TABLE OF CONTENTS
Descriptive Summary of the Collection
Biography of Arthur Meeker, Jr.
Scope and Content of the Collection
Series 1: Correspondence, 1906-1971
Series 2: Personal Materials, 1906-1972
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Inventory of the Arthur Meeker, Jr. Papers, ca. 1850-1972, bulk 1920-1945
Machine-readable finding aid encoded by Lisa Janssen, 2007. ©2007. |
Descriptive Summary of the Collection |
|
| Creator | Meeker, Arthur, 1902- |
| Title | Arthur Meeker, Jr. Papers |
| Dates | ca. 1850-1972 |
| Dates | bulk 1920-1945 |
| Extent | 5 linear feet (11 boxes and one oversize box) |
| Abstract | Correspondence, personal materials, works, and photographs of Chicago author Arthur Meeker, Jr. |
| Language | Materials are in English. |
| Repository | Newberry Library, Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections |
| Collection Call Number | Midwest MS Meeker |
| Collection Stack Location | 3a 41 4 |
Administrative Information
Cite As
Arthur Meeker, Jr. Papers, The Newberry Library, Chicago.
Provenance
Gifts of Mary Meeker Cramer and Fanny Butcher, 1976; Robert Molnar, 1977.
Processed by
Diana Haskell, 1978; Lisa Janssen, 2007.
Acknowledgements
This inventory was created with the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this inventory do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Access
The Arthur Meeker, Jr. Papers are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).
Ownership and Literary Rights
The Arthur Meeker, Jr. Papers are the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections.
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Biography of Arthur Meeker, Jr.
Novelist, newspaper columnist, and son of prominent Chicago society family.
Arthur Meeker, Jr. was born in 1902, the son of Arthur Meeker and Grace Murray Meeker. His father was an executive at Armour & Co., and his mother was the daughter of a well known Chicago family who grew up on Prairie Avenue. In addition to Arthur, the Meekers had three daughters, Grace, Katherine and Mary.
The Meeker family’s first residence was also on Prairie Avenue. They later built a luxurious home at 3030 Lake Shore Drive, and also owned Arcady Farm near Lake Forest. The family was quite active in society, throwing lavish parties and supporting the arts and conservative political causes.
Meeker studied at Princeton and Harvard, where he majored in playwriting. He was unhappy in college and never graduated. He tried his hand at several writing endeavors, including writing society and travel items for the Chicago American, the Chicagoan, Chicago Herald and the Daily News before finding success as a novelist with several highly regarded historical works. His most well known novel was The Ivory Mischief, which recreated 17th century France. He wrote two novels with Chicago settings: The Far Away Music andPrairie Avenue, which drew on his experiences growing up in the midst of Chicago's high society in the early part of the 20th century.
Arthur Meeker travelled extensively in Europe and eventually purchased a chalet in Switzerland where he spent part of each year. He wrote faithfully, sometimes daily to his mother from these trips. During the 1930s Meeker writes of an intense relationship with a man named Allen, and it's possible to assume from the tone and his parents disapproval, that it was a homosexual relationship. At the time of his death he had been living with a Robert Molnar from as early as 1940, and Meeker left his estate to Molner in his will. Meeker died in their New York City apartment on October 22, 1971.
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Scope and Content of the Collection
Correspondence with family members and colleagues including E. M. Delafield and George Dillon, research notes and a handwritten manuscript of the novel The Ivory Mischief, datebooks, biographical materials; genealogical materials on the Meeker and Murray families, and photographs.
Narrative descriptions of the subject matter, types of material, and arrangement of each series are available through the Organization section of the finding aid.
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Organization
Papers are organized in the following series:
- Series 1: Correspondence, 1906-1971. Box(es) 1-7
- Series 2: Personal Materials, 1906-1972. Box(es) 8
- Series 3: Works, 1906-1972. Box(es) 8-8a
- Series 4: Meeker Family Materials, 1884-1950. Box(es) 9
- Series 5: Photographs, ca. 1850s-1960s. Box(es) 10
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Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Newberry Library's public catalog. Researchers desiring additional materials on a particular topic should search the catalog using these headings.
