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Collection Overview

Creator:
Gordon, Caroline, 1895-1981
Title:
Ashley Brown collection of Caroline Gordon
Repository:
Manuscripts Division
Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/xs55mc13x
Dates:
1956-1980
Size:
1 box and 0.4 linear feet
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1
Language:
English

Abstract

Consists of selected manuscripts and letters of American novelist and literary critic Caroline Gordon, collected by Ashley Brown, a friend and fellow author.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The collection contains six manuscripts (1959-1972) by Gordon in typescript form with autograph corrections: "The Dragon's Teeth" (incomplete), "Horarium" (a daily plan), a book review of Katherine Anne Porter and the Art of Rejection by William L. Nance, "A Narrow Heart, the Portrait of a Woman" (incomplete), a lecture given at the University of Michigan, and a poem about Robert Fitzgerald entitled "To a Survivor of a Southern Literary Festival, A Tribute in the Form of an Admonition." There are also 77 letters (1956-1980) by Gordon to Ashley Brown, one letter (1957) by Malcolm Cowley to Gordon, and one letter (1963) by Allen Tate to Gordon.

Collection Creator Biography:

Gordon, Caroline, 1895-1981

Caroline Ferguson Gordon was an American teacher, literary critic and novelist. Born on October 6, 1895, she grew up on a farm in Kentucky. Gordon graduated from Bethany College in West Virginia, in 1916 and began her career working as a writer for the Chattanooga Reporter until 1924. In 1925 she married Allen Tate, a poet and literary critic associated with the Southern Agrarian literary movement. Together they pursued their careers in writing, forging close bonds with other writers such as Robert Lowell, Hart Crane, Flannery O'Connor and Katherine Anne Porter. In 1931, Caroline published her first novel, Penhally, and in 1934 released her most popular work Aleck Maury, Sportsman. "Old Red," her best known story, published in Scribner's Magazine, was awarded a second-place O. Henry Award in 1934. She also received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1932. Her relationship with Tate grew volatile, and they divorced, remarried, and finally divorced permanently in 1959. Caroline continued to move around the country throughout her life, living at various times in North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, and Washington state. In 1978 she moved to San Cristóbal de las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico, to be with her daughter and died there on April 11, 1981.

Collection History

Acquisition:

Purchased from Ashley Brown on July 5, 1984 (AM85-3).

Appraisal

No materials were separated during 2012 processing.

Processing Information

Folder Inventory added by Hilde Creager (2015) in 2012.

Folder Inventory added by Hilde Creager (2015) in 2012.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material:

Ashley Brown collection of Caroline Gordon; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/xs55mc13x
Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1