3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

100 3 The New York Years (1931–1953)
the large incoming collections as well as new public galleries (Murphy 1951; LeCroy
1989, 2005; Bock 1994a). Dr. Chapman, head of the Department of Ornithology and
mainly interested in birds of the Americas, did not object, of course, to any of Dr.
Sanford’s unsolicited plans, particularly since his department profited immensely
by these global activities. However, Chapman may not have been really happy with
the purchase of the Rothschild Collection in 1932 (Mayr, pers. comm.). To make
room for this huge collection, the fourth floor of the recently completed Whitney
Wing that Chapman had intended as another exhibition floor, was converted into
a floor for bird collections. He never complained about this but Mayr felt that all of
this happened without him really wanting it. In a sense, Chapman was somewhat
afraid of Sanford. There was never any joint planning between the two. This is
why Sanford had turned to Ernst Hartert and Erwin Stresemann regarding the
ornithological exploration of New Guinea and the Malay Archipelago on which
areas they were the experts. Frequently, when Mayr talked with Chapman and
mentionedsomeneedsonthefourthfloor,hewouldmakecommentsasifthisfloor
belonged to a different museum. Occasionally, Chapman did object to Sanford’s
plans (February 18, 1937): “As regards Chapin, I am determined to have him
go to the Congo and Chapman is determined he shall not” (Stresemann Papers,
Staatsbibliothek Berlin). As usual, Sanford had the last word.
Before the First World War, Dr. Sanford was on the surgical staff of the New
Haven Hospital and the physician of the Yale Football team. Because of his hunting
and conservation interests he was, at that time, also one of the leading personalities
of the Connecticut Fish and Game Commission and came in close contact with
Theodore Roosevelt while he was President of the United States. Sanford’s activities
regarding the AMNH had been triggered by his friend Dr. Thomas Barbour (1884–
1946), curator and later director of the Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ),
Harvard University, who had pointed out to him that the MCZ’s collections were
more complete than those of the AMNH. Thus, as a trustee of the AMNH since
1921, Sanford competed with Barbour and the MCZ (Mayr, pers. comm., and Bock
1994a). He was a born collector and particularly enjoyed possessing things which
others did not have and partly because they did not have them. However, he wanted
nothing for himself and took delight in building up the scientific treasures of the
AMNH, particularly its Department of Birds. He was not personally a man of very
large financial resources, but his acquaintance was wide, and his approach wellnigh
irresistible. If he could acquire some rarity for the Bird Department, that was
splendid; but if he also knew that his friend, Tom Barbour, could not get a specimen
of that same species, then Sanford’s joy was doubled. In 1928 he traveled by
airplane (!) to Europe and, after visiting Hartert in Tring and Stresemann in Berlin,
continued to St. Petersburg in an effort to arrange an exchange of specimens of
several extinct bird species from certain islands in the Pacific Ocean (Phalacrocorax
perspicillatus, Aphanolimnas monasa, “Kittlitzia” (Aplonis) corvina). In this case,
he was unsuccessful.
After winning the “competitive race” during the 1920s, Dr. Sanford continued his
support of the Bird Department of the AMNH probably because of his collecting
compulsion (he himself owned a large collection of North American birds) as