A Finding Aid to the Harriet Collins Allen Papers Relating to Solon Borglum, 1897-1925, in the Archives of American Art


Collection Overview
	Creator:	Harriet Collins Allen
	Title:	Harriet Collins Allen papers relating to Solon Borglum
	Dates:	1897-1925
	Abstract:	The papers of art patron Harriet Collins Allen measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1897-1925. Found within the papers are letters primarily written by Solon Borglum and his wife, Emma, to Harriet Collins Allen. The letters were written from Omaha, London, Paris, and New York and provide a cursory overview of some of the events in Borglum’s career and insights into his relationship with his older brother sculptor Gutzon Borglum. Borglum writes about meeting and working with other sculptors in Paris and New York and his wife writes about conflicts between the two brothers and exhibitions of Solon’s work. Also found within the papers are clippings, a brochure for Borglum’s book A Comparative Analysis of Natural Forms and Their Relation to the Human Figure, and photographs of Borglum in his studio and of his works.
	Extent:	0.2 linear feet

Administrative Information

Provenance

The Harriet Collins Allen papers relating to Solon Borglum were donated in 1989 by Joan Parsons Wang, granddaughter of Harriet Collins Allen.

Processing Information

The collection was processed in July 2005 by Jean Fitzgerald.

Preferred Citation

Harriet Collins Allen papers relating to Solon Borglum, 1897-1925. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility.

Ownership and Literary Rights

The Harriet Collins Allen papers relating to Solon Borglum are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.

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Index Terms
	This collection is indexed in the online catalog of the Archives of American Art under the following index terms. People, families and organizations are listed under "Subjects" when they are the topic of collection contents and under "Names" when they are creators or contributors.
	Subjects:
		Borglum, Gutzon, 1867-1941
	Subjects-Topical:
		Art -- Collectors and collecting
		Art patrons -- Ohio -- Cincinnati
		Sculpture, American
	Types of Materials:
		Photographs
	Names:
		Borglum, Emma Vignal, 1866-1934

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Related Material

The Archives holds several additional collections relating to Solon Borglum, including a loan of Gutzon Borglum papers microfilmed on reel 3056 (originals housed at the San Antonio Museum of Art) and the Solon H. Borglum and Borglum Family papers. The Library of Congress holds additional papers of Solon H. Borglum and is the primary repository of Gutzon Borglum's papers.

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Biographical Note

Harriet Collins Allen and her husband, Dr. Samuel Allen, befriended sculptor Solon Borglum while he was studying at the Cincinnati Art Academy in the mid-1890s.

Solon Hannibal Borglum was born December 22, 1868 in Ogden, Utah. He was the younger brother of noted sculptor Gutzon Borglum. Both brothers spent their early lives on a ranch near Omaha, Nebraska. From 1883 to 1884, Solon and Gutzon traveled to California where Gutzon studied art and both earned a living at ranching. After spending a short time at his brother's studio in Sierra Madre, and living as an artist in Santa Ana, Solon enrolled at the Cincinnati Art Academy, where he studied from 1895 to 1897 as a student of Louis Rebisso.

Solon traveled to Paris and met sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens who persuaded him to study at the Académie Julian. There he studied under Denys Puech and began winning awards for work exhibited in both France and the United States. In 1898, Solon married Emma Vignal in Paris. They spent four years living at the Crow Creek Reservation in South Dakota, an experience that influenced his art work. In 1901, Solon was elected to the National Sculpture Society, later becoming vice-president. He set up a studio in New York.

Borglum displayed several works at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, the Lewis and Clark Exposition in Portland, Oregon, and at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. Among his most noted commissions was the "Rough Rider Monument" commemorating Captain William Owen "Buckey" O'Neill in Prescott, Arizona. In 1906, Borglum moved to Silvermine, Connecticut, where his studio became the center of a colony called the Silvermine Group of Artists. It was also during this time that Paul Manship was employed as one of Borglum's assistants and lived with the family.

From 1916 to 1917 Solon taught at the Beaux-Arts Institute of Design in New York and worked on an art textbook. During World War I, he served as the Director of Sculpture for the American Expeditionary Forces Art Training Center. Following the war, Borglum returned to New York City and established a School of American Sculpture in New York City.

Solon Hannibal Borglum died suddenly after an appendectomy in January 1922 in New York City.

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Scope and Content Note

The papers of art patron Harriet Collins Allen measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1897-1925. Found within the papers are letters primarily written by Solon Borglum and his wife, Emma to Harriet Collins Allen. The letters were written from Omaha, London, Paris, and New York and provide a cursory overview of some of the events in Borglum's career and insights into his relationship with his older brother sculptor Gutzon Borglum. Borglum writes about meeting and working with other sculptors in Paris and New York and his wife writes about conflicts between the two brothers and exhibitions of Solon's work. Also found within the papers are clippings, a brochure for Borglum's book A Comparative Analysis of Natural Forms and Their Relation to the Human Figure, and photographs of Borglum in his studio and of his works.

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Arrangement
	The collection is arranged as 3 chronological series:

		Series 1: Letters, 1897-1925 (Box 1; 19 folders)
		Series 2: Printed Material, 1898-1907, undated (Box 1; 1 folder)
		Series 3: Photographs, undated (Box 1; 3 folders)

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Series Descriptions/Container Listing


Series 1: Letters, 1897-1925 (Box 1; 19 folders)
Letters are written primarily by Solon Borglum and his wife, Emma to Harriet Collins Allen. The letters were written from Omaha, London, Paris, and New York and provide a cursory overview of some of the events in Borglum's career and insights into his relationship with his older brother sculptor Gutzon Borglum. Borglum writes about meeting and working with other sculptors in Paris and New York, including Alexander Phimister Proctor, described as "the best American animal sculptor" in the Jardin des Plantes. Solon's wife writes about conflicts between the two brothers and exhibitions of Solon's work. There is a letter from Borglum's father, James Mothe Borglum, thanking the Allens for their interest in Solon. One letter contains a photograph of Borglum in Paris. One letter and two postcards are illustrated.
Box
1 (pam)	Letters, 1897-1925 (19 folders)


Series 2: Printed Material, 1898-1907, undated (Box 1; 1 folder)
Printed material consists of clippings and a brochure for Borglum's book.
Box
1 (pam)	Printed Material, 1898-1907, undated


Series 3: Photographs, undated (Box 1; 3 folders)
There is one photograph of Solon Borglum in his studio. The remaining photographs are of his sculptures.
Box
1 (pam)	Photographs, undated (2 folders)
	Negatives, undated

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Harriet Collins Allen Papers Relating to Solon Borglum