Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America
Archives related to: M. Thomas & Sons Auctioneers
| title | Selected Peale family papers, 1803-1854. | repository | Archives of American Art |
| description | Papers of Charles Willson, Rembrandt, and Titian Ramsay Peale, mainly relating to Peale's Museum, and one item pertaining to Franklin Peale and one to Rubens Peale. REEL P21: Included are: manuscript of memoranda of the Philadelphia Museum, giving records and accessions for 1803-1842; financial statements, 1808-1819, listing current expenditures; manuscript of "A Walk Through the Philadelphia Museum," by Charles Willson Peale, after 1802; minutes of the Museum, 1841-1845; manager's reports to the Board of Trustees, 1833-1835, signed by Titian R. Peale (10 reports); Titian Peale's correspondence with George Ord, 1827-1854, and his drawing book, ca. 1820; extracts of letters written by Charles Willson Peale from Belfield and Philadelphia, 1821-1823, extracts of letters written by Rembrandt Peale to Reuben Haines and Coleman Sellers, Sept. 24, 1828 and Nov. 30, 1829, and to his wife, 1830. Also included (frames 164-182) is a "Catalog of the National Portrait and Historical Gallery, illustrative of American history, comprising 269 original portraits and historical paintings, formerly belonging to Peale's Museum, to be sold without reserve, on Friday 6th October 1854... M. Thomas & Sons, Auctioneers." REELS P23, P29: Miscellaneous Peale related documents from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Society Collection. Included are: a report of the Committee of Councils on the use of Charles Willson Peale's windmill, Jan. 5, 1815; C.W. Peale's appeal to aid for a soldier; Rubens Peale memorial of the Trustees of the Philadelphia Museum, Oct. 25, 1821; and a register made by Franklin Peale of the medal dies of the U.S. Mint, with notes, 1841 (reel P29, fr. 5-31). Bio / His Notes: Family of artists. Charles Willson Peale: portrait painter and engraver; Philadelphia, Pa. Studied in London with Benjamin West. Painted George Washington's portrait. Established Peale's Museum in 1786. Influential in the founding of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Father of Raphaelle, Franklin, Rubens, Rembrandt and Titian Ramsay Peale. Brother of James Peale. Additional forms: 35mm microfilm reel P21 (fr. 164-182, 261-675); P23 (fr. 158-159, 217); and P29 (fr. 5-31) available for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. |
| extent | 3 partial microfilm reels. |
| formats | Microfilm Manuscript Ephemera Financial Records Correspondence |
| access | Patrons must use microfilm copy. |
| record link | n/a |
| record source | https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/selected-peale-family-papers-10926 |
| acquisition information | Microfilmed by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for the Archives of American Art, 1955. Location of Original: REEL P21: Originals in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Peale family papers. REEL P23, P29: Originals in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Society Collection |
| updated | 07/10/2023 11:05:45 |
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| title | Printed material relating to Rembrandt Peale, 1830-1862. | repository | Archives of American Art |
| description | Auction catalog, annotated, "Catalogue of Valuable Original Paintings by the late Rembrandt Peale, and Frederic E. Church, Peter F. Rothermel, and William E. Winner" for an auction at M. Thomas & Sons, Philadelphia, Nov. 18, 1862; a pamphlet, ca. 1862, "Portrait of Washington" containing letters addressed to Peale as testimonials of Peale's "port-hole" portrait of Washington, painted in 1823; and two circulars, ca. 1830, announcing for public subscription new engravings, enlarged and altered, of the portrait. Bio / His Notes: Rembrandt and Harriet Peale (née Cany) were painters; Philadelphia, Pa. Additional forms: 35mm microfilm reel P29 available at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. |
| extent | Partial microfilm reel. |
| formats | Microfilm Printed Materials Ephemera |
| access | Patrons must use microfilm copy. |
| record link | https://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/AAA.pealrepm.pdf |
| record source | https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/printed-material-relating-to-rembrandt-peale-6177 |
| acquisition information | Lent for microfilming by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1955. |
| updated | 07/10/2023 11:08:00 |
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| title | American art auction catalog collection, 1785-1962. | repository | Archives of American Art |
