Jehu Dewitt Paulson Papers
MC 00056
Special Collections Research Center
11.6 Linear feet
5 boxes, 15 flat folders, 4 flat boxes
1922-1972, 2011
This collection documents Jehu Dewitt Paulson's career as an artist and educator and contains drawings, paintings, prints, plates, photographs and illustrations for published and unpublished manuscripts. The Personal files include Paulson's application for a Guggenheim Fellowship (1934), photographs of Paulson and his family, certificates of memberships to various societies and fraternities, a curriculum vitae, and notes from his college years. The North Carolina State College series includes class notes, a partial history of the Department of Architecture, course materials and notes on the appreciation of paintings. The Building Images subseries contains photographs, pencil sketches and plates of various campus buildings, including Memorial Tower, Primrose Hall, and Pullen Hall. Files of picture clippings on varied subjects (architecture, bridge building, interiors, landscaping, murals, paintings and sculpture, etc.) comprise another series. The Writings, Research and Inventions series contains identifications of paintings (by painter and subject), correspondence regarding the identification process, and published writings, including
The Exterior Form of the Solitary Atom (1952), and unpublished manuscripts ("Appreciation of Painting," "Escape from Atlantis," and "People Makers, a Fantasy of Evolution"). Among the inventions are plans for an elevated storage tower and for an improved internal combustion rotary motor. Also included in this series are subject files of picture clippings on varied subjects (architecture, bridge building, interiors, landscaping, murals, paintings and sculpture, etc.). The Paintings, Sketches, Drawings, and Designs series comprise a good representation of Paulson's original artwork. This series also contains drawings and related papers on The Forms of the Elementary Atoms and The Periodic Law. The Photographic series contains undated photos of various atoms and elements. The Family Papers series contains a printed book on family history.
Jehu Dewitt Paulson (1893-1972), an artist and educator, served on the faculty of the Department of Architecture at North Carolina State College from 1925 to 1961.
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the
Special Collections Research Center Reference Staff.
5 boxes, 15 flat folders, 4 flat boxes, 1 halfbox
Paulson, Jehu Dewitt, 1893-1972
Access to Collection
This collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice.
Acquisitions Information
Gift of Mr. James Devlin, February 24, 1972; Gift of Mrs. Stanley Ballenger, April 21 and 28, 1972; Gift of Donald J. Mack Jr., 2009; Gift of Dr. George Paulson, 2012 (Accession 2012.0125)
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Jehu Dewitt Paulson Papers, MC 00056, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
Copyright Notice
The nature of the NCSU Libraries' Special Collections means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The NCSU Libraries claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials.
The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.
Processing Information
Processed by Edith Woodcock,
1997; Encoded by Linda Sellars,
2005; Updated by Aaron Cusick, 2009 November; Updated by Judy Allen Dodson, 2010 July
Biographical Note
December 20, 1893
Born in Council Bluffs, Iowa (At some point in his childhood he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he attended public school.)
1911 - 1913
Attended Allegheny College, Meadville, Pennsylvania
1913 - 1914
Completed Business Course at Meadville Commercial College, Meadville, Pennsylvania
1914 - 1915
Attended Yale College, New Haven, Connecticut
1915 - 1918
Employed as a stenographer and statistical draftsman for the Winchester Repeating Arms Co.
1918
Became a statistical draftsman for the Ordnance Department of the U.S. War Department
1918 - 1919
Served in the U.S. Army with Infantry in France as a private, first class
1919 - 1921
Employed as a statistician with the U.S. Rubber Company
1921 - 1924
Employed as clerk at Witlock's Book Store, New Haven, Connecticut while in school
1920 - 1924
Attended Yale School of Fine Arts, New Haven, Connecticut; Earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in mural decorating and painting (1924)
1924 - 1925
Employed as a commercial artist for Witlock's Book Store, New Haven, Connecticut
1925 - 1960
Employed by North Carolina State College, Raleigh, North Carolina as a professor of architecture and drawing. During his tenure he often did artwork for the college, including the NCS emblem on the floor at the entrance of Reynolds Coliseum. He retired in 1961.
