Ames, Polly Scribner. Papers, 1938-1993

  • IdentificationICU.SPCL.AMESPS
  • TitleGuide to the Polly Scribner Ames Papers1938-1993
  • PublisherUniversity of Chicago Library
  • LanguageEnglish
  • Date1938-1993
  • Physical Description8.75 linear feet (17 boxes)
  • RepositorySpecial Collections Research Center University of Chicago Library 1100 East 57th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637 U.S.A.
  • AbstractPolly Scribner Ames (1908-1993) was a painter, sculptor, and writer who lived in Chicago, New York, and Europe. The Polly Scribner Ames papers contain manuscripts, correspondence, journals, and records of exhibitions and sales of artwork.

© The contents of this finding aid are the copyright of the University of Chicago Library

Visual Arts

Literature and Poetry

The collection is open for research.

When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Polly Scribner Ames. Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library

Polly Scribner Ames was the daughter of University of Chicago philosophy professor and University Church pastor Edward Scribner Ames and the sister of Van Meter Ames, University of Cincinnati philosophy professor and author. Born in 1908, Ames attended the School of the Art Institute Chicago and received a Ph.B. from the University of Chicago. She lived in New York City for much of her adult life and also spent time in Europe, including several years in France. She exhibited paintings and sculpture and taught art courses in both the United States and Europe. Ames died in Chicago in 1993.

Series I contains drafts of published and unpublished manuscripts, including a memoir, short stories, nonfiction articles, and poetry. Correspondence concerning the publication of Ames’s book about the painter Marsden Hartley is also included in this series. Some manuscripts by others are contained in this series, as well as publicity for and reviews of exhibitions of Ames’s painting and sculpture. Series II contains correspondence among various members of the Ames family, as well as Polly Scribner Ames’s other personal and professional correspondence. Also included are Ames’s journals, the bulk of which are from the 1960s. Series III contains several oversize items, including exhibition advertisements and press clippings as well as research for Ames’s book about Marsden Hartley.

The contents of Box 12A were previously part of the Miscellaneous Manuscripts Collection.

The following related resources are located in the Department of Special Collections:

  • Names
    • Ames, Polly Scribner, 1908-
    • Ames, Edward Scribner, 1870-1958
  • SubjectArt, American