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2008 Annual Meeting - St. Louis - May 1-3

In the spring of each year St. Louis provides a wonderful array of activities that bring visitors from many places in Asia and Europe as well as North America. People are interested in visiting the city's world class Botanical Garden, Zoo, historic buildings that were part of the 1904 World's Fair and the historic Mississippi River levee that features the world famous Gateway Arch. The Arch houses a detailed exhibit of the 1803-1804 Lewis and Clark Expedition. For those interested in viewing the city from 630 feet in the air, trams transport at regular intervals to the top of the Saarinen structure.

But, for the members of the American Historical Print Collectors Society, there is much more. In addition to the special features that the city offers its visitors year round, AHPCS members will receive special attention at several of the areas premiere cultural centers.

St. Louis Court House in 1840 Looking North From Market and Fourth Street. It stands today as testimony to the era of slavery in the United States. The Dred Scott case that had been tried there ruled that Dred Scott was a slave and this decision was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1857. (Image courtesy, James E. and Joan Singer Schiele Print Collection, Washington University in St. Louis)

Following registration at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Clayton, which adjoins St. Louis, a full days activities have been planned for Thursday, May 1. Registration at the hotel and for the annual meeting has been simplified by the kind offer of the hotel to hand each of the members their meeting packet when registering. Incidentally, the hotel is beautifully located in Clayton, which is the county seat of St. Louis County; Clayton has a wonderful assortment of restaurants which will be featured in the meeting packet.

Following the board meeting on Thursday morning, the membership will leave The Ritz by bus for Washington University, only minutes away. The membership will be welcomed by Anne Posega, Head of Special Collections in the Olin Library. The keynote address will be given by Professor Iver Bernstein, professor of American history and author of "The New York City Draft Riots: Their Significance for American Society and Politics in the Age of the Civil War." Professor Bernstein's topic on Thursday will be "Revitalizing America: The Political and Cultural Accomplishments of Image Making in the Civil War Era." His address will include images taken from the Schiele Collection which is housed in Special Collections. After Professor Bernstein's talk, Carmon Colangelo, Dean of the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts, which houses both the schools of art and architecture as well as the Kemper Museum, will address the group. His talk will be about "Design for Change and Shaping the Collaborative Vision for the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts." At that point, the group will divide into two. One group will walk with Dean Colangelo through the university to the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum. The visit will include a tour of the permanent collection. Jim Schiele will give the second group a description of the Schiele Print Collection and will show the group a selection of prints from the Collection which includes wood engravings, steel engravings, lithographs, chromolithographs, and a few sketches that span the latter period of the Abolition movement in 1848 through the Civil War, Emancipation and Reconstruction. The historic period of the collection concludes in 1876 with the end of the Grant administration, termination of Reconstruction and the event at the Little Big Horn River. After the groups switch, the membership will head back to The Ritz to prepare for a private dinner at Luciano's Trattoria, adjacent to the hotel. Show, Tell and Sell will be held after dinner at the hotel.

Curator of Prints, Drawings and Photographs, Dr. Francesca Consagra, will host the membership Friday morning at the St. Louis Art Museum. She will talk about some of the prints that we will see that include Audubons and Binghams. After the group is divided, one will gather in the Special Print Section of the museum to look through 50 preselected prints while the others are led by a museum docent through several exhibits including "Quilts in a Material World: Selections from the Winterthur Collection." This outstanding collection features about 50 quilts that range in date from the 1700s to 1850 and provide interesting information about material culture in the first years of the American republic.

Following lunch in the museum's restaurant overlooking the Sculpture Terrace, the entire group shall proceed to the Library and Research Center of the Missouri Historical Society. Dr. Robert Archibald, president of the Society, will talk about the role that it plays in collecting and maintaining items related to the culture and history of St. Louis and of Missouri and will offer a wide selection of prints for viewing. The second part of the Missouri Historical Society visit will include a tour of the History Museum in Forest Park which is about a five minute bus ride from the Research Center. The museum houses the only known significant portrait of Dred Scott, the former slave finally granted his freedom in 1858 following a famous United States Supreme Court decision in 1857 that had kept him in servitude. The AHPCS will be privileged to hear an address by Lynne Jackson, a great, great granddaughter of Dred Scott and a leader in maintaining the historical significance of Dred Scott in our nation's history. Dred Scott is buried in the Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis.

