Correspondence, 1906 - 1967
Series
Scope and Content
From the Collection:
The Witter Bynner papers span the years 1874 to 1981, with the bulk of the material concerning the period between 1946 and 1963. The collection primarily documents Bynner's professional activities and personal life, and his relationships with fellow authors or publishers. Included are extensive correspondence, some literary manuscripts, miscellaneous materials including printed matter, clippings, several financial and legal records, and numerous photographic prints and albums. Outside of Harvard University, the primary repository for Bynner's papers, this collection represents one of the largest holdings of Bynner materials.
The textual materials in the collection were largely assembled by Dorothy Chauvenet, who replaced Henriette Harris as Witter Bynner's literary secretary in 1946. Bynner's papers have been organized into four major series, Correspondence, General Miscellany, Writings, and Photographs, and relate primarily to Bynner's literary career during the years 1943-1963. A fifth series, Dorothory Chauvenet Papers, contains materials related to her work as Bynner's literary secretary.
The correspondence typically falls between the bulk dates of 1946 to 1963, and comprises the most substantial series of the collection. Original order has been largely maintained in the subseries of General correspondence, reflecting the filing system used by Bynner and Chauvenet. Bynner's relationship with cultural and literary organizations such as The Academy of American Poets, National Institute of Arts and Letters, and The Poetry Society of America are well illustrated. His interactions with publishers such as Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. , and The John Day Co. are also depicted. Further evidence of his literary activities and concerns can be found in the letters regarding permissions to publish, and copyright. Also among the General subseries are numerous letters from personal friends, many significant authors or social figures. Significant correspondents include Horatio Colony, Richmond Lattimore, Henry Rago, Mabel Dodge Luhan, Stanley Braithwaite, John Ciardi, Louis Ginsberg, Robert Hillyer, Alfred Kreymborg, Ogden Nash, Charles Scribner, Leonora Speyer, and Idella Purnell Stone.
The two following subseries of correspondence, Photoduplicates and Typescripts, contain copies of original correspondence. Both were created for Bynner's own reference: the photoduplicates were copied from materials Bynner donated to Harvard in the 1950s and 1960s, and the typescripts apparently created for Bynner's use as he selected letters for inclusion in memoirs or other publications. Among the photoduplicates are substantial amounts of letters to and from Frieda von Richthofen Lawrence and D. H. Lawrence, Edna St. Vincent Millay, George Sterling, and Laurence Housman. Lesser amounts of materials concern a variety of important figures, such as Bernard Berenson, Willa Cather, O. Henry, William Marion Reedy, and Mark Twain. The typescripts also contain letters from a range of literary figures, including Rose Cecil O'Neill, but a greater preponderance of correspondence with family members, including Annie Bynner Wellington and Edwin Tyler Bynner.
A small amount of financial and legal documentation is found among the General Miscellany series. However, the majority of items contained in this series are of an ephemeral nature, including a guest book from Bynner's seventy-fifth birthday in 1956, an address book, and printed matter such as clippings and playbills.
The Writings series contains a number of manuscripts reflecting Bynner's efforts in both poetry and prose throughout his career, with an emphasis on his later years. Important poetry manuscript materials include several annotated and revised drafts of The Way of Life According to Laotzu, various poems from New Poems 1960, and drafts from several other works including A Canticle of Pan and Indian Earth. Bynner's prose works are represented by several short pieces on Frieda Lawrence, reviews, a typewritten draft of his unpublished novel, and a selection of materials Bynner intended for use in his memoirs. Additional literary manuscripts may be found among Dorothy Chauvenet's papers, in a subseries entitled Materials Received from Bynner.
The photographs series is divided into three subseries: Albums, Negative Albums, and Prints and Negatives. Spanning the whole of Bynner's life, they document his East Coast upbringing, tours of China and Japan, his brief tenure at Berkeley, his arrival in New Mexico, and his years in Santa Fe and Chapala, Mexico. His life in Mexico and New Mexico with Robert Hunt is well chronicled.
The final series of this collection, Dorothy Chauvenet Papers, is comprised of materials created and received by Bynner's long-time secretary. Contained within her correspondence are many letters to and from her employer, including her reports on Bynner's finances and management of his household. The most extensive subseries of this group, Materials Received from Bynner, consists of correspondence, clippings, and literary manuscripts which Bynner had given to Chauvenet. Included are a number of holograph drafts of poems, some quite early. Also included are several prose pieces, including a typescript of Journey with Genius. The final subseries of materials, Writings, contains Chauvenet's essay on her experiences working for Bynner. Also present is an extensive untitled selection of Bynner's correspondence, with introductory remarks by Chauvenet.
