Inventory of the Wallace Stevens Papers, 1856-1975

(Boxes 1-8)

I. Manuscripts

A. Dedicatory poems to Stevens, essays about Stevens (e.g. by Robert M. Pack and Mary Bernetta Quinn) and adaptations and translations of Stevens' poems (e.g. by Renato Poggioli).

Scope and Content Note

Especially interesting pieces: Hermann Hesse, Zwvlf Gedichte: 12 autograph poems in German, presented by Hesse to Stevens, each with a watercolor drawing. (WAS 223)

[Hywel David Lewis], On Poetic Truth: essay first published in Philosophy (July 1946), in Stevens' hand. (WAS 4093)

B. Manuscripts of Stevens' poems, essays and speeches.

Scope and Content Note

These are both autograph and typewritten. When Stevens' secretary/stenographer prepared his typescripts, she made 3 copies: an original and 2 carbons. When a carbon copy exists along with the original typescript, it has been catalogued with the original unless it contains annotations or corrections by Stevens.

Most of the manuscripts have been published in one of three places: 1) a published work of Stevens, 2) Opus Posthumous, ed. Samuel French Morse, 1957 or 3) Robert Buttel, Wallace Stevens: The Making of Harmonium, 1967. When assigning dates to manuscripts, evidence given by Morse, Buttel, J.M. Edelstein, Wallace Stevens: A Descriptive Bibliography, 1973, and the correspondence have all been weighed.

Especially interesting pieces (all autograph):

Adagia:: 2 notebooks of aphorisms. 33p. [1930?-1955]. (WAS 70)
A Book of Verses:: notebook of 20 early poems. 21p. June 1908. (WAS 24)
Esthétique du Mal:: early draft. 16p. [1944]. (WAS 4140)
The Figure of the Youth as Virile Poet:: early draft. 33p. [1943]. (WAS 4143)
Gloire du Long Disir, Idies:: early draft. 23p. [1955]. (WAS 4151)
Journals: 1898-1899. 1 vol. (WAS 7)

1899-1900. 1 vol. (WAS 8)

1902-1904. 1 vol. (WAS 9)

1905-1912. 1 vol. (WAS 10)
The Little June Book:: notebook of 20 early poems. 21p. June 5, 1909. (WAS 25)
Poetic Exercises of 1948:: 2 commonplace notebooks. 4p. [1948]. (WAS 72)
Sur Plusieurs Beaux Sujects:: 2 commonplace notebooks. 44p. 1932-1953. (WAS 73)

Also: The typescript for Selected Poems, a book submitted to Alfred A. Knopf Inc. but never published. 200p. [1950]. (WAS 2997)

Boxes 9-66

II. Correspondence

Scope and Content Note

The heart of the Collection is the correspondence between Stevens and his family, scholars, poets, editors, business associates and friends. All of the correspondence (except that relating to genealogy) has been fully catalogued.

Although there is some correspondence of minor importance, such as friends' greetings while Stevens was convalescing in 1955, most of it has an interest from either a biographical or poetical viewpoint. Many of the letters from Stevens were published in 1966 by his daughter: Letters of Wallace Stevens, ed. Holly Stevens, 1966. But still unpublished is the other side of the correspondence--to Stevens--amounting to about 2,500 pieces. The bulk of Stevens' letters are carbon copies, with the exception of his letters to Barbara S. Church, Wilson E. Taylor and Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens. Stevens began to keep carbon copies regularly only after the early 1940's, so his letters from the earlier period are scarce in the Collection. A brief notice of the kinds of correspondence in the Collection is given below:

