Collection Summary
Paul Wilstach Collection of Richard Mansfield Papers
1889-1918
1898-1909
1889-1918
1898-1909
MSS31260
Wilstach, Paul, 1870-1952
Mansfield, Richard, 1857-1907
2000 items
6 containers plus 2 oversize
2.4 linear feet
English
French
Collection material in English and French
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Author and biographer (Wilstach). Actor
(Mansfield). Scrapbooks, correspondence, plays, printed matter, and biographical
material mainly created by Mansfield and collected by Wilstach, who served as
Mansfield's secretary.
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
Cameron, Beatrice, 1868-1940--Correspondence.
Ibsen, Henrik, 1828-1906.
Mansfield, Richard, 1857-1907. Paul Wilstach collection of Richard Mansfield
papers. 1889-1918.
Pollard, J. P. (Joseph Percival), Mrs.
Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950.
Wilstach family.
Wilstach, Paul, 1870-1952.
Wilstach, Paul, 1870-1952. Richard Mansfield, the man and the actor.
1908.
Subjects
Actors--Biography.
Theater--United States.
Titles
Paul Wilstach papers
Richard Mansfield papers
Occupations
Biographers.
Acquisition Information
The papers of Richard Mansfield, actor, were given to the Library of Congress in 1925
by author and biographer Paul Wilstach. Additional items were received from the Wilstach
estate in 1972.
Processing History
The papers of Richard Mansfield were arranged and described in 1966 and 1994. The
finding aid was revised in 2009 by Joseph K. Brooks. The finding aid was updated in 2024
by Maria Farmer as part of a division-wide remediation project by the Inclusive
Description Working Group.
Transfers
Some photographs have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division where they
are identified as part of the Paul Wilstach Collection of Richard Mansfield Papers.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Richard Mansfield and Paul
Wilstach is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Richard Mansfield 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, Paul Wilstach Collection of Richard Mansfield Papers, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Richard Mansfield
Date
Event
1857, May 24
Born, Berlin, Germany
1859
1872
Traveled with mother, Erminia Rudersdorff Mansfield, a singer, on concert
tours of England and Europe
1872
Settled with mother in Boston, Massachusetts
1877
1888
Performed in Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, London, England
1882
Returned to the United States
Performed in the operetta
Manteaux Noirs
, New York, N.Y.
Performed as Baron Chevrial in
A Parisian Romance
, his first major role in the legitimate theater, Boston, Mass. and
New York, N.Y.
1886
Performed in
Prince Karl
, Boston, Mass. and New York, N.Y.
1887
1888
Performed the dual title role in
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
, New York and London
1889
Performed in
Richard the Third
, London, England
1890
Acted the title role of
Beau Brummell
1892
Married Beatrice Cameron
1893
Acted the role of Shylock in Merchant of Venice
1895
Produced and performed in George Bernard Shaw's
Arms and the Man
1887
Produced and performed in Shaw's The Devil's Disciple
1898
Performed the tile role in
Cyrano de Bergerac
1902
Acted the role of Brutus in
Julius Caesar
1906
Produced and acted the title role in the first American production of
Henrik Ibsen's
Peer Gynt
1907, Aug. 30
Died, New London, Conn.
Paul Wilstach
Date
Event
1870, July 1
Born, Lafayette, Ind.
ca. 1882
Graduated, St. Viateur's College, Bourbonnais, Ill.
1898
1907
Secretary to Richard Mansfield
1908
Published
Richard Mansfield: The Man and the Actor
. New York: C. Scribner's & Sons
1952, Feb. 9
Died, Washington, D.C.
Scope and Content Note
The Paul Wilstach Collection of the papers of Richard Mansfield (1857-1907), the noted
actor who introduced the works of George Bernard Shaw and Henrik Ibsen to American
audiences, spans the years 1889-1918, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the
period 1898-1909. Major components of the collection include correspondence, writings,
and scrapbooks. The correspondence contains holographs of Mansfield, mostly addressed to
his friend, secretary, and biographer, Paul Wilstach; letters from celebrities, theater
figures, and the general public to Mansfield complimenting him on performances or asking
favors; and correspondence spanning 1907-08 between Wilstach and Beatrice Cameron
Mansfield, Mansfield's widow and a prominent actress, relating to Wilstach's biography
of her husband.
A holographic manuscript of Wilstach's biography of the actor,
Richard Mansfield: The Actor and the Man
, is included in the writings section of the papers. Creative expressions by
Mansfield include two plays,
As You Find It
and
Don Juan
, a children's book,
Blown Away
, and miscellaneous poems, notes, and fragmentary works. Also prominent in the
writings are acting versions of plays prepared specifically for Mansfield's productions.
