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Inventory of the American Literature Records, 1927-1989

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Descriptive Summary

Title
American Literature Records, 1927-1989
Creator
American Literature
Extent
Number of Linear Feet: 38.5
Approximate number of items: 28,875
Repository
Duke University Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library Durham, North Carolina 27708-0185
Language
English.
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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions
Use of The American Literature Records is restricted. Scholars desiring access must contact the Chair of the Board of Editors in writing.
In addition, patrons must sign the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions
The copyright interests in the American Literature Records have not been transferred to Duke University. For further information, see the section on copyright in the Regulations and Procedures of the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], The American Literature Records, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.
Provenance
The American Literature Records (1927-1989) were transferred from Duke Archives and donated by American Literature from 1976-2009.
Processing Information
Processed by: John Hilgart
Completed in: 1995
Encoded by Robin LaPasha
Updated by Meghan Lyon, August 2009
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
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Historical Note

The quarterly journal American Literature was founded in 1928 by Jay Broadus Hubbell as a joint effort of the Modern Language Association's American Literature Group (later Section) and Duke University (it is published by Duke Press). The journal was the first to take American literature as its exclusive subject.

Hubbell served as Chairman of the Board of Editors 1929-1954; Clarence Gohdes 1954-1969; Arlin Turner 1969-1979; Edwin Cady 1979-1985; Louis Budd 1985-1990; Cathy Davidson took over in 1990. The size of the board of editors (in addition to the Chairman and a Managing or Associate Editor) began at four, became eight in 1960, and 12 in 1990. Members must be approved by the American Literature Section. The membership of the Board at any given time can be found at the front of issues of the journal. How commentary by members of the Board is distributed through the collection is detailed in the accompanying guide to the "Editorial Comments" files.

Today the journal retains most of its original form. It consists of scholarly articles on American literature, shorter pieces (usually called "Notes" ), long and brief book reviews, and increasingly occasional unpublished manuscripts by American writers. Because such information was available in a more thorough form elsewhere, annotated bibliographies and a listing of articles on American literature in current periodicals stopped appearing in the early 1970s.

In 1964 Norman Foerster, a major literary scholar of the Hubbell generation, endowed an annual award (The Foerster Prize) for the best article published in American Literature each year. The Jay B. Hubbell Medallion was established that same year, initially to recognize Hubbell's own contributions to the field but thereafter as a sort of lifetime achievement award. Though administered by the American Literature Section, overlapping membership means that those involved with the journal often have had much to do with the Hubbell Medallion (as both recipients and selectors).

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Collection Overview

The earliest documents date from 1927, the year before the first issue was published. New material will continue to arrive as the journal's office deems files inactive. The bulk of the journal's papers consists of correspondence and editorial comments on submitted articles.
Aside from a relatively few submissions which seem to have been rejected after a single reading by the chair or other in-house editor (because they were too long or clearly unsuitable for the journal), articles were sent out to at least two members of the Editorial Board. They sent back written comments and a recommendation (reject, accept, accept pending revision). These responses make up the Editorial Comments Series (1928-1983) and a portion of the Correspondence and Editorial comments Series (1984-1989). By the late 1980s, the journal was receiving several hundred submissions each year, but the editorial comments suggest that the proportion of fine articles in the pool had not been maintained as sheer numbers increased. Members of the Editorial Board take on this responsibility in addition to their normal institutional duties.
The comments in the Editorial Comments Series are sometimes brief and dismissive, sometimes quite elaborate. Even in the absence of the rejected articles themsleves, they are a rich record of individual and institutional critical predispositions. In its early years, the journal was working to establish a solid documentary foundation for the profession of American literary study. Favored topics were unpublished manuscripts, biographical work, and influence studies. The journal was slow to accept the move to New Critical interpretations of texts, reluctant to give up its tradition of more empirical scholarship. Such moments of critical change or expansion - late 1960s psychoanalytical criticism, 1970s feminist readings, 1980s post-structuralism, etc. - are vividly documented by the Editorial Board's varied members. Not infrequently, one reader will enjoy the provocative nature of an article, while the other considers it to be careless scholarship or too polemical.
Most of the correspondence is in the Alphabetical and Correspondence Series. It deals with submitted articles or reviews, but there are more substantial letters dealing with policy, critical positions, and disputes (primarily about reviews).
All other papers are contained in the Subject Files Series. Included there are correspondence preceding and relevant to the inception of the journal; Foerster Prize records; materials relating to the selection of editors and the formulation of policy; annual reports to the American Literature Section of the MLA; materials relating to Duke Press and publicity; and information gathered in the early years about who was doing what with American literature (for the purpose of mapping the field and finding reviewers).
Additionally in the Card Files Series there are three boxes sized for 3 x 5 cards which are full of information saved by the American Literature offices between (roughly) 1928 and 1950. These constitute something like a scrapbook of American literature, containing: bibliography cards; sketches of periods and genres; course descriptions; etc. These materials are typed and handwritten. Finally, there are samples of the 5 x 7 cards used to process and keep track of submissions and book reviews. These cards do not contain information (in either their content or organization) that is unavailable elsewhere, but they do illustrate the process by which articles and book reviews were handled.
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Index to Writers of Editorial Comments

