The collection is divided into five series; Genealogy, Correspondence Courses, Violins and Other Instruments, Periodicals (in Walloon), and Miscellaneous.
The papers contain a considerable amount of information of the GENEALOGY of the Ropson (Robson) and Collins (maiden name of the mother of Louis) families, including hand-written family trees and pedigree charts, and copies of birth, marriage, and in several cities and villages in Belgium, as well as other miscellaneous materials dealing with Belgian genealogy. Also included is general correspondence with cousins, Walloon authors, and others, written in English, and French or possibly Walloon.
Comments by his CORRESPONDENCE COURSE teachers reflect Mr. Ropson’s difficulty with the understanding of the English language and his desire to comprehend the languages. The papers include the exercises for both the grammar and counterpoint courses, along with Mr. Ropson’s comments and questions and those of the teachers.
The papers concerning the making of VIOLINS, violas, and cellos are quite complete. The material on organs is scanty. The collection does not contain a complete record of all the instruments he made. Included in the collection is a nearly complete run of the International Violin and Guitar Markers and Musicians Journal from 1962-1971. The collection also includes a few catalogs of musical instruments. There is correspondence with appraisers and individuals interested in purchasing his instruments and there are a few manufacturing patterns for instruments.
The PERIODICALS include runs of El Bourdon Falaises, 1965-1974; Les Cahiers Wallons, 1947-1979; and Le Guetteur Wallon, 1965-1968. These are literary periodicals in the Walloon language, which contain poetry, literature, and music.
The MISCELLANEOUS series includes the scripts of some plays in Walloon, tape recordings of music, poetry, and conversations, letters, correspondence between Louis Ropson and friends and relatives in Belgium, a few phonograph records, and family photographs. Many of the photographs, particularly from the United States, are unidentified.
The collection includes a violin made by Ropson which is numbered “1”.