A. Family Letters

Scope and Content Note

1. The most significant family figure is Stevens' wife, Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens. Her real name was Elsie Viola Kachel, but when her mother remarried, Elsie took on the surname Moll. Most of the correspondence is from Stevens to Elsie, 1907 (before their engagement) until 1935. (271 pieces; WAS 1776-2047). The principal letters from Elsie are to her stepfather and mother, Lehman W. and Ida Bright (Smith) Kachel Moll and to her half-sister, Dorothy La Rue (Moll) Weidner.
2. Family correspondents and their relationship to Wallace Stevens:
- (a) Holly Bright Stevens: Daughter of Wallace & Elsie Stevens. Born in 1924. First married name: Hanchak (son: Peter Reed Hanchak). Second married name: Stephenson. Her maiden name is used throughout in the Collection
- (b) Garrett Barcalow Stevens a (1848-1911): Wallace Stevens' father
- (c) Margaretha Catharine (Zeller) Stevens (1848-1912): Wallace Stevens' mother
- (d) Garrett Barcalow Stevens b (1877-1937): Wallace Stevens' elder brother. Wife: Sarah Shelley (Stayman) Stevens
- (e) John Bergen Stevens a (1880-1940): Wallace Stevens' younger brother. Son: John Bergen Stevens b. Wife: Anna May Stevens. Daughter: Eleanor (Stevens) Sauer. Husband: John C. Sauer
- (f) Elizabeth (Stevens) MacFarland (1885-1943): Wallace Stevens' elder sister. Daughter: Jane (MacFarland) Stone Wilson
- (g) Mary Catharine Stevens (1889-1919): Wallace Stevens' younger sister, killed in France during World War I

B. Foreign Correspondence

Additional Note

Although Stevens never travelled abroad (other than to Havana), he was always interested to read about foreign places and to correspond with foreigners. Some of the most engaging correspondence is with foreign writers, many of them not great poets in their own right, but whose letters with Stevens are among the finest in the Collection for the insights they give into Stevens the man and the poet. The most notable figures are:

1. Rosamond (Bates) Cary: 6 letters, 1931-1936. (WAS 2071-2076). Stevens to RBC: 6 carbons, 1935-1936. (WAS 2077-2082). Mrs. Cary was an American living in Otaru, Japan. Stevens asked her to select a number of Japanese toys and traditional items as gifts for Elsie and Holly Stevens.
2. Peter H. Lee: 13 letters, 1951-1955.(WAS 1030-1042). Stevens to PHL: 8 carbons, 1954-1955.(WAS 1043-1050). Lee was a Korean poet.
3. Robert McAlmon: 13 letters, [1921-1924]. (WAS 1150-1162). McAlmon, an American writer living and writing in Europe, wrote some extremely good letters about Joyce and other literary figures in the 1920's.
4. Thomas MacGreevy: 39 letters, 1948-1955. (WAS 141-158; 161-180). Stevens to TM: 17 carbons, 1948-1955. (WAS 181-197). MacGreevy was appointed Director of the National Gallery of Ireland in 1950. The MacGreevy-Stevens correspondence brings out Stevens' interest in painting and the other arts.
5. José Rodriguez-Feo: 51 letters, 1944-1954. (WAS 1588-1638). Stevens to JR-F: 9 carbons, 1948-1955. (WAS 1639-1647). Warms letters from and to a young Cuban poet, many concerning the meaning of Stevens' poetry.
6. Leonard Van Geyzel: 15 letters, 1938-1954. (WAS 2450-2464). Stevens to LVG: 18 carbons and 1 L.S., 1937-1954. (WAS 2470-2488). Van Geyzel was an Englishman working on a tea plantation in Ceylon who read widely in modern literature. Interesting correspondence regarding Stevens' literary and political (World War II) views.
7. Anatole Vidal: 20 letters, 1935-1940, in French. (WAS 2650-2669). Anatole Vidal was the Parisian bookseller who, like his daughter Paule after his death, provided Stevens with French books and magazines and purchased for Stevens original paintings by contemporary French artists, including Auberjonois, Maurice Brianchon, Roger Callois and Tal Coat. The Anatole and Paule Vidal correspondence is of the utmost importance in defining Stevens' attitudes toward modern art and literature.
8. Paule Vidal: 80 letters, 1945-1955,in French. (WAS 2806-2885). Stevens to PV: 110 carbons, 1945-1955. (WAS 2886-2995). Paule Vidal took over her father's bookshop in Paris after his death in the early 1940's and continued the flourishing correspondence with Stevens.
9. Correspondence regarding tea: Stevens was a connoisseur of fine foods and enjoyed sending away for tea in particular. These letters give some idea of his personal habits: 1935-1938.(WAS 1170-1176, 1346-1349).

C. Business Associates

Additional Note

The Collection does not contain letters from the files of the Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company. The following correspondents were business associates as well as friends:

1. C.L. Daughtry: 7 pieces, 1943-[1955].(WAS 492-498). Stevens to CLD: 40 pieces, 1931-1955,mostly originals. (WAS 499-538).
2. Arthur Gray Powell (known as "Judge Powell"): 6 letters, 1940-1950. (WAS 1477-1482).
3. Wilson E. Taylor: 12 letters, [1939?]-1955, including 5 carbons. (WAS 3837-3848). Stevens to WET: 96 letters, 1933-1955, originals. (WAS 3849-3944).

