Inventory of the Joan (London) Miller Papers, 1899-1975, (bulk 1937-1970)

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Inventory of the Joan (London) Miller Papers, 1899-1975, (bulk 1937-1970)

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Collection Details

Table of contents

Descriptive Summary

Administrative Information

Biography

Subject matter

Persons represented by 5 or more pieces

Important or interesting items

Bibliography

Printed Items Transferred to Rare Book Department of the Huntington Library

Descriptive Summary

Title: Joan (London) Miller Papers,

Date (inclusive): 1899-1975, (bulk 1937-1970)

Creator: Miller, Joan (London)

Extent: 1,576 pieces. Also: clippings and other printed items.

Repository: The Huntington Library

San Marino, California 91108

Language: English.

Administrative Information

Provenance

Acquired from Ronald Randall, July 28, 1983.

Access

Collection is open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information please go to following URL .

Publication Rights

In order to quote from, publish, or reproduce any of the manuscripts or visual materials, researchers must obtain formal permission from the office of the Library Director. In most instances, permission is given by the Huntington as owner of the physical property rights only, and researchers must also obtain permission from the holder of the literary rights. In some instances, the Huntington owns the literary rights, as well as the physical property rights. Researchers may contact the appropriate curator for further information.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Joan (London) Miller Papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Biography

Joan (London) Miller, born in Oakland, California, on January 15, 1901, was the elder daughter of the author Jack London and his first wife, Bess (Maddern) London. Following graduation from Oakland High School, she attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1921. On February 11 of that same year, in Piedmont, California, Mrs. Miller married Harlan Park Abbott, from whom she was divorced in 1924. On December 20, 1925, in Sacramento, she married Charles Malamuth, a Moscow correspondent for United Press International, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1930. Subsequently, the two were reconciled while in Moscow and they remarried, but they were separated in 1934 and divorced for the second time in 1935. Finally, Joan London married Charles Lortz Miller in April, 1952, and they resided in Berkeley and, later, Pleasant Hill, California, until Mr. Miller's death in August, 1970.

Mrs. Miller began her writing career early in life and her articles and other writings were published in newspapers and periodicals beginning in the 1920's. A novel, Sylvia Coventry, appeared as a serial in the Oakland Tribune in 1926-1927. In the late 1930's, Mrs. Miller began collecting material about her father in preparation for writing a biography. Through correspondence, she solicited reminiscences from many individuals who had known Jack London and she collected documents as well as clippings and other material relating to his life and work. The resulting biography, Jack London and his Times, was published in 1939 by Doubleday, Doran and Company and reprinted by the University of Washington Press in 1968. Until shortly before her death in 1971, Mrs. Miller had been at work on a book tentatively entitled Visiting Rights Only, which described her childhood and youth in a single-parent home and her feelings toward her absent father. Throughout her life, Mrs. Miller retained an interest in her father and maintained an active correspondence with London scholars and collectors concerning his life and her memories of him.

In addition to her interest in Jack London, Mrs. Miller held a lifelong sympathy and concern for workers and labor causes. Much of her writing dealt with labor and union issues, and she worked for more than 20 years as the librarian for the California Labor Federation. Following her retirement from this position in 1962, she continued as an activist, writer and speaker on behalf of workers and unions. During the last several years of her life, Mrs. Miller researched and wrote, with Henry P. Anderson, a history of the farm labor movement, entitled So Shall Ye Reap. The book was published on her birthday, January 15, 1971.

Just a few days later, on January 19, 1971, Mrs. Miller passed away following a battle against throat cancer. She was survived by her younger sister, Bess (London) Fleming, and her son from her first marriage, Bart Abbott, as well as several grandchildren.

Subject matter

I. Correspondence
- A. Concerning Jack London
  - 1. Reminiscences written in
    Date: 1937-1938
    in letters to Joan (London) Miller by those who knew him (Upton Sinclair, William James Ghent, Alexander Irvine, etc.).
  - 2. Correspondence, primarily in the
    Date: 1960's and 1970's,
    to and from London scholars and collectors (Tony Bubka, James E. Sisson, Hensley Charles Woodbridge, Alfred Samuel Shivers, George Tweney, Franklin Dickerson Walker, etc.).
- B. Concerning labor (primarily letters between Joan (London) Miller and Henry P. Anderson, and between Mrs. Miller and such organizations as the California Labor Federation.
- C. Business correspondence, with publishers and agents, including a few documents (contracts, royalty statements).
- D. Family correspondence.
II. Manuscripts
- A. By Joan (London) Miller
  - 1. Concerning Jack London
    - a. Jack London and his Times: notes and drafts.
    - b. Visiting Rights Only: manuscript and notes.
    - c. Essays, brief studies, and speeches.
  - 2. Concerning William Henry Chaney
    - a. Biography of William Henry Chaney: manuscript and notes.
    - b. W. H. Chaney: A Reappraisal.
  - 3. Concerning labor
    - a. So Shall Ye Reap
    - b. Essays, articles and speeches
  - 4. Miscellaneous and juvenile writings
- B. By others
  - 1. Jack London scholarship and criticism
  - 2. Reviews of Joan (London) Miller's biography of Jack London, and other writings about Mrs. Miller
  - 3. Miscellaneous (including poems about Jack London, manuscripts by Bart Abbott, etc.)
III. Scrapbooks - concerning Joan (London) Miller and Jack London
IV. Photographs, particularly of Joan (London) Miller and Jack London.
V. Clippings, printed items
- A. Concerning Jack London (material collected for Mrs. Miller's biography)
- B. Concerning Joan (London) Miller
- C. Concerning broken homes, children of famous parents, etc., for Visiting Rights Only.
- D. Concerning farm workers and labor

