Melville Elijah Stone Papers 1821-1984

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 of materials pertaining to the sport of cock-fighting, ca. 1821-1984. The nucleus of this collection consists of the illustrative materials assembled by Melville Elijah Stone (1848-1929), American publisher and author, for his proposed book Cock-Fighting and The Game-Cock, Being an Illustrated Compendium of their History in Sport & Art From most Ancient Times to the Present Day To which is added A Bibliography, and the author's original layout for this unpublished book.

This layout, circa 1929, with the author's bookplate laid in, consists of 16 eight-page signatures (pages measuring 10 x 13) with pencilled layout instructions in the author's hand, along with the dedication page incorporating some small sketches, and other handwritten front matter from which we learn that the book was to be designed by William A. Kittredge, printed by Chicago's Lakeside Press on handmade Japanese paper, published by the Huntington Press, New York, in 1932, and limited to 200 copies. The book's title, half-title, and publisher imprint have been set in type and pasted in, and at the end are twelve pages of rough pencil sketches by the author illustrating glassware, cups, etc., with cock-fighting motifs. Also placed in the layout volume are about sixty examples of wild fowl, possibly to be used as illustrations for the first chapter, "The Origin of the Game Fowl."

The illustrations assembled by Stone for his book include engravings, prints, original artwork, sketches, magazine and book illustrations, an original title page for Henry Alken's (1784-1851) British Sports, and illustrations of cock-fighting objects d'art. There are a few illustrations from ancient times but most are concerned with the modern era, with particular emphasis on 18th Century England. Most of these are oversize and are housed in oversize folders. A detailed listing is provided at the end of the guide.

Also included are six small leatherette loose-leaf notebooks (undated) kept by Melville Stone with notes and other material pertaining to his cock-fighting history. These contain the names and addresses of scholars and other contacts about the history of cock-fighting and other related topics, filed alphabetically according to the name of the country or geographic area; clippings and photostats which include Stone's typewritten table of contents for the proposed volume and numerous notes for the text and captions; a bibliography of works dealing with cock-fighting, arranged alphabetically in two notebooks; notes for an index to the book; and an alphabetical index of various artists and their work on cock-fighting.

There is additional printed, photostatic and photographic material about cock-fighting, some of which post dates the death of Stone and must have been included by someone else. This material includes newsclippings and articles (1926-1984), a few pages of loose notes, photographs, both positive and negative photostatic copies of excerpts from The Sportsman's Magazine, issues 1823- 1825, about cock-fighting, and a twelve page typescript "Feathered Warriors" by Morris Markey.

The folder of photographs contain black & white photographs of engravings and paintings of game cocks, "A Copy of an article for a Cock-Match" in 1751, a chair used by a spectator at a cock fight, snapshots illustrating the proper handling of cocks, a stone relief of cock-fighting from the Art Institute of Chicago, plates and cups with cock-fighting scenes, and title pages of works on cock-fighting.

Acquisition information:
This material was purchased by the Library on April 14, 1993, from James Cummins Bookseller, New York City.
Physical description:
There are 350 items in this collection (1 Hollinger box and 1 oversize box).