Collection Summary
Rudulph Evans Papers
1862-2001
(bulk 1925-1960)
1862-2001
(bulk 1925-1960)
MSS20016
Evans, Rudulph,
1878-1960
1,700
items
7 containers plus 3 oversize
6 linear feet
English
Collection material in
English
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress
Washington, D.C.
Sculptor.
Correspondence, photographs, drawings, financial and legal records, awards and
citations, printed matter, writings, and miscellaneous items relating to the
creation of Evans’s sculptures, in particular the commission and execution of
the statue for the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Washington, D.C.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Evans, Frank P. (Frank Paxton), 1880-1917--Correspondence.
Evans, Lester L. (Lester Lawrence), 1886-1923--Correspondence.
Evans, Rudulph, 1878-1960.
Evans, Thomas Wiltberger, 1823-1897.
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826--Monuments.
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826--Statues.
Underwood, Wilbur, 1876-1935--Correspondence.
Subjects
Art.
Creation (Literary, artistic, etc.)
Creative thinking.
Literature.
Monuments--Washington (D.C.)
Sculpture--Washington (D.C.)
Sculpture.
Thomas Jefferson Memorial (Washington, D.C.)
Occupations
Artists.
Sculptors.
Provenance
The papers of Rudulph Evans, sculptor, were given to the Library of
Congress by Evans in 1959. Additional material was given by Norman Underwood in
1960 and Frank Evans in 2003.
Processing History
A portion of the Evans Papers has been available for research since
1960. A finding aid was prepared in 2003. The collection was expanded and
revised in 2008.
Transfers
Some photographs have been transferred to the Library's Prints and
Photographs Division where they are identified as part of these papers.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Rudulph Evans
is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Rudulph Evans are open to research. Researchers are
advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many
collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these
items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the
following information: Container number, Rudulph Evans Papers, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1878, Feb. 1
Born, Washington, D.C.
1892
1894
Student in sculpture, Corcoran School of Art, Washington,
D.C.
1896
Student in drawing, Art Student’s League, New York,
N.Y.
1897
Student in sculpture, Julian Academy, Paris, France; employed
in studio of Denys Peuch
1899
Student in sculpture, Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, France;
employed in the studio of Alexandre Fulgur
1900
Opened a studio in Paris, France, and worked in studios of
August Rodin and Augustus Saint-Gaudens
1901
Established a studio in Washington, D.C., associated with
architect George Oakey Totten
1905
Married Jane Coleman Wood
1906
Created masque of actress Maude Adams
1912
Completed fountain statuary, “Maiden with Swans,” for home
of John D. Rockefeller, Pocantico Hills, N.Y.
1914
Awarded bronze medal, Paris Salon, Paris, France, for female
figure entitled, “The Golden Hour”
1916
Created bronze portrait bust of Charles Rich, Jr.
1920
Awarded Watrous gold medal, National Academy of Design, New
York, N.Y.
Created bronze portrait bust of Frank A. Vanderlip
1931
Completed statue of Robert E. Lee commissioned for the state
capitol, Richmond, Va.
1934
Awarded French Cross of the Legion of Honor
Created bronze portrait bust of Owen D. Young
1937
Completed statues of William Jennings Bryan and J. Sterling
Morton for the National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol,
Washington, D.C.
Created bronze portrait bust of Bernard Baruch
1938
Created bronze portrait bust of Clarence M. Woolley
1943
Dedicated Thomas Jefferson Memorial statue, Washington,
D.C.
1960, Jan. 16
Died, Arlington, Va.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Rudulph Evans (1878-1960) span the years 1862-2001, with
the bulk of the material dated 1925-1960. The collection is arranged by subject
or type of material and documents Evans’s career as a sculptor of heroic
statutes and portrait busts of notable Americans and figurative works for the
homes and gardens of business leaders. Correspondence with poet Wilbur
Underwood covers a long friendship between 1900 and 1935 in which he and Evans
discuss literature, the arts, and the creative process.
The history of the Evans family is documented in correspondence with
brothers Frank P. Evans and Lester L. Evans. Notes and printed material concern
distant relative Thomas Wiltberger Evans, a dental surgeon from Philadelphia
who established a practice in Paris, France, and became court dentist during
the Second French Empire.
Evans’s statue of Thomas Jefferson for the memorial in Washington,
D.C., his best-known work, is documented in correspondence, reports, legal
records, photographs, printed material, and scrapbooks. One of the scrapbooks
documents the dedication ceremonies in 1943 that went forward with a plaster
model due to the wartime scarcity of bronze. Other files document efforts by
Evans and others to seek new lighting for the statue, a project that was
completed in 2001.
