Guide to the Papers of Dan Sprod
MS 8429; MS Acc07.077;.MS Acc10.033; MS Acc22.018
National Library of Australia View Catalogue Record
Collection Summary
- Creator
- Sprod, Dan, OAM (Thomas Daniel)
- Title
- Papers of Dan Sprod
- Date Range
- 1938 - 2018
- Collection Number
- MS 8429; MS Acc07.077;.MS Acc10.033; MS Acc22.018
- Extent
- 9.18 metres (45 MS boxes) + 4 large folio-boxes + 1 folder
- Language of Materials
- English
- Repository
- Special Collections (Manuscripts)
Introduction
Scope and Contents
MS 8429 contains material on Blubber Head Press and Dan Sprod's career as a librarian at both the National Library of Australia and the Morris Miller Library at the University of Tasmania, and author and editor of numerous books. There are also papers relating to his professional and research interests, including Tasmanian Art Advisory Board, Tasmanian Historical Research Association, Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts and the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme. The papers, arranged into 14 series, include correspondence, research material, notes, handwritten drafts, typescripts, financial papers, minutes of meetings and reports.MS Acc07.077 comprises a letter from Ira Raymond, of the Australian Consulate, New York, to Dan Sprod dated 31 October, 1956.MS Acc10.033 comprises papers reflecting Sprod's roles as publisher and writer. They include: correspondence relating to books published by Blubber Head Press and books written by Sprod, together with Sprod's research, grant applications and speaking engagements; draft proofs of various publications; and business records. Publication titles represented in the papers include: Major Mitchell's map 1834: the saga of the survey of the nineteen counties, by Alan E.J. Andrews (1992); A salute to watercolour, by Max Angus (1996); Sprod's The usurper: Jorgen Jorgenson and his turbulent life in Iceland and Van Diemen's Land 1780-1841 (2001); and his Leichhardt's expeditioners: in the Australian wilderness 1844-1845 (2006). In addition there are papers relating to the Ludwig Leichhardt Expedition Exposition in Queensland in 2004.MS Acc22.018 includes research notebooks for Dan Sprod's various publications, appointment diaries covering the period 1960 to 2018, and correspondence. Correspondents include other National Library of Australia staff members Mollie Thomson, Charles Dornbusch and Ira Raymond. The collection also includes one small notebook related to Sprod's move with his wife and three young sons to take up the position in the Australian Consulate General office in New York.
Conditions Governing Access
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2946476).
Conditions Governing Use
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred Citation
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Dan Sprod, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file number]'.
Provenance
Dan Sprod presented the bulk of his papers to the National Library in 1990 under the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme. Further papers were added in March 1999. Additions were also received in 2007 and 2010.
Biographical Note
Dan Sprod was born in South Australia in 1924. He served in the Royal Australian Navy (1942-46), attended Adelaide University and graduated Bachelor of Arts (1948-50), before joining the National Library in 1951. He held a number of senior positions, including Liaison Officer, New York (1957-60), Chief Cataloguer (1964-65) and Principal Librarian, User Services (1966). Upon leaving the National Library, he was appointed University Librarian, Morris Miller Library, University of Tasmania in 1966 and held this position until his resignation on 31 July 1976.
Sprod founded the Blubber Head Press in 1978 and became its manager. He was also the owner of the bookshop Astrolabe Books in Hobart, specialising in antiquarian books relating to Australia.
Dan Sprod has been active on committees in a range of areas associated with his professional and research interests. The many organisations with which he was associated include the Library Association of Australia, the Australian Advisory Council on Bibliographical Services, the Tasmanian Historical Research Association, the Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts and the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board.
Item Descriptions
Class MS 8429. Original Consignment, 1955-1997
Series 1. Correspondence, 1973-90
This series contains correspondence relating mostly to Sprod's activities, including Keith Sinclair's paper delivered at the First Louis Triebel Memorial Lecture (University of Tasmania July 1986) entitled 'Laplace at Hobart Town and Sydney Town', the Early Imprints project, Chris Long's paper entitled 'The Frith Brothers, Tasmania photographic pioneers' and the Journal of Frederick Walker.
The correspondents include Keith Sinclair, Chris Long, James Bennett Group, Kenneth Hince, State Libraries of New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria, the National Library and booksellers (such as Leo Berkelouw and Margareta Webber).
Other groups of correspondence may be found in Series 2, 5, 8, 9 and 10. Files 28 and 29 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Correspondence concerning The great circle: journal of the Australian Association of Maritime History, 1980-82 (File 10) - Box 2 (MS 8429)
Correspondence with Maggie Weidenhofer concerning Port Arthur: a place of misery, 1978-79 (File 16) - Box 2 (MS 8429)
Correspondence concerning the publicity of Blubber Head Press publications, 1979-84 (File 17-23) - Box 2(MS 8429)
Correspondence concerning the publicity of Blubber Head Press publications (File 17-23) - Box 3 (MS 8429)
Series 2. Blubber Head Press: correspondence, 1977-97
The series includes business correspondence, financial papers, research material, notes, drafts and mock-ups of books. Most of the books were published by Blubber Head Press.
