Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Additional Online Media

Catalog Data

Creator:
Thayer, Abbott Handerson, 1849-1921  Search this
Subject:
Dow, Thomas Millie  Search this
Emerson, Edward Waldo  Search this
Emerson, Ralph Waldo  Search this
Clemens, Samuel Langhorne  Search this
Colman, Samuel  Search this
Cortissoz, Royal  Search this
White, Stanford  Search this
Thayer, Kate Bloede  Search this
Thayer, Mary  Search this
Faulkner, Barry  Search this
Fuertes, Louis Agassiz  Search this
Roosevelt, Theodore  Search this
French, Daniel Chester  Search this
Foster, Ben  Search this
Plunket, Jean Reasoner  Search this
Meryman, Richard Sumner  Search this
Kent, Rockwell  Search this
Gellatly, John  Search this
Freer, Charles Lang  Search this
Taber, E. M.  Search this
Sainsbury, Everton  Search this
Reasoner, David  Search this
Thayer, Gladys  Search this
Thayer, Gerald Handerson  Search this
Thayer, Emma B.  Search this
Type:
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Place of publication, production, or execution:
United States
Physical Description:
5.12 Linear feet
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 10 series. Glass plate negative is housed separately and closed to researchers. Series 1: Biographical Material, 1878 - circa 1966 (Box 1; 7 folders) Series 2: Correspondence, 1867-1987 (Box 1-3; 2.0 linear feet) Series 3: Writings, 1888-1945 (Box 3; 0.8 linear feet) Series 4: Estate Papers, 1921-1954 (Box 3-4; 0.5 linear feet) Series 5: Other Financial Records, 1889-1957 (Box 4; 7 folders) Series 6: Legal Records, 1891-1927 (Box 4; 4 folders) Series 7: Printed Material, 1851, 1896-1999 (Box 4-5; 0.4 linear feet) Series 8: Photographs, circa 1861-1933 (Box 5, MGP 2; 0.2 linear feet) Series 9: Artwork, 1887 - circa 1940s (Box 5-6, 8; 8 folders) Series 10: Scrapbook, circa 1910-1920 (Box 7; 0.3 linear feet)
Access Note / Rights:
The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
Summary:
The papers of painter and naturalist, Abbott Handerson Thayer, and the Thayer family date from 1851 to 1999, with the bulk of the material dating from 1881 to 1950, and measure 5.12 linear feet. Thayer's painting career, interest in concealing coloration (camouflage) in nature, and relationships with artists, patrons, family, and friends are documented through correspondence, writings, scattered legal and financial records, printed materials, and a scrapbook. Photographs are of Thayer, his family, studio, and friends, including artists. The collection also contains family papers created by his second wife, Emma Beach Thayer, his son Gerald, his daughters Mary and Gladys, and Gladys' husband David Reasoner, who managed Thayer's estate after his death.
Citation:
Abbott Handerson Thayer and Thayer Family papers, 1851-1999, bulk 1881-1950. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
The papers of Abbott Handerson Thayer and the Thayer family in the Archives of American Art were digitized in 2007. The bulk of the papers have been scanned and total 10074 images.
Types of materials that have not been digitized include certain printed materials and financial records, unidentifed photographs and photographs of artwork, and certain items related to others, as noted in the folder lists for each series.
Materials lent for microfilming are available on 35mm microfilm reels 48 and 3417 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Funding:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
Use Note:
Reel 3417 (art works): Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from Jean Reasoner Plunket. Contact Reference Services for more information.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art holds several collections related to Abbott Handerson Thayer. These include research material on Abbott Handerson Thayer and other artists, 1895-1990, donated by Thomas B. Brumbaugh; the Abbott Handerson Thayer letter and drawings to Caroline Peddle Ball, circa 1890-1893; "The Drawings of Abbott Thayer", by Elizabeth Robins Pennell, circa 1921; and the Nelson and Henry C. White research material, 1898-1978, which includes many letters, photographs, and other material originally belonging to the Thayer family. The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reels 48 and 3417) including a diary kept by Thayer, a "Family Record" written by William Henry Thayer, correspondence, printed material, photographs, and original artwork by Abbott Handerson Thayer. Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Biography Note:
Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849-1921) was born in Boston to Dr. William Henry Thayer and Ellen Handerson Thayer. After his birth his family moved to Woodstock, Vermont, and in 1855 settled in Keene, New Hampshire. As a child Thayer developed a love of nature that was encouraged by his close family, which included three sisters, Ellen, Margaret, and Susan. At the age of fifteen he was sent to the Chauncy Hall School in Boston, and while there he met Henry D. Morse, an amateur animal painter. Under Morse's instruction Abbott developed his skill in painting birds and other wildlife and began painting animal portraits on commission. In 1867 he moved to Brooklyn, New York and attended the Brooklyn Academy of Design where he studied under J. B. Whittaker for two years. In 1868 he began showing his work at the National Academy of Design and enrolled there in 1870, studying under Lemuel Wilmarth. He met many emerging artists during this period, including his future first wife, Kate Bloede and his close friend, Daniel Chester French. Thayer became part of progressive art circles, showing his work at the newly formed Society of American Artists, while continuing to develop his skill as an animal and landscape painter.
Language Note:
English .
Provenance:
Anne Whiting, a niece of Abbott Handerson Thayer, loaned the Archives of American Art material for microfilming in 1971 and Jean Reasoner Plunket, Thayer's granddaughter, loaned original artwork for microfilming in 1985. The rest of the Abbott Handerson Thayer and Thayer Family papers were donated in 1999 by Abbott Thayer's great-grandson, John Plunket, who received the papers from his mother Jean Reasoner Plunket. In 2005 Bruce Gimelson donated additional material purchased from the relatives of Emma Beach Thayer.
Digitization Note:
The papers of Abbott Handerson Thayer and the Thayer family in the Archives of American Art were digitized in 2008. The the bulk of the papers have been scanned and total 10,076 images.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Topic:
Naturalism  Search this
Camouflage (Biology)  Search this
Art and camouflage  Search this
Theme:
Diaries  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)7440
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209598
AAA_collcode_thayabbo
Theme:
Diaries
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209598