Gumuchian mss., 1933-1940
Correspondence, 1933-1940, between Kirkor Gumuchian and George Alexander Ball at the Lilly
Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana
Electronic finding aid encoded by Magia Ghetu
Summary Information
Repository
Lilly
Library (Indiana University, Bloomington)
Indiana University
1200 E. Seventh St.
Bloomington, IN 47405-5500
Phone: 812-855-2452
Fax: 812-855-3143
Email: liblilly@indiana.edu
http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly
Creator
Gumuchian, Kirkor.
TitleGumuchian mss., 1933-1940
Collection No.
LMC 1488
Extent
79 items
Language
Materials are in English.
Abstract
Consists of correspondence between Kirkor
Gumuchian, 1887-1949, and George Alexander Ball, 1862-1955, manufacturer of Muncie,
Indiana, recording Ball's purchases from Gumuchian during the period 1933-1940. The
letters also discuss the Charles Todd Owen and Roland Knaster collections of children's
books as points of comparison with that of Gumuchian; political and economic conditions
in Paris; events in Spain; and the problems of a bookseller in such a climate. Other
materials include duplicate copies of the invoices for the Gumuchian purchase and a
numerical inventory by George Ball of the purchase.
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research.
Biographical Note
Bookseller of the firm Gumuchian & Cie in Paris, France.
Arrangement/Organization
Collection organized in two series: I. Correspondence and II. Purchase Inventories.
Scope and Content Note
Consists of correspondence between Kirkor Gumuchian, 1887-1949, and George Alexander
Ball, 1862-1955, manufacturer of Muncie, Indiana, recording Ball's purchases from
Gumuchian during the period 1933-1940. The letters also discuss the Charles Todd Owen
and Roland Knaster collections of children's books as points of comparison with that of
Gumuchian; political and economic conditions in Paris; events in Spain; and the problems
of a bookseller in such a climate. Other materials include duplicate copies of the
invoices for the Gumuchian purchase and a numerical inventory by George Ball of the
purchase.
A collector of many things, Ball purchased a large number of children's books from
Gumuchian during the period 1933-1940 and this collection records those purchases. In
1930, Gumuchian had published a two volume catalog
Les Livres de
L'Enfance du XV au XIX Siècle
(Lilly PN1037 .Z9 G9) of about 6200 items he
had in his collection, and during the course of 1935 Ball managed to purchase almost the
entire catalog "en bloc."
In 1936 Gumuchian began to express his concern about the Léon Blum government in France,
events in Spain, economic conditions in Paris, and the problems of a bookseller in such
a climate. By 1939 he felt compelled to move his book stock and selling operation to New
York City.
A brief description of the Gumuchian collection may be found in Barton Wood Currie's
Fishers of Books, p. 334-336 (Lilly Z992 .C976 F3). A
biographical sketch of Gumuchian appears in
The American
Scholar
, vol. 10, no. 3, Summer 1941 (Lilly PN1009 .A1 G97 1941) for which he
wrote the article
"From Piety to Entertainment in Children's
Books."
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Indexing Terms
-
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
IUCAT, the IU Libraries' online
catalog. Materials about related topics, persons or places can be found by searching the
catalog using these terms.
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Names
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Gumuchian
& Cie.
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Gumuchian &
Cie.
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Gumuchian,
Kirkor.
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Ball, George A.
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Topics
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Booksellers and bookselling
--Correspondence.
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Children's literature --Collectors
and collecting.
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Illustrated children's
books.
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Booksellers and bookselling
--France.
Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
Gift. 1989.
Usage RestrictionsPrior arrangements are not necessary before coming to the Library, however, patrons
from out of town are encouraged to communicate with the Library in advance of their
visits to ascertain availability of materials.
Photocopying permitted only with permission of the Curator of Manuscripts, Lilly
Library.
Preferred Citation
[Item], Gumuchian mss., Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.
Series:
Correspondence, 1933-1940
Box 1
Folder 1
1933-1934
Folder 2
1935, Jan.-June
Folder 3
1935, July-Dec.
Folder 4
1936
Folder 5
1937-1940
Series:
Purchase Inventories
Box 1
Folder 6
Duplicate inventories of purchases.
Folder 7
George A. Ball's numerical inventory.