D. Literary Correspondents

Additional Note

The crux of the Collection deals with Stevens' poetry; a good 5/8 of the correspondence falls into this category. The following list deals only with the very important correspondents--important in their own right or important for the quality of the correspondence. The list is by no means complete. Many of the editors of journals, critics and publishers that figure in the Collection are not on the following list but may be found alphabetically in the Manuscript Catalogue. All letters in the list are addressed to or written by Stevens.

Note: Marguerite G. Flynn, whose name figures in some of the correspondence, was Stevens' secretary and stenographer. She personally answered some of Stevens' letters, especially in 1955 when Stevens was hospitalized. Letters written by her are catalogued under her name, not Stevens'.

1. Henry Hall Church: 102 pieces, 1939-[1947]. (WAS 3366-3467). Stevens to HHC: 94 pieces, 1939-1947, mostly carbons. (WAS 3468-3561). Barbara S. Church: 112 pieces, 1942-1955. (WAS 3563-3674). Stevens to BSC: 148 letters, 1 942-1955, mostly originals. (WAS 3678-3825). The Church-Stevens correspondence is undoubtedly the most important (and numerous) in the Collection. Henry Church and Stevens were both interested in French literature and, during the war years when the Church's were unable to spend half the year in their home at Ville d'Avray, France, Stevens saw the Church's frequently and became close friends with them, so that in his correspondence with both Henry and Barbara Church he frequently and honestly speaks of his personal and literary life.
2. Edward Estlin Cummings: 4 letters, 1944-1950. (WAS 1-4). Stevens to EEC: 2 carbons, 1947-1950.(WAS 5-6).
3. Harry Duncan (of the Cummington Press): 61 letters, 1943-1951. (WAS 555-615). Stevens to HD: 9 carbons, 1945-1950. (WAS 616-624).
4. Katharine Frazier (of the Cummington Press): 19 letters, 1941-1943. (WAS 647-665).
5. Robert Lee Frost: 1 A.L.S. (and photograph), July 28, 1935. (WAS 365).
6. Victor Karl Hammer: 32 letters, 1946-1952. (WAS 776-807). Stevens to VKH: 11 carbons, 1948-1951. (WAS 808-818).
7. Alfred A. Knopf: 64 letters, 1920-1955. (WAS 3084-3147). Stevens to AAK: 44 carbons, 1930-1955. (WAS 3148-3191). The following (a-d) are the major associates with Alfred A. Knopf Inc. in the correspondence:
- (a) William Cole: 10 letters, 1951-1955. (WAS 3044-3053). Stevens to WC: 9 carbons, 1951-1955. (WAS 3054-3062).
- (b) Sidney R. Jacobs: 9 letters, 1950-1954. (WAS 3063-3071). Stevens to SRJ: 12 carbons, 1950-1954. (WAS 3072-3083).
- (c) William A. Koshland: 11 letters, 1950-1954. (WAS 3198-3208). Stevens to WAK: 10 carbons, 1950-1955. (WAS 3209-3218).
- (d) Herbert Weinstock: 74 pieces, 1946-1955. (WAS 3219-3292). Stevens to HW: 66 carbons, 1946-1955. (WAS 3293-3358).
8. Archibald MacLeish: 2 letters, 1925-[1948]. (WAS 1063-1064). Stevens to AM: 1 carbon, Aug. 23, 1948. (WAS 1065).
9. Harriet Monroe: 10 letters, 1914-1935. (WAS 28-37).
10. Marianne Craig Moore: 27 letters, 1926-1955. (WAS 41-67).
11. Samuel French Morse: 7 letters, 1953-1955. (WAS 1266-1272). Stevens to SFM: 3 carbons, 1954-1955. (WAS 1273-1275).
12. Renato Poggioli: 30 letters, 1947-1954. (WAS 286-315). Stevens to RP: 23 carbons, 1947-1954. (WAS 316-338).
13. Mary Bernetta Quinn: 12 letters, 1948-1955. (WAS 2621-2632). Stevens to MBQ: 3 carbons, 1948-1954. (WAS 2633-2635).
14. Hi Simons: 28 pieces, 1937-1945.(WAS 78-105). Stevens to HS: 35 carbons, 1937-1945.(WAS 106-140).
15. Allen John Orley Tate: 45 pieces, 1941-1949. (WAS 2340-2384). Stevens to AJOT: 21 carbons, 1941-1949. (WAS 2385-2405).
15. Thornton Niven Wilder: 1 A.L.S., Sep. 12, 1951. (WAS 2524). Stevens to TNW: 1 carbon, Oct. 19, 1951. (WAS 2525).
17. William Carlos Williams: 13 letters, 1916-1953. (WAS 11-23).

