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Stanford White papers

Call Number

MS 693

Date

1873-1928, inclusive

Creator

White, Stanford, 1853-1906

Extent

2 Linear feet (4 boxes)

Language of Materials

The documents in the collection are in English.

Abstract

The Stanford White Papers consist of personal correspondence, account information, photographs, newspaper clippings, and printed materials that document the life of the architect Stanford White (1853-1906) of the influential firm of McKim, Mead & White.

Biographical Note

Chronology

1853 Stanford White is born in New York City to Richard Grant White and Alexina Black Mease on November 9
1870 Obtains a position with architect Henry Hobson Richardson in New York
1879 Accepts a position as partner with McKim and Mead in New York City to form the architectural design firm of McKim, Mead & White
1880 Collaborates with sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens to design the Admiral David Farragut memorial
1884 Marries Bessie Smith of Long Island
1885 Designs the Charles Tiffany House
1886 Collaborates with Saint-Gaudens on the Standing Lincoln Memorial Sculpture in Chicago
1891 Helps design Madison Square Garden
1893 Designs the New York Herald building
1895 Designs the Washington Square Park Arch
1906 Stanford White is shot and killed by Harry K. Thaw, a jealous husband of a former lover of White's, while watching a musical on the roof of Madison Square Garden

Arrangement

This collection is organized into 2 series:

Series I. Correspondence and Documents, 1836-1948

Series II. Printed Materials and Clippings, 1888-1955

Most of the material is arranged chronologically within series. See the series descriptions for specific details.

Microfilm: Material in boxes 1 and 2 is on microfilm.

Scope and Content Note

Correspondence, accounts, photographs, newspaper clippings and printed material, c.1873-1920, including copies of Stanford White's letters while in France, 1878; many letters from Charles Caryl Coleman, Thomas Wilmer Dewing, John La Farge, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Janet Scudder, and Abbott Handerson Thayer; letters to his mother, Alexina Mease White, and to his wife, Bessie Smith White; accounts, 1900-1905, relating to White's importation of plants, furnishings, statuary, paintings, marble columns, etc., mostly from France and Italy; typescript, 1913, of Charles Follen McKim, a memoir, by Alfred Hoyt Granger; a list of subscribers, 1920, to the Stanford White Memorial; and printed material, including biographical material of White, examples of his architectural work, annotated auction catalogues, and monographs of the firm of McKim, Mead & White.

Access Restrictions

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as Stanford White Papers, MS 693, New-York Historical Society.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Lawrence Grant White, 1970.

Related Material at The New-York Historical Society

Further materials relating to Stanford White, his work, and his family can be found within Stanford White: Letters to his family, the Dedication of the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument Records, the Washington Arch Committee Statuary Fund Correspondence, and the book, Sketches and designs by Stanford White by Lawrence Grant White, all at the New-York Historical Society.

Collection processed by

Josué Luis Hurtado and Gabrielle Sanchez

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:50:10 -0400.
Language: Description is in English.

Processing Information

Processed by Josué Luis Hurtado and Gabrielle Sanchez in 2012 or before.

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024