The correspondents include Joanna Richards, Alan Andrews, Vivian Rae-Ellis, C. Craig, E. Bracegirdle, Australia Council, Kenneth Hince, Griffin Press, Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board and State Library of Tasmania.
Files 60 - 82 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Search for the Tasmanian tiger (1981), 1981-83 See also Series 3, Folio 11 (File 22-31) - Box 7 (MS 8429)
The Baudin expedition and the Tasmanian Aborigines, 1802 (1983), 1982-84 (File 32-37) - Box 8 (MS 8429)
Stapylton with Major Mitchell's Australia Felix Expedition, 1836 (1986), 1986-87 (File 46-47) - Box 9 (MS 8429)
Louisa Anne Meredith: a tigress in exile (Reprinted by Tasmania Government Printing Office in 1990), 1990-94 (File 60) - Box 24 (MS 8429)
Down Wapping: Hobart's vanished wapping and old wharf districts (1988), 1986-89 (File 62) - Box 24 (MS 8429)
Proud intrepid heart: Leichhardt's first attempt to the Swan River, 1846-47 (1989), 1976-97 (File 63-64) - Box 24 (MS 8429)
Proud intrepid heart: Leichhardt's first attempt to the Swan River, 1846-47 (1989) (File 63-64) - Box 25 (MS 8429)
Open to talent: the centenary history of the University of Tasmania, 1890-1990 (Published by University of Tasmania in 1990), 1988-97 (File 65-66) - Box 25 (MS 8429)
The convict probation system, Van Diemen's land 1839-1854... (1990), 1990-91 (File 67) - Box 25 (MS 8429)
The Whitehead letters: Tasmanian society and politics 1871-1882... (Edited by Michael Sprod and published by Tasmanian Historical Research Association in 1991), 1990-92 (File 71) - Box 25 (MS 8429)
Cascade: a taste of history (Published by Cascade Brewery in 1992), 1991-92 (File 72-73) - Box 26 (MS 8429)
Tasmanian insights: essays by Geoffrey Stilwell (Published by the State Library of Tasmania in 1992), 1989-92 (File 74-77) - Box 26 (MS 8429)
Series 3. Blubber Head Press: drafts of publications
This series includes handwritten drafts, typescripts, printer's proofs and notes relating to Blubber Head Press publications.
Series 4. Blubber Head Press Miscellaneous, 1972-97
This series comprises correspondence, notes, drafts and cuttings relating to various publication proposals and requests from the general public to publish their books. The correspondents include Alan E.J. Andrews, Susan Chamberlain and the general public.
Files 3 - 14 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Correspondence with Alan E.J. Andrews concerning Kosciusko: the mountain in history, 1980-82 (File 3) - Box 27 (MS 8429)
Correspondence with Susan Chamberlain concerning a proposal to publish her thesis on the Hobart whaling industry, 1987-89 (File 4) - Box 27 (MS 8429)
Notes and correspondence, 1981-97, concerning various 'tentative projects'. Some of the projects were never completed (File 8-10) - Box 27 (MS 8429)
Series 5. Books by Dan Sprod: correspondence, 1975-80
Sprod has written five books entitled Victorian and Edwardian Hobart from old photographs (Sydney: J. Ferguson, 1977) and Alexander Pearce of Macquarie Harbour (Hobart: Cat & Fiddle, 1977). The series comprises correspondence with the two publishers, proofs and financial papers.
Series 6. Books by Dan Sprod: drafts
This series includes typescripts, notes and research material relating to Victorian and Edwardian Hobart from old photographs and Alexander Pearce of Macquarie Harbour.
Series 7. Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board, 1982-90
Sprod was the Chairman of the Literature Panel of the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board (1982-88) and also a member of the Tasmanian Writers Union and the National Book Council. This series includes minutes of meetings and applications for grants.
Series 8. Tasmanian Historical Research Association, 1971-84
Sprod was the Chairman and a Council member of the Tasmanian Historical Research Association. The papers in this series include minutes of meetings, committee reports and correspondence relating to three titles published by the Association, namely Governors' ladies (1987), The Journal of Charles O'Hara Booth (1981) and Sam Thomas and his neighbours (1975).
Series 9. National Library of Australia, 1955-64
Sprod joined the staff of the National Library in 1951. He held various senior positions, including Liaison Officer, New York (1957-60), Chief Cataloguer (1965-65) and Principal Librarian, User Services (1966). This series includes correspondence, reports and conference papers.
Series 10. Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts, 1985-88
In 1985 Sprod was invited by the Tasmanian Minister of Education, John Beswick, to serve as a member of the Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts Management Committee.
The series includes correspondence with the Department of Education, agenda and minutes of meetings, and copies of State Library of Tasmania's annual report.
