GROLIER CLUB RG1 Series II: Records of the President
<-- Back Print 

Guide to the Grolier Club Records of the President, 1884-Present

Title: 
Institutional Records of the Grolier CLub, Record Group 1, Administrative and Executive Files, Series II, Records of the President, 1884-Present.

OCLC (Unique ID):
937417467

Dates: 
1884-Present

Extent:
6.0 linear feet (8 boxes)

Abstract:
This collection consists of the records of the President of the Council of the Grolier Club from 1884-Present.

Access Restrictions:
Access to materials in this collection is restricted for 10 years after date of creation. Copyright restrictions may apply; please contact repository for requests for copying and for authorization to publish, quote, or reproduce the materials.

Preferred Citation:
[Description
and date of item], [Box/folder number], The Grolier Club Records of the President, The Grolier Club of New York.

About the Finding Aid:
This finding aid was prepared by Rachel Greer in Microsoft Word at the Grolier Club, September 2014 and updated by Allison Hughes in January 2018.

Provenance:
This collection has multiple provenances. Please see the notes on the subseries level for specifics.
                                            

Access Points: 

Names:
Lohf, Kenneth A.
Helfand, William
Warren, William

Subjects:
The Grolier Club

 Historical Note:
The role of the President of the Club has existed at the Grolier Club since its founding in 1884. The constitution of the Club outlines the duties of the President in detail. Currently, the President is elected by the 21-member Council, the governing body of the Club, annually at the Council meeting following the Club’s Annual Meeting.[1] Although elected for one year terms, Presidents can serve for no more than four consecutive terms. The President’s duties include presiding at all Club and Council meetings, acting as the chief executive officer of the Club, supervising the officers of the Council, and taking care of other special projects and assignments as necessary. The President also presides over the operations of the Club and reports on those operations to the Council. In addition, the President has the power to sign contracts on behalf of the Club.[2]

 List of Grolier Club Presidents:

President

Years

Robert Hoe, Jr

1884-1888

William Loring Andrews

1888-1892

Beverly Chew

1892-1896

Samuel Putnam Avery

1896-1900

Howard Mansfield

1900-1904

Theodore Low De Vinne

1904-1906

Edwin B. Holden

1906-1906

Richard Hoe Lawrence

1906-1908

William F. Havemeyer

1908-1912

Edward G. Kennedy

1912-1916

Arthur H. Scribner

1916-1920

Henry Watson Kent

1920-1924

William B. Osgood Field

1924-1928

Lucius Wilmerding

1928-1932

William M. Ivins Jr.

1932-1935

Frederick Coykendall

1935-1939

Harry T. Peters

1939-1943

Edwin D. T. Bechtel

1943-1947

Frederick B. Adams, Jr.

1947-1951

Irving S. Olds

1951-1955

Arthur A. Houghton Jr.

1955-1957

Clifton Waller Barrett

1957-1961

Donald F. Hyde

1961-1965

Gordon N. Ray

1965-1969

Alfred H. Howell

1969-1973

Robert H. Taylor

1973-1975

Herman W. Liebert

1975-1978

Robert D. Graff

1978-1982

Frank S. Streeter

1982-1986

G. Thomas Tanselle

1986-1990

Kenneth A. Lohf

1990-1994

William Bradford Warren

1994-1998

William T. Buice III

1998-2002

Carolyn L. Smith

2002-2006

William H. Helfand

2006-2010

Eugene S. Flamm

2010-2014

G. Scott Clemons

2014-Present

 

Scope and Content Note:
The Grolier Club Presidential Papers contain materials related to and produced by those members holding the office of the President. The material includes: correspondence, clippings, legal documents, annual reports, annual speeches, ephemera, meeting materials, budgets, reports, and other items. The papers deal with the daily matters of the Club, as well as with special issues and controversies that Presidents encountered during their tenure.  Scope and content notes also exist for each subseries. New acquisitions are expected. Not all of the Presidents are represented in these papers.

