Worcester Public Library and the George Stubbs Art Controversy

In the middle of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, librarians at Worcester Public Library were able to devote more time to projects we might have not have previously gotten a chance to tackle. While going through the old newspaper clipping files relating to the Worcester Public Library, we came across articles relating to the controversial sale of a rare art collection owned by the Worcester Public Library. It only took us five years, but we finally got around to writing a blog post about this somewhat forgotten piece of library history. It's apropos because the collection actually had been forgotten in the bowels of the old Worcester Public Library on Elm Street for many years before it was rediscovered. Read on to find out more about artist George Stubbs, his work, the 1980 sale of the Stubbs collection, and how the proceeds were used to benefit the library.

Human Skeleton, Lateral View (Close to the Final Study for Table III But Differs in Detail),
Source: Yale Center for British Art

The Artist

First of all, who was George Stubbs? George Stubbs (1724 - 1806) was a self-trained English painter most known for his paintings of horses and other animals, as well as for his anatomical drawings. His works appear in museums such as the Tate Museum and the National Gallery of Art in London, as well as American museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the Yale Center for British Art on the campus of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

George Stubbs, Self Portrait

In 1795, George Stubbs began his monumental work, A Comparative Anatomical Exposition of the Structure of the Human Body, with that of a Tiger and a Common Fowl. He died in 1806 before finishing his work. Allegedly the drawings were sold at the Christie's auction in 1827 but not seen in public since then.

The Gift

In 1863, Dr. John Green III (1784 - 1865) gifted a collection of anatomical drawings and manuscripts by George Stubbs to the Worcester Public Library. As you have previously read, Dr. Green was a prominent doctor in Worcester who donated 7,000 volumes to the City of Worcester (along with a donation for 4,000 volumes from the Worcester Lyceum and Library Association) to help establish the new Worcester Public Library in 1859. The gift of the George Stubbs collection consisted of two large folios containing roughly 125 anatomical drawings as well as four English and French language manuscripts handwritten in pencil. The bookplates on the folios read "Jan. 1, 1863, The Gift of Dr. John Green." Another bookplate on the first volume indicated that it was previously owned by Thomas Bell. Bell (1792 - 1880) was one of the first dental surgeons in England and a teacher of anatomy at Guy's Hospital in London. 

Page from the Worcester Manuscript in Stubbs's Handwriting,
The Anatomical Works of George Stubbs, Terence Doherty, 1975

It is not clear how or when Dr. Green came into possession of the Stubbs artwork but according to Thurston Taylor, "I am of the opinion that Bell acquired the material in 1826 and in turn, his library was sold in the late 1850's or 1860's, when an agent of Dr. Green bought it for him" (Worcester Sunday Telegram, September 22, 1957). 

The Rediscovery

In 1957, the Worcester Public Library embarked on a cataloging project and in May of that year rediscovered the long-forgotten folios and manuscripts by George Stubbs. As is the case now, the librarians were on alert for any materials that specified they were gifts of Dr. John Green.

Worcester Public Library's Head Librarian Thurston Taylor at the time wrote to Basil Taylor (no relation), an English art critic and authority on George Stubbs. Basil Taylor immediately applied for a Ford Foundation grant to visit the United States and study the rediscovered works. Thurston Taylor and his wife would host Basil Taylor during his stay. Thurston Taylor also communicated with Henry Francis Taylor (no relation to the other Taylors), then-director of the Worcester Art Museum.

Lost to World for 130 Years, Worcester Sunday Telegram, September 22, 1957

The Worcester Public Library then lent the drawings to the Worcester Art Museum, which promptly arranged an exhibit in October 1957. Basil Taylor also spoke at a meeting of the members of the Worcester Art Museum and the Friends of the Worcester Public Library at the museum on October 23, 1957. 

