The Winterthur Library

The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum

5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur, DE 19735

302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

Creator: Zukowsky, John, 1948-

Title: Papers

Dates: 1975-1986, 1982-1986 (bulk)

Call No.: Col. 25

Acc. No.: 81x470, 86x189, 10x16

Quantity: 2 boxes

Location: 14 C 1

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

John Zukowsky (b.1948) is a retired museum professional who continues to serve as an advisor in the field. He was associate curator in the Department of Architecture at the Art Institute of Chicago for over 20 years, beginning in 1978. He energized the collection and developed a number of major exhibits during his time there. He earned his doctoral degree at the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1977 and was the architectural archivist at the Hudson River Museum, where his interest in Hudson River houses developed. He has also been director of the Westcott House Foundation in Springfield, Ohio, overseeing the reconstruction of a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright (2004-2005), curator at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City (2005-2009), and interim director of the Pritzker Military Library (2010).

Zukowsky was a research fellow at Winterthur Musuem, Garden and Library in 1977-1978, under a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. It was during this time that he did the research that was published in 1981 as Hudson River Houses, a facsimile reproduction of Edwin Whitefield’s sketchbook entitled “The Hudson River and Rail Road Illustrated.” His interest in houses along the Hudson River led him to approach the publishers at Rizzoli about doing a picture book about some of the homes. His original idea was expanded and the result was Hudson River Villas, co-authored with Robbe Pierce Stimson. In addition to these books, he has written or contributed to more than eighty books and essays, chiefly on architecture.

SCOPE AND CONTENT

This collection consists of two groups of papers. This first (acc. 81x470) contains Zukowsky’s correspondence from 1978 to1981 with various individuals about his book Hudson River Houses, including the artist Dan Flavin and Zukowsky’s publisher at North River Press. A few of the letters make references to Edwin Whitefield and his sketchbook, a facsimile reproduction of which appears in Hudson River Houses; Zukowsky wrote the introduction for the book and captions for the sketches. The work was published by North River Press in 1981. (The original sketchbook is in the Downs Collection, in the Edwin Whitefield Papers, acc. 65x742.2.)

The second and third accessions (86x189 and 10x16) centers around the production of Hudson River Villas, published in 1985 by Rizzoli. It includes research correspondence with local historians along the Hudson River, and with present owners of the houses documented in the book. Most of the correspondence, however, is between Zukowsky and his publisher Rizzoli. The latter correspondence especially documents Zukowsky's displeasure with the re-writing done by his co-author Robbe Pierce Stimson. The original typescript draft of the book is included, as is the revised and corrected typescript.

The collection contains photocopied maps of the Hudson River valley on which are marked the location of the large houses about which Zukowsky wrote. It also contains information on lectures he gave as a result of his research and writing, and a few brochures and pamphlets, secured in the course of his research, about houses and historic sites along the Hudson River.

The collection also includes a group of photographs from the Hudson River Museum. Most of the photos depict buildings along the Hudson River. The rest are photos of a map of Yonkers, New York.

ORGANIZATION

Accession number 81x470 is in one folder, Box 1, folder 1. Accession 10x16 is in two folders. The rest of the collection is from accession number 86x189. Those materials are divided into research correspondence, drafts of the manuscript, post-publication correspondence, including information about lectures, pamphlets, and photos.

In April 2018, a few photos and negatives were transferred from DAPC into this collection. No accession number was assigned.

PROVENANCE

Gift of John Zukowsky.

LANGUAGE OF MATERIALS

The materials are in English.

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

Collection is open to the public. Copyright restrictions may apply.

ACCESS POINTS

People:

Cowan, William W.

Flavin, Dan.

Stimson, Robbe Pierce.

Whitefield, Edwin, 1816-1892.

Topics:

Rizzoli International Publications.

North River Press.

Dwellings - New York (State)

Authors and publishers.

Publishers and publishing.

Architecture, Domestic - New York (State)

Suburban homes - New York (State)

Hudson River (N.Y. and N.J.) - Description and travel.

Yonkers (N.Y.) - Maps.

Correspondence.

Drafts (preliminary versions).

Maps.

Pamphlets.

Brochures.

Authors.

Editors.

Publishers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

Location: 14 C 3

Box 1:

Folder 1: Hudson River Houses: correspondence, 1978-1981 (acc. no. 81x470)

Folder 2: Hudson River Villas research correspondence, 1975-1978 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 3: Hudson River Villas research correspondence, 1982 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 4: Hudson River Villas research correspondence, 1983 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 5: Hudson River Villas research correspondence, 1984 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 6: Hudson River Villas research correspondence, 1985 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 7: Correspondence, 1986-1993, plus maps and brochures (acc. 10x16)

Folder 8: Hudson River Villas: photos and negatives (acc. 10x16)

Folder 9: Original manuscript, Hudson River Villas, 1984 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 10: Revised and corrected manuscript, Hudson River Villas, 1985 (acc. 86x189)

Box 2:

Folder 1: Glossary, introduction, galleys, Hudson River Villas, 1985 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 2: Maps, photocopied, 1984 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 3: Maps, photocopied, 1985 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 4: Post-publication correspondence and reviews, 1985-1986 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 5: Lectures, 1985-1986 (acc. 86x189)

Folder 6: Pamphlets and brochures about sites along the Hudson River (acc. 86x189)

Folder 7: Photographs from notebook Hudson River Museum I (photos of buildings along the Hudson River) (acc. 86x189)

Folder 8: Photographs from notebook Hudson River Museum II (photos of maps of Yonkers) (acc. 86x189)

Folder 9: Photographs from notebook Hudson River Museum III (photos of buildings along the Hudson River) (acc. 86x189)

Folder 10: Photographs and negatives of Hudson River homes (transferred from DAPC, 2018)