Scope and Contents
The Farwell Knapp Papers, consisting of correspondence, journals, photographs, and other papers, document the personal and professional life of Connecticut tax lawyer Farwell Knapp. Knapp’s experience as a student at Yale University and Harvard University law school are recorded, including, for example, friendships with fellow alumni and his involvement with the secret society Skull and Bones. Farwell Knapp and his wife Helen Bayne Knapp’s family life and friendships (including poet Phelps Putnam and painter Russell Cheney) are also represented in the papers. Knapp’s journals contain entries on topics ranging from his everyday family life and health to philosophical ponderings and explicit details of sexual experiences. Knapp’s career is also documented in both his own writings and contemporary publications that mention his legal cases.
Dates
- 1891 - 1947
- Majority of material found within 1907 - 1942
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The Farwell Knapp Papers is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Helen Bayne Knapp (1967 and 1973) and Elizabeth Knapp Packard (2006).
Arrangement
The Farwell Knapp Papers is organized into the following four series: Correspondence, Journals, Professional Papers, and Personal Papers. Oversize material is listed at the end of the collection.
Extent
7.75 Linear Feet (20 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The Farwell Knapp Papers, largely consisting of correspondence, journals, photographs, and other papers, documents the personal and professional life of Connecticut tax lawyer Farwell Knapp. Knapp’s experience as a student at Yale University and Harvard University law school are recorded, including his involvement with the secret society Skull and Bones and friendships with fellow alumni (such as poet Phelps Putnam and painter Russell Cheney). The life of Knapp's wife, Helen Bayne Knapp, and her family are also documented in the papers.
Farwell Knapp (1893-1942)
Farwell Knapp was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on November 28, 1893. He was educated at the Taft School (in Watertown) and Yale University where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Skull and Bones. After his graduation from Yale in 1916 Knapp entered Harvard University Law School. Knapp left his studies in 1917 and enlisted in the Army, where he served with the 302nd Field Artillery in France. Knapp returned to law school after the war, graduating in 1921, and was admitted to the Connecticut Bar in 1922. The following year Knapp married Helen Bayne (1896-1984) with whom he had two daughters (Emily Perkins and Elizabeth Cheney). Knapp first worked in the office of Shipman & Goodwin before he was appointed assistant tax commissioner of the state of Connecticut in 1925, a position he would hold until 1937, at which point he became a partner in the firm of Marsh, Stoddard & Day. In 1941 Knapp worked for a short time as a trust officer in the Phoenix State Bank & Trust Company before his retirement due to a heart condition. During his career Knapp also taught at the Hartford College of Law. Knapp died by suicide in 1942.
Processing Information
The Farwell Knapp Papers contain archival material formerly classed in YCAL MSS 116.
- Bayne, Hugh Aiken, 1870-1954
- Books and reading
- Cheney, Russell, 1881-1945
- Childbirth -- Connecticut
- Courtship -- Connecticut
- Diaries -- United States -- Connecticut
- Farwell Knapp journal
- Harvard Law School -- Alumni and alumnae
- Knapp, Farwell, 1893-1942
- Knapp, Helen Bayne, 1896-1984
- Manning, Frederick J. (Frederick Johnson)
- Marriage -- Connecticut
- Marsh, Stoddard & Day
- Order of Skull & Bones
- Pearson, Norman Holmes, 1909-1975
- Phi Beta Kappa
- Photographs -- United States
- Putnam, Phelps, 1894-1948
- Sex -- Connecticut
- Shipman & Goodman (Law firm)
- Stewart, Donald Ogden, 1894-1980
- Tax lawyers
- University of Connecticut. School of Law
- Yale College (1887- ). Class of 1916
- Yale University -- Alumni and alumnae
- Yale University
- Title
- Guide to the Farwell Knapp Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- by H. Dean
- Date
- July 2007
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Revision Statements
- 2023-06-21: Finding aid and Farwell Knapp agent record revised to address euphemistic and/or stigmatizing descriptive language related to suicide.
Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository
Location
121 Wall Street
New Haven, CT 06511
Opening Hours
Access Information
The Beinecke Library is open to all Yale University students and faculty, and visiting researchers whose work requires use of its special collections. You will need to bring appropriate photo ID the first time you register. Beinecke is a non-circulating, closed stack library. Paging is done by library staff during business hours. You can request collection material online at least two business days in advance of your visit, using the request links in Archives at Yale. For more information, please see Planning Your Research Visit and consult the Reading Room Policies prior to visiting the library.