Scope and Contents

The McKim, Mead and White Architectural Record Collection spans the period from ca. 1875 to 1950 and includes the major portion of the firm's records. The collection consists of more than 61,000 architectural drawings, including ink on linen, blueprints, and other media; 1,500 photographs, including prints and glass and film negatives; 700 boxes of correspondence and specifications; 54 ledgers, including 17 bill books (1878-1947), 10 cash books (1894-1944), 8 contract books (1903-1930), and 9 journals (1882-1942); 30 photo albums and scrapbooks; and more than 300 original line drawings made to illustrate A Monograph of the Works of McKim, Mead and White, 1879-1915 (all numbers are approximate). The material contains extensive documentation of the firm's operations and of individual buildings, although most information about the firm's early years can be found in the photograph albums, clippings scrapbooks, and financial ledgers.

Included in the collection are Shingle Style, Colonial Revival, and other country houses in Newport, Rhode Island; urban residences such as the Villard Houses, New York; public commissions including Boston Public Library, Rhode Island State Capitol, and Prospect Park entrances, Brooklyn, New York; and universities, museums and libraries including the restoration of the University of Virginia rotunda, Columbia University and Pierpont Morgan Library, New York.

The collection is organized by the following formats: architectural drawings, correspondence, specifications, photographs, scrapbooks and photograph albums, newspaper and journal clippings, financial records, and publications.

More detailed finding aids for portions of the collection are available on-site. Researchers wishing to access the collection must schedule an appointment in advance. Requests for appointments and other questions should be submitted to the librarian for the Department of Prints, Photographs and Architectural Collections at printroom@nyhistory.org.