Brown University Library News

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] – Brown University has received a collection of works by John Jay Chapman (1862-1933), noted man of letters, dramatist, and political reformer, as a gift from longtime Library supporter, Daniel Siegel ’57. 

Born in New York City, the son of Henry Grafton Chapman, one-time president of the New York Stock Exchange, and Eleanor Jay Chapman, the great-granddaughter of John Jay, the first chief justice of the United States, John Jay Chapman’s writings, like his interests, were varied.  Author of twenty-seven books and numerous articles, Chapman wrote on Shakespeare, Dante, Greek literature, and authored plays for children and adults. He is probably best known for his early reform work, namely, Causes and Consequences and Political Agitation. Chapman, who lived in New York City and later Poughkeepsie, New York, was a fierce advocate of reform, especially in the realm of politics.  He edited and privately published a monthly periodical, The Political Nursery, which served as a fierce critic of Tammany Hall and a promoter of good government.

Daniel Siegel has been collecting the writing of Chapman for many years and published Chapman’s works in twelve volumes in 1970.  Thanks to Mr. Siegel’s generosity, Brown now owns a virtually complete set of Chapman’s writings.

The Brown University Library is home to more than 6.8 million print items, plus a multitude of electronic resources and expanding digital archives serving the teaching, research, and learning needs of Brown students and faculty, as well as scholars from around the country and the world. http://library.brown.edu/

Contact: Rosemary Cullen | rosemary_cullen@brown.edu | 401-863-1514