Box 67

III. Photographs

Scope and Content Note

Most of the dating of the photographs is by Elsie Stevens. In 41 folders:

item 1

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Bachrach, [1900]

item 2

Wallace Stevens: 6 snapshots, [c. 1922]

item 3

Wallace Stevens: snapshot (of a photograph), [c. 1924]

item 4

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Blackstone Studios, N.Y., [c. 1935]

item 5

Wallace Stevens: 5 studio portraits by Pack Bros., [c. 1940?]

item 6

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Sylvia Salmi, 1943

item 7

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Sylvia Salmi, 1943

item 8

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Sylvia Salmi, 1944

item 9

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by John Haley, [c. 1945]

item 10

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by Sylvia Salmi, 1948

item 11

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by R. Thorne McKenna, June 1952

item 12

Wallace Stevens: studio portrait by R. Thorne McKenna, June 1952

item 13

Wallace Stevens: snapshot, 1955

item 14

Wallace Stevens--home of (735 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, Conn.?): 2 snapshots, [c. 1916]

item 15

Wallace Stevens--home of (118 Westerly Terrace, Hartford, Conn.): 6 snapshots, 1947-1953

item 16

Wallace Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens: studio portrait by Katherine Lee Endero, [c. 1925]

item 17

Wallace Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens: snapshot, Feb. 3, 1929

item 18

Wallace Stevens, Holly Bright Stevens & an unidentifiable woman/child: 3 snapshots, [c. 1929]

item 19

Wallace Stevens, Holly Bright Stevens & Peter Reed Hanchak: 8 snapshots, [ Oct. 1954]

item 20

Wallace Stevens & Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens: snapshot, [c. 1920]

item 21

Wallace Stevens, Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens: 5 snapshots, [c. 1926-1929]

item 22

Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens: 2 snapshots, [c. 1924]

item 23

Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens: studio portrait by Katherine Lee Endero, [1924?]

item 24

Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens: 11 snapshots, [c. 1915-1920]

item 25

Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens & an unidentifiable woman: snapshot, [c. 1920]

item 26

Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens & Dorothy La Rue (Moll) Weidner: 3 snapshots, [c. 1920]

item 27

Holly Bright Stevens: 35 snapshots, [c. 1926-1929]

item 28

Holly Bright Stevens: studio portrait by John Haley, 1928

item 29

Holly Bright Stevens: studio portrait by John Haley, [c. 1931]

item 30

Holly Bright Stevens & an unidentifiable woman/child: snapshot, [1929?]

item 31

Holly Bright Stevens, Jack M. Hanchak & Peter Reed Hanchak: 2 snapshots, 1944-1947

item 32

Holly Bright Stevens & Peter Reed Hanchak: 2 snapshots, 1947-1951

item 33

Ida Bright (Smith) Kachel Moll (in front of 231 So. 13th Street, Reading, Pa.): snapshot, [> 1940]

item 34

Mary Catharine Stevens--grave of: unmounted print, [c. 1919]

item 35

Edwin Stanton Livingood: cabinet photograph, Apr. 1899

item 36

Barbara S. Church--home of (Ville d'Avray, France): snapshot, June 1939

item 37

Barbara S. Church--home of (Untermberg, Germany): snapshot, [c. 1948]

item 38

Wallace Stevens Family: photograph album--69 snapshots of a trip to California and Arizona, Oct. 23-Nov. 3, 1923,some photos showing Wallace Stevens. Also: 6 snapshots of Wallace Stevens & Holly Bright Stevens, c. 1934

item 39

Unidentifiable photographs--probably from Wallace Stevens' side of the family (7 pieces)

item 40

Unidentifiable photographs--probably from Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens' side of the family (4 pieces)

item 41

Unidentifiable photographs--of Reading, Pa.? (associated with Wallace Stevens' genealogical researches: 5 photographs)

item 42

Album of 40 photographs on the side of Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens. The only photograph identified (by Holly Bright Stevens) is no. 14: Ida Bright (Smith) Kachel Moll & Elsie Viola (Moll) Stevens. (See Box 82.)

