Series 1: Correspondence, 1805-1940
This series includes both general, or professional, correspondence, and family correspondence. Correspondents include many of the leading 19th- and 20th-century actors, stage managers, directors, and producers of American theater, such as the Barrymore family, the Booth family, the Drew family, Charles and Daniel Frohman, Maude Adams, David Belasco, Charles Dillingham, and Joseph Jefferson, among others.
Letters are organized into two subseries: General Correspondence and Family Correspondence.
Ab-Ae, 1884-1932
Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau, 1889-1910
Actor's Fund of America, 1918-1926
Adams, Maude, 1899-1912
Ah-Al, 1888-1929
Am-An, 1882-1923
Ambrose, Francis S., 1919-1933
Ap-At, 1888-1931
Arden, Edwin, 1882-1907
Arliss, George, 1917-1920
Au-Az, 1878-1915
Bab-Bal, 1888-1929
Bam-Barr, 1889-1927
Barnabee, Henry Clay, 1894-1917
Barrett, Edith, 1924-1932
Barrett, Lawrence, 1872-1883
Barrymore Family, circa 1889
Bars-Bay, 1887-1929
Be, 1876-1932
Belasco, David, 1901-1930
Bellew, Kyrle, 1889-1993
Benedict, Robert R., 1923-1924
Bennett, Richard, 1906-1907
Bergengren, Ralph, 1899-1904
Bi-Bl, 1888-1930
Block, William J., 1898
Bo, 1888-1930
De Bar, Blanche, 1922-1928
Booth Family, 1859-1927
Booth Family Clippings, 1861-1926
Br, 1874-1926
Brennan, George, 1897-1919
Broadhurst Brothers, 1896-1917
Brooks, Joseph, 1889-1916
Brown, Frederick W., 1923-1932
Brown, J. E., 1881-1890
Bu-By, 1888-1929
Ca, 1881-1931
Cable, George Washington, 1902-1914
Ch-Ci, 1882-1931
Cl, 1877-1929
Clifford, Arthur (Letters to), 1923-1933
Co-Col, 1884-1931
Com-Cow, 1877-1931
Cr-Cu, 1871-1930
Crane, W.H., 1878-1926
Cushing, Joshua M., 1904
Da, 1887-1930
De, 1893-1927
Di, 1882-1929
Do, 1891-1928
Dr, 1892-1924
Du, 1885-1932
Durant, H. R., 1918-1921
Ea-Eb, 1891-1927
Ed, 1891-1923
Eh-El, 1899-1929
Em-Ey, 1876-1932
Fa-Fe, 1877-1930
Fi, 1887-1929
Fiske, Minnie Maddern, 1893-1915
Fitch, Clyde, undated
Fl-Fo, 1888-1926
Fletcher, Coyne, 1892-1898
Forrest, Edwin, 1862-1922
Fr, 1879-1931
Frohman, Daniel, 1881-1931
Frohman, Gustave, 1907-1915
Fu-Fy, 1870-1931
Ga-Ge, 1891-1931
Gi, 1882-1933
Gill, William, 1900-1927
Gillette, William, 1881-1931
Gl, 1897-1917
Go, 1885-1931
Gr, 1881-1932
Griffith, Frank Carlos, 1921-1933
Gu, 1888-1933
Ha, 1879-1931
Hale, Philip, 1897-1927
Hamilton, Theodore, 1892-1915
Hampden, Walter, 1919-1928
Harris, William, 1882-1919
Hayden, George E., 1888-1894
He, 1894-1929
Hi, 1874-1929
Ho, 1872-1933
Hornblow, Arthur, Jr., 1903-1922
Horne, Billy, 1929-1931
Hu-Hy, 1888-1929
I, 1884-1919
Ja-Ji, 1888-1930
Jefferson, Joseph, circa 1867-1916
Jo-Ju, 1874-1928
Johnston, Robert E., 1899-1903
Ka-Ke, 1882-1931
Kearney, James, 1906-1907
Kemble Family, 1805-1885
Ki, 1891-1931
Kilby, Quincy and Fanny, 1920-1931
Kl-Ku, 1879-1927
La, 1885-1931
Lang, Albert, 1898-1914
Le, 1894-1932
Lestocq, William, d. 1920, 1904-1919
Lewis, Arthur, 1907-1928
