Materials received from Henry C. Pitz between 1968 and 1973.
Non-circulating; available for research.
This collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U. S. Code). Reproductions can be made only if they are to be used for "private study, scholarship, or research." It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials, other than that noted above.
Henry Clarence Pitz was born on June 16, 1895 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a child he was a voracious reader, and he also enjoyed drawing pictures; his strongest early influences were the illustrations of Howard Pyle and Edwin Abbey. While in high school, Pitz developed an intense interest in history and considered a career as a teacher. However, his course as an illustrator was decided for him when he was awarded a scholarship to the Philadelphia Museum School of Art in 1914. He was later also to study at the Spring Garden Institute in Philadelphia in the years 1917 and 1920.
Following a year of service with the American Expeditionary Forces in France, Pitz's career as an illustrator began in earnest. His earliest work appeared in such juvenile periodicals as Boys' Life and St. Nicholas, but by 1922 he had also begun to illustrate books. Pitz married Molly Wheeler Wood in 1935, and the couple had two children. Henry Pitz died at his home in Philadelphia on November 26, 1976.
Though Pitz is primarily remembered as an illustrator of children's books, he also had a long and distinguished career as an educator. For twenty-eight years he was director of the department of illustration and decoration at his old school, the Philadelphia Museum College of Art, until 1960 when he became professor emeritus. He also gave instruction in watercolor from 1939 to 1946 at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and was a visiting lecturer or instructor at the University of Pennsylvania, the Cleveland Institute of Art and the Newark School of Art. Pitz illustrated over one hundred and sixty books during his lifetime, in addition to his numerous illustrations for periodicals. He also wrote, co-wrote, edited, or otherwise contributed to a number of books about art and illustration techniques. Articles by Pitz on book illustration have appeared in such magazines as American Artist, Horn Book, Print Quarterly, American Heritage, and Studio, among others.
Pitz garnered more than forty awards during his lifetime. Chief among these were the Bronze Medal of the International Print Exhibition, 1932; the Hans Obst Prize, presented by the American Water Color Society Annual, 1952; the Obrig Prize of the National Academy, 1953 and 1956; and the Pennational Artists Gold Medal for 1968. His works are today represented in the permanent collections of a number of institutions including the Library of Congress, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, and the National Academy of Design.
Sources:
The collection contains a brochure for a Henry Pitz art exhibit, correspon- dence from Pitz and his wife Molly to Lena de Grummond, illustrations and other materials from twenty-seven books and three magazines to which Pitz contributed, and a number of unidentified or partially identified illustra-tions. The correspondence is arranged in chronological order. The book-related materials are arranged alphabetically by book title, and within each title according to the probable order in which the materials were created. Illustrations for stories that appeared in magazines have been arranged chronologically in the order in which they were published. Since the unidentified illustrations are all titled to some extent, these have been arranged alphabetically according to title with the exception of illustrations which are both untitled and unidentified, which are placed at the end of the final series.
Pitz's lifelong interest in history is reflected in the large number of historical fiction novels he illustrated. In fact, Pitz was an authority on early American dress. This knowledge of costume aided him in creating historically accurate illustrations such as those in Barney's Barges (1944), a boy's adventure tale set in America during the War of 1812. Little Wolf Slayer (1952) and Valley of Rebellion (1955), for which the collection holds original illustrations, are also stories of early America set in Pitz's own native Pennsylvania. For The Spy (1963), James Fenimore Cooper's novel of intrigue during the American Revolution, the collection holds eight page proofs. The Rogues' Road (1930) and The Royal Road (1948) are other historical fiction novels set in the eighteenth century that are represented by illustrations in this collection. Other historical fiction novels for which the collection holds illustrations include Defense of the Castle (1937), a medieval adventure tale; Drake's Sword (1934), set during the Golden Age of piracy; and The King's Thane (1961), another boy's adventure story set in Saxon England.
During the course of his long career, Pitz was sometimes called upon to illustrate recognized classics of literature. For Froissart's Chronicles (1959) the collection holds one proof of an illustration. Dickens' Dombey and Son (1957) is represented by one original illustration, as is Henry Frith's King Arthur and His Knights (1955). Pitz's illustrations for "The Story of What Happened to Hansel and Gretel" in The Evergreen Tales (1952) are represented by proofs of four pages from the book. Other classics illustrated by Pitz that are represented in the collection by original artwork are The Story of Beowulf (1933), Treasure Island (1954), and Washington Irving's The Voyages of Columbus (1939).
In the 1940's Pitz illustrated a series of story anthologies for young readers, all edited by Phyllis Reid Fenner. For books in this series there are original illustrations from Adventure: Rare and Magical (1945), Demons and Dervishes (1946), and Fools and Funny Fellows (1947).
