CORRESPONDENCE, 1921-1983

Letters received and copies of letters sent by Frances Grant in her capacity as vice president of the Roerich Museum from 1921 to 1937. Also includes some later correspondence referring to Nicholas Roerich and the Roerich Museum.

Subjects discussed include exchanges of art work, public cultural programs and publications of the museum, relations with Roerich societies abroad, particularly in France and Latvia, the museum's financial difficulties in the early 1930s, and Nicholas Roerich's tax difficulties. Important correspondents include Pearl Buck, for whom the museum organized a luncheon, Nicholas Roerich's son George, Grant's fellow museum trustees Louis H. Bean, Maurice and Sina Lichtmann, and museum director Louis H. Horch.

Of particular importance is correspondence with George Roerich while he was with his family in Urusvati, Kulu, India and on the botanical expedition in Manchuria and Mongolia in 1934-1935. Roerich describes his experiences, including his contacts with occupied Manchuria (Manchuoko) and the scientific work of the expedition. Grant describes events in the United States, including Henry A. Wallace's disillusionment with Roerich and the expedition, and the dispute over the ownership of the museum building and its eventual loss to Louis Horch in 1937. These events are also discussed in the Horch and Lichtmann correspondence.

Also of interest is correspondence between Grant and museum supporters James and Margaret Cousins (1932-1934). Margaret Cousins was jailed in India for protesting British rule. James Cousins was president of the Theosophical College in Madanapalle, Madras.