 Arrangement Note:
This series is arranged into subseries based on the person holding the position. The arrangement of the folders within each subseries are based on the original order of those papers, where known, and are described in more detail at the subseries level. Some papers related to the presidency were of such small number as to not stand alone as their own subseries, and were consolidated into Subseries A: General Presidential Papers. The series designations are as follows:

 Series A: General Presidential Papers, 1891-1989
Series B: Kenneth A. Lohf Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1988-1994
Series C: William Warren Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1992-1999
Series D: William H. Helfand Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1987-2010 (bulk 1996-2010)
Series E: Robert D. Graff Papers - unprocessed


Series A: General Presidential Papers, 1891-1989

Provenance:
The provenance of this series is unknown. These papers were collected together by the archivist from disparate sources in the Grolier Club archive.

Scope and Content Note:
This series is an artificial collection of papers related to the Grolier Club Presidency that spans the tenure of many different presidents. The papers include correspondence, calling cards, drafts, financial documents, images, ephemera, and other documents.

Arrangement Note:
This series is organized by each president’s tenure, where it was clear which presidency the materials belonged to, with unidentified material at the beginning of the series. Note that the “Officer--President” file includes material from several presidents. The folders are arranged in the order of the presidencies. Dates in brackets are a best guess. Folder titles were devised by the archivist.

Container List:

Box #

Folder #

Title

Date

1

1

Unidentified Presidential Material

Undated

1

2

William Loring Andrews, 1888-1892

1891

1

3

Beverly Chew, 1892-1896

1895-1924

1

4

Samuel Putnam Avery, 1896-1900

1896

1

5

Arthur H. Scribner, 1916-1920

[1916]

1

6

Henry Watson Kent, 1920-1924

1920-1924

1

7

William B. Osgood Field, 1924-1928

1927-1930

1

8

Lucius Wilmerding, 1928-1932

1930-1939

1

9

William M. Ivins, 1932-1935

1932-1934

1

10

Frederick Coykendall, 1935-1939

1926-1937

1

11

Harry T. Peters, 1939-1943

1940

1

12

Edwin D.T. Bechtel, 1943-1947

1945-1946

1

13

Frederick B. Adams, Jr., 1947-1951

1947-1949

1

14

Irving S. Olds, 1951-1955

1953-1954

1

15

Arthur A. Houghton, Jr., 1955-1957

1955-1956

1

16

Clifton Waller Barrett, 1957-1961

1951-1961

1

17

Donald F. Hyde, 1961-1965 (1 of 2)

1961-1963

1

18

Donald F. Hyde, 1961-1965 (2 of 2)

1956-1964

1

19

Donald F. Hyde, 1961-1965

1964

1

20

Officer--President [Hyde-Graff]

1961-1979

1

21

Gordon N. Ray, 1965-1969

1966

1

22

Alfred H. Howell, 1969-1973

1971-1973

1

23

Robert H. Taylor, 1973-1975

1974

1

24

Herman W. Liebert, 1975-1978

1976

1

25

Robert D. Graff, 1978-1982

1979-1982

1

26

Frank S. Streeter, 1982-1986

1984

1

27

G. Thomas Tanselle, 1986-1990

1988-1989

 

 

Series B: Kenneth A. Lohf Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1988-1994

Provenance:
This collection was donated to the Club by Kenneth Lohf.