1941
Certified to practice architecture in North Carolina
1943
Initiated into Sigma Chi Fraternity at North Carolina State College
1946
Designed set of six North Carolina State College commemorative plates which were sold by the Alumni Association
February 13, 1972
Died in Raleigh, North Carolina; Survived by his son George W. Paulson, daughter Mrs. Pat McManus, and six grandchildren
Scope and Content Note
This collection documents Jehu Dewitt Paulson's career as an artist and educator and contains drawings, paintings, prints, plates, photographs and illustrations for published and unpublished manuscripts. The Personal files include Paulson's application for a Guggenheim Fellowship (1934), photographs of Paulson and his family, certificates of memberships to various societies and fraternities, a curriculum vitae, and notes from his college years. The North Carolina State College series includes class notes, a partial history of the Department of architecture, course materials and notes on the appreciation of paintings. The Building Images subseries contains photographs, pencil sketches and plates of various campus buildings, including Memorial Tower, Primrose Hall, and Pullen Hall. Files of picture clippings on varied subjects (architecture, bridge building, interiors, landscaping, murals, paintings and sculpture, etc.) comprise another series. The Writings, Research and Inventions series contains identifications of paintings (by painter and subject), correspondence regarding the identification process, and published writings, including
The Exterior Form of the Solitary Atom (1952), and unpublished manuscripts ("Appreciation of Painting," "Escape from Atlantis," and "People Makers, a Fantasy of Evolution"). Among the inventions are plans for an elevated storage tower and for an improved internal combustion rotary motor. The Paintings, Sketches, Drawings, and Designs series comprise a good representation of Paulson's original artwork. For Howard M. Ellis's drawings from Paulson's Elements of Design Class (1926-1927), see North Carolina State University Library Manuscript Collection 175. This series also contains drawings and related papers on The Forms of the Elementary Atoms and The Periodic Law. The Photographs series contains undated photos of various atoms and elements. The Family Papers series contains a printed book on family history.
Organization of the Collection
The collection is divided into seven series:
[Personal Papers](ref14);
[North Carolina State College Papers](ref44);
[Picture Clippings](ref105);
[Research, Writings, and Inventions](ref160);
[Paintings, Drawings, Sketches, and Designs](ref177);
[Photographs](ref208); and
[Family Papers](ref216).
North Carolina State University.
Paulson, Jehu Dewitt, 1893-1972
Architects--North Carolina
Architectural design
Architectural drawings
Architecture
Art
Art teachers
Art--Slides
Artists as architects
Artists as authors
Artists as teachers
Artists' preparatory studies
Artists' writings
Artists--North Carolina
Arts--Reproduction
Atomic orbitals
Atomic structure
Atoms--Models
Authors, American--North Carolina
Clippings
Decoration and ornament
Designers--North Carolina
Drawing--Private collections
Drawing--Study and teaching
Drawings
Figure painting
Inventions
Inventors--North Carolina
Map drawing
Painters--North Carolina
Painting
Painting, American
Painting, American--North Carolina
Painting--Private collections
Painting--Reproduction
Pen drawing
Pencil drawing
Periodic law
Raleigh (N.C.)
Science writers
Scientific illustrations
Small art works
Universities and colleges in art
Universities and colleges--Faculty
Watercolor painting
Personal Papers
MC 00056 Series 1
0.5 Linear feet
27 folders
Scope and Contents note
This series consists of various personal photographs, certificates, and correspondence, including a statement answering to charges of insubordination at North Carolina State. This series also contains Paulson's art history notebook compiled from lectures at Yale School of Fine Arts.
Personal (Correspondence, Certificates)
1
1
Art History Notebook: Introduction and Overview of Ancient - 15th Century Art
1
2
Art History Notebook: Egyptian and Assyrian Art
1
3
Art History Notebook: Greek Art
1
4
Art History Notebook: Italian (Roman) Art
1
5
Art History Notebook: Italian (Medieval Mosaics)
1
6
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
7
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
8
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
9
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
10
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
11
Art History Notebook: Netherlands
1
12
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
13
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
14
Art History Notebook: Overview of 16th-19th Century Art
1
15
Art History Notebook: Italian Art
1
16
Art History Notebook: Flemish, Dutch Art
1
17
Art History Notebook: Dutch Art
1
18
Art History Notebook: German Art
1
19
Art History Notebook: French Art
1
20
Art History Notebook: French Art
1
21
Art History Notebook: Spanish Art
1
22
Art History Notebook: English Art
1
23
Art History Notebook: American Art
1
24
Photograph of Paulson (Housed in Photograph Collection, People, Faculty, Box 9)
1
25
Photograph of Paulson, his wife, and son, George (Housed in Photograph Collection, People, Faculty, Box 9)
1
26
Certificate to Practice Architecture in North Carolina, 1941
1
27
North Carolina State College
MC 00056 Series 2
71 folders
Scope and Contents note
The material in this series relates directly to North Carolina State College. It includes a report of Paulson's trip through several northern states in connection with the development of fine arts courses for North Carolina State. Also housed in this series are lecture notes, textbook outlines, and worksheets used in courses taught by Paulson. Finally the series contains a series of sketches and photographs of North Carolina State campus buildings. Some of these drawings were used for the set of commemorative plates sold by the North Carolina State University Alumni Association in 1946.