(by box/period divisions, including only regular contributors)
1928-1931:
    William B. Cairns Jay B. Hubbell Kenneth Murdock Fred Lewis Pattee Ralph Rusk
1932:
    William B. Cairns Jay B. Hubbell (minimal) Kenneth Murdock Ralph Rusk Robert Spiller
1933-34:
    Killis Campbell Kenneth Murdock Ralph Rusk Robert Spiller
1935:
    Norman Foerster (some) Kenneth Murdock Ralph Rusk Robert Spiller Laurance Thompson
1936-37:
    Norman Foerster Kenneth Murdock Ralph Rusk Robert Spiller
1938:
    Norman Foerster Clarence Gohdes (some) Ralph Rusk Robert Spiller Stanley Williams
1939:
    Norman Foerster Kenneth Murdock Robert Spiller Stanley Williams
1940-42:
    Emory Holloway Kenneth Murdock Austin Warren Stanley Williams
1950 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark James D. Hart Willard Thorp George Whicher
1951 (scanty):
    Walter Blair Harry Hayden Clark Willard Thorp George Whicher
1952 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark James D. Hart Willard Thorp George Whicher
1954 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark James D. Hart Fred B. Millett Willard Thorp
1956 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark Ernest Leisy Fred B. Millett Willard Thorp
1957 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark Ernest Leisy Henry Nash Smith Willard Thorp
1958 (scanty):
    Harry Hayden Clark Ernest Leisy Russell Nye Henry Nash Smith
1959 (scanty):
    Lewis Leary Norman Pearson Henry Pochmann
1960:
    Charles R. Anderson Edwin Cady Theodore Hornberger Lewis Leary Norman Pearson Henry Pochmann Henry Nash Smith Floyd Stovall George Whicher
1961:
    Charles R. Anderson Edwin Cady Theodore Hornberger Lewis Leary Russel Nye Henry Pochmann Floyd Stovall George Whicher
1962:
    Charles R. Anderson Edwin Cady William Charvat Theodore Hornberger Russel Nye Henry Pochmann Floyd Stovall
1963:
    Edwin Cady William Charvat R.H. Fogle Theodore Hornberger Russel Nye Sherman Paul Henry Pochmann Floyd Stovall
1964:
    James Beard Walter Blair William Charvat R.H. Fogle James D. Hart Theodore Hornberger Russel Nye Sherman Paul Henry Pochmann Ernest Samuels
1965:
    William Charvat Richard B. Davis R.H. Fogle James D. Hart Theodore Hornberger Russel Nye Ernest Samuels
1966:
    Gay Wilson Allen George Arms William Charvat Richard B. Davis R.H. Fogle James D. Hart Russel Nye Ernest Samuels
1967:
    Gay Wilson Allen George Arms Richard B. Davis R.H. Fogle James D. Hart Russel Nye Henry Pochmann Ernest Samuels Floyd Stovall
1968:
    Gay Wilson Allen George Arms Richard B. Davis John T. Flanagan Russel Nye Henry Pochmann Ernest Samuels
1969-1972:
    Richard P. Adams Gay Wilson Allen George Arms James M. Cox John T. Flanagan R.H. Fogle Allen Guttmann David Levin Russel Nye Henry Pochmann Ernest Samuels John D. Seelye Lewis P. Simpson
1973-1975:
    Richard P. Adams James M. Cox Lawrence S. Dembo Warren G. French Allen Guttmann Annette Kolodny David Levin Russel Nye Donald Pizer Patrick F. Quinn John D. Seelye Walter Sutton
1975-79:
    Sacvan Bercovitch Lawrence S. Dembo Warren G. French Annette Kolodny J.A. Leo Lemay Jay Martin Terence Martin Roy Harvey Pearce H. Dan Piper Donald Pizer Joel M. Porte Patrick F. Quinn Walter B. Rideout John D. Seelye Walter Sutton G. Thomas Tanselle Darwin Turner
1979-1983:
    Nina Baym Sacvan Bercovitch Panthea Broughton Lawrence Buell Don Cook Hamlin Hill Annette Kolodny J.A. Leo Lemay T. Martin Hershel Parker Roy Harvey Pearce H. Dan Piper Joel M. Porte Walter B. Rideout Charles Scruggs G. Thomas Tanselle Linda Wagner
1984-89:
    Elizabeth Ammons Martha Banta Nina Baym Lawrence Buell Cathy Davidson Scott Donaldson Norman Grabo Philip Gura Hamlin Hill Marcus N. Klein J.C. Levenson Horace Porter Donald A. Ringe Charles Scruggs Kenneth Silverman Werner Sollors Robert Stepto Linda Wagner Christof A. Wegelin
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Subject Headings

