Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America

Archives related to: Sutton, James F., 1843-1915

titleAmerican Art Association Records, circa 1853-1929, bulk 1885-1922
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionPapers retained by Kirby, 1910-1923, including photograph and price files on more than 100 auctions, 1910-1913, 1915-1918, and 1921-1923, with sections from a typescript of the history of the firm describing many of the sales; a correspondence and clipping file, 1910-1923, containing letters from William Merritt Chase regarding the sale of his collection, David Belasco, Joseph Widener, Lockwood deForest, John P. Morgan, and others; an address on the history of the Association delivered by Kirby; and a small file of material commemorating the death of Francis Davis Millet, drowned in the sinking of the Titanic, 1912.

REELS 4478-4484: 28 v. of record books, including 14 v. recording sales of paintings, 1885-1921; "Disposition of Pictures," 1886-1891 (mostly 1887), (1 v.); "Pictures Rec'd and Delivered," July 1881-May 1891 (1 v.); Submissions to New York Water Color Club, 1890-1892 (1 v); Sales by other galleries and auction houses, 1853-1902 (4 v.), representing sales in Paris and the U.S., apparently compiled from printed catalogs; stock book, 1887-1917, of "Paintings," (1 v.), and a stock book for furniture of the American Art Association offices, 1912 (1 v.); and 4 albums of photographs of Stanford White's house and collection, auctioned November 1907.

UNMICROFILMED (7.7 linear ft.): Thomas Kirby's correspondence, speeches, partnership agreements, memorabilia, and notes and manuscript pages from his autobiography and biography (both unfinished); speeches and press releases related to the 1922 opening of the American Art Galleries; files on auctions and exhibitions, 1884-1910, compiled by Rose H. Lorenz to aid Charles De Kay in the preparation of Kirby's biography "Art Under the Hammer" (unfinished), containing correspondence, clippings, price lists, photographs and manuscript pages; financial records of auctions, 1918-1922; memoranda and legal papers; clippings, exhibition catalogs, 1853-1917; and photographs.

Among the photographs are several of Thomas Kirby and 1 of Gustavus, and a group of 62 cabinet photographs taken by photographers in Paris, all but a few of French artists, probably related to the Association's involvement in the late 1890s to early 1900s of sales of paintings by French artists.

UNMICROFILMED (13 linear ft.): ca. 172 volumes and packages, including account books (75 v.); Bric-a-Brac (4 v.), salary lists (5 v.), sales of books, etchings, etc. (4 v.), catalog distribution (3 v.), and address books (128 v.). Also included are 9 v. of ledgers from the Blakeslee Galleries, presumably acquired in 1914 when gallery owner Theron Blakeslee died, and the Association auctioned off the Gallery's paintings.
extent27.8 Linear feet
formatsCorrespondence Photographs Clippings Financial Records Notes
accessMicrofilmed portion must be consulted on microfilm. Use of unmicrofilmed portion requires an appointment and is limited to Washington, D.C. storage facility.
record linkhttps://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/AAA.amerarta.pdf
record sourcehttps://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/american-art-association-records-6973
finding aidUnmicrofilmed (7.7 linear ft.): Box inventory available at AAA offices. Reels 4478-4484: Inventory of record books available at AAA offices.
acquisition informationMaterial on reels 422-425 was donated in 1968 by Kirby's daughter, Mrs. Thomas B. Waller. The unmicrofilmed material and record books on reels 4478-4484 were originally given to the American Antiquarian Society by Gustavas T.Kirby, son of Thomas E. Kirby, in 1936. The Antiquarian Society placed the record books on deposit at the Archives of American Art in 1972 and subsequently donated them along with the Kirby material January 1978. An additional 5 items concerning the opening of the Association's new building were donated 1993 by the American Antiquarian Society.
updated06/08/2023 16:42:08
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titleEdward Gay and Gay family papers, 1852-1975.
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionCorrespondence, photographs, sketchbooks, printed material, writings, and biographical material on Edward, Martha Feary, Duncan, and Ingovar Gay.

