Ruth Jett papers
name: label: Creator
content: Jett, Ruth M.
label: Names
content: American Society of African Culture
label: Names
content: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
label: Names
content: Cinque Gallery
label: Names
content: Library of Congress. Center for the Book
label: Names
content: Romare Bearden Foundation
label: Names
content: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library
label: Names
content: Branch, William B.
label: Names
content: Crichlow, Ernest, 1914-2005
label: Names
content: Davis, Ossie
label: Names
content: Hewitt, John H., 1924-2000
label: Names
content: Hewitt, Vivian D.
label: Names
content: Hughes, Langston, 1902-1967
label: Names
content: White, Charles (1918-1979)
label: Names
content: White, Frances Barrett
topic: label: Occupation
content: Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: African American artists
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The Ruth Jett papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2018 by Juan Rodriguez, a friend of Jett.
creator: label: Creator
content: Jett, Ruth M.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Ruth Jett papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of African American arts administrator and director of Cinque Gallery, Ruth Jett, measure 7.8 linear feet and 0.242 gigabytes, and date from 1914 to 2014. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues including William Branch, Vinie Burrows, John and Vivian Hewitt, Langston Hughes, and Charles and Frances White; and administrative and professional files which include material related to the American Society of African Culture, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Cinque Gallery, the Cinque Artists Program at the Romare Bearden Foundation, the Library of Congress Center for the Book, and the Schomburg Corporation. The collection also includes writings, primarily typescript copies of literary works by others, including Langston Hughes and Ossie Davis, as well as notes; printed material such as clippings, exhibition and event announcements, books and magazines, and press releases; and photographic material including photographs, snapshots, negatives, and slides depicting Ruth Jett and other individuals, travel, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace fellows and events, and works of art. Also found is a small amount of artwork including a sketchbook, sketches, a painting, and a print.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Ruth Jett (1920-2014) was an art administrator and Director of the Cinque Gallery, New York, N.Y. 

Born and raised in Alabama, Ruth Jett attended Miles College in Birmingham before moving with her mother and some siblings to Harlem, New York. In the early 1950s, Jett worked with the Committee for the Negro in the Arts, overseeing early productions by several Black playwrights including William Branch, Alice Childress, Ossie Davis, and Julian Mayfield. From the 1950s until her retirement in 1978, Jett held a variety of positions at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, notably managing the Fellowships in Diplomacy program for a number of years.

After she retired from the Carnegie Endowment, Ruth Jett worked with a number of cultural and arts organizations, including the Library of Congress Center for the Book, the Schomburg Corporation/ Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and the Friends of the Symphony of the New World.

Ruth Jett served on the Cinque Gallery Board of Directors beginning in 1981. She was appointed Executive Director in 1989 and served in that position until the early 2000s. When the gallery closed in 2004, she then worked with the Romare Bearden Foundation on the Cinque Artists Program to continue the gallery's legacy and commitment to supporting artists.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 7.8 Linear Feet
label: Extent
content: 0.242 Gigabytes
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1914-2014
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.jettruth
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Gigabytes
label: Type
content: Video recordings
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged in seven series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1914-2014 (Box 1, OV 9; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1952-2014 (Boxes 1-2; 1.2 linear feet)

Series 3: Administrative and Professional Files, 1954-2009 (Boxes 2-5, OV 9; 3.2 linear feet)

Series 4: Writings, 1949-circa 1990s (Box 5; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1928, 1949-2014 (Boxes 5-7, OVs 9-13; 2.1 linear feet, ER01; 0.242 GB)

Series 6: Photographic Material, 1947-2010 (Boxes 7-8, OV 14; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 7: Artwork, undated (Box 8, OV 14; 3 folders)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was minimally processed and a finding aid prepared by Rayna Andrews in 2019 with funding from the Henry Luce Foundation. Born-digital materials were processed by Jess Purkis in 2019.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Video recordings
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of African American arts administrator and director of Cinque Gallery, Ruth Jett, measure 7.8 linear feet and date from 1914 to 2014. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues including William Branch, Vinie Burrows, John and Vivian Hewitt, Langston Hughes, and Charles and Frances White; and administrative and professional files which include material related to the American Society of African Culture, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Cinque Gallery, the Cinque Artists Program at the Romare Bearden Foundation, the Library of Congress Center for the Book, and the Schomburg Corporation. The collection also includes writings, primarily typescript copies of literary works by others, including Langston Hughes and Ossie Davis, as well as notes; printed material such as clippings, exhibition and event announcements, books and magazines, and press releases; and photographic material including photographs, snapshots, negatives, and slides depicting Ruth Jett and other individuals, travel, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace fellows and events, and works of art. Also found is a small amount of artwork including a sketchbook, sketches, a painting, and a print.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: The Archives of American Art also holds the Cinque Gallery records, 1959-2010, bulk 1976-2004.