- Creator
- Bissainthe, Max
- Call number
- Sc MG 858
- Physical description
- 1.0 linear feet (1 box)
- Language
- English; Most of the material is in French.
- Preferred Citation
- [Item], Max Bissainthe research collection, Sc MG 858, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library
- Repository
- Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
- Access to materials
- Request an in-person research appointment.
Max Bissainthe, born December 11, 1911, was an historian and archivist of Haitian literature. Bissainthe served as Haiti's Director of Libraries during the 1940s and early 1950s. In 1951, he published the Dictionnaire de bibliographie Haitienne, the first bibliography of Haitian literature. Four years later, Bissainthe was forced out of his position, and subsequently out of Haiti, by Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier. He immigrated to the United States in 1965. He died in Bellerose, New York, in April 1978. The Max Bissainthe research collection consists of indices of the names of Haitian and Dominican Republic journalists and authors, articles, and book titles used to create the Dictionnaire de bibliographie Haitienne. The collection also includes an alphabetical index of titles, subjects, and materials, and a partial bibliographic subject list ranging from the 1800s to the 1950s.
Administrative information
Source of acquisition
Gift of Michelle Bissainthe Sylvain, May 2012.
Processing information
Accessioned by Natiba Guy-Clement, July 2014.
Key terms
Names
Subjects
Places
Material types
Using the collection
Location
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Second Floor