The Winterthur Library

 The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Winterthur, DE  19735

302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883

 

 

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

 

Creator:          Kirk, John T.                                       

Title:               John T. Kirk collection of research materials on Shaker arts, life, and beliefs

Dates:             1970-2001, bulk 1990-2000

Call No.:         Col. 815

Acc. No.:         07x135

Quantity:        9 boxes (3 cu. ft.)

Location:        16 F 3-4

 

 

 

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

 

John T. Kirk is a noted scholar specializing in American furniture and the Shakers.  He was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and graduated from George School.  His father was a builder and most enjoyed the work of restoring old houses.  This stimulated John Kirk’s interest in old buildings and antiques, and eventually he even restored a couple of old homes himself.  Kirk became a journeyman cabinetmaker and studied furniture design.  He then received his bachelor’s degree from Earlham College and earned a master’s degree in art history from Yale University.  He was a professor at Boston University for many years, and retired as emeritus professor of art history.  Mr. Kirk has been a consultant curator for several historic house museums and a director of the Rhode Island Historical Society.  He was the curator for three exhibits of Shaker furniture and materials and one on Connecticut furniture.  He has written many articles and a number of books, mostly focusing on regional differences in American furniture, the relationship between English and American furniture, and Shaker design.  He also hosted programs on American furniture for public television.

 

 

SCOPE AND CONTENT

 

The bulk of the collection is materials pertaining to John Kirk’s book The Shaker World: Art, Life, Belief, published in 1997 by Harry N. Abrams, Inc.  Included are research notes, photographs, drafts of the book manuscript, and book reviews.  As well, the collection includes correspondence and materials about an exhibit held at the Seattle Art Museum entitled “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities,” an exhibit conceived by Kirk which opened in 2000.  In this exhibit, he placed Shaker objects in the context of their times and also showcased the work of 20th century artists who shared a similar design aesthetic with the Shakers.

 

The collection also includes photos used by Kirk in his book The Impecunious House Restorer, published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1984.  In this book, Kirk recorded his experiences in restoring the Daniel Bliss house in Rehoboth, Massachusetts.  Among the treasures found in the house were old Bliss family photographs and a letter dated December 22, 1797, in which Noah Carpenter invites Asaph Bliss to a dance; these items are included in this collection.

 

 

LANGUAGE OF MATERIALS

 

The materials are in English.

 

 

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

 

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

           

 

PROVENANCE

           

Gift of John T. Kirk. 

 

ACCESS POINTS

 

People:

            Bliss family.

 

Topics:

            Shakers.

            Shakers – Exhibitions.

            Museum exhibits.

Architecture, Domestic – Conservation and restoration – Massachusetts – Rehoboth.

Dwellings – Conservation and restoration.

            Historic buildings – Conservation and restoration.

            Photographs.

            Drafts (preliminary versions).

            Invitations.

           

Additional authors:

            Kirk, John T.  The Shaker World.

            Kirk, John T.  The Impecunious House Restorer.

 

 

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

 

Location: 16 F 3-4

 

Box 1:

 

Folder 1:          Addresses

 

Folder 2:          Art Complex, Inc., at Duxbury

 

Folder 3:          Article: “Contextualizing the Gift Drawings”

 

Folder 4:          Article: “Reappraising an Upside Down Shaker Masterpiece”

 

Folder 5:          Bivins, John

 

Folder 6:          Booth, Robert and Kathy

 

Folder 7:          Canterbury, New Hampshire

 

Folder 8:          Correspondence

 

Folder 9:          Enfield, New Hampshire

 

Folder 10:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities” (Seattle Art Museum, 2000-2001)

 

Folder 11:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: checklists for works on paper hall

 

Folder 12:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: contemporary artists

 

Folder 13:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: contemporary part of show

 

Folder 14:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: correspondence

 

Folder 15:        Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: furniture, textiles, etc. (with photos)

 

 

Box 2:

 

Folder 1:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: general

 

Folder 2:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: Neoclassical influence

 

Folder 3:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: paint area

 

Folder 4:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: publicity, etc.

