, 1982
New York City Buildings Records Collection, Planning Committee, 1979
New York City Heath & Hospitals Exhibition, 1981
New York Gallery of the Fine Arts (document photoreproductions), Undated
N-YHS. Membership, 1981
N-YHS. Museum (7 folders), 1970s-1982
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files on budgets (1980s), lighting, facilities, Museum Committee (1980), and other matters.
N-YHS. Publications (2 folders), 1973-1980
New York in Aerial Views, 1980-1981
New York Nostalgia, 1973
New York State Education Dept., 1981
New York Street Furniture, 1982?
Newtown Bee, 1977-1982
19th Century American Paintings Exhibition, 1981
Of the Land's Bounty, Undated
Other Historical Societies, 1970-1976
P. General, 1978-1982
Pace College, 1976-1981
Painter's Materials, 1970
Paintings. Artist Identified, 1970-1976
Paperweights. Book (Hollister) and Exhibition (2 folders), 1971-1977
Partridge, Nehemiah, 1971-1980
Patroon / Paul, 1979
Paul Stewart, 1979
Pavesi, Rudy, 1980-1981
The Peales, 1971-1979
Peck, Sheldon, 1976-1981
Peckham, Robert, 1979-1981
Penniman, John Ritto, 1981
Pennington, Samuel, 1982
Phillips, Ammi (2 folders), 1972-1982
Photographer. David Anderson, 1981
Photographer. Bill Aron, 1978-1980
Pierrepont Limner / Pollard Limner, 1977-1981
Pinney, Eunice, 1971
Pintard Fellows, 1970-1973
Pintard Genealogy, Undated
Pintard Prospects, 1970-1972
Pitigliani, Letizia, 1976-1979
Piwonka, Ruth, 1982
Portrait Catalog, 1970s
Portraits. Artist Unknown (2 folders), 1970-1977
Powers, Asahel, 1980
Prevost, Victor, 1975
Prentis Rooms, 1979
Prior, William Mathew, 1973-1981
Public Relations / Carole Sorell Inc, 1980-1981
Publicity, 1970-1974
Publishing Center for Cultural Resources, 1976-1981
R. General, 1976-1980
Radovanovitch, Georges, Undated
Rapalje / Reiss, 1980
Redecoration of N-YHS, 1972-1973
Reproduction Program, 1976
Reynolda House, 1978
Rice Mansion, 1979
Rifkind, Carole, 1979
Riordan, Marguerite, 1982
River, Bowery, Mill & Beaver, 1973-1976
Rockefeller, Rodman (IBEC), 1979-1982
Rogers, John, 1970-1981
Rosenthal, Odeda, 1980-1982
Ross (Arthur) Foundation, 1981-1982
Ruder & Finn Fine Arts, 1981
S. General, 1976-1982
Salmagundi Club, 1970s
San Francisco Fine Arts Museum, 1981
Sandak Interest, Undated
Sandburg, Carl, 1978
Savage, A.J., 1982
Sawitsky, 1981
Scrimshaw, 1976
Sculpture, 1980
Seaman (artist), 1972
Seminars, 1970-1976
Senate House State Historical Society, 1981
Sessions, Ralph D., 1981
Sharples / Sheffield, 1978-1982
Shelburne Museum, 1981
Ship at South Street, 1982
Shute (artist), 1977
Sinclair Glass, 1975
Sleepy Hollow Restoration, 1981
Smibert / Smillie / Steward, 1981
Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities, 1981
Society of Illustrators, 1981
Society's Sculpture, Undated
South Street Seaport Museum, 1971-1980
Speedwell Village, 1978
St. Marks Church in the Bowery (Oral History), 1981
Staff Meetings, 1970s
Stained Glass, 1981
Staten Island Historical Society, 1980
Stewart, Mrs. William Rhinelander, 1976
Stock, Joseph (3 folders), 1974-1979
Stoneware Jugs in 3rd Floor Corridor, Undated
Storage, 1981
Strawberry Festival, 1978
Sturbridge Limner, 1977
Suppliers to Museums, Undated
Sweetwater Editions, Undated
Synagogue Survey, New York City, 1980
T. General, 1982
Ten Eyck / Thompson, 1977
Terra Museum of American Art, 1981-1982
Textiles, 1971-1982
Tiffany Conservation Project, 1980
Toys, 1973
George Brown Toy Sketchbook, 1971
Trenton High Falls, 1972
Tri-Delta Charity Antiques Show, 1979
Trumbull, John, 1940, 1975-1981
Scope and Contents Note
Includes 1940s correspondence between the United States Trust Company of New York and the Museum of the City of New York concerning the bequest of a Trumbull portrait to MCNY, subsequently renounced in favor of N-YHS.
