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Writing drafts, 1937-1969, undated

 Series

Scope and Contents

This series contains documentation of Daniel Williams's unpublished biography of George Gray Barnard. Between 1937 and his death in 1969, Williams produced dozens of copies and versions of his manuscript, some of the more complete versions numbering as many as 1302 typed pages. Williams presents an aggrandized version of Barnard's life through memoir and personal experience. The manuscript includes many anecdotes and excerpts from personal correspondence. Despite repeated efforts by Williams and later, his daughter, the biography was rejected by various publishing companies and never made it to press.

There are few clues alluding to the date or order in which versions were produced. No complete draft has survived intact. The versions contained here were pieced together during archival processing based on common page numbering schemes, paper types, and handwriting. Nearly all of the versions have been corrected, annotated, edited, and/or renumbered by Williams. Of significance are versions annotated and initialed by George Grey Barnard or his son Monroe.

Dates

  • 1937-1969, undated

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Extent

3.75 linear feet

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Arrangement

This series has been divided into two subseries. The first is entitled "Versions annotated by Barnard Family." The second subseries, "Other versions," contains multiple drafts of the typescript and many fragments annotated by Daniel Williams.

Creator

Repository Details

Part of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Library and Archives Repository

Contact:
Philadelphia Museum of Art
PO Box 7646
Philadelphia PA 19101-7646 United States