Washington Irving Way Letters: Finding Aid
Finding aid prepared by Huntington Staff, March 23, 1955; encoded by Diann Benti in August 2017.
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical
Gardens
© 2017
Manuscripts Department
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2129
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
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Title: Washington Irving Way Letters
Dates (inclusive): 1894-1924
Collection Number: mssWY 1-174
Creator: Way, W. Irving
(Washington Irving), 1853-1931.
Extent:
174 pieces in 3 boxes.
Repository:
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.
Manuscripts Department
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2129
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
Abstract: This collection contains correspondence and miscellaneous ephemera of American author, agent, and book distributor W. Irving
Way (1853-1931),
consisting primarily of 146 letters and ephemera from American publisher
Thomas Bird Mosher (1852-1923), chiefly about business matters.
Language:
English.
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services
Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to
quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such
activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is
one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
[Identification of item]. Washington Way Letters, The Huntington Library, San
Marino, California.
Gift of William W. Clary, November 1948.
Washington Irving Way (1853-1931) was an American author, literary agent and book
distributor. He was a lifelong friend, business associate and agent for Maine publisher Thomas Bird
Mosher (1852-1923), whose books he helped to distribute in California
The collection contains letters and ephemera pertaining to the life and work of
publisher Thomas Bird Mosher. The vast majority of the letters are from Mosher to his friend W. Irving Way
and discuss business matters relating to the distribution of Mosher's books. Some
letters in the collection also address Mosher's writing and the shaping of his
books, as well as his opinions on current events and personalities. Issues addressed
within the correspondence include Thomas Bird Mosher and his writing and 20th
century American literature. Correspondents include Milton James Ferguson, Flora M.
Lamb, and Mosher.
Persons represented by 2 or more pieces:
- Ferguson, Milton James (13 items)
- Lamb, Flora MacDonald (10 pieces)
- Mosher, Thomas Bird (147 items)
Some notable items include:
- Mosher, Thomas Bird. 1906, April 26. Mentions San Francisco earthquake and fire.
- ------. 1910 May J. "...You and I know better than to write books. It is bad enough to try and sell them."
- ------. 1922 October 16. "I am going home to-night to read the second volume of D.B. Updike's treatise on Printing Types. I have read the first volume and enjoyed it. It is a wonderful book published by the Harvard Press of Cambridge. Old Updike has done himself proud. I have only met him once or twice and I never wanted to meet him again . He is bumptous and rather unpleasant, but his book is a wonderful piece of work."
The collection is arranged chronologically in 3 boxes, with two folders of miscellaneous ephemera at the end of Box 3.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
Huntington Library's Online Catalog.
Mosher, Thomas Bird,
1852-1923 -- Correspondence.
Way, W. Irving
(Washington Irving), 1853-1931, correspondent.
American literature -- 20th
century.
Authors, American --
Correspondence.
Ephemera -- United States -- 20th
century.
Letters (correspondence) -- United
States -- 20th century.
Ferguson, Milton J. (Milton James),
1879-1954.
Lamb, Flora M.
Mosher, Thomas Bird, 1852-1923.
Box 1
1894-1913
Box 2
1914-1915
Box 3
1916-1924; Ephemera
The two folders of miscellaneous ephemera at the end of Box 3 include some envelopes; cards; clippings; notes from Mosher;
a 1927 Christmas card from Mary Perry King and
Bliss Carman; materials related to the printing of the
The Jolly Beggars: A Cantata by Robert Burns, published by Mosher in 1914, and book catalogs for Mosher Books (1916, 1923, 1926.