Henry P. Mcilhenny Papers HPM Finding Aid Prepared by Bertha Adams, Adrianna Del Collo, Katherine Stefko, Scott Radway, Liz Snowden, Susan Anderson and Courtney Smerz
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Henry P. McIlhenny Papers HPM Finding aid prepared by Bertha Adams, Adrianna Del Collo, Katherine Stefko, Scott Radway, Liz Snowden, Susan Anderson and Courtney Smerz. Last updated on January 31, 2017. 01/20/2006 Philadelphia Museum of Art Archives Henry P. McIlhenny Papers Table of Contents Summary Information....................................................................................................................................3 Biography/History..........................................................................................................................................4 Scope and Contents....................................................................................................................................... 7 Arrangement...................................................................................................................................................9 Administrative Information......................................................................................................................... 10 Controlled Access Headings........................................................................................................................11 Collection Inventory.................................................................................................................................... 12 Correspondence......................................................................................................................................12 Financial records..................................................................................................................................493 Family papers.......................................................................................................................................538 Articles, interviews and lectures......................................................................................................... 557 Art collection....................................................................................................................................... 568 Residences............................................................................................................................................699 Affiliations........................................................................................................................................... 763 Other subjects...................................................................................................................................... 856 - Page 2 - Henry P. McIlhenny Papers Summary Information Repository Philadelphia Museum of Art Archives Creator McIlhenny , Henry P. Title Henry P. McIlhenny Papers Call number HPM Date [inclusive] 1817-1824, 1902-1988, undated (bulk 1934-1986) Extent 62.5 linear feet Language English Abstract The Henry P. McIlhenny Papers document the privileged and urbane lifestyle of the man whose tastes and talents earned him a reputation as a distinguished connoisseur of art and antiques, world traveler, host extraordinaire, philanthropist and generous friend. Although Henry McIlhenny (1910-1986) is the primary creator, this collection is very much a family affair, encompassing the art collections initiated by his parents, John D. and Frances P. McIlhenny, which passed, along with the family trust fund, on to McIlhenny and his sister Bernice ("Bonnnie") Wintersteen. Much of the material deals with McIlhenny's activities from the mid-1930s to his final years, with particularly extensive documentation of his art collection and of his homes, the latter of which encompasses his penchant for interior design and his passion for horticulture. Also well documented are his many years of service to and support of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Academy of Music, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. The records of McIlhenny's finances are extensive as well. Invoices and receipts are included throughout the collection and document extraordinary to everyday purchases--from a Cézanne watercolor to a bottle of Old Spice pre-shave lotion, offering a snapshot study of class - Page 3 - Henry P. McIlhenny Papers economics and consumerism. While correspondence and invoices make up the bulk of material, the collection also includes many photographs, clippings, monthly statements and reports, and to a lesser extent, account books, appraisals, catalogs, ephemera, legal documents, drawings and fabric swatches. Cite as: [Item identification and date], [Series info.], Henry P. McIlhenny Papers, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Archives. Biography/History Selected by Connoisseur magazine as one of the country's all-time top 10 art collectors, Philadelphian Henry Plumer McIlhenny (1910-1986) also was celebrated for his charm and hospitality. As Andy Warhol claimed, McIlhenny was "the only person in Philadelphia with glamour," a sentiment echoed by the Philadelphia Art Alliance, which dubbed him the "first gentleman of Philadelphia." McIlhenny's energies went beyond his passion for collectinig; and his love for the arts, for entertaining, and for horticulture found numerous manifestations over the years. The family fortune that afforded McIlhenny's gracious and generous lifestyle began with his paternal grandfather, John, who left Ireland with his widowed mother in 1843. Settling in Columbia, Georgia, via Philadelphia, the elder McIlhenny has been credited with inventing the gas meter. Upon returning to Philadelphia in the late 1870s with his wife and four children, John McIlhenny founded the gas meter- manufacturing firm of Helme and McIlhenny. Succeeded in the business by his son John Dexter (John D.), the family amassed a fortune, and their ingenuity furnished the younger McIlhenny's children with trust funds that sustained them all their lives. In 1898 John D. McIlhenny married Frances Galbraith Plumer. The couple had four children, of which Henry was the youngest. A sister died before he was born, and an older brother died in 1935. McIlhenny had a close relationship with his remaining sibling, Bernice, who was usually refered to as "Bonnie." Both children followed in their parents' commitment to civic involvement and love of the arts. Although McIlhenny's tastes deviated from that of his family, his passion for art was cultivated early on by his parents who were enthusiastic collectors of Oriental rugs, decorative arts, and 17th and 18th century paintings. McIlhenny proved himself an able young scholar and prospered at Milton Academy, a preparatory school near Boston. According to his own recollection, he also began collecting at a young age, purchasing a - Page 4 - Henry P. McIlhenny Papers few bronze statuettes at the age of 15 while on vacation in Egypt. In 1929 McIlhenny enrolled at Harvard University, graduating magna cum laude with a degree in Fine Arts in 1933. At the university, McIlhenny studied with the scholar and collector Paul Sachs, whom McIlhenny credits with refining his eye for art and galvanizing his acquisitive nature. As a sophomore in college, and often teamed up with his mother, McIlhenny began collecting in earnest when the two purchased, at the son's request, "Still Life with a Hare," (circa 1730) by Jean-Siméon Chardin. Despite this purchase of an 18th century French painting, Sach's enthusiasm for 19th century French paintings took hold of McIlhenny, and he would come to focus his major collecting activity in this area. During the Depression years, McIlhenny purchased masterpieces in rapid succession. Between 1931 and 1933, he acquired important works by Toulouse-Lautrec, Matisse, Corot, Renoir, Degas and Delacroix. McIlhenny often recalled Sach's advice that it is better not to buy "higgledy piggledy all over the map," but rather to collect in one field. He followed his mentor's advice, collecting astutely and deliberately. He retained most of his major purchases throughout his life, except when he needed, in his words, "to have plenty of cash for my old age," and to fund renovations of his properties. In 1970 he sold a Seurat, in 1973 a Renoir, and in 1983 a Cézanne, which alone sold for $3.6 million. While McIlhenny's mother encouraged her son's early acquisitions of fine art, it was his father who set the family precedent of service and philanthropy to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. From 1918 until his death in 1925, John D. McIlhenny served as the Museum's President while it operated from its original location at Memorial Hall in Fairmount Park. He bequeathed the family art collection to the Museum. Just after his father's death, McIlhenny's mother began serving on the Associate Committee of Women and served as Museum Trustee until her death in 1943. McIlhenny and his sister Bernice would follow suit, serving in a number of capacities throughout their adult lives. Henry McIlhenny's association with the Museum began in 1933 after a year of graduate studies, when he joined the staff as Assistant Curator of Decorative Arts under the directorship of Fiske Kimball. McIlhenny's father hired Kimball just before his death, and as McIlhenny would remark jokingly, it was the appointment of this "Germanic boor" that killed his father. McIlhenny was promoted to Associate Curator of Decorative Arts in 1937 and two years later was named Curator of the department. His ambition, however, exceeded the confines of his job titles. In 1936 and 1937 he organized two major paintings exhibitions, of Degas and Daumier, respectively, both of which won international recognition. His 1939 exhibition of prints and drawings