This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information and to make an appointment, please call (212) 854-4110 or email avery-drawings@libraries.columbia.edu.
This collection consists primarily of photographs of various projects throughout the lifetime of Harvey Wiley Corbett. The collection also contains drawings of First Methodist Church (Jamaica, Queens, NY) and the Church of the Good Shepherd (Brooklyn, NY), as well as professional records, portraits, reference material, receipts, legal agreements, financial documents, clippings, and daily diary cards. The dates of the material span 1900 to 1952, with bulk dates of 1925-1948.
While the collection is sorted largely by project, it is important to note that not all work is solely that of Harvey Wiley Corbett. Many projects appear to have been collected by him as reference material, while others may have been completed in conjunction with Corbett. As this remains unclear in many cases, the attribution, if any, has been noted under "creators" within the scope note for each entry.
This series contains the bulk of the collection and consists primarily of photographs of the interiors, exteriors, models, and construction of individual projects. These entries are arranged alphabetically by project name.
As noted above, not all projects are the work of Corbett, and where the work is attributed to another architect or firm, the entry reflects that information. Additionally, projects clearly credited to one of Corbett's firms have also been noted. While entries consist primarily of photographs, occasional clippings and notes are included. Photographs of drawings are also included within these project records, but are generally infrequent.
Series II: Professional Projects
This series houses the few professional papers that survive in Corbett's records. The bulk of the material relates to the financial and legal agreements surrounding Rockefeller Center, but also includes some correspondence regarding the development of that project. In addition, portraits of Corbett, a portfolio of Harvey Wiley Corbett Associates, limited correspondence with other architects, and his daily diary cards are among the material included in this series.
This series contains the more miscellaneous material of the collection, and includes a variety of photographs of well-known contemporary buildings, publications and clippings relating to architecture, and photographs of art, sculpture, and stained glass that may have been used as reference material. These records are arranged chronologically, with undated material at the end.
This collection is made up of three series: Series I: Projects; Series II: Professional Papers; Series III: Reference
This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information and to make an appointment, please call (212) 854-4110 or email avery-drawings@libraries.columbia.edu.
Columbia University is providing access to the materials in the Library's collections solely for noncommercial educational and research purposes. The unauthorized use, including, but not limited to, publication of the materials without the prior written permission of Columbia University is strictly prohibited. All inquiries regarding permission to publish should be submitted in writing to the Director, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For additional guidance, see Columbia University Libraries' publication policy.
In addition to permission from Columbia University, permission of the copyright owner (if not Columbia University) and/or any holder of other rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) may also be required for reproduction, publication, distributions, and other uses. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of any item and securing any necessary permissions rests with the persons desiring to publish the item. Columbia University makes no warranties as to the accuracy of the materials or their fitness for a particular purpose.
Harvey Wiley Corbett architectural drawings and papers, circa 1914-1949, Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University.
Source of acquisition--Gifts. Accession number--1000.057, 1972.005.
Columbia University Libraries, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library
This collection was processed by Barrett Reiter (Graduate Intern) under the supervision of Shelley Hayreh, Avery Archivist, in 2015.
2009-06-25 File created.
2019-05-20 EAD was imported spring 2019 as part of the ArchivesSpace Phase II migration.
Harvey Wiley Corbett (1873-1954) was an American architect who was an active proponent of the early skyscraper. Although, following World War II, Corbett would express concern over the safety of high density in skyscrapers, for the majority of his career he was an important voice in imagining the future of the American city. Corbett also played a key role in the creation of a series of drawings by Hugh Ferriss for "Future City," or what is now known as "The Metropolis of Tomorrow," that theorized on the ramifications of the contemporary zoning laws of New York City.
Born in San Francisco, California and educated in mechanical engineering at University of California Berkeley, Corbett also trained at the Ecole de Beaux Arts before relocating to New York City in 1900. After working briefly in the office of Cass Gilbert, Corbett entered into a number of partnerships over the next forty years. Among these are Pell & Corbett (established 1903), Helmle & Corbett (established 1912), Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray (established 1922), and Corbett & MacMurray (established 1935). In 1941, Corbett created Harvey Wiley Corbett Associates, which worked in association with a team of other architects, planners, and engineering firms, including Edward Durell Stone and Clarke & Rapuano, among others.
Corbett completed a large number of structures in New York City, but also designed projects in California, Virginia, and London. Among his most significant works are Rockefeller Center (a project on which he was a senior architect), Bush Tower (West 42nd Street, New York City), the Municipal Group (Springfield, Massachusetts), the Criminal Courts Building (Centre Street, New York City), the Amsterdam Housing Project (New York City), the George Washington Masonic National Memorial (Alexandria, Virginia), and the Metropolitan Life Insurance "North Building" (Madison and East 24th Street, New York City).