Series 11. Morris Miller Library, University of Tasmania, 1966-75
Sprod was appointed University Librarian of the Morris Miller Library at the University of Tasmania in 1966 and held this position until his resignation in 1976. The series contains some copies of his correspondence during this period.
Files 1,2 and 5 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Series 12. Publishing consultant, 1979-85
The series contains notes, drafts and correspondence relating to Sprod's activities as publishing consultant.
Typescript of The history of the Tasmanian Royal Botanical Gardens, 1818-1986 by Marcus Harburgh (File 2) - Box 29 (MS 8429)
Photocopy and part of a transcript of Rev. Knopwood's diary kept on a voyage from Portsmouth to Port Jackson in 1803, sent to Sprod by Maggs Brothers of London, 1982 (File 3) - Box 29 (MS 8429)
Series 13. Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme, 1979-95
Sprod was a valuer for the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme (now known as the Cultural Gifts Program). The series comprises papers relating to this activity.
Files 2-8 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Series 14. Other papers, 1976-95
The series comprises papers documenting Sprod's other activities, including his involvement with the Australian Book Publishers Association, Federation of Australian Historical Societies and Industries Assistance Commission. The papers include correspondence, cuttings, notes and photographs.
Files 1, 4-6, 8 and 10-11 contain papers that were donated to the Library in March 1999.
Class MS Acc07.077. Consignment received 2007, 1956
This consignment comprises a letter from Ira Raymond, of the Australian Consulate, New York, to Dan Sprod dated 31 October, 1956.
Class MS Acc10.033. Consignment received 2010, 1938 – 2009
This consignment comprises correspondence relating to books published by Blubber Head Press and books written by Sprod, together with Sprod's research, grant applications and speaking engagements; draft proofs of various publications; and business records. Publication titles represented in the papers include: Major Mitchell's map 1834: the saga of the survey of the nineteen counties, by Alan E. J. Andrews (1992); A salute to watercolour, by Max Angus (1996); Sprod's The usurper: Jorgen Jorgenson and his turbulent life in Iceland and Van Diemen's Land 1780-1841 (2001); and his Leichhardt's expeditioners: in the Australian wilderness 1844-1845 (2006). In addition there are papers relating to a Ludwig Leichhardt Expedition Exposition in Queensland in 2004.
A salute to watercolour, 1994-2002 (File) - Box 1 (MS Acc10.033)
5 folders of material and correspondence relating to publishing of book A salute to watercolour by Max Angus by Blubber Head Press.
Blubber Head Press publicatios, 1993-2008 (File) - Box 1 (MS Acc10.033)
6 folders of correspondence relating to various publications of Blubber Head Press, and Sprod's ADB entry for Furneaux.
Book publication projects, 2002-2006 (File) - Box 2 (MS Acc10.033)
Material relating to publication Leichhardt's Expeditioners and other book publication projects
Capital City, 1938 (File) - Box 2 (MS Acc10.033)
Book, Capital city (1938) by Warren Denning containing signatures of Parliamentary Library staff on the event of a colleague leaving the Library.
Leichhardt's Expeditioners, 2003-2006 (File) - Box 3 (MS Acc10.033)
Material relating to publication Leichhardt's Expeditioners.
Miscellaneous files, 1987-2009 (File) - Box 4 (MS Acc10.033)
Files of 'The Usurper' Jorgen Jorgenson; 'Major Mitchell's map' Andrews, Alan; 2 files for Dan Sprod's entries in Australian Dictionary of Biography and business records.
Miscellaneous files, 1987-2009 (File) - Box 5 (MS Acc10.033)
Files of 'The Usurper' Jorgen Jorgenson; 'Major Mitchell's map' Andrews, Alan; 2 files for Dan Sprod's entries in Australian Dictionary of Biography and business records.
Class MS Acc22.018. Consignment received 2022, 1954-2018
This consignment includes research notebooks for Dan Sprod's various publications, appointment diaries covering the period 1960 to 2018, and correspondence. Correspondents include other National Library of Australia staff members Mollie Thomson, Charles Dornbusch and Ira Raymond. The collection also includes one small notebook related to Sprod's move with his wife and three young sons to take up the position in the Australian Consulate General office in New York.
Notebook, 1957 - 1961 (File 1) - Box 1 (MS Acc22.018)
Notebook kept during Dan Sprod's time in the U.S. covering preparations for the trip, contacts and arrangement while there.
Research notebooks (File 3) - Box 2 (MS Acc22.018)
Mainly related to The usurper : Jorgen Jorgenson and his turbulent life in Iceland and Van Diemen's Land 1780-1841, Blubber Head Press, 2001
Research notebooks, 1977 - 2009 (File 6) - Box 5 (MS Acc22.018)
Includes general notebooks, ideas for possible projects and specific research notebooks for publications
Correspondence, 1954 - 1961 (File 7) - Box 6 (MS Acc22.018)
Six letters from Ira Raymond; 17 letters from Mollie Thomson