Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Aaron Draper Shattuck Papers, 1810-1983, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.shataaro
Creators:
Shattuck, Aaron Draper, 1832-1928
Dates:
1810-1983
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.8 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of Aaron Draper Shattuck measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1810 to 1983. The papers document the activities of Aaron Draper Shattuck and his son, Walter, and include biographical material, writings, correspondence, notes, financial material, artwork, printed material, photographs, and a sample canvas stretcher.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of Aaron Draper Shattuck measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1810 to 1983. The papers document the activities of Aaron Draper Shattuck and his son, Walter, and include biographical material, writings, correspondence, notes, financial material, artwork, printed material, photographs, and a sample canvas stretcher.
The collection includes biographical material, a birth certificate of William Shattuck and an inventory of Lincoln Family Estate. Writing consists of a diaries that were kept by Aaron Shattuck and his son Walter. Correspondence includes Aaron Shattuck's acceptance letter to the National Academy of Design in 1858, descriptions of travel along the Maine coast and in New England, and letters concerning Shattuck's paintings. Financial material consists of account books, sales receipts for paintings, and receipts from F.W. Devoe & Co. for stretcher keys. Notes are comprised of writings concerning the Shattuck family that were compiled by the donors, Katherine and Eugene Emigh. Art work contains an etching (12.3 x 14.3 cm.) of the painting "White Hills in October," and nine sketchbooks (10.6 x 21.2 cm. or smaller), containing pencil drawings of landscapes and coastal scenes of Vermont and Maine, especially in the White Mountains. One of the sketchbooks is Walter's, and one contains work by both father and son. Printed material includes clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, a copy of Henry Alken's 1849 book, "The Art and Practice of Etching," with an inscription to Shattuck by William Hart. The book contains four etchings, four aquatints, and one National Academy of Design menu with a watercolor drawing. Photographs show Aaron Shattuck and the Shattuck home and garden in West Granby, Connecticut. Other materials include a stretched canvas displaying an advertisement and a sample of Shattuck's Patent Stretcher Key.

Arrangement

Arrangement
Due to the small size of this collecion the papers are arranged as one series.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Aaron Draper Shattuck (1832-1928) was a landscape painter and inventor who worked in New York City and West Granby, Connecticut. Born in Francetown, New Hampshire, Shattuck studied art in Boston under portrait painter Alexander Ransom and at the National Academy of Design in 1852, becoming an academician in 1861. The principal subjects of his works are landscapes and pastoral scenes. Shattuck was also the inventor of the "Shattuck" stretcher keys for artists' canvases. In 1860, he married Marian Colman, sister of painter Samuel Colman, and descendant of the John Lincoln family. Their children were William, Walter, Edwin, Isabel, Helen, and Bertha. Shattuck maintained a studio in New York from 1856 until circa 1870, then moved to Granby, Connecticut.

Administration

Author
Caroline Donadio
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Aaron Draper Shatutuck papers were donated by Katherine and Eugene Emigh, 1983-1984. Katherine Emigh is Shattuck's granddaughter.
Existence and Location of Originals
Originals of photocopies are in the possession of the donors, Katherine and Eugene Emigh.
Processing Information
The collection was processed shortly after donation. A finding aid was created by Caroline Donadio in 2018.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Preferred Citation
Aaron Draper Shattuck papers, 1810-1983. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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