Archives of American Art

American Philosophical Society selected records

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.amerphil
Creators:
American Philosophical Society
Dates:
1784-1954
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3 Microfilm reels
3 partial microfilm reels
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The microfilmed American Philosophical Society selected records contain art related letters; committee reports; registrar's and curators' records; pamphlets; and exhibition catalogs from the archives of the American Philosophical Society. Many of the letters are to the Society's secretary and librarian John Vaughan; a few are to the Society's presidents Thomas Jefferson and Peter S. Du Ponceau, and officials John K. Kane and J. Peter Lesley. Among the correspondents are Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin West, Charles Willson Peale, Jacob Perkins, Philip Tidyman, Charles B. Lawrence, John Trumbull, Thomas Sully, Joseph Delaplaine, Robert Patterson, John Quincy Adams, Titian Ramsay Peale, Rembrandt Peale, Joel Roberts Poinsett, Victor G. Audubon, and Robert Fulton.
Also included are copies of the registrar's cards for portraits and busts owned by the Society, arranged alphabetically by sitter; "Preliminary Notes, Biographical Sketches, and Memoranda chronologically arranged, for insertion in the Curator's Catalog of Portraits, Busts, and Bas-Reliefs in the Collection of the American Philosophical Society. Illustrated by photographs taken from the originals by Mrs. Julius A. Sachese, member APS"; circa 25 exhibition catalogs and pamphlets (1811-1840) for exhibitions of the Society of Artists of the United States, Columbian Society of Artists, Artists' Fund Society, Artists' and Amateurs' Association, and for works by Thomas Sully, Gilbert Stuart, Benjamin Robert Haydon, Joseph Delaplaine, and others; and newspaper clippings (1917) about the controversy surrounding portraits by Albert Rosenthal hung in Independence Hall (reel P36, frames 372-401).

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
The American Philosophical Society (founded 1743) is a scholarly organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded by Benjamin Franklin, the American Philosophical Society "promotes useful knowledge" through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and community outreach.

Administration

Existence and Location of Copies
35mm microfilm reels P34 (fr. 199-213); P35 (fr. 164-259; 262-489); P36 (fr.1-10; 372-401); P37 (fr.588-870) available for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Existence and Location of Originals
Originals in: American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, Pa.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Microfilmed for the Archives of American Art, 1955. The letters are mainly American Philosophical Society records, but many were pulled from ASP's Misc. Mss. and various other collections, and microfilmed in no apparent order. Descriptive cards microfilmed with each letter indicate location of originals.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Related Materials
The American Philosophical Society holds the American Philosophical Society archives, 1743-1984.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Arts organizations -- Pennsylvania Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Portraits -- Private collections -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art, American Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Learned institutions and societies Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rosenthal, Albert, 1863-1939 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ord, George, 1781-1866 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Patterson, Robert M. (Robert Maskell), 1787-1854 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Peale, Charles Willson, 1741-1827 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Peale, Franklin, 1795-1870 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Peale, Rembrandt, 1778-1860 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Peale, Titian Ramsay, 1799-1885 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Poinsett, Joel Roberts, 1779-1851 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sully, Thomas, 1783-1872 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Vaughan, John, 1756-1841 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
West, Benjamin, 1738-1820 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Adams, John Quincy, 1767-1848 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Audubon, Victor Gifford, 1809-1860 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Delaplaine, Joseph, 1777-1824 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Du Ponceau, Peter Stephen, 1760-1844 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fulton, Robert, 1765-1815 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kane, John K. (John Kintzing), 1795-1858 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lesley, J. P. (J. Peter), 1819-1903 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artists' Fund Society Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artists' and Amateurs' Association (Philadelphia, Pa.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Columbian Society of Artists Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Society of Artists of the United States Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
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