Arthur S. Dayton, Correspondence and Catalogs regarding Purchase of Rare Books A&M 1723

Arthur S. Dayton, Correspondence and Catalogs regarding Purchase of Rare Books A&M 1723


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West Virginia and Regional History Center

1549 University Ave.
P.O. Box 6069
Morgantown, WV 26506-6069
Business Number: 304-293-3536
wvrhcref@westvirginia.libanswers.com
URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu

Staff of the West Virginia & Regional History Center

Repository
West Virginia and Regional History Center
Identification
A&M 1723
Title
Arthur S. Dayton, Correspondence and Catalogs regarding Purchase of Rare Books ca. 1898-2007 1923-1959
URL:
https://archives.lib.wvu.edu/ark:/99999/198582
Quantity
2.1 Linear Feet, Summary: 2 ft. 1 in. (5 document cases, 5 in. each)
Creator
Dayton, Arthur Spencer, 1887-1948
Creator
Dayton, Ruth Woods, 1894-
Location
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / Fax: 304-293-3981 / URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu/
Language
English

Administrative Information

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Conditions Governing Access

No special access restriction applies.

Preferred Citation

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Arthur S. Dayton, Correspondence and Catalogs regarding Purchase of Rare Books, A&M 1723, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.


Biographical / Historical

Arthur S. Dayton (1887-1948) was a prominent Charleston, West Virginia, lawyer and an avid book collector. He was born in Philippi, West Virginia, into a long line of lawyers. He was the son of Judge Alston Gordon Dayton who became a lawyer through an apprenticeship with his father, Spencer Dayton. Arthur's mother, Columbia May Sinsel, was also born into a family of lawyers including her father and brothers. Arthur Dayton received an A.B. degree from West Virginia University in 1907 and a L.L.B. from West Virginia University's College of Law in 1908. After receiving a master's degree in English from Yale University in 1909, he returned to Philippi to practice law until 1923. He then moved to Charleston to become a member of the law firm of Poffenbarger, Blue, and Dayton, 1923-1927; Blue, Dayton, and Campbell, 1928-1945; and Dayton, Campbell, and Love, 1945-1948. At the time of his death, Dayton was still in practice with Harry V. Love and Charles M. Love, Jr. He was a member of the Kanawha County Public Library Board, the Charleston Bar Association, the West Virginia State Bar Association, the American Bar Association, Delta Tau Delta, Phi Alpha Delta, and the Presbyterian Church. Following Dayton's death, his wife, Ruth Woods Dayton, donated his rare book collection to the WVU Libraries and his personal law library to the WVU College of Law where they have honored him by creating The Arthur S. Dayton Professorship. The books donated to the Libraries are now in the West Virginia and Regional History Center and form the core of the Rare Books Collection.

Scope and Contents

Correspondence of Arthur Spencer Dayton (1887-1948), prominent Charleston lawyer and avid book collector. The majority of the correspondence is with American and English book dealers and concerns Dayton's purchase of rare books including Shakespeare's four folios as well as other rare Shakespeare volumes; a comprehensive collection of Mark Twain rare editions; Jane Austen rare materials; the 15th century biblical text The Nuremburg Chronicle ; and many more rare volumes. Dayton's collection of rare books forms the basis of the West Virginia and Regional History Center's Rare Books Collection. Most correspondence takes the form of copies of business letters, but also includes personal letters to friends and colleagues. The personal letters concern Dayton's view on current politics and the law, health matters, philanthropy, religion, and legal decisions. The content of the boxes of correspondence is as follows: Box 1, ca. 1898-1960; Box 2, 1937-1940; Box 3, 1941-1945; Box 4, 1946-1948; and Box 5, 1949-1952, and undated. The correspondence in Box 5 is mostly from Dayton's wife, Ruth, regarding insuring art and rare materials, as well as the donations of art and rare materials through her charity.

Addendum of 2018 January, Box 5, folders 3 and 4, includes clippings, printed material, manuscript notes, correspondence, etc. found within the books donated by Arthur Dayton to the Center's Rare Books Collection. Many of the items seem to relate to the books and/or their acquisition, and most are in enclosures that show the call number of the related book. Also includes transcription, scans, and notes (ca. 2007) regarding three letters that were found in the book collection, two from Samuel Clemens and one from Brander Matthews.

A detailed paper guide to this collection can be found in the control folder for A&M 0052. An electronic copy of the same guide is available through a curator at the History Center.

