Evening star., 1940-03-31
Macleish Appoints
A. A. Houghton, Jr.,
Rare Book Curator
Head Of Glass Firm
Takes Congress Library
Post Parma Vacated
BY JAMES WALDO FAWCETT.

ny JANLo "hLDO rAVOE /.
Arthur A. Houghton, jr, 80, of
Wye, Md, a business man and
gentleman farmer who learned to
love beautiful printing as we'll as
great literature while boy at
prep school, and who has become
famous as an ardent bibliophile
since that time, is to be curator of
the Rare Book Division of the Lii
brary of Congress
His appointment was announced
yesterday by Archibald MacLeish,
librarian, and he will enter upon his
new duties tomorrow.
The appointment fills post
formerly held by " Valta Parma,
who resigned from the library staff
last year without stating a reason
Herbert Putnam, then chief of the
library, had transferred Mr.. Parma
from the curators post to a re-
search project.
A member of the well-knoWn
Houghton family of Corning. N. Y,
TRADITIONAL? associated with the
making of fine glass, Mr.. Houghton
was born December II. 1906, and
was educated at St. Paul's Concord,
N. H., and at Harvard University.
He is president of Steuben Glass,
Inc. makers of art glass designed
by such artists as Leger, MatisSe,
Benton. Curry, Wood, Derain, Duffy
and Chirico; vice president and
director of the Corning Glass
Works, makers of the giant lens
for the powerful Mount Wilson
Observatory telescope; director of
the Hartford-Empire Co., the EN-
pire Machine Co. and the Delaware
IackaWanna and Western Railroad
Co.
Owns Many Rare Treasures.
Mr.. Houghton, the librarian ex-
plains. " is one of the most dis
tinguished American collectors of
rare books and the owner of the
largest collections of Edmund Spen-
ser 1552-1559), John Keats 1795-
1920 and Lewis Carroll 1832-1898)
in existence" He began to buy
xare volumes and precious manu-
scripts shortly after his graduation
from Harvard, and now possesses a
Gutenberg Bible first folio of
Shakespeare 1929. Shakespeare S
Poems G64O), John Milton's Para
disc Lost 1857, Ben Johson S
Works Q616), Chapman's Homer,
original letters of Samuel Pepys.
Robert and Elizabeth Browning and
many other celebrated persons. All
of his treasures are in perfect condi-
ton. most of them in original bind
ings. The rarities include the origi-
nal manuscript of Boswell's life of
johnson and their correspondence
A nephew of Alanson B. Houghton.
former Ambassador to Germany and
to Great Britain. Mr.. Houghton is
married to the former Ellen W.
Crenshaw of Washington and has
two daughters.
Mr.. MacLeish in the text of his
formal announcement says of the
llS" Cu1 q lOI l1t Dli illSS W llIS
Library of Congress a unique COM
bination of administrative expert
ence in the founding of a business
engaged in the manufacture of OBJ
iects of art and in the direction and
experience of that business, prac-
teal experience on the boards of
large corporations, a wide knowledge
Of book collectors and book collect
ing, familiarity with the book
trade and book markets, and a broad
cultivation in the fields of Ameri-
can and English literature"
10000 Volumes in Division.
The division over which Mr..
Houghton will preside contains co.
600 volumes, including approxi-
mately $4,000 early American
pamphlets and broadsides, an in
valuable collection of 18th century
American newspapers in 1900 bound
volumes, and some 4,600 18th CEN
tury books Gncunabula.