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Charles Keck papers, circa 1905-circa 1954

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Contents and Arrangement

The collection is arranged as two series.

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Series 1:Personal Papers, 1920-circa 1954
0.3 Linear feet
Box 1

This series includes three biographical statements written by others about Keck, including an entry for the National Cyclopedia of American Biography; a diploma given to Keck in recognition of distinguished service in the field of Lincolniana from Lincoln Memorial University; thirteen letters to Keck, including two from Alexander Stirling Calder and one from Homer Saint-Gaudens; typescripts of two speeches given by Keck, to the Allied Artists, and as president of the National Sculpture Society; and printed material including news clippings from 1933 and 1948, statements released about the addition to the General Post Office building in New York City, for which Keck was selected to create a relief sculpture, and a collection of addresses and papers printed in connection with the unveiling of Keck's monument to Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, and Andrew Johnson in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1948. Lists of artwork include a bound volume listing works alphabetically and giving drawer locations for some of the works; a loose leaf binder of records entitled "Work done" providing overviews of projects including dates of contracts, creation, payments, and some descriptive information about Keck's ideas for the works and his artistic process; and four other loose leaf lists, one of which includes prices.
This series has been digitized in entirety with the exception of the full text of the publication "Presidents North Carolina Gave the Nation" and a binder originally housing lists of artwork.
DescriptionContainerSelect
Biographical Statements, circa 1930s-circa 1954
1
1
Diploma, 1942
1
2
Letters to Keck, 1920-1950
1
3
Speeches, circa 1930s
1
4
Lists of Artwork, Prices, and Sales, circa 1920s-circa 1954
1
5
Lists of Artwork, Bound Volume, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
1
6
Lists of Artwork, "Work Done", 1931-1949
1
7
Lists of Artwork, "Work Done," Binder , 1931-1949
1
8
Printed Material, Clippings and Statements on Post Office Relief, 1933-1948
1
9
Printed Material, "Presidents North Carolina Gave the Nation", 1949
1
10
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Series 2:Photographic Material, circa 1905-circa 1948
8.3 Linear feet
Boxes 1-22

The series is arranged as two subseries.
  • 2.1: Photographs, circa 1905-circa 1948 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
  • 2.2: Glass Plate Negatives, circa 1920s-circa 1940s (8 linear feet; Boxes 12-22)
The bulk of this series has been digitized. Photographs that are copy prints of glass plate negatives have not been digitized.
2.1:Photographs, circa 1905-circa 1948
0.3 Linear feet
Boxes 1-2
Photographs of Keck include two with his wife, Anne, at a circa 1920 Beaux Arts Ball at the Astor Hotel in New York City, and one photo of him with his youngest son, John. There are also portraits of Keck and photos of him in his studio, including one from circa 1905 at the American Academy in Rome with his sculpture "The Awakening of Egypt." There are copy prints of family members, including Anne Keck, unidentified individuals, including two men sitting for portraits, and three group photographs of Keck, Adolph Weinman, Milton Horn, and others. Some of the copy prints have been printed from the glass plate negatives in Series 2.2. Also found are photos of the unveiling of Keck's monument to Presidents Jackson, Polk, and Johnson in Raleigh, North Carolina, including photos showing President Harry S. Truman and Margaret Truman, state and government officials James McCord, Willis Smith, R. Gregg Cherry, Clyde R. Hoey, and William B. Umstead, and the lunch following the unveiling at the Governor's Mansion in Raleigh, in October 1948.
DescriptionContainer
Keck and Others, 1920s-1940s
1
11
Keck in Studio, circa 1905-1940s
1
12
Keck in Studio, circa 1905-circa 1940s
1
13
Studio, circa 1910
2
1
Family, circa 1905-circa 1920s
2
2
Men Sitting for Portraits, circa 1930s
2
3
Events Celebrating Unveiling Of Keck Monument in Raleigh, NC, 1948
2
4
Events Celebrating Unveiling Of Keck Monument in Raleigh, NC, 1948
2
5
Works of Art, circa 1930
2
6
Works of Art, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
2
7
Works of Art, In Studio, 1933
2
8
Works of Art, In Studio, 1933
2
9
Works of Art, Models for Edison Memorial, Eagle Rock, NJ, circa 1924
2
10
Works of Art, Negatives, circa 1940s
2
11
2.2:Glass Plate Negatives, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
8 Linear feet
Boxes 12-22
1003 glass plate negatives are primarily of artwork by Keck including busts, carvings, reliefs, plaques, medallions, statues, pillars, and paintings, photographed both in the studio and on location. The last box in the series contains a few images of people, including Anne Keck, and of Keck's studio, some of which appear to have copy prints in series 2.1. Photographs.
Approximately one half of the images are numbered according to a system that is referenced in a list of negatives, numbers 400-533, which appears to record the works of art in rough chronological order, ending around 1931. The unnumbered negatives are from circa 1927- to the early 1940s. The original order of the negatives has been maintained.
DescriptionContainer
List of Negatives #400-533, circa 1924-circa 1933
2
12
Numbers 1-38, circa 1920s-circa 1931
3
Numbers 39-87, circa 1920s-circa 1931
4
Numbers 88-138, circa 1920s-circa 1931
5
Numbers 139-189, circa 1920s-circa 1931
6
Numbers 190-237, circa 1920s-circa 1931
7
Numbers 238-407, circa 1920s-circa 1931
8
Numbers 408-457, circa 1920s-circa 1931
9
Numbers 458-503B, circa 1920s-circa 1931
10
Numbers 504C-533 and Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
11
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
12
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
13
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
14
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
15
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
16
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
17
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
18
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
19
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
20
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
21
Unnumbered, circa 1920s-circa 1940s
22

Make a Request

  • To request an appointment to view materials, make your selections using the checkboxes and click the "Reading Room" button. Please note, you will receive the full box.
  • To request reproductions, make your selections using the checkboxes and click the "Reproduction" button.