Margaret Fishback was an advertising copywriter for Macy's, Cecil & Presbrey, Warwick & Legler, Young & Rubicam, Doyle Dane Bernbach, and a number of freelance clients. A poet, columnist, and author of prose work, she contributed frequently to national magazines and published several books. The Margaret Fishback Papers span the years 1863 through 1978 and document Fishback's dual careers in advertising and writing as well as her personal life. The collection includes correspondence, layouts, drafts, galley proofs, radio scripts, working copy of advertising text, poetry, prose, published material, appointment books, scrapbooks, photographs, and other materials. Clients represented in the papers include Borden's, Chef Boy-Ar-Dee, Clairol, General Foods, Gourmet Foods, Gimbels, Macy's, Martex, Moore-McCormack Lines, Norcross, Norsk, Pabst, and Simmons Beautyrest.
The Margaret Fishback Papers span the years 1863 through 1978 and document Fishback's dual careers in advertising and writing as well as her personal life. The collection includes correspondence, layouts, drafts, galley proofs, radio scripts, working copy of advertising text, poetry, prose, published material, appointment books, scrapbooks, photographs, and other materials. Clients represented in the papers include Arrow, Borden's, Chef Boy-Ar-Dee, Clairol, General Foods, Gimbels, Gourmet Foods, Macy's, West Point Pepperell (Martex), Moore-McCormack Lines, Norcross, Norsk, Pabst, Simmons Beautyrest, and Wrigley. Materials that predate Fishback's birth consist of a small collection of 19th-century prints and illustrations.
The collection is organized into three series: Personal Files, Writings, and Advertising.
The Personal Files Series chiefly documents Fishback's personal life through personal correspondence, datebooks, diaries, and photographs. Also included are a number of items collected by Fishback such as etiquette books, newspaper clippings, church bulletins, and travel memorabilia. Biographical data, chiefly news articles, provide secondary source material about Fishback and her family.
The Writings Series documents Fishback's writing career, containing her published works as well as a large amount of work in unpublished form. Writings include articles and light poetry written for national news and general-interest publications such as Collier's, Liberty, Life, Look, the New York Times, New Yorker, Saturday Evening Post, and Time. Writings also include Fishback's contributions to women's magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Family Circle, Glamour, Good Housekeeping, Judge, Mademoiselle, McCall's, War Brides, Woman's Day, and Woman's Home Companion. A large number of Fishback's poems were reprinted as compilations; Fishback also compiled her own work in several scrapbooks. Materials represent Fishback's writings for children, including a promotional booklet for Martex and an English translation of a German poetry book. In addition to general prose and poetry, this series also includes materials collected and produced for a column entitled "Woman-Talk," which Fishback wrote for Liberty from 1943 to 1947. Also included are short stories, greeting card work, letters to magazine and newspaper editors, speeches for various events such as author talks and advertising conventions, and other miscellaneous writings. General files document the administrative aspects of Fishback's writing career. These files contain correspondence, chiefly between Fishback and various editors and publishers, as well as financial and legal materials.
The Advertising Series documents Fishback's advertising work for R.H. Macy and Co. Department Store, as well as work for advertising agencies and freelance work. Included in this series are advertisements in various stages of production: notes, drafts, proofs, and tear sheets. Administrative materials, such as correspondence, often accompany the advertisements. Also represented in this series is evidence of Fishback's professional affiliations, particularly with the Advertising Women of New York (AWNY). Materials generated or collected in the process of preparing for speaking engagements with professional societies are also included. The series also includes a small collection of trade literature, chiefly books on advertising topics written by other authors.
Large-format print materials have been removed from their original series locations and relocated to Oversize Materials. Relocated items have been replaced in the Detailed Description of the Collection by dummy folders enclosed in brackets.