An original illustration from Indian History for Young Folks (1927) is the earliest work of Pitz's contained in the collection. The largest holdings are for One Thousand Poems for Children (1946), which is represented by proofs and more than forty original illustrations. Other books for which the collection holds illustrations include Amigo: Circus Horse (1955), Molly the Rogue (1944), and White Birds Island (1948).
Pitz was also a frequent contributor of artwork to magazines. The collection has illustrations for two stories that appeared in Child Life magazine: "Wild Dog" appeared in the April 1941 issue, and "The Lucky Sixpence" was serialized beginning in June 1941 and ran at least through the September issue of that year. There are also sketches and a published reproduction of an illustration done for Light and Life Evangel magazine in 1970.
Included in the collection are a number of originals and lithographs by Pitz that remain unidentified, though some or all may have been published.
Box 2, Folder 3 of the John Martin Papers (DG0671) contains two Christmas cards illustrated by Pitz.
See also: The Donald E. Cooke Papers (DG0218); The Elizabeth Coatsworth Papers (DG0199); and The Elizabeth Hough Sechrist Papers (DG0873)
Box/Folder
A. Biographical Material
1/1 Brochure for Pitz exhibit at Lehigh University Department of Fine
Arts, undated.
B. Correspondence
1/2 From Pitz and his wife to de Grummond Collection, 1966-67, 1973,
1976-77, 14 items.
C. Books
ADVENTURE: RARE AND MAGICAL stories selected by Phyllis R.
Fenner, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz (New York: Knopf, 1945).
1/3 Illustrations, ink, pp. 20, 21, 56, 57, 106, 107, 3 items.
AMIGO: CIRCUS HORSE by Page Cooper, illustrated by Henry Pitz
(Cleveland, OH: World Publishing, 1955).
1/4 Illustration, ink, p. 34.
BARNEY'S BARGES written by Don Aspden, illustrations by Henry C.
Pitz (New York: Holiday House, 1944).
1/5 Illustrations, ink, pp. 184, 185, unused, 2 items.
THE CHRONICLES OF ENGLAND, FRANCE, SPAIN, AND OTHER
PLACES ADJOINING by Sir John Froissart, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
(New York: Limited Editions Club, 1959).
1/6 Proof, pages unidentified, 1 item.
DOMBEY AND SON by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
(New York: Heritage Press, 1957).
1/7 Illustration, ink, p. 79.
DEFENSE OF THE CASTLE by Albert I. Mayer, Jr., illustrated by Henry
C. Pitz (New York: Harper, 1937).
1/8 Illustrations, ink, pp. 53, 136, 2 items.
DEMONS AND DERVISHES: TALES WITH MORE-THAN-ORIENTAL
SPLENDOR selected by Phyllis R. Fenner, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
(New York: Knopf: 1946).
1/9 Sketches, ink, 1 item.
Illustrations, ink, frontispiece, title page, dedication page, pp.
12-13, 21-22, 32-33, 152-153, 6 items.
1/10 Illustrations, ink, pp. 58, 59, 64-65, 88-89, 108-109, 122-123,
170-171, endpapers, 8 items.
Sketch, tempera, dust jacket cover.
Illustration, ink, dust jacket cover.
DRAKE'S SWORD by Merritt P. Allen, illustrations by Henry C. Pitz
(New York: Appleton-Century, 1934).
1/11 Illustration, ink, p. 5.
THE EVERGREEN TALES, OR, TALES FOR THE AGELESS (New
York: Limited Editions Club, 1952).
"The Story of What Happened to Hansel and Gretel"
1/12 Proofs, pp. 25, 26, 31, 32, 1 item.
FOOLS AND FUNNY FELLOWS: MORE "TIME TO LAUGH" TALES
selected by Phyllis R. Fenner, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz (New York: Knopf, 1947).
1/13 Illustrations, ink, pp. 20, 21, 32-33, 60-61, 113, 128-129,
unused, 7 items.
Proofs of illustrations, corrected and annotated, 4 items.
INDIAN HISTORY FOR YOUNG FOLKS by Francis S. Drake, pictures
by Henry Pitz (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1927).
1/14 Illustration, ink, p. 29.
KING ARTHUR AND HIS KNIGHTS by Henry Frith, illustrated by Henry
C. Pitz (Garden City, NY: Junior Deluxe Editions, 1955).
1/15 Illustration, ink, p. 253.
THE KING'S THANE by Charles A. Brady, illustrated by Henry Pitz
(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1961).
1/16 Illustrations, ink, pp. 48, 147, 161, 3 items.
