Francis Sumner Merritt papers
name: label: Creator
content: Merritt, Francis Sumner, 1913-2000
label: Names
content: Bradford Junior College
label: Names
content: Flint Institute of Arts
label: Names
content: Haystack Mountain School of Crafts
label: Names
content: Boyd, Fiske, 1895-1975
topic: label: Occupation
content: Arts administrators -- Maine -- Deer Isle
label: Occupation
content: Painters -- Maine -- Deer Isle
label: Topic
content: American studio craft movement
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Francis Sumner Merritt donated his papers in two accessions in 1980 and 1994.
creator: label: Creator
content: Merritt, Francis Sumner, 1913-2000
setName: label: See more items in
content: Francis Sumner Merritt papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of painter and arts administrator Francis Sumner Merritt measure 5.7 linear feet and date from circa 1930 to 1980. The bulk of the papers document his career as the founding director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. Included are biographical materials, personal correspondence, writings and notes, professional files on Haystack and other institutions, printed material, and photographs.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Francis Sumner Merritt (1913-2000) was a painter, designer, and arts administrator. He was the first director of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine.

Merritt was born in 1913 in Danvers, Massachusetts. He studied art at multiple schools, including Yale University School of Fine Arts and was a printmaker and painter. In addition to his art, Merritt taught painting at Colby Junior College, the Cranbrook Summer Institute, and Bradford Junior College. Merritt began his arts administrative career as director of the Flint Institute of Art in Detroit, Michigan. He was brought on to be the first director at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine. In this position, he encouraged the international study of craft.

Francis Merritt was married to Priscilla Merritt, with whom he had two sons. He died in Belfast, Maine in 2000.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 5.7 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1930-1980
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.merrfran
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Drawings
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Scrapbooks
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 6 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1936-1977 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1930-1978 (Box 1; 0.6 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, circa 1940s-1978 (Box 1; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 4: Professional Files, 1940s-1980 (Box 1-5, 8; 4.1 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1939-1976 (Box 6-7; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 6: Photographs, 1949-1970s (Box 7; 0.2 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Jayna Josefson in 2019.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: The collection is available on 35 mm microfilm reels 5099-5106 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Drawings
label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Scrapbooks
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of painter and arts administrator Francis Sumner Merritt measure 5.7 linear feet and date from circa 1930 to 1980. The bulk of the papers document his career as the founding director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts. Included are biographical materials, personal correspondence, writings and notes, professional files on Haystack and other institutions, printed material, and photographs.

Biographical materials contain scattered records relating to Merritt's personal life and career including a scrapbook and a print by Fiske Boyd. Professional files create the bulk of the papers and focus on Merritt's arts administration career at Haystack and other institutions including the Flint Institute of Art and Bradford Junior College. Among the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts material are planning materials, correspondence with many craft artists, financial records, student information, printed material, photographs for various sessions held at the school, and one sound recording concerning a trip to Nigeria.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Also found in the Archives of American Art are the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts records, 1950-1969, and an oral history interview of Francis Sumner Merritt conducted 1979 May 25-June 25, by Robert F. Brown, for the Archives of American Art.