John Quinn (1870-1924), a visionary when it came to collecting contemporary literature and art, set a high standard that few, if any, have surpassed since.
Quinn was born in Fostoria, Ohio of Irish parents, attended the University of Michigan and then received law degrees from both Georgetown University and Harvard. Reading and collecting came early and by the time he was a teenager he was buying contemporary authors for his ever expanding library. Later, when money came in bushels from his successful New York City law career he continued to focus on contemporary books and art on a grand scale. Quinn took things one big step further and got to know personally many of the writers of his time. His particular interest in Irish writers led to friendships abroad with now legendary authors such as W. B. Yeats, John Synge and James Joyce. Other prominent writers that were close friends included Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot.
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| Hangin' with the boys in Paris 1923: Joyce, Pound, Quinn, and Ford Madox Ford |