Related Material

52, 206, 211, 215, 530, 741, 1066, 1111, 1216, 1445, 1723, 3022, 3023

Subjects and Indexing Terms

  • Ambler, Charles Henry, 1876-1957
  • Book collecting

Significant Persons Associated With the Collection

  • Ambler, Charles Henry, 1876-1957
  • Dayton, Arthur Spencer, 1887-1948
  • Dayton, Ruth Woods, 1894-

Container List

Mixed Materials Box: 1
Correspondence to and from Arthur S. Dayton and others, principally U.S. firms
1931–1943
Scope and Contents

"Files of correspondence regarding book orders with American dealers. Concern rare books, all of which are now in Rare Book Room at the University."

Firms: Macmillan, Scribner's, American Art Association, Prentice-Hall, Barnes and Noble Inc., Scholars Facsimiles and Reprints, Chaucer Head Book Shop, Blue Ribbon Books, Schulte's Book Store, Giles E. Dawson, Folger Library, Raines Galleries, Chicago Book and Art Auction, Frank Rosengren, Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., Bodley Book Shop, W.H. Lowdermilk and Co., Dauber and Pine Bookshops, G.A. Baker and Co., Inc., Little, Brown and Co., Mannados Bookshop, Export Book Co., John C. Kohn and Co., James F. Drake, Inc., Philip C. Duschnes, Argosy Book Stores, Columbia University Press, Brick Row Book Shop Inc., Swan Auction Galleries, Barker and Brooks, William F. Kelleher.

Mixed Materials Box: 2 Folder: 1
Forms: Correspondence; Persons: A.S. Dayton with and about Whitman Bennett Book Studio; Places: New York; Subjects: Books, rare and general, orders and correspondence
1942–1947
Mixed Materials Box: 2 Folder: 2
Forms: Correspondence; Persons: A.S. Dayton with and about Whitman Bennett Book Studio; Places: New York; Subjects: Books, rare and general, orders and correspondence
1946–1948
Mixed Materials Box: 2 Folder: 3-7
Correspondence with principally English firms and others
1935–1948
Scope and Contents

"Files correspondence regarding book orders [-]…in England. Concern rare books, all of which are now in the rare book room at the University."

Firms: B.H. Blackwell Ltd., George Gregory Book Store, J.andJ. Leighton, Marks and Co., Bankers Trust and Co., Herbert Ford, Export Book Co., Frances Edwards Ltd., Frank R. Brown, George Sexton Ltd., H.M. Fletcher, and Bennett Book Stores

Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 1
Forms: Catalogues (2 copies); Persons: Maggs Bros., No. 493; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Shakespeare and Shakespeareana
1927
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 2
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Maggs Bros., No. 434 (one and portion of another); Places: No places listed; Subjects: No specific subjects listed
1923
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 2
Forms: Catalogues (2 copies); Persons: Herbert Ford; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Shakespeare and other dramatists, 1700-1800
1942
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 2
Forms: Catalogues (incomplete); Persons: Maggs[?], No. [?]; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Shakespeare and Shakespeareana
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 3
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Selection from the Lothian Collection; Places: No places listed; Subjects: No specific subjects listed
1932
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 4
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Bernard Rosenthal, VIII; Places: New York; Subjects: History, Historiography and Literature of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance
1958
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 4
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Ludwig Rosenthal, 204; Places: The Netherlands; Subjects: Incunabula and Post incunabula
1959
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 4
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: The Rosenback Co.; Places: No places listed; Subjects: From the ninth century to today - rare books, Mo. and autographed letters
1937
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 4
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Rosenback; Places: No places listed; Subjects: English plays to 1700
1940
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 5
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: The Free Library of Philadelphia; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "The First Printers and Their Books"
1940
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 5
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Scribners, #128; Places: No places listed; Subjects: English books printed prior to 1700
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 3 Folder: 5
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: M. Morton-Smith, #3; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Rare Books -- The Occult, Arts, Science, Medicine, Texts -- Philosophy, Early Education Classics"
1958
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 6
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Maggs Bros., #462, Part II, M-Z; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "English Literature and Printing, 15th-18th Centuries"
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 6
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Brick Row Book Shop; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "A Catalogue of the Renaissance, #17, Part 2, English"
1942
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 7
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Dawsons of Pall Mall Ninety Nine, #102; Places: No places listed; Subjects: No specific subjects listed
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 7
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Maggs Bros., #518; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Important and Valuable Books on…"
1929
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 7
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Charles S. Bosen, Part I; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "English Literature, 16th-20th Centuries" (from the library of Dr. Samuel Wyllis Bandler)
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Gabriel Wells (from the estate of), #1; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Rare books
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Parke Bernet Galleries Inc.; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Books, autographs, and manuscripts
1945–1946
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Parke Bernet Galleries Inc.; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Books, autographs, and manuscripts
1947–1948
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Livres Rares, #13 - Librarie G. Salet - Edgar Soete, Gendre Succi; Places: No places listed; Subjects: No specific subjects listed
1958
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Henry E. Huntington Library; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "The English Novel"
1939
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Blackwell's, #696; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Private Press Books -- First Editions"
1959
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Forms: Catalogues; Persons: Book Centre; Places: London; Subjects: "Book Handbook, Nos. 2, 3, 4, and Supplement"
1947
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 9
Forms: Catalogues (bibliography); Persons: Arthur C. Dayton; Places: West Virginia University Library; Subjects: "The Dayton Exhibit (A Catalogue of Books of Elizabethan Interest)"
1944
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Catalogues, pamphlets, and other printed materials regarding rare books
1932–1960
Scope and Contents

