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Steiner (G. A. [Gottlieb Adam]) Basket Collection Research Files
MS.235  
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Collection Overview
 
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Description
Gotlieb Adam Steiner (1844 March 28 - 1916 February 18) made a successful living in the steel industry in Southwestern Pennsylvania with the Schoenberger Steel Company, but his passion was collecting baskets woven by Native American people. The Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania displayed a portion of Steiner's basket collection between 1913 and 1937, but otherwise the collection was closed to the public and sold some time in the late 1970s. This collection of photocopied materials includes a catalog of Indian basketry, correspondence regarding basket collections and purchases, purchase orders and receipts, and photos of baskets with full descriptions and provenance.
Background
Gotlieb Adam Steiner was born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania on 1844 March 28. He served in the Union Army during the Civil Warfor about a year until he was honorably discharged on 1863 May 13. Steiner then went on to make a very successful living in the steel industry in Southwestern Pennsylvania with the Schoenberger Steel Company, which was then bought by American Steel & Wire. By 1900, Steiner was financially free to pursue other interests. Steiner and his wife Elizabeth Voegtly traveled to the American Southwest annually and began collecting baskets woven by Native Americans. Steiner was so enthralled with his basket collection that he received his last order less than a month before he died on 1916 February 18. The Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania displayed a portion of Steiner's basket collection between 1913 and 1937. Steiner's daughter Elsa S. Huff hired her son William S. Huff, an architect, to design a building to house and display the basket collection on their land in Pennsylvania. The building was erected between 1966 and 1972, although it was never open to the public. The museum displayed 555 baskets from at least 62 different tribes. The basket collection now resides in the New York State Historical Association's collections at Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York.
Extent
0.7 Linear Feet (1 box)
Restrictions
Copyright has not been assigned to the Autry Museum of the American West. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Research Services and Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Autry Museum of the American West as the custodian of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
Availability
Appointments to view materials are required. To make an appointment please visit https://theautry.org/research-collections/library-and-archives and fill out the Researcher Application Form.