Tuthill, Abraham / Tuttle, 1977-1981
Twentieth Century Painting, 1975
Ukrainian Museum, 1977
University of Chicago Press, 1980
V and W. General, 1977-1981
Van Dyck / Van Name, 1981
Van Rensselaer Limner, 1974-1975
Vanderlyn, John, 1971-1974
Vanderlyn, Pieter, 1980-1981
Vanderlyn, Peter. Research, 1971-1976
Vandervere, 1979
Velvet Limner, 1981
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 1979-1982
Vose Galleries of Boston, 1978-1982
Wall / Ware, 1980
Washington, George. Portraits, 1979
Waterfront / Stephanie Hollyman Tugboats, 1980
Watherston, Margaret (conservator), 1972-1982
Watson, John. Article (3 folders), circa 1979
West Point, 1981
Wetherbee, Isaac / Wiggin, 1981
Whitney Museum / "Three Centuries of American F. Painters", 1978
Williams, Micah & William, 1971-1974
Wigmore Fine Arts, 1981
Willson, Mary Ann (artist), Undated
Wiltshire / Young / Wilks, 1981
Winiker, Barry M., 1981-1983
Wollaston, John, 1976
Correspondence (4 folders), 1970-1972
Correspondence (11 folders), 1973-1977
Correspondence (10 folders), 1977-1981
Correspondence (8 folders), 1981-1982
Grant and other funding files, 1970s-circa 1982, inclusive
Scope and Contents
This box of grant and other funding-related files was transferred to the archives in 2019 and added to the finding aid in 2021. It includes both accepted and rejected grant applications for exhibitions (especially Audubon and His World) and conservation and storage. Among the organizations noted are NEA, NEH, Municipal Art Society, New York State Council on the Arts, and Institute of Museum Services.
Various exhibition and other files, 1970s-circa 1984, inclusive
Scope and Contents
This box of, primarily, exhibition-related files was transferred to the archives in 2018-19 and added to the finding aid in 2021. Exhibitions with substantive material in the files include "Remember the Ladies" (includes, among other documents, the final blueprint of the exhibition floor plan); "Oom Pah Pah"; and "Moving in the City". There are also files on "Miniatures & Medals," "Paint and Pattern in Rural Pennsylvania," and Bracklow photographs. There are also files on a Hudson Valley Dutch museum survey; damage done to 9 paintings in 1980; the Museum Council of New York; and Municipal Art Society. Some of these files may not have been Mary Black's, but date from her tenure in the museum. Two files relate to a period shortly after her departure: a file of photographs related to the "A Pageant of Heraldry in Britain and America" (circa 1984) and 1983-84 files related to planning for a 1986 Calyo exhibition.
Various exhibition and other files, 1970s, inclusive
Scope and Contents
This box of exhibition-related files was transferred to the archives in 2018-19 and added to the finding aid in 2021. Includes files on three exhibitions: Gracie Mansion (includes the proposed site plan by Smotrich & Platt, et al. of the renovation for the Gracie Mansion Conservancy); "Audubon and His World" (including drawings of the space study for Dexter Hall); "Beyond the Golden Door: Jewish Life in New York." It also includes a file of various documents relating to early 1970s planning for various bicentennial observances.