Report of trip North
MC 56 Series 2.1
1 folder
Report of trip North in regards to the development of fine arts courses for North Carolina State College
1
28
Materials Used in Courses Taught
MC 56 Series 2.2
8 folders
Color Change Chart
1
29
"Design of What?"
1
30
Notes and Textbook Outlines for Courses
1
31
Architecture 100: Pencil Sketching
1
32
Architecture 106: Decorative Drawing
2
1
Anatomy Drawings
2
2
The University Prints, Boston
2
3
Prints and Tracings
2
4
Holladay Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Holladay 1921 - 1950)
2
15
Building Images
MC 56 Series 2.3
43 folders
Bagwell, Berry, and Becton (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Residence Halls)
2
5
Barns (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Barns)
2
6
Barns (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Barns)
2
7
Brooks Hall, sketch
2
8
Brooks Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Hill (Now Brooks) Exterior, Hill Library)
2
9
Chancellor's Residence, sketch
2
10
Chancellor's Residence (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Chancellor's Residence)
2
11
Daniels Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Daniels)
2
12
Holladay Hall, plate design
2
13
Holladay Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Holladay 1889 - 1920)
2
17
Holladay Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Holladay 1921 - 1950)
2
14
Holladay Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Holladay 1921 - 1950)
2
16
Leazar Hall, sketch
2
18
Leazar Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Leazar
2
19
Memorial Tower, sketch
2
20
Memorial Tower, watercolor, 10" X 13"
2
21
Nineteen Eleven Building, sketch
2
22
Owen Hall, plate design
2
23
Page Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Page)
2
24
Page Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Page)
2
25
Patterson Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Patterson)
2
26
Peele Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Peele)
2
27
Peele Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Peele)
2
28
Peele, Pullen, and Tompkins Halls, sketch, 11" X 15"
2
29
Polk Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Polk)
2
30
Power House, sketch
2
31
Power House (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Power House)
2
32
Primrose Hall, sketches and plate design
2
33
Primrose Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Primrose)
2
34
Pullen Hall
2
35
Pullen Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Pullen)
2
36
Reynolds Coliseum, William Neal
2
37
Ricks Hall, sketch
2
38
Ricks Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Ricks)
2
39
Ricks Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Ricks)
2
40
Thompson Hall, sketch
2
41
Thompson Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Thompson)
2
42
Thompson Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Thompson)
2
43
Tompkins Hall (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Tompkins)
2
44
Watauga Hall, plate design
2
45
Zoology (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Zoology)
2
46
Zoology (Housed in Photograph Collection, Buildings, Zoology)
2
47
Picture Clippings
MC 00056 Series 3
24 folders
Scope and Contents note
This series consists of pictures clipped from print media. The files are arranged alphabetically by subject. Some of these subjects are: costumes, furniture, interiors, landscapes, lettering, men, paintings, sculpture, and women. Whether Paulson used these files as references for his teaching or his creative work is unclear.
Architecture
2
48
Bridge Building
2
49
Ceramics
2
50
Costumes, period
2
51
Furniture, modern and period
2
52
Groups, figures
2
53
Interiors, modern
2
54
Interiors, period
2
55
Landscapes
2
56
Lettering
2
57
Men
2
58
Mountains
2
59
Mural Paintings
2
60
Ornament
2
61
Outdoors
2
62
Paintings, American
2
63
Paintings, English
2
64
Paintings, Flemish, Dutch, German
2
65
Paintings, Italian
2
66
Paintings, Spanish, French
2
67
Sculpture
2
68
Ships, Boats, Marine Scenes
2
69
Textiles, Decorative Designs
3
1
Women
3
2
Research, Writings, and Inventions
MC 00056 Series 4
43 folders
Scope and Contents note
The research files deal largely with research involving the identification of some well-known paintings. In particular he believed that
Adoration of the Kings, usually attributed to Botticelli, was really painted by Leonardo da Vinci. His writings consist of manuscripts covering the areas of art, science, and fiction. Included are
The Forms of the Elementary Atoms and the Periodic Law and
The Exterior Form of the Solitary Atom with its accompanying plastic electron orbital models of the elementary atoms. This series also contains correspondence, paperwork, and patent applications for Paulson's inventions. These inventions were: an elevated storage tower, a container, a stool, an improved internal combustion rotary motor, and a trypent star structural form.