Biographical Note:
Kenneth A. Lohf, a librarian, poet, bibliographer, scholar, and collector, was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on January 14, 1925. He attended Amherst College, but dropped out to join the Army Air Force during World War II. He later graduated from Northwestern University, and earned a Masters in English and a Masters in Library Science from Columbia University. He worked in a variety of positions over his years at Columbia, but was most noted for his tenure as the Rare Book and Manuscript Librarian, where his fundraising and acquisition strategies were unmatched. In addition to being a member of the Grolier Club, he was also a fellow of the Morgan Library. He died in May, 2002, and was survived by his partner of 53 years, Paul Palmer.[3]

Lohf was a member of the Grolier Club from 1961 until the time of his death in 2002. An exceptionally dedicated member of the Club, Lohf served most notably as President of the Club from 1990 to 1994. He was a member of the Council from 1987 to 2002, and served as Secretary from 1987 to 1990. Mr. Lohf also served on the Library Committee, the Committee on Special Functions, the Committee on Small Exhibitions, the Planning Committee, and the Grolier 2000 Committee. In addition, during his tenure, he served as Chair of both the Publications Committee and the Committee on Public Exhibitions. His book collecting centered on British poetry from the two World Wars as well as 19th-century and early 20th-century poets, and drawings by Pre-Raphaelites.[4]

Scope and Content Note:
The Kenneth A. Lohf Grolier Club Presidential Papers contain materials related to and produced by Lohf in relationship to his service as the Club’s President. The material includes: correspondence, clippings, legal documents, annual reports, annual speeches, ephemera, meeting materials, budgets, reports, and other items. The papers deal with the daily matters of the Club, as well as with special issues and controversies that Lohf encountered during his presidency. A small amount of material dates from before Lohf’s tenure as President and concerns general matters of the Club.

Arrangement Note:
This collection arrived without a specific original order and the archivist arranged the collection alphabetically by folder title. The archivist transcribed the folder titles from the original folders given by Mr. Lohf.  Multiple folders with the same title were arranged chronologically by the earliest date in the respective folder. Titles in brackets indicate that they were created by the archivist in the absence of any other identification.

 Container List:

Box #

Folder #

Title

Date

2

1

Annual Report, 1993

January, 1994

2

2

[Appeal for Funds]

1990

2

3

Dues Pending and/or Problems

1992-1993

2

4

Grolier-Exhibition Committee (1 of 2)

1989

2

5

Grolier-Exhibition Committee (2 of 2)

1988-1989

2

6

[Grolier President, October 1989-October 1992]

1989-1992

2

7

Grolier President, February 1990-January 1991

1990-1991

3

1

Grolier President, February 1991-January 1992 (1 of 3)

1991-1992

3

2

Grolier President, February 1991-January 1992 (2 of 3)

1991-1992

3

3

Grolier President, February 1991-January 1992 (3 of 3)

1991-1992

3

4

Grolier President, February 1992-January 1993 (1 of 2)

1992-1993

3

5

Grolier President, February 1992-January 1993 (2 of 2)

1992-1993

4

1

Grolier President, February 1993-January 1994 (1 of 2)

1993-1994

4

2

Grolier President, February 1993-January 1994 (2 of 2)

1993-1994

4

3

Grolier Restaurant

1990

4

4

Grolier Restaurant (1 of 3)

1991-1993

4

5

Grolier Restaurant (2 of 3)

1990

4

6

Grolier Restaurant (3 of 3)

1990

4

10

Grolier Restaurant/Nightclub [added 10/2017]

1990-1992

4

7

Grolier-Search [Librarian]

1990

4

8

[Kenneth Lohf-Professional]

1992

4

9

[Report of the President]

January 27, 1994

 

Series C: William Warren Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1992-1999

Provenance:
This collection was donated to the Grolier Club by William B. Warren.

Biographical Note:
William Warren (1937-2010) was born in Boston and attended the Buckley School, the Groton School, and Harvard College. He graduated from Harvard Law in 1959. An attorney, Warren worked for several notable firms including Dewey Ballantine, LLP, where he was senior Trust & Estates Partner.[5]  In addition to his dedication to the Grolier Club, he also served as Vice President of the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Poets, and a trustee of numerous organizations including St. John’s College, Johns Hopkins University Press, and a variety of other literary and musical non-profits. [6] At the time of his death, he lived in New York City.