Subseries III.D. Holly Hotchner Files, 1970-1994
Extent
Scope and Contents Note
The subseries includes, at least primarily, the files of Holly Hotchner. (Some files of other museum personnel, including former curator Ella Foshay (1984-1989), were likely mixed in with these when stored.) These represent the range of Hotchner's activities from her early years in conservation to her later years as Museum Director. The files range from general conservation matters, storage and warehousing, object surveys and inventories, some exhibition and special event planning, and professional activities. Particular initiatives that are well-represented in the subseries include the licensing arrangements with Birchrun Mint to reproduce one of the Rogers groups, "Weighing the Baby", conservation of the Louis XVI chair, planning for new storage at Crozier Warehouse in 1990, and arrangements for the Thomas Cole: Landscape into History and Equitable Gallery exhibitions. There are many files related to outgoing loans, though these may simply be additional files that were inadvertently separated from the bulk of loan files found in Series IV. Collection Management Files. Fuller summaries of the content are provided in the container list below. Certain files related to Hotchner's activities as Museum Director during the 1990s are currently restricted. See the Access Restrictions note.
Arrangement Note
The subseries is arranged by general subject categories. The categories were defined by the processing archivist in order to simplify and summarize the presentation of the many individual folders in the subseries. The archivist developed the categories based on observation of the relationship of groups of folders within the original storage boxes. Although the archivist did make some adjustments to their arrangement, in large part the folders found together remain that way.
Biographical/Historical Note
Holly Hotchner joined N-YHS in 1984 to play a leadership role in the conservation initiatives of the Museum Department. The mid-1980s to early 1990s were a turbulent time in N-YHS's history and Hotchner's scope of responsibility gradually expanded, formally and informally, over this period. By 1989, with the departure of museum curator Ella Foshay (1984-1989), Hotchner was promoted from Chief Conservator to Museum Director. At the same time, the Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architecture (the Print Room) was transferred from the Library to the Museum, where it would remain organizationally until 1998. The Security Department was also transferred to Hotchner's leadership at this time. As Museum Director and a member of the senior management team in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Hotchner was closely involved with N-YHS's facilities and fiscal planning, the effort to broaden the museum's professional staff, and the initiative to refine the institution's collections policy and the associated deaccessioning process. By mid-1993, at the height of N-YHS's fiscal crisis and as a result of large numbers of staff lay-offs, resignations, and other departures, only Hotchner remained as the senior level executive at N-YHS. Her role narrowed in early 1994 as N-YHS Co-Chair "Pug" Winokur took over responsibility for the Museum while Hotchner focused on the deaccessioning initiative of the time and the planning of certain major exhibitions. Later In 1994 Hotchner also left N-YHS.
Access Restrictions
N-YHS restricts Board of Trustee and Executive Office files for 50 years following the departure of a President and Chief Executive Officer. This subseries includes some files related to Board and Board Committee matters, and those files are restricted accordingly. Specifically, the files date primarily from the administration of Barbara Knowles Debs and the interim leaders that followed her (1988-1994) and so they are restricted until 2044. While the restriction applies, those files may be used only by, or with the permission of, the President and Chief Executive Officer, the head of the Museum Department, or their designee.
Processing Information Note
The subseries was processed in September 2016 by archivist Larry Weimer. The material was arranged and described, but the physical processing of individual folders was done to only a minimal extent; specifically, the documents remain in their original folders.
Conservation. General (32 folders), 1970, 1983-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes general conservation matters, including budgets (1984-90), conservation studio opening announcements, summary of interns, job position advertisements, environmental/climate control/lighting, and some general damage assessments.
Conservation. General (6 folders), 1985-1991, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes conservation specifications for window replacement (1989), climate report/survey (1991), and conservation studio reports and construction bids (1980s).
Paintings, Frames, Drawings, Miniatures (7 of 32 folders), 1981-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning condition surveys, priorities, appraisals, inquiries, and other such matters. Specific collections noted include: Abrams Portfolio, T.J. Bryan, City of Plainfield Bierstadt paintings, Thomas William Channing Moore, Mary Stuart, Nora Durand Woodman, landscape and genre paintings (R.G. Wunderlich appraisal of 1984), miniatures, and Luman Reed frames.
Paintings, Frames, Drawings, Miniatures (21 of 32 folders), 1981-1994
Paintings, Frames, Drawings, Miniatures (4 of 32 folders), 1981-1994
Sculpture. General (3 folders), 1990-1992
Scope and Contents Note
Principally concerns a conservation survey and assessment.
