Testimonial on the Death of George Gough Booth
The death of George Booth in 1949 was marked with many memorials, including the creation of this illuminated testimonial, presented to the Foundation by the Cranbrook School for Boys. The text was composed by Cecil Billington, George Booth’s personal secretary of many years standing. Having worked for George Booth since before George and Ellen Booth purchased the Cranbrook property, Billington went on to serve as the first secretary for the Cranbrook Foundation, before rising to become a trustee of multiple Cranbrook institutions, as well as head of the botany department at the nascent Institute of Science.
The testimonial was illuminated by Frederick Dockstader, a history teacher at Cranbrook School. Symbols around the margin represent landmarks of the Cranbrook School campus, including the observatory tower and the replica Sicilian fountain in the center of the quadrangle.
Mariam Hale
2023-2025 Collections Fellow
Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research
September 2024
Width: 14 1/2 in (36.8 cm)
Height (frame): 19 3/4 in (50.2 cm)
Width (frame): 15 1/2 in (39.4 cm)
ProvenanceCranbrook Foundation (1949-1973)
Cranbrook Educational Community (1973-present)
Credit LineCranbrook Center for Collections and Research
Cultural Properties Collection, Founders Collection
Gift of Cranbrook Schools in honor of George Gough Booth
Medium / MaterialsColored ink on paper
GenreObject TypeIlluminations (visual works)
Select Bibliography and Archival Citation(s)Appraisal by Stalker & Boos (1975). Series II: Appraisals and Inventories. George Gough and Ellen Warren Scripps Booth Financial Records (1981-02). Cranbrook Archives, Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research, Bloomfield Hills, MI.