William Warren joined the Grolier Club in 1988 and was a member until 2006, at which point he became an honorary member. Warren was devoted to the Club and served on a variety of committees during his tenure, including: Grolier Club Council (1991-2000), Committee on Publications (1999-2006), Committee on Finance (1995-2006), and Committee on Admissions (1989-1994, 1997-2006), of which he was Chair from 1992-1994. He was President of the Grolier Club from 1994-1998.[7]

 Scope and Content Note:This subseries contains materials related to and produced by Warren in relationship to his service as the Club’s President. The material includes: correspondence, clippings, legal documents, annual reports, annual speeches, ephemera, meeting materials, budgets, reports, and other items. The papers deal with the daily matters of the Club, such as membership, printing, and exhibitions, as well as with special issues and controversies encountered during Warren’s presidency.

 Arrangement Note:
This collection arrived in rough alphabetical order by the subject in the folder title. Folder titles were transcribed from the original folders. The archivist made minor corrections to this order, but attempted to retain the original order as it was possible. Titles in brackets were composed by the archivist.

Container List:

Box #

Folder #

Title

Date

5

1

[100 Books in Medicine]

1992-1993

5

2

Grolier –Admissions-Old Attendance Sheets

1992-1994

5

3

Grolier-Auction Benefits

1996

5

4

Grolier Club-Certificates of Amendment-Certificate of Incorporation

1992

5

5

Certificates of Incorporation

1992

5

6

Congratulations-Grolier

1994

5

7

Correspondence (1 of 2)

1994-1995

5

8

Correspondence (2 of 2)

1993-1994

5

88

[Correspondence--Added 9/2017]

1994

5

9

Council

1996-1998

5

10

Grolier Club-Council

1992

5

11

Deductibility

1981

5

12

Development Committee

1997

5

13

Development Committee

1994-1998

5

14

Grolier Club-Dues

1994

5

15

Events Upcoming

1994-1996

5

16

Grolier Executive Committee

1996

5

17

Grolier Club-Exhibitions

1994-1996

5

18

Grolier-Fine Printing Committee

1995

5

19

Grolier-Flora Fraser, 3/20/97

1997

5

20

Grolier-Four Oaks Farm, 4/26/97

1997

5

21

Friedlander

1996

5

22

Fund Raising Committee

1996

5

23

General Information for New Members

Undated

5

24

Goethe House-Grolier

1996

5

25

Grassi, Marco [Membership]

1997

5

26

Guidelines

1994

5

27

Hammer Exhibit

1995

5

28

Herzog August Bibliothek

1994-1995

5

29

Grolier History-16 Year [Potential Donors Among New Members]

Undated

5

30

Hobson [Anthony]

1997-1998

5

31

Cataloguer-Holzenberg

1994

5

32

House Committee

1996

5

33

Huntington Library, CA

1995

5

34

Iter Hibernicum

1997

5

35

Job Descriptions

1994-1997

5

36

KLS Advisor-Tama Davis

Undated

5

37

Reverend Sewo Kumoi

1991

5

38

Lemay, J.A. Leo

1992

5

39

Letters to be Answered

1992

5

40

Grolier-Library Committee

1969-1997

5

41

[Lohf Annual Address]

1994

5

42

[Mail Merge]

1992

5

43

Dr. Jose de Pina Martins

1989-1991

5

44

[Membership]

1992

5

45

Membership Full Quick List

Undated

5

46

Membership-Quick List

Undated

5

47

Grolier-Nikirk Lecture-11/11/97

1997

5

48

Nominating Committee – 1999

1977-1999

5

49

Grolier-Norman Lecture, May 1997

1996-1997

5

50

Norman Lecture-1996, Owen Gingerich, May 7

1996-1997

5

51

Grolier-Oak Knoll

1996

5

52

Grolier-Oresman (Thomas Will)

1996

5

53

The Grolier [Personal]

