Correspondence. General, 1935-1940, 1946-1954

Records in this subseries document the construction and maintenance of Shack Mountain, the Kimballs' country home outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. After a four-year search for either a house or site on which to build, the couple purchased 110 acres on the ridge of Shack Mountain, where Kimball built his Jefferson inspired design. The house, an elongated octagon, was built by Kimball's friend Robert E. Lee of the Charlottesville Lumber Company between 1935 and 1937, and the couple spent summers and some holidays at the home regularly.

The records contain a significant amount of correspondence with the Kimballs' builder, lawyer, realtor, bank, and insurance agency, as well as many letters between the couple. While Fiske was in Philadelphia, Marie often stayed in Charlottesville to oversee the hunt for an appropriate property. Of particular note are the many architectural plans and elevations for the home drawn by Kimball, who considered at least four different Jeffersonian designs for the home. The subseries also includes information about the Kimballs' proposed but unrealized real estate venture to subdivide their land into the "Shack Mountain Estates."