A small scrapbook compiled by Wilstach, dated 1886, is mostly related to general theater
topics and the Wilstach family. More extensive scrapbooks compiled by Wilstach, spanning
1898-1901 and 1902-1907, and by Sarah Lindsey Myers Pollard containing items from 1896,
relate almost wholly to Mansfield's career and include newspaper clippings, magazine
articles, and playbills.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein by name of
person or title.
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm79031260]
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Biographical material, 1892, 1905,
undated
1892, 1905,
undated
1
Correspondence
1
With Mansfield, 1900-1907, undated
1900-1907,
undated
1
With Wilstach
1
Mansfield, Beatrice, 1907-1908,
undated
1907-1908,
undated
1
Others, 1901-1910, undated
1901-1910,
undated
1
Miscellaneous, 1906, undated
1906,
undated
1
Playbills and sheet music, 1890-1907
1890-1907
1
Scrapbbooks
1
Pollard, Mrs. J. P. (Sarah Lindsey Myers
Pollard), 1896
1896
1
Wilstach, Paul
1
1886
1886
2
1889-1892
1889-1892
2
1898-1901
[
See Oversize
](scrap1)
1898-1901
2
1902-1907
[
See Oversize
](scrap2)
1902-1907
2
Writings
2
Books
2
Manuscripts
2
By Wilstach
2
Richard Mansfield: The Man and the Actor
, 1909
1909
2
(4 folders)
3
(1 folder)
3
Published works
3
By Mansfield
3
Blown Away
(Boston: L.C. Page and Co., 1897)
1897)
3
One Evening; Being an Entertainment of Songs Grave and
Gay
(New York: Novello, Ewer & Co., 1891)
1891)
3
By others
3
American Art Galleries.
Catalogue of the Richard Mansfield Collection
(New York, 1908)
1908)
3
de Bergerac, Cyrano.
A Voyage to the Moon
(New York: Doubleday and McClure Co., 1899)
1899)
3
Mansfield, Richard, 2nd.
Courage!
(New York: Moffat, Yard and Co., 1918)
1918)
3
von Muller von der Werra, Begrundel.
Allegemeines Reichs-Commerbuch für Deutsche Studenten
(Leipzig: Druck, Verlag and Hartel, 1895)
1895)
4
The Peerless Series.
The Story of Cyrano de Bergerac; Founded Upon and Written
from the Play of That Name Which Was Written by Edmond Rostand
(New York: J. S. Ogilvie Publishing Co., 1898)
1898)
4
Selwyn & Co.
The Plays of Richard Mansfield
(New York, undated)
undated)
4
Smith, Herbert G.
Castle Sombras
(London: George Newes Ltd., 1895)
1895)
4
Miscellaneous
4
By Mansfield, 1892, 1900-1901, 1905,
undated
1892, 1900-1901,
1905, undated
(2 folders)
4
By others, 1887-1911, undated
1887-1911,
undated
4
Plays
4
Acting versions of plays by
others
4
Fitch, Clyde.
Beau Brummel
(New York: John Lane Co., 1908)
1908)
5
Ibsen, Henrik.
The Richard Mansfield Acting Version of Peer Gynt
(Chicago: Reilly and Britton Co., 1906)
1906)
5
Rostand, Edmond.
Cyrano de Bergerac; A Heroic Comedy
, trans. by Howard T. Kingbury (Boston: Lamson, Wolffe and Co.,
1898)
1898)
5
Shakespeare, William
5
King Richard the Third, As Produced at the Globe Theater,
London, Under the Management of Mr.Richard Mansfield
(New York: Clark and Zugalla, 1889)
1889)
5
The Richard Mansfield Acting Version of King Henry V
(New York: McClure Phillips & Co., 1901)
1901)
5
By Mansfield
5
As You Find It
, 1904
1904
5
Don Juan
(New York: J. W. Boulton, 1891)
1891)
6
By others
6
Gross, Samuel E.
The Merchant Prince of Cornville
(New York: Rand, McNally & Co., 1896)
1896)
6
Rostand, Edmond
6
Cyrano de Bergerac
(Paris: Librairie Charpentier et Fasquelle, [first
edition])
6
Cyrano de Bergerac
, trans. by Gertrude Hall (New York: Doubleday & McClure
Co., 1898)
1898)
6
Cyrano de Bergerac
, trans. by Mary F. Guillemard and Gladys Thomas (New York: R.
H. Russell, 1899)
1899)
OV 1
Oversize
OV 1
Scrapbooks
OV 1
1898-1901 (Container 2)
1898-1901
OV 2
1902-1907 (Container 2)
1902-1907