Friday evening is an open time when members can choose to dine at one of the many local restaurants. There will likely be a few seats available for the Friday Cardinals' baseball game versus the Chicago Cubs; more information forthcoming.

The Annual Meeting of the AHPCS shall take place Saturday morning at the hotel. As a prologue to the meeting, Martha Catchpole, Art Archivist at the Library and Archives Canada, will give a talk on the introduction of greeting cards to North America, with special attention to the work of Louis Prang. At approximately 11 a.m. the Society will board a bus to visit the Mercantile Library, the oldest research library west of the Mississippi, housed at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. John Hoover, Director and a wonderful friend known to a number of the members, has generously offered to host us at the Mercantile Library. He will talk about the growth of the historical print collection at the Library and its origins. The Mercantile boasts a collection that spans the last four centuries with a strong concentration in 19th-century works, including prints, maps, photographs and paintings, which the group will tour after John's presentation. John has been more than generous in offering to host lunch for the members at the Library. Saturday night at The Ritz includes dinner and the traditional auction.

For participants who are able to arrive early and/or extend their stay, St. Louis offers many venues worth visiting. The light rail, with the Forsyth Station just across the street from the hotel, is a great means of getting to attractions in St. Louis.

The Gateway Arch (www.gatewayarch.com) has been a popular attraction since its completion in 1965. Designed by architect Eero Saarinen, the Arch is the tallest national monument in the United States. Just take MetroLink to The Gateway Arch-Laclede's Landing station. From there, it's only a 5-minute walk. Nearby is the Saint Louis Historical Old Courthouse (www.slfp.com/OldCourthouse.html ), also part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Park. Architect William Rumbold modeled the wrought and cast iron dome after St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. A special exhibit, Dred Scott, Slavery and The Struggle to Be Free, is currently on display in the Rotunda of the Old Courthouse. The exhibit describes several aspects of African-American society and culture, from slavery to free black business owners to the "colored aristocracy" of rich landowners.

The Missouri Botanical Garden is easily accessible by taking the MetroLink to the Central West End station and picking up a Metro bus. Founded in 1859, the Garden is one of the oldest botanical institutions in the country and a National Historic Landmark. The 79 acres of beautiful horticultural display includes a 14-acre Japanese strolling garden, the Climatron conservatory, and Garden founder Henry Shaw's original 1850 estate home.

The Saint Louis Zoo is located in Forest Park. With the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in 1904, there began a process to establish a zoological park. In 1910 the giant elliptical bird cage led to formation of a St. Louis Zoological Society. The City of St. Louis set aside 77 acres in 1913 for the zoo.

Visitors to the beautiful Forest Park should take time to visit the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, close to the east end of the park on Lindell Boulevard. It features the world's largest collection of mosaic art.

The Loop in University City, just five minutes from Clayton, is a vibrant six-block area with more than 140 specialty shops, eclectic restaurants, galleries and live entertainment. A major portion of the area is designated as an Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. The American Planning Association has selected The Loop as one of the 10 Great Streets in America.

— James Schiele, meeting chairperson

We invite you to join AHPCS or renew your membership immediately by filling out and submitting our online membership form. You will pay your dues through an online payment processor (via credit card or electronic transfer).

The annual meeting is open to all members. Held in a different city each year, the annual meeting is designed to broaden collectors' horizons through cooperation with the leading institutions of the host city, which provide meeting rooms and auditoriums, behind the scenes tours, and exhibits of special interest to AHPCS members.

Download a registration form as a Word document.

Meeting headquarters will be the The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Clayton, which adjoins St. Louis. The hotel is holding a block of rooms at a discounted rate until April 11. If you do not already have reservations, call immediately to inquire about getting your room held at the conference rate. The hotel phone number is 314-863-6300. Be sure to mention your affiliation with the American Historical Print Collectors Society.