Li, 1897-1930
Ll-Ly, 1877-1930
M-Mac, 1849-1929
MacKaye, Percy, 1925-1927
Mag-Man, 1871-1923
Map-Mar, 1876-1933
Mas-May, 1882-1932
Mason, J.B., undated
Massen, Louis F., 1892-1922
Matthews, Brander, 1889-1924
Mawson, Harry P., 1853-, 1899-1902
McA-McC, 1884-1929
McD-McV, 1868-1929
McKee, Frank, 1900-1902
McRae, Bruce, 1906-1924
Me, 1877-1929
Meery, Hans, 1883-1887
Meyers, Samuel, 1906-1918
Mi, 1887-1925
Mielziner, Ella McKenna Friend, 1931
Mo, 1868-1928
Morgan, James, 1894-1931
Morris, Robert Griffin, 1881-1885
Mortimer, Gustave A., 1882-1884
Moseley, Randolph P., 1911-1918
Mu-My, 1900-1926
Na-Ne, 1884-1933
Neil, Aimée Hucht, 1899
Newspaper Editors, 1912-1929
Ni-Nu, 1888-1932
O, 1879-1931
O'Neill, James, 1892-1920
Orr, Oliver, 1924-1933
Osmun, Thomas E., 1877-1888
Oursler, Fulton, 1929-1930
Pa-Pal, 1881-1922
Palmer, Albert Marshman, 1877-1897
Par-Pay, 1885-1931
Pattee, Charles H., 1897-1899
Paulding, Frederick, 1881-1892
Pe-Pi, 1882-1932
Pl-Po, 1889-1933
Pr-Pu, 1887-1929
Q, 1897-1907
Quinn, Arthur Hobson, 1924-1929
Ra, 1878-1927
Re, 1891-1932
Reed, Roland, 1884-1897
Rh-Ri, 1885-1932
Ro-Roe, 1878-1926
Rog-Roo, 1893-1929
Ros-Roy, 1879-1930
Ross, Frederick, 1925-1933
Ru-Ry, 1883-1933
Russell, Sol Smith, 1882-1900
Russell, Sol Smith, 1882-1900
Sa, 1882-1930
Sampson, William, 1908-1921
Sc-Se, 1884-1927
Schoeffel, John B., -1918, 1892-1903
Sh, 1889-1933
Sherrill, Mary K., circa 1921
Si-Sl, 1884-1924
Sm-Sn, 1889-1933
Smith, Mary Ellis, 1889
So-Sq, 1882-1933
Spencer, Daniel S., 1917-1931
Sta-Ste, 1881-1932
Sto-Stu, 1891-1926
Stoddard, Charles Warren, 1878-1905
Stoker, Bram, 1893-1899
Su-Sy, 1881-1933
Ta-Te, 1887-1930
Th, 1881-1931
Thayer, Charles H., 1884-1886
Ti-To, 1891-1927
Tr, 1894-1927
Troy, Thomas H., 1877-1879
Tu-Ty, 1897-1929
Tyler, George Crouse, 1900-1931
U, 1881-1917
V, 1899-1925
Wa, 1878-1927
Wallace, H. E., 1885-1889
We, 1896-1927
Wendell, Evert Jansen, 1899-1908
Wh, 1885-1928
Wheeler, Joseph H., 1912-1927
Whiting, Charles Goodrich, 1884-1908
Whiting, Edward Allen, 1919-1922
Wi-Will, 1887-1931
Wiln-Wit, 1885-1931
Wilson, Francis, 1906-1933
Wilson, Francis, 1906-1933
Wilton, Ellie, 1878-1879
Wo, 1879-1923
Woolley, W. E., 1893-1898
Wr-Wy, 1888-1931
Y-Z, 1886-1922
Unidentified Correspondence, 1881-1927
Eckert, (William) Stanley, 1912-1927
Field, Fanny L.D. Seymour, 1916-1936
Seymour (Eckert), Anne, 1918-1930
Davenport, Blanche Maria, 1920-1927
Davenport, Cheeta, undated
Davenport, Edgar Loomis, 1885-1917
Davenport, Fanny, 1882-1900
Davenport, Florence Cecilia, 1927
Davenport, F.S. (Cousin), 1888
Davenport, Lucy R., 1889-1919
This series primarily includes a variety of production-related materials Seymour produced during his time as an actor and more so his time as a director and stage manager, documenting his lengthy career, including the countless plays with which Seymour was involved, as well as the theaters and production companies with which he was affiliated.
