The bulk of the collection was donated in 1962-1964 by Lawrence Fleischman and Harold Love (who bought the papers in 1926 from Mrs. Nadia Tomassi, a Vedder family friend who had held the papers since Vedder's death in 1923). Several books were donated by Irving Burton in 1964 and 1977. Some correspondence, writings, notes, and printed material were donated in 1981 by Mrs. John Breck.
Four originals drawings (filmed on Reel 671: 608-610 and 612) were returned to the donor and are not described in the Container Listing.
Related material found in the Archives of American Art includes 3 letters written by Elihu Vedder that comprise a small collection donated by Charles E. Feinberg.
The papers of
The collection was largely processed before being partially microfilmed in 1962-1964 on reels 515-529 and 671, and in 1981 on reel 2323. Two drawings, study for "The Rubaiyat" and "The Artist's Daughter," received conservation treatment at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts in 1986. The entire collection was fully processed, arranged and described by Jennifer Meehan in 2006, and the collection was digitized in 2007 and 2009 with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Elihu Vedder papers, 1804-1969 (bulk 1840-1923). Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The bulk of this collection has been digitized. Use of material not digitized requires an appointment.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the
Elihu Vedder was born in New York in 1836. He grew up in Cuba, where his father worked as a dentist, and on his grandfather's farm in Brooklyn. He was educated in boarding schools and by tutors, and showed an interest in drawing at an early age. He began his formal training with T. H. Matteson in New York, and went on to study with Francois-Edouard Picot in Paris and Raffaello Bonaiuti in Florence.
After studying in Europe for several years, Vedder returned to the U.S. in 1860 and settled in New York, where he worked as a commercial illustrator during the Civil War. In 1864, he was one of the artists who illustrated the first American edition of Tennyson's
In 1869 Vedder married Elizabeth Caroline Beach Rosekrans (Carrie). They lived in Rome, where Vedder earned his living by undertaking commissioned work (what he termed "duty painting") while also producing paintings on original themes and subjects, such as
Vedder also carried out work on commission, designing covers for
Vedder made his biggest contribution to American commercial art in 1884 with his illustrations of
In the early 1900s, Vedder built a villa on the island of Capri, where he spent the summers and falls while continuing to live the rest of the year in Rome. From this point on, he didn't undertake any new major paintings, but instead turned to writing and illustrating books of autobiography and verse. His books include
Vedder died on January 29, 1923, at the age of 87.
This biographical note draws from Regina Soria's biography,
The Elihu Vedder papers measure approximately 9.2 linear feet and date from 1804 to 1969, with the bulk of the material dating from 1840 to 1923. The collection documents the life and work of the painter and illustrator, who was perhaps best known for his illustrations of the 1884 edition of
Correspondence consists of incoming and drafts of outgoing letters concerning both personal and professional matters. The majority of the business correspondence was written by Vedder's wife, Caroline R. Vedder, on his behalf and documents the sale and exhibition of Vedder's work, commissions for paintings, and his illustrations for books. Also found is corresondence between and amongst various members of Vedder's immediate and extended family (including early letters between his parents, Elizabeth and Elihu Vedder, Sr.), and between Caroline R. Vedder and her immediate family (including her mother, sisters, and nieces).
Writings consist of drafts, manuscripts, typescripts, and illustrations for various books that Vedder wrote late in his career after he had stopped painting, and for various other poems, essays, and stories, as well as some writings by others. Also found are several diaries belonging to Vedder and Caroline R. Vedder, which record some of the daily activities and travels of Vedder and his wife. Photographs include ones of Vedder, his studio, his friends and family, and his artwork, as well as ones of various residences, from various trips, and of an unidentified exhibition of Vedder's work. Drawings include a study for "The Rubaiyat" and "The Artist's Daughter," along with scattered sketches, plans, and bookplates. Also found are copies of Vedder's published books, and clippings, catalogs, art reproductions, and other printed material.
Also in the collection are scattered legal papers (wills, deeds, and agreements of various family members), finanical papers (such as receipts and statements), notes on family history and other family papers, miscellaney, and numerous annotated envelopes and enclosures that once housed some of Vedder's papers.
