Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America

Archives related to: Field, Marshall, 1893-1956

titlePapers of William J. Collins, 1902-1958.
repositorySterling and Francine Clark Art Institute
descriptionWilliam J. Collins was brought on as the first curator of prints and drawings in 1958. He had been the head, since 1939, of the Department of Prints at Knoedler & Co. in New York City, where the Clarks purchased many of their artworks. Collins passed away unexpectedly in 1960.

This collection consists of a number of different types of items. A three-ring binder documents sales of prints, drawings, and etchings to such major early-20th century collectors as Henry Clay Frick, Andrew W. Mellon, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Joseph Widener, and Blanche Adler. Sales date back as early as 1902, so the binder probably belonged to Collins's predecessor at Knoedler's, Norman F. Wells, or perhaps even Wells's predecessor.

Collins kept a number of loose letters and ephemera stored inside its covers. There is also a small bound leather book divided into alphabetically tabbed sections. Most of the pages are blank, but some contain more lists in the same handwriting as the binder. They may also be prints and drawings bought or sold by Knoedler, but the annotations use abbreviations and numbers that are indecipherable.

An A-Z accordion file contained items relating to both the life and work of Collins, including a letter to his father composed after his brother was killed in battle during World War I; a letter from RSC, along with Collins's responses, regarding some prints RSC was hoping to buy; photographs of works Collins was buying or selling; ephemera relating to art shows; and other correspondence.

A black spring binder contains notebook pages with writing in pencil. There are passages that relate to the Bible and to art history. There is some translation from German. There is nothing conclusively identifying this object with Collins and its purpose remains unclear. The remaining items were found in Collins's room at the Williams Inn after he died. These include catalogs and other publications; several small oil paintings perhaps done by Collins; ephemera such as his credit card and Catholic holy cards; and additional correspondence and documents. One folder of materials is labeled James F. Drake, Inc. and contains correspondence between Collins and the rare book dealer regarding obtaining a number of art books for the Clark.

extent.8 linear ft.
formatsPhotographs Correspondence Ephemera Inventories Financial Records
accessContact the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute Library for further details.
record sourcehttp://cdm16245.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/
finding aidAvailable online and at the repository (Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Library).
acquisition informationThe binder and the book were acquisitioned in early 2007 after being removed from a collection of items that eventually made up the Realia and the Personal series of the Sterling and Francine Clark Papers. The A to Z file and personal items were accessioned in October 2007, along with records pertaining to the Prints and Drawings Collection.
updated03/16/2023 10:29:55
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titleVose Galleries of Boston records, circa 1876-1996, bulk 1920-1940
repositoryArchives of American Art
description** Material relating to Marshall Field Box 7, Folder 1

The records of Vose Galleries of Boston measure 25.6 linear feet and date from circa 1876, 1890s-1996 with the bulk of materials dating from 1920s-1930s. Nearly 90 percent of the collection documents the gallery's handling of American paintings and portraits through incoming and outgoing business correspondence with artists, clients, galleries, and museums, including considerable correspondence with portrait artist Alfred Jonniaux and clients regarding commissioned portraits.

Other materials include client files; artists' biographies; records of sales, consignments, framing, restoration, and banking, mostly from the 1940s-1960s; and scattered exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings, and postcards.

Also found is a handwritten manuscript regarding the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, PA and a 1991 videotape about the Vose Galleries and its founding family.

Correspondence of note is with artists Childe Hassam, Malvina Hoffman, Alfred Jonniaux, and John Singer Sargent; galleries Ehrich Galleries, Clapp & Graham Co., M. Knoedler & Co., Macbeth Galleries, Milch Galleries, Newhouse Galleries, Arthur U. Newton Galleries, Norton Galleries, and Howard Young Galleries; the estates of Anna Coleman Ladd and William E. Norton; and the family of Abbott H. Thayer.

Researchers should note that the records do not comprehensively span the gallery's history or operations. The bulk of the collection is correspondence from the 1920s-1930s and, lesser so, from the 1970s.

There is little material in the collection which dates before the 1910s or the 1950s-1960s, other than correspondence regarding Alfred Jonniaux and some financial records.

Records loaned for microfilming should be consulted for materials outside of the bulk dates of this collection, especially for materials from the late 1800s-early 1900s.

Bio / His Notes:
Vose Galleries (founded 1841) is a long time family run art gallery based in the Boston, Mass. area.

