A Preliminary Inventory of The Collection at the Harry Ransom Center
Creator:
John J. McManus, 1889-1955
Morris N. Young, 1909-2002
Title:
McManus-Young Collection
Dates:
1949-1959
Extent:
1 document box (.42 linear feet)
Abstract:
Approximately 150 pages of correspondence
and related material regarding the collecting and disposition of books, apparatuses,
and
ephemera relating to magic, illusion, and spiritualism as collected by Morris N. Young,
M.
D. and John McManus, Esq.
Call Number:
Performing Arts Collection PA-52160
Language:
English
Access:
Open for research. Researchers must create an online Research Account and agree to
the
Materials Use Policy before using archival materials.
Use Policies:
Ransom Center collections may contain material with sensitive or confidential information
that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers
are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable
living
individuals represented in the collections without the consent of those individuals
may have
legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy
may
arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be
deemed
highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the Ransom Center and The University
of
Texas at Austin assume no responsibility.
Restrictions on Use:
Authorization for publication is given on behalf of the University of Texas as the
owner of
the collection and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright
holder
which must be obtained by the researcher. For more information please see the Ransom
Center's Open Access and Use Policies.
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation:
McManus-Young Collection (Performing Arts Collection PA-52160). Harry Ransom Center,
The
University of Texas at Austin.
In 1957, the University of Texas at Austin accepted a gift of over 2,000 books and
periodicals on the practice and history of conjuring, sleight of hand and stage magic,
card
tricks, hypnotism, spiritualism, ventriloquism, and witchcraft from the collection
of John &
Hanna McManus and Morris & Chelsey Young.
This collection of material, mostly correspondence, documents the collecting efforts
of
McManus and Young and their efforts to place their collections at institutions across
the
United States. A folder of ephemeral material that came with the library includes
ad cards,
clippings, tickets, and bookseller lists related to magic and illusion.
The collection was a gift from Charles and Cheryl Young in 2018 and includes additional
material from the center’s collection file from the original 1957 donation.
Related Material
The McManus-Young Collection is part of the Ransom Center’s library holdings. Other
collections of their material are held at the Library of Congress and the Bancroft
Library
at the University of California, Berkeley. See also the Ransom Center’s collections
on Magic
and Illusion.