Divided into the following subseries:
"Atonement, or The Child Stealer: A Drama in Five Acts and a Prologue", Manuscript, circa 1870
Daudet. "Sappho", Manuscript, 1895
"Diane De Lye", Manuscript, undated
"Fortune", Manuscript, undated
"Jean Marie", Manuscript, undated
"Lucille," Manuscript, undated
"Mousetrap", Manuscript, undated
"Nathan the Wise", Manuscript, 1879
"Nora and Dora", Manuscript, 1892
"Oliver Cromwell", Manuscript, 1871
"Oliver Twist", Manuscript, undated
"Only a Woman", Manuscript, undated
"Ravenhurst", Typescript, undated
"Rookwood", Manuscript, undated
Sardou, Victorien and Emile de Najac. Divorçons: A Comedy in Three Acts, Réjane Edition, 1885
Seymour, William G. "The Three Lovers, or Courtship Under Difficulties", Manuscript, undated
Seymour, William G. and Henry Edward Wallace. "Whom First We Love We Seldom Wed", Manuscript, 1885
Seymour, William G. and Henry Edward Wallace. "Whom First We Love We Seldom Wed", Typescript, 1885
"Won By" 3 Acts, Manuscript, undated
Sides, circa 1877-1884
"Arrah-Na-Pogue", undated
"Carmelita", undated
"A Celebrated Case", undated
"The Charity Ball", undated
"The Child Stealer", undated
"Christopher Columbus", undated
"The Danicheffs", undated
"Diane De Lys", undated
"Divorce", undated
"East Lynne", undated
"Home", undated
"Jack Cade", undated
"A Madcap Prince", undated
"Mousetrap", undated
"Oliver Cromwell", undated
"Oliver Cromwell (Adapted)", undated
"Oliver Twist" and "Olivia", undated
"Only A Woman", undated
"Patrie" and "Phaedre", undated
"Pique", undated
"Pique", undated
"A Play of Today", undated
"The Puritan's Daughter", undated
"Ravenhurst", undated
"Richard Toothaker", undated
"Ruth's Recompense", undated
"Sink or Swim", undated
"Topsy Turvy", circa 1884
"Valdberg", undated
"Vesta", undated
A, undated
"All of a Sudden Peggy", 1905
"The Amadan", undated
"Antony and Cleopatra", undated
"Arabian Nights", undated
"Arrah-Na-Pogue", 1903
"Ass of Buridan", 1909
B, undated
"Barbara Fretchie", circa 1868
"The Blind Passenger", undated
C, circa 1880-1900
"Choir Invisible", undated
"The Chosen People", 1906
Company Lists, 1851-1931
Costumes, 1900-1907
"The Crisis", undated
D, undated
"Doctor Wake's Patient", 1905
E, undated
F, undated
"Father and the Boys", 1908-1909
"Forrest Lovers", undated
G, circa 1887
"The Goose Hangs High", 1924-1925
H, 1877-1906
"The Henrietta", circa 1893
I, circa 1882-1924
J, undated
"Julius Caesar", 1875
K, undated
L, undated
"Lady of Lyons", 1902
"The Last Chapter", undated
M, circa 1877-1915
"Macbeth", undated
"Magda", undated
"The Magistrate", undated
Marlowe, Julia, 1887-1888
"The Marriage Game", 1901
"Mizpah", undated
"Mollentrave on Women", 1906
"The Mollusc", 1908-1911
"Mr. Potter of Texas", undated
N, undated
O, 1874-1929
Opening Performance Times, 1905-1907
"Out There", 1918
P, circa 1900-1920
"Patrie", undated
"Poor Richard", 1924-1930
Props, circa 1869-1904
B, circa 1869-1904
C-D, circa 1869-1904
E-H, circa 1869-1904
I-L, circa 1869-1904
M-O, circa 1869-1904
P-T, circa 1869-1904
U-W, circa 1869-1904
Miscellaneous, circa 1869-1904
Money, circa 1869-1904
R, circa 1922
"Robert Emmet", undated
"The Romany Rye", 1882
"Romeo and Juliet", 1899
Russell, Sol Smith, 1897-1898
S, circa 1877-1911
Scenery, circa 1900-1910
"School for Scandal", 1925-1926
"School for Scandal", 1925-1926
"She Stoops to Conquer", 1905-1928
"Sherlock Holmes", 1905
"The Silver Shield", undated
"Simple Simon", undated
"The Spitfire", 1896
Stage Jewelry, undated
T, undated
"Theodora", undated
"La Tosca", undated
"Trelawney of the Wells", 1926-1927
"Triumph of Love", 1903-1904
"The Two Orphans", undated
U-V, undated
W, undated
Worcester Items, undated
Y, undated
Datebooks and Diaries, 1867-1898
Datebooks and Diaries, 1889-1892
Datebooks and Diaries, 1895
Call Book, 1873
Day Book, 1877-1886
Address Books, 1882
