The Winterthur Library

 The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum

5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur, Delaware  19735

Telephone: 302-888-4600 or 800-448-3883

 

 

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

 

Creator:         Maher, James T.                     

Title:               Research papers

Dates:             circa 1960-circa 1990

Call No.:         Col. 968         

Acc. No.:        16x62

Quantity:        7 boxes (about 2 cubic feet)

Location:        8 H 5

 

 

 

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

 

Although best known as a historian of popular song, James Thomas Maher began his career as a journalist.  He worked in public relations and wrote about American decorative arts.  He contributed to and edited Alec Wilder’s American Popular Song.  He encouraged Marshall Stearns to found an archive of jazz, which became the Rutgers Institute of Jazz Studies.  He appeared in a documentary about Benny Goodman and in Ken Burns’ documentary about jazz.

 

Maher was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 23, 1917, the son of James T. Maher (1865-1917) and Anna Marie Ryan Maher (1881-1957).  (The 1910 census listed the elder Mr. Maher’s occupation as real estate agent.)  James Maher had to drop out of university due to ill health, and became a newspaper reporter.  Eventually, he moved into public relations, taking a break to serve in the U.S. Army during World War II.  As a public relations professional, he wrote for his clients and did much editing work, but for himself, he also wrote stories, a television script, a novel (The Distant Music of Summer), articles on various subjects, liner notes for more than 200 albums (as of 1980), and other works, including The Twilight of Splendor: Chronicles of the Age of American Palaces.  (His resume in the collection includes his plan for a work on New York City decorating firms of the 19th century.) 

 

James T. Maher was married and had a son.  He died in New York City on July 18, 2007.

 

 

SCOPE AND CONTENT

 

Research notes assembled by James T. Maher, chiefly about American architecture and interior decoration of the 19th century, with a focus on New York City.  This includes files on the house of Cornelius Vanderbilt, II, at 1 West 57th Street.  The files labeled “People” contain notes and newspaper clippings about individuals and firms, mostly interior decorators, furniture firms, or architects.

 

           

ORGANIZATION

 

The files are in alphabetical order, but with People files at the end.

 

 

LANGUAGE OF MATERIALS

 

The materials are in English.

 

 

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

 

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

           

 

PROVENANCE

 

Gift of Jack Gray.  [Apparently these Maher files had ended up in the possession of scholar Nina Gray (her papers: acc. 16x61).]

 

 

ACCESS POINTS

 

People:

            Vanderbilt, Cornelius, 1843-1899 - Homes and haunts.

 

Topics:

            Interior decoration – History – 19th century.

            Interior decoration – New York (State) – New York.

            Interior decorators – 19th century.

            Architecture, American – 19th century.

            Research notes.

           

 

 

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

 

Location: 8 H 5

 

 

Box 1:

 

Folder 1:          “The American Gobelins”: notes for study

                        [see folder containing Maher’s resume for a description of this project]

 

Folder 2:          American homes and buildings: California, Colorado, and other states

 

Folder 3:          American homes and buildings: miscellaneous notes

 

Folder 4:          American homes and buildings: New England

 

Folder 5:          American homes and buildings: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio

 

Folders 6-8:     American homes and buildings: New York

 

 

Box 2:

 

Folder 1:          American homes and buildings: New York: chiefly Fifth Avenue homes

 

Folder 2:          American homes and buildings: Virginia and Washington, D.C.

 

Folder 3:          The American Vignola [from International Correspondence Schools, Scranton]

 

Folder 4:          Americans in Paris

 

Folder 5:          Architecture: miscellaneous

 

Folder 6:          Architecture and buildings outside the United States

 

Folder 7:          The Art Amateur: notes

 

Folder 8:          Bibliography

 

Folder 9:          Boiserie

 

Folder 10:        Collectors and collecting; and art auctions

 

Folder 11:        Contractors

 

Folder 12:        Dealers, art

 

Folder 13:        Decoration (including costs, styles)

 

Folder 14:        Decorators (including Decorative Arts Society/Society of Decorative Arts)

 

Folder 15:        Ecole des Beaux-Arts (Paris)

 

 

Box 3:

 

Folder 1:          Field, Cyrus W.