Lecture, Worcester Art Museum News Bulletin and Calendar, October 1957

Advertisement for Worcester Art Museum, Worcester Telegram, November 2, 1957

At the Worcester Public Library's board of directors meeting in November 1957, the board announced a plan to record the drawings and manuscripts on microfilm as well as store the originals in a vault at the Worcester Art Museum for safekeeping. Furthermore, the Arts Council of Great Britain requested the artwork for a future exhibition tour. At the same time, the library board first discussed the possibility of selling the works. 

In May 1958, the library board announced that the Arts Council of Great Britain would pay the insurance costs for a touring exhibition of the Stubbs collection throughout the British Isles, which would begin in Stubbs' hometown of Liverpool and go to Birmingham, Southampton, and London. In the fall of 1958, the Arts Council of Great Britain published a pamphlet entitled, George Stubbs, Rediscovered Anatomical Drawings from the Free Public Library of Worcester, Mass. Note: copies of this pamphlet are available to view via our Local History Reference and Worcester Room collections.

George Stubbs, Rediscovered Anatomical Drawings from the Free Public Library of Worcester, Mass., 1958

The library board announced in May 1959 that they authorized the sale of the Stubbs artwork. The Worcester Telegram reported that the Royal College of Surgeons in London was willing to pay more than $15,000 for the Stubbs collection in September 1959 but nothing ever came of this potential sale.

Skipping ahead through the years, the library board agreed in 1972 to allow a London-based company to publish a book based on the George Stubbs collection. The profit and an honorarium would go towards the Green Trust Fund. In 1974, Terence Doherty's The Anatomical Works of George Stubbs was published in London based on the art collection owned by the Worcester Public Library as well as "The Anatomy of a Horse" collection owned by the Royal Academy of Arts. In June 1975, the same book was first published in the United States.

The Anatomical Works of George Stubbs, Terence Doherty, 1975

From August through October 1975, the Worcester Art Museum mounted a new exhibition of 21 drawings from the George Stubbs collection. The Tate Museum in London would also exhibit some of these works in 1976.

The Controversy 

In 1977, the Worcester Evening Gazette reported that Assistant City Solicitor Bennett S. Gordon of the Law Department had provided an opinion to the library board recommending they seek a court opinion on whether the library had the right to sell all or part of the Stubbs collection. The newspaper also reported that the collection was now valued at $1 million.

City Councilor Joseph C. Casdin felt that disposal of the Stubbs art should be looked at from a practical stance: a museum such as the Worcester Art Museum would find more value for the art collection than the patrons at the Worcester Public Library. Therefore, if the pieces were sold, the money could be used towards an endowment to provide services for the library. On the other hand, he admitted that he would not mind if someone could purchase the art and donate it to the Worcester Art Museum. 

Members of the Worcester community wrote letters to the editor about the prospect of the library selling the art. Past library board president Samuel Bachrach felt the works should not leave Worcester and if necessary, they should be on permanent loan to the Worcester Art Museum or the American Antiquarian Society. Note: Mr. Bachrach was one of the people who advocated for the library to house the WPA murals that currently adorn the Main Library (see here for our blog post on the murals).

In the meantime, in February and March 1978, the Worcester Art Museum launched a new exhibition of some of the Stubbs drawings and manuscripts.

In August 1978, the library board requested clarification from the Worcester County Probate Court against the state attorney general regarding the issue of whether the library actually had the legal authority to sell the Stubbs artwork. Specifically, was the art part of the Green Trust? Could it be sold? And, what would happen to the proceeds of the sale?

Page 1 of Complaint for Instructions and for Application of the Doctrine of Cy Pres, 1978

In November 1978, the Worcester Sunday Telegram published two articles explaining the origins of the Stubbs collection and the controversy that had arisen over its potential sale. Head Librarian Joseph S. Hopkins explained some of his ethical and legal concerns, including whether the proceeds from a sale or a future bequest would decrease future funding that the City Council would appropriate to the library. In the same article, Worcester Art Museum director Richard Stuart Teitz advocated for keeping the collection in Worcester, stating that, "once you start selling treasures from an institution, the institution becomes less important" (Worcester Sunday Telegram, November 19, 1978). Teitz would later acknowledge in a letter to the editor that the museum did not have the funds to purchase the Stubbs collection.