The collection is a valuable resource for research on Jack London, on Joan (London) Miller and on the labor movement in California. There are just two gaps in the collection: the letters from Jack London to Joan (London) Miller, which were acquired by a private collector; and personal and family papers, particularly those which would provide biographical documentation of Mrs. Miller's life.

Persons represented by 5 or more pieces

Abbott, Bart: 2 manuscripts, 8 letters, 1 document,
Date: 1938, 1971, 1969-1971, 1971
Abbott, Helen: 7 letters,
Date: 1965-1971
Anderson, Henry P.: 23 letters, 1 document,
Date: 1966-1970, 1970
Arthur, Gavin Chester: 2 manuscripts, 4 letters,
Date: 1968, 1966-1970
Bubka, Tony: 5 manuscripts, 53 letters,
Date: 1966-1968, 1965-1970
Bykov, Vil Matveyevich: 3 manuscripts, 32 letters,
Date: 1967-1970, 1964-1972
Clemens, Cyril: 5 letters,
Date: 1969-1971
Cole, Ella: 11 letters,
Date: 1966-1968
Cortez, Carlos: 3 manuscripts, 2 letters,
Date: 1961-1965, 1962-1963
Crowell (Thomas Y.) Co.: 66 letters, 1 document,
Date: 1963-1970, 1965
Doubleday, Doran and Co.: 36 letters, 21 documents,
Date: 1936-1942, 1937-1942
Freeman, A. Wallace: 3 manuscripts, 23 letters,
Date: 1968-1971, 1966-1974
Fujiwara, Sakae: 5 letters,
Date: 1969-1972
Galarza, Ernesto: 25 letters,
Date: 1962-1971
Howell (John) Books: 7 letters, 2 documents,
Date: 1969-1971, 1971
Jones, Leslie S. A.: 7 letters,
Date: 1969-1972
Kettler, Ernestine: 6 letters,
Date: 1966-1971
Kingman, Russell: 2 manuscripts, 4 letters,
Date: 1969, 1968-1976
Kuntschev, Boschidar: 11 letters,
Date: 1967-1969
London, Charmian (Kittredge): 6 letters,
Date: 1909-1940
London, Jack: 54 letters (copies),
Date: 1900-1916
Macmillan Co.: 6 letters,
Date: 1939-1964
Maddern, Merle: 9 letters,
Date: 1964-1971
Malamuth, Charles: 1 manuscript, 8 letters,
Date: 1965 1964-1965
Miller, Joan (London): 100 manuscripts, 186 letters, 5 documents,
Date: 1917-1971 1931-1970 1938-1971
Nelson, Eugene: 11 letters,
Date: 1967-1971
North, Richard: 7 letters,
Date: 1965-1971
Oittinen, Anna: 6 letters,
Date: 1969-1971
Paul (Warren) Associates: 10 letters,
Date: 1963-1965
Random House, Inc.: 5 letters,
Date: 1965-1967
Seltz, Julie Anne (Abbott): 5 letters,
Date: 1970-1971
Shipley, Miriam: 14 letters,
Date: 1962-1970
Shivers, Alfred Samuel: 19 letters,
Date: 1962-1969
Sisson, James E.: 2 manuscripts, 23 letters,
Date: 1971 and n.d. 1967-1970
Turner, Ethel (Duffy): 7 letters,
Date: 1968-1969
Tweney, George H.: 1 manuscript, 33 letters,
Date: 1968 1966-1971
Untermann, Ernest: 6 letters,
Date: 1938-1941
Walker, Dale L.: 49 letters,
Date: 1966-1971
Washington. University. Press: 26 letters, 3 documents,
Date: 1967-1970 1967-1969
Weiderman, Richard: 5 letters,
Date: 1968-1970
Wing, Willis Kingsley: 5 letters,
Date: 1951
Woodbridge, Hensley Charles: 2 manuscripts, 121 letters,
Date: 1966-1968, 1962-1971

