Children's Literature Research Collection
113 Elmer L. Andersen Library
University of Minnesota
222 21st Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455

Mary Marsh Buff and Conrad Buff Papers, 1937-1957. Finding Aid.

Summary Information

Collection Number: CLRC-111

Collection Size: 0.1 linear ft. (Manuscript material) 0.5 cubic ft. (Illustrative material)

Abstract/Notes: Mary Marsh Buff and Conrad Buff's papers focus on their work as authors and illustrators of children's books. The collection contains production material for four titles published between 1937 and 1951. The bulk of the production material is illustrative material with one manuscript for the title Big Tree, signed for Dr. Irvin Kerlan in 1957. The collection also contains some miscellaneous artwork by Conrad Buff that is not for children's books.

This collection was originally given to Dr. Irvin Kerlan who in turn donated his collection to the University of Minnesota.

Collection is non-circulating, in-house use only.

This collection is 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 the necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials.

Prepared by Christina Cowan, November 1998.

This collection was processed with financial assistance from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Biographical/Historical Notes

Conrad Buff was born January 15, 1886 in Speicher, Switzerland. He studied art in Switzerland and Germany and came to the United States in 1904. He married Mary Marsh (born April 10, 1890 in Cincinnati, Ohio) in 1922 and the couple had two sons. The Buffs collaborated on many children's books between 1937 and 1968. Conrad Buff did the artwork and Mary Marsh Buff did most of the writing, although some of their works were written jointly. Their first book, Dancing Cloud, the Navaho Boy (1937) was praised by critics for its beautiful illustrations and its sense of place and nature in Navaho life. In 1943, the Buffs were runners up for the Caldecott Medal for Dash and Dart, a story about deer that was praised for its "beautiful simplicity" of text. In 1947, they were runners up for the Newbery Award for Big Tree (1946) the story of "Wa Wo Na" a giant sequoia. Critics praised the book for its beautifully and dramatically told story in both text and illustrations and for giving readers a "sense of wonder at the trees" and the "need to protect them." The Buffs were also Newbery runners up in 1952 for The Apple and the Arrow (1951) a story about William Tell, and again in 1954 for Magic Maize (1953). Mary Marsh Buff died in November 1970 and Conrad Buff died in 1975.

Scope and Content Notes

The collection contains production material for four titles published between 1937 and 1951. Illustrative materials include pencil illustrations, an original black and white illustration, an original colored illustration, an original black and white trial proof, and one lithograph illustration. Manuscript material consists of a corrected typescript for the title Big Tree, signed for Dr. Irvin Kerlan in 1957. There is also some miscellaneous artwork done by Conrad Buff that consists of two lithographic prints and a pencil sketch not done for children's books. The materials are arranged by title with folder and box level control.

See attached inventory for box contents.

Collection Inventory

The Apple and the Arrow, 1951
-2 pencil illustrations (M.C. 107)

Big Tree, 1946
-Typescript, corrected, 41 p. (M.C. 159, folder 1)
-1 pencil illustration (M.C. 107)

Dancing Cloud, the Navaho Boy, 1937
-1 original black and white illustration (M.C. 107)
-1 original colored illustration (M.C. 107)
-1 original black and white trial proof (M.C. 107)

Kobi, a Boy of Switzerland, 1939
-1 lithograph illustration (M.C. 107)

Miscellaneous Artwork
-1 lithograph print [not children's book illustration] (M.C. 107)
-1 lithograph print "A family outing" [not children's book illustration] (M.C. 107)
-1 pencil sketch [not children's book illustration] (M.C. 107)

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