Search

Joy Postle papers, 1910-2015 contains books, manuscript material, and fine art by and about Joy Postle documents her work and her legacy as an artist, muralist, naturalist, poet, writer, and entertainer. These papers contain correspondence, news clippings, drawings, paintings, a scrapbook and many photographs documenting Joy Postle's life and work, providing insight into her personal life and creative process. Most of the collection is devoted to her art in all its forms and images that she used for inspiration. Katherine Joy Postle was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1896. She studied music and art at the Art Institute of Chicago. Upon graduation in the 1920s, Postle moved to the Snake River Canyon area of Idaho establishing herself as an artist and interior decorator. In Idaho, she met her husband, journalist Robert Blackstone. The couple traveled throughout the West, Southwest, and South living. Arriving in Florida in 1934, the couple continued their nomadic lifestyle until purchasing a small home on Lake Rose, near Orlando, in 1942. In addition to painting and drawing, Postle wrote poetry and worked for the WPA Florida Art Project. Around 1937, Postle and Blackstone conceived "Glamour Birds," a unique entertainment show combining recorded bird songs and music with Postle singing, painting birds, and teaching her audience about wildlife and conservation.

John P. Hartman collection includes his research materials relating to canals, bridges, railways, transportation systems and historical engineering in Florida. Entire collection range from 1605 to 2006, but are concentrated in the era when population in Florida exploded between 1905 and 1993. The collection includes clippings, correspondence, maps, pamphlets, papers and over 1,200 slides related to Florida.