Richard Frary collection of 20th-century authors' materials
Scope and Contents note
The collection includes letters, manuscripts, photographs, and other material related to 20th-century authors, including John Dos Passos, the artist Rockwell Kent, Sinclair Lewis, James Joyce, Theodore Dreiser, Frank Norris, Timothy Leary, and Carl Van Vechten, 1897-1990. Included are correspondence, book dealers' notices, a press release and a contract from published works of John Dos Passos. Rockwell Kent items include illustration proofs, dust jacket prospectus, commemorative stamps designed for Christmas Seals, and dealer publications. There is also a copy of the landmarks designation report for the Beresford Apartments in New York.
The second accession consists of framed photographs of Frank Norris, Sinclair Lewis, Morris Wright, Eugene O'Neill, James Joyce, Tennessee Williams, and William Faulkner.
Dates
- Creation: 1897-1990
Creator
- Frary, Richard, 1947- (Person)
- Leary, Timothy (Timothy Francis), 1920-1996 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access note
This collection is housed off-site and requires 48-hours' notice for retrieval. Please contact Special Collections for more information.
Collection is open for use.
Conditions Governing Use note
Single copies may be made for research purposes. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Special Collections department. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.
Biographical/Historical note
The collector, Richard Frary, was an alumnus of The Johns Hopkins University and president of a real estate firm in New York City. He was an avid book collector with a particular interest in 19th- and 20th-century American literature.
Extent
4.57 Cubic Feet (8 containers)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The collection includes letters, manuscripts, photographs, and other material related to 20th-century authors, including John Dos Passos, the artist Rockwell Kent, Sinclair Lewis, James Joyce, Theodore Dreiser, Frank Norris, Timothy Leary, and Carl Van Vechten, 1897-1990.
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
The collection was a gift to the University from Richard Frary in 2000. Additional materials were added to the collection from a gift of Richard Frary in 2019.
Accruals note
Accession number 2003-04.34, 2018-19.MS.0398_001.
Processing Information note
Processed in 2002 by Joan Grattan. Additional processing by Jordon Steele, July 2015. Titles of items are largely derived from dealer descriptions. The Timothy Leary typescripts (box 1, folder 13) were added to the collection by Kristen Diehl in January 2023.
Subject
- Norris, Frank, 1870-1902 (Person)
- Van Vechten, Carl, 1880-1964 (Person)
- Morris, Wright, 1910-1998 (Person)
- O'Neill, Eugene, 1888-1953 (Person)
- Faulkner, William, 1897-1962 (Person)
- Lewis, Sinclair, 1885-1951 (Person)
- Joyce, James, 1882-1941 (Person)
- Dreiser, Theodore, 1871-1945 (Person)
- Frary, Richard, 1947- (Person)
- Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971 (Person)
- Williams, Tennessee, 1911-1983 (Person)
- Dos Passos, John, 1896-1970 (Person)
- Dos Passos, John, 1896-1970 (Person)
- Cassady, Neal (Person)
- Title
- Richard Frary collection of 20th-century authors' materials, 1897-1990
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Repository
The Sheridan Libraries
Special Collections
3400 N Charles St
Baltimore MD 21218 USA
specialcollections@lists.jhu.edu