The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches for other collections at Columbia University, through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, and through ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.
All links open new windows.
Box 1 Folder 1
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
1 clipping; floor plans with notes taken from The American Architect; 7 exterior photographs; 1 group portrait; 8 photographs of renderings; numerous copies of building illustration in The American Architect
Box 1 Folder 2
On verso: "Community Church, Hotel Portion"; 9 photographs, all duplicates of exterior; 4 duplicates of rendering
Box 1 Folder 3
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
10 photographs of 10th Street; 4 photographs of rendering; 1 brochure; 1 rental table
Box 1 Folder 4
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
7 photographs of early construction
Box 1 Folder 5
Creators: Harvey Wiley Corbett
"Harvey's Building" written on photographs; 4 photographs of elevation and floor plans; 4 photographs of construction; 2 exterior photographs
Box 4 Folder 16C
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
1 page from the Advertising Club News showing illustration of proposed structure
Box 1 Folder 6
Creators: Atterbury, Corbett & Holden
11 photographs of models; 16 photographs of completed structures; 3 photographs of San Juan Hill prior to construction of Amsterdam Housing
Oversize 4 Folder 1
Creators: Atterbury, Corbett & Holden
1 site map; 1 design board
Box 4 Folder 16A
Harvey Wiley Corbett Associates designed the frame for the 1939 World's Fair pavilion's new location in Virgina
1 photograph (in negative)
Oversize 1 Folder 1
Primary creator: Calvin Pollard
1 elevation
Box 1 Folder 7
Creators: Randolph Evans (architect), Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray (associated architects)
8 photographs of drawings; 5 photographs of exteriors; 6 photographs of interiors
Oversize 1 Folder 2
Creators: Randolph Evans (architect), Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray (associated architects)
4 illustrations; 3 photographs; 1 envelope
Oversize 1 Folder 3
Creators: Lord & Hewlett (architects), Pell & Corbett (associated architects)
1 photograph; 1 illustration from The Brickbuilder
Box 1 Folder 8-9
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison with H.R. Houchin F.R.I.B.A as London Representative
Also known as the Bush Terminal International Sales Building; 20 photographs of drawings and renderings; 17 exterior photographs; 10 interior photographs; 21 aerial views (mostly duplicates); 6 photographs of models; 6 photographs of construction; 6 postcards; 10 photographs of entrances; 1 brochure
Oversize 1 Folder 4
Creators: Corbett & MacMurray
5 photographs; 5 photographs of construction; 1 exterior photograph; 1 illustration from The American Architect, 1927.
Box 1 Folder 10-11
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
24 exterior photographs; 9 postcards (all duplicates); 2 clippings; 5 photographs of renderings; 22 interior photographs; 1 construction photograph; 1 photograph of Irving T. Bush; 1 handwritten note
Oversize 1 Folder 5-6
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
26 photographs
Oversize 4 Folder 2
Creators: Corbett, Harrison, & MacMurray
47 drawings; 1 bound copy of drawings; 1 Department of Buildings document; 2 envelopes; 1 document
Box 1 Folder 12
Creators: Corbett, Harrison, & MacMurray
6 exterior photographs; 7 photographs of renderings; 8 photographs of decorative elements; 3 interior photographs; 2 notes
Oversize 1 Folder 7-8
Creators: Corbett, Harrison, & MacMurray
22 photographs (includes general interiors, the auditorium, and exterior)
Box 2 Folder 1-2
33 photographs of site plans, elevations, and renderings; 4 group portraits; 4 photographs of models; 18 photographs of construction of the Hall of Science; 13 photographs of the construction of the Travel and Transport Building; 4 miscellaneous photographs; 3 interior photographs
Oversize 1 Folder 9
Various site plans and elevations for the design of the 1933 World's Fair; creators: Bennet, Parsons & Frost; Arthur Brown, Jr.; Hubert Burnham; Paul Cret; Raymond Hood; Holabird & Root; Voorhees, Gmelin & Walker; 16 pages of photographs of drawings and models
Box 4 Folder 16B
1 photograph of exterior
Box 2 Folder 3
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
10 photographs of floorplans and elevation; 1 group portrait with model; 5 exterior photographs; 1 interior; 1 brochure
Oversize 4 Folder 3
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
30 drawings
