Holger Cahill Papers, 1910-1993 bulk 1910-1960
About the Holger Cahill Papers
All information on this page comes from A Finding Aid to the Holger Cahill Papers, ![[Download PDF Version]](/images/website/pdficon_small.gif)
)
Biographical Information | Overview of the Collection | How to Use the Collection
Biographical Information [+]
Holger Cahill was born Sveinn Kristjan Bjarnarson in Iceland in a small valley near the Arctic Circle, on January 13, 1887. His parents, Bjorn Jonson and Vigdis Bjarnadottir, immigrated to the United States from Iceland sometime later in the 1880s. In 1904, his father deserted the family, forcing Sveinn to be separated from his mother and sister to work on a farm in North Dakota. He ran away and wandered from job to job until settling in an orphanage in western Canada, where he attended school and became a voracious reader. READ MORE
Overview of the Collection
Scope and Contents
The papers of Holger Cahill (1887-1960) date from 1910 to 1993, bulk 1910-1960, and measure 16.0 linear feet. The collection offers researchers fairly comprehensive documentation of Cahill's directorship of the FAP in addition to series documenting his work as a writer and art critic. FAP records include national and state administrative reports, records of community art centers, photographic documentation of state activities, artist files, divisional records about teaching, crafts, murals, and poster work, files concerning the Index of American Design, scrapbooks, and printed material.
Arrangement and Series Description
The collection is arranged into nine series:
- Series 1: Biographical Material and Personal Papers, 1931-1988 (Box 1; 19 folders)
- Series 2: Correspondence Files, 1922-1979, 1993 (Boxes 1-2; 1.5 linear ft.)
- Series 3: Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project, 1934-1970 (Boxes 2-14, 18, MMs009; 10.75 linear ft.)
- Series 4: Writings, Lectures and Speeches, 1916-1960 (Boxes 14-15, 18; 1.0 linear ft.)
- Series 5: Minutes of Meetings and Panel Discussions, Non-FAP, 1939-1947 (Box 15; 5 folders)
- Series 6: Notes and Research Material, 1935-1970 (Boxes 15-16; 0.25 linear ft.)
- Series 7: Artwork, undated (Boxes 16, 18; 2 folders)
- Series 8: Printed Material, 1910-1985 (Boxes 16-17; 1.8 linear ft.)
- Series 9: Photographs, circa 1917-1960 (Box 17; 6 folders)
Subjects and Names
This collection is indexed in the online catalog of the Archives of American Art under the following terms:
- Subjects:
- Brown, Samuel Joseph, 1907-
- De Rivera, José Ruiz, 1904-
- Hopkins, Harry Lloyd, 1890-1946
- Knaths, Karl, 1891-
- Olds, Elizabeth, 1896-
- Roosevelt, Eleanor, 1884-1962
- Rowan, Edward Beatty, 1898-1946
- Scaravaglione, Concetta Maria, 1900-1975
- Segal, George, 1924-
- Ward, Lynd, 1905-
- Weisenborn, Rudolph, b. 1881
- American Council of Learned Societies
- American Federation of Arts
- Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.)
- Cartoonists Guild
- The Design Laboratory (New York, N.Y.)
- Federal Art Project (U.S.)
- Federal Music Project (U.S.)
- Federal Theatre Project (U.S.)
- Index of American Design
- Shakers
- Treasury Relief Art Project
- American Artists' Congress
- Subjects-Topical:
- New Deal, 1933-1939
- Federal aid to the arts
- Federal aid to the public welfare
- Art and state
- Arts administrators
- Public officers
- Subjects-Geographical:
- United States -- Economic conditions -- 1918-1945
- United States -- Social conditions -- 1933-1945
- Types of Materials:
- Drawings
- Government records
- Interviews
- Photographs
- Photograph albums
- Prints
- Scrapbooks
- Slides (photographs)
- Names:
- Abbott, Berenice, 1898- photographer
- Halpert, Edith Gregor, 1900-1970
- Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-
- Morris, Carl, 1911-1993
- Speck, Walter, 1895-
- Federal Art Project (U.S.)
- New York World's Fair (1939-1940)
- United States. Works Progress Administration
- United States. Work Projects Administration
Provenance
The Holger Cahill papers were donated to the Archives of American Art through a series of gifts by Cahill's widow, Dorothy C. Miller, between 1964 and 1995.
How the Collection was Processed
The collection was donated in several installments and typically microfilmed in the order in which it was received at some point after receipt. The entire collection was processed by Jean Fitzgerald in 1998. The microfilm was digitized in 2005 with funding provided by Jane Blumenfeld.
How to Use the Collection
Restrictions on Use
The microfilm of this collection has been digitized and is available online via the Archives of American Art website.
Ownership & Literary Rights
The Holger Cahill papers 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.
Available Formats
The microfilm of this collection has been digitized and is available online via the Archives of American Art website.
How to Cite this Collection
Holger Cahill papers, 1910-1993, bulk 1910-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.