Autograph Letter Signed

This historian and Chicago Museum of Science and Industry curator was named director of Cleveland's renowned Western Reserve Historical Society in 1946, one of the most reknowned of its kind in the country until its recent fall from grace. ALS, 2pp, 8½" X 11", Cleveland, OH, n.y. [1947 July 2]. Addressed to Mary B. Day, librarian of the Museum of Science and Industry. Fine. On Western Reserve Historical Society letterhead, a mimeographed form letter dated June 26, 1947 and headlined "Microfilming of the Scioto Gazette, 1800 -- 1866" announces this early microfilming project and solicits the loan of missing issues for this effort. This ALS begins at the bottom of this printed letter and fills the reverse. The newly-appointed director jokes with his former colleague, "I don't expect you to have a Scioto Gazette in your handbag but I thot [sic] that you might like to know of one of my activities in my new post. This is my first venture into microfilming of a whole newspaper file -- it seems to be coming along fine...." He goes a nice summary of his new digs: "This is really quite a place. We have a very good hist. museum and a good hist. library housed in two Florentine style 'Gold Coast' residences, each with 70 rooms large and small. We have about 200000 books, 200000 pamphlets, 20000 volumes of newspapers and over 1000 rolls of microfilm of newspapers, about 1,000,000 manuscripts, a good map collection, the sixth best genealogical library (just back of Newberry, I understand) the third best stamp library, a lot of good pictures, the best Shaker Society collection anywhere, a good costume collection (i.e. books and plates and some real costumes) a collection of about 3000 Lincoln items, a lot of Civil War materials inc. a good deal of Confederate manuscripts, pamphlets, books, etc. I could go on but you see what I have to play with and can imagine what a good time I am having. We have some autographs and expect to receive (I hope, I hope) a collection of Signers of the Dec. of Independence -- owned by on of our trustees. Yes, B. Gwinnet is there!" Original envelope present, as is a December 25, 1947 "Cleveland Plain Dealer" article titled "Rich Lore Awaits History Delvers," which depicts Anderson in his office.