ACFPL Scrapbook Collection
Title: Atlantic City Free Public Library Scrapbook Collection
Date: 1911-1954
Collection Number: H035
Extent: 3.8 cu. ft.
Repository: Alfred M. Heston Collection, Atlantic City Free Public Library, 1 North Tennessee Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ 08401, (609) 345-2269.
Preferred Citation: Atlantic City Free Public Library Scrapbook Collection, Alfred M. Heston Collection, Atlantic City Free Public Library.
Creators:
City of Atlantic City
Collins, Peggy
Farley, James
Werth, Margaret
IN-DEPTH INFORMATION ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Scope and Content:
This collection consists of 13 scrapbooks. The first set of scrapbooks – two books – contains newspaper clippings, invitations, pamphlets, flyers and other regalia that chronicle the centennial celebration of the City of Atlantic City, the events leading up to the celebration and the celebration’s aftermath. The first book in this set, housed in Box 1 of the collection, displays items from 1952 through 1954. The second book in this set, housed in Box 2, displays items from 1953 and 1954.
Box 3 of the collection contains eight scrapbooks. Margaret Werth was the daughter of Nicholas Werth. She lived in Absecon Highlands and was a student at the Girls’ Vocational School in Atlantic City in the early 1930s. The Margaret Werth scrapbook details her life in the 1920s and 1930s, in particular her 1929 class trip to Washington D.C. Her scrapbook was found by Mr. Arthur Hartwell Jr. in Absecon Highlands and was copied by the library. The original scrapbook is held by Mr. Hartwell.
The Martha Leeds Bartlett scrapbook was compiled in 1914. Like Margaret Werth, its contents depict the life of a young Atlantic City woman in early 20th century Atlantic City. It includes newspaper clippings, theater playbills, mementos from Atlantic City High School dances and other social events. It was donated to the library in 2012 by Barbara Helfgott-Hyett, a prominent poet who – in 1989 – wrote a book of poetry titled Natural Law which included poems about the history of Atlantic City.
Another scrapbook created by a young Atlantic City High School student is the Ruth Hersh scrapbook, the contents of which date between 1927 and 1931. It contains invitations, letters, dance autograph books and other mementos, newspaper clippings, and events programs from her life as a student at Atlantic City High School. The scrapbook was donated to the library by her family, in 2012, along with a copy of her 1929 Atlantic City High School diploma.
The Dorflinger Collection of Hap Farley scrapbooks is a set of three books that follow the political career of Senator Frank S. “Hap” Farley, who served in the New Jersey State Legislature from the early 1940s through the early 1970s. Both scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings related to the activities of Senator Farley. They were donated to the Atlantic City Free Public Library by David D. Dorflinger in 1997. The first of the three scrapbooks in this set was compiled by James Farley and includes articles about Hap Farley’s activities in 1941. The other two books were compiled by unknown creators and chronicle Hap Farley’s political career from 1945-1946 and 1960-1962, respectively.
Franklin Pierce Stoy served as mayor of Atlantic City from 1894 to 1897. News of his death in 1911 was widespread, reaching as far away as West Virginia. Two scrapbooks commemorate his death: one is a book of newspaper clippings – locally and nationally – that describe Mayor Stoy’s death. The second is a City Council resolution memorializing the mayor. The provenance of the Franklin Pierce Stoy scrapbooks is unknown. It was discovered within the Heston Collection in January 2007 during a collection inventory.
Box four of the collection contains one scrapbook. Similar to the Martha Leeds Bartlett and Ruth Hersh scrapbooks, the Peggy Collins scrapbook documents the life of a teenage woman attending Atlantic City High School in 1926 and 1927. Its contents include photographs, letters and other mementos of Peggy Collins’ high school experience. It was acquired by ACFPL in 2007 from a private collector.