1) Catalogue. "Books, Autographs, and Manuscripts of Samuel L. Clemens" Parke-Bernet Galleries Inc. Auction, 1956

2) Catalogue. 4th Cooperative "Rare Books, 1st Editions, Autographs, and Manuscripts" unknown date

3) missing

4) Catalogue. "Rare Books - 1st Editions, Autographs," No. 164; Mott, Howard S., unknown date

5) Catalogue. House of El Dieff, #7, unknown date

6) Catalogue. Maxwell Henley Rare Books "Mark Twain: A Collection of First Editions," 1957

7) "William Morris's Typographical Adventure..." Philip C. Duschnes, 1959

8) Journal. "Mark Twain Journal," Mr. Cyril Clemens, Editor, 1960

9) Exhibit Catalogue. "500 Years of Printing: Gutenberg to Present," Boston Public Library, 1940

10) Pamphlet. "The Shakespeare Forgeries of William Ireland" by Zoltan Haraszti, 1934

Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Typescript Catalogue; Persons: Samuel Clemens, John S. Van E. Kohn and Michael Papantonia[?]; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) 1835-1910, Second List"
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Periodical; Persons: No persons listed; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "The Month of Goodspeeds," Vol. XXVIII, Nos. 4-5, Vol. XXVIII, Nos. 6-7
1957
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Argosy Book Stores, Inc.; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Sir Walter Scott, First Editions including…Miscellaneous Items"
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Howard S. Mott, #165; Places: No places listed; Subjects: No specific subjects listed
undated
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Catalogue; Persons: Herbert Ford; Places: No places listed; Subjects: English literature, pre-1700
1932
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Publishers Weekly Clipping; Persons: No persons listed; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Old and Rare Books. The Gilded Age: a Collection"
1940
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Rare Book Room (of the West Virginia and Regional History Center) notes and folder
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Pamphlet; Persons: Lee Meriwether; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "A Short History of the Mark Twain Memorial Association"
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: A
Forms: Pamphlet; Persons: Lee Meriwether; Places: No places listed; Subjects: "Me and Mark Twain"
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: B
Forms: Manuscript, Typescript; Persons: No persons listed; Places: No places listed; Subjects: Lists and cards - insurance - Rare Book Room (of the West Virginia and Regional History Center)
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: C
Miscellaneous Letters: W.D. Bryant to James Kelly; J.E. Congleton, J.P. Hardy, L.F. Powell, WVU Librarian; Ruth Dayton regarding Dayton and pamphlet regarding leather book bindings, care of collection
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 5 Folder: 1-2
Original folders from the Rare Book Room of the West Virginia and Regional History Center
ca. 1898-2007
Mixed Materials Box: 5 Folder: 3-4
Add. of 2018 January, Clippings, correspondence, and other material in Dayton donations
ca. 1898-2007
Scope and Contents

These folders include clippings, printed material, manuscript notes, correspondence, etc. found within the books donated by Arthur Dayton to the Center's Rare Books Collection. Many of the items seem to relate to the books and/or their acquisition, and most are in enclosures that show the call number of the related book. Also includes transcription, scans, and notes (ca. 2007) regarding three letters that were found in the book collection, two from Samuel Clemens and one from Brander Matthews.