The papers of Benjamin Franklin Fisher IV, an American literature scholar, editor, and teacher, span the years 1963 to 2001, with the bulk dated from 1963 to 2001. The Fisher Papers consist of correspondence and printed materials that primarily document Fisher's and his Duke University advisors' educational and career trajectories. These materials also provide insight into various scholars' recent contributions to Poe studies, as well as information on the general activities of, and Fisher's leadership roles in, several of the professional organizations of which Fisher was a member. These organizations especially include those devoted to the study of Edgar Allan Poe.

The Correspondence Series, 1963-2001 (bulk 1967-2001) consists of letters between Fisher and other scholars of American literature from 1963 to 2001, with the bulk dated 1967-2001. Much of the correspondence mingles professional exchanges with personal inquiries and salutations. Included are many of the prominent names in Edgar Allan Poe scholarship, including Richard Benton, David K. Jackson, Burton Pollin, Richard Kopley, Alexander G. Rose, and G. R. "Dick" Thompson. The collection also contains Fisher's correspondence with Duke faculty members Arlin Turner, Clarence Gohdes, and Jay B. Hubbell, beginning in Fisher's graduate student years and continuing until their deaths. Much of Fisher's correspondence includes manuscript evaluations, both casually for colleagues and professionally for publishers or editors. Also included are Fisher's files regarding conferences, especially records of the Edgar Allan Poe Society's Annual Speakers Series, for which Fisher served as chairman. Much of the correspondence with individuals provides information on the activities of this and other organizations to which Fisher belonged, especially the Poe Studies Association. A significant portion of correspondence from 1999 to 2001 is print-outs of electronic mail.

The Printed Material Series, 1978-1982 includes a copy of the April/June 1978 issue of Serials Review, which features a history of American Literature, a journal published at Duke. The article praises AL's three editors Jay B. Hubbell, Arlin Turner, and Clarence Gohdes, who also served as Fisher's mentors at Duke. Tributes to Turner can also be found in the 1981 issue of South Atlantic Quarterly and in the first of two volumes of University of Mississippi Studies in English (USME) found in this collection. In addition to Fisher's tribute to Turner, the first volume of USME also contains Fisher's review of Turner's 1980 book Nathaniel Hawthorne: A Biography. Volume 3 (1982) of the UMSE is entitled "Poe-purri," and includes Fisher's essay "A Ten-Year Shelf of Poe Books." This series also includes two 1982 Edgar Allan Poe Society publications written by Alexander Rose, who had served as the organization's president from 1969-1976. The first volume, History of the Edgar Allan Poe Society, is largely in narrative form. It is accompanied by a second volume of minutes and annual reports from which the history was drawn.

This collection is part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography. Related materials may be found in other Hubbell Center collections, including the Jay B. Hubbell Papers, Arlin Turner Papers, Clarence Gohdes Papers, Poe Studies Association Records, and the Modern Language Association, American Literature Section Papers.

Collection consists of research materials, correspondence, writings, clippings and other printed materials, and a few photographs, mainly from the latter half of Gohdes's career. The earliest date (1811) refers to reproductions of original research materials. Correspondence with other American Literature teachers and authors, combined with other materials relating to Gohdes's institutional and organizational affiliations, in particular with Duke University, the Modern Language Association (MLA), and the journal AMERICAN LITERATURE, comprise the most substantive aspects of this collection. They provide insight into American literary scholarship in the early and mid-twentieth century. Noted authors and scholars of the time whose letters and other writings are in the collection include Alexander Blackburn, Oscar Cargill, Lewis Chase, Robert Elias, Norman Foerster, Arthur Rubin, Arthur Quinn, and Upton Sinclair. Original manuscripts by Gohdes, inscribed reprints of writings by his colleagues, and materials relating to many major British and American literary figures, make up the rest of the collection. There is substantial material on Edgar Allen Poe and American humor. The collection also includes papers documenting Gohdes's research and writing for his last book project, a history of the muscadine grape in North Carolina entitled Scuppernong, North Carolina's Grape and Its Wines. Acquired as part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography

