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Sol Feinstone Manuscript Collection

An inventory of the collection at Syracuse University

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Feinstone, Sol, 1888-1980.
Title: Sol Feinstone Manuscript Collection
Inclusive Dates: 1473-1965
Bulk Dates: 1850-1950
Quantity: 0.5 linear ft.
Abstract: Collection of signed letters from notable individuals ranging from King Charles II to J. Robert Oppenheimer. Collection also includes two printed leaves (four pages) from the Decretals of Pope Gregory IX (ca. 1473) and a print of an illustration of the siege of Yorktown (ca. 1862).
Language: English
Repository: Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries
222 Waverly Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13244-2010
https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center

Biographical History

Sol Feinstone (1888-1980) immigrated to American from Lithuania as a child. He studied chemistry and forestry at the New York State College of Forestry at Syracuse University, graduating in 1916. A strong supporter of scholarship and education for all, and of the rights of minorities, he gave generously to related philanthropic activities. Named in his honor are a school, a library, a lecture series, and several scholarships and awards.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Sol Feinstone Manuscript Collection consists of letters, notes and other manuscript items written by notable individuals, including Louisa May Alcott, Henrik Ibsen, James Fenimore Cooper, Joyce Kilmer, Robert E. Lee, William Morris (an unpublished verse), Harriet Beecher Stowe, J. Robert Oppenheimer, James Russell Lowell, Louis Pasteur, Auguste Rodin, William Gladstone and more. Each item is individually foldered, with Feinstone's original library designations. The earliest are two printed leaves (four pages) from the Decretals of Pope Gregory IX, dating from approximately 1473, a letter from Marie de Medici (wife of Henri IV of France) dated 1614, and a letter from King Charles II dated 1683.

The folders bear Feinstone's original collection numbers which in some cases have been altered or corrected. New numbers, assigned during the original processing of the collection, appear in pencil along the long edge of each folder; because some items were removed for treatment as separate collections (see Related Material below), there are gaps in the numbering. Following is a complete list of folders and their contents:

1. Alcott, Louisa May
2. B— [unknown]
3. Benes, Edvard
5. Bryant, William Cullen
6. Burroughs, John (contains several items)
7. Calvin, John (Cauvin, Jean)
9. Charles II, King of England
10. Chase, Salmon P.
11, 12. Clemens, Samuel (Mark Twain) (2 separate items)
13. Cooper, James Fenimore
14. Coquelin, — [Benoit Constant?]
15. D— [unidentified]
16. DeQuincey, Thomas
17. Dewey, John
19. Emerson, Ralph Waldo
21. Gladstone, William
22. Ibsen, Henrik
24. Johnson, Andrew (admission ticket to impeachment hearings)
25. Kilmer, Joyce
26. Kilmer, Kenton
27. Lee, Robert E. (several items)
28. Lewis, Sinclair
30. Lowell, James Russell
31. Macaulay, J.B. [James Buchanan?]
32. de Medici, Marie
34. Melville, Herman
36. Morris, William
37. Oppenheimer, J. Robert
38. Pasteur, Louis
40. Rodin, Auguste
42. Sainte-Beuve, Charles Augustin
43. Stowe, Harriet Beecher
44. Teller, Edward
45, 46. de Tocqueville, Alexis (2 separate items)
47. Turgenev, Ivan
48. Verne, Jules
49. Whistler, — [James McNeil?]
50. Whitman, Walt
51. Wigner, Eugene P.

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Arrangement of the Collection

Items are arranged in alphabetical order.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Related Material

Several items, including letters from Charles Dickens, Thomas Carlyle, Robert Burns and John Ruskin, were removed from the collection and treated as separate stand-alone manuscript collections. To locate these items, please search the Classic Catalog for "Gift of Sol Feinstone" as keyword anywhere.

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Subject Headings

Persons

Feinstone, Sol, 1888-1980.
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896.

Subjects

Autographs -- Collectors and collecting.
Collectors and collecting.
Manuscripts, Medieval.

Genres and Forms

Correspondence.

Occupations

Collectors and collecting.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Sol Feinstone Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of Sol Feinstone, 1971.

Finding Aid Information

Created by: MRC
Date: 3 May 2010
Revision history: 21 May 2010 - complete list added (MRC)

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Inventory

Manuscript items
Oversize 1 Decretales 1473 (2 leaves)
Oversize 1 Print, Siege of Yorktown 1862 [?]
Box 1 A-Z 1683-1965 - letters, notes, fragments (41 folders)
Memorabilia
Bronze plaque, "Sol Feinstone Collection"

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