Summary Information
William Donahey Papers 1914-1969
- Donahey, William, 1883-1970
Mss 156; PH 3575 (5); PH 3576 (3); PH 3576 (5); PH 3577 (5); PH 3578 (5); PH 3579 (3); PH 3580 (5); PH 3581 (5); PH 3582 (3); PH 3583; PH 3584; PH 4222 (3); M2010-023
3.0 cubic feet (8 archives boxes) and 0.1 cubic feet (1 oversize folder), 635 drawings, 260 pieces of ephemera, 2.2 cubic feet of newspaper tear sheets; plus additions of 0.2 cubic feet (1 archives box)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Papers of William Donahey, creator of the “Teenie Weenies,” the syndicated cartoon strip of the Chicago Tribune, and other cartoons including “Mr. Nickledick” and “Pixeys,” consisting chiefly of correspondence and writings. Correspondence includes fan mail and general letters concerning merchandising of the Teenie Weenie characters. Writings consist of 16 Teenie Weenie books with supplementary contracts, financial papers, and drafts for two unpublished volumes. Also present are copies of three children's books and various visual materials that Donahey illustrated. English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00156 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
William Donahey, creator of the Teenie Weenie cartoons, was born in Westchester, Ohio, on October 19, 1883, to John C. and Letitia (Chaney) Donahey. After graduating from the Cleveland School of Art in 1903, he worked briefly in advertising before joining the staff of the Cleveland Plain Dealer as an artist; his brother James was the paper's political cartoonist. Also on the staff was Mary Dickerson, a special writer for the Sunday issue and later an author of juvenile fiction. Donahey and Miss Dickerson were married on August 16, 1905.
Donahey began to specialize in children's cartoons for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Reacting against the physical violence then current in cartoons like “The Katzenjammer Kids,” he first illustrated Mother Goose rhymes and then his own verses and stories. When these productions came to the attention of James Medill Patterson of the Chicago Tribune, Patterson offered him a regular position as a cartoonist. For the Chicago Tribune, Donahey created the Teenie Weenie cartoons about a self-sufficient society of people only two inches tall. Their hallmarks were gentility, a dedication to hard work, and a simple morality. “The Teenie Weenies” were published in the Sunday comics from 1914 to 1970, except during the post-World War I paper shortage, which lasted for about ten years. The strip was syndicated in newspapers throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Cuba. It became the oldest comic series continuously drawn by the original author.
The popularity of the cartoons was so great that, as early as 1917, the first Teenie Weenie book was published; more than a dozen followed, and some were translated into French, Spanish, and Portuguese. In the 1920s there was a good market for Teenie Weenie toys and dolls. And, in 1925 the Reid-Murdoch Company introduced a line of Teenie Weenie canned goods, among which were peanut butter, pickles, and sardines.
Until his death in 1970, Donahey continued the Teenie Weenie cartoons. His wife wrote many feature articles about his cartoon characters until her death in 1962.
Arrangement of the Materials
This collection was received in multiple parts from the donor(s) and is organized into 2 major parts. These materials have not been physically interfiled and researchers might need to consult more than one part to locate similar materials.
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Part 1 (Mss 156, PH 3575 (5), PH 3576 (3), PH 3576 (5), PH 3577 (5), PH 3578 (5), PH 3579 (3), PH 3580 (5), PH 3581 (5), PH 3582 (3), PH 3583, PH 3584, PH 4222 (3)): Original Collection, 1914-1969
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Part 2 (M2010-023): Additions, 2007
Related Material
William Donahey's Teenie Weenies - Image Gallery Essay available online; includes digitized portions of the William Donahey Papers.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by William Donahey and his estate, Chicago, Illinois, 1964 and 1970; by Mrs. C. E. Loucks, Beloit, Wisconsin, 1975; and by Will Walton, Carrollton, Ohio, 1998. Accession Number: MCHC64-92, MCHC70-40, MCHC70-48, MCHC70-58, MCHC 75-95, M2010-023
Processed by Eleanor McKay and Karen Baumann, April 26, 1971.