REEL D30: Letters to Edward Gay from artists and others, concerning activities of the Artists Fund Society, New York Art Guild, exhibitions, travel and business; sketchbooks; photographs; a marriage certificate, 1864, lease and mortgage; exhibition catalogs and clippings; business papers and clippings on the Artists Fund Society; and art criticism written by Martha Fearey Gay, Edward's wife, for the Albany Evening Journal, 1885-1887. Among the correspondents are American Art Union, William J. Arkell, M. Deforest Bolmer, George H. Boughton, John G. Brown, Andrew F. Bunner, Jasper F. Cropsey, John H. Dolph, A. Duprat, Theodore F. Dwight, John M. Falconer, Seymour J. Guy, James M. Hart, William Hart, Daniel Huntington, George Inness, Eastman Johnson, H. R. Latimer, Oliver I. Lay, William H. Lippincott, Frank J. Mather, Thomas Moran, Levi P. Morton, James C. Nicoll, Erastus D. Palmer, Gardner A. Reckard, T. Addison Richards, David P. Secor, Lars G. Sellstedt, Charles E. Smith, Watson C. Squire, James F. Sutton, J. M. Toucey, Townsend & Evans, William Winter, and A. H. Wyant.

REEL 866: Edward's correspondence with Martha and Duncan Gay, Oliver I. Lay, George H. Boughton, Bayard Taylor, Henry Wolf, and George H. Smillie; legal documents; photographs of Edward (one by Giles Bishop and Son, 1912); exhibition catalogs and clippings; an essay "Potatoes and Point" and a book "The Social and Cultural Development of Mount Vernon, New York" by Dorothy Gay Gordon.

UNMICROFILMED: Biographical material, ca. 1901-1970, on Duncan, Edward, and his wife Martha and his daughter Ingovar; legal documents, ca.1890-1915, including Edward's citizenship papers and will; family correspondence, ca. 1863-1974, consisting of letters to and from Edward, ca. 1863-1914, letters from Duncan to his parents from St. Augustine, Fla., ca. 1882-1883, a letter to Duncan from Louis C. Tiffany, Feb. 27, 1891, letters to Ingovar from Martha, ca. 1888-1931, relating to family matters; and correspondence, ca. 1965-1974, from collectors, museums, and historical institutions concerning ownership of Edward's paintings.

Also found are clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs; a portion of Martha's journal, undated; three small oil on canvas sketches of apple blossoms by Edward; an article from "The Graphic," January 13, 1894, with a reproduction of a painting by Edward; Duncan's sketches and drawings of his trip to St. Augustine, 1882-1883, a sketchbook from his trip to Japan, China, and Indonesia, 1909, a watercolor sketch for a stained glass memorial window, and drawings for his house; and slides of Duncan's artwork. Photographs, undated and 1901-1902, include Edward and Martha in their homes and studio in Mt. Vernon, Stoneridge and Cragsmoor, New York, family members, Duncan and his trip to Asia, several family snapshots of Edward's children, Dorothy, Helen, Ingovar, Ruth, William and their families, family trips to Italy, Canada, Connecticut, and New York.

Photographs from June 29, 1880 trip to the Erie Canal depict Edward and other members of the New York Artist Fund Society.

Biographical and Historical Note:
Edward: Landscape painter; Mt. Vernon and Cragsmoor, New York, married Martha Feary, an art critic. Their son Duncan was also an artist. Edward was born in Dublin, Ireland. He moved to the United States in 1848.