Inventories of Plays, 1864
Notebooks, 1870-1929
Blank Forms, circa 1875-1910
Calling Cards, undated
Coal and Lumber, Receipts, 1927-1928
Contracts, 1885-1926
Dues and Donations, 1927-1928
Food, Receipts, 1881-1928
Funeral Expenses and Agreement, 1918
Furniture, Receipts, 1880
Hotels, Receipts, 1879-1928
Household Expenses, 1881, 1927-1928
Laundry, Receipts, 1927-1928
Medical Expenses, 1881-1927
Personal Expenses, 1924-1927
Salaries, Stubs and Notes, 1888-1915
Stationary, Receipts, 1879-1881
Taxes and Town Expenses, 1918-1927
Theatre Expenses, 1885-1928
Transportation Expenses, 1900-1930
Wigs, Receipts, 1879-1881
This series includes clippings and drafts of opinion pieces, articles, essays, and columns that William Seymour authored, in particular those that were published in the Boston Transcript. Also included are some personal papers, such as official documents and ephemera.
This series is divided into two subseries: Writings and Personal Papers.
Notes and Queries, 1912-1919
Notes and Queries, 1920-1922
Notes and Queries, 1923-1924
Notes and Queries, 1925-1926
Notes and Queries, 1927-1928
Notes and Queries, 1929-1932
Notes and Queries, undated
Speeches, 1903-1932
This series includes production materials, correspondence, and ephemera relating to Seymour and Davenport family members, in particular Fanny Davenport and May Davenport Seymour.
This series is divided into three subseries by creator: Fanny Davenport, May Davenport Seymour, and Other Family Members.
Essays, circa 1896
Checks, 1888-1889
Scene and Property Plots, undated
Sheet Music, circa 1881
Papers on Melbourne Hall, 1893-1898
Correspondence, 1902-1963
Writings and Essays, undated
Playbills, 1903
Artwork, undated
Davenport, Blanche, Playbills, 1878
Davenport, Harry, Playbills, 1879
Davenport, Lily Vining, undated
Seymour Family, 1902-1966
Includes clippings about Seymour and Davenport family members, including productions with which they were involved; other persons and subjects related to the theater; and non theater-related topics.
Materials in this series have been organized alphabetically by name, production title, or subject.
Davenport, Blanche, undated
Davenport, Edgar Loomis, 1888-1917
Davenport, Edward Loomis, 1854-1925
Davenport, Fanny, 1880-1929
Davenport, Harry, 1926-1939
Davenport, Lily, undated
Davenport, May, 1915-1927
Seymour, Anne, 1924
Seymour, Edward L.D., 1913-1956
Seymour, Fanny D., 1922
Seymour, James, undated
Seymour, Mrs. L.E., 1926-1927
Seymour, May Davenport, 1901-1959
Seymour, William, 1864-1942
Seymour Family, 1892-1933
"Alice Sit-By-The-Fire" with Ethel Barrymore, John Barrymore, and Davenport Seymour, undated
"The Dominie's Daughter" with William Seymour and Edgar L. Davenport, 1887 August-September
"1492" with William Seymour, undated
"Henry IV" with E.L. Davenport, 1926
"Lost" with Harry Davenport, undated
"Macbeth" with William Seymour, 1929
"Tosca" with Fanny Davenport, 1888
Adams-Arbuckle, 1930
Ball-Bradfurd, 1917-1930
Cable-Custer, 1917-1930
Dale-Doherty, 1919-1928
Eaton-Everett, 1925-1927
Field-Frizell, 1916-1919
Giddons-Grey, 1882-1919
Hamilton-Hutton, 1908-1943
Ibanez-Ingersoll, 1899-1928
Jacobi-Joy, undated
King-Krehbiel, 1923
Lambert-Lodge, 1930
McGlenlen-Murphy, 1925-1928
Noyes, Richard, 1925
O'Brien, undated
Page-Putnam, 1927-1930
Potter, Natalie, 1930
Ready-Ryan, 1904-1930
Sanborn-Stoker, 1900-1930
Taylor-Tripp, undated
Walker, Wendell, 1911-1929
Theater Articles: A-B, 1925-1927
Theater Articles: C, 1892-1928
Theater Articles: D-G, 1883-1939
Theater Articles: H-L, 1882-1930
Theater Articles: M-O, 1912-1928
Theater Articles: P-S, 1892-1939
Theater Articles: T-Z, 1919-1927
Animals, 1915-1930
Baseball, 1921-1925
Boston (History), 1907-1930
Circus, 1923-1926
Civil War, 1924-1930
The Constitution and the Flag, 1925
Fashions and Costumes, circa 1930
