Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America
Archives related to: Laffan, William M.
| title | American Art Association records, 1877-1924 (bulk 1910-1924) | repository | The Frick Collection and Frick Art Research Library |
| description | The American Art Association records document a selection of auction sales run by the gallery, as well as Thomas Kirby’s relationship with those who sold their works through the AAA. Records date from 1877-1924, with the bulk dating from 1910-1924. The collection includes correspondence, approximately 1,000 photographs, handwritten and typed notes, fragments of a typescript on the American Art Association, pages from auction sales catalogues, newspaper and periodical clippings, and several sales catalogues. The records are organized in three series: I. Auction Sales, 1910-1923 II. Correspondence and Notes, 1877-1924, and III. Clippings, 1881-1924. The bulk of the collection concerns specific auction sales conducted by the American Art Association. Files contain inventories of the works, often with prices and names of buyers; black & white photos of the works and several of the exhibition installations; correspondence; sections of a typescript on AAA; handwritten notes regarding the sales; pages from sales catalogues; and clippings. Documentation of 70 sales ranges from a single typescript sentence to multiple folders of correspondence, inventories and hundreds of photographs of the items for sale. An additional 150 auction sales are represented in the files only by cursory handwritten notes. Some of the most heavily documented sales include "57 Paintings Belonging to Ichabod T. Williams" of February 3-4, 1915, "Charles of London, Italian, French & English Furniture, Tapestries, Rugs, Paintings, Porcelains, etc." of November 15-20, 1920 and "Palatial Mansion & Contents Collected by William J. Saloman" April 4-7, 1923. Also of note in the records is correspondence between Kirby and Arthur B. Emmons regarding several auctions in which works he owned were sold, 16 letters to Charles De Kay from correspondents other than Thomas Kirby, handwritten notes on George Inness, biographical comments on Thomas Kirby, and several letters concerning the controversy over the authenticity of the painting "Blue Boy" at the William H. Fuller Sale of February 25, 1898, including a letter from Francis Davis Millet. A few clippings and letters document Kirby's career prior to his affiliation with the American Art Association. Historical Note: Thomas E. Kirby (1846-1924), with his partners James F. Sutton and R. Austin Robertson, founded the American Art Association (AAA) in 1883, one of the premier art auction houses of its time. Known for his “million dollar voice,” Kirby conducted the sales himself, and is credited with creating the style of modern art auctions, instituting an atmosphere of elegance and style, and enforcing standards in order to counteract the negative reputation held by auctioneers of the day. Kirby’s son Gustavus joined the firm in 1912 and became half owner in 1915, upon the death of James Sutton. The galleries, located on East 23rd Street on Madison Square South, moved to 30 East 57th Street in 1922. In 1923, Kirby sold AAA to Cortlandt Field Bishop, who contracted Hiram Parke and Otto Bernet to run the auction house. In 1929 it merged with the Anderson Auction Company. Location The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives. Call Number MS.015 |
| extent | 3.75 linear feet |
| formats | Photographs Financial Records Correspondence Clippings Notes |
| access | These records are open for research under the conditions of The Frick Collection/Frick Art Reference Library Archives access policy. Contact the Archives Department for further information at archives@frick.org |
| record link | http://www.frick.org/archives/FindingAids/AmericanArtAssociation.html |
| record source | https://library.frick.org/permalink/01NYA_INST/1qqhid8/alma991007470759707141 |
| finding aid | Finding aid available in the repository. |
| acquisition information | The records were a gift of Mrs. Thomas W. Waller (Wilhelmina), granddaughter of Thomas Kirby, in 1956. These records are just a portion of those donated; an additional 12 linear feet of scrapbooks containing auction sales newspaper clippings have not yet been processed. Mrs. Waller also donated books and sales catalogues, which have been integrated into the Library’s collection. The bulk of the American Art Association's records (an additional 50 linear feet) are located in the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. |
| updated | 10/28/2024 11:06:14 |
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| title | W. M. Laffan letter to Samuel Sidney McClure | repository | University of Virginia Library |
| description | Laffan writes: "This is Mr. J. R. Osgood. You know all the rest." Cite as: W. M. Laffan letter, in the Clifton Waller Barrett Library, Accession #14117, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va. Biographical note: Dublin-born journalist and writer; editor and proprietor of the New York Sun; art expert. Note: Forms part of the Clifton Waller Barrett Library. Special Collections MSS 14117 |
| extent | 1 item |
| formats | Correspondence |
| access | Contact repository for restrictions and policies. |
| record source | http://virgo.lib.virginia.edu |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:08 |
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| title | William M Laffan Correspondence, 1906-09. | repository | Pierpont Morgan Library Archives |
| description | About sending him books, paying for seals, etc. Location: Morgan Collections Correspondence, 1887-1948 Call Number: L Misc Laffan, William M 1906-1909. |
| extent | 1 item |
| formats | Correspondence |