The Clarence Louis Frank Gohdes Papers date from 1811 to the 1990s, with the bulk of the collection dating from 1905 to 1981. Collection consists of research materials, correspondence, writings, clippings and other printed materials, and a few photographs, mainly from the latter half of Gohdes's career. The earliest date (1811) refers to reproductions of original materials used in his research. Correspondence with other American Literature teachers and authors, combined with other materials relating to Gohdes's institutional and organizational affiliations, in particular with Duke University, the Modern Language Association (MLA), and the journal AMERICAN LITERATURE, comprise the most substantive aspects of this collection. They provide insight into the bureaucratic and institutional exigencies of American literary scholarship in the early and mid-twentieth century. Noted authors and scholars of the time whose letters and other writings are in the collection include Alexander Blackburn, Oscar Cargill, Lewis Chase, Robert Elias, Norman Foerster, Arthur Rubin, Arthur Quinn, and Upton Sinclair. Original manuscripts by Gohdes, inscribed reprints of writings by his colleagues, and materials relating to many major British and American literary figures, make up the rest of the collection. There is substantial material on Edgar Allen Poe and American humor. The collection also includes papers documenting Gohdes's research and writing for his last book project, a history of the muscadine grape entitled Scuppernong, North Carolina's Grape and Its Wines.

The Gohdes Papers are divided into seven series: Biographical Data, Correspondence, Author Files, Subject Files, Writings and Speeches, Scuppernong , and Clippings.

The Biographical Data Series briefly sketches the major events of Gohdes's life. It consists of only a few items, including a one-page sketch by Gohdes of his career's highlights, and photocopies of Gohdes's obituaries. Further biographical information, especially pertaining to Gohdes's academic life, can be culled from materials in the Correspondence Series.

The Correspondence Series contains letters exchanged with university administrators, publishers, colleagues, librarians, and literary figures. The series is divided into four subseries, American Literature , Lewis Chase, Duke University, and General. The bulk of the correspondence concerns professional and academic affairs, such as appointments, editorships, research and reviews, and publishing. Included are exchanges between Gohdes and Duke University administrators about English Department and American Literature affairs, as well as between Gohdes and contemporary literary critics about the study of American literature. There are also several documents that illuminate Gohdes's political affiliations and social concerns.

Materials on approximately fifty authors, largely major British and American writers, are in the Author Files Series and were originally gathered by Gohdes and his colleague, Lewis Chase. The folders contain a variety of information on the represented authors, in an equally varied mix of formats: clippings, notes, lectures, student papers, photographs, and reproductions or photocopies of original writing.

Included in the Subject Files Series are materials relating to several projects and interests which engaged Gohdes during his career. These include: bibliographies, poetry, travel narratives and the American West, and the United Nations' Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)/American Literature Section's Best American Books List. The bibliographies collected in this series reflect Gohdes's interest in this genre, as he participated in and edited many such projects throughout his career.

The Writings and Speeches Series contains manuscript and printed materials in two subseries: Writings by Gohdes and Writings by Others. The Writings by Gohdes Subseries includes manuscripts of short stories, poetry, and academic essays, as well as notes and notecards. The manuscripts also contain folders pertaining to unfinished projects and writings. The Writings by Gohdes Subseries also contains several folders of printed materials, consisting of reprints and reproductions of as well as advertising and promotional materials for Gohdes's published writings. This subseries consists almost entirely of reprints that are inscribed to Gohdes by the authors.

Materials relating to the writing and research of Gohdes's last published book, Scuppernong, North Carolina's Grape and Its Wines, are in the Scuppernong Series. Three subseries make up this series: Correspondence, Research and Notes, and Publication Materials. Correspondence plus photocopied articles and essays about the grape and agricultural production form the bulk of the series. Also included are Gohdes's many notes and notecards, as well as reviews and materials relating to the book's publication.

The Clippings Series contains the few clippings that are not housed in the Author Files Series. These clippings mostly consist of articles relating to literary figures.

Related collections in the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library include the records of American Literature and the Modern Language Association's American Literature Section, as well as the papers of many of Gohdes's colleagues, such as Jay B. Hubbell and Arlin Turner.

Processing Note:

Roman numerals and transcribed titles taken from the original folders have been appended to certain folders, such as the Contemporary Poetry Selections.

Acquired as part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography at Duke University.

Duke University alumnus and independent scholar on Edgar Allan Poe and 19th century American literature. Correspondence, research, and writings on Edgar Allan Poe and other 19th century American writers, including Hardin E. Taliaferro and Augustin L. Taveau. Prominent correspondents include Clarence Gohdes, Jay B. Hubbell, Thomas Ollive Mabbott, Joel Myerson, Dwight Thomas, and J.H. Whitty. Research notes and writings include material on Jackson's books Poe and the Southern Literary Messenger, and The Poe Log: A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe, 1809-1847, as well as articles by Poe scholars Richard Kopley and Benjamin Franklin Fisher. The collection is part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography.