Research
MC 00056 Series 4.1
20 folders
Research in Progress
3
3
Correspondence Regarding Identification of Paintings (1933 - 1934)
3
4
Adoration of the Kings, Botticelli
3
5
"La Belle Ferroniere," Da Vinci (an essay by Paulson)
3
6
"Leonardo da Vinci: His Madonna with the Lamb"
3
7
People Makers: A Fantasy of Evolution, by Jehu D. Paulson and Patricia McManus, unpublished manuscript, Chapters 1 - 3, with miniature illustrations
3
8
People Makers, Chapters 4 - 6
3
9
People Makers, Chapters 7 - 9
3
10
People Makers, Chapters 10 - 12
3
11
People Makers, Chapters 13 - 15
3
12
People Makers, Chapters 16 - 18
3
13
People Makers, Chapters 19 - 20
3
14
The Exterior Form of the Solitary Atom, 1952 (for 14 pen and ink illustrations, 15" X 19", see flat file; for plastic electron orbital models of the elementary atoms, see museum items)
3
15
The Forms of the Elementary Atoms and the Periodic Law, 1955
3
16
The Forms of the Elementary Atoms and the Periodic Law, 1956
3
17
Appreciation of Painting (Textbook), unpublished manuscript
3
18
Appreciation of Painting (?), Information about artists and paintings
3
19
Appreciation of Painting (?), Plates for book
3
20
Appreciation of Painting (?), Plates for book
3
21
Appreciation of Painting (?), Plates for book
3
22
Graphic Demonstration of the Measurement of Emission Spectra of the Helium Atom
5
2
1954
Writings
MC 00056 Series 4.2
10 folders
Escape from Atlantis (earlier version), pp. 1-45
4
1
Escape from Atlantis (earlier version), pp. 46-90
4
2
Research, Writings, and Inventions
4
4
Escape from Atlantis (earlier version), pp. 91-135
4
3
Escape from Atlantis (earlier version), pp. 136-182
4
4
Escape from Atlantis (later version), pp. 1-50
4
5
Escape from Atlantis (later version), pp. 51-100
4
6
Escape from Atlantis (later version), pp. 101-150
4
7
Escape from Atlantis (later version), pp. 151-199
4
8
"Simple Measured Perspective"
4
9
Notes for Future Writings
4
10
Inventions
MC 00056 Series 4.3
5 folders
Elevated Storage Tower
4
11
1959-1961
Container
4
12
1961
Stool
4
13
1962
Improved Internal Combustion Rotary Motor, 1972
4
14
Trypent Star Structural Form, n.d.
4
15
Paintings, Drawings, Sketches, and Designs
MC 00056 Series 5
8 folders
Scope and Contents note
Examples of Paulson's original artwork make up this series. The media used include oil, watercolor, pencil, and pen and ink. The works vary in size and subject matter. The full size paintings used to illustrate his book The People Makers are located in this series. Of particular note in this series is a booklet about North Carolina signed by Governor Scott.
Oversized materials include paintings, drawings of male and female models; sea scenes; various buildings (including Joel Lane House); religious themes; outdoors themes; work winning First Medal in USA competition at Beaux Arts Institute of Design New York City; drawing of William Neal Reynolds Coliseum "preliminary to construction; NCSU plate design; bird's eye campus view; Cleopatra; "Adoration of Magi" by Sandro Botticelli; a Greek theme drawing; 14 lessons on "perspective"; heads with wings; NC Board of Architecture certification of Paulson, 1941; drawings of perspectives of furniture; Burlington nuclear reactor, 1950-51; drawings on Tryon Palace, 1949 including "Proposed Restoration of"; blueprint on chair designed for Hall of Representatives NC State Capital, 1950; "Speculative Study of the Exterior Form of the Solitary Atom".
Watercolors
4
16
Plate Designs
4
17
Lettering
4
18
Booklet about North Carolina, signed by Governor W. Kerr Scott
4
19
Maps and Architectural Drawings
4
20
Logo Designs
4
21
Drawings and Sketches
4
22
Drawing and Sketches: various atoms and elements
5
1
1955 and undated
Photographic Color Slides
4
23
Paintings
1
Paintings
2
Paintings
1
Paintings
2
Paintings
3
Paintings
4
Paintings and Drawings
3
Paintings and Drawings
4
Paintings and Drawings
5
Paintings and Drawings
6
Paintings and Drawings
7
Paintings and Drawings
8
Paintings and Drawings
9
Paintings and Drawings
10
Paintings and Drawings
11
Paintings and Drawings
12
Paintings and Drawings
13
Paintings and Drawings
14
Paintings and Drawings
15
Photographs
MC 00056 Series 6
5
1
Photographs: various types of atoms and elements
5
3
undated
Family Papers
MC 00056 Series 7
2011
Remembrances
Accession 2012.0125
5
4
2011