Box 2 Folder 4
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
6 loose pages from The Architectural Forum with photographs of exterior and interior, and contains floor plans, details, and elevations
Box 4 Folder 16D
1 photograph of exterior
Box 2 Folder 5
Photographs include 3 or 4 projects of unidentified churches, primarily exteriors; 8 photographs
Box 2 Folder 6
Competition drawings by W.K. Oltar-Jevsky (his English name, while practicing in New York, his Russian name is Viacheslav Konstantinovich Oltarzhevskii), original drawings in the V.K. Oltarzhevskii archive at the Shchusev Museum in Moscow; 18 photographs of drawings; 7 photographs of models; 1 photograph of rendering; 1 aerial view of additional model
Box 2 Folder 7
Creators: Corbett & Meyers
1 program for groundbreaking; 1 exterior photograph; 9 interior photographs; 4 photographs of construction; 7 photographs of model; 5 duplicates of rendering; 3 correspondence; 1 envelope
Oversize 4 Folder 4
Creators: Corbett & Meyers
27 photographs; 6 photographs with captions
Box 2 Folder 8
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison, and Ivey & Crook
10 photographs of construction; 3 exterior photographs; 1 photograph of rendering
Oversize 2 Folder 1
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison, and Ivey & Crook
6 mounted photographs, of exterior
Box 2 Folder 8
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
Constructed an identical building to the Crum and Forster building in Atlanta, unclear if images attributed to the Atlanta location may be of the Freeport building; 1 note card
Oversize 2 Folder 2
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
14 photographs of construction, kept separate from Atlanta photographs due to minor difference in façade
Box 4 Folder 16E
2 photographs
Box 3 Folder 14
1 page with sketch and measurements of a window; 1 set of specification; 1 note regaring corrections to plans (see drawings)
Roll A91.4
Creators: Harvey Wiley Corbett
58+ drawings, blueprints, and renderings
Box 4 Folder 16F
2 copies of perspective rendering; 1 note
Box 2 Folder 9-10
Creators: Hugh Ferriss, and Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
125+photographs of process sketches, cartoons, Ferriss' drawings, Ferriss in his studio, miscellaneous photographs; 1 note
Oversize 4 Folder 5
Primary creator: Hugh Ferriss
4 boards with text (photos missing); 5 loose photographs of Ferriss drawings; 6 mounted photographs; 10 photographs with cations; images for Metropolis of Tomorrow
Box 3 Folder 1-3
Creators: Helmle & Corbett (architects), Osgood & Osgood (consulting architects), Olmsted Bros. & Parker (landscape architects), Bryant Baker (sculptor)
5 photographs of model; 48 photographs of drawings; 37 photographs of construction; 11 photographs of sculpture and artwork; 7 interior photographs; 1 portrait; 4 brochures
Oversize 4 Folder 6
Creators: Helmle & Corbett (architects), Osgood & Osgood (consulting architects), Olmsted Bros. & Parker (landscape architects), Bryant Baker (sculptor)
8 photographs; 1 board with sketches; 1 drawing of section; 1 note
Box 2 Folder 11
9 photographs of elevations, sections, and floor plans
Box 4 Folder 16G
1 photograph of rendering; 1 photograph of bronze plaque crediting the engineers, consultants, and contractors that worked on the project; Harvey Wiley Corbett is listed
Box 4 Folder 16H
Creator: H.L. Stevens
1 photograph of exterior with "Hotel Schenectady" on verso
Box 4 Folder 16I
1 photograph looking north from West 36th Street and Seventh Avenue; Hotel Navarre (demolished c. 1930) can be seen in background
Box 2 Folder 12
Creators: Herbert Magoon
13 photographs; 1 rendering; 1 photograph of Jones Beach watertower
Oversize 2 Folder 3
Creators: Farrington, Gould & Hoagland, (memorial corporation)
3 mounted photographs of exterior
Oversize 2 Folder 4
1 clipping, New York Times Magazine;
Oversize 4 Folder 7
Additional creators: John Wesley Kelchner; Hugh Ferriss; Helmle & Corbett
Drawings for the Philiadelphia Sesquicentennial International Exposition; 68 photographs of drawings and renderings; 2 portraits; 1 index to images
Box 4 Folder 16J
1 photograph of rendering; on verso: "to be completed October 1949"
Box 4 Folder 16K
Creators: Pell & Corbett
1 reproduction of elevation
Box 2 Folder 13
19 photographs of model (both proposed and built versions); 1 rendering; 2 exterior photographs; 2 photographs of murals with artist (unknown); 3 photographs of site
Oversize 5 Folder 1
3 photographs; 1 composite photograph
Box 2 Folder 14
Possibly Radio City Music Hall; 6 copies of renderings
Oversize 2 Folder 5
Primary creators: George Post & Sons.