Probate Court Justice Francis W. Conlin issued a ruling in late 1978 indicating the Stubbs artwork could be sold, with the proceeds going to other library services. He ruled that because the library itself did not have adequate facilities for preserving and exhibiting such a collection, "the Stubbs Collection as a practical matter is useless to the library and should be sold and the proceeds of the sale added to the principal of the Green Trust Library Fund" (Worcester Evening Gazette, January 3, 1979).

Debate about the potential sale of the Stubbs collection continued. Forty members of the Anatomy Department of the University of Massachusetts Medical School signed a letter to the editor of the Worcester Telegram advocating to keep the anatomy drawings collection because of its usefulness to medical students and other researchers.

The Sale

The Worcester District Medical Society requested right of first refusal on the opportunity to purchase the Stubbs collection, especially since Dr. John Green had been a member of their society. The Worcester Heritage Preservation Society also expressed a desire to attempt to keep the Stubbs art in Worcester, perhaps at the Worcester Art Museum.

In February 1979, the Worcester Public Library commissioned an appraisal of the Stubbs collection by the noted Sotheby Parke Bernet Gallery of London and New York. This new appraisal estimated that the collection was worth between $1 million and $1.5 million. The library's Committee on Library Materials then announced a public hearing to be held on Sunday, April 22, 1979 to discuss the Stubbs artwork and potential sale. The library also asked a conservator for an estimate of the cost to restore the art. This estimate could help the library to decide whether or not to sell the collection.

What Cost Stubbs Art Preservation? Worcester Telegram, March 20, 1979

The library published 2,000 copies of an informational packet explaining the background of the Stubbs collection and potential sale for those who wanted to attend the April 1979 hearing. It explained the potential profits relating to the sale versus conserving the artwork, as well as what could be done with the sale's proceeds to benefit the library. Around this time, the Worcester Art Museum exhibited some of the original drawings from the Stubbs collection and the library showcased reproductions of the drawings. 

Earnings of Stubbs Art Sale Projected, Worcester Telegram, April 6, 1979

The Million Dollar Dilemma: The Drawings of George Stubbs, April 1979

Worcester Telegram, April 21, 1979

Twenty-nine members of the community spoke for more than three hours during the public hearing on April 22, 1979, with roughly 2/3 of the speakers opposing that collection's sale.

On April 27, 1979, the Worcester Cultural Commission voted 4-3 to recommend that the library sell the Stubbs collection. This vote overturned their subcommittee's recommendation to keep the collection and place them on permanent loan at the Worcester Art Museum. The vote also included supplementary recommendations that advocated for keeping the collection intact, keeping it in Worcester, and a sale moratorium of one year. By May 1, 1979, both the library's Committee on Library Materials and the Friends of the Worcester Library voted to recommend selling the collection. Friends President Edward S. Matalka suggested that the proceeds from the sale could be used to acquire an environmental control system to maintain the library's historical materials, as well as increase services to both disabled and bilingual patrons. The library board of directors would have their own vote on May 8.

On May 2, 1979, the Worcester Evening Gazette announced that the Yale Center for British Art had made an offer in March to purchase the Stubbs collection for $1.25 million. Dr. Leonard J. Morse, president of the Worcester District Medical Society and a member of a citizen's group that was interested in keeping the collection in Worcester, expressed his outrage that the offer had been kept "a secret" (Worcester Evening Gazette, May 2, 1979). Mrs. Nancy H. Burkett, one of the library directors and chairperson of the Committee on Library Materials admitted that the Yale Center had asked for a response to their offer by May 15.

On May 8, 1979, the library board of directors finally had their meeting but unanimously voted to postpone their decision until their meeting in October. The Yale Center for British Art still expressed their interest in acquiring the Stubbs collection in September of that year, even after their initial offer was invalidated after the library board postponed the vote.