The collection is arranged as seven series:
This series consists of miscellaneous personal and family papers, including notes on the genealogy of the Vedder family, legal and financial papers, notes on the sale and disposition of Vedder's artwork, miscellany, and a significant amount of empty envelopes and enclosures that once housed some of Vedder's papers and that are annotated with notes about the former contents. Legal papers are primarily those of Vedder's extended family and consist of the last wills and testaments of various family members (including his brother and father), deeds, agreements, and insurance policies, as well as Vedder's contract with Houghton Mifflin for
Family History Notes
Family Legal Papers
Family Legal Papers
Financial Papers, Caroline R. Vedder's Notebook of Sales
Financial Papers, Statements
Financial Papers, Statements
Financial Papers, Receipts
Financial Papers
Financial Papers
Artwork Sales and Disposition Notes
Artwork Sales and Disposition Notes
Artwork Sales and Disposition Notes
Artwork Sales and Disposition Notes
Miscellany
Miscellany
Miscellany
Series consists of Vedder's personal, professional, and family correspondence, comprised mostly of incoming letters as well as some copies or drafts of outgoing letters. Correspondents include family, friends, artists, dealers, collectors, admirers, and publishers. The bulk of the business correspondence was written by Caroline R. Vedder on behalf of her husband, including correspondence with collectors, people who commissioned work, dealers, and publishers.
Earliest correspondence consists of letters sent and received by various members of Vedder's immediate and extended family, including his parents, Elizabeth and Elihu Vedder, Sr., his brother, Alexander V., his maternal grandparents, Alexander and Agnes Vedder, his maternal aunt, Eveline Caister, and his paternal uncles, Levi and John Vedder. Early letters document the time the family spent apart while Elihu, Sr., was living and working in Cuba and later while the boys were living with their grandparents for a time. Of particular note is an 1850 letter from Vedder to his mother expressing his interest in drawing.
Family correspondence consists primarily of letters between and amongst Vedder, his father, and his brother (Vedder's letters to his father detail his travels in Europe from 1857 to 1860 and his first attempts to earn a living by drawing); letters between Caroline R. Vedder, her mother, sisters, and nieces; letters between Vedder and his wife when either one of them was away from home, traveling or conducting business; and letters between Caroline R. Vedder and the children: Enoch, when he was away at a school and then living in the U.S. and Anita, when she was traveling and away from home.
Personal correspondence concerns matters such as Vedder's engagement and marriage to Caroline Rosekrans, the death and settling the estate of his brother, Alexander, his travels, including a trip up the Nile in 1889-1890, and his friendship with other artists. Professional correspondence concerns: his illustrations and engravings of his work for various books and poems, including
Also found is some posthumous correspondence sent and received by Anita Vedder, concerning gifts, sales, and exhibitions of Vedder's work.
See Appendix for a list of selected correspondents from Series 2.
Correspondence is arranged chronologically. Undated correspondence is arranged alphabetically at the end of the series.
This list does not include the names of family members. Unless otherwise noted, date entries refer to correspondence found on Reels 515-526. When correspondence can also be found on Reel 2323, it is noted with a "see" or "see also" reference after the appropriate date.
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Correspondence A
Correspondence B
Correspondence, Butler, Annie
Correspondence, Butler, Annie
Correspondence, Butler, Annie
Correspondence, Butler, Annie
Correspondence, Butler, Annie
Correspondence, C
Correspondence, D-E
Correspondence, F-G
Correspondence, Ha-Hep
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Herriman, Elizabeth
Correspondence, Hi-K
Correspondence, L
Correspondence, M
Correspondence, M
Correspondence, N-P
Correspondence, R
Correspondence, R
Correspondence, R
Correspondence, S
Correspondence, S
Correspondence, T
Correspondence, Va-Ved
Correspondence, Vedder, Anita H.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline E.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Caroline R.
Correspondence, Vedder, Elihu
Correspondence, Vedder, Elihu
Correspondence, Vedder, Elihu
Correspondence, Vedder, Elihu
Correspondence, Vedder, Elihu, Sr.
Correspondence, Vedder, Enoch
Correspondence, Vedder, Enoch
Correspondence, Vedder, Enoch
Correspondence, Vedder, Enoch
Correspondence, W
Correspondence, Unidentified
Correspondence, Unidentified
Correspondence, Unidentified
Correspondence, Unidentified
Correspondence, A-H
Correspondence, I-R
Correspondence, S-Z
Series consists of several diaries belonging to Caroline R. Vedder and Elihu Vedder. Caroline Vedder's diaries record daily activities in the Vedder household during 1878 and her travels in the United States in 1882. Vedder's diaries record his trip down the Nile in 1889-1890 and include some sketches.