He studied art in Albany, New York and Karlsruhe, Germany. Member of the Artists Fund Society, National Academy of Design, and the Lotos Club. He exhibited in museums and galleries throughout America and he painted murals for public libraries in Mt. Vernon and Bronxville, New York.
extent 2.4 linear ft. (partially microfilmed on 2 reels) reels D30 and 866
formatsMicrofilm Correspondence Photographs Sketchbooks Writings
accessMicrofilmed portion must be consulted on microfilm. Use of unmicrofilmed portion requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. storage facility.
record sourcehttp://www.siris.si.edu/
acquisition informationMaterial on reel D30 donated by Mrs. Dorothy Gay Gordon, daughter of Edward Gay, December 1959. Material on reel 866 donated by Richard Coker, grandson of Edward, March 1974. Unmicrofilmed material donated by Susanne Gay Linville, daughter of Duncan Gay, 1983, 1987, and 1995.
updated11/12/2014 11:29:59
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titleAmerican Art Association Records, circa 1853-1929, bulk 1885-1922
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionPapers retained by Kirby, 1910-1923, including photograph and price files on more than 100 auctions, 1910-1913, 1915-1918, and 1921-1923, with sections from a typescript of the history of the firm describing many of the sales; a correspondence and clipping file, 1910-1923, containing letters from William Merritt Chase regarding the sale of his collection, David Belasco, Joseph Widener, Lockwood deForest, John P. Morgan, and others; an address on the history of the Association delivered by Kirby; and a small file of material commemorating the death of Francis Davis Millet, drowned in the sinking of the Titanic, 1912.

REELS 4478-4484: 28 v. of record books, including 14 v. recording sales of paintings, 1885-1921; "Disposition of Pictures," 1886-1891 (mostly 1887), (1 v.); "Pictures Rec'd and Delivered," July 1881-May 1891 (1 v.); Submissions to New York Water Color Club, 1890-1892 (1 v); Sales by other galleries and auction houses, 1853-1902 (4 v.), representing sales in Paris and the U.S., apparently compiled from printed catalogs; stock book, 1887-1917, of "Paintings," (1 v.), and a stock book for furniture of the American Art Association offices, 1912 (1 v.); and 4 albums of photographs of Stanford White's house and collection, auctioned November 1907.

UNMICROFILMED (7.7 linear ft.): Thomas Kirby's correspondence, speeches, partnership agreements, memorabilia, and notes and manuscript pages from his autobiography and biography (both unfinished); speeches and press releases related to the 1922 opening of the American Art Galleries; files on auctions and exhibitions, 1884-1910, compiled by Rose H. Lorenz to aid Charles De Kay in the preparation of Kirby's biography "Art Under the Hammer" (unfinished), containing correspondence, clippings, price lists, photographs and manuscript pages; financial records of auctions, 1918-1922; memoranda and legal papers; clippings, exhibition catalogs, 1853-1917; and photographs.

Among the photographs are several of Thomas Kirby and 1 of Gustavus, and a group of 62 cabinet photographs taken by photographers in Paris, all but a few of French artists, probably related to the Association's involvement in the late 1890s to early 1900s of sales of paintings by French artists.

UNMICROFILMED (13 linear ft.): ca. 172 volumes and packages, including account books (75 v.); Bric-a-Brac (4 v.), salary lists (5 v.), sales of books, etchings, etc. (4 v.), catalog distribution (3 v.), and address books (128 v.). Also included are 9 v. of ledgers from the Blakeslee Galleries, presumably acquired in 1914 when gallery owner Theron Blakeslee died, and the Association auctioned off the Gallery's paintings.
extent27.8 Linear feet
formatsCorrespondence Photographs Clippings Financial Records Notes
accessMicrofilmed portion must be consulted on microfilm. Use of unmicrofilmed portion requires an appointment and is limited to Washington, D.C. storage facility.
record linkhttps://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/AAA.amerarta.pdf
record sourcehttps://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/american-art-association-records-6973
finding aidUnmicrofilmed (7.7 linear ft.): Box inventory available at AAA offices. Reels 4478-4484: Inventory of record books available at AAA offices.
acquisition informationMaterial on reels 422-425 was donated in 1968 by Kirby's daughter, Mrs. Thomas B. Waller. The unmicrofilmed material and record books on reels 4478-4484 were originally given to the American Antiquarian Society by Gustavas T.Kirby, son of Thomas E. Kirby, in 1936. The Antiquarian Society placed the record books on deposit at the Archives of American Art in 1972 and subsequently donated them along with the Kirby material January 1978. An additional 5 items concerning the opening of the Association's new building were donated 1993 by the American Antiquarian Society.
updated06/08/2023 16:42:09
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