Collection inventory

Overview of the Collection
Creator:	Van Sinderen, Adrian, 1887-1963.
Title:	Adrian Van Sinderen Papers
Inclusive Dates:	1916-1963
Quantity:	6 linear ft.
Abstract:	Papers of the American corporation executive, philanthropist, author. Collection includes writings by Van Sinderen, annual reports and other publications of the American Horse Shows Association and the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences; and a sizable amount of records relating to ship traffic through the New York Port of Embarkation in the years surrounding World War II
Language:	English
Repository:	Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries 222 Waverly Ave., Suite 600 Syracuse, NY 13244-2010 https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center/university-archives

Biographical History

Adrian Van Sinderen (1887-1963) was an American banker, businessman and civic leader. A man of many and diverse interests, he was also an active traveler, a breeder and shower of ponies, and became well-known as a book collector.

Early in his career Van Sinderen worked for J.P. Morgan. He eventually sat on the board of directors for the New York Telephone Company and Manufacturers Trust Company. A graduate of Yale University (1910), he established Yale's Adrian Van Sinderen Book Collecting Prizes for Sophomores and Seniors in 1957, to encourage students to begin building their book collections. During World War I, he worked in the Quartermaster Corps at the New York Port of Embarkation in Hoboken, New Jersey, being discharged as a Major in 1919. His love of show horses is evident in his long association with the American Horse Shows Association, where he was president of that organization for over 20 years. A Brooklyn resident, Van Sinderen supported and was involved in many philanthropic causes of his hometown, including the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, Brooklyn Hospital, and the Brooklyn Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. He and his wife donated their 650-acre Connecticut country property, Hidden Valley, to the Steep Rock Association land trust, whose mission is to protect ecologically and historically significant landscapes and riparian corridors. As of 2025, the SRA held in trust more than 1300 acres across the state.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Adrian Van Sinderen Papers consists of memorabilia, New York Port of Embarkation material, organizational material, and writings.

Memorabilia, the smallest part of the collection, contains awards, programs, and other souvenirs from various events or recognitions.

New York Port of Embarkation material (at the time Van Sinderen was there, this was called Headquarters, Port of Embarkation, Hoboken, NJ) consists of five highly organized scrapbooks that detail the comings and goings of vessels in and out of the Port of New York during the time Van Sinderen worked there in the years surrounding World War I. The first four notebooks are arranged alphabetically by ship name. For each ship there is a typed list detailing dates of movements in and out of New York Harbor and various maintenance or other activities; for many of the ships there are miniature blueprints of the ship's layout, and in some cases there are clippings of news items about the ship (for example, if it was torpedoed en route to Europe) and/or photographs. The fifth scrapbook is more general and contains miscellaneous material such as official memos, maps, clippings and reports. Some clippings have been photocopied to preserve them. There is also a handwritten volume of miscellaneous information.

Organizational material contains annual reports and other material relating to organizations with which Van Sinderen was involved, such as the American Horse Shows Association, Brooklyn Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, and The Rembrandt Club.

The bulk of Writings consists of what Van Sinderen called "Christmas Books," which was a series of books he wrote and gave as gifts at Christmas time. Beginning in 1935 and going on for 25 years, these books are wide-ranging in content, rich in history, geography, travel, famous people, memoirs and reminiscences. Also in this series are articles and speeches on a range of topics for a variety of occasions.

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Arrangement of the Collection

Most of the collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material or name of originating organization. The exception is Writings, which is subdivided by type (articles, Christmas books, etc.) and arranged chronologically within each type.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Related Material

Most of the books have been transferred to Rare Books for cataloging. Please refer to Libraries Search and search on "gift of adrian van sinderen" to locate these items.

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Subject Headings

Persons

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

Places

Genres and Forms

Occupations

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Adrian Van Sinderen Papers
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of Mrs. Adrian Van Sinderen, 1964.