Additional forms:

Materials lent for microfilming on reels B1, 2380, 4593-4594, and 4909 available for use at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.

Reels 3936-3940 available for use only at Archives of American Art offices.

Loc. of Assoc. Material:
From 1965-1994, Vose Galleries of Boston loaned materials to the Archives of American Art for microfilming which are available on microfilm reels B1, 2380, 3936-3940, 4593-4594, and 4909 and by interlibrary loan. These materials were returned after microfilming and not included in later donations from the gallery.

Reel B1 contains a scrapbook compiled by Seth Vose and annotated by Robert Vose that contains clippings, 1886-1900, and an 1889 letter from author and critic Alfred Trumble; and a scrapbook compiled and annotated by Robert C. Vose spanning the years 1920-1940, 1897, and 1905, and containing clippings and handwritten lists.

Reel 2380 contains numerous photographs, circa 1890-1964, of Seth Morton Vose, Robert C. Vose, Sr., artists, collectors, and dealers associated with Vose Galleries; a Macbeth Gallery "smoker" in honor of Emil Carlsen; a drawing of Charles Emil Heil by George F. Wing, and a charcoal drawing after Monticelli by Albion Harris Bicknell. Many of the photographs are annotated by Robert C. Vose.

Reels 3936-3940 contain account books, 1871-1887; a journal, 1889-1903, a ledger, 1889-1901; invoice books, 1896-circa 1954, inventories of paintings and drawings in stock, 1884, 1892 and 1906; exhibition records, 1911-1982?; traveling exhibition records, 1915-1949; and a record of paintings sold, 1876-1894. Written permission is required to access these reels.

Reels 4593-4594 contain clippings, undated and 1891-1989, chiefly about purchases, sales and exhibitions, but also pertaining to art dealers, museums, artists, and art events.

Reel 4909 contains a scrapbook of clippings, announcements, programs, and other printed materials, 1882-1993.

The Archives of American Art holds several separately cataloged collections related to Vose Galleries of Boston, including the Carrig-Rohane Shop records (1903-1962); oral history interviews with Seth Morton Vose (July 24, 1986 - April 28, 1987) and Robert C. Vose, Jr. (June 27 - July 23, 1986); a sound recording and videotape of a Robert C. Vose, Jr. lecture at the Somerset Club (May 14, 1987); a sound recording of an interview with Robert C. Vose (March 1961); the Miscellaneous Art Exhibition Catalog collection containing Vose Galleries exhibition catalogs, circa 1900-1941; and, Robert C. Vose, Jr. typescripts and clippings, 1961, on microfilm reels 3480 and 4314.

Cite as:
Vose Galleries of Boston records, circa 1876, 1890s-1996, bulk 1920s-1930s. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

extent25.6 linear ft.
formatsCorrespondence Photographs Scrapbooks Financial Records Catalogs
accessREELS 3936-3940: ACCESS RESTRICTED; written permission required. Microfilmed portion must be consulted on microfilm. Use of unmicrofilmed portion requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. storage facility. Reels 3936-3940: Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from an officer of the Vose Galleries, 238 Newbury St., Boston, Mass.02116
record linkhttps://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/AAA.vosegall.pdf
record sourcehttps://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/vose-galleries-boston-records-9272
finding aidIndex to clippings on reels 4593-4594 is available at AAA offices.
acquisition informationScrapbooks on reel B1 lent for microfilming by the Vose Galleries, 1955. Photographs on reel 2380 lent for microfilming, 1981, and unfilmed material donated by the Vose Galleries, 1965 through 1995, including 4 ft. of clippings microfilmed on reels 4593-4594. The clippings were originally compiled by Sibbie Marsh, long-time gallery assistant, and then by Robert C. Vose, Jr. after he joined the firm, circa 1931. The scrapbook on reel 4909 was lent for microfilming 1994. Account books and other records on reels 3936-3940 were processed and microfilmed by the Getty Art History Information Program in 1987; the film was donated by the Getty although the records are retained by Vose. Continuing additions to the records are transferred to the Archives by Robert C. Vose, Jr. as he finishes his use of them in writing a lengthy series of vignettes from the firm's history.
updated06/08/2023 16:42:23
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titleMarshall Field family papers [manuscript], 1875-1985.
repositoryChicago History Museum
descriptionPapers of the Field family of Chicago relating to business (merchandising and publishing), family, and civic and social improvement activities.