Sculpture. Birchrun Mint License (4 folders), 1989-1992
Scope and Contents Note
Concerns reproduction rights for "Weighing the Baby" from the Rogers Group.
Prints, Photographs, & Architectural (11 folders), 1979-1993
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files on conservation, surveys, general descriptions, inquiries, consideration of transferring the Print Room collections from the museum to the library, and other such matters. Specific collections referred to include: James H. Hyde, Ferdinand Ogden, Cass Gilbert, McComb, Landauer, and McKim Mead & White.
Decorative Arts (16 of 35 folders), 1975-1993
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning surveys, descriptions, appraisals, and conservation of furniture, carriages, silver, and Tiffany glass. Several of the files concern the Louis XVI side chair (1817.13). Other specific objects include the Duncan Phyfe tool chest, the Connecticut House facade (from Prentis-Murphy), the Steinway Hose carriage, and DePeyster, Beekman, Nadelman, and LeBoeuf collections. An oversize plan was removed from a folder into an oversize box noted below.
Decorative Arts. Oversize, 1985
Scope and Contents Note
Includes an oversize plan of the Phyfe tool chest by Carlyle Lynch.
Storage & Warehousing (9 of 44 folders), 1983-1993
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning the planning for the transfer of objects (principally paintings and decorative art) stored at Central Park West and off-site to a new offsite location (Crozier Fine Arts, Inc. on West 20th Street) in 1990. Includes storage and floor plan blueline drawings by architects Allan Greenberg and Richard Jansen. Oversize plans were removed from folders into an oversize drawer noted below.
Storage & Warehousing (30 of 44 folders), 1983-1993
Storage & Warehousing (5 of 44 folders), 1983-1993
Storage & Warehousing. Oversize, 1989-1990
Scope and Contents Note
Includes oversize storage and shelving plans removed from the above files.
Museum Design/Facilities (8 folders), 1989-1991
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files related to redesigning some of N-YHS's exhibition space, including files on architects Allan Greenberg and Richard Jansen, and lighting consultant George Sexton. See also New-York Historical Society (NYHS-RG 4) for much more on N-YHS's planned renovations during this period.
Museum Design/Facilities. Oversize, 1990
Scope and Contents Note
Includes an oversize plan by Richard Jansen of the 3rd floor corridor lay-out (i.e., West Hall offices).
Acquisitions (36 of 47 folders), 1985-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes folders concerning general policies and information about accessions and deaccessions, proposed gifts, bequests and other acquisitions (including rejected objects), and photoccopies of correspondence and other documents related to specific acquisitions of paintings, drawings, sculpture, decorative arts, prints, and photographs.
Acquisitions (11 of 47 folders), 1985-1994
Exhibitions. General (8 of 9 folders), 1985-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files of exhibition proposals (including a proposed touring exhibition of the Neustadt Tiffany collection in 1985), rejected proposals, schedules, and the like.
Exhibitions. General (1 of 9 folders), 1993-1994
Exhibitions. U.S. Constitution: Government by Choice, 1986
Exhibitions. Cased Images and Irving Browning, 1989
Exhibitions. Tiffany, 1988-1990
Exhibitions. Audubon (6 folders), 1980-1992
Scope and Contents Note
Includes materials related to various Audubon exhibitions and proposed exhibitions.
Exhibitions. Tenth Street Studio; Portrait Gallery, 1992
Scope and Contents Note
Includes an overall description of the proposed Tenth Street exhibition and label text for the Portrait Gallery.
Exhibitions. Collection Re-Installation, 1992-1993
Exhibitions at Sony Corp., 1993
Exhibitions. Creating American Cultural Heroes, 1994
Exhibitions. 2 X Immortal: Elvis & Marilyn, 1994
Exhibitions. Thomas Cole: Landscape into History (16 folders), 1992-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes correspondence and agreements with the National Museum of American Art, funding proposals, press and other publicity materials, wall text, and other documents.