Names
- Delafield, E. M., 1890-1943
- Dillon, George, 1906-1968
- Meeker, Arthur, 1866-1946
- Meeker, Arthur, 1902-
Subjects
- Children of the rich -- Illinois -- Chicago
- Correspondence -- 1901-1950
- Correspondence -- 1951-2000
- Expatriate authors
- Male Homosexuality -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
- Manuscripts, American -- Illinois -- Chicago
- Mothers and sons -- Correspondence
- Novelists
- Photographs -- 1901-1950
- Photographs -- 1951-1900
- Photographs -- 1951-2000
- Rich people -- Illinois -- Chicago
- Socialites -- Illinois -- Chicago
- Upper class -- United States -- Social life and customs
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Container List
Series 1: Correspondence, 1906-1971 |
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| Primarily letters between Arthur and family members, most significantly, his mother Grace Murray Meeker. This correspondence presents a fascinating narrative of Arthur's development as a writer and his relationships with fellow society denizens. His mother describes life at Meeker family homes in Chicago and Santa Barbara, California, and often encloses clippings from the society pages. The correspondence also chronicles what may possibly be a homosexual romance between Arthur and a young man named Allen who he supported financially. Unfortunately, some correspondence was altered by Meeker's younger sister Mary, who snipped out names and sometimes large sections of her letters from Arthur. The series also includes letters from author E. M. Delafield, poet George Dillon and Ann Mulchany, the sister of Meeker's longtime companion Robert Molnar. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically with family correspondence first followed by a small amount of incoming correspondence from friends and colleagues. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Cramer, Ambrose C., n.d. | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Cramer, Mary Meeker, 1915-1944 | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Gray, Katherine Meeker, 1926-1928, n.d. | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Meeker, Arthur, 1907-1943 | |||||||||
| 1 | 5 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1906-1912 | |||||||||
| 1 | 6 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1913-1915 | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1916-1919 | |||||||||
| 1 | 8 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1920-1921 | |||||||||
| 1 | 9 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1922 | |||||||||
| 1 | 10 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1923 | |||||||||
| 2 | 11 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1924 | |||||||||
| 2 | 12 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1925-1926 | |||||||||
| 2 | 13 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1927 | |||||||||
| 2 | 14 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1928 | |||||||||
| 2 | 15 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1929 | |||||||||
| 2 | 16 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1930-1931 | |||||||||
| 2 | 17 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1932-1933 | |||||||||
| 2 | 18 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1934-1935 | |||||||||
| 3 | 19 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1936-1937 | |||||||||
| 3 | 20 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1938-1939 | |||||||||
| 3 | 21 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1940-1941 | |||||||||
| 3 | 22 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1942-1944 | |||||||||
| 3 | 23 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, 1945 | |||||||||
| 3 | 24 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur (all to sister Mary), 1951-1965 | |||||||||
| 3 | 25 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur, undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 26 | Meeker, Grace (later Cramer, then Lloyd), 1928, n.d. | |||||||||
| 4 | 27 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1910-1919 | |||||||||
| 4 | 28 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1920-1921 | |||||||||
| 4 | 29 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1922 | |||||||||
| 4 | 30 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1923 | |||||||||
| 4 | 31 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1924 | |||||||||
| 5 | 32 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1925 | |||||||||
| 5 | 33 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1926 | |||||||||
| 5 | 34 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1927 | |||||||||
| 5 | 35 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1928 | |||||||||
| 5 | 36 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1929 | |||||||||
| 5 | 37 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1930-1931 | |||||||||
| 5 | 38 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1932-1933 | |||||||||
| 5 | 39 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1934-1935 | |||||||||
| 5 | 40 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1936-1937 | |||||||||
| 5 | 41 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1938-1939 | |||||||||
| 6 | 42 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1940-1941 | |||||||||
| 6 | 43 | Meeker, Grace Murray, 1942-1944 | |||||||||
| 6 | 44 | Meeker, Grace Murray, undated | |||||||||
| 6 | 45 | Meeker, Maria Louisa Griggs, 1902-1922, n.d. | |||||||||
