Clement Hurd papers
Scope and Contents
The collection contains production material for 89 published and unpublished children's books created by Clement Hurd. The collection includes typescripts, notes, correspondence, royalty statements, reviews, galley proofs, illustrations, studies, and sketches done in a variety of media, separations, dummies, paste-ups, research material, book jackets, and proofs. Many of the titles in this collection were done in collaboration with Edith Thacher Hurd, and much of the correspondence is to and from both Clement and Edith Hurd.
Dates
- circa 1936-circa 2006
Creator
- Hurd, Clement, 1908-1988 (Person)
- Brown, Margaret Wise, 1910-1952 (Collaborator, Person)
- Hurd, Edith Thacher, 1910-1997 (Collaborator, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use in the Elmer L. Andersen Library reading room.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). 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. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
Biographical / Historical
Illustrator Clement Hurd was born January 12, 1908 in New York, New York. He attended Yale University, graduating with a PhD in 1930 and later studied painting in Paris with the artist Ferdinand Leger. In 1938, Clement Hurd illustrated his first book for children, Bumble Bugs and Elephants, by Margaret Wise Brown. He is best known for his collaborations with Brown, including his illustrations for The Runaway Bunny and Goodnight Moon. Hurd also collaborated on numerous books with his wife, Edith Thacher Hurd. The Hurds worked on several series of books including the Mother Animal series that depicts the relationship of various animals with their young, and Harper and Row's I Can Read books. Their son Thacher Hurd would also become an author and illustrator of children's books and all three worked on Little Dog Dreaming, published in 1967.
Throughout his career, Clement Hurd worked in variety of media including ink, pencil, crayon, and wood block and linoleum prints. In 1984, Clement Hurd represented Margaret Wise Brown and her editors and illustrators as the recipients of the 1984 Kerlan Award at the University of Minnesota. Clement Hurd died on February 5, 1988 in San Francisco, California.
Extent
76.5 Linear Feet (46 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Clement Hurd's papers focus on his work as an illustrator and author of children's books. The collection contains production material for eighty-nine published and unpublished titles.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged alphabetically by publication title.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Clement Hurd with additional material donated by his son, Thacher Hurd.
- Animals -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Bedtime -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Birds -- Juvenile literature Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Boats and boating -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Cats -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Children's literature -- Illustrations Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Christmas stories Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Color separation (technique) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Construction equipment -- Juvenile literature Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dinosaurs -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dogs -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Drawings (visual works) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Ecology -- Juvenile literature Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Farm life -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Illustration of books -- 20th century Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Illustrators -- United States Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Linocuts (prints) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Lion -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Manuscripts for publication Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Parental behavior in animals -- Juvenile literature Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Picture books Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Rabbits -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Railroad trains -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Seasons -- Juvenile fiction Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Sketches Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Tempera paintings Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Woodcuts (prints) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- watercolors (paintings) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
Source
- Hurd, Thacher (Donor, Person)
- Title
- Clement Hurd Papers, circa 1936-circa 2006
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Christina Cowan
- Date
- 09/01/1996
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- November 18, 2015: Collection reprocessed by Teresa Tjepkes, EAD updated by Teresa Tjepkes.
- May 15, 2015: Collection reprocessed by Christopher True, EAD updated by Christopher True.
- October 15, 2014: Collection reprocessed by Lindsey Geyer, EAD updated by Lisa Calahan.
- March 2023: Description updated by Caitlin Marineau.
Collecting Area Details
Contact The Children's Literature Research Collections Collecting Area
