People:
- Lloyd Wright (creator)
- Lloyd Wright (architect)
- Lloyd Wright Architect (architectural firm)
- Lloyd Wright (author)
- Lloyd Wright (correspondence writer)
- Arthur Erickson (client)
- Alfred Erickson (client)
- Daniel De Jonghe (client)
- Mabel Ellen De Jonghe (client)
- Ralph Jester (client)
Title:
Wayfarers' Chapel Architect's Project Files
Level of archival description:
Subseries
Extent and medium:
- 1426 textual records
543 ephemera
191 drawings
80 photographs
37 reprographic copies
23 photomechanical prints
1 negative
Scope and content:
The project files documenting the construction of the Wayfarers' Chapel and site are extensive and quite complete. The documentation is more complete for the first two units of construction than for the latter units. Thus, the internal coherence of the papers is more apparent for the earlier development of the project.
The most comprehensive record of the development of the Wayfarers' Chapel is contained in the "Supervision Journal" which covers the period from 1947-1971 (files 97a/97b of the "General Files"). It should be noted particularly by researchers using these papers. The research value of the "Supervision Journal" is complemented by a substantial body of general correspondence which documents Lloyd Wright's interaction with the client and with other parties involved with the design or construction of the Chapel (the Palos Verdes Corporation, the Wayfarers Chapel Building and Properties Committee, and Reverends of the Chapel between 1947 and 1960). Further correspondence relates to the publicity for the Chapel between 1951 and 1965.
The textual documents are augmented by an extensive array of visual materials, such as drawings, photographs, postcards, newspaper articles and trade catalogues, which are valuable for providing a pictorial record of the Chapel and site from its earliest through to its later development. The "Trade Catalogues and Supplier Ephemera" file (file 98 of the "General Files") contains a record of the products and supplies Lloyd Wright considered or used in the construction of the Wayfarers' Chapel.
Reference number:
AP151.S1.D10
Arrangement:
The architect's project files have been reorganized into two groupings totalling 205 files. General files are organized by document type and construction files are organized according to five building phases: the chapel proper, unit I of construction, 1952-1952; the campanile, berm walls and walks, unit II of construction, 1953-1955; the parish house, cloister and refectory, unit III of construction, 1955-1957; the work shed and yard, also known as the service building addition, unit IV of construction, 1957-1958; and a final group of smaller projects -- restrooms, baptismal fount and auditorium addition -- executed between 1960 and 1977. A description of the current contents of each file and of their organization as received is available upon request.
Other finding aids:
- Consult the Guide and Inventory to the Papers of Lloyd Wright's Wayfarers' (Swedenborg Memorial) Chapel.