1991

5

54

Poets In A War-President’s Opening Remarks

1995

5

55

Grolier-President’s File

1994-1997

5

56

Grolier-Prints Drawings and Photographs Committee

1996-1998

5

57

Grolier-Future Projects

1994

5

58

Grolier-Proper

1996

5

59

Grolier-Proposals

1994

5

60

Grolier-Publication Committee

1994-1996

5

61

Grolier Club Questionnaire

Undated

5

62

Randall, Jane

1997

5

63

Grolier-Resident Members

1994

5

64

Grolier-Restoration

1997

5

65

Revenue and Expenses Statement

1995

5

66

Grolier-Royal Oak Project

1994

5

67

Grolier-Salaries

1995

5

68

Grolier-Re: Salaries

1994-1996

5

69

Grolier-Secretary Report

1997

5

70

Grolier-Sidewalk Problem

1994-1996

5

71

Grolier-Silent Campaign

1998

5

72

Grolier-Small Exhibitions

1997

5

73

Grolier-Special Functions Committee

1995-1997

5

74

Grolier-Strauss Matter

1995

5

75

Grolier Tax Aspects

1992

5

76

[Grolier Tax Exempt Status] (1 of 2)

1993

5

77

[Grolier Tax Exempt Status] (2 of 2)

1993

5

78

Grolier Council Telephone Meetings

1997

5

79

Grolier Club-Telephone Numbers

1992

5

80

Grolier Club Total Returns

1995

5

81

Grolier-Trends & Statistics

1996

5

82

Grolier-Upcoming Events

1992-1993

5

83

Mr. Warren’s Letter Dated August 19, 1994

1994

5

84

Wharton, Edit

Undated

5

85

Grolier-Wolfenbuttel-1998 (1 of 2)

1997-1998

5

86

Grolier-Wolfenbuttel-1998 (2 of 2)

1997-1998

5

87

Grolier Club-Wolfenbuttel Speech WBW

Undated



Series D: William H. Helfland Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1993-2010 (bulk 2005-2010)

Provenance:
This collection was donated to the Grolier Club by William Helfand in 2012.

Biographical Note:
A member of The Grolier Club for over 30 years, William H. Helfand is one of the foremost collectors of medical ephemera in the world. His collections of posters, postcards, and other ephemera are held at many distinguished institutions, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the National Library of Medicine, and the New York Academy of Medicine, among others. With degrees in Chemical Engineering and Pharmacy, Helfand enjoyed a long career with Merck & Co., retiring in 1987.  Helfand has published a number of books and articles on the history of pharmacy and on prints, caricatures, posters and ephemera relating to the history of pharmacy and medicine and has won numerous awards related to this writing. Helfand has served as a consultant for a variety of institutions including the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the National Library of Medicine. His collections have been featured in a variety of prominent exhibits, including the 2002 Grolier Club exhibit: Quack, Quack, Quack: The Sellers of Nostrums in Prints, Posters, Ephemera and Books.

Helfand has been a member of the Grolier Club since 1978. He has served on the Library Committee (1998-2005), serving as Chair from 2001-2005. He also served on the Publications Committee (1993-1995), the Prints, Drawings, and Photographs Committee (1995-2005), as well as the 125th Anniversary Committee (2008-2009), and the Grolier Club Council (2002-2011). He served as President of the Club from 2006-2010. He lives in New York City.[8]

Scope and Content Note:
This subseries consists of material generated by and produced in connection with William Helfand’s work as the President of the Grolier Club. Files include: memos, correspondence, development material, membership material, financial documents and statements, drafts of speeches and presentations, ephemera, meeting materials, and other material related to the functioning of a small non-profit cultural organization.

Arrangement Note:
The collection originally consisted of both Library Committee materials and Presidential Papers. The Library Committee materials were separated out and added to Record Group 4, Series I, Subseries A of the Grolier Club Institutional Records. The remaining papers did not come with any original order and the archivist grouped the files logically.  Folder titles in brackets were devised by the archivist. In each series, the records have been alphabetized by folder title.