LITTLE WOLF SLAYER by Donald E. Cooke, illustrated by Henry C.
Pitz (Philadelphia: John C. Winston, 1952).
2/1 Illustration, ink, p. 42.
MOLLY THE ROGUE by Mary Walsh, illustrated by Henry Pitz (New
York: Knopf, 1944).
2/2 Illustration, ink, p. 6.
ONE THOUSAND POEMS FOR CHILDREN selected by Elizabeth
Hough Sechrist, with decorative drawings by Henry C. Pitz (Philadelphia:
Macrae-Smith, 1946).
2/3 Illustrations, pp. 1-197, 22 items.
2/4 Illustrations, pp. 229-513, unpublished, 21 items.
Proofs of illustrations, pp. 3-405, 6 items.
PRINCESSES AND PEASANT BOYS: TALES OF ENCHANTMENT
selected by Phyllis R. Fenner, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz (New
York: Knopf, 1944).
2/5 Illustrations, pages unidentified, 1 item.
THE ROGUES' ROAD by Virgil Markham, illustrated by Henry Pitz
(New York: Macmillan, 1930).
2/6 Illustration, ink, frontispiece.
THE ROYAL ROAD by Charlie May Simon, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
(New York: E.P. Dutton, 1948).
2/7 Illustrations, ink, pp. 69/51, 54, 85, 115/127, 142, 6 items.
Color separation, dust jacket.
THE SPY: A TALE OF THE NEUTRAL GROUND by James Fenimore
Cooper, with illustrations by Henry C. Pitz (New York: Heritage Press,
1963).
2/8 Proofs, frontispiece, title page, pp. 36-373, 8 items.
THE STORY OF BEOWULF retold from the ancient epic by Strafford
Riggs, decorated by Henry C. Pitz (New York: Appleton-Century, 1933).
2/9 Illustrations, frontispiece, pp. 45/73 (with overlay), 79/83,
unpublished, 4 items.
THE STORY OF WHAT HAPPENED TO HANSEL AND GRETEL by
Brothers Grimm, illustrations by Henry Pitz (New York: Limited
Editions Club, 1952).
2/10 Illustration, watercolor.
TALES OF THE GAUCHOS, stories by W. H. Hudson, compiled and
edited by Elizabeth Coatsworth, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz (New
York: Knopf, 1949).
2/11 Illustration, ink and graphite, dust jacket.
TREASURE ISLAND by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Henry C.
Pitz (New York: Doubleday, 1954).
2/12 Illustration, ink, unpublished.
VALLEY OF REBELLION by Donald E. Cooke, illustrated by Henry C.
Pitz (Philadelphia: John C. Winston, 1955).
2/13 Illustrations, ink, pp. 108, 117, 128, 137, 1 item.
THE VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS by Washington Irving, illustrated by
Henry Pitz (New York: Macmillan, 1939).
2/14 Illustrations, ink, pp. 1, 129, 151, 154, 4 items.
Illustration, watercolor, p. 112f. [stored separately]
WHITE BIRDS ISLAND by Georgi Skrebitsky, illustrated by Henry C.
Pitz (New York: Knopf, 1948).
2/15 Illustrations, ink, pp. 13, 21, 1 item.
D. Magazines
"Wild Dog" by Ruth Elizabeth Tanner, in April 1941 Child Life.
3/1 Illustrations, ink, pages unidentified, 2 items.
"The Lucky Sixpence" by Louise Hall Tharp, serialized in June 1941 -
[September 1941?] issues of Child Life.
3/2 Illustration, ink, July 1941 Child Life, p. 294.
Illustration, ink, September 1941 Child Life, page unidentified.
Light and Life Evangel, 1 March 1970.
3/3 Sketches, graphite, 2 items.
Published illustration, p. 3.
E. Unidentified
3/4 Illustrations, ink, for "Footsteps in the Dark," 1943, 2 items.
Probably published in Child Life magazine.
3/5 Lithograph, "Forest Dweller," undated. Probably reproduced as a
Christmas card.
3/6 Illustration, ink, "Mayflower Heroes," undated.
3/7 Illustration, ink, dust jacket, possibly for unpublished edition of
Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, undated.
3/8 Lithograph, "The Narrow Strait," undated.
3/9 Illustration, ink, "The Three Ships," undated.
3/10 Illustration, ink and oil, for "White Wolf," 1940.
3/11 Illustration, ink, for "The Johnny Smoker," undated. Probably
intended for Winter on the "Johnny Smoker" by Mildred Houghton
Comfort (New York: William Morrow, 1943).
3/12 Unidentified, untitled illustrations, ink, undated, 7 items.
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