The Worcester Telegram's editorial board wrote a piece in favor of keeping the collection in Worcester, stating, "We have the feeling that, if the drawings were sold, the community would some day regret it...But once the Stubbs collection is sold, it leaves Worcester forever" (Worcester Telegram, October 3, 1979).

Randomly, a fifth grade class from Santa Fe Middle School in Newton, Kansas read about the George Stubbs collection in their weekly current events magazine and wrote to the library expressing their opinions on the potential sale. We came across an envelope full of their letters in our Worcester Room collection (see Weekly Reader and one of the letters below).

Weekly Reader, circa 1979

Letter from a Middle School Student, October 2, 1979

Alas, on October 9, 1979, the library board of directors voted 9-2 to sell the Stubbs collection, even after the "Save Our Stubbs" citizen's group led by Dr. Morse raised pledges for the restoration and remounting of the drawings in the collection. The library board stipulated that whomever acquired the collection would have to make it accessible to the public and would have to be responsible for its care and preservation. In November 1979, Committee on Library Materials rejected the idea of selling the collection via public auction, and instead recommended approaching the Yale Center for British Art.

In December 1979, the Save Our Stubbs group attempted to block the potential sale of the art by taking additional legal action against the library board of directors. The Yale Center for British Art had given the library until December 15 to respond to their $1.25 million offer. 

By mid-January 1980, the Worcester Telegram reported that a sale was imminent, barring any successful injunction by the Save Our Stubbs group on the State Supreme Judicial Court level. The Save Our Stubbs group had already lost their request for an injunction at the Probate Court level. The newspaper also reported on the library's considerations regarding the proceeds of the sale, which would be considered part of the principal of the Green Trust. By law, only 3/4 of the Green Trust income could be spent by the library board and investments could mean that the library board might be able to allocate over $50,000 a year for library purposes. Two priorities for this allocation would be preserving the library's local history collection and installing a climate control system in the Worcester Room.

First Page of Sale Agreement for Stubbs Collection, executed January 11, 1980

On January 17, 1980, the Worcester Public Library received a check in the amount of $1,250,000 from Yale University made out to the City of Worcester Green Library Fund. Paul Mellon, a Yale University alumnus (Class of 1929) and a previous donor of Stubbs artwork to Yale, gave the university money to purchase the collection. Mellon was instrumental in the founding of the Yale Center for British Art, which had opened three years prior in April 1977. 

Check Checked in; Art Checked Out, Worcester Telegram, January 18, 1980

The legal battle by the Save Our Stubbs group continued even after Yale took possession of the collection. Admittedly, the group did not have the funds to purchase the collection, even with its fundraising appeal. Instead, the group would use the money raised for legal fees. Alas, by September 1980, the fight was over. The State Court of Appeals upheld the Probate Court's decision that allowed the sale of the art and therefore, the art would remain at Yale.

Money in the Bank, Drawings in Boxes: And Neither Can be Touched, Worcester Sunday Telegram, June 29, 1980

What Happened Next: The Stubbs Collection

The Yale Center for British Art worked to restore the artwork before mounting any exhibitions. Some of the drawings had sustained damage including mold and fragile pages due to being housed in less-than-ideal conditions at the Worcester Public Library until 1957. After the restoration of the drawings, many would remain in special boxes to prevent their further decay. 

The Yale Center for British Art and the Tate Gallery in London partnered to launch one of the first most complete exhibitions on George Stubbs, which first opened in London in 1984 and then moved to Yale in 1985. This major exhibition contained works on loan from museums around the world as well as from the Yale Center for British Art's own collection, including several of the drawings that had come from the Worcester Public Library.

