Copley Society records
name: label: Creator
content: Copley Society  (Boston, Mass.)
label: Names
content: Boston Art Student's Association
label: Names
content: Gendrot, Felix Albert, b. 1866
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The Copley Society records were microfilmed as a loan in 1984 and subsequently donated to the Archives of American Art by the Copley Society in 1986.
creator: label: Creator
content: Copley Society  (Boston, Mass.)
setName: label: See more items in
content: Copley Society records
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of the Copley Society of Boston measure 5.3 linear feet and date from 1864-1981. The collection includes administrative files, correspondence, exhibition files, financial records, printed material, and photographs.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: The Copley Society of Boston is an art society in Boston, Massachusetts founded in 1879 by students of the School of Drawing and Painting at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The original name of the organization was the Boston Art Student's Association and its name changed to the Copley Society of Boston, after the artist John Singleton Copley, in 1901. Its purpose is to promote interest in art in Boston and to cultivate a spirit of fraternity among artists and art students. The Copley Society still continues today as the oldest non-profit art association in the United States.
function: label: Function
content: Arts organizations -- Massachusetts
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 5.3 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1864-1981
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.coplsoci
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Scrapbooks
label: Type
content: Drawings
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: This collection is arranged as 6 series.

Series 1: Administrative Files, 1879-1970 (2.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1901-1981 (0.4 linear feet; Box 3)

Series 3: Exhibition Files, 1879-1980 (1 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)

Series 4: Financial Records, 1893-1969 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 4-5)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1864-1969 (0.4 linear feet; Box 5)

Series 6: Photographs, circa 1890-circa 1950 (0.6 linear feet; Box 5, OVs 6-8)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Rihoko Ueno in 2022.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Portions of the collection are available on 35mm microfilm reels 3524-3530 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: Scrapbooks
label: Genre/Form
content: Drawings
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of the Copley Society of Boston measure 5.3 linear feet and date from 1864-1981. The collection includes administrative files, correspondence, exhibition files, financial records, printed material, and photographs.

Administrative files include the Copley Society constitution and by-laws, meeting minutes, various reports, and loan forms. There are also files on art classes, lectures, and events.

This collection includes general correspondence and business correspondence. Business correspondence mostly relates to notifications of appointments to positions within the Copley Society, as well as letters regarding expenses, taxes, and legal matters. General correspondence includes letters from notable artists such as Cecilia Beaux, Frank W. Benson, John Singer Sargent, Karl Bitter, John W. Alexander, and many others.

Exhibition files consist of correspondence, exhibition lists, and printed material for various Copley Society exhibitions.

Financial records mostly consists of ledgers and cash books for various funds and operating expenses.

Printed material has a broad range of meeting and event announcements, news clippings, and miscellaneous publications. There is one scrapbook which is a Copley Society of Boston Annual Report with a few clippings pasted onto the last pages.

There are photographs of exhibitions, artwork, Copley Society members and events. There is also one photograph album appears to be of various rooms inside the Copley Society building at 296 Commonwealth Avenue. Most of the photographs are of exhibitions, but there are some photographs of artwork, events, festivals, and people in costumes.