Restrictions
Noncirculating; available for research.
Copyright
The 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.
Biographical Sketch
Helen Dowd studied art at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles in the early 1940s.
Upon graduation, she practiced window decoration and interior design. She soon
branched out into illustrating childrens' books and magazine articles, designing
wallpaper, painting murals, and creating patterns for craft magazines. Her style of
portraying children was distinctive, emphasizing circles and curves. For several years,
she taught art at Whittier College in California.
Sources:
Scope and Content
The collection contains four series: "Alphabetical Files," "Books," "Periodicals," and
"Woodblocks".
The "Alphabetical Files" series contains various arts and crafts projects completed by Ms. Dowd, as well as numerous sketches given to her by other illustrators. This series also holds a few historic photographs of Pass Christian, Mississippi, taken by Ms. Dowd's mother, Louise Lyman. In 1960, Queen Elizabeth accepted Ms. Dowd's offer of a picture for her son Andrew. This series contains some letters and a travel journal describing her trip to London in order to deliver the picture.
In the "Books" series, the materials are arranged alphabetically by title. Within each title the materials are arranged in the probable order in which they were created. Four of the titles in this series were compilations of songs for children which Ms. Dowd illustrated: Autumn Farming With Janet; A Child's Christmas; Happy Songs for Children; and Vacation Time. The collection holds original illustrations for each of these titles. The collection also holds illustrations for two picture books, Big Wheels Rolling and The Funny Little Boy.
The "Periodical Illustrations" series contains magazine clippings and original artwork for illustrations created by Ms. Dowd. Some of these illustrations accompanied short stories for children. Others were published in household craft magazines.
The collection also contains six unidentified woodblock prints.
The Elizabeth Rider Montgomery Papers (DG0708); The Carolyn Haywood Papers (DG0436); The Madeleine Stern Papers (DG1182)
A. Alphabetical Files (1949-1960)
B. Books (1936-1955)
C. Periodical Illustrations (1941-1953, 1974)
D. Woodblocks (Undated)
E. Oversized Realia (Undated)
Box/Folder
A. Alphabetical Files (1949-1960)
1/1 Articles, 3 items.
1/2 Book dummy, "Snookie in Toyland," watercolor illustrations and text
on cardboard.
1/3 Book dummy, with stencils by various illustrators.
1/4 Broadoaks School of Education, Whittier College, 2 items.
1/5 Correspondence, 1949-1958, 1974, n.d., 14 items.
-- Diorama, 1 item [Oversized -- Removed to Box 7].
1/6-1/7 Dolls,
-- Made of felt and painted wood, 9 items. [Oversized -- Removed
to Box 8]
-- Made of felt and other materials, 2 items [Oversized --
Removed to Box 7].
1/6-1/7 Painted cardboard cutouts, 13 items.
1/8 Fabric decoration, booklet and correspondence, 2 items.
1/9 Greeting cards with original illustrations, 2 items.
2/1 Illustration by Lietta, 3 items.
2/2-2/3 Illustrations given to Lietta by other illustrators,
2/2 Original illustrations,
Backus, Dudley, 1 item.
Fisher, Charlotte, 1 item.
Fisher, Marcella, 1 item.
Held, Eric, 1 item.
Krock, Helen, 1 item.
Mary, Carol, 1 item.
Smith, L. Laurette, 1 item.
Unidentified, 4 items.
Van Etten, Shirley, 2 items.
2/3 Prints,
B. Himmel, 1 item.
Montgomery, Elizabeth, 7 items.
Unidentified, 4 items.
2/4 London trip, delivering picture to Prince Edward at Buckingham
Palace, journal and correspondence, 1949, 1960, 1974, 6 items.
2/5-2/6 Lyman, Louise (Lietta's mother),
2/5 Notebook from vacation to Pass Christian, MS., including
sketches and unidentified photos.
2/6 Photograph of Mexican Gulf Hotel in Pass Christian, MS.
Photograph of boarding house in Ithaca, NY.
-- Mural for Neighborhood Church in Pasadena, CA. (preliminary
sketch), 1 item [Oversized -- Removed to Box 4, folder 7].
2/7 Publicity material, 3 items.
B. Books
Autumn Farming with Janet by Ola H. Meredith, illustrated by Lietta
(Boston: Boston Music, 1954).
2/8 Contract with Boston Music Co., 1950, 1 item.
Publicity material, 2 items.
2/9 Illustrations, ink and pencil; pp. 4, 12, 14, 18, 22, 26, 28, 30, 32,
8 items.
Illustration proof, 1 item.
-- Illustration, with overlay for color separation, title page, 1 item
[Oversized -- Removed to Box to Box 4, folder 7]
Big Wheels Rolling by Eugenia Stone, illustrated by Lietta (Caldwell, ID:
Caxton Printers, 1942).
2/10 Illustrations, ink; frontispiece, pp. 2, 15, 17, 29, 36, 42, 48, 54, 64, 71,
83, 94, 98, 108, 117, 130, 133, 144, 149, 156, 164, 170, 182, 188,
200, 203, 215, 224, 233, 30 items.
2/11 Illustration proof, frontispiece, 1 item.
2/12 Book cover, illustration, proof, and layout, 3 items.
2/13 Book jacket, illustration with overlays for color separations,
End papers, illustration, 1 item.
2/14 Royalty statement, 1 item.
Publicity material, 2 items.
A Child's Christmas by Beryl Joyner, illustrated by Lietta (Cincinnati: Willis
Music, 1955).
3/1 Correspondence, 1955, 1 item.
3/2 Illustrations with overlays for color separation; book cover, and pp. 4,
6, 8, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 14
items.
The Funny Little Boy by Dorothy Walter Baruch, illustrated by Lietta
(Boston: Lothrop, Lee and Shepard, 1936).
3/3-3/4 Illustrations, ink, with overlay for color separation,
3/3 End papers, title page, and pp. 5, 7, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19,
9 items.
3/4 pp. 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35, 36, 9 items.
3/5 Book jacket dummy, 1 item.
Happy Songs for Children by Gracia Caines, illustrated by Lietta
(Cincinnati: Willis Music, 1947).
4/1 Illustrations, ink; pp. 5, 9, 12, 14, 17, 29, unused, 7 items.
Vacation Time by Lue Alice Keller, illustrated by Lietta (Boston: Boston
Music, 1954).
4/2 Illustrations, ink and pencil; book cover, and pp. 8-9, 18-19, 3 items.
C. Periodical Illustrations (1941-1953, 1974)
4/3 American Home, illustrations (stencils and acrylic paint) items.
4/4-4/6 Children's Activities,
4/4-4/5 Clippings of pages with Lietta's artwork and stories,
4/4 "The Three J's," a series written by Elizabeth Rider
Montgomery and illustrated by Lietta, 1941-1944, 28
items.
4/5 1947-1953, 34 items.
4/6 Illustrations, ink, 1951, n.d., 4 items.
4/7 [Oversized items; removed from Box 2].
5/1-5/6 Everyday Art
5/1 March-April, 1942; magazine and original art for p. 13, 2 items.
5/2 November-December 1942; magazine, 1 item.
5/3 November-December 1944; magazine, 1 item.
5/4 November-December 1948; magazine, 1 item.
5/5 March-April 1949; magazine and original art for pp. 4-5, 3 items.
5/6 November-December 1950; magazine and original art for p.13.
5/7 McCall's Christmas Crafts in Felt, Book II, 1974, 1 item.
D. Woodblocks
6 Engraved woodblocks, 6 items.
E. Oversized Realia
7 Diorama.
Dolls, 2 items.
8 Dolls, 9 items.
Separation List
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Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
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