These are searchable subject entries for this collection. Performing a search on these subjects in the Duke University Libraries online catalog will bring up other related research materials.
List of Series in Collection
Subject Files, 1927-1985
Card Files, ca. 1928-1950
Alphabetical Files, 1928-ca. 1960
Correspondence Files, 1927-1983
Editorial Comments, 1928-1983
Correspondence and Editorial Comments, 1984-1992
Accession (2009-0177), 1993-2000s
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Detailed Description of Collection

Subject Files, 1927-1985

Along with one large folder of correspondence relating to the inception of the journal, these boxes contain reports, surveys, and correspondence relating to bureaucratic matters such as the journal's relationship to Duke Press and the American Literature Section (see the Scope and Content note and the Container List for details). Essentially, the Subject Files contain everything that does not fit the other series. These three boxes are organized to keep related folders together (as opposed to alphabetically by folder title).
Box 1
Charter, 1928
Early correspondence and planning, 1927-1929
Editors, 1929
Editorial policies and bureaucratic and critical, 1929
Henry Nash Smith Committee, 1955-1957
Annual reports, 1929-1966   (2 folders)
Box 2
Serials Review article on AL, 1978
Page proofs, vol. 1, no. 1, 1929, Mar.
Reviewers:
Name on 3x5 cards, 1929-1943   (2 folders)
Specialty on 3x5 cards, 1929-1943
Postcards describing specialities, 1947-1948
Correspondence and lists of names, 1944-1954
Dissertations on American Literature, 1932-1933
Teachers of/Colleges offering American Literature, undated
Box 3
Subscribers, 1932-1954
Secretary for American Literature, 1931-1932
Publicity, 1929-1964   (2 folders)
American Literature section: Nomination Committee, undated
Duke Press and American Literature, 1928-1978
Reprinting American Literature for foreign libraries, 1958-1959
American Literary Scholarship, Weisbuch Controversy, 1985
Box 4
Norman Foerster Prize, 1963-1983   (2 folders)
Cataloging notes on American Literature, undated

Card Files, ca. 1928-1950

Contains all of the card files described in the Scope and Content Note - namely the "scrap-book" file (three small boxes) and a sampling of the cards which were used to track submissions and book reviews.
Box 5
Card files

