Collection Summary
Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin
Armitage, Merle, 1893-1975
Merle Armitage Literary File
Photography Collection
1936-1970, undated
700 items (3.7 linear feet)
The Merle Armitage Literary File
consists of approximately 700 photographs, many of which are images of books
written, edited, and/or designed by Armitage. Also included are portraits of
Armitage and various other people, as well as views of the Grand Canyon and various
places in Europe. In addition, there are numerous images of petroglyphs, as well as
some pertaining to the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railroad system.
English
Photograph Collection
PH-02681
Acquisition:
Internal transfers
Access:
Open for research. Researchers must create an online Research Account and agree to
the Materials Use Policy before using archival materials.
Please note: Transparencies may be accessed but require 24 hours advance notice.
Negatives cannot be accessed without curatorial approval. Light sensitive materials
must be viewed under low-level lighting. Some materials may be restricted from
viewing. To make an appointment or to reserve photography materials, please contact
the Center's staff at photography@hrc.utexas.edu.
Use Policies:
Ransom Center collections may contain material with sensitive or confidential
information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and
regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information
pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in the collections without
the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of
action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an
individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a
reasonable person) for which the Ransom Center and The University of Texas at Austin
assume no responsibility.
Restrictions on Use:
Authorization for publication is given on behalf of the University of Texas as the
owner of the collection and is not intended to include or imply permission of the
copyright holder which must be obtained by the researcher. For more information
please see the Ransom Centers' Open Access and Use Policies.
Processed by:
HRC Staff
Scope and Contents
The Merle Armitage Literary File consists of approximately 700 photographs, many of
which are images of books written, edited, and/or designed by Armitage. Also
included are portraits of Armitage and various other people, as well as views of the
Grand Canyon and various places in Europe. In addition, there are numerous images of
petroglyphs, as well as some pertaining to the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe
railroad system. An index at the end of this guide lists photographers whose work is
featured in this file. Further descriptions of some items are available in a card
catalog in the repository.
This collection forms a part of the Literary File Photography Collection, which is
comprised of photographs and albums withdrawn from the libraries and/or papers of
literary figures, and generally include portraits and images collected by or of
those figures.
The Ransom Center also holds manuscript material in the Merle Armitage Papers.
Index Terms
People
Armitage, Isabelle.
Armitage, Merle, 1893-1975.
Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971.
Stravinsky, Igor,
1882-1971.
Wells, Cady, 1904-1954.
Organizations
Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe
Railroad Company.
Subjects
Petroglyphs.
Places
London (England).
Ramsgate (England).
Switzerland.
Document Types
Photographic prints.
Item List
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P1-P6
Portraits of Armitage alone at various ages throughout his adult
life,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P7
Portrait (silkscreen print) of Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P8
Group portrait of Armitage at age 3 with his parents and sister,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P11-P14, P15A-P15B, P16A-P16B, P17-P21
Photographs of Armitage as an adult with various people,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P22-P33
Portraits of various people; all signed and inscribed to
Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P34
View of a crowd in an airplane hangar (during World War II?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P35-P48, P49A-P49B, P50-P63
Portraits of various people, including Joan Crawford (P53), Ira
Gershwin (P59), Rockwell Kent (P48), Igor Stravinsky (P35, P61), Arturo
Toscanini (P60), Edgar Varèse (P40-P43), and Joseph von Sternberg
(P44); most signed and inscribed to Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P64A-P64B
Photographs of Igor Stravinsky at a rehearsal,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 1
P65
Group portrait of 8 unidentified people (members of a family?) at
a resort (in Monte-Carlo?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P66A-P66B
Photographic reproductions of the cover and title page of The
Aristocracy of Art by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P67A-P67D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (page 1 and an illustration) of Warren Newcombe by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P68A-P68C
Photographic reproductions of the cover, page 1, and plate 13 of
The Work of Maier-Krieg by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P69A-P69B
Photographic reproductions of the cover and page 1 of
Rockwell-Kent by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P70A-P70D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (page x and an illustration) of The Lithographs of Richard Day by
Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P71A-P71D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including an illustration) of Napolitano by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P72A-P72G
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers, title
page, and other pages of Lovet-Lorski by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P73A-P73D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers, title
page, and other pages of So-Called Abstract Art by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P74A-P74B
Photographic reproductions of the cover and title page of Post
Caviar by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P75A-P75E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers, title