14 copies of floor plans
Box 2 Folder 15
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
7 duplicate photographs of rendering; 5 exterior photographs; 11 interior photographs; 1 photograph looking west on Montague Street at the corner of Clinton Street; 5 floor plan drawings
Oversize 5 Folder 2
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
28 photographs
Box 4 Folder 16L
Sketch by A. Leydenfrost; 1 photograph of rendering of the aiport of the future
Oversize 2 Folder 6
Creator: Harvey Wiley Corbett [Pell & Corbett]
1 page from school brochure; 2 photographs
Box 3 Folder 4
4 photographs of drawings (renderings and floor plans)
Box 3 Folder 5
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
9 postcards; 7 renderings (one tinted); 12 photographs of construction; 14 exterior photographs; 1 interior photograph; 1 article from The American Architect; 1 newspaper clipping
Oversize 5 Folder 3-4
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
22 photographs (8 are damaged)
Box 3 Folder 6
2 photographs of exterior; 18 photographs (including 14 dulpicates) and 1 postcard of study drawings; 9 photographs of construction; 12 photographs of surrounding structures
Oversize 2 Folder 7
5 photographs, of exterior and banking room
Box 3 Folder 7
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
3 photographs of architectural molds; 5 photographs of interior details; 8 duplicates of rendering; 8 photographs of exterior
Oversize 5 Folder 5
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
4 mounted photographs; 7 loose photographs
Box 3 Folder 8
Creators: Harvey Wiley Corbett
2 photographs of model
Oversize 5 Folder 6
2 mounted photographs of model
Box 4 Folder 16M
2 photographs of residence near beach; "Helmle" on verso
Box 3 Folder 9
Creators: Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray
3 photographs of elevation drawings, with 3 duplicates
Box 3 Folder 10-11
7 photographs of drawings; 1 large copy of elevation drawing; 18 photographs of models; 12 construction photographs; 10 photographs of interiors (including Music Hall); 9 exterior photographs; 4 photos of artwork; 2 aerials; 1 group portrait; 6 reprints of article from The Architectural Forum
Oversize 5
1 album, includes 13 photographs of construction and finished interiors
Oversize 2 Folder 8
1 photograph of Rockefeller Center by Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc.; 1 group portrait
Box 3 Folder 12
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
Now known as the Master Apartments; built for Louis Horch; 7 exterior photographs; 4 photographs of rendering by Hugh Ferriss; 5 photographs of blue prints for the 1st, 2nd, and 4th floors; 1 photograph of traditional Buddhist altar and 1 associated sketch; 1 group portrait; 4 duplicate photographs of interior
Oversize 5 Folder 7
Creators: Helmle, Corbett & Harrison
now known as the Master Apartments; built for Louis Horch; 18 photographs; 2 floor plans
Box 3 Folder 13
7 photographs of floor plans and sections
Box 4 Folder 1
12 interior photographs; 1 brochure
Oversize 2 Folder 9
2 exterior photographs
Box 4 Folder 2
2 exterior photographs
Box 4 Folder 3
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
17 exterior photographs; 1 postcard; 6 interior photographs; 1 article reprinted from The American City;
Oversize 6 Folder 1-2
Creators: Pell & Corbett; Wurts Bros. photography
47 mounted photographs; 25 loose photographs
Oversize 6 Folder 3
6 mounted photographs
Box 4 Folder 16N
2 photographs
Box 4 Folder 4
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
Project shown at the Architectural League Exhibition; 1 photograph of model; 16 photographs of exterior; 5 photographs of interior; 2 unlabelled floor plans
Box 4 Folder 5A
Creators: Raymond Francis Almirall [?]; 1 photograph of exterior
Box 4 Folder 5B
1 photograph of exterior
Box 4 Folder 6
Additional creators: Helmle & Corbett (architects), Hegeman-Harris Co., Inc (builders)
13 photographs of elevations and floor plans (includes 9 duplicates); 2 detail photographs; 3 postcards; 2 photographs of sculpture; 2 interior photographs
Oversize 6 Folder 4
Additional creators: Helmle & Corbett (architects), Hegeman-Harris Co., Inc (builders)
20 loose photographs
