Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the James Fitzgerald Papers, 1905-1992, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.fitzjame
Creators:
Fitzgerald, James, 1899-1971
Dates:
1905-1992
Languages:
The collection is in English.
Physical Description:
4.6 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of painter James Fitzgerald measure 4.6 linear feet and date from 1905 to 1992. Found within the papers are biographical materials; personal and business correspondence, including fifty-one letters from Rockwell Kent; personal business records; writings; artwork consisting of drawings and 21 sketchbooks; printed material, including a scrapbook of clippings and catalogs; and photographs of Fitzgerald, his family and friends, and his work.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of painter James Fitzgerald measure 4.6 linear feet and date from 1905 to 1992. Found within the papers are biographical materials; personal and business correspondence, including fifty-one letters from Rockwell Kent; personal business records; writings; artwork consisting of drawings and 21 sketchbooks; printed material, including a scrapbook of clippings and catalogs; and photographs of Fitzgerald, his family and friends, and his work.
Biographical materials include certificates, military records, and identification cards and passports. Correspondence is with collectors and friends, including Monhegan residents Anne and Edgar Hubert, Grace Sullivan, and Rockwell Kent. Personal business records include banking, tax, and estate records. Writings consist of Fitzgerald's notebook and notes, essays and recollections of Fitzgerald by friends, and Calvin Hennig's notes on a 1984 posthumous exhibition catalog.
There are loose drawings and 21 sketchbooks of Fitzgerald's artwork. Printed material includes clippings, a clippings scrapbook, exhibition catalogs, and a five-minute video recording describing the holdings of Anne and Edgar Hubert's Fitzgerald art collection. Photographs are of Fitzgerald, his friends and family, residents, travel snapshots, and photographs and slides of his artwork.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged as 7 series.
  • Missing Title
  • Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1918-1971 (2 folders; Boxes 1, 5)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, 1934-1987 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
  • Series 3: Personal Business Records, 1948-1972 (0.5 linear feet; Box 2)
  • Series 4: Writings, 1955-1988 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 2-3, 5)
  • Series 5: Artwork, 1930-1969 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 4-6)
  • Series 6: Printed Material, 1923-1989 (0.2 linear feet; Box 4)
  • Series 7: Photographic Material, 1905-1992 (0.3 linear feet; Box 4)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Painter James Fitzgerald (1899-1971) lived and worked in Monterey, California and Monhegan, Maine and is known for his watercolors of seascapes, animals, and nature.
Born in Milton, Massachusetts, Fitzgerald studied from 1919 to 1923 at the Massachusetts School of Art and from 1923 to 1924 at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts School with Philip Hale, Leslie P. Thompson, and Edmund C. Tarbell. From 1923 to 1928, Fitzgerald took a break from his art studies to travel, sailing and crewing on fishing ships and freighters on the coasts of northern America. During a trip along the West coast in 1928, his travels brought him to Monterey, California where he established a studio and met and became associated with a group including John Cage, Martha Graham, E. F. Ricketts, and John Steinbeck.
From 1936 to 1942, Fitzgerald taught painting in California, then sold his studio the following year to settle in the artists' colony at Monhegan, Maine, which he had first visited in 1923. From 1944 to 1971, Fitzgerald made annual trips to Mt. Katahdin and also formed friendships with other Monhegan residents, including Rockwell Kent and Anne and Edgar Hubert. Fitzgerald died suddenly on the Irish island of Arranmore Ireland, where he had traveled to paint in 1971.

Administration

Author
Judy Ng
Sponsor
Funding for the creation of the finding aid for this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The papers were donated in 1991 by Fitzgerald's literary executors, Anne and Edgar Hubert. Two additional sketchbooks were donated in 2014 by the chairman of the James Fitzgerald Legacy, Robert L. Stahl.
Processing Information
The collection was fully processed by Jean Fitzgerald in 1994. A finding aid was prepared by Judy Ng in 2014 with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
James Fitzgerald papers, 1905-1992. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Access
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Terms of Use
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Slides (photographs) Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketchbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Monhegan Island (Me.) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Marine painters -- California -- Monterey Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Marine painters -- Maine -- Monhegan Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- California -- Monterey Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- Maine Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art -- Collectors and collecting Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artist colonies Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Video recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hubert, Edgar, 1909-1994 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hubert, Anne, 1909-2004 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hennig, Calvin Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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