Contents List
Mss 156
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Part 1 (Mss 156, PH 3575 (5), PH 3576 (3), PH 3576 (5), PH 3577 (5), PH 3578 (5), PH 3579 (3), PH 3580 (5), PH 3581 (5), PH 3582 (3), PH 3583, PH 3584, PH 4222 (3)): Original Collection, 1914-19693.0 cubic feet (8 archives boxes) and 0.1 cubic feet (1 oversize folder), 635 drawings, 260 pieces of ephemera, and 2.2 cubic feet of newspaper tear sheets The Donahey papers, 1914-1969, include correspondence, clippings, book and music manuscripts, Donahey's published books, books he illustrated, and business and financial papers. The material is arranged chronologically by date of original publication within these series: Correspondence, Biographical Clippings, Writings, and Books Illustrated by Donahey; also includes the series Visual Materials. The general correspondence concerns the merchandizing of Teenie Weenie toys, the radio and movie use of the cartoon characters, and the publication of Teenie Weenie books. There are also letters concerning patents and the prosecution of unauthorized commercial use of the Teenie Weenies. The fan mail offers praise of the Teenie Weenies from readers of all ages. Newspaper and magazine articles describing Donahey's career and
his cartoons can be found in the folder of biographical clippings. In the writings series is the material on “The Teenie Weenies”,
which forms the bulk of this collection. It includes three typed manuscripts, sixteen published books, contracts and other financial papers, photographs and samples for advertisements featuring the Teenie Weenies, and clippings. Also included in this series are drafts of two unpublished books, miscellaneous drafts of shorter fiction pieces, and music manuscripts for which Donahey contributed the lyrics. Books Illustrated by Donahey series includes three books, published in 1918 and 1921. The Visual Materials series concerns early cartoon strips as well as “The Teenie Weenies” and is comprised of pencil drawings, pen and ink and watercolor sketches, strips, and scrapbooks of newspaper columns.
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Series: Correspondence
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General correspondence
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Box
1
Folder
1
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1914 December-1920 December
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Box
1
Folder
2
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1921 January-December
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Box
1
Folder
3
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1922 January-1927 December
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Box
1
Folder
4
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1928 January-1933 October
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Box
1
Folder
5
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1935 September-1942 December
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Box
2
Folder
1
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1943 February-1949 December
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Box
2
Folder
2
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1950 August-1964 September
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Fan mail
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Box
2
Folder
3
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1914 January-1915 November
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Box
2
Folder
4
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1916 January-1919 December
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Box
2
Folder
5
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1920 January-1921 December
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Box
2
Folder
6
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1922 January-1929 March
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Box
2
Folder
7
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1933 October-1943 December
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Box
3
Folder
1
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1944 January-1949 November
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Box
3
Folder
2
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1950 February-1959 November
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Box
3
Folder
3
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1960 January-1964 July, undated
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Box
3
Folder
3a
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Replies, 1963-1966
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Box
3
Folder
4
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Series: Biographical Clippings, 1930s-1967
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Series: Writings
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“The Teenie Weenies”
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Book manuscripts
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Box
3
Folder
5
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Teenie Weenie Neighbors, 1945
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Box
3
Folder
6
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Teenie Weenie Camping, circa 1950s
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Box
3
Folder
7
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Untitled, 1968 March-1969 December
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Published books
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PH 4222 (3)
[Volume
1]
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The Teenie Weenies, 1916
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Mss 156
Box
4
Volume
2
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The Teenie Weenies with Effie E. Baker, 1917
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Box
4
Volume
3
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Adventures of the Teenie Weenies, 1920
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Box
4
Volume
4
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Adventures of the Teenie Weenies (Junior Edition), 1920
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Box
4
Volume
5
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Down the River With the Teenie Weenies, 1921
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Box
4
Volume
6
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Down the River With the Teenie Weenies (Junior Edition), 1940
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Box
5
Volume
7
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The Teenie Weenies Under the Rosebush, 1922
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Box
5
Volume
8
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The Teenie Weenies Under the Rosebush (Junior Edition), 1922
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Box
5
Volume
9
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The Teenie Weenies in the Wildwood, 1923
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Box
5
Volume
10
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The Teenie Weenies in the Wildwood (Junior Edition), 1940
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Box
5
Volume
11
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Teenie Weenies Land with Effie E. Baker, 1923
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Box
5
Volume
12
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Alice and the Teenie Weenies, 1927
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Box
5
Volume
13
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Teenie Weenie Town, 1942
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Box
5
Volume
14
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Teenie Weenie Days, 1944
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Box
5
Volume
15
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Teenie Weenie Neighbors, 1945
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Box
5
Volume
16
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The Teenie Weenies comic book (#10), 1950
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Financial papers
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Box
6
Folder
1
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Contracts, 1915 January-1945 December
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Box
6
Folder
2
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Miscellaneous, 1922 December-1955 February
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Advertising
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Box