| access | Contact repository for restrictions and policies. |
| record source | http://corsair.morganlibrary.org |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:08 |
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| title | Collection of mostly autograph letters signed, (49) incomplete [manuscript]: to various people, [n.d.], 1864-1917. | repository | The Folger Shakespeare Library |
| description | Most of the letters concern theater life and people, both in England and America. (16) mentions [Augusta?] Dargon, (39) Charles Clapp, (51-52) Dion Boucicault and David Belasco and (99) Henry PLacide and his wife. (104) to J.B. Walker includes a poem by Winter, which is listed in the Folger card index of first lines. (68-70) and (114) concern Thomas Nast’s "The Immortal Light of Genius." Correspondents: Edwin Booth, James H. Brown, Thomas allston Brown, W.E. Bryant, Clarence Clough Buel, william Carey, G.J. Coombes, Augustin Daly, Joseph Francis Daly, [Henry?] Edwards, John Elderkin George Buchanan Fife, Harrison Grey Fiske, Charles Edward Flower, John Foord, Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson, James Louis Gillis, Moses Purnell Handy, William M. Laffan, William Henry McElroy, J. Henry Magonigle, Richard Mansfield, G.B. Mayer, Annie (Nathan) Meyer, thomas Nast, Donald G. Nicholson, James Ripley Osgood, Louis N. Parker, Eben PLympton, Ada Rehan, Mary Silsby, Michael Larid Simons, Edmund Clarence Stedman, R.H. Stoddard, [Clinton?] Stuart, [William?] Stuart, Douglas Taylor, Dame Ellen Terry, William Tinsley, John Brisben Walker, Charles Winter, Elizabeth (Campbell) Winter, Elsie (Leslie) Winter, William Jefferson Winter and others. Other Title: Letters to various people, [n.d.], 1864-1917 Location: Deck C-Rare Stacks Call Number: Y.c.573 (1-114) |
| extent | 113 items |
| formats | Correspondence |
| access | Contact repository for restrictions and policies. |
| record source | http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=196275 |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:08 |
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| title | The Rudyard Kipling Collection, 1883-1967. | repository | Syracuse University Libraries |
| description | Papers of the British author, novelist, poet, journalist. Includes correspondence, writings, and memorabilia of the British author as well as research material from a number of private collections. Correspondence, totaling over 950 items (over 750 authored by Kipling) and spanning 1889-1935, includes incoming and outgoing letters as well as third-party correspondence. Writings include holographic and/or typescript manuscripts and published versions of Kipling's prose, speeches, verse and dramatic works as well as production records, notes, and miscellany. Memorabilia consists of legal material, photographs, portraits and caricatures, printed materials sketches by Kipling, writings by other, and miscellany. Also included are three small collections of Kipling material formerly owned by H.H. and S.S. McClure, E.W. Martindell, and Alan D. Wilson. Preferred citation for this material is as follows: Rudyard Kipling Collection, Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Library |
| extent | 13.0 linear ft. |
| formats | Correspondence Writings Notes Photographs Legal Papers |
| access | There are no access restrictions on this material. |
| record link | http://library.syr.edu |
| record source | http://library.syr.edu/digital/guides/k/kipling_r.htm#d0e76 |
| acquisition information | Purchases, gifts of Chancellor William Pearson Tolley, David J. Holmes, Lisa Lewis. |
| updated | 11/01/2017 15:42:07 |
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| title | Typewritten letter signed : Camp Wikoff, Montauk Point, Long Island, to William M. Laffan, 1898 Aug. 18. | repository | Pierpont Morgan Library Archives |
| description | With two sentences in autograph added. Thanking him for a congratulatory telegram. President of the United States. Dept./Collection: Pierpont Morgan Library Dept. of Literary and Historical Manuscripts Location: Literary and Historical Manuscripts (LHMS) Call Number: Misc American Presidents Washington Record ID: 136421 Accession Number: MA 1039 |
| extent | 1 item (1 p.) ; (8vo) |
| formats | Typescript Correspondence |
| access | Contact repository for restrictions and policies. |
| record source | http://corsair.morganlibrary.org |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:09 |
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| title | Mr. Laffan and the sun. | repository | Pierpont Morgan Library Archives |
| description | Announcement of the death of William M. Laffan, editor of the New York Sun and advisor in art affairs to J.P. Morgan. Notes: Offprint from: The outlook (Dec. 4, 1909). Caption title. Originally shelved as part of the Morgan Family Collection. Location: Archives--Bound Volumes (ARVBD) Call Number: ARC 0260 Record ID: 183886 Accession Number: ARC 260 |
| extent | p. 764-765 ; 25 cm. |
| formats | Clippings |
| access | Contact repository for restrictions and policies. |
| record source | http://corsair.morganlibrary.org |
| acquisition information | From the library of J.P. Morgan (1837-1913). |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:09 |
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| title | Autograph letter signed : to William M. Laffan, 1909 May 3. | repository | Pierpont Morgan Library Archives |
| description | About finishing Cylinders and . . . Seals, final payment, etc. Location: Morgan Collections Correspondence, 1887-1948 Call Number: S Sherman, Frederic Fairchild Record ID: 149902 |
| extent | 1 item. |
| formats | Correspondence |
| record source | http://corsair.morganlibrary.org |
| updated | 11/12/2014 11:30:09 |
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