Box five of the collection contains one scrapbook, containing materials from the 1954 Centennial. It has been photocopied and unbound because of preservation issues. Box five, folders 1-8 have the photocopies of the pages from the original scrapbook. Other materials in the collection include original items such as advertisements, invitations, correspondence, programs, and magazines. These were removed from the scrapbook and placed in folders. Several issues of newspapers were kept and placed in plastic sleeves in the back of the box. These newspapers include commemorative editions of the Centennial celebration and are in good condition. This scrapbook is a comprehensive collection of the 1954 Centennial detailing events that took place. All of the dates of items in the scrapbook are of 1954.
“City and Area History in Newsprint and Heston Family Genealogy. How New Jersey was settled.” The title of the scrapbook was taken from the original bound volume, however, there was not a Heston Family Genealogy in the book. Furthermore, most of the articles were from after Heston’s death and no connection to Alfred Heston is evident in this scrapbook. This scrapbook was in poor condition; articles from the scrapbook have been indexed and may be viewed on microfilm. The original scrapbook is not available for viewing.
It should be noted that prior to processing, six additional collections – Joe Hooker Post #32 (H041), Col JJ Astor Camp (H073), Gladys Lody Collection (H074), Ed Davis Collection (H075), Bonnie Josephine Collection (H076) and WPG Radio Collection (H077) – were once housed with the ACFPL Scrapbooks Collection. Given that these collections were not truly scrapbooks, they were disassociated from this collection (H035) and given their own collection numbers.
OTHER INFORMATION FOR USERS OF THE COLLECTION
Access Points:
Atlantic City (N.J.)
Atlantic City Centennial Celebration, 1954
Atlantic City High School
Farley, Frank S.
Garden Pier Theatre (Organization: Atlantic City, N.J.)
Stoy, Franklin Pierce
Scrapbooks
Related Materials:
Atlantic City High School Yearbooks
Alfred M. Heston Semi-Centennial Scrapbooks
LHSF – Schools – Vocational Schools
LHSF – Garden Pier
LHSF – History of Atlantic City – Anniversaries
Processing Note: The collection is processed. Finding aid written by Shannon O’Neill, archivist, August 2011. Additional materials were added to the collection and the finding aid was updated by Pam Richter, archivist, April 2013.
Copyright Notice: While the Atlantic City Free Public Library owns the collection, the Library may not own the copyright for the photographs. Researchers wishing to reproduce materials are responsible for obtaining the proper permission.
ITEM LIST
Box 1
Item 1 Atlantic City Centennial Celebration Scrapbook, 1952-1954
Box 2
Item 1 Atlantic City Centennial Celebration Scrapbook, 1953-1954
Box 3
Item 1 Dorflinger Collection Frank S. (Hap) Farley Scrapbook 1941
Item 2 Dorflinger Collection Frank S. (Hap) Farley Scrapbook 1945-1946
Item 3 Dorflinger Collection Frank S. (Hap) Farley Scrapbook 1960-1962
Item 4 Franklin Pierce Stoy Memorial Scrapbook – Clippings, 1911
Item 5 Franklin Pierce Stoy Memorial Scrapbook – City Council Resolution, 1911
Item 6 Margaret Werth Scrapbook, 1920s-1930s
Item 7 Martha Leeds Bartlett Atlantic City High School Scrapbook, 1914
Item 8 Ruth Hersh Atlantic City High School Scrapbook, 1927-1931
[note: Ruth Hersh diploma is housed separately]
Box 4
Item 1 Peggy Collins Atlantic City High School Scrapbook 1926-1927
Box 5
Item 1 Atlantic City Centennial Scrapbook
Box 5 Folder 1 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 2 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 3 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 4 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 5 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 6 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 7 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 8 Scrapbook Pages
Folder 9 Invitations
Folder 10 Advertisements
Folder 11 Programs
Folder 12 Programs
Folder 13 Magazines
Folder 14 Correspondence
Folder 15 Miscellaneous
Folder 16 “City and Area History in Newsprint and Heston Family Genealogy. How New Jersey was settled.” Index of articles.
- OTHER Several sleeves of newspapers
Note: Some items in the ACFPL Scrapbooks Collection are very fragile. Advance notice must be given in order to view some of the materials in this collection. At the discretion of the archivist, surrogate copies may be supplied rather than the originals. See administrative note in the orange file about the collection for more details.