Important or interesting items

Chavez, Cesar E. - letter
Date: (1967, Oct. 6)
to Joan (London) Miller briefly mentioning Jack London and a matter relating to farm workers. MI 223.
Doubleday, Doran and Co. - correspondence (36 pieces,
Date: 1936-1942)
to Joan (London) Miller concerning Jack London and his Times. Mention is made of Irving Stone's biography being written at the same time, and of Charmian (Kittredge) London's response regarding rights and access to papers. MI 342-377.
Ghent, William James - correspondence (4 pieces,
Date: 1937)
to Joan (London) Miller, mentioning Jack London, Upton Sinclair, Henry Gaylord Wilshire, and the Socialist Party. MI 471-474.
London, Jack - copies of correspondence (40 pieces,
Date: 1899-[1916])
to Anna (Strunsky) Walling, two of them containing brief annotations by Mrs. Walling. MI 601-640.
Miller, Joan (London) - unpublished biography of William Henry Chaney [Jack London's father], and notes. MI 681-683.
Miller, Joan (London) - Visiting Rights Only: the Story of Jack London's Relationship with his Daughters; an unpublished manuscript. MI 771 (1-3).
Miller, Joan (London) - correspondence with Henry P. Anderson and the Thomas Y Crowell Co. concerning So Shall Ye Reap, a good series between collaborating authors and their publishers:
- Anderson to Crowell: 7 letters
  Date: (1970).
  MI 44-50.
- Anderson to Miller: 16 letters
  Date: (1966-1970).
  MI 51-66.
- Crowell to Anderson: 16 letters
  Date: (1964-1970).
  MI 268-283.
- Crowell to Miller: 49 letters
  Date: (1963-1970.
  MI 284-332.
- Crowell to Miller and Anderson: 1 letter
  Date: (1967, Aug. 29).
  MI 333.
- Miller to Anderson: 17 letters
  Date: (1966-1969).
  MI 777-793.
- Miller to Crowell: 31 letters
  Date: (1963-1970).
  MI 816-846.
- Miller and Anderson to Crowell: 5 letters
  Date: (1966).
  MI 960-964.
Miller, Joan (London) - letter
Date: (1967, Nov. 9)
to Robert Eugene Burke containing much autobiographical information. MI 807.
Miller, Joan (London) - letter
Date: (1966, Sep. 27)
to James H. Greene containing list of descendants of Jack London. MI 864.
Miller, Joan (London) - correspondence (5 pieces,
Date: 1964-1969)
to Alfred Samuel Shivers re Jack London, particularly his death. MI 913-916, 918.
Miller, Joan (London) - correspondence (4 pieces,
Date: 1937)
to Lev Trotskii [Leon Trotsky] re Jack London. MI 924-927.
Miller, Joan (London) - scrapbook
Date: (1938-1940)
of clippings about Jack London and Joan (London) Miller. MI 1472.
Miller, Joan (London) - scrapbook
Date: (1926-1927)
of serialized novel, Sylvia Coventry, in the Oakland Tribune. MI 1473.
Miller, Joan (London) - scrapbook
Date: (1902-1965)
of miscellanea, including clippings about Jack London and other writers. MI 1474.
North, Richard - correspondence (6 pieces,
Date: 1965-1966)
to Joan (London) Miller regarding the discovery of the Jack London cabin in Yukon Territory. MI 984-989.
Sinclair, Upton Beall - correspondence (3 pieces,
Date: 1937)
to Joan (London) Miller concerning memories of Jack London. MI 1106-1108.
Sterling, George - letter of reference
Date: (1925, Mar. 5)
for Joan (London) Miller. MI 1141.
Untermann, Ernest - correspondence (6 pieces,
Date: 1938-1941)
to Joan (London) Miller concerning Jack London and socialism in the early days of the century. MI 1201-1206.
Walling, Anna (Strunsky) - letter
Date: (1940, Nov. 8)
to Joan (London) Miller expressing her reaction to Jack London and his Times. MI 1271.

Bibliography

Contemporary Authors (Permanent Series, volume 2), entry for Joan London.

London, Joan. Jack London and his Times (New York: Doubleday, Doran and Co., 1939; University of Washington Press, 1968).

Printed Items Transferred to Rare Book Department of the Huntington Library

California Development Association. Survey of the Mexican Labor Problem in California. c.1928.

Chaplin, Ralph, Covington Hall, et al. When the Leaves Come Out. Chicago: The Rebel Press, 1934.

Haldeman-Julius, E. The Son of Wolf Jack London. Girard, Kansas: Haldeman-Julius Co., n.d.

International Literature, no. 2, 1935.

Jack London Who He is and What He has Done. N.Y.: The Macmillan Co., c.1915.

London Lore, no. 1 and 2. San Francisco: Jack London Amateur Press Club, n.d.

Prestridge, Virginia (comp.). The Worker in American Fiction: An Annotated Bibliography. Champaign: University of Illinois Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, 1954.

St. John, Vincent. The I.W.W. Its History, Structure and Methods. Chicago: I.W.W. Publishing Bureau, 1917.

Yukon Press, Nov.-Dec., 1966.

Arrangement of the Collection

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