Frank Lloyd Wright collection, reference files
Scope and Contents
I to V contain looseleaf reference books with narratives, photographs and clippings. With the exception of the file of clippings on the Darwin D. Martin House, Graycliff, and other Frank Lloyd Wright articles, which is maintained by the University Archives, these volumes have not been updated. They are primarily useful for documenting the furnishing of the Darwin D. Martin House during the period it was used as the residence of President and Mrs. Martin M. Meyerson. Series VI contains miscellaneous items including among other things: a transcript of a diary kept by Darwin D. Martin [copy also in MS 22.6]; copies of architectural drawings held at the Getty Museum on the Darwin D. Martin House; color slides of the Darwin D. Martin House, Graycliff, Larkin Administration Building; a historic registry application for the Darwin D. Martin House; a 1938 engineering report on Graycliff, memorabilia, and essays.
Dates
- 1904-1997
Creator
- University Archives (Organization)
Language of Materials
Collection material in English.
Terms of Access
The Darwin D. Martin-Frank Lloyd Wright collection, reference files, 1904-2010, are open for research.
Copyright
Copyright of papers in the collection may be held by their authors, or the authors' heirs or assigns. Researchers must obtain the written permission of the holder(s) of copyright and the University Archives before publishing quotations from materials in the collection. Most papers may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures unless otherwise specified.
Chronology
Martin Family - Frank Lloyd Wright, 1865-1959
- 1865
- Darwin D. Martin born - Boucville, Madison Co., NY
- 1867
- Frank Lloyd Wright born - Richland Center, Wisconsin
- 1869
- Isabelle Reidpath, the future Mrs. Martin, born - Buffalo, NY
- 1878
- Brothers Darwin D. Martin and Louis Frank Martin selling soap for Larkin Company in NYC
- 1879
- Darwin D. Martin, aged thirteen, begins work at Larkin Company in Buffalo
- 1885
- Darwin D. Martin invents cardex
- 1887
- Frank Lloyd Wright begins studies at the University of Wisconsin
- 1888
- Darwin D. Martin begins building house on Summit Avenue in Buffalo
- 1889
- Darwin D. Martin marries Isabelle Reidpath
- Frank Lloyd Wright builds Home and Studio in Oak Park
- 1890
- Frank Lloyd Wright joins Alder and Sullivan
- Darwin D. Martin replaces Elbert Hubbard as Secretary of Larkin Soap Company
- 1893
- Frank Lloyd Wright starts his own practice
- 1902
- October 29 -- Darwin D. Martin meets Frank Lloyd Wright
- Darwin D. Martin purchases site for Martin House Complex, Jewett Parkway
- 1903
- October 11 - Construction begins on Barton House
- 1904
- July 20 - Construction begins on Martin House
- October - Barton House occupied
- 1905
- Martin House Complex completed
- 1910
- Frank Lloyd Wright designs Bar Beach Cottage (Bay Beach, Ontario, Canada) for Darwin D. Martin (unexecuted)
- 1923
- Darwin D. Martin commissions Frank Lloyd Wright to design a home for James and Dorothy Martin Foster, daughter of Darwin D. Martin (unexecuted)
- 1925
- Martin retires from the Larkin Company
- 1926
- Construction begins on Graycliff
- 1928
- June 20 - Graycliff occupied
- Frank Lloyd Wright designs the Blue Sky Mausoleum for Darwin D. Martin's ploy in Buffalo's Forest Lawn Cemetery (unexecuted)
- 1935
- Darwin D. Martin dies in Buffalo
- 1936
- Fallingwater (Bear Run, Pennsylvania), designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for the Kaufmanns
- 1945
- Isabelle R. Martin dies in Buffalo
- 1959
- Frank Lloyd Wright dies
Chronology
Graycliff, 1926-1997
- 1926
- April 5 - Darwin D. Martin writes to Frank Lloyd Wright requesting 1910 Bay Beach Cottage design; Darwin D. Martin is considering building on shores of Lake Erie
- April 18 - Darwin D. Martin looks at site in Derby, NY
- April 19 - Darwin D. Martin purchases 250-foot front on Lake Erie, with 60-foot cliff
- April 21 - Darwin D. Martin informs Frank Lloyd Wright that he's not interested in 1910 cottage design, but a two-story stone house designed by Frank E. Newman for E.W. Russell of Greenwich, Connecticut
- May 3 - Frank Lloyd Wright sends Darwin D. Martin preliminary drawings
- May 5 - Darwin D. Martin informs Frank Lloyd Wright that Isabelle R. Martin is Frank Lloyd Wright's client
- August 19-20 - Frank Lloyd Wright in Buffalo to see site
- August 27 - Isabelle R. Martin sees the site for first time
- September - Construction on garage begun.
