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Inventory of the Paull Franklin Baum Papers, 1928-1989

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Descriptive Summary

Repository
University Archives, Duke University
Creator
Baum, Paull Franklin
Title
Paull Franklin Baum Papers, 1928-1989
Language of Material
Material in English
Extent
0.2 Linear Feet

125 Items
Abstract
Dr. Paull F. Baum was a James B. Duke Professor of English at Duke University from 1922 until his retirement in 1955. He was an internationally famed scholar in the field of medieval and Victorian studies and was considered an authority in the principles of English versification and the works of Chaucer, Rossetti, Tennyson and Matthew Arnold.
The collection includes correspondence, a manuscript, clippings, research material and book reviews by or to Dr. Baum. It ranges in date from 1928-1989.
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Administrative Information

Access Restrictions
Patrons must sign the Acknowledgement of Legal Responsibility and Privacy Rights form before using this collection.
Collection is open for research.
In off-site storage; 24 hours advance notice is required for use.
Copyright Notice
Copyright for Official University records is held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Paull Franklin Baum Papers, University Archives, Duke University.
Provenance
The Paull Franklin Baum Papers were received by the University Archives as a gift in 1970-1972, 1990.
Processing Information
Processed by Kimberly Sims, August 2006
Encoded by Kimberly Sims, August 2006
Accessions A70-53, A70-54, A71-59, A72-29, A90-29 were merged into one collection, described in this finding aid.
Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and our local Style Guide.
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
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Biographical Note

Paull Franklin Baum was born in Dover, Delaware on May 13, 1886. He was educated at Hamilton College and received a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1915. He also studied at the Universities of Munich, Vienna, Lausanne, and the Sorbonne. Professor Baum taught at Harvard until coming to Duke University in 1922.

As one of the original members of the Council on Graduate Studies, he took an active part in establishing Duke's Graduate School. As Chairman of the Library Council, he helped to shape the policies of acquisition which have made the University's library one of the largest and most important collections of research materials in the Southeast. As Editorial Director of the Duke Press from 1926-1928, he aided in making plans governing this agency for the publication of scholarly books and periodicals. His distinction as a scholar and his contributions to the University were officially honored in 1953 when Dr. Baum was selected as one the original group of Duke faculty members to be designated a James B. Duke Professor, the highest academic rank at the institution.

He was an honored member of the Medieval Academy of America, the Modern Language Association, the Modern Humanities Research Association, the Authors' Club of London, and the Cosmos Club of Washington, DC. He was an internationally famed scholar in the field of medieval and Victorian studies and was considered an authority in the principles of English versification and the works of Chaucer, Rossetti, Tennyson and Matthew Arnold. Dr. Baum authored numerous books, including a translation of the Anglo-Saxon riddles of the Exeter book, Tennyson Sixty Years After, and Ten Studies in the Poetry of Matthew Arnold. Professor Baum died in Durham, NC on July 15, 1964.

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Collection Overview

Contains correspondence, a manuscript, clippings, research material and book reviews by or to Dr. Baum. The correspondence includes two letters from Mrs. Helen Rossetti Angeli, daughter of William M. Rossetti, and Archibald Henderson. The latter's letter is in response to Baum's review of his biography of George Bernard Shaw. Henderson makes an interesting statement about Shaw's opposition to much that he included in the biography, especially two chapters which Shaw tried unsuccessfully to persuade Henderson to leave out of the book. Dates range from 1928-1989.
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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.
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Related Material

Clarence Louis Frank Gohdes Papers, 1811-1990s and undated, bulk 1905-1981
Rare Book, Manuscript and Special Collections Library, Duke University

News Service Biographical Files, 1960-2004
Duke University Archives

Biographical Reference Collection, 1972-2004
Duke University Archives

List of Series in Collection
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Detailed Description of Collection

Box 1
   Folder 1
Latin Manuscript, handwritten, undated
   Folder 2
Reminiscences by Baum's students and colleagues, 1986-1989
   Folder 3
"Manual of Style for Theses and Dissertations" , by Baum, 1942
   Folder 4
Correspondence, 1932-1958
   Folder 5
Book Reviews, circa 1928-1960s
   Folder 6
Information used in research, undated