Exhibitions at The Equitable Gallery (9 folders), 1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes correspondence, draft agreements, press and other publicity materials, brochure text, and other documents related to the exhibition of N-YHS objects at The Equitable.
Loans (12 of 51 folders), 1985-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes some general files on policies and procedures related to N-YHS's outgoing loans of objects, and files on loans denied or withdrawn during N-YHS's fiscal crisis. The following box has files related to specific loans, some for extended periods and others for specific timebound exhibitions. These files were likely inadvertently separated from other loan files that were integrated into Series IV. Collection Management Files, Subseries B. Outgoing Loans.
Loans (39 of 51 folders), 1985-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Among others, the files include loans to Brooklyn Museum, Waterloo Village, War Memorial Museum of Virginia, Museums at Stony Brook, Owen Thomas Museum, New York Law Institute, Chesterwood, Department of the Navy (includes photographs of USS Monitor (1862.9) and Tingey uniform (1932.221), Monticello, Gracie Mansion, Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, Baltimore Museum of Art, Colonial Williamsburg, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Bibliotheque Nationale de France, Hudson River Museum, Jordan-Volpe Gallery, National Academy of Design, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Audubon House, National Portrait Gallery, and Brandywine River Museum.
Public Programs & Collections Access (23 folders), 1986-1992
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning various public programs, including a slide show talk providing an overview of the collections (1986), publicity material for programs, summary lists, proposed visitor surveys, a study of visitor and member groups (1988), and a review of the use of museum collections and staff in education and research programs.
Special Events (13 folders), 1993-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning private uses of N-YHS's facilities, including for filming such as Robert Redford's Quiz Show and TV's Law and Order, and for meetings of Community Advisory Board 7, the Alliance for the Arts, and Bard College's Decorative Arts program symposium. The files also reference film rights for material, including for Florentine Films' series The Civil War.
Professional Activities and Miscellaneous (9 of 37 folders), 1984-1994
Scope and Contents Note
These files include documents related to N-YHS's and Hotchner's professional affiliations, such as with the Association of American Museums and sponsoring student studies at N-YHS, and Hotchner's professional activities outside of N-YHS, particularly in terms of lectures on conservation. There are also a small number of files on subjects that did not fit clearly into other categories.
Professional Activities and Miscellaneous (28 of 37 folders), 1978-1994
Subseries III.E. Annette Blaugrund Files, 1989-1995
Extent
Scope and Contents Note
The subseries includes, at least in large part, the files of Annette Blaugrund, Senior Curator of Paintings, Drawing & Sculpture from 1989-1995. The files include correspondence concerning proposed exhibitions, research inquiries, offers of objects for accession, and other museum matters. The files also include object surveys, especially for sculpture, and general administration and exhibition planning documents. Fuller summaries of the content are provided in the container list below. Certain of Blaugrund's files are currently restricted. See the Access Restrictions note. A major initiative of Blaugrund's was the planning for an exhibition about the Tenth Street Studio Building. This subseries holds few or no files on the matter; the bulk of these were integrated at some point with other exhibition files. See Series II. Exhibitions, Subseries I. General Files, folders for Painting and Patronage: The Tenth Street Studios (1993).
Arrangement Note
The subseries is arranged by general subject categories. The categories were defined by the processing archivist in order to simplify and summarize the presentation of the many individual folders in the subseries. The archivist developed the categories based on observation of the relationship of groups of folders within the original storage boxes. Although the archivist did make some adjustments to their arrangement, in large part the folders found together remain that way.
Access Restrictions
N-YHS restricts Board of Trustee and Executive Office files for 50 years following the departure of a President and Chief Executive Officer. This subseries includes some files related to Board and Board Committee matters, and those files are restricted accordingly. Specifically, the files date primarily from the administration of Barbara Knowles Debs and the interim leaders that followed her (1988-1994) and so they are restricted until 2044. While the restriction applies, those files may be used only by, or with the permission of, the President and Chief Executive Officer, the head of the Museum Department, or their designee.
Processing Information Note
The subseries was processed in September 2016 by archivist Larry Weimer. The material was arranged and described, but the physical processing of individual folders was done to only a minimal extent; specifically, the documents remain in their original folders.
