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Jack Butler Yeats correspondence

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Held at: University of Delaware Library Special Collections [Contact Us]181 South College Avenue, Newark, DE 19717-5267

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Delaware Library Special Collections. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Irish painter and illustrator, Jack B. Yeats, was born August 29, 1871, in London, England. He was the son of John Butler Yeats, a successful portrait painter, and younger brother of the distinguished Irish poet, William Butler Yeats.

In 1888 he attended the Westminster School of Art and later developed a career as a successful illustrator. His work appeared in such publications as

Boy's Own Paper, Judy, and Vegetarian. He also illustrated a large number of broadsheets, many of which were published by Cuala Press, a small enterprise run by his sisters Elizabeth and Lily Yeats. In 1912 Yeats' drawings and paintings of Life in the West of Irelandwere published by Maunsel.

Until about 1910 Yeats worked mainly as an illustrator and with watercolors; then he began to focus on oil painting. In 1913 five of Yeats' oil paintings were shown in the famous Armory exhibition in New York City. Following this showing Yeats concentrated on oil paintings depicting the life and landscapes of Ireland, as well as scenes of Celtic myths. His paintings contributed to the upsurge of nationalist feeling in the arts that followed the winning of Irish independence.

As a writer Jack B. Yeats contributed for many years to the British magazine,

Punch, under the pseudonym, "W. Bird." Books written and illustrated by Yeats include: A Little Fleet(1909), Sligo(1930), The Amaranthers(1936), and La la Noo(1943).

Chilvers, Ian and Harold Osborne (eds.). The Oxford Dictionary of Art. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. p.545. Drabble, Margaret (ed.). The Oxford Companion to English Literature. Fifth edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985. p.1093.Palmer, Helen M. and E.T. Williams (eds.). The Dictionary of National Biography, 1951-1960. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971. pp.1087-1088.

The Jack Butler Yeats Correspondence is a collection of 51 letters from Yeats to Kilham Robarts and other members of the Society of Authors, with some copies of letters he had written to MacMillan & Co. and their responses to Yeats. Most of the copies are handwritten by Yeats. The letters and copies span the dates from 1934 to 1955.

Yeats' letters report his disputes with publishers over the American rights to Padraic Colum's

The Big Tree of Bunlahy, for which Yeats provided the illustrations. The letters also discuss his own literary works, including The Amaranthers, The Charmed Life, and The Careless Flower; and the terms for the illustrations for the sequel to Patricia Lynch's The Turf Cutter's Donkey.

Also included in the correspondence as enclosures are copies of a "Memorandum of Agreement" between Jack B. Yeats and MacMillan & Co. and a copy of an "understanding" between the Society of Authors and MacMillan.

The letters are arranged in chronological order in eight folders.

Box 1: Shelved in SPEC MSS manuscript boxes (1 inch)

Purchase, March 1984.

Processed by Anita A. Wellner, August 1992.

Encoded by Jaime Margalotti, 2006.

Publisher
University of Delaware Library Special Collections
Finding Aid Author
University of Delaware Library, Special Collections
Finding Aid Date
2006 June 9
Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S.Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library, https://library.udel.edu/static/purl.php?askspec

Collection Inventory

Autograph letter signed, to MacMillian Co., 1934 May 4.
Box 1 Folder F1
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 May 10.
Box 1 Folder F1
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Autograph letter signed, from MacMillan to Yeats (copy handwritten by Yeats), 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 May 18.
Box 1 Folder F1
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 May 24.
Box 1 Folder F1
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Autograph letter signed, from MacMillan to Yeats (copy handwritten by Yeats), 2 pp.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 May 30.
Box 1 Folder F1
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 June 8.
Box 1 Folder F1
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Miss Patee (Children's Book Dept. of MacMillan), 1934 June 20.
Box 1 Folder F1
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Autograph letter signed, from Miss Patee to Yeats (copy handwritten by Yeats), 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 June 25.
Box 1 Folder F1
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 July 3.
Box 1 Folder F2
Scope and Contents

Enclosures: Two Autograph letters signed, from Yeats to MacMillan and two Autograph letter signed, from MacMillan to Yeats (all copies handwritten by Yeats), 4 pp.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 July 13.
Box 1 Folder F2
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 July 17.
Box 1 Folder F2
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Carbon copy of a typed letter signed, from MacMillan to Yeats, 3 pp.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to MacMillan Co., 1934 July 17.
Box 1 Folder F2
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 July 19.
Box 1 Folder F2
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Carbon copy of a typed letter (not signed), from Brett to Yeats, 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 July 25.
Box 1 Folder F2
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Copy of document, "Understanding" between the Society of Authors and MacMillan & Co., signed by Yeats, 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 August 13.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

"Memorandum of Agreement" between Yeats and MacMillan, 1934 August 15.
Box 1 Folder F3
Scope and Contents

Concerning

The Big Tree of Bunlahy, signed by Yeats. Physical Description

2 pp.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 August 15.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 August 17.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Miss Bromley, 1934 September 17.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 September 30.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1934 December 30.
Box 1 Folder F3
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 April 4.
Box 1 Folder F4
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Autograph letter signed, from Raymond Crossett (Curtis Brown Ltd) to Yeats (copy handwritten by Yeats), 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 June 5.
Box 1 Folder F4
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 June 6.
Box 1 Folder F4
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 June 12.
Box 1 Folder F4
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 September 20.
Box 1 Folder F4
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1935 October 20.
Box 1 Folder F4
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1936 May 4.
Box 1 Folder F5
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1936 October 14.
Box 1 Folder F5
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1936 November 9.
Box 1 Folder F5
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1937 August 13.
Box 1 Folder F5
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to "Dear Sir", 1937 August 21.
Box 1 Folder F5
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1937 October 22.
Box 1 Folder F5
Scope and Contents

Enclosure: Autograph letter signed, from John Deltmers to Yeats (copy handwritten by Yeats), 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1938 January 19.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1939 January 7.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1940 May 11.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Robarts, 1941 May 6.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Griffin, 1941 May 24.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

2 pp.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Griffin, 1941 June 30.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, to Mr. Griffin, 1941 July 14.
Box 1 Folder F6
Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1942 February 5.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To Mr. Robarts.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1945 September 25.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To "Dear Sir" (someone from the Society of Authors).

Physical Description

2 pp.

Autograph letter signed, 1948 May 27.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1948 June 7.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

2 pp.

Autograph letter signed, 1948 June 19.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber. Enclosure: Carbon copy of a typed letter signed, from Miss Barber to Yeats, 1 p.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1948 August 10.
Box 1 Folder F7
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1950 June 22.
Box 1 Folder F8
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

2 pp.

Autograph letter signed, 1950 July 14.
Box 1 Folder F8
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1954 September 18.
Box 1 Folder F8
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

1 p.

Autograph letter signed, 1955 November 15.
Box 1 Folder F8
Scope and Contents

To Miss Barber.

Physical Description

1 p.

Print, Suggest