| 6 | 46 | Miscellaneous Family, 1908-1931, n.d. | |||||||||
| 6 | 47 | O'Connell, Minnie, 1912-1922 | |||||||||
| 6 | 48 | O'Connell, Minnie, 1923-1932 | |||||||||
| 6 | 49 | O'Connell, Minnie, 1933-1939 | |||||||||
| 6 | 50 | O'Connell, Minnie - greeting cards, ca. 1910s-1940s | |||||||||
| 7 | 51 | Burdon-Muller, Rowland (regarding purchase of chalet), 1947 | |||||||||
| 7 | 52 | Delafield, E. M. (Elizabeth), 1931-1943 | |||||||||
| 7 | 53 | Dillon, George (includes draft of poem on back), ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 7 | 54 | Meigs, M. C. / Chicago Herald Examiner (includes print illustration of Meeker from paper), Jul., 26, 1928 | |||||||||
| 7 | 55 | Molchany, Ann (outgoing from Meeker), 1940-1971 | |||||||||
| 7 | 56 | Miscellaneous Incoming, 1919-1942, n.d. | |||||||||
Series 2: Personal Materials, 1906-1972 |
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| Contains a few biographical clippings, papers concerning the sale of the family apartment, memorabilia, and several datebooks from the last years of Meeker's life. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 8 | 57 | Apartment - inventory and sales contract for 1100 Lake Shore Drive, 1947 | |||||||||
| 8 | 58 | Clippings - biographical, reviews, obituaries, 1906-1972 | |||||||||
| 8 | 59 | Datebooks, 1967-1968 | |||||||||
| 8 | 60 | Datebooks, 1969, 1971 | |||||||||
| 8 | 61 | Miscellaneous memorabilia, ca. 1940s-1950s | |||||||||
| 8 | 62 | Portfolio - leather, monogrammed, n.d. | |||||||||
| 8 | 62a | Scrapbook containing clippings of Meeker columns, travel brochures, and photographs from Switzerland (see oversize), 1951-1952, n.d. | |||||||||
Series 3: Works, 1906-1972 |
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| Primarily materials pertaining to Meeker's major work, The Ivory Mischief, including research notes and a handwritting manuscript. Also contains the texts of two speeches and two columns written by Meeker. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 8 | 63 | Clippings, 1923, 1930 | |||||||||
| 8 | 64 | Research Notes - typed and handwritten, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 8 | 65-68 | Research Notes - notebooks, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 8 | 69 | Speeches - drafts, ca. 1960s | |||||||||
| 8a | 69a | The Ivory Mischief - Book 1, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 8a | 69b | The Ivory Mischief - Book 2, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 8a | 69c-d | The Ivory Mischief - Book 3, ca. 1960s | |||||||||
| 8a | 69e | The Ivory Mischief - Epilogue, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
Series 4: Meeker Family Materials, 1884-1950 |
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| Clippings and genealogical materials collected by Arthur Meeker, Jr.'s Aunt Margaret Beckman Meeker. Includes a travel diary kept by Grace Murray Meeker from 1884. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 9 | 70 | Clippings, ca. 1920s-1960 | |||||||||
| 9 | 71 | Correspondence (mostly reproduced typed letters from 1884-1854), 1921-1934 | |||||||||
| 9 | 72 | Diary of Grace Murray (Meeker), 1884 | |||||||||
| 9 | 73 | Genealogical Notes - Meeker family narrative, n.d. | |||||||||
| 9 | 74 | Genealogical Notes - Murray Family, n.d. | |||||||||
Series 5: Photographs, ca. 1850s-1960s |
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| Portraits of Arthur Meeker, Jr. and other family members, family snapshots, photographs of society events, family homes, travel and research photos of Prairie Avenue. Also includes a photo of the cast of "Evie's Husbands," an early play by Meeker. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 10 | 75 | Cramer, Mary Meeker - group portrait of costume party before the wedding of Theodora Winterbotham, 1925 | |||||||||
| 10 | 76 | Meeker, Arthur, ca. 1970s-1940s | |||||||||
| 10 | 77 | Meeker, Arthur and family - snapshots, ca. 1910s-1920s, 1960s | |||||||||
| 10 | 78 | Meeker, Arthur and Grace Murray Meeker - golden wedding anniversary (includes family portrait), 1942 | |||||||||
| 10 | 79 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur - childhood portraits (see also oversize), ca. 1902-1910s | |||||||||
| 10 | 80 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur - adult portraits (see also oversize), ca. 1920s-1960s | |||||||||
| 10 | 81 | Meeker, Jr., Arthur - group photos, social events, 1934, n.d. | |||||||||
| 10 | 82 | Meeker, Arthur Burr, Maria Louisa Griggs Meeker and family, ca. 1850s-1900 | |||||||||
| 10 | 83 | Meeker, Grace Murray, ca. 1890s-1932 | |||||||||
| 10 | 84 | Meeker, Grace Murray - group portrait of bridesmaids at the wedding of Grace Kellogg (includes Mary Armour, Lois Kellogg, Harriet King, Jenny Royce, and Sarane Seeley), 1889 | |||||||||
| 10 | 85 | Meeker, Margaret Beckman, 1886-ca. 1910s | |||||||||
| 10 | 86 | Meeker & Murray relatives, ca. 1880s-1920s | |||||||||
| 10 | 87 | Meeker Family Homes - Arcady Farm, Santa Barbara, Utica, undated | |||||||||
| 10 | 88 | Cast of "Evie's Husbands," 1923 | |||||||||
| 10 | 89 | Prairie Avenue and miscellaneous portraits (research for Prairie Avenue), ca. 1860s-1880s | |||||||||
| 10 | 90 | Signed Portraits - Claire Dux, "Edith" and "Alix" (see also oversize), 1934, n.d. | |||||||||
| 10 | 91 | Travel - France, 1948 | |||||||||
| 10 | 92 | Unidentified and Miscellaneous (see also oversize), ca. 1880s-1940s | |||||||||