(Box 68)

IV. Honorary Awards

Scope and Content Note

In 7 folders and 2 loose pieces:

item 1

National Book Award, 1950

item 2

Columbia University (D. Litt.), June 5, 1952

item 3

State of Connecticut's resolution expressing the State's pride in Stevens' achievements, Feb. 3, 1955

item 4

Hartt College of Music (Doctor of Humanities), June 9, 1955

item 5

Mount Holyoke College (D. Litt.), June 2, 1952

item 6

Wesleyan University (D. Litt.), June 15, 1947

item 7

Yale University (D. Litt.), June 13, 1955

item 8

Bard College (D. Litt.), Mar. 29, 1951

item 9

Harvard University (D. Litt.), June 21, 1951

Boxes 69-71

V. Xeroxes

Scope and Content Note

Mostly correspondence, with some poetical material, especially in the Ronald Lane Latimer folder. The folders are arranged alphabetically by correspondent. The xeroxes are for reference only; copies may not be made from them. Copies may be obtained by writing to the institution owning the original manuscripts. Indication of the owner has usually been written (by Holly Stevens) on the xerox.

(Boxes 72-79) (2,557 pieces)

VI. Genealogical Material

Scope and Content Note

In the early 1940's, Wallace Stevens began an extensive correspondence to tract his family ancestry. Elsie Stevens also took an active interest in tracing her roots. Over 2,000 pieces of genealogical material resulted, in the form of letters, documents and typescripts. The material dates primarily from the 1940's. Why Stevens took such pains to trace his ancestry is open to speculation, but two possible reasons could be 1) the death of most of his family (i.e. brothers and sisters) in the late 1930's and early 1940's and 2) Holly Stevens' decision to leave Vassar College without a degree in 1942. Stevens' attempt to define and describe his family could well have been to reassure both himself and his daughter of their heritage.

The genealogical material has been semi-catalogued and is arranged alphabetically in the following general order:

Box 72-74

Correspondence

Box 75

Bright-Ellsworth families

Box 76

History of the Franks-Uncompiled Material (typescripts)

Box 77

Zeller-Stevens family

Box 78

Miscellaneous

Box 79

Miscellaneous--oversize

Boxes 80-81

VII. Ephemera

A. Miscellaneous Material (mostly printed) relating to the following (by folder no.):

item 1

American Academy of Arts and Letters (& National Institute of Arts and Letters)

item 2

Blackwell, B.H., Ltd. (firm)

item 3

Church, Barbara S.

item 4

Church, Henry Hall

item 5

Columbia University: items re: 1952 commencement

item 6

Columbia University: printed item

item 7

Duncan, Harry (and the Cummington press)

item 8

Gregynog Press

item 9

Guthrie, James

item 10

Hammer, Victor: also box with bookplates & plates

item 11

Harvard University

item 12

Knopf, Alfred A. Inc.

item 13

Moore, Marianne Craig

item 14

Morse, Samuel French

item 15

Quinn, Mary Bernetta

item 16

Simons, Hi

item 17

Stevens Family

item 18

Stevens, Elsie Viola (Moll)

item 19

Stevens, Holly Bright

item 20

Stevens, Mary Catharine

item 21

Stevens, Wallace: newspaper clippings

item 22

Vassar College

item 23

Vidal, Anatole & Paule

item 24

Weinman, Adolph Alexander

item 25

Wisconsin Players

item 26

Yale University Library

B. Miscellaneous material-loose

Scope and Content Note

Includes newspaper articles, postcards collected by Stevens, addresses, receipts, etc. Also, photographic prints of Wallace Stevens' collection of paintings and prints.

VIII. The Stevens Family

Scope and Content Note

[genealogy] compiled by Lila James Roney, 1944 (xerox copy). WAS 4260

IX. Appraiser's Report

Box Box 84

Appraiser's report of Stevens library books acquired in June 1990.

Box 68 a, item 1

Bergen, Garrett. To Benjamin Stevens. 1806, Oct. 20

item 2