The Book Arts Collection (continued)

In 1983, James F. O'Gorman, Professor of the History of American Art at Wellesley College, gave his Hammat Billings Collection. Containing over 175 books illustrated by Billings, as well as an archival component including photographs, drawings, engravings, and a scrapbook, the Billings Collection is an unparalleled resource documenting the life and enormously diverse output of this 19th century architect, illustrator, and graphic designer. A printed catalog, written and annotated by O'Gorman, is available from Special Collections upon request. Also of interest is Professor O'Gorman's book, Accomplished in All Departments of Art: Hammatt Billings of Boston, 1818-1874, Amherst, MA, University of Massachusetts Press, 1998.

In 1990, Isabel Ehrlich Goodman, class of 1933, and her husband Charles gave to Wellesley their extensive personal library, which included a book arts collection of over 1,300 volumes. The Goodman gift substantially augmented the existing Book Arts Collection, particularly in productions of twentieth century American private presses, which have been consulted by individual students and art classes. To further support collecting in this growing field, the Goodman family established an endowed book fund as well.