Marshall Field, I, materials include: account book 1887-1890, copies of his will; photocopies of outgoing correspondence, 1875-1906 and microfilm; and materials about his estate.

Marshall Field, III, materials include: honorary degrees; correspondence, including his correspondence on race relations with various activist organizations and with members of Chicago's business elite, 1916-1951; obituaries; estate appraisals; and transcripts of interviews conducted after his death with close associates.

Marshall Field, IV, materials include: speeches; law school notebooks; correspondence, 1950-1958; and publicity on Sun-Times Building dedication, 1958.

Marshall Field, V, materials include: Chicago Sun-Times 25th anniversary items, 1966; clippings and documents about the Field Building (including its sale in 1969); and newsclippings on Rupert Murdoch's purchase of the Chicago Sun-Times, 1983-84.

Other materials include abstracts and examinations of title for various Loop locations, and materials on the Chicago Daily News, including annual statements, 1947-1958.

Related:
Related materials at Chicago History Museum, Research Center, include the photographs and publications cataloged separately and the Alexander Hehmeyer papers.


extent44 linear ft. (64 boxes and 15 v.) 1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm. (M. Field, I, letters).
formatsBusiness Papers Personal Papers Financial Records Correspondence Photographs
accessAdvance appointment with special permission required to examine selected originals.
record sourcehttp://chsmedia.org
finding aidDescriptive inventory available at the repository.
acquisition informationGift of members of the Field family (1993.0217; 1995.0220).
updated11/12/2014 11:30:16
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titleField Enterprises records, bulk 1950-1975.
repositoryThe Newberry Library
descriptionThe collection is primarily the work of longtime Field employee Herman Kogan, who in the capacity of Field Enterprises Corporate Historian salvaged much of the material. The collection is not a complete record of the companies and newspapers that were owned by Field Enterprises, but rather a patchwork of materials that Kogan found relevant and interesting.

The collection includes administrative, promotional, and legal materials, correspondence, photographs, and artifacts from the Chicago Daily News, the Sun and Times Company, the Chicago Sun-Times, Field Communications, and other miscellaneous holdings owned by Field Enterprises. The collection contains correspondence from the Field Enterprises executive branch, including Marshall Field III, Marshall Field IV, and Marshall Field V, as well as Milburn (Pete) Akers, Emmett Dedmon, Larry Fanning, Larry Sizer, and Walter Strong. Correspondence from various Chicago Daily News and Chicago Sun Times employees is also present, including Keyes Beech, Jacob Burck, Milt Caniff, John Drury, Georgie Anne Geyer, Smith Hempstone, James Hoge, Herman Kogan, Irv Kupcinet, Ann Landers, Baker Marsh, Paul Scott Mowrer, Richard Scott Mowrer, Lou Pryor, Sterling Quinlan, Mike Royko, Nick Shuman, George Weller, and Lois Wille.

Due to preservation concerns, audio materials are not available for patron use at this time.

Narrative descriptions of the subject matter, types of material, and arrangement of each series are available through the Organization section of the finding aid.

History of Field Enterprises (including the Chicago Daily News, the Sun & Times Company, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Field Communications)

Chicago media conglomorate founded by Marshall Field III. The company was dissolved in 1984.

Field Enterprises, Inc. was incorporated on August 9, 1944, and initially consisted of the Chicago Sun newspaper, founded by Marshall Field III in 1942. In December 1945 the company acquired the Quarrie Corporation, publisher of World Book Encyclopedia and Childcraft. In 1948 Quarrie was merged into Field Enterprises and operated as Educational Corporation.

In 1947 Field Enterprises bought the Daily Times, a popular evening tabloid. Both papers published daily out of the Times' building at 211 W. Wacker Dr., the Sun in the morning and the Times in the afternoon, but less than a year later combined to form the morning newspaper the Chicago Sun-Times. Daily Times sportswriter Irv Kupcinet debuted "Kup's Column" in 1948 for the new Sun-Times. The popular column, which chronicled Chicago nightlife and gossip, would remain a fixture in the Sun-Times until Kupcinet's death in 2003. During the next 10 years, Field Enterprises expanded into a major media company with the acquision of radio stations in Chicago, Cincinnati, Seattle, and Portland, publishing companies Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, and Parade Publications, and the background music businesses Air Music and Functional Music.

