Osey Gail Peterson collection on Albert T. Reid
Overview
This collection largely consists of pen and ink, pencil, and watercolor sketches created by artist and cartoonist Albert T. Reid, originally from Clyde County, Kansas. The collection also includes some newspaper clippings, music scores, and other items gathered by Osey Gail (French) Peterson when she was a Kansas-based reporter writing about Reid and his works.
Dates
- Creation: approximately 1890s-1910s, 1944
Creator
- Peterson, Osey Gail French, 1891-1982 (Compiler, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
No access restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
Biography of Albert T. Reid (1873-1955)
Albert T. Reid was a native Kansas artist, though he spent most of his life living in New York City. He is perhaps best known for his editorial cartoons, which he began producing around the turn of the 20th century and continued for several decades. Later in his life, he found renown as a painter and muralist with subject matter often including horses. He painted several large canvasses that would be displayed in well-known hotels and government buildings, including two Kansas post offices.
Albert Turner Reid was born August 12, 1873 in Concordia, Cloud County, Kansas to William E. Reid (circa 1842-1887) and Jean (Turner) Reid (1854-1930). After William Reid's death in 1887, the family relocated to Clyde, Kansas. After graduating from the University of Kansas, Reid studied at the New York School of Art and the Art Student League in New York City.
Reid began his career as an artist on the Kansas City Star in Kansas City, Missouri. In 1905, he founded the Leavenworth Post, a daily newspaper of which he was publisher until 1923. During that period, he was also president and publisher of The Kansas Farmer in Topeka and president of the Standard Farm Papers Association.
Reid established his own political cartoon syndicate, the Albert T. Reid Syndicate of New York City. During his career as an artist, Reid worked for the Chicago Record, New York Herald, Judge, McClure's, and the Saturday Evening Post. He illustrated numerous books, advertisements, and political cartoons, and he was commissioned to paint murals for the post offices at Olathe and Sabetha, Kansas and Sulphur, Oklahoma.
Reid was a member of the Freelance Artists; Society of Illustrators; Artists Guild of Authors League of America; Cartoonist Club; Authors', Artists', & Dramatists' League; and served as vice president of the American Artists Professional League. At the time of his death in 1955, Reid had earned numerous awards, prizes, and medals in recognition of his cartoons and paintings.
Albert T. Reid married Vera Low in October 1902, daughter of Marcus Aurelius or M.A. Low (1842-1921) and Diantha Lorinda (Hovey) Low (1842-1924). She served as a model for many of his pen and ink drawings. The marriage did not last, but they had one daughter, Marianne (1903-1991), who later married Robert Scott Wild (1897-1974). Marianne Reid Wild had one son, Leonard Low Wild (1928-1949).
Extent
.25 Linear Feet (1 document case + 5 oversize boxes, 3 oversize folders)
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Contents
The bulk of the collection are pen and ink sketches, with some watercolor and pencil sketches, done by Albert T. Reid. Subjects frequently include an individual woman or several women, some in athletic poses, some who appear to be in the style of a "Gibson Girl," some simply a drawing of a woman's head and neck without full detail sketched in. There are some drawings of an individual man or groups of men, as well as some farming scenes and some sketches of buildings or outdoor scenes where people are not the focus. There are some more obviously political cartoons, as well as some drafts for invitations or marketing materials for Reid's own businesses.
Materials are housed by size and thereafter grouped by general subject, meaning that subjects will appear across multiple call numbers. The bulk of the sketches are undated, but based on clothing, most items appear to date from the 1890s through 1910s. Most items were also untitled, so staff-derived titles appear in [brackets] throughout the finding aid.
Physical Location
RH MS 1544
Physical Location
RH MS Q484
Physical Location
RH MS R490, RH MS R491
Custodial History
Osey Gail (French) Peterson (1891-1982) was a Kansas-based reporter who covered Albert T. Reid. Clyde, Kansas relatives gave a portfolio of material belonging to Reid to Mrs. Peterson in the late 1930s or early 1940s out of fear of damage to the materials in another Republican River flood. Her daughter, Martha Peterson, donated the collection to the Spencer Research Library in 1992.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift, Martha Peterson, 1992.
Processing Information
Collection was reviewed and treated/cleaned for mold, 2021.
- Title
- Guide to the Osey Gail Peterson Collection on Albert T. Reid
- Subtitle
- Osey Gail Peterson collection on Albert T. Reid
- Author
- Finding aid created by mwh. Finding aid encoded by mwh.
- Date
- 2021
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in English.
- Finding aid permalink
- http://hdl.handle.net/10407/2252559756
- Preferred citation
-
Osey Gail Peterson collection on Albert T. Reid, RH MS 1544, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository