Fred O. Seibel Editorial Cartoonist's Research Collection, ca. 1920 - 1968

Access and use

Location of collection:
University of Virginia, Special Collections Dept.
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
University of Virginia
P.O. Box 400110
160 McCormick Rd
Charlottesville, Virginia 22904-4110
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Brenda Gunn
Phone: (434) 924-1037
Phone: (434) 243-1776
Fax: (434) 924-4968

Summary

Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of original cartoons and research files of the political cartoonist Fred O. Seibel. Mr. Seibel was often complimented on his drawings of trees and other subjects from nature. Naturally this reflects his artistic ability, but Mr. Seibel maintained extremely large reference files which ensured that he would have pictures and drawings to consult before beginning his own cartoon. If he needed an elm in the drawing, he had photographs and drawings of elm trees on file. Every conceivable subject for use in a political cartoon was carefully filed in one of the number of source files of subject material that Mr. Seibel maintained.

More important than these general referencce files to the general researcher are the chronological files of Mr. Seibel's cartoons which are fairly complete from 1937 through his retirement in January 1968. Other reference files of importance include those which Mr. Seibel kept on the work of other cartoonists organized under the name of the cartoonists, or under the subjects treated. The latter files provide quick reference to editorial cartoons on every subject from the pens of almost every cartoonist working during Mr. Seibel's active career.

There are sixteen separate "Sources, Subjects" series of files. They have been boxed here exactly as they were found in Mr. Seibel's own files. The researcher will quickly note that many of the individual series overlap each other in what is filed. Several series may need to be searched to find all of the cartoons pertinent to one's interest.

Since 1946, Mr. Seibel has given a number of groups of his original cartoon drawings to the University. Probably 3,000 were in the collection at the time that the final group was brought to Charlottesville together with the research files in 1968. The entire collection of originals now numbers about 6,000 items. The cartoons have all been arranged chronologically except for several groups arranged by subject apparently when they were used for one of the several exhibitions of Mr. Seibel's work that have been given at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, and elsewhere.

Since Mr. Seibel drew well over 14,000 cartoons for the Times-Dispatchduring his career, the University has over forty percent of the drawings. The chances are very good, then, that the University's collection may include the original drawing which a researcher may wish to have copied to illustrate an article or book.

Finally, Mr. Seibel also left his office with all of its equipent and decorations for the Library to clear out after he had removed the few items which he wished to take to his home. Therefore, we have included in the collections such items as would be useful for exhibitions of the drawings, and a list of this "Miscellany" (including his drawing board, framed pictures and cartoons from his office, globe, pen knives, etc.) is appended to the list.

The major portion of this inventory consists of a checklist of the contents of each series of the research files and other miscellaneous series.

Biographical / historical:

Fred O. Seibel was the editorial page cartoonist for the Richmond Times-Dispatchfor forty-two years, from 1926 to 1968. A native of Durhambille, New York, he turned to art early, studying cartooning by mail, and eventually attending the Art Students League in New York City. But it was some years before he could find employment in the art field, and he worked at a number of other jobs before obtaining a position as a commercial artist.

While working as a commercial artist, Seibel began to submit cartoons to the Utica Herald-Dispatch,and some were used. Later, he obtained, on the strength of his Utica cartoons, a position as cartoonist with the Albany Knickerbocker-Presswhere he remained for ten years. In 1926, he answered an advertisement for a cartoonist with the Times-Dispatch,was hired, and settled down quite comfortably in Richmond, becoming perhaps more "Southern" in his attitudes and his work than many natives.

For the salient facts of his life, one may consult Who's Whoand other standard reference works. A very affectionate view of Mr. Seibel was presented by Charles McDowell in the Times-Dispatch,28 July 1968, to mark his retirement. There is also an article on Seibel in the Spring 1977 issue of the Virginia Cavalcade.Boxes 85 and 86 of the collection contain a good deal of personal material including clippings about Seibel and his work, and very early drawings and art school lessons.

Acquisition information:
This collection was given to the library by Fred O. Seibel in several installments; accession number 2531-a was a gift from Mrs. F. V. Tyndall. Accession 2531: Gift, October 24, 1946. Accession 2531- a: Gift, September 14, 1948. Accession 2531-b: Gift, July 1947. Accession 2531-c: Gift, February 8, 1951. Accession 2531-d: Gift, September 23, 1954. Accession 2531-e: Gift 1959-1961. Accession 2531-f: Gift, October 16, 1968.
Arrangement:

Series I: Chronological Files, 1937-1968--Originals.
Series II: Chronological Files, 1937-1968--Newspaper Clippings. Boxes 1 - 9
Series III: Work by Other Cartoonists. Boxes 10 - 19
Series IV: Sources - People. Boxes 20 - 23
Series V: Sources, Subjects No. 1 - Allegorical. Boxes 24 - 29
Series VI: Sources, Subjects No. 2 - Inanimate. Boxes 30 - 27 (part)
Series VII: Sources, Subject No. 3 - Soldiers. Boxes 37 (part) - 38 (part)
Series VIII: Sources, Subjects No. 4 - War. Boxes 38 - 39
Series IX: Sources, Subjects No. 5 - Cartoons Organized by Subject. Boxes 40 - 67
Series X: Sources, Subjects No. 6 - World War II & Aftermath. Boxes 68 - 75
Series XI: Sources, Subjects No. 7 - Miscellaneous. Boxes 76 - 80
Series XII: Sources, Subjects No. 8 - Important Issues. Boxes 81-82
Series XIII: Sources, Subjects No. 9 - Caricatures. Boxes 83 - 84 (part)
Series XIV: Sources, Subjects No. 10 - History. Box 84 (part)
Series XV: Personal Archive No. 11. Boxes 85 - 86
Series XVI: Sources, Subjects No. 12 - Campaigns. Boxes 87 - 89
Series XVII: Sources, Subjects No. 13 - [The Nineteen] Sixties. Boxes 90 - 93
Series XVIII: Sources, Subjects No. 14 - Animals. Boxes 94 - 98
Series XIX: Sources, Subjects No. 15 - Miscellaneous. Boxes 99 - 102
Series XX: Sources, Subjects No. 16 - Lyndon Johnson Era. Boxes 103 - 105
Series XXI: Miscellany. Boxes 106 - 107
Series XXII: Framed Cartoons and Miscellany. Box 108

Physical description:
This collection contains ca. 6,000 original cartoons and over 100 boxes of research material.