6
Folder
3
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Reid-Murdoch and Company, 1925-1929
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Box
6
Folder
4
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Photographs, 1926-1962
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Box
6
Folder
5
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Miscellaneous authorized, 1926
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Box
6
Folder
6
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Unauthorized, 1914-1933
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Clippings
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Box
6
Folder
8
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“Mr. Nickeldick,” 1925 September-1926 August
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Box
6
Folder
9
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“Ruff Stuff,” 1913-1914
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Box
6
Folder
10
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“Teenie Weenies,” 1942 October-1950 May
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Buddy
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Box
6
Folder
8
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First draft, 1938
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Box
7
Folder
1
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Second draft, 1938
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Tales of Puckerbush
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Box
7
Folder
2
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First draft, 1948
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Box
7
Folder
3
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Second draft, 1948
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Box
7
Folder
4
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Miscellaneous drafts, circa 1938, 1953, undated
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Box
7
Folder
5
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Music manuscripts, lyrics by Donahey, undated
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Series: Books Illustrated by Donahey
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Box
7
Folder
6
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Billy and the Major, 1918 (Volume 17)
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Box
8
Folder
1
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The Children's Mother Goose, 1921 (Volume 18)
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Box
8
Folder
2
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The Teenie Weenie Man's Mother Goose, 1921 (Volume 19)
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Series: Visual Materials
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“The Teenie Weenies” cartoon series
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PH 3575 (5)
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Pen and pen and watercolor illustrations, 1914-1970 256 drawings (3 flat boxes)
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PH 3576 (5)
Box
2
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Proofs, 1914-1917
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Box
2
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Duplicate tear sheets, 1914-1970
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Box
2
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Tear sheets, 1914-1917
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Box
1
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Tear sheets, 1918-1923
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Box
1
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1923
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Box
1
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Proofs, 1918-1923
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Oversize Folder
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Tear sheets and 1 drawing, 1914, 1916, circa 1923-1934
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PH 3576 (3)
Box
3
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1933-1934, 1941-1942
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Box
4
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1943-1950
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Box
5
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1951-1960
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Box
6
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1961-1970
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PH 3577 (5)
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Pen and ink drawings, watercolor drawings, and tear sheets for the books Teenie Weenie Town, Teenie Weenie Days, and Teenie Weenie Neighbors, 1942-1945 83 drawings and 56 pieces of ephemera (1 flat box)
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PH 3578 (5)
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Pen and ink drawings, watercolor drawings, pencil sketches, and advertising material 33 drawings and 19 pieces of ephemera (1 flat box) : Includes the books The Teenie Weenies Music Book for Piano (1921) and The Teenie Weenies Their Book (1927).
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PH 3579 (3)
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Newspaper tear sheets of the cartoon series “The Pixeys,” 1925 24 pieces of ephemera (1 folder)
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PH 3580 (5)
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Drawings, newspaper tearsheets, posters, and proof sheets of illustrations for children's stories published in the Chicago Tribune and Cleveland Plain Dealer, circa 1910-1916 28 drawings and 94 pieces of ephemera (3 flat boxes) : Included are illustrations for “Mother Goose Tales,” “Jack Sprat,” “Old King Cole,” “Silly Loon,” “Sweet Meats,” “Gatehouse Stories,” “Polly's Prince,” and “Tales from the Arabian Knights.”
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PH 3581 (5)
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Pen and ink drawings, watercolor drawings, sketches, and tear sheets for various projects by Donahey, 1914-circa 1970 60 drawings and 2 pieces of ephemera (1 flat box) : Includes cartoon characterizations, fairy tales, portraits, fruit, etc.
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PH 3582 (3)
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Newspaper and magazine clippings, page proofs and reproductions of illustrations and stories by Donahey 1 folder : Includes “Mr. Nickledick” (Chicago Tribune), “Ruff Stuff” (Cleveland Plain Dealer), and stories in Red Book Magazine, Green Book Magazine, and What to Do.
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PH 3583
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Pen and ink drawings and watercolor illustrations for “Mr. Nickledick” 175 drawings : Includes title blocks and cartoon panels. Some of the panels are in full color.
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Box
1
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1925 September-December
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Box
1
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1926 January-February
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Box
1
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1926 March-April
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Box
1
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1926 May-August
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Box
1
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1948
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PH 3584
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Political and humorous cartoons by Donahey published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer 65 pieces of ephemera : Includes commentary on Theodore Roosevelt, William Jennings Bryan, the weather, Mexican Revolution, automobile hazards, Republican Convention of 1912, and Donahey's impressions on a trip West.
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Box
1
Folder
1
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Page proofs, newspaper clippings
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Photocopies of drawings : Chronological
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M2010-023
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Part 2 (M2010-023): Additions, 2007 0.2 cubic feet (1 archives box) : Digital facsimilies of publications and product advertising prepared as part of an exhibit of Donahey drawings, 2007.
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