Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Leigh H. Hunt Papers, 1870-1937, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.huntleig
Creators:
Hunt, Leigh H. (Leigh Harrison), 1858-1937
Dates:
1870-1937
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
5.9 Linear feet
Repository:
The collection measures 5.9 linear feet, dates from 1870-1937, and documents the career of art history instructor, printmaker, and physician Leigh Harrison Hunt. Found within the papers are scattered biographical material for Hunt; letters; miscellaneous financial records; diaries written by his wife Grace Storrs Hunt; notes and writings; art work by Hunt; scrapbooks; miscellaneous printed material; photographs; and commercial printing blocks.

Scope and Content Note

Scope and Content Note
The papers of art history instructor, printmaker, and physician Leigh H. Hunt measure 5.9 linear feet and date from 1870-1937. Found within the papers are scattered biographical material for Hunt; letters from friends and colleagues primarily concerning the celebration of Hunt's 50-year teaching career; auction records and miscellaneous receipts; diaries written by his wife Grace Storrs Hunt describing daily life and specific European trips; notes and writings including art history lecture notes; art work by Hunt; scrapbooks of clippings; miscellaneous printed material including voyage-related ephemera; photographs of Hunt, his family, friends, and residence; and commercial printing blocks.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection has been arranged into 10 series. All series are arranged chronologically, except for the lecture notes which are arranged alphabetically. Oversized material from various series has been housed in Box 11 (Sol), OV12 and OV13, and is noted in the Series Description/Container Listing Section at the appropriate folder title with see also/see references.
  • Missing Title
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, 1877-1937, undated (Box 1, 11, OV12; 3 folders)
  • Series 2: Letters, 1881-1937, undated (Box 1; 16 folders)
  • Series 3: Financial Records, 1904-1911, undated (Box 1; 1 folder)
  • Series 4: Diaries by Grace Hunt, 1884-1931 (Box 1; 11 folders)
  • Series 5: Notes and Writings, 1878-1937, undated (Box 1, 2, 11; 56 folders)
  • Series 6: Art Work, 1884-1930, undated (Box 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,11, OV12, OV13; 1.6 linear feet)
  • Series 7: Scrapbooks, 1877-1925, undated (Box 3; 9 folders)
  • Series 8: Printed Material, 1870-1937, undated (Box 3, 4, 11, OV12; 1.4 linear feet)
  • Series 9: Photographs, 1880-1934, undated (Box 4, 5, 11; 30 folders)
  • Series 10: Artifacts, undated (Box 5; 2 folders)

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Leigh Harrison Hunt was born on May 19, 1858 in Galena, Illinois, the son of businessman Leigh A. Hunt and Eliza (Harrison) Hunt. He was a maternal descendant of Benjamin Harrison, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
The family moved to New York City in the early 1860s, and in 1877, Hunt graduated from the City College of New York, receiving medals in history, belles-lettres, mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, and English. He was also appointed as tutor in the City College's Art Department. In the same year, he entered Bellevue Medical School to study anatomy but was persuaded to finish the course and was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1880.
While continuing to teach at City College, Dr. Hunt taught histo-pathology at the medical school, and for a brief time practiced medicine. In 1882, he received an M.S. degree and soon after abandoned all medical pursuits to devote himself entirely to producing art and teaching art history. Hunt was made head of the art department in 1918 and continued in that position until his retirement in 1928.
Hunt was a member of several art-related organizations including the New York Etching Club, the Salmagundi Club, the Society of American Etchers and the Artists' Fund Society. In 1931, he founded the Haden Etching Club whose members were artists who were also physicians.
Hunt and his wife, Grace (née Grace Anna Storrs), enjoyed travel and made frequent voyages to Europe between the 1880s until the outbreak of the first World War in 1914. Several of their voyages were on R. M. S. Lusitania.
Leigh Harrison Hunt died Dec 16, 1937 in New York City.

Administration

Author
Jean Fitzgerald
Provenance
The Leigh H. Hunt papers were donated in 1967 by Phyllis Leon, the executor of the Hunt Estate.
Processing Information
The papers were processed to an intermediate level arrangement in June 2005 by Jean Fitzgerald.

Using the Collection

Restrictions on Access
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility.
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.
Preferred Citation
Leigh H. Hunt papers, 1870-1937. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Etchers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketches Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Diaries Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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