Oversize 6
Additional creators: Helmle & Corbett (architects), Hegeman-Harris Co., Inc (builders)
1 leather-bound album, includes 15 photographs
Box 4 Folder 7
Creators: Begni del Piatti (sculptor), Helmle & Corbett
4 photographs of renderings
Box 4 Folder 16P
Originally housed with the "Varick Street Building", caption on verso: "Thomas Shoe Factory"; 2 exterior photographs
Box 4 Folder 16Q
2 photographs of renderings for the proposed terminal
Box 4 Folder 16R
1 photograph of rendering
Box 4 Folder 8
Creators: Corbett & McMurray, and William Wilson Wurster
9 copies of reprinted article from The Architectural Forum; 2 aerial photographs of UCBerkeley campus
Oversize 6 Folder 5
Creators: Corbett & McMurray
32 photographs of interior, model, and campus
Box 4 Folder 9
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
(Also known as the Fletcher Castoria Building) 2 photographs of exterior; 3 photographs of construction
Box 4 Folder 10
Creators: Holabird & Root, Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray, and James C. Mackenzie
6 photographs of elevations and site plan
Box 4 Folder 16S
Creators: Myron Hunt
Possibly Claremont, CA[?]; 2 photographs of elevation sketches
Box 4 Folder 16T
Sculpture titled: "Planting the Standard of Democracy"; 1 photograph
Box 4 Folder 16U
Creator: unknown
1 photograph
Box 4 Folder 11
2 photographs of rendering
Box 4 Folder 16V
Creators: Helmle & Corbett
1 photograph of perspective drawing
Box 4 Folder 12
1 photograph of exterior rendering; 9 photographs of construction; 20 photographs of interior
Box 4 Folder 13
6 photographs
Box 4 Folder 16W
2 layouts of competition entry; appears to be a government building
Box 4 Folder 16X
Creators: K.E.F. Gardiner
1 photograph of rendering; 1 envelope
Box 4 Folder 14
Assorted projects appear to be by Corbett, some are labelled but not identified; 5 photographs
Oversize 2 Folder 10
15 photographs from various unidentified projects; may or may not be by Corbett
Box 4 Folder 15
5 photographs of model, 1 includes possible salesman
Oversize 6 Folder 6
3 photographs; 3 descriptions a "Living War and Peace Memorial"
Box 5 Folder 1-3
Day calendars with occasional sketches and notes on verso; mostly complete, some dates missing (particularly in 1934)
Box 5 Folder 3
Number of receipts from the Rockefeller Center Luncheon Club Dining Room
Box 6 Folder 1
Includes bios, project lists, clients, and representative projects for Harvey Wiley Corbett Associates which includes Hamby & Nelson, Clarke & Rapuano, Kelly, Syska & Hennessy, and Edward Durell Stone
Box 6 Folder 2
37 photographs; 1 letter; 1 note
Oversize 2 Folder 11
26 photographs; 1 clipping
Box 6 Folder 3
4 portraits
Box 6 Folder 4
4 copies of legal agreement
Box 6 Folder 5
Copies of report from consulting architects on the lease of property in Midtown Manhattan (for Rockefeller Center) from Columbia University
Box 6 Folder 6-7
Various documents with Rockefeller Center Inc. and Metropolitan Square Corporation, including payrolls, drawing accounts, expenditures, correpondence, etc.
Box 6 Folder 8
1 page
Oversize 3 Folder 1
Creators: Philip M. Goodwin
2 layouts of elevations and plans; 2 photographs; 1 letter from Philip L. Goodwin to Corbett
Box 6 Folder 9
Creators: Raymond A. Lester Associates
1 letter; 1 photocopy of newspaper clipping; 1 photograph of rendering; 2 photographs of model
Oversize 3 Folder 2
7 illustrations; 1 note
Box 6 Folder 10
3 photographs with captions
Box 6 Folder 11
1 copy of publication by the National Commission of Fine Arts
Box 6 Folder 12
1 issue
Box 6 Folder 13
1 issue
Oversize 3 Folder 3
6 pages of images
Box 6 Folder 14
1 photograph; 1 note
Oversize 3 Folder 4
Various creators
27 photographs and reproductions of drawings, paintings, and sculpture
Oversize 3 Folder 5
5 illustrations of service stations; including: Echo Lake Service Building and 3 stations along the Bronx Parkway
Oversize 3 Folder 6
6 photographs of stained glass pieces, mounted
Box 6 Folder 15
Works by a number of architects
13 photographs and illustrations; projects include Hearst Greek Theater, Penn Station, Grand Central Terminal, New York Stock Exchange, American Radiator Building, and the Chicago Tribune Tower, among others