Daily Diary (Caroline R. Vedder)
Travel Notes (Caroline R. Vedder)
Travel Diary (Elihu Vedder)
Nile Journey and Dates (Elihu Vedder)
This series consists of drafts, manuscripts, typescripts, and illustrations for various books that Vedder wrote late in his career after he had stopped painting, including his autobiographical book,
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Manuscripts
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Manuscripts
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Manuscripts
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Manuscripts
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Manuscripts
"Thoughts While Dressing and Undressing," Typescript Copy
Stories
Stories
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Poems and Essays
Notebook
Notebook
Fragments
Fragments
Fragments
Poems by Henry W. Austin and Others
Poems by Henry W. Austin and Others
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Dissertation on Elihu Vedder by Nola Tutag
Miscellaneous Notes and Writings (by others?)
This series consists of Vedder's published books, clippings (concerning his artwork, exhibitions, and published works, and obituaries for family and friends), exhibition catalogs, various catalogs with works by Vedder, reproductions of Vedder's artwork, uncut copies of his printed story, "The Story of Medusa," and an announcement of Vedder's first prize in the Christmas Card Competition held by L. Prang and Company.
Clippings
Clippings
Clippings
Clippings
Clippings
Clippings
Clippings
Exhibition Catalogs
Exhibition Catalogs
Exhibition Catalogs
Exhibition Catalogs
Exhibition Catalogs
Catalogs
Miscellaneous Printed Material
This series includes scattered drawings by Elihu Vedder, including a floor plan of his studio and other plans, sketches of cups, vases, and a wall display, copies of various bookplates (which may or may not have been designed by Vedder), and six original drawings, four of which are on microfilm only.
Plans, Sketches, and Bookplates
This series consists primarily of photographs of Vedder, his studio, his family and friends, and his artwork, including tintypes, 11 daguerreotypes, cartes-de-visite, cabinet cards, and silver gelatin, albumen, and platinum prints. Photographs of Vedder include a portrait of him as a young boy (daguerreotype), portraits of him as a young man and later in life, and ones of him in his studio (including in his San Basilio studio). Family photos include ones of Vedder's wife, Caroline R. Vedder, and children, Philip, Enoch and Anita; ones of Vedder with his wife and children, ones of Vedder and his wife with her family around the time they were married; and ones of Vedder's and Caroline R. Vedder's extended families (many of these can be found in Caroline R. Vedder's cartes-de-visite album, which was disassembled at some point after microfilming). Photos of friends include ones of Charles Caryl Coleman, Kate Field, and Amelia B. Edwards, and ones of Vedder and George Simonds in costume.
Other photos include: ones from a trip to America in 1901, ones of various residences (including the Vedder home outside St. Augustine, Florida and Vedder's villa in Italy), ones from an unidentified exhibition of Vedder's artwork, and various snapshots (including Italian scenes, and views from a hotel window in Pittsburgh and a from a window in St. Augustine.
This series has been scanned from the original photographs rather than microfilm. Items not scanned include photographs artwork and duplicates.
Photographs of Elihu Vedder
Photographs of Elihu Vedder
Photographs of Elihu Vedder
Photographs of Elihu Vedder
(Oversized items housed in Box 11, Folders 1-2)
Portrait of Elihu Vedder, Hand-Colored Photographic Print of Painting, "Artist's Studio" by Charles Coleman
Photographs of Family, Daguerreotypes
Photographs of Family, Copy Prints of Daguerreotypes
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Caroline R. Vedder's Carte-de-Visite Album
Photographs of Caroline R. Vedder
Photographs of Caroline R. Vedder
Photographs of Philip Vedder
Photographs of Enoch Vedder
Photographs of Anita Vedder
Photographs of Family
Photographs of Family
Photographs from Trip to America
Photograph Album, San Basilio Studio and Viareggio
Photographs of Friends
Photographs of Friends
Photographs of Friends
(Oversized items housed in OV 13)
Photographs of Elihu Vedder and George Simonds in Costume
Photographs of Elihu Vedder and George Simonds in Costume
(Oversized items housed in Box 11, Folder 7)
Photographs of Unidentified People
Photographs of Various Residences, Interiors and Exteriors
Photographs of Elihu Vedder's Villa in Italy
Various Snaphots
Various Snaphots
Various Snaphots
Exhibition Photographs
Photograph of Vedder Fountain
(Oversized items housed in Box 11, Folder 9 and OV 13)
(Oversized items housed in Box 11, Folder 10)