Marshall Field III died in 1956, and Field Enterprises experienced a period of considerable expansion under Marshall Field IV. Educational Corporation's World Book instituted a science service which provided newspapers with information on NASA and American astronauts. Field's Newspaper Publisher's Syndicate offered services to newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe, including advice columnist Ann Landers, Milt Caniff's comic Steve Canyon, and political cartoonist Bill Mauldin. The Sun-Times had begun construction on a new, modern building at 401 N. Wabash St. on the Chicago River, and the newspaper moved operations there with much fanfare in 1957. In 1959 Field Enterprises acquired the Chicago Daily News, an evening paper with a long and celebrated history in Chicago. Founded by Melville Stone in 1875, then bought by Victor Lawson in 1876, the Chicago Daily News maintained a consistently influential position in the Chicago newspaper market. The Daily News' Foreign Service was founded in 1898 to cover the Spanish-American war, and was the forerunner of the modern worldwide wire services. The paper won numerous Pulitzer Prizes over the years, and foreign correspondents including Edward Price Bell, Paul Scott Mowrer, George Weller, and Keyes Beech elevated its reputation with their dispatches from around the world. In 1961 the Daily News moved from its building at 400 W. Madison St. into the Sun-Times building at 401 N. Wabash, and the two papers shared equipment and resources but continued to publish separately. During the Field years, the Daily News carried on under the leadership of executive Larry Fanning, who worked with editor Herman Kogan to develop the sophisticated arts and politics supplement Panorama.

In the late 1950s Field Enterprises also bought Paper Flotation, Inc., and the Manistique Paper Company to supply the growing newspaper empire. By 1966 Field Enterprises had expanded into television with the acquision of WFLD-TV, followed by other stations in Boston, San Francisco, Detroit and Philadelphia. The company had also acquired several radio stations including KOIN, WJJD, and WFMF, and these along with WFLD-TV made up much of the Field Communications branch of Field Enterprises.

Marshall Field IV died in 1965, and Field Enterprises assets were split between his sons Marshall Field V and Frederick Woodruff (Ted) Field. Having no prior newspaper experience, Marshall Field V apprenticed in every department of the newspaper division and in 1969 ascended to publisher of the Sun-Times and Daily News. The 1970s saw an increase in popularity for the Sun-Times under editor James Hoge, who recruited film critic Roger Ebert, emphasized lifestyle stories and established a tradition of tough investigative reporting. Concurrently, the Chicago Daily News was experiencing a decline. Though the paper featured popular columnist Mike Royko and pioneering female foreign correspondent Georgie Anne Geyer, circulation for the afternoon paper dropped steadily due to the rise of television and a loss of readership from relocated suburban residents. In 1977 the paper unveiled a new design in an attempt to attract younger readers, but the Daily News finally folded after ninety-one years in 1978.

In 1982, Field Enterprises co-owner Ted Field, who did not reside in Chicago and felt disconnected from the company, decided to concentrate his resources on business interests in the entertainment industry. Under the terms of Marshall IV's will, the brothers could either buy each other out or force a liquidation of the company. Marshall Field V declined to buy his brother out, and the dismantling of Field Enterprises began with the sale of WFLD-TV, followed by the other television stations. In an unpopular decision, the Chicago Sun-Times was sold to Australian businessman Rupert Murdoch's News Corp in 1984. The paper's style changed abruptly, and its tone became more sensational and its politics more Republican. Many longtime employees, among them columnist Mike Royko and editorial writer Lois Wille, both former Daily News employees who stayed on at the Sun-Times, defected to the rival Chicago Tribune. Murdoch later sold the Sun-Times to Hollinger International, which was renamed the Sun-Times Media Company in 2006, after a scandal involving Hollinger board member Conrad Black.


Cite As
Field Enterprises Records, The Newberry Library, Chicago.

Ownership and Literary Rights
The Field Enterprises Records are the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections.

extent163 linear feet
formatsBusiness Papers Administrative Records Financial Records Correspondence Photographs
accessThe Field Enterprises Records are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).
record sourcehttp://www.newberry.org/collections/FindingAids/fieldenterprises/FieldEnterprises.html
finding aidOnline and in repository
acquisition informationGift of Field Enterprises via Herman Kogan, 1984
updated11/12/2014 11:30:16
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