Alphabetical Files, 1928-ca. 1960

Correspondence which was apparently segregated by the American Literature office itself. It consists of letters to and from scholars with major involvement with the journal during the period covered. Each figure has a folder to him or herself (see the Container List), and they are arranged alphabetically by name. Though there does not appear to be any overlap with the Correspondence Files, there are other major figures from the same period who were not included in the Alphabetical Files. Louise Pound, for instance, has a named folder to herself in the Correspondence Files. These letters deal with a great variety of subjects. Many of them have to do with editorial or review work, but because many of the writers were friends, there is biographical information as well. In addition to individuals, this series also includes several folders of materials relating to the American Literature Section of the MLA (correspondence, minutes, reports, and papers).
Box 6
Adams, Raymond William, 1929-1951
Allen, Gay Wilson, 1934-1966
Basler, Roy Prentice, 1931-1953
Blair, Walter, 1929-1966
Bradley, Edward Sculley, 1926-1968   (2 folders)
Braswell, William, 1929-1966
Brown, Herbert Ross, 1929-1957
Box 7
Cairns, William B., 1928-1932
Campbell, Killis, 1927-1936
Cargill, Oscar, 1933-1968
Clark, Harry Hayden, 1927-1971   (2 folders)
Coad, Oral Sumner, 1929-1963
Box 8
Ellis, Harold Milton, 1928-1943
Foerster, Norman, 1927-1953
Forsythe, Robert Stanley, 1930-1941
Hart, James David, 1942-1968
Holloway, Emory, 1930-1955
Jones, Howard Mumford, 1928-1970
Leisy, Ernest Erwin, 1927-1955
Mabbott, Thomas Ollive, 1928-1968
McDowell, Tremaine, 1928-1955
Box 9
Millett, Fred Benjamin, 1931-1964
Modern Language Association of America: Committee of Three, 1941
Modern Language Association of America: American Literature Section:
Miscellaneous, 1928-1950
Reports: 1929-1960, incomplete   (2 folders)
Murdock, Kenneth Ballard, 1927-1964   (2 folders)
Box 10
Paine, Gregory Lansing, 1928-1950
Pattee, Fred Lewis, 1928-1948
Pochmann, Henry August, 1929-1973   (2 folders)
Quinn, Arthur Hobson, 1928-1953
Rusk, Ralph Leslie, 1927-1954   (2 folders)
Box 11
Spiller, Robert Ernest, 1927-1973   (3 folders)
Turner, Arlin, 1935-1978
Warren, Austin, 1930-1962
Whicher, George Frisbee, 1932-1955
Williams, Stanley Thomas, 1927-1956   (2 folders)
Woodress, James Leslie, 1950-1971

Correspondence Files, 1927-1983

Contain all the letters of this period which were not segregated into the Alphabetical Files. Researchers interested in a particular scholar's work should check both the Alphabetical and Correspondence Files. Though there is much correspondence here dealing with editorial and review work, the great bulk of it is to and from scholars who had submitted papers to the journal: Letters introducing a paper or asking why no response has been sent, and letters apologizing for delays or relating news of acceptance or rejection. After 1983, American Literature began to keep correspondence with scholars in the same files as the editorial comments written about submitted essays. For the 1927-1983 period, such related material must be recombined by the researcher by using both the Correspondence Files and the Editorial Comments Files. Post-1983 correspondence continues with Box 61.
The Correspondence Files are divided into periods (by the journal's office) and arranged alphabetically by the name of the writer. The periods are as long as 32 years and as short as 3; the number of boxes for a period ranges from 2 to 10. Researchers should consult the Container List and check each period within the lifetime of the scholar whose papers they are seeking. Some of the periods are accompanied by complete lists of correspondents contained therein. These lists are contained in the first box of the period.
Box 12
A-B, 1927-1959   (10 folders)
Box 13
C-Day, 1927-1959,   (10 folders)
Box 14
De-Gw, 1927-1959   (12 folders)
Box 15
H-Joy, 1927-1959   (13 folders)
Box 16
K-Marx, 1927-1959   (13 folders)
Box 17
Mas-Payne, Leonidas Warren, Jr., 1927-1959   (15 folders)
Box 18
Pea-Sch, 1927-1959   (15 folders)
Box 19
Sco-Sz, 1927-1959   (9 folders)
Box 20
Ta-Wat, 1927-1959   (8 folders)
Box 21
Werner, William Louser -Zu, 1927-1959   (9 folders)
Box 22
List of correspondents in 1960-1968 series
Ald-Braz, 1960-1968   (10 folders)
Box 23
Bre-Day, 1960-1968   (13 folders)
Box 24
De-Fus, 1960-1968   (11 folders)
Box 25
Ga-Hir, 1960-1968   (13 folders)
Box 26
Hoa-Kw, 1960-1968   (12 folders)
Box 27
Le-Mig, 1960-1968   (12 folders)
Box 28
Mil-Pol, 1960-1968   (13 folders)
Box 29
Pom-Sim, 1960-1968   (11 folders)
Box 30
Sin-Ur, 1960-1968   (11 folders)
Box 31
Va-Zu, 1960-1968   (15 folders)
Box 32
List of correspondents, 1969-1972
Aa-Gu, 1969-1972   (12 folders)
Box 33
Ha-Pe, 1969-1972   (14 folders)
Box 34
Pi-Zw, 1969-1972   (14 folders)
Box 35
List of correspondents, 1973-1975
Aa-Kv, 1973-1975   (14 folders)
Box 36
La-Zw, 1973-1975   (17 folders)
Box 37
A-G, 1975-1979   (8 folders)
Box 38
H-Z, 1975-1979   (7 folders)
Box 39
A-Pet, 1979-1983   (6 folders)
Box 40
Pol-Zlo, 1979-1983   (2 folders)