page, and other pages (including an illustration) of U.S. Navy by
Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P76A-P76E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers, title
page, and other pages (including an illustration) of Accent on America
by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P77
Photographic reproduction of the title page of Dance Memoranda by
Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P78A-P78D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, front lining papers, and
title page of Operations Santa Fe by Armitage, as well as an image of a
metal ornament bearing the Santa Fe logo (used as illustration?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 2
P79A-P79B
Photographic reproductions of the title page and 8 other pages of
Brett Weston: Photographs by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P80A-P80E
Photographic reproductions of the cover and various pages
(including illustrations) of Henrietta Shore by Armitage, as well as a
silhouette of a cactus (used as illustration?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P81A-P81E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including an illustration) of Zarathrustra Jr., with a foreword
by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P82A-P82D
Photographic reproductions of the title page and other pages
(including illustrations) of Elise by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P83A-P83B
Photographic reproductions of the cover of The Capture of
Inspiration, produced, designed, and with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P84A-P84E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including illustrations) of Millard Sheets, edited by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P85A-P85D
Photographic reproductions of the cover (negative only), lining
papers, title page, and page iii of Igor Stravinsky (New York, 1936),
edited and with an article by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P86A-P86D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including an illustration) of Picasso: 2 Statements, with a
"comment" by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P87A-P87E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, front lining papers,
title page, and other pages (including an illustration) of Hollywood
Bowl, with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P88A-P88D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, frontispiece, title
page, and other pages (including illustrations) of The Psychologist
Looks at Art, edited and with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P89A-P89B
Photographic reproductions of the cover and page 1 of Martha
Graham, edited and with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 3
P90A-P90F
Photographic reproductions of the cover, front lining papers,
title page, and other pages (including illustrations) of George
Gershwin, edited, designed, and with an article by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P91A-P91D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers,
preliminary pages, and page 41 of Designed Books, including articles
about and reproductions of books designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P92A-P92D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (includging an illustration) of Have We an American Art, designed
and with an article by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P93A-P93B
Photographic reproductions of the title page and page 17 of
Private Enterprise and Democracy, with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P94A-P94D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including an illustration) of Personal Revolution and Picasso,
edited and with a foreword by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P95A-P95G
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages (including illustrations) of Edward Weston and 50 Photographs (by
Edward Weston), both books designed and with text by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P96A-P96B
Photographic reproduction of the title page of Igor Stravinsky
(New York, c1949), by Armitage, and a silhouette of a grand piano (used
as illustration?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P97A-P97F
Photographic reproductions of preliminary pages and other pages
(facsimiles of Klee’s signature) of Five Essays on Paul Klee, edited and
with an essay by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P99A-P99E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and other
pages of Picture Book, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P100A-P100C
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page, and another
page of Valdemar, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P101A-P101D
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title page,
frontispiece, and other pages of Advanced Modern Navigation, designed by
Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 4
P102A-P102E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, lining papers, title
page, and other pages of Looking Backward, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P103A-P103C
Photographic reproductions of the cover, illustrated lining
papers, and title page of Russell Cowles, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P104A-P104B
Photographic reproductions of the cover and title page of Navajo
Textile Arts, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P105
Photographic reproduction of the cover of The Smile at the Foot
of the Ladder, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P106
Photographic reproduction of the title page of Murder and Mystery
in New Mexico, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P107A-P107B
Photographic reproductions of pages of the brochure Rosa
Ponselle, designed by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P108A-P108F
Color negatives of desert paintings by Armitage,
1955.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P109A-P109L
Images of an exhibition of books and typography by Armitage,
presented by Gardner Cowles for Look Magazine,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P111A-P111I
Photographic reproduction of a map (4 prints taped together) and
8 variant contact prints of the same maps inscribed (by Armitage?)
