A Guide to the Lonn Taylor Papers,

Biographical Note

Historian and curator Lonn Taylor (1940-) of Fort Worth received his bachelor’s degree in history and government from Texas Christian University in 1961, and held a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship in government at New York University during 1961-1962. Between 1965 and 1969 he did graduate work at the University of Texas in history, museology, and historic preservation. From 1970 to 1977, Taylor worked at the University of Texas at Austin’s Winedale Historical Center in Round Rock, as director and curator of collections. While at Winedale, Taylor (with David B. Warren) completed "Texas Furniture: The Cabinetmakers and Their Work, 1840-1880" (1975, The University of Texas Press). He later served as a curator for the Dallas Historical Society and the American Folklife Center, and directed the New Mexico Furniture History Project at the Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe. In 1984 Taylor joined the staff of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History where he served for 18 years, conducting research, directing and curating exhibits. His work as historian for the Smithsonian's Star-Spangled Banner Preservation Project led to his 2000 book, "The Star-Spangled Banner: The Flag That Inspired the National Anthem." He has also written books on American cowboys, New Mexican furniture and Southwestern history. In 2002, Lonn Taylor retired from the Smithsonian and returned to his home in Fort Davis, Texas. He has served as a consultant on exhibit planning for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Alamo, and the cities of Grapevine and San Antonio. He currently (2005) chairs the Advisory Council of the Center for Big Bend Studies at Sul Ross University.

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Scope and Contents

Research notes, surveys, reports, articles, drafts, conference papers, and correspondence (1969-1975) document the work of 19th-centuiry Texas artisans in textiles, cabinetmaking, woodworking, leather work and other crafts. Most of the collection consists of research notes and surveys generated for books on Texas furniture-making and other professions. Rough and clean drafts of "Texas Furniture," with associated notes and correspondence, illuminate the development of that book. Other correspondence in the collection concerns negotiations with colleagues, and with collectors and philanthropists such as Miss Ima Hogg (1882-1975) of Houston.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Portions of the collection are stored offsite at Library Storage Facility. Please contact repository for retrieval.

Use Restrictions

Unrestricted Use

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

The Lonn Taylor Papers, the Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin

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Detailed Description of the Papers

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