France (History), circa 1919
Harvard University, 1919-1933
Health, 1921-1929
Military, 1895-1927
Miscellaneous, 1912-1929
Movies, circa 1929-1937
Museums, 1915-1933
Music, 1925-1939
New York (History), 1924-1929
Opera, 1908-1929
Philadelphia (History), 1919
Poetry, 1916-1933
Presidents, 1882-1933
Princeton University, 1936-1939
Prohibition, circa 1919
Radio, undated
Religion, 1883-1930
Theaters, 1880-1930
- Scope and Contents
This collection consists primarily of the papers of William Seymour (1855-1933) that he created and collected throughout his lifelong involvement in the theater as an actor, stage manager, and director. The majority of Seymour's papers include correspondence with various prominent actors, directors, stage managers, and producers of the period, and numerous production-related materials, such as playscripts and promptbooks, notes, diaries, scene sketches, sheet music, ephemera and memorabilia among others. The scope is principally Seymour's connections with the New York, Boston, and New Orleans stage, though other cities are also represented. There is also some family correspondence; articles and essays that Seymour authored about his career and the theater more broadly; newspaper clippings; and a few personal documents.
Other Seymour and Davenport family members, particularly those who were prominent theater figures, such as Fanny Davenport (1850-1898), are also represented in the collection through correspondence, production materials, ephemera, and newspaper clippings.
- Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
- Collection Creator Biography:
Seymour, William, 1855-1933
William Seymour was a well-known American theatrical stage manager and director whose 70-year career, spanning from the mid-19th to the early 20th century, coincided with theater's dominance in American popular culture. Born into an Irish-American theatrical family on December 19, 1855 in New York City, William was the only child of James Seymour (1823-1864) of Belfast, and Lydia Griffith Seymour (1830-1897) of Philadelphia, both well-known actors. His father, born James Cunningham, and popularly billed as "The Irish Comedian," immigrated to the United States in 1835, taking the name of his then-manager.
By 1858, Seymour's parents were engaged at the Varieties Theatre in New Orleans under the management of Lawrence Barrett, where they met many prominent theater personalities, including Edwin Forrest, E.L. Davenport, Edwin and John Wilkes Booth, Edwin Adams, Joseph Jefferson, and Charlotte Cushman. Seymour remained close with many of these. Seymour maintained close ties with many of these figures throughout his career. It was there, at the age of seven, that Seymour made his official acting debut. There, he also played Hendrick to Joseph Jefferson's Rip Van Winkle.
James Seymour died in New Orleans in September 1864. Several months later, Lydia Seymour left New Orleans with her son for New York where Seymour remained for a time with Joseph Jefferson's company. Seymour continued to work as an actor for the next several years while gradually moving into stage management. Beginning in 1869, he worked at Edwin Booth's Theatre; and in autumn 1871, moved to Boston's Old Globe Theatre, where he played alongside Edwin Forrest until Forrest's last performance on April 2, 1872 as Richelieu with Seymour as François.
Seymour began working as a touring actor and stage manager, first with Lawrence Barrett's acting troupe from 1872 to 1875, and then as assistant stage manager under A.M. Palmer at Union Square Theatre in New York from 1875 to 1877. Seymour was then engaged by John McCullough for his stock company at the California Theatre in San Francisco from 1877 to 1879. It was in California where Seymour befriended producer, director, and playwright David Belasco.