"desert book 1952,"
1952.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P112A-P112J
10 different contact sheets of 35mm negatives of desert scenes,
and views of various other places,
1953.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 5
P113-P129
Petroglyph photographs,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 6
P130-P189
Petroglyph photographs,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 6
P190-P220
Views of the Grand Canyon,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P221-P229
Views of the Grand Canyon,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P230
View of Athens, Greece (the Parthenon?),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P231
View of a crowded plaza in Salamanca, Spain, on the occasion of
the installation of Fascist leaders during the Spanish Civil War,
1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P232
Photograph of a small group of refugees crossing the mountains
into France to escape Franco, 1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P233
View of a crowd gathered in Vienna to watch Hitler review the
troops, 1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P234A-P234B
Stills from the film "The Big Lift,"
1950.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P235
Photograph of people in traditional dress in Valais, Switzerland,
1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P236A-P236C
Views of Switzerland (6 pages of half-tone prints apparently
removed from a book),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P237-P239
Views of various places in Switzerland, including the Matterhorn
(P238); P239 dated 1936.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P240-P242
Views of various places in Poland, including the border city of
Vilna (P241), 1938-1939.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P243-P246
Views of various places in Italy; P244 and P246 are dated 1947
and 1944 respectively.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P247
View of Paris (the Arc de Triomphe?),
1946.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P248
Photograph of 8 women kneeling before a large crucifix on an
outer wall of a building,
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P249-P250
Views of the Café de Flore (P249) and the Palais de Chaillot
(P250) in Paris,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P251
View of Saint Moritz, Switzerland,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P252
View of a town on the border between France and Italy,
1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P253
View of a crowd in front of a train station in Paris,
1938.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P254-P258
Views of London; P257-P258 dated 1939.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P259
View of Ramsgate, England, 1939.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P260
Photograph of "about one half of the total 106 Merle Armitage
books, in a case especially built at Manzanita Ranch,"
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P262-P263, P265-P295
Photographs of locomotives, other train cars, and various scenes
pertaining to the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railway system,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P297
Photographic reproduction of a silhouette of a rooster perched on
a circle with Armitage’s stylized initials inside (original print and
negative),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 7
P298
Photographic reproduction of a letter to Armitage from A. Thangal
Kunju Musaliar, letter dated 16 January
1950.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
P299-P303
Photographs of Kachina dolls,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
P304-P332
Photographic reproductions of Cady Wells paintings,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
P333
Stereograph of Armitage in an old car with Gardner Cowles (behind
the wheel) and 3 unidentified men,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
P334
Portrait of Armitage in a military uniform (same image as P4 and
998:0049:0001),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
P335A-P335E
Photographic reproductions of the cover, title pages of 2
editions, illustrated lining papers, and other pages of Fit for a King
by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
997:0105:0457
Scene from a production of Porgy and Bess presented by Armitage,
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
998:0049:0001
Portrait of Armitage in military uniform (same image as P4 and
P334),
undated.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
998:0049:0002
Portrait of Armitage, November
1970.
Armitage, M., Lit File Box 8
998:0049:0003
Portrait of Picasso in an arena (at a bull fight?),
undated.
Lit File OV Box Medium
P9
Portrait of Merle and Isabelle Armitage; handwritten on lower
mount recto: "For the University of Texas / from Isabelle / and Merle
Armitage / 1961;" photographer's initials ("B.W.") also handwritten on
mount recto, below right corner of image,
1961.
24 x 19 cm (image); 40.8 x 35.2 cm (mount).
Lit File OV Box Medium
P10
Portrait of Merle and Isabelle Armitage,
undated.
Lit File OV Box, Medium
P296
"Natural mosaic and weather vane at Margarita Ranch. W[ynn]
B[ullock]"; title handwritten with red marker, lower mount recto; signed
on mount recto, beneath lower right corner of print: "Wynn Bullock ‘56;"
handwritten on lower right mount verso: "for Merle, Isabelle, and Lucy -
/ Thanks for a stimulating week-end. / This was on subject the mind
couldn't move. / Wynn Bullock,
undated.
Gelatin silver print, 19.4 x 14 cm (image); 35.9 x
39.4 cm (mount).
Lit File OV Box, Large Armitage 1
998:0049:0004-0020
Images of snow-covered (Alpine?) ski slopes and trees, as well as
skiers, icicles, and snow sculptures,
undated.
Lit File OV Box, Large Armitage 2
998:0049:0021-0034
Images of snow-covered (Alpine?) ski slopes and trees, as well as
skiers, icicles, and snow sculptures,
undated.
Armitage, M., Album 1
P110
15 photographic prints, from an exhibition of books and
typography by Armitage,
undated.
Index of Photographers
- Associated Press--P231, P257-P258
- Barba, Raoul J.--P65
- Blanche, J. E.--P61
- Bullock, Wynn--P296
- Cada--P193, P194, P224
- Davis, Wyatt--P40
- Dick, Gretchen--P57
- Fairchild, Charlotte--P63
- Frank, S. Edward & Associates--P21
- French Government Tourist Office--P249-P250
- Harris & Ewing--P24
- Harvey--P225
- Hutchinson--P45
- International News Photos--P232-P233, P240-P242, P252-P253
- Kettel, Max--P235
- Keystone View Co.--P239, P333
- Knee, Ernest: --P330-P332
- Look Pix--P259
- McConkey, Alton B.--P47
- Meyer, Charles--P18-P20
- Mishkin, Herman--P62
- Richee, Gene Robert--P51
- Santa Fe Railway--P266-P271
- Schattenstein, Nikol--P58
- Seymour, Maurice--P36
- Stein, Marcia--P26
- Theisen, Earl--P49A-P49B
- U.S. Navy--P246
- Weston--P46
- Weston, Brett--P9-P10, P272
- Woodbury--P52