- September - Due to marital problems, Frank Lloyd Wright asks his son John Lloyd Wright to take over the project; the Martins did not approve the change
- November - Frank Lloyd Wright resumes his service to the Martins; construction continues on the site
- 1927
- April 5-6 - Frank Lloyd Wright visits site
- June 4 - Darwin D. Martin writes to Frank Lloyd Wright of the completion of the foundation of the main house
- June 15-16 - Frank Lloyd Wright visits site
- August 31-September 2 - Chimney and masonry of main house completed
- September - Frank Lloyd Wright finalizes designs for landscape, tennis court, circle, and guest house; the guest house was not executed
- September - Furniture designs by Frank Lloyd Wright are executed
- 1928
- March 10, 12 - Furniture bought for main house
- June 20 - Martins "open" house
- September 20 - Paul A. Harsh, a house guest at Graycliff, suggests the name "Graycliff"
- 1929
- April - Isabelle R. martin asks Frank Lloyd Wright to design a screened walk to cross the esplanade behind the stone bench for servants
- June 15 - Frank Lloyd Wright visits site
- July - Martins request Frank Lloyd Wright to design a "concrete tent house" for the Foster family (unexecuted)
- July - Martins request Frank Lloyd Wright to design a third-floor to main house (unexecuted)
- July 29 - Construction on evergreen garden, stone seat begun; Frank Lloyd Wright selects and ships furnishings for the main house from Marshall Fields in Chicago; Frank Lloyd Wright suggests wicker and overstuffed chairs fo the main house
- 1935
- Darwin D. Martin passes away
- Isabelle R. Martin continues to summer at the site, and winters with the Foster family
- 1938
- November - Engineering report on site compiled by G.E. Seitzmiller for insurance purposes
- 1941
- Isabelle R. Martin continues to summer at the site, but moves into garage apartment
- 1942
- Isabelle R. martin spends her last summer at the site; she moves permanently to Buffalo to live with the Foster family
- 1945
- IRM passes away
- Stewardship of the site falls to a holding company belonging to Darwin R. Martin, son of Darwin D. Martin
- 1950
- Piarist Fathers, a Hungarian order, purchases site from Darwin R. Martin
- Mid-1950s
- Chapel addition constructed over south terrace of main house
- Garage addition and a storage building constructed
- Circa 1956
- School building/dormitory constructed to house Hungarian refugees
- 1958
- August - Frank Lloyd Wright visits the site
- 1996
- Piarist Father's place property for sale
- Graycliff Conservancy is formed to acquire and restore the site
- 1997
- October - Graycliff Conservancy signs a contract to purchase the site
Extent
6.67 Linear Feet (17 looseleaf notebooks in 5 cartons, 1 manuscript box)
Abstract
Reference files created by Mrs. Martin Meyerson and University Archives staff useful for documenting the furnishing of the Darwin D. Martin House, Buffalo, New York.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in six series: I. General; II. Photographs; III. Martin Family photographs; IV. Clippings; V. Furniture/artifacts catalog; and VI. Other records.
Acquisition Information
The looseleaf reference books in Series I to V were compiled by Mrs. Martin M. Meyerson, who occupied the Darwin D. Martin House circa 1968-1970, when it was the official residence of the President of the State University of New York at Buffalo, Martin M. Meyerson. University Archives staff compiled remaining items and maintains the clippings collection.
Accruals and Additions
Occasional accruals are expected to this collection.
Processing Information
Processed by University Archives staff.
Finding aid revised May 2000.
Reprocessed and finding aid revised in February 2010 by Karen Spencer.
Finding aid encoded by Danielle White, February 2015.
Source
- Meyerson, Marjorie (Contributor, Person)
- University Archives (Repository, Organization)
- Buffalo and Western New York Architecture Collection (State University of New York at Buffalo) (Organization)
- Title
- Finding Aid for the Darwin D. Martin-Frank Lloyd Wright collection, reference files
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by University Archives staff.
- Date
- 2010
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the University Archives Repository
420 Capen Hall
Buffalo New York 14260-1674 US
716-645-2916
716-645-3714 (Fax)
lib-archives@buffalo.edu