Publication about Stubbs for the Exhibition at the Tate Gallery, 1984

The museum created a new exhibition of Stubbs art as tribute to their benefactor Paul Mellon upon his death in 1999. "George Stubbs in the Collection of Paul Mellon: A Memorial Exhibition" opened on April 30, 1999 and closed on September 1, 1999 before moving onto the Virginia Museum of Fine Art from February - May 2000. Some of the art from the exhibition is available to view online here. 

Some of the Digitized Artwork Featured in the "George Stubbs in the Collection of Paul Mellon: A Memorial Exhibition"

Benefiting the Worcester Public Library

The Worcester Public Library used some of the income from the sale to construct an enclosed climate-controlled Worcester Room, which would store many of the more fragile Worcester historical items owned by the library. Construction began in the summer of 1981 and the new Worcester Room had its dedication in October 1982. 

Library Readies for Some Repairs, Worcester Telegram, July 30, 1981

Here's an image on how the exterior of the Worcester Room looked in 1982 before the official dedication.

Panel in Library Explodes; Cause Under Investigation, Worcester Evening Gazette, March 4, 1982

The library also used the money for restoring some of the more valuable books and materials, renovating and acquiring equipment for the Tatnuck Branch, supplementing the city's appropriation to fund the Main South Branch, and as of 1984, to computerize the book circulation system. The computerization would also allow the library to be connected to the other 27 regional libraries. As of 1984, the library had spent more than $130,000 for those above purposes. The ability to use the income generated from the Green Fund Trust via the sale of the Stubbs collection meant that the Proposition 2 1/2 cuts of the 1980s did not affect the library too adversely at the time.

Today

The library has several books and other materials in its circulating and reference collections relating to George Stubbs and his artwork, including The Anatomical Works of George Stubbs in the Closed Stacks collection. Of course, our Worcester Room continues to collect historical materials relating to our fair city and the greater Worcester area. Patrons may go to the third floor reference desk to ask the librarian to retrieve a specific item from that collection but they may only use the materials in-library. 

A plaque outside the door of the current Worcester Room commemorates the October 1982 dedication.

Dedication of the Worcester Room Plaque on the Wall Outside of the Current Worcester Room

Admission to the Yale Center for British Art is free. See here for hours and other visitor information.

Even though the Worcester Art Museum no longer has the library's collection of Stubbs art, our library does have museum passes to access the museum at a reduced fee. See our museum passes page for more information.

So, there you have it: the tale of the Stubbs collection sale and how it affected the Worcester Public Library and its community. Do you think it should have been sold? Discuss!

Sources:

Alden, J. (1979, January 3). "Anatomy Drawings Shouldn't Be Sold." Worcester Telegram, p. 6.

Bachrach, S. (1978, January 6). "Stubbs Collection Must Not Leave Worcester." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 10.

"Check Checked In; Art Checked Out." (1980, January 18). Worcester Telegram, p. 3.

"Cost Estimate Sought for Keeping Stubbs Art." (1979, March 14). Worcester Telegram, p. 4.

"Cultural Panel Gives Nod to Sale." (1979, April 28). Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 7.

"Court of Appeals Upholds Sale of Stubbs Collection." (1980, September 5). Worcester Telegram, p. 16.

Dempsey, J. (1979, December 5). "More Legal Steps Planned to Prevent Stubbs Art Sale." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 3.

Doherty, T. (1975). The Anatomical Works of George Stubbs. David R. Godine.

Donker, P. P. (1984, November 25). "With Stubbs-Sale Income Library Renovates, Computerizes." Worcester Sunday Telegram, p. 4D.

Donker, P. P. (1979, October 10). "Library Board Votes to Sell Stubbs Art." Worcester Telegram, p. 1.

Donker, P. P. (1979, May 9). "Stubbs Sale Decision Put Off Until October." Worcester Telegram, p. 1.

Donker, P. P. (1979, May 8). "Delay Sought in Any Stubbs Sale." Worcester Telegram, p. 11. 

Donker, P. P. (1979, April 23). "Selling Stubbs Collection is Debated Three Hours." Worcester Telegram, p. 1.

