Object Details
- Creator
- Bird, William L.
- Provenance
- The collection was assembled and donated by William L. Bird.
- Creator
- Bird, William L.
- See more items in
- William L. Bird Holidays on Display Collection
- Summary
- The collection consists of archival materials assembled by National Museum of American History Curator William Lawrence Bird. The materials were used as background research for the publication of his book Holidays on Display (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2007), and as exhibit objects for the exhibit by the same name that opened shortly after the museum's architectural renovation (November 2009-September 2010). The materials include advertising and trade literature, especially for department stores and with emphasis on the display of toys; catalogs; photographs and slides; postcards; parade programs; design drawings; correspondence; stock certificates, and miscellaneous items relating to department stores and their displays, parades and the amusement industry.
- Accruals
- One cubic foot was received from William L. Bird on April 16, 2015. One half cubic foot of material was received from William L. Bird in 2018.
- Historical Note
- The collection consists of archival materials assembled by National Museum of American History Curator William Lawrence Bird. The materials were used as background research for the publication of his book Holidays on Display (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2007), and as exhibit objects for the exhibit by the same name that opened shortly after the museum's architectural renovation (November 2009-September 2010).
- Extent
- 6.5 Cubic feet (19 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
- Date
- 1877 - 2010
- Custodial History
- Collection transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Political History (now Division of Political and Military History) in 2012.
- Archival Repository
- Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Identifier
- NMAH.AC.1288
- Type
- Collection descriptions
- Archival materials
- Citation
- William L. Bird Holidays on Display Collection, 1877-2010, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
- Arrangement
- The collection is arranged into fourteen series. Series 1, Advertisements, 1925, 1954, undated Series 2, Articles/Newspaper clippings, 1922-2009 and undated Series 3, Artwork/Drawings, 1952, 1966 Series 4, Buttons/Pins (souvenir), 1901-2009 Series 5, Certificates, 1975-1976 Series 6, Correspondence, 1928 Series 7, Department Stores, 1903-2001 Series 8, Design/Display Companies, 1890-2001 Subseries 8.1, Adler-Jones Company, 1947 Subseries 8.2, American Decorative Flower Company, Inc., undated Subseries 8.3, Chance Manufacturing Company, Inc., 1975 Subseries 8.4, Chicago Artificial Flower Company, 1938-1939, 1951 Subseries 8.5, Eden Musee, 1892-1910 and undated Subseries 8.6, Dennison Manufacturing Company, 1913-1956 Subseries 8.7, Display Sales, 2008 and undated Subseries 8.8, Garrison-Wagner Company, 1949-1952, 1959 Subseries 8.9, Gasthoff's Display Service, Inc., 1937-1938, 1956 Subseries 8.10, General Electric, 1931, 1938, 2000 Subseries 8.11, D. Glosser and Associates, Inc., undated Subseries 8.12, Hamberger Displays, Inc., 1989., 1997-1998, 2001 Subseries 8.13, Intamin AG (observation towers), undated Subseries 8.14, International Register Company, 1931 Subseries 8.15, Heinrich Mark, undated Subseries 8.16, Maytag Parade Floats and Moving Displays, [1938?] Subseries 8.17, Roberto Meluzzi, undated Subseries 8.18, Messmore & Damon, 1890-1960s Subseries 8.19, Modern Art Studios, circa 1920s Subseries 8.20, Motion Machines, Inc., undated Subseries 8.21, Phoenix Decorating Company, 2006-2010 Subseries 8.22, Pinfari, undated Subseries 8.23, Pittsburgh Display Advertising, Inc., 1952 Subseries 8.24, S.B. Ramagosa and Sons, 1974 Subseries 8.25, Rubies Costume Company, Inc., 2000 Subseries 8.26, Schack's Artificial Flower Company, 1922 Subseries 8.27, Anton Schwarzkopf, undated Subseries 8.28, Sherman Display Guide, 1942 Subseries 8.29, Vaughan's, Inc., 1950s, 1992 and undated Subseries 8.30, Venture Ride Manufacturing, Inc., 1975 Subseries 8.31, Victory Corporation, 1978-2000 Series 9, Parade Programs, 1909-2009 Series 10, Photographs, 1877-2009 Subseries 1, Parades, 1877-1980s Subseries 2, Window Displays, circa 1930s-2000s Subseries 3, Miscellaneous, 1935-1965 and undated Subseries 4, Slides, 1948-1976 Subseries 5, Lantern Slides, undated Series 11, Postcards, 1909-1973 and undated Series 12, Publications, 1938-1989, 2007 Subseries 12.1, Amusement Business, 1962-1967 Subseries 12.2, Chicago Railroad Fair Official Guide Book, 1948 Subseries 12.3, Commercial Christmas Decor, 2001-2002 Subseries 12.4, Department Store Economist, 1963 July Subseries 12.5 Display World, 1949, 1950-1952 Subseries 12.6, The Fellow Worker (Jordan Marsh Company), 1928 December Subseries 12.7, Good Year News (Good Year Tire and Rubber Company), 1962 November Subseries 12.8, The Holiday Messenger, 1891-1892 Subseries 12.9, The Hudsonian (J. L. Hudson Company), 1937-1954 Subseries 12.10 International Correspondence Schools, 1946-1956 Subseries 12.11, Jolly Book for Boys and Girls (John Wanamaker and Company), 1929-1931 Subseries 12.12, Koester School Year Book, [circa 1920s?] Subseries 12.13, Merchants Record and Show Window, 1906,1917, 1918 Subseries 12.14, Signs of the Times (National Journal of the Advertising Display), 1953 January Subseries 12.15, Sparks (R.H. Macy and Company), 1938-1947 Subseries 12.16, Store Chat (Strawbridge and Clothier), 1949, 1951, 1957 Subseries 12.17, Time Magazine, 1948 December 27 Subseries 12.18, Tourist Attractions and Parks, 1989 February Subseries 12.19, Childrens Souvenir Books, 1926-2003 (bulk 1920s) Series 13, Travel/Tourism, 1927-2007 Series 14, Tru-Vue, circa 1940s
- Processing Information
- Processed by Alison Oswald, archivist, 2012.
- Rights
- Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
- Bibliography
- Lehman Brothers Collection, Harvard Business School, Baker Library, Historical Collections (http://www.library.hbs.edu/hc/lehman/chrono.html?company=macy_credit_corp) (accessed August 9, 2012) Bird, William L. -- Holidays on Display -- . New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2007. "Eden Musee Faces Bankruptcy," -- New York Times -- , June 8, 1915. Kobler, John. "Where Are they Now? The Pride of the Eden Musee," -- New Yorker -- , November 20, 1943.
- Scope and Contents
- The collection consists of archival materials assembled by National Museum of American History Curator William Lawrence (known as Larry) Bird. The materials were used as background research and as exhibit objects for the exhibit "Holidays on Display" (November 2009-September 2010). The materials include advertising and trade literature (especially for department stores and with emphasis on the display of toys); catalogs; photographs and slides; postcards; parade programs; design drawings; correspondence; stock certificates, and miscellaneous items relating to department stores and their displays, parades, and the amusement industry.
- Restrictions
- The collection is open for research. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs, negatives, and slides.
- Record ID
- ebl-1503510310495-1503510310505-0
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