| description | Auction catalogs from the holdings of various libraries and auction houses in the United States, borrowed for microfilming for AAA's Auction Catalog Project, 1961-1965. The majority of the catalogs are for auctions held in New York City and Philadelphia, although other locales are represented. Firms with significant numbers of catalogs include: American Art Association, Anderson Galleries, Associated Auctioneers, Bangs & Co., Barker, Benjamin S. Wise, Birch & Son, Bleecker & Van Dyke, C.F. Wetmore, C.G. Sloan & Co., Charles F. Libbie & Co., Chicago Book & Art Auctions, Clarke's Art Galleries, C.W. Brown, Daniel A. Mathews, Davis & Harvey, E. A. Haaseman Galleries, Elder Coin & Curio Company, Elliott, Blakeslee & Noyes, Field, Morris, Fenner & Co., Fifth Avenue Art Galleries, Galton-Orsburn Co., George A. Leavitt & Co., Haseltine Galleries, Henry A. Hartman, Leeds, Miner, Hiram H. Parke, Duveen, Leonard & Co., Hudson's, James P. Silo, J.C. Morgenthau & Co., Kende Galleries, Knickerbocker, Kreiser Gallery, Levy & Spooner, Lewis J. Bird & Co., Lihou Art Gallery, Merwin-Clayton Sales Company, Metropolitian Art Association, Miller & Morris, Monarch, Moore's, M. Thomas & Sons, National Art Galleries, Ortgies & Co., O. Rundle Gilbert, Parke-Bernet, Philadelphia Art Galleries, Plaza Art Auction Galleries, Rains Galleries, Ritter Galleries, Samuel T. Freeman & Co., Savoy, Schenck's Art Gallery, Scott & O'Shaughnessy, Stan V. Henkels, Swann Auction Galleries, Thomas Kirby, Walpole Galleries, William B. Norman, William D. Morley, and Young's Art Gallery; many others were also microfilmed. |
| extent | ca. 30,000 items (on 559 microfilm reels) |
| formats | Microfilm Auction Catalogs |
| access | Patrons must use microfilm copy. |
| record link | n/a |
| record source | https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/american-art-auction-catalog-collection-6216 |
| finding aid | A list of auction houses and related microfilm reel numbers is available at AAA offices. In addition, the Washington, D.C. reference desk's copy of Harold Lancour's "American Art Auction Catalogs: A Union List" (1944) has been annotated with reel and frame numbers. |
| acquisition information | Lent for microfilming for AAA's Auction Catalog Project, 1961-1965. Among the institutions who participated are the American Antiquarian Society (29 reels), Art Institute of Chicago (2 reels), Boston Public Library (1 reel), Brooklyn Museum (16 reels), Cleveland Museum of Art (2 reels), Cooper Union (21 reels), Enoch Pratt Free Library (1 reel), Huntington Library (1 reel), Library Co. of Philadelphia (1 reel), Library of Congress (1 reel), Metropolitan Museum of Art (25 reels), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, New York Historical Society (23 reels), New York Public Library (284 reels), New York State Library (1 reel), Parke-Bernet Galleries (128 reels), Pennsylvania Historical Society (2 reels), Philadelphia Museum of Art (10 reels), Walters Art Gallery (1 reel), and others. |
| updated | 06/08/2023 16:42:09 |
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| title | Auction Catalogs Collection, 1800-. Manuscripts and Special Collections Unit | repository | New York State Library |
| description | The auction catalogs collection, representing 69 auction houses, spans rare book-selling activity from 1750, with the majority dating from 1860 to 1938, and offers an historical view of the rare book business in America. The houses are primarily American, with a smattering of British, French and German houses. The collection is arranged alphabetically by auction firm name and then chronologically by date of sale. P The majority of the catalogs focus on Americana, books relating in one way or another to the history of the United States. However, there are numerous examples of general sales where the catholic nature of collection building can be seen. Of particular note to researchers of American history are the autograph collections. The letters being auctioned frequently have at least part of the text of the letters. While most of the auctions listed are devoted to books, a few are devoted to pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, manuscripts, autographs, bookplates, coins, stamps, paintings or furniture. The catalogs document the names of the sellers and the specific items sold. Some of the catalogs are annotated with the names of the buyers and the prices fetched. They provide evidence that certain books once existed, even though no copies may be known today. |
| extent | ca. 40 linear feet plus 4 cu.ft. The 4 cu.ft. of Parke-Bernet catalogs cover the years 1944 to 1955 |
| access | Please consult a librarian in the Manuscripts and Special Collections Unit of the New York State Library for access to this collection. Material may be photocopied, digitally scanned, or photographed, depending on condition. |
| record source | http://www.nysl.nysed.gov |
| finding aid | available online http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/msscfa/qc16542.htm |
| acquisition information | The collection was formed in large part from catalogs that were used as acquisition tools by the New York State Library. As such, the collection offers great insight into the formation of the original collection of the library, considered at the time to be one of the ten best collections in the world. Of even more significance are the catalogs from the years immediately following the destruction of a major portion of the collection by the 1911 New York State Capitol/New York State Library fire. The post-1911 catalogs help to document the effort to rebuild the collection to its former level. The many catalogs with order-department lists of items desired, bids offered, and the results from the library’s agents offer a limited but enlightening window onto the rebuilding process. |
| updated | 08/06/2012 14:21:32 |
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