At the end of 1879 at the age of 24, Seymour returned to Boston to become stage manager for Richard M. Field's Boston Museum. Remaining there for almost a decade, he gradually took on the responsibilities of an artistic director, occasionally also acting in productions. (Seymour worked at Madison Square Theatre in New York for a brief period from 1881 to 1882.)
In 1882, Seymour married a member of Boston Museum's company, May Marian Caroline Davenport (1856-1927) with whom he had several children. May also came from a theatrical family. She was the daughter of the prominent tragedian E.L. (Edward Loomis) Davenport (1814-1877) and sister to Fanny Davenport (1850-1898), one of the reigning American actresses of the day.
After leaving the Boston Museum, Seymour worked as manager to several producing organizations, including Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau (1889-1897), working principally at the new Tremont Theatre in Boston (1897-1898) and for Maurice Grau at the Metropolitan Opera House (1900-1901). From about 1897 to 1900, Seymour also worked as an independent producer-manager with E.H. Sothern, Julia Marlowe, and Maude Adams. Seymour's longest and most well-known association was with Charles Frohman and the Empire Theatre in New York where he worked as general stage director beginning around 1902. He was replaced in this position after Frohman's death in 1915, but continued to work as a regular director for two more years before resigning.
Outside of his full-time work as a stage manager and director, Seymour was very involved in the theater profession in other ways; for example, often writing editorials, articles, and opinion pieces about current theatrical topics in New York and Boston newspapers primarily. He was also on the board of trustees of the Actors Fund of America, a charitable organization supporting performers and behind-the-scenes workers in performing arts and entertainment. In 1917, Seymour stage managed the J. Hartley Manners special production of "Out There" that included an all-star company, including such George M. Cohan, Laurette Taylor, George Arliss and James Hackett. All of those involved donated their time to play one-night benefits in seventeen cities to raise over $600,000 for the American Red Cross war effort. After the tour President Wilson invited Seymour along with the rest of the company to Washington to receive medals for their contribution.
Seymour's remaining active years in the theatre were spent directing, managing, and acting in shows for various organizations and producers, such as George C. Tyler. He also lectured and directed community and high school theater groups near his home in South Duxbury, Massachusetts and contributed a special interest column called "Notes and Queries" to the Boston Evening Transcript. Seymour officially retired from the theater in 1928. He died a few years later in Plymouth, Massachusetts on October 3, 1933.
The following provides some genealogical information about the Seymour and Davenport family members represented in this collection:
William Seymour (1855-1933), son of actors of James Seymour (1823-1864) of Belfast, and Lydia Griffith Seymour (1830-1897) of Philadelphia, married May Marian Caroline Davenport (1856-1927), daughter of the well-known tragedian Edward Loomis Davenport (1814-1877) and Fanny Elizabeth Vining (1829-1891).
E.L. Davenport and Fanny Vining Davenport's other children included: Fanny Lily Gypsy Davenport (1850-1898), a renowned actress of her day, who married Edwin H. Price (1848-1929) and William Melbourne MacDowell (1856-1941); Blanche Maria Davenport (1851-1937); Edward C. W. Davenport (1855-1855); Florence Cecilia Davenport (1858-1937); Adele C. Davenport (1860-1871); actor Edgar Loomis Davenport (1862-1918) who married Lucy R. Davenport (1868-1918); and actor Harry George Bryant Davenport (1866-1949).
William Seymour and May Davenport Seymour had several children. Their oldest child was May Davenport Seymour (1883-1967), founder and curator of the Theater and Music Collection at the Museum of the City of New York, who married William S. Eckert (1870-1929). May and William had two children: actress Anne Seymour (1909-1988), and Edward William Eckert (1913-1988). William Seymour and May Davenport Seymour's other children included: Hazel A Seymour (b. 1887); Edward Loomis Davenport Seymour (1888-1956), horticultural editor, of New York; Fanny Lydia Davenport Seymour (1891-1968) who married Princeton professor Richard Montgomery Field (1885-1961), the son of Richard Montgomery Field (1834-1902), owner of the Boston Museum; Leah A. Seymour (b. 1892); James William Davenport Seymour (1895-1985) who worked as a screenwriter for Warner Brothers and at the American Embassy in London as secretary and press attaché for Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.; and John Russell Davenport Seymour (1897-1986) who married Abby Lewis.