Finding Aid Information

Created by: [Summit record]
Date: 1 Jan 2001
Revision history: 15 Mar 2010 - converted to EAD (MRC); 12 May 2025 - collection processed (MS)

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Inventory

	Memorabilia
		Awards
Oversize 1			American Horse Shows Association - record of Van Sinderen's activities
Box 1			Downtown Brooklyn Association Gold Medal 1933 - mostly letters of congratulation
		Events
Box 1			Brooklyn Savings Bank dinner 1947 - includes photograph
Box 1			Children's Museum (Brooklyn) Golden Anniversary Dinner 1949
Box 1			Christmas Dinner from Lucius Boomer at Waldorf-Astoria 1944
Box 1			Metropolitan Opera House Opera Ball 1933 - includes correspondence
Box 1			Syracuse University Commencement 1948 - includes photograph
Box 1		World War I 1917-1919

	New York Port of Embarkation material
		At the time Van Sinderen was there, this was called Headquarters, Port of Embarkation, Hoboken, NJ.
Box 1		"An Atlantic Port April 7, 1917 to November 11, 1918" commemorative booklet
Box 1		Ships' records, ship names A-L 1917-1919 (5 folders)
Box 2		Ships' records, ship names M-Z 1917-1919 (6 folders)
Box 2		Ships' records, miscellaneous 1917-1919 (3 folders)
Box 2		Unidentified record book 1918

	Organizational material
		American Horse Shows Association (AHSA)
Box 3			Annual President's Report 1941-1963 (3 folders)
Oversize 1			Horse Show 1938-1940, 1959 - official report of the AHSA, edited by Van Sinderen
Box 3			Minutes, bound 1937-1951 (3 folders)
Box 4			Minutes, bound 1951-1959 (5 folders)
Box 5			Minutes, bound 1959-1962 (4 folders)
Box 6			Miscellaneous 1934-1937, 1949, 1955
Box 6		Brooklyn Hospital 1934, 1946 - journal; reference bulletin
Box 6		Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences 1924, 1942-1949 (5 folders)
			Contained here are publications and reports from a number of cultural and social institutions, including the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn Children's Museum, Brooklyn Museum, and Brooklyn Botanical Garden. Of particular interest is a Golden Anniversary brochure for the Brooklyn Children's Museum, entirely written and illustrated by children.
Box 6		Brooklyn Savings Bank 1930, 1944-1946 - reports; commemorative booklet
Box 7		Brooklyn Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children 1921-1935 - annual reports (2 folders)
Box 7		Committee to Study Visiting Nursing 1924 - report, sponsored by the National Organization for Public Health Nursing
Box 7		Elihu Club 1952-1954 - minutes, meeting notes, correspondence
Box 7		Hunter College 1916 - proceedings of the Board of Trustees
Box 7		The Rembrandt Club 1930, 1937 - 50th anniversary year book; supplement

	Writings
Box 3		Articles, A-Z by title 1939-1960 (3 folders)
		Christmas books - written each year by Van Sinderen, privately printed and distributed to friends and family as Christmas gifts
Box 7			Important Beginnings 1936
Box 8			Adventures in Experience 1938
Box 8			As We Go Galloping On 1939
Box 8			Vagaries and Verities 1940 - proof and typescript copy (2 folders)
Box 8			In Quest of Oases 1941
Box 8			A Yuletide Phantasmagoria 1942
Box 8			The Fifth Year, A Further Chronicle of World War II 1944
Box 8			A Journey into Neolithic Times 1947
Box 8			Isthmus Maximus 1948
Box 8			Blake, the Mystic Genius 1949
Box 8			Africa, Land of Many Lands 1950
Box 8			The Country of the Mountains of the Moon 1951
Box 9			Foundation Stones 1952
Box 9			From the Canal to the Horn 1953
Box 9			The Lure of the Middle East 1954
Box 9			A Passage to India 1955
Box 9			An Illustrious Company 1956 - pp. 1-391; includes printed excerpts booklet (6 folders)
Box 10			An Illustrious Company 1956 - pp. 392-418
Box 10			Our Home in the Countryside 1957
Box 10			A Voyage Through the Azure Seas 1958 (2 copies in 2 folders)
Box 10			The Other Half of the Earth 1959 (2 folders)
Oversize 2			The Other Half of the Earth [copy 2] 1959
Box 10		Diary of transcontinental auto trip 1919
		Speeches
Box 10			Speeches, by year 1930-1956 (3 folders)
Box 11			Speeches, by year 1957-1962, undated (2 folders)
		Miscellaneous
Box 11			American Horse Shows Association 1917-1960
Box 11			Behind the Scenes at a Horse Show 1948
Box 11			Twixt Twilight and Taps undated

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