Guide to the Papers of Joseph A. D. Sutton (1907-1997)
1756, 1850-1999
(bulk 1979-1993)

ASF AR-37

Series I: , 1942-1999.

Scope and Content:

This series consists mostly of original documents and includes Joseph Sutton’s memoirs (in several editions), writings, notes, and correspondence, as well as the writings and correspondence of a number of the members of Sutton’s extended family. It focuses on Sutton’s research in preparation for the writing of his books, as well as several editions of Sutton’s unpublished memoirs.

Series I contains historical materials from many of the important events in Sutton’s life, including his service in the U.S. Army, his work in establishing a lace business, and Sutton’s ventures into collecting art. Series I also includes notes from some of the classes in which Sutton was enrolled at Brooklyn College. In addition, a portion of Series I consists of discussion and the legal proceedings involved in the creation and development of the Sephardic Heritage Foundation in Brooklyn, NY which Sutton established in 1994.

Joseph A. D. Sutton

Sutton Family

Series II: Individuals, 1956-1997.

Scope and Content:

This series is made up of materials either written by Sephardic individuals (as in the case of Marc Angel) or about Sephardim (as in the case of Eddie Antar). A great deal of this material involves correspondence, but it also includes articles written by these individuals.

In addition to the extensive correspondence, the series includes small collections of writings and articles by Professor Walter Zenner, the noted anthropologist who wrote about the Syrian Jews in the U.S., and Professor Victor Sanua, the distinguished psychologist who wrote about Egyptian Jews. Larger collections of the papers of both of these individuals are held in the ASF archives.

Box 3 in particular contains the evaluations of Sutton’s work delivered by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The box also includes correspondence and writings by Judy Feld Carr, who was involved in the National Task Force for Syrian Jewry, which sought to save the Jews of Syria in the early 1990s. Finally, this particular box contains the rather scathing review of Aleppo Chronicles published in Midstream by Edward Roditti, along with several responses to this review submitted by some of Sutton’s colleagues and associates.

Box 4 contains a small collection of the papers of Dr. Victor Sanua and his daughter, Dr. Marianne Sanua. In addition to a small assemblage of correspondence from 1990 (a collection that is insignificant compared to the mass of email and regular correspondence assembled in Sanua’s personal papers) there are a number of articles written and published by the two Sanuas. A distinguished psychologist, the materials by Dr. Victor Sanua include a number of articles dealing with psychology, but many of the articles included here deal with Jews—both here in America as well as in the Middle East.

Individuals

Victor and Marianne Sanua

Series III: Syrians, Sephardim and Related Groups, 1756, 1850-1945, 1968-1998.

Scope and Content:

This series is made up of materials about Syrian institutions and organizations (particularly in Brooklyn, NY), about other Sephardi organizations and entities (i.e., Arabic, Near Eastern Jews, etc.), or about Jews in general.

Box 5 contains materials about Syria and the Jews who came to the United States from there. Particularly notable are clippings and writings about a group of Syrian brides who were brought to marry in New York. There are articles and writings about Aleppo, Syrian history and archaeology, and clippings and correspondence involving the Syrian synagogues and schools in Brooklyn and New Jersey.

Box 6 contains a wide variety of materials focusing on Sephardim from around the world, as well materials about a number of different Jewish topics.

Box 7 contains a collection of surveys of Near Eastern Jews. These surveys include examples of surveys that were used to compose the survey which Sutton created to evaluate the Near Eastern Jews living in Brooklyn, NY. In addition, there are a large number of samples of the survey which Sutton developed to serve his purpose. Of these, Sutton appears to have collected approximately 50 completed surveys which are also contained in this collection.

Syrian Jews

Sephardic Jews and Related Groups

Surveys of Near Eastern Jews in U.S.

Series IV: Joseph Sutton Writings, 1970-1998.

Scope and Content:

This series is made up largely of the correspondence, the promotional material, the images, and the reviews involved in describing Sutton’s two books: Magic Carpet: Aleppo in Flatbush and Aleppo Chronicles. The boxes are arranged in chronological order, with Sutton’s first book: Magic Carpet: Aleppo in Flatbush (published in 1979) appearing in Box 8, and Sutton’s second book: Aleppo Chronicles (published in 1988) appearing in Box 9.

Box 8 contains such items as correspondence about the book Magic Carpet, including publisher’s correspondence, as well as a collection of the rejection letters that Sutton received in his effort to get his book published. Also included are images used in the creation of the book, as well as the steel printing plates used in printing the covers of the book.

Box 9 contains correspondence concerning the book Aleppo Chronicles, as well as promotional material, and reviews involving this work. There is also correspondence in this box from the Library of Congress dealing with their efforts to catalog the book. Finally there is correspondence discussing the possibility of translating the work into Hebrew (with examples of text included).

Box 10 contains large numbers of pages of photocopies from the books themselves, mainly in 8 ½ x 14” format. In the case of the Aleppo Chronicles, there are two copies of the book: one without comments, and the second with the comments of one of the editors: Dr. Raphael Patai. In addition, there is one folder containing images for paste-up for the book Magic Carpet: Aleppo in Flatbush.

Magic Carpet

Aleppo Chronicles

Sutton Books in legal format

Series V: Miscellaneous Non-Jewish Materials, 1926, 1982-1997.

Scope and Content:

This series contains materials which Sutton collected and apparently regarded as important, but which are largely non-Jewish. Some materials, such as the newspaper clippings and the manuals for telephone and typewriter, have little if any relationship to Judaism whatsoever. Others, such as the various letterheads which Sutton used and some of Sutton’s investment information, are related through their association with Sutton himself. The relevance of some items, such as the stage play: “The Miracle” and the address lists, is altogether unknown.