I am cataloging a collection of scrapbooks from the Museums of the
Peaceful Arts, which was founded by George Kunz in 1914 and was
originally envisioned as a complex of twenty museums to be located on
the west side of Manhattan (or, later, near the Jerome Park Reservoir in
the Bronx). Although this grand-scale project never came to fruition, the
Museums of the Peaceful Arts did exist at least through the 1920s (its
addresses were 24 W. 40th St. and later 220 E. 42nd St. in Manhattan)
and it had accumulated some collections. I am hoping someone on this
discussion list knows what happened to the Museums of the Peaceful
Arts: did its collections get sold off or donated to another institution? I've
looked in "Who's Who" (1897-1942 compilation) for information on
George Kunz and the entry noted that the Museums of the Peaceful Arts
later became the Museum of Science and Industry in New York City; this
particular museum doesn't seem to exist any more either. If someone
could help shed some light on this mystery, I'd certainly appreciate it.
Please respond to me privately (or to the list, if you think the information
might be of interest to others). Thanks very much!

Diane Shaw, Special Collections Cataloger, Smithsonian Institution
Libraries
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