Gene Frances McComas Papers mssMS
Gayle Richardson
The Huntington Library
June 2020
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Business Number: (626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Note
Finding aid last updated on February 14, 2024 by Kahlee Leingang.
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Gene Frances McComas papers
Creator:
McComas, Gene Frances,
1886-1982
Identifier/Call Number: mssMS
Physical Description:
5.14 Linear Feet
(4 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1907-1952
Abstract: A collection of correspondence related
to the life and work of Gene Frances McComas, California artist.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
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[Identification of item]. Gene Frances McComas papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Mrs. McComas, 1956.
Eugenia Frances Baker McComas (1886-1982) was born in San Francisco, California on
September 6, 1886; her parents were both journalists. Eugenia, known as "Gene," worked as a
journalist before studying art at the California School of Arts and Crafts. She married the
artist Francis John McComas (1874-1938) in 1917, and they moved to Monterey, California,
though they traveled widely during their marriage. Gene McComas became known for her murals
but she also painted portraits and still lifes. She died in Monterey in March 1982.
A collection of 151 items from 1907 to 1952; it consists mainly of correspondence, but also
includes poems by George Sterling, and watercolors by Gouverneur Morris. Subjects discussed
in the letters include Sinclair Lewis, Gouverneur Morris, and Eugene O'Neill. There are also
a few miscellaneous letters addressed to Francis John McComas in the collection.
Correspondents include, among others, Grace Hegger Lewis, Sinclair Lewis, Ruth Wightman
Morris, Gouverneur Morris, Nicholas, Prince of Greece, Carlotta Monterey O'Neill, George
Sterling, Austin Strong, Alec Waugh, and Roland Young.
Processed by Huntington Library Staff, January 1957. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the
finding aid derived from a legacy summary report.
Arranged chronologically.
Individual call numbers included in the collection: mssMS 1-151.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Artists -- United States
Authors, American
Women painters -- California -- San Francisco
Letters (correspondence) -- California -- 20th century
Personal papers -- California -- 20th century
Poems -- California -- 20th century
Watercolors (paintings) -- California -- 20th century
Lewis, Grace Hegger
Lewis, Sinclair, 1885-1951
McComas, Francis John,
1874-1938
Morris, Gouverneur, 1876-1953
Morris, Ruth Wightman, 1897-1939
Nikolaos, Prince of Greece,
1872-1936
O'Neill, Carlotta
O'Neill, Eugene, 1888-1953
Sterling, George,
1869-1926
Strong, Austin, 1881-1952
Waugh, Alec, 1898-1981
Young, Roland, 1887-1953