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Archives related to: Claghorn, James L. (James Lawrence), 1817-1884

titleJames Lawrence Claghorn papers, 1849-1882.
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionLetters (1849-1856), business records (1849-1856), a visitors' register (1873-1885), and a scrapbook (ca. 1866-1885) concern the acquisition of paintings and prints for Claghorn's collection.

REEL 3580: 137 letters (1849-1882) to Claghorn regard his art collection and dealing activities and include letters from Goupil & Cie., J. Crumby, who served as a purchasing agent, Frederic Edwin Church, John Frederick Kensett, Hiram Powers, Thomas Buchanan Read, Peter F. Rothermel, and Thomas Worthington Whittredge.

REEL 3581: Letters and receipts addressed to Claghorn document the purchase and sale of American and European paintings and prints (1849-1856). There are also inventories of shipments. Letters frequently include titles and prices.

REEL 4131: Visitors Register, March 18, 1873-Jan. 1885, containing names and addresses of those who viewed the Claghorn Collection; many artists, local art students and instructors, and foreign visitors are listed. Scrapbook, most likely compiled by Claghorn with posthumous entries added by family, contains mainly newspaper clippings concerning Claghorn, his collections, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, art activities in Philadelphia, and artists (particularly printmakers); also includes photograph of Seymour Haden, catalogs of the Claghorn Collection, admission tickets, reprints of lengthy articles about Claghorn and his collections, and a few letters to J. Raymond Claghorn [son of James L.] regarding the disposition of the collection and its sale to Thomas Harrison Garrett.

REEL 4152: 88 letters (1848-1864) from various agents in New York and Europe regard purchases of paintings, prints and sculpture by artists, including Asher B. Durand and Worthington Whittredge. Four letters regard paintings to be exhibited at the Great Sanitary Fair. Nine letters (1855-1864) from Thomas Buchanan Read regard his activities in England. Read's letters from Cincinnati discuss his poetry and commissions for his paintings.

Bio / His Notes:
Collector and art patron; Philadelphia, Pa. Claghorn was an officer of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Philadelphia School of Design for Women. Best known for his print collection, he began by collecting paintings by American artists, ca. 1840. In 1877, he sold his painting collection in order to devote his efforts to his print collection. His private gallery in Philadelphia was open to visitors, and selections from the Claghorn Collection were exhibited in other cities. After his death, his print collection was purchased by Thomas Harrison Garrett, and thereafter was known as the Garrett Collection. After being on long-term loan to the Library of Congress between 1904 and 1930, the collection is now owned by the Baltimore Museum of Art.
extent1.4 linear ft. (on 4 partial microfilm reels) reels 3580, 3581, 4131, and 4152
formatsMicrofilm Scrapbooks Business Papers Correspondence Inventories
accessPatrons must use microfilm copy.
record linkn/a
record sourcehttps://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/james-lawrence-claghorn-papers-9986
acquisition informationMaterials on reel 3581 were borrowed for filming from Philadelphia Maritime Museum. Materials on reel 3580 were borrowed for filming from John W. Claghorn on July 16, 1985, and were later donated to the Archives of American Art by his descendant Frederic S. Claghorn along with additional letters appearing on reel 4152. Material on reel 4131 was donated by Mabel Claghorn Bulkeley, granddaughter of James L. Claghorn. Location of Original: Reel 3581: Originals in Philadelphia Maritime Museum.
updated06/08/2023 16:42:15
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titleUnion League of Philadelphia Art Association records, 1867-1911.
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionBook of minutes; notebook, "List of articles loaned to the Union League" (commonly known as [James] Claghorn's notebook) contains titles, owners, and insurance values for art works; printed materials, consisting of Art Reception exhibition catalogs, printed circulars, annual reports, tickets and invitations, "Catalogue for the Exhibition of Pictures of Scenes of the Lehigh Valley Railroad," catalog for the Art Association collection, circulars for the purchase of a painting "Soir d'Ete" by Daniel Ridgway Knight, description of a painting "Honorable Mention" by E.L. Weeks, and notices of a 1903 painting of Abraham Lincoln by George B. Ayers; and letters regarding a portrait by Edwin Benson.

Bio / His Notes:
Art association affiliated with the Union League; Philadelphia, Pa. Union League was founded 1862. The Art Association was established shortly thereafter to maintain and sponsor exhibitions of the League's art collection. During the 1870's, the Art Association sponsored several Art Receptions which were important events in Philadelphia, attracting the participation of artists and art collectors.
extent0.4 linear ft. (on partial microfilm reel) reel 3580
formatsMicrofilm Inventories Financial Records Catalogs Ephemera
accessPatrons must use microfilm copy.
record sourcehttp://www.siris.si.edu/
acquisition informationAll records were filmed except for membership applications and specific information about individual members of the Union League, which are not open to researchers. Location of Original: ORIGINALS IN:Union League of Philadelphia.
updated11/12/2014 11:29:55
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titleVictor D. Spark papers, circa 1830-1983, bulk 1930-1970
repositoryArchives of American Art
descriptionFiles on clients, galleries, museums, dealers and other business associates; artists' files; financial and legal records; and printed material.