Donker, P. P. (1979, April 6). "Earnings of Stubbs Art Sale Projected." Worcester Telegram, p. 17.

Donker, P. P. (1978, January 8). "City May Paint Itself Rich by Selling Famed Stubbs Art." Worcester Sunday Telegram, p. 12C.

"Drawings by British Painter on Display at Art Museum." (1975, August 25). Worcester Telegram, p. 5.

Duckett, R. (1984, April 17). "Library to Green It Up for Benefactor's Birthday." Worcester Telegram, p. 3A.

Erskine, M. (1978, November 19). "The Stubbs Collection: What It Is." Worcester Sunday Telegram, p. 8.

Gallant, J. (1980, June 29). "Money in the Bank, Drawings in Boxes: And Neither Can be Touched." Worcester Sunday Telegram - Sunday Morning, p. 8.

Glazer, M. (1978, November 19). "The Stubbs Collection: And Why the Controversy." Worcester Sunday Telegram, p. 9.

"Group Works to Keep Stubbs Art." (1979, February 8). Worcester Telegram, p. 15.

Jaskoviak, R.H. (1978, August 18). "Can Library Books Be Sold?" Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 14.

"Lecture." (1957, October). Worcester Art Museum News Bulletin and Calendar, 23(1).

"Library Directors Vote to Sell Stubbs Collection." (1979, October 10). Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 5.

"Library to Halt Service to Schools." (1959, May 13). Worcester Telegram, p. 8.

"Library Head Protests Appointment by Board." (1957, November 15). Worcester Telegram, p. 1.

"Library Readies for Some Repairs." (1981, July 30). Worcester Telegram, p. 12.

"Library's Drawings Shown in London." (1976, August 27). Worcester Telegram, p. 12.

McHugh, E. (1959, September 10). "Schools Now Viewed at Peak of Overload." Worcester Telegram, p. 7.

"Panel Backs Sale of Stubbs Work." (1979, May 1). Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 24.

"Recruitment Plan Set Up for Library." (1958, May 14). Worcester Telegram, p. 20.

"Sale of Drawings by Library Debated." (1978, January 10). Worcester Telegram, p. 3.

"Sale of Stubbs Art Is at Issue." (1979, January 4). Worcester Telegram, p. 24.

Sandrof, I. (1957, September 22). "Lost to World for 130 Years." Worcester Sunday Telegram - Feature Parade Section, p. 7.

Sandrof, I. (1975, April 2). "Look at Books." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 14.

Singer, M. (1979, January 30). "Medical Society Wants Stubbs Art." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 21.

Singer, M. (1979, January 3). "Judges Rule Library May Sell Stubbs Collection of Drawings." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 17.

Singer, M. (1977, December 27). "Library Urged to Get Rulings on Paintings." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 17.

Southwick, A. (1979, April 29). "What Price Heritage?" Worcester Sunday Telegram - Sunday Morning, p. 8.

Spear, M.W. (1972, January 12). "Library to Lend Drawings for Book." Worcester Telegram, p. 17.

"Stubbs Art May Go to Yale This Week." (1980, January 17). Worcester Telegram, p. 15.

"Stubbs Art Revalued." (1979, February 28). Worcester Telegram, p. 6.

"The Stubbs Proposal." (1979, October 3). Worcester Telegram, p. 6.

"Stubbs Work is Displayed." (1978, February 14). Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 6.

Teitz. R.S. (1979, January 21). "Museum Lacks Funds to Buy Drawings." Worcester Sunday Telegram, p. 1B.

Tyler, M. (1980, March 17). "Group Refuses to Drop Fight to Return Stubbs Collection." Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 5.

"What Cost Stubbs Art Preservation?" (1979, March 20). Worcester Telegram, p. 15.

"Yale British Art Center Offers $1.25 Million for Drawings." (1979, May 2). Worcester Evening Gazette, p. 24.

"Yale Center Still Wants Stubbs' Art." (1979. September 19). Worcester Telegram, p. 13.