 

Folder 5:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: slides

 

Folder 6:          Exhibit: “Creating Perfection: Shaker Objects and Their Affinities”: wall texts

 

Folder 7:          Exhibit: “A Room of Shaker Furniture: 40 Untouched Masterpieces of Shaker Design” (Shaker Museum and Library, 1987)

 

Folder 8:          Exhibit: “The Shaker World” (Shaker Museum and Library, 1998)

 

Folder 9:          Exhibit: “The Shaker World”: photos

 

Folder 10:        Fredericks, Michael, Jr.

 

Folder 11:        Fruitlands Museum

 

Folder 12:        Hancock Shaker Village

 

Folder 13:        Huntington Library

 

Folder 14:        Kassay, John

 

 

Box 3:

 

Folder 1:          Masonic Library (New York) and masonry

 

Folder 2:          Miller, Stephen

 

Folder 3:          Muller, Erhart and Ruth

 

Folder 4:          Museums

 

Folder 5:          New York Public Library

 

Folder 6:          Old Sturbridge Village

 

Folder 7:          Philadelphia Museum of Art

 

Folder 8:          Pleasant Hill, Kentucky

 

Folder 9:          Rieman, Tim

 

Folder 10:        Sabbathday Lake, Maine

 

Folder 11:        Schorsch, David

 

Folder 12:        Shaker Museum and Library (Old Chatham, N.Y.)

 

Folder 13:        Shaker Museum and Library: catalog information (folder 1 of 2)

 

 

Box 4:

 

Folder 1:          Shaker Museum and Library: catalog information (folder 2 of 2)

 

Folder 2:          SPNEA/ Susan Buck

 

Folder 3:          Western Reserve Historical Society

 

Folder 4:          Wilkins, Bob

 

Folder 5:          Winterthur Museum

 

Folder 6:          Zoar, Ohio

 

Folders 7-9:     The Shaker World: manuscript, cut but not edited (3 folders)

 

 

Box 5:

 

Folder 1:          The Shaker World: manuscript, cut and edited: opening materials, chapters 1-2

 

Folder 2:          The Shaker World: manuscript, cut and edited: chapters 3-6

 

Folder 3:          The Shaker World: manuscript, cut and edited: chapters 7-9

 

Folder 4:          The Shaker World: manuscript, cut and edited: chapter 10 and ending material

 

Folder 5:          The Shaker World: footnotes from Jerry

 

Folders 6-7:     The Shaker World: notes by Jerry Grant

 

 

Box 6:

 

Folder 1:          The Shaker World: notes worked on by Ginny

 

Folder 2:          The Shaker World: manuscript on computer disks, uncut

 

Folder 3:          The Shaker World: book reviews

 

Folder 4:          The Shaker World: correspondence with Abrams (publisher)

 

Folder 5:          The Shaker World: Shaker-like art, 20th century

 

Folder 6:          The Shaker World: survival; 20th century myth makers; refinished furniture

 

Folder 7:          The Shaker World: thank you letters, etc.

 

Folder 8:          The Shaker World: Trevor’s notes

 

Folders 9-10:   The Shaker World: articles about Shakers       

 

Folders 11-12: The Shaker World: general footnotes (folders 1 and 2 of 4)

 

 

Box 7:

 

Folders 1-2:     The Shaker World: general footnotes (folders 3 and 4 of 4)

 

Folders 3-4:     The Shaker World: historic packets, footnotes

 

Folder 5:          The Shaker World: images used in book: photos (folder 1 of 2)

 

 

Box 8:

 

Folder 1:          The Shaker World: images used in book: photos (folder 2 of 2)

 

Folder 2:          The Shaker World: images used in book: negatives and transparencies

 

Folder 3:          The Shaker World: images used in book: photocopies

 

Folder 4:          The Shaker World: images used in book (2d copies): black and white photos

 

Folder 5:          The Shaker World: images used in book (2d copies): color photos, negatives and transparencies, photocopies

 

Folders 6-8:     The Shaker World: images not used in book (3 folders)

 

 

Box 9:

           

Folder 1:          The Impecunious House Restorer: Bliss house: historic photos

 

Folder 2:          The Impecunious House Restorer: Bliss house, exterior photos

 

Folders 3-6:     The Impecunious House Restorer: photos used in book (4 folders)

 

Folder 7:          The Impecunious House Restorer: original letter, Noah Campbell to Asaph Bliss, Rehoboth, Dec. 22, 1797 [invitation to a dance]