Editorial Comments, 1928-1983

Consists of the sheets used by editors to comment on submitted articles. They are grouped into time periods ranging from 1 to 11 years and are therein arranged alphabetically by the name of the writer of the submitted article. Since scholars are more likely to be interested in the reviewers than the reviewed, pages are attached here which list the editors whose review work is contained within a given division of the series. Post-1983 editorial comments continue with Box 60, at which point they are combined with correspondence of the same period.
Box 41
A-Z, 1928-1929
A-Z, 1930
A-Z, 1931
A-W, 1932
A-W, 1933
A-Z, 1934
A-A, 1935
Box 42
A-W, 1936
A-W, 1937
A-Z, 1938   (2 folders)
A-W, 1939   (2 folders)
A-X, 1940   (2 folders)
Box 43
A-Y, 1941
A-Y, 1942   (2 folders)
A-W, 1943   (2 folders)
A-Y, 1944   (2 folders)
A-W, 1945
Box 44
A-Y, 1950-1959
A-W, 1960
A-W, 1961   (3 folders)
Box 45
A-W, 1962   (9 folders)
Box 46
A-Y, 1963   (6 folders)
A-Z, 1964   (7 folders)
Box 47
A-Z, 1965   (4 folders)
A-Z, 1966   (4 folders)
Box 48
A-W, 1967   (3 folders)
A-Z, 1968   (4 folders)
Box 49
Ab-Hu. 1969-1972   (11 folders)
Box 50
Ia-Quinn, 1969-1972   (13 folders)
Box 51
Ra-Z, 1969-1972   (12 folders)
Box 52
Ab-Gw, 1973-1975
Box 53
Ha-No, 1973-1975   (13 folders)
Box 54
Oa-Zw, 1973-1975   (16 folders)
Box 55
A-G, 1975-1979   (9 folders)
Box 56
Haa-Q, 1975-1979   (9 folders)
Box 57
Ra'a-Awi, 1975-1979   (9 folders)
Box 58
A-Hyd, 1979-1983   (9 folders)
Box 59
Hab-R, 1979-1983   (9 folders)
Box 60
Saf-Z, 1979-1983   (6 folders)

Correspondence and Editorial Comments, 1984-1992

After 1983, correspondence and editorial comments were combined in the journal's files. This means that all material relating to a submission is in one place, along with correspondence dealing with editorial or review work. A list of editors reviewing during the 1984-1989 period follows this series. Recent additions include other administrative files (Box 84).
Box 61
Aar-Bir, 1984-1989   (7 folders)
Box 62
Bis-Chr, 1984-1989   (8 folders)
Box 63
Chu-Dye, 1984-1989   (9 folders)
Box 64
Eak-Gib, 1984-1989   (6 folders)
Box 65
Gif-Hla, 1984-1989   (6 folders)
Box 66
Hoa-Kno, 1984-1989   (7 folders)
Box 67
Kno-McW, 1984-1989   (7 folders)
Box 68
MacC-N, 1984-1989   (7 folders)
Box 69
O-Rei, 1984-1989   (6 folders)
Box 70
Ren-Sen, 1984-1989   (5 folders)
Box 71
Ser-Tod, 1984-1989   (6 folders)
Box 72
Tol-Z, 1984-1989   (9 folders)
Box 73
Ag-Bry, 1990-1992
Box 74
Bo-Cz, 1990-1992
Box 75
Cr-Fi, 1990-1992
Box 76
Fl-Has, 1990-1992
Box 77
Ha-Jz, 1990-1992
Box 78
Ka-Ly, 1990-1992
Box 79
Mc-No, 1990-1992
Box 80
O-Ro, 1990-1992
Box 81
Ro-Sr, 1990-1992
Box 82
Sl-V, 1990-1992
Box 83
Wa-Z, 1990-1992
Box 84
Other files, 1987-1992
American Literature Manuscript Logs, 1987-1992
American Literature Publication Agreements, 1988-1992

Accession (2009-0177), 1993-2000s

(5 boxes)
The accession (2009-0177) includes editorial comments and correspondence from American Literature, beginning in 1993 and continuing through the early 2000s. Materials are organized alphabetically by each submitter's last name, and include submissions for letters A-Mow.
Box 85
A-Bz
Box 86
C-Dz
Box 87
E-Gw
Box 88
F-Kz
Box 89
L-Mow