General Correspondence & Memos (7 of 17 folders), 1991-1995
Scope and Contents Note
Includes correspondence and memos concerning incoming research inquiries about objects and artists, exhibition proposals, offers of objects, and other museum matters.
General Correspondence & Memos (10 of 17 folders), 1989-1995
Administrative Files (4 folders), 1989-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files concerning visitor counts, intern tasks, filing system, a museum brochure reference material, and facilities information, especially lighting recommendations for the second floor corridor gallery.
Collections Policies (4 folders), 1990-1994
Exhibitions (7 of 11 folders), 1991-1995
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files on proposed exhibitions and planning meeting and procedures. One file includes notes concerning the Treasury of the Past (1995) exhibition and another concerns a long-term loan to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation.
Exhibitions (4 of 11 folders), 1987-1995
Scope and Contents Note
Includes files on the Paris 1889: American Artists at the Universal Exposition and Rare Birds of China exhibitions, and a proposed Urban Gallery.
Research Sources (4 folders), circa 1991-1993
Scope and Contents Note
Includes notes and other documents identifying art research sources.
Object Descriptions & Inventories (11 of 13 folders), 1990-1994
Scope and Contents Note
Principally includes surveys and inventories of paintings and sculpture.
Object Descriptions & Inventories (2 of 13 folders), 1993
Scope and Contents Note
Includes a system-generated Sculpture Checklist as of April 15, 1993, by Ann Weissman.
Subseries III.G. Various Curatorial Files, 2002-2016, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
The subseries includes files transferred to the archives from the museum that were those of various curators, assistant/associate curators, contracted consulting curators, or others involved in developing exhibitions or shaping the collection scope and presentation. In many instances, the specific provenance of the files may not be clear and were included here because of the nature of the subject matter.
Arrangement
The files are loosely arranged and were generally retained as transferred to the archives.
Processing Information
The subseries was formed in 2021 in order to accommodate files transferred to the archives in 2017-2019 that could not be readily placed with the series structure established in 2016 when the bulk of the records were processed. These files were minimally processed and are generally described at the box level.
Exhibition curatorial working files, circa 1996-2004, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Primarily includes files from Mina Weiner, Jan Ramirez, Kathy Hulser, and Ellen Denker. Primarily concerns object lists, text, planning, programming, and the like for various exhibitions, including especially: Alexander Hamilton, Life on a Lapel, Family Matters, Jules Feiffer, Home Sewn, Bella Landauer: Collecting Enterprises, Revolutions, British in New York, the N-YHS Bicentennial in 2004. Includes some other planning documents, such as a Visible Storage Best Practices Analysis (1997).
Exhibition curatorial working files, 2002-2012, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Files transferred to the archives in 2017. These files are primarily from the office of Museum Director Linda Ferber and relate to various exhibitions. These include AIDS, Armory Show, Historical Fictions, Legacies, Lincoln & New York, Finding Priscilla's Children, Audubon's Aviary, Ashcan Painters, Atlantic Revolutions, Grant & Lee, Clarice Lee, New York Divided, and a few other smaller files.
Exhibition curatorial working files, 2009-2010, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes Marybeth de Filippis's file on "Dutch New York between East and West: The World of Margrieta van Varick (2009); binder and file on object conservation for the Great Hall (2010); binder of "100% Design Development with Exhibit Script and Exhibit Item Schedule" for the Dimenna Childen's Museum (2010); and proposals for a N-YHS web redesign by Mediatrope LLC and by Tronvig Group (2010).
Exhibition curatorial working files, 2008-2011, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes files on the Cholera and the Insulin exhibitions.
Exhibition curatorial working files, circa 2009-2016, inclusive
Scope and Contents
The box appears to hold exhibition-related files from Linda Ferber. Principal files concern: Coast & Sea, Making It Modern (Nadelman), Making American Taste, Beauty's Legacy, Clarice Smith, Swing Time (Reginald Marsh), and photographs of A New Light on Tiffany as exhibited at the Flagler Museum (2012).
Various curatorial files, circa 2012-2014, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Includes a small set of Linda Ferber files, including those on the Hudson River School exhibition.