MC 00364 Guide to the Claire Necker Papers, 1894-1989 (Bulk 1940-1980) (Bulk, 1940-1980)

Creator

Necker, Claire

Quantity

10.5 Linear feet

General Physical Description

Six archival cartons, 1 archival legalbox, 1 flatbox (21 x 15 x 3.5)

Location

For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Special Collections Research Center Reference Staff .

Language

English

Acquisition Information

Manuscript materials purchased for the NCSU Libraries by various anonymous donors, 2003 (Accession no. 2003-0004). Necker donated her collection to the Animal Rights Network in 1998, and the collection came to the NCSU Libraries with the ARN collection in 2003. It originally included more than 1,000 books about cats and thousands of cat collectibles, ranging from cat-themed towels and dishes to wallpapers, phonograph records, sculptures and toys. Many of the books were incorporated into the Libraries' general collection, and the artifacts not kept. The books in the general collection are cataloged with "Animal Rights Network Collection (North Carolina State University)" in the Other Author field. Unfortunately, the books of the Necker Collection are not differentiated from the books of other ARN collections.

Processing

Processed by Babi Hammond, October 2011; machine-readable finding aid created by Babi Hammond, November 2011.

Scope and Content Note

Claire Necker Papers contain notes, drafts, compilations of images, clippings and publications relating to Necker's research for her publications. The bulk of the collection is in the first series, and consists of folders of notes and drafts, and (especially) folders of illustrations Necker compiled during her research. There are also numerous notebooks listing publications and artworks in some way relating to cats or other animals. The correspondence series is fairly short, and has mostly letters to Necker. The only substantial set of correspondence is with Guy Bogart, who traded lengthy typed letters with Necker and two other correspondents (Bogart apparently distributed copies of his letters to others). Much of the material is undated, but likely dates from the 1960s-1980s, with only some (mostly clipppings) dating from the late 19th or early 20th century, or earlier.

Biographical/Historical Note

Claire Kral Necker was born Claire Kral Nemec on 16 October 1917. In 1939 she married Walter L. Necker, who was then completing a BS in zoology at the University of Chicago. She and Walter shared interests in science and bibliography. Walter worked with a variety of organizations as, at various times, scientist, librarian, curator and rare books cataloger. Claire earned Master's degrees in Zoology and Chemisty (when and where is not documented, though it was sometime before 1968), and after World War II she and Walter started Aardvark Books, a mail-order antiquarian book business. Claire and Walter divorced in 1968, and she found work at a local library. Claire had for some time pursued without much success a career as a free-lance writer, but in 1969 she published her first book, Cats and Dogs (A. S. Barnes). Necker's other works include The Natural History of Cats (Delta, 1970), Supernatural Cats; An Anthology (Doubleday, 1972), Four Centuries of Cat Books (Scarecrow Press, 1972), and The Cat's Got Our Tongue (Scarecrow Press, 1973). She died 19 March 2010 in Pawling, New York.

Controlled Terms

1. Cats
2. Cats in art
3. Cats in literature
4. Necker, Claire

Access to Collection

Collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice.

For more information contact us via mail, phone, fax, or our web form.

Mail

Special Collections Research Center
Box 7111
Raleigh, NC, 27695-7111

Telephone

(919) 515-2273

Fax

(919) 513-1787

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Claire Necker Papers, MC 364, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, North Carolina.

Access to Collection

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.