Smithsonian Institution Archives

Subject Files, circa 1937-1992

Summary

Collection ID:
SIA.FARU0540
Creators:
Cooper-Hewitt Museum. Office of the Registrar
Dates:
circa 1937-1992
Languages:
English
Physical Description:
2.5 cu. ft. (2 record storage boxes) (1 document box)
Repository:
Smithsonian Institution Archives

Introduction

Introduction
This finding aid was digitized with funds generously provided by the Smithsonian Institution Women's Committee.

Descriptive Entry

Descriptive Entry
These records document the administrative and program activities of the Office of the Registrar from 1973 to 1992, with some files dating from 1959. Records consist of staff meeting notes, administrative memoranda, quarterly reports, and annual reports to the Smithsonian's central Office of the Registrar in response to Office Memorandum 808, "Collections Management Policy." Also included are reports and budgets for the Museum's acquisitions fund; memoranda and correspondence concerning the Smithsonian Institution Registrar's Council and its predecessors, the Registrarial Council of the Smithsonian Institution and the Council of Registrars, from its inception in January 1973 through 1987; and insurance registers, projections, and claims. The records also contain labels describing various objects on exhibition, circa 1937 to 1968; accession card corrections and changes from 1959 and undated; contracts from the 1960s; lists of income and object purchases; and the correspondence of Mary Blackwelder from 1970 to 1971.

Historical Note

Historical Note
Soon after he was hired as assistant curator in 1933, Calvin Hathaway introduced a new system for accessioning and cataloging the collections of the Cooper Union Museum. By 1942 Hathaway had become associate curator, and his system was maintained by secretarial staff under the supervision of Mary A. Noon, assistant to the curator for collections. Noon became acting head of the Museum in 1945, and in 1947 Dorothea C. Shipley was appointed catalog supervisor. Paul Dreschler replaced her in 1951, and Mary Fonner Blackwelder was named to the post in 1956.
Shortly after the Museum was transferred to the Smithsonian Institution, Blackwelder assumed the position of registrar, where she remained until February 1975. Elizabeth Burnham was registrar from FY 1976 through FY 1978, and Albina De Meio served in that function from FY 1980 through FY 1981. Cordelia Rose was appointed registrar in FY 1982.

Administration

Author
Finding aid prepared by Smithsonian Institution Archives

Using the Collection

Prefered Citation
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 540, Cooper-Hewitt Museum. Office of the Registrar, Subject Files

More Information

Notes

SI Records


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Hathaway, Calvin S. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Noon, Mary A. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Shipley, Dorothea C. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Dreschler, Paul Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Blackwelder, Mary Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Burnham, Elizabeth Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
De Meio, Albina Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rose, Cordelia Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smithsonian Institution. Office of the Registrar Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smithsonian Institution. Registrarial Council Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smithsonian Institution. Council of Registrars Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Cooper Union Museum for the Arts of Decoration Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum registrars Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art museums Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museums -- Collection management Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Manuscripts Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Smithsonian Institution Archives
Washington, D.C.
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