Guide to the Gries Tobacco Printed Works, Manuscripts and Artifacts Collection

Biography of Robert Hays Gries

Robert Hays Gries (1900-1966) was a prominent Cleveland business executive, philanthropist, collector of art objects and books, and long-term patron of music, sports and civic affairs. For thirty years, he methodically built his private library of rare and unusual items on tobacco, intending to eventually donate it to the Cleveland Public Library.

Robert Hays Gries (1900-1966), was a prominent Cleveland business executive, philanthropist, collector of art objects and books, and long-term patron of music, sports and civic affairs. For thirty years, he methodically built his private library of rare and unusual items on tobacco with the help of the Cleveland rare book dealer, Peter Keisogloff, intending to eventually donate it to the Cleveland Public Library. Gries was born in Cleveland in 1900; he attended University School and Western Reserve and Yale Universities. In 1924, Gries began his career at the May Company in downtown Cleveland. He was associated with the company for eighteen years as assistant general manager, store manager, and vice president. He left the company in 1942 to serve two years in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Gries then joined Morgan Steel Products Company, serving as president until 1964. Gries had one of the largest known collections of tobacco literature, which he donated to the Cleveland Public Library. He also collected Chinese export porcelain, examples of which can be viewed at the Western Reserve Historical Society and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Gries helped found both the Cleveland Rams and the Cleveland Browns. He served as president of the Vocational Guidance and Rehabilitation Services; as regional vice president of the American Council for Judaism; as director of radio station WERE; and as a trustee of numerous organizations, specifically the Musical Arts Association, which sponsors the Cleveland Orchestra. He also was a member of the general committee of the Northern Ohio Opera Association and president of the Cleveland Friends of Music.

Scope and Content

The Gries Tobacco Printed Works, Manuscripts and Artifacts Collection spans the years 1650-1980, with the bulk of the items dating from the late 18th and early 20th centuries, and contains material related to the manufacturing, sale, and use of tobacco in the United States and abroad. The material was donated by Robert H. Gries in 1942-1953 and some items were acquired by the library staff.

The Gries Tobacco Printed Works, Manuscripts and Artifacts Collection spans the years 1650-1973, with the bulk of the items dating from the late 18th and early 20th centuries, and contains material related to the manufacturing, sale, and use of tobacco in the United States and abroad. The material was donated by Robert H. Gries in 1942-1953 and some items were acquired by the library staff. The sheer variety of the material is vast, including both paper-based materials and artifacts. The Collection comprises various publications dated 1719-1938, such as British parliamentary papers, French legal documents, and anti-tobacco publications. There are also anti-opium posters in Chinese and anti-narcotics publications, as well as a map of Mexico showing the distribution of tobacco and coffee cultivation. The Collection also includes manuscripts related to tobacco manufacture and trade, with colonial manuscript orders dated 1784-1787. There are tobacco shipment documents that comprise both handwritten freight receipts for tobacco merchandise and bills of lading on printed billheads from the Civil War era. The Collection also includes Special Tax stamps, or licenses, for manufacturing tobacco dated from 1873 to 1890. The Collection's graphic works comprise prints and tobacco-related product ephemera (1880-1930). Of special interest are European prints from the mid-17th century to the mid-18th century and collections of cigar bands and Sweet Caporal Cigarette cards dated 1880-1915. Many ephemera items such as trade cards, labels, Omar Cigarettes advertisements, and sheet music represent a great resource for the study of early American advertising. The artifacts portion of the Collection includes tobacco jars, a smoker's wall cabinet, and cigarette boxes.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

The collection is open for research. Please contact the Special Collections Department at Cleveland Public Library regarding the material. The Library supports access to the materials in its collections. However, access to some items may be restricted by their fragile condition.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

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Preferred Citation

The Gries Tobacco Printed Works, Manuscripts and Artifacts Collection of the Special Collections Department at the Cleveland Public Library.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Robert Hays Gries, 1942-1953 The bulk of the Collection was donated by Robert Hays Gries to the John G. White Collection along with the gifts of his book collection on tobacco history, customs and lore through three large installments. In October 1942, the first installment was deposited for safekeeping at the Cleveland Public Library and then officially donated in 1952. The second and the third gifts followed in 1953 and 1954. The collection also contains material acquired by the library staff until the 1970s when funds were depleted.

Detailed Description of The Collection