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Artistic and cultural societies,
1936-1941, 1951-1958, undated
1936-1941, 1951-1958, undated
1
Biographical information
1
Articles about Evans,
1914-1918, 1932, 1955, undated
1914-1918, 1932, 1955, undated
1
Essays, drafts,
undated
undated
1
“A Biographical Sketch of
Rudulph Evans, N.A., Sculptor,” by Lester Evans
1
“Rudulph Evans, N.A.,” from
sketch compiled for
Encyclopedia of American Biography
1
Miscellany,
1932, 1955-1960, undated
1932, 1955-1960, undated
1
Brochure, “A Collection of Works
by Rudulph Evans, Sculptor,”
undated
undated
1
Correspondence
1
Evans, Frank (brother),
1904, 1937-1948, undated
1904, 1937-1948, undated
1
Evans, Lester L. (brother)
Evans, Lester L. (brother)
1
About Rudulph Evans,
1943, 1954-1963, undated
1943, 1954-1963, undated
1
From Rudulph Evans,
1930-1956
1930-1956
(2
folders)
1
Miscellaneous,
1904, 1917-1929
1904, 1917-1929
1
Rudulph, Marilan Alston,
1954-1959, undated
1954-1959, undated
2
Family history
2
Correspondence and notes,
1882, 1897, 1925-1945, undated
1882, 1897, 1925-1945, undated
(2
folders)
2
Evans, Thomas Wiltberger
2
Biographical accounts,
1893, undated
1893, undated
2
Printed matter,
1906, 1937
1906, 1937
2
Notebook,
1943
1943
2
Printed matter,
1918-1923, 1935, 1945-1956, undated
1918-1923, 1935, 1945-1956, undated
3
Sculpture commissions and projects
3
Adolescent work,
1895-1905, undated
1895-1905, undated
3
Baruch, Bernard,
1953-1954, undated
1953-1954, undated
3
Bryan, William Jennings, and J.
Sterling Morton,
1937
1937
3
General correspondence,
1901-1911, undated
1901-1911, undated
3
Lee, Robert E.
3
Ceremonies and commemorations,
1932-1936
1932-1936
3
Correspondence and notes,
1933, 1951-1957, undated
1933, 1951-1957, undated
3
Newspaper and magazine
articles,
1927-1932, undated
1927-1932, undated
3
New York University Hall of Fame,
New York, N.Y.
3
Bancroft, George,
1930
1930
3
Cleveland, Grover,
1937
1937
3
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth,
1929
1929
3
Whittier, John Greenleaf,
1928
1928
4
Scrapbooks
4
Vol. 1, letters and printed
matter,
1862-1871, 1895-1954, undated
1862-1871, 1895-1954, undated
4
Vol. 2, “Decorations and
Works Executed by Evans in His Teens,”
1899-1958, undated
[
See Oversize
](evans1)
1899-1958, undated
4
Vol. 3, Thomas
Jefferson memorial project, other works, and Evans at home in New York, N.Y.,
1941-1958, undated ;
[
See Oversize
](evans2)
[
See also Containers 5-6
](evans3)
1941-1958, undated ;
5
Thomas Jefferson
Memorial statue
[
See also Container 4, Vol. 3
](evans4)
5
Commission of Fine Arts,
1939, 1947-1949, undated
1939, 1947-1949, undated
5
Competition, Thomas Jefferson
Memorial Commission
5
Reports and contracts,
1939-1941
1939-1941
5
Notes and miscellany,
undated
undated
5
Contini, Attilio (plaster
molder), lawsuit,
1942-1946
1942-1946
5
Correspondence,
1942-1947
1942-1947
5
Lighting,
1943-1957, 2001, undated
[
See also Oversize
](evans5)
1943-1957, 2001, undated
(2 folders)
5
Postcard development,
1955
1955
6
Printed matter,
1940-1959, undated
1940-1959, undated
6
Reception and dedication
ceremonies,
1943
1943
6
Scrapbook,
1943-1957, undated
[
See also Container 4
](evans4)
1943-1957, undated
6
Underwood, Wilbur
6
Correspondence,
1900-1936, undated
1900-1936, undated
(7
folders)
7
Enclosures,
undated
undated
7
Printed matter,
1896-1902, 1908, 1947, undated
1896-1902, 1908, 1947, undated
7
Wemple, Dorothy, untitled memoir of
years in Paris, France,
1948
1948
7
Writings
7
“Alistar Evans, Viscount
d’Oyley,”
undated
undated
7
“Comments by R. Evans
Concerning Some Important Personalities, the King of Italy and the Cardinal
Vanetti of the Vatican,”
undated
undated
7
“How Rudulph Evans Met
Italy’s King Victor Emanuel,”
undated
undated
7
“James A. NcNeil Whistler,”
undated
undated
OV 1
Oversize
OV 1
Sculpture commissions and
projects
OV 1
Scrapbooks
OV 1
Vol. 2,
“Decorations and Works Executed by Evans in His Teens,”
1899-1958, undated (Container 4)
1899-1958, undated
OV 2
Vol. 3, Thomas
Jefferson memorial project, other works, and Evans at home,
1941-1958, undated (Container 4)
1941-1958, undated
OV 3
Thomas Jefferson Memorial
statue
OV 3
Lighting plan,
1943
1943
(Container
5)