The textual materials in the collection were largely assembled by Dorothy Chauvenet, who replaced Henriette Harris as Witter Bynner's literary secretary in 1946. Bynner's papers have been organized into four major series, Correspondence, General Miscellany, Writings, and Photographs, and relate primarily to Bynner's literary career during the years 1943-1963. A fifth series, Dorothory Chauvenet Papers, contains materials related to her work as Bynner's literary secretary.
The correspondence typically falls between the bulk dates of 1946 to 1963, and comprises the most substantial series of the collection. Original order has been largely maintained in the subseries of General correspondence, reflecting the filing system used by Bynner and Chauvenet. Bynner's relationship with cultural and literary organizations such as The Academy of American Poets, National Institute of Arts and Letters, and The Poetry Society of America are well illustrated. His interactions with publishers such as Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. , and The John Day Co. are also depicted. Further evidence of his literary activities and concerns can be found in the letters regarding permissions to publish, and copyright. Also among the General subseries are numerous letters from personal friends, many significant authors or social figures. Significant correspondents include Horatio Colony, Richmond Lattimore, Henry Rago, Mabel Dodge Luhan, Stanley Braithwaite, John Ciardi, Louis Ginsberg, Robert Hillyer, Alfred Kreymborg, Ogden Nash, Charles Scribner, Leonora Speyer, and Idella Purnell Stone.
The two following subseries of correspondence, Photoduplicates and Typescripts, contain copies of original correspondence. Both were created for Bynner's own reference: the photoduplicates were copied from materials Bynner donated to Harvard in the 1950s and 1960s, and the typescripts apparently created for Bynner's use as he selected letters for inclusion in memoirs or other publications. Among the photoduplicates are substantial amounts of letters to and from Frieda von Richthofen Lawrence and D. H. Lawrence, Edna St. Vincent Millay, George Sterling, and Laurence Housman. Lesser amounts of materials concern a variety of important figures, such as Bernard Berenson, Willa Cather, O. Henry, William Marion Reedy, and Mark Twain. The typescripts also contain letters from a range of literary figures, including Rose Cecil O'Neill, but a greater preponderance of correspondence with family members, including Annie Bynner Wellington and Edwin Tyler Bynner.
A small amount of financial and legal documentation is found among the General Miscellany series. However, the majority of items contained in this series are of an ephemeral nature, including a guest book from Bynner's seventy-fifth birthday in 1956, an address book, and printed matter such as clippings and playbills.
The Writings series contains a number of manuscripts reflecting Bynner's efforts in both poetry and prose throughout his career, with an emphasis on his later years. Important poetry manuscript materials include several annotated and revised drafts of The Way of Life According to Laotzu, various poems from New Poems 1960, and drafts from several other works including A Canticle of Pan and Indian Earth. Bynner's prose works are represented by several short pieces on Frieda Lawrence, reviews, a typewritten draft of his unpublished novel, and a selection of materials Bynner intended for use in his memoirs. Additional literary manuscripts may be found among Dorothy Chauvenet's papers, in a subseries entitled Materials Received from Bynner.
The photographs series is divided into three subseries: Albums, Negative Albums, and Prints and Negatives. Spanning the whole of Bynner's life, they document his East Coast upbringing, tours of China and Japan, his brief tenure at Berkeley, his arrival in New Mexico, and his years in Santa Fe and Chapala, Mexico. His life in Mexico and New Mexico with Robert Hunt is well chronicled.
The final series of this collection, Dorothy Chauvenet Papers, is comprised of materials created and received by Bynner's long-time secretary. Contained within her correspondence are many letters to and from her employer, including her reports on Bynner's finances and management of his household. The most extensive subseries of this group, Materials Received from Bynner, consists of correspondence, clippings, and literary manuscripts which Bynner had given to Chauvenet. Included are a number of holograph drafts of poems, some quite early. Also included are several prose pieces, including a typescript of Journey with Genius. The final subseries of materials, Writings, contains Chauvenet's essay on her experiences working for Bynner. Also present is an extensive untitled selection of Bynner's correspondence, with introductory remarks by Chauvenet.
Dates
- 1906 - 1967
Access and Use Restrictions
This material may be examined by researchers under supervised conditions in the Caroline Straus Research Room.
Extent
From the Collection: 13 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Creator
- From the Collection: Bynner, Witter, 1881-1968 (Person)
Repository Details
Part of the New Mexico State University Library Archives and Special Collections Repository