 

Folder 2:          France: miscellaneous notes

 

Folder 3:          French furniture

 

Folder 4:          French Second Empire style

 

Folder 5:          Guggenheim family

 

Folder 6:          Hotels

 

Folder 7:          Limestone

 

Folder 8:          Maher, James T.: resume [from circa late 1970s] and work log [Jan.-Mar. 1980];

                                    The resume summarizes Maher’s plans for “The American Gobelins,” about decorators in 19th century New York City; it also summarizes some of his other work.

 

Folders 9-12:   New York décor: 19th century: chart of decorators; 1800-1850;

                                    1850-1870; 1870-1880;

                                    1880-1890;

                                    1890-1900+

 

Folder 13:        Organs [musical instruments]

 

Folder 14:        Painters

 

Folder 15:        Preservation

 

Folder 16:        Sculptors

 

 

Box 4:

 

Folder 1:          Sources: decoration, architecture

 

Folder 2:          Sources: miscellaneous

 

Folders 3-7:     Vanderbilt, Cornelius, II: home at 1 West 57th Street, New York City

 

Folder 8:          Vanderbilts and the decorative arts: notes for a study

 

Folder 9:          People: A-Bos:

                                    Alma-Tadema; Angeli Bros.; Avery; Bagues freres; Barbedienne; Batterson, See & Eiselle; Baudouine; Baudry; Baumgarten; Belter; Bitter; Bodart; Bosworth

 

 

Box 5:

 

Folder 1:          People: Bouché

 

Folder 2:          People: Boudoni-C:

                                    Boudoni; Marcel Boulanger; Bouwens vand der Boijen; Bureau; Burkhard; Byron; Cabus; Carlhian; Carrere & Hastings; Chalfin; Charles [Duveen]; Cheney; Codman; Coleman/Colman; Cottier; Allyn Cox; Kenyon Cox; Crawford; Cuel                                 

 

Folder 3:          People: Da-Duc:

                                    Dalva Bros.; Dasson; De Forest; De Forest (Cleveland & Co.); Deskey; Hector D’Espouy; De Wolfe; Duchene

 

Folder 4:          People: Duveen

 

Folder 5:          People: E-Gal:

                                    Ellin, Kitson; Fauchere; Ficken & Smith; Fourdinois; French & Co., Furness; Galland

 

Folder 6:          People: Gay-Gre:

                                    Gay; Gilbert; Gottscho; Glaenzer; Jacques Greber & Achille Duchene

 

Folder 7:          People: Gue-Heb:

                                    Guerin; Harney; Harriet & Henry; Hastings; Havard; Hebert

 

Folder 8:          People: Herter Brothers. [ continues in next box]

 

 

Box 6:

 

Folders 1-3:     People: Herter Brothers [continued from previous box]

 

Folder 4:          People: Herts-Hu

                                    Herts Bros.; Hess; Hoffman; Hofstatter; Huet; R.M. Hunt; Hutchings

 

Folder 5:          People: J-Mam:

                                    Jansen; C.M. Jenckes; Kimbel/Bembe & Kimbel; E.E. Kimbro; La Farge; Lamb; Lami; Lannuier; Lathrop; Le Brun; L’Hommedien [i.e. L’Hommedieu?]; Lienau; Luce; Mammelsdorff

 

Folder 6:          People: Marcotte

 

Folder 7:          People: Marq-Post:

                                    Marquand & Co.; Maugham; McKim, Mead & White [see also White]; McMillen; C-F Mewes; Mowbray; Oudinot; Palladio; Pasquali & Aeschlimann; G.W. Phillips; Phyfe; C.A. Platt; G. Platt; Post

 

Folder 8:          People: Pott-Ru:

                                    Pottier & Stymus; Praz; H.H. Richardson; Rinquet; Rochefort; Roudillon; Roux; Ruhlmann

 

 

Box 7:

 

Folder 1:          People: S:

                                    Saint-Gaudens; Samuel; Sanson; Scalmandre; Schastey; W. & J. Sloane; Franklin Smith; Snook; F.M. Spandau; Mrs. H.N. Straus; Sypher

 

Folder 2:          People: T-We:

                                    Thiebaud freres; Tiffany; Tillinghast; Trumbauer; Urban; Vaux; Vernay; Warren; Webb

 

Folder 3:          People: Wh-Z:

                                    Wheeler; S. White [see also McKim, Mead & White]; White Allom Ltd.; Williams; Wren; Yandell; Yellin; Ziegler