Included are extensive files (9 ft.) on clients, galleries, museums, dealers, and other business associates, containing correspondence, business records, and appraisal notes, 1895-1981 (bulk 1950s-1970s); artists' files (9 ft.), containing photographs of art works, clients' letters, and notes, 1905-1983; tax records, 1960-1962; auction price lists, 1976-1979; bills and receipts, 1930-1980; banking records, 1953-1973; check stubs and cancelled checks, 1961-1972; general ledgers, 1948-1971; cash outlay ledgers, 1956-1970; sales ledgers, 1949-1971; consignment records, 1949-1955; restoration and framing records, 1947-1953; ledgers for the account with James Graham and Sons, 1953-1969; stock books, 1951-1960; a ledger for a trip to Switzerland, 1970;
legal files concerning Rauch vs. Internal Revenue Service, 1970, and Kaufman vs. Phoenix (Travellers) Insurance Co., 1971; engagement calendars logging appointments and brief annotations, 1948-1973; clippings, 1973-1982; exhibition and auction catalogs, 1949-1973; and newsletters and bulletins, 1948-1982. Also included are miscellaneous 19th century printed items, including:
"Essays Upon Art at the Lyceum Gallery", 1849, "On Viewing and Judging Pictures", 1854, "The Ceremony of the Laying of the Corner-Stone of the National Academy of Design", 1864, "Lectures Delivered at the National Academy of Design" by Charles Edwards, "Pictures on Exhibition at Goupils", 1865, an untitled description of a print collection purchased by James L. Claghorn, 1869, and "The First American Art Academy", 1872, which relates the history of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. In addition, there is a letter, 1924, from Ruth Moran to Mr. Schultheis enclosing a photograph of a Thomas Moran painting signed and attested by Moran.
extent19.4 linear ft.
formatsCorrespondence Appraisals Financial Records Photographs
accessUnmicrofilmed; use requires an appointment and is limited to Washington, D.C. storage facility.
record linkhttps://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/AAA.sparvict.pdf
record sourcehttps://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/victor-d-spark-papers-7451
finding aidFinding aid available at AAA offices.
acquisition informationPurchased at auction jointly by AAA and National Gallery of Art, July 1987. Photographs of works of art pertaining to NGA's collection were retained by NGA. Nineteenth century printed material and Moran letter donated 1954 by Spark.Three letters transferred from National Gallery of Art in 1996.
updated06/08/2023 16:42:23
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titleThomas Buchanan Read (1822-1872) Letters, 1849-1869.
repositoryThe Winterthur Library
descriptionThis collection contains a microfilm reel of letters from Read concerning exhibitions, prices for artwork, and other related business matters, as well as 25 original letters from Read to Philadelphia art collector and patron, James Claghorn. Many of the letters to Claghorn were written during Read's sojourn in Europe between 1853-1855. They document life and work as an American artist in Florence, Italy. Read discusses painting portraits to defray the heavy expenses he incurred as a foreigner. He wrote about the 1855 cholera epidemic which took the lives of his eldest daughter and wife. Shortly after this tragedy, Read fled to Bagnia di Lucea in the mountains where he did not paint much due to his own illness and emotional strain. Read's letters indicate that in the spring of 1856, he returned to the U.S. and exhibited his paintings in Washington, D.C. and dined with President Franklin Pierce. Many letters include references to Read's work as a poet, and his association with such other poets and artists as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and Hiram Powers.

Biography or history
Thomas Buchanan Read, born in Chester County, PA in 1822, was a poet and painter of portraits and historical scenes. He was apprenticed to a tailor at age 13, but ran away to Cincinnati, OH to paint ships and signs. He later became an assistant to painter Shobal Clevenger. In 1840, Read received his first commission to paint a portrait of William Henry Harrison. A year later, he moved to Boston, MA where he befriended Washington Allston and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. In 1846, Read moved to Philadelphia, PA, and in 1850, he made the first of many trips to Europe.

During the Civil War, Read worked for the Union as a lecturer and propagandist. After the war, he returned to Italy where he remained until May 1872, when he returned to America; he died one week after his return to New York City. Read was married and had two daughters. His wife and eldest child died during the cholera plague in Florence, Italy in 1855.

Reproduction
Microfilm. San Marino, CA : Henry E. Huntington Library and Art Gallery, 1974. 1 microfilm reel : negative ; 35 mm.

Location of original
Originals in: Henry E. Huntington Library and Art Gallery.

Associated materials
See also Read Family Papers, at Archives of American Art (RLIN CCAW 1099211-A).

Location
The Winterthur Library: Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera, Winterthur, DE 19735.

Call Number
Col. 452
extent1 reel
formatsMicrofilm
accessContact repository for restrictions and policies.
record sourcehttp://library.winterthur.org:8000/cgi-bin/webgw
acquisition informationOriginals in: Henry E. Huntington Library and Art Gallery.
updated11/12/2014 11:29:55
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titleJames L. Claghorn (1817–1884; board member 1862–84)
repositoryPennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
descriptionJames L. Claghorn (1817–1884; board member 1862–84)

Suite of five mounted photographs, by R. Newell and Son, showing Claghorn’s collection displayed in his home, ca. 1870
extentfive mounted photographs
formatsPhotographs
accessContact repository for restrictions and policies.
record sourcehttp://www.pafa.org/SiteData/doc/archivesWebMssCollec%20fnl/67129de26fdcfacd6f59893b2be5e1b8/archivesWebMssCollec%20fnl.pdf
updated11/12/2014 11:30:09
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