Container List:

Box #

Folder #

Title

Dates

6

1

[Air Rights]

2005-2006

6

2

[Air Rights] Documents Relating to Air Rights Sale

2006

6

3

[Air Rights] Zuckerman Project Task Force

2008

6

4

[Annual Dinner]

2006

6

5

[Annual Meetings]

2006-2008

6

6

Annual Report Ideas

2007-2008

6

7

[“Books in Hard Times”]

2009

6

8

[Chicago Trip Planning]

2009

6

9

[Clippings]

2007

6

10

[Cosmopolitan Club]

2006

6

11

[Committee on Public Exhibitions]

2006-2009

6

12

[Commonfund Institute]

2007

6

13

[Correspondence] (1 of 2)

2007-2008

6

14

[Correspondence] (2 of 2)

2004-2008

6

15

[Cost Estimates: For Jean Grolier and His Friends]

2009

6

16

[Development—Annual Fund]

2003-2009

6

17

[Development—Member Donations Reports]

2006-2008

6

18

[Development—Outside Organizations’ Solicitations]

2009

6

19

Fund-raising Ideas

1993-2007

6

20

Grolier Club Constitution

2007-2008

6

21

[Grolier Club Council Planning and Meetings]

2007-2009

6

22

[Grolier Club Development]

2007-2009

6

23

Grolier Club Development

2007-2009

6

24

[Grolier Club Ephemera]

2010

6

25

[Grolier Club Financials and Budget—Finance Committee]

2005-2008

6

26

[Grolier Club Membership]

2007-2009

6

27

[Grolier Club of Japan]

2008

6

28

Grolier Club President’s Report

2010

6

29

[Grolier Club Renovations—House Committee] (1 of 2)

2004-2009

6

30

[Grolier Club Renovations—House Committee] (2 of 2)

2007-2008

6

31

The Grolier Club—Report to the Audit Committee

2006

6

32

[Grolier Club Staff—Restricted]

2005-2008

6

33

[Helfand Speech]

2007

6

34

[Karwowski Case]

2010

6

35

[Library Deaccessions]

Undated

6

36

[List of Media Outlets]

Undated

6

37

The New Work of The Nonprofit Board, Harvard Business Review

Fall, 1996

6

38

[Nikirk Lecture]

Undated

6

39

[Other Organization’s Ephemera]

2007-2009

6

40

Presidential Records 2006-2010—Electronic Media

2006-2010

6

41

Presidential Files, 2006-2010, Various

2006-2010

6

42

[Strategic Plan]

2006

6

43

Szilvia Szmuk Gazette Index

2009

6

44

[Virginia Woolf Exhibition Solicitation]

2008

6

45

[Website]

2007

 

 Series E: Robert D. Graff Papers

 Container List:

Box #

Folder #

Title

Dates

7

Robert D. Graff Papers - unprocessed

8

Robert D. Graff Papers - unprocessed

 

[1] The Grolier Club Yearbook, 2014., p. 22-23.
[2] The Grolier Club Yearbook, 2014. p. 24-25.
[3] Martin, Douglas, “Kenneth A. Lohf, 77, Librarian for Rare Books at Columbia”. The New York Times, May 18, 2002.
Press release from the Office of Public Information, Columbia University, 1992, [Box 3, Folder 8], Kenneth A. Lohf
Grolier Club Presidential Papers, 1988-1994, The Grolier Club of New York.
[
4] Members of the Grolier Club, 1884-2009. The Grolier Club. New York: 2009.
[5] http://obituaries.pressherald.com/obituaries/mainetoday-pressherald/obituary.aspx?n=william-bradford-warren&pid=145975439
[6] http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/nytimes/obituary.aspx?n=william-b-warren&pid=146170071
[7] Members of the Grolier Club, 1884-2009. The Grolier Club. New York: 2009.
[8] Members of the Grolier Club, 1884-2009. The Grolier Club. New York: 2009. 

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