- Acquisition:
The main portion of the papers were donated by William Seymour's five children, May Davenport Seymour, Edward Loomis Davenport Seymour, Fanny Lydia Davenport Seymour Field, James William Davenport Seymour, and John Russell Davenport Seymour, in 1936 . Additional materials, specifically correspondence between William Seymour and his daughter, May Davenport Seymour, were donated by William Seymour's granddaughter Anne Seymour in 1971 ; other materials may have been donated by William Seymour's daughter, Mary Davenport Seymour, who served as curator of the Theatre Collection of the Museum of the City of New York, as well as by others closely associated with Seymour.
- Custodial History
Many materials that had been part of William Seymour's original collection, including papers, artwork, and objects related to New York City theatrical productions, were presented to the Museum of the City of New York in 1936 as Seymour's oldest daughter, May Davenport Seymour, was the curator of the Museum's Theater Collection.
The correspondence that forms part this collection was transferred from the Theater Collection to the Manuscripts Division in July 1950 (AM 14099).
- Appraisal
During 2015 reprocessing, materials relating to the acquisition of the collection in 1936 were removed and added to the collection file. Also, non-related materials with definitive provenance were removed from the collection to be integrated into collections of the same provenance or made into separate collections.
Since this collection was acquired in 1936, many materials, particularly photographs, playbills, playscripts, artwork, and objects, have been dispersed and integrated into form-based collections within what was the Manuscripts Theatre Collection as well as the Rare Books Theatre Collection, for example, the 19th-century Playbooks Collection (TC023) that's currently described in the Princeton University Library catalog, and the Graphic Arts Collection.
- Processing Information
Basic conservation work to some of the sheet music was completed in 2008.
This collection was processed in 1999.
Reprocessed by Faith Charlton in 2015 with assistance from Nicholas Williams '2015.
Finding aid updated by Faith Charlton in 2015. Folder inventory prepared by Nicholas Williams '2015 and Kristine Gift (GS).
Much of the organization by document type that was established when the collection was originally processed was maintained during 2015 reprocessing.
- Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
- Conditions Governing Use
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
- Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
- Credit this material:
William Seymour Family Papers; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library
- Permanent URL:
- http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/x346d4208
- Location:
-
Firestone LibraryOne Washington RoadPrinceton, NJ 08544, USA
- Storage Note:
- Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1-89
- Separated Materials
Since this collection was acquired in 1936, many materials, particularly photographs, playbills, playscripts, artwork, and objects, have been dispersed and integrated into form-based collections within what was the Manuscripts Theatre Collection as well as the Rare Books Theatre Collection, for example, the 19th-century Playbooks Collection (TC023) that's currently described in the Princeton University Library catalog, and the Graphic Arts Collection.
- Bibliography
Jensen, Mary Ann. "The William Seymour Theater Collection: A Curator's View." In Princeton University Library Chronicle 68 no. 1 (Autumn 1986). Miller, Ralph Earl. "William Seymour American Director." PhD diss. Wayne State University, 1973.
- Subject Terms:
- Actors -- United States -- 19th century.
Actors -- United States -- 20th century.
Actresses -- United States -- 19th century.
Actresses -- United States -- 20th century.
Stage managers -- United States -- 19th century -- Sources.
Stage managers -- United States -- 20th century -- Sources.
Theater -- United States -- History -- 19th century -- Sources.
Theater -- United States -- History -- 20th century -- Sources.
Theatrical producers and directors -- United States -- 19th century -- Sources.
Theatrical producers and directors -- United States -- 20th century -- Sources.
Theatrical productions--Louisiana--New Orleans--19th century--Sources.
Theatrical productions--Massachusetts--Boston--19th century--Sources.
Theatrical productions--Massachusetts--Boston--20th century--Sources.
Theatrical productions--New York (State)--New York--19th century--Sources.
Theatrical productions--New York (State)--New York--20th century--Sources. - Genre Terms:
- Correspondence
Promptbooks.
Sheet music.
Stage props. - Names:
- Boston Museum (1847-1903)
Boston Museum and Gallery of Fine Arts
Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau
Varieties Theatre (New Orleans, La.)
Tremont Theatre (Boston, Mass.)
Davenport family
Seymour family
Davenport, Edward Loomis, 1815-1877
Davenport, Fanny, 1850-1898
Frohman, Charles, 1860-1915
Seymour, James William Davenport, 1895-
Seymour, May Davenport, 1883-1967