Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm73040154
Collection material in English
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 Louis Simpson were first given to the Library of Congress in 1958 by Louis Simpson. Additional material was given in 1964, 1970, 1988, and 1998 by Louis Simpson and in 2018 by Matthew Simpson.
The first donation of the Louis Simpson papers were arranged in 1959, with additional material added in 1965 and 1970. Later accessions were processed and described in 2019 and include the earlier processed papers from 1959-1970.
Video and audio cassettes featuring interviews and poetry readings have been transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division where they are identified as part of the Louis Simpson Papers.
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Louis Simpson is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
The papers of Louis Simpson 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: Container number, Louis Simpson Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Louis Simpson (1923-2012) span the years 1922-2011, with the bulk of the material dated between 1937-2011. The papers contain correspondence, working drafts of various poems and prose, administrative material regarding publishing and publications, reviews, translations, interviews, memorabilia, copyright permissions, collected material, and subject files related to Simpson's career as an author and professor. The papers are organized into five series: Correspondence, Writings File, Professional File, Subject File, and Oversize.
The Correspondence series, arranged both alphabetically and chronologically, contains personal and professional correspondence with Louis Simpson’s many friends and associates in the literary world. Among the noted figures in the Correspondence series are: Saul Bellow, Brian Cox, Serge Fauchereau, Thomas Flanagan, John Haines, Hiram Haydn, Seamus Heaney, David Ignatow, Carolyn Kizer, Lotte Kramer, Elizabeth Kray, J. T. Ledbetter, Alison Lurie, James Nolan, Micheal O'Siadhail, Robert Pack, Allan Temko, Claire Nicolas White, Jon Manchip White, and James Wright. Featured within this series are correspondence with the poets Robert Bly, Donald Hall, Jane Kenyon, and writer Carol Bly, with whom Simpson wrote to frequently with throughout his life. The early correspondence between Simpson and his Columbia University mentor, Mark Van Doren are also included. Beyond the listed correspondents and personal correspondence, other material appearing in the Correspondence series features various aspects of Simpson’s professional life, potentially including material also found in the Professional File series such as speaking engagements, correspondence with publishers, and various administrative affairs.
Also included in the Correspondence series are letters between Louis and his family, notably his mother, Rosalind de Marantz, and his children, Anthony, Anne, and Matthew Simpson. Rosalind de Marantz lived in New York while Louis Simpson was a teenager at Munro College in Jamaica and later moved to Italy when Louis was an adult. While Louis served in the U.S. Army during World War II, he frequently wrote to his mother and the extended Marantz family.
The Writings File contains primarily working and edited
drafts of various poems, prose, and other types of writings spanning Louis Simpson’s
entire career. The papers document Simpson's evolution as a poet, moving from
conventional poetic forms to a more Walt Whitman-influenced free verse style. Featured
are Simpson’s drafts for books including
The Professional File covers the administrative dealings of
Simpson’s career in both the literary and academic world. Included in this series are
various administrative memoranda regarding Simpson’s published works. Additionally
featured is professional correspondence between periodicals that frequently published
Simpson’s poems, including the
Material concerning Simpson's academic career within the Professional File relates to both his time as a student at Columbia University and professorships he held at the University of California, Berkeley and State University of New York at Stony Brook. Also covered are Simpson’s Pulitzer Prize, his serving as a jury member for various literary awards, and his various engagements including poetry readings, speeches, and award ceremonies. Many of the poetry readings are documented on index cards with the date, location, and titles of poems read. Simpson's involvement in professional organizations such as the Academy of American Poets and the Guggenheim Foundation are documented as well.
The Subject File contains items collected from Louis Simpson’s personal filing cabinets, including memorabilia, scrapbooks, and printed material on various topics of interest. Major aspects of this series include Simpson’s awards, travel files, personal papers related to himself and his family, interviews, articles about Simpson, and personal recommendations for other poets, authors, and students.
The Oversize series contains two items: an undated poster for a poetry reading featuring a caricature of Louis Simpson and a woodcut-print portrait of Walt Whitman by Mark Nuccio, gifted to Louis Simpson in 1982 by members of the Walt Whitman Birthplace Association.
This collection is arranged in five series:
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm73040154
Personal and professional correspondence with friends, associates, and family.
Arranged alphabetically and chronologically therein.
Working and final drafts of poems, prose, essays, translations, reviews, and other types of published and unpublished writings.
Arranged alphabetically by genre.
Materials spanning Louis Simpson's career as a writer and professor. Includes correspondence and related material with publishers and publications, professional organizations, judging panels, speaking engagements, poetry readings, and copyright permissions. Also includes memoranda and administrative files produced during Simpson's tenure at the University of California, Berkeley and State University of New York at Stony Brook.
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
Collected material, personal papers, scrap books, memorabilia, and various files originating from Louis Simpson's personal filing cabinets.
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
Poetry reading poster, and a woodcut-print portrait of Walt Whitman created by Mark Nuccio.
Arranged and described according to the series, containers, and folders from which the items were removed.