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Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm74015826
Collection material in English, and Italian
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
The papers of John Anthony Ciardi, poet, editor, literary critic, lecturer, and journalist, were donated to the Library of Congress in three parts. Part I was given by John Ciardi in 1970; Part II by his daughter, Myra Ciardi Watts, in 1998; and Part III by Wayne State University Libraries, Detroit, Michigan, in 1999. Additional items in Part III were given by Mary Lou Harkness in 2000.
Part I of the papers of John Ciardi was arranged and described in 1974. Additional material received between 1998 and 2000 was processed as Parts II and III respectively.
Copyright in the unpublished writings of John Ciardi in Part I has been dedicated to the public. Copyright in the unpublished writings of John Ciardi in Parts II and III is controlled by Myra Ciardi Watts.
The papers of John Ciardi are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Roman numeral designating the Part followed by a colon and container number, John Ciardi Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of John Anthony Ciardi span the years 1910-1997, with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period between 1960 and 1985. The collection, which focuses on Ciardi's work as a poet, editor, literary critic, lecturer, and journalist, is made up of three parts. Part I consists of two series: Writings and Subject File . Part II consists of four series: General Correspondence , Professional File , Writings , and Subject File . Part III also consists of four series: General Correspondence , Professional File , Writings , and Subject File . Included in the papers are advertisements, biographical material, contracts, correspondence, newspaper clippings, notes, photographs, press releases, research material, and royalty statements as well as drafts, proofs, and printed versions of articles and essays, aphorisms, book reviews, books, columns, etymological dictionaries, limericks, plays, poems, poetry reviews, radio and television scripts, and speeches and lectures. A few of the items are in Italian.
The Writings series in Part I contains articles and essays on various topics, drafts, notes, and proofs from five of Ciardi's books, including
The Subject File contains biographical material as well as items relating to art exhibitions, censorship, English language instruction, plagiarism, and speaking engagements.
Part II consists of material organized in four series. The first series, General Correspondence , principally covers the period of the 1950s and 1960s during which Ciardi was director of the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference and poetry editor at
The Professional File reflects Ciardi's association with colleges and universities, the publishing industry, educational television, the promotion of writing and poetry, public speaking, and audio recordings. His years as a college professor are documented in files on Harvard College, Rutgers University, and the University of Missouri at Kansas City. His tenure at
Ciardi promoted the training of writers and poets through his participation in writing conferences and his twenty-five-year involvement with the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, seventeen of which he served as its director. His frequent public speaking engagements are noted in files related to general conferences, the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, and Harry Walker, Inc., the speakers bureau which represented Ciardi. Ciardi was also involved with several companies which produced recordings of him reading his own poems and those of others. These activities are chronicled in files on Folkway Records, Harcourt, Brace & World, and the Library of Congress.
Poetry constitutes the largest section of the Writings series in Part II . His column, “Manner of Speaking,” appeared in
The Subject File consists of awards, interviews, obituaries, military service records, newspaper clippings, painting and sculpture catalogs, photographs, material on Ciardi's student days at Bates College and Tufts University, and numerous writings about him. The series includes files on Ciardi's support for Henry Wallace and the Progressive Party in the 1947 presidential election, literary censorship, cancellation of speaking engagements at racially segregated conferences in Alabama and Mississippi during the 1960s, and the House Internal Security Committee which labeled him a “radical speaker” during the campus unrest of the 1960s. Additional files document Ciardi's fellowship from the American Academy in Rome in 1957, his membership in the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, and his involvement with the College English Association.
Part III consists of material organized in four series. The General Correspondence series principally covers the years 1961-1962 and documents Ciardi's work as poetry editor at
The Professional File chronicles Ciardi's activities as a television personality, public speaker, magazine editor, and a poetry reader for commercial sound recordings. From 1961 through 1962 Ciardi was the host and narrator of “Accent,” a documentary series on the CBS Television Network, and files under this heading contain ideas for shows, scripts, and an essay by Ciardi summarizing the cancellation of the series. Files related to Harry Walker, Inc., contain Ciardi's itineraries and expense accounts, reflecting his career as a public speaker. Many of his reviews of phonograph records are included in files related to the
Poetry covering a wide range of subjects constitutes the major portion of the material in the Writings series of Part III . Articles, essays, and columns are also included, particularly Ciardi's column in the
The Subject File reflects Ciardi's varied interests and activities. Ciardi's appearance as a witness in the trial regarding William Burrough's
The collection is arranged in three parts composed of twelve series:
Part I:
Part II:
Part III:
Drafts, proofs, and printed versions of articles, books, columns, essays, and poems.
Arranged alphabetically by type of writing, then alphabetically by title and type of material and chronologically therein. Articles, columns, essays, and poems lacking titles are alphabetized by their first line enclosed in brackets.
Articles, biographical material, columns, correspondence, essays, newspaper clippings, notes, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged alphabetically by name of individual, organization, or subject and chronologically therein.
One poem.
Arranged and described according to the series and container from which the item was removed.
Letters sent and received with enclosed and related matter.
Arranged chronologically by year and alphabetically within the year.
Articles, brochures, contracts, correspondence, drafts, essays, expense accounts, itineraries, photographs, poetry reviews, press releases, reviews of phonograph recordings of poetry and drama, and material relating to publishing and sound recordings.
Arranged alphabetically by type of material, name of organization, or subject and chronologically therein.
Drafts, proofs, and printed versions of articles, book reviews, books, columns, essays, etymological dictionaries, limericks, poems, radio scripts, and speeches and lectures as well as advertisements, contracts, correspondence, press releases, royalty statements, and material relating to anthologies and textbooks.
Arranged according to writings by Ciardi and by others and therein alphabetically by type of writing, title, or name of author. Articles, columns, essays, and poems lacking titles are alphabetized by their first line enclosed in brackets.
Art exhibition catalogs, articles, awards, biographical material, brochures, columns, correspondence, essays, information regarding Bates College and Tufts University, interviews with Ciardi, military service records, newspaper clippings, notes, obituaries, photographs, reports, writings about Ciardi, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged alphabetically by name of individual, organization, subject, or type of material and chronologically therein.
Articles, essays, a poem, and one photograph.
Arranged and described according to the series and container from which the material was removed.
Letters sent and received with enclosed and related matter.
Arranged chronologically by year and alphabetically within the year.
Articles, contracts, correspondence, essays, expense accounts, itineraries, reviews of phonograph recordings of poetry and drama, television scripts, and material relating to publishing and sound recordings.
Arranged alphabetically by type of material, name of organization, or subject and chronologically therein.
Drafts, proofs, and printed versions of aphorisms, articles, book reviews, books, columns, essays, limericks, notebooks, plays, poems, and speeches and lectures as well as correspondence and material relating to textbooks.
Arranged according to writings by Ciardi and by others and therein alphabetically by type of writing, title, or name of author. Articles, columns, essays, and poems lacking titles are alphabetized by first line enclosed in brackets.
Art exhibition catalog, articles, drawings, correspondence, essays, information regarding Tufts University, investment material, newspaper clippings, writings about Ciardi, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged alphabetically by name of individual, organization, subject, or type of material and chronologically therein.