The David Kelly Jackson Papers span the years 1925 to 1991, with one item dating to 1850. The collection contains correspondence, research notes, and writings accumulated during Jackson's lifelong study of Edgar Allan Poe and other 19th century American writers. As documented by the Correspondence Series, Jackson's work in these areas led him to correspond with such literary scholars as Clarence Gohdes, Jay B. Hubbell, Thomas Ollive Mabbott, Joel Myerson, Dwight Thomas, and J.H. Whitty. A number of letters relate specifically to Jackson's research on two books: his first, Poe and the Southern Literary Messenger; and the 1987 book he co-authored with Thomas, The Poe Log. Drafts of the latter book, including a complete draft of Jackson's early, unpublished, solo version of it, comprise the bulk of the Writings Series. There is also a significant amount of his research on the Southern Literary Messenger, a Richmond, Virginia literary periodical that Poe once edited. The SLM files include a June 1850 letter to one of its contributors, Augustin L. Taveau. Finally, the series contains research materials pertaining to Hardin E. Taliaferro, a 19th-century North Carolina humorist whose writings Jackson collected into a book entitled Carolina Humor. The third series, Professional and Personal Activities, consists mainly of research in the form of various printed materials from such scholarly associations as the Poe Museum, the Edgar Allan Poe Society, the Poe Studies Association and the Society for the Study of Southern Literature. Also found here are articles written by Poe scholars Richard Kopley and Benjamin Franklin Fisher.

The David Kelly Jackson Papers are part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography.

Professor of American literature at the University of California, Davis. The James Leslie Woodress Papers span the years from 1941 to 1976. The collection (2.4 linear feet) consists mainly of professional papers including correspondence with colleagues and literary figures, editors and publishers, copyright holders, libraries, and others regarding the production of a number of Woodress' published works on the history of American literature.

The James Leslie Woodress Papers span the years from 1941 to 1976. The collection consists mainly of professional papers, including correspondence with colleagues and literary figures, editors and publishers, copyright holders, libraries, and others regarding the production of a number of Woodress' published works, including Booth Tarkington: Gentleman from Indiana, Dissertations in American Literature, Eight American Authors, Essays Mostly on Periodical Publishing in America: A Collection in Honor of Clarence Gohdes, Howells and Italy, A Yankee's Odyssey: The Life of Joel Barlow, and "Voices from America's Past," a historical pamphlets series. Among the significant correspondents are Ashbel G. Brice and John Menapace of the Duke University Press, Elizabeth Blackert and Robert F. Wilson of McGraw-Hill, and scholars such as Walter Blair, Hugh Holman, Jay B. Hubbell, Lewis Leary, Floyd Stovall, and Willard Thorp. Background notes and drafts of publication materials are also contained in the collection. The collection is divided into seven series, corresponding to Woodress' published works and arranged in alphabetical order by title: Booth Tarkington, Dissertations in American Literature, Eight American Authors, Essays Mostly on Periodical Publishing in America, Howells and Italy, Voices from America's Past, and Yankee's Odyssey. These series are described fully below. Acquired as part of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography.

Professor of American literature, Duke University, Durham, N.C. The Jay B. Hubbell Papers span the years from 1816 to 1998, with the bulk of the material documenting Hubbell's career from his early student years in the 1920s until his death in 1979. The collection consists mainly of his professional papers, including correspondence with colleagues and literary figures, articles written by others at his request for the Jay B. Hubbell Center, printed materials inscribed to him and written by him, and unpublished manuscripts. The material chronicles the four decades of Hubbell's career as professor and critic, which he dedicated to the growth and development of American literature as a field of critical inquiry. Among the many significant correspondents or subjects of others' writings are Conrad Aiken, Gay Wilson Allen, Robert Frost, Clarence Gohdes, members of the Hubbell family, Ralph Leslie Rusk, Carl Sandburg, Allen Tate, Arlin Turner, and John Hall Wheelock. Other significant topics covered by the material include the founding of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography at Duke University, the study and teaching of literature from the American South, the activities of the faculty at Duke University, and the development of the American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association (MLA).

The Jay B. Hubbell Papers span the years from 1816 to 1998, with the bulk of the material documenting Hubbell's career from his early student years in the 1920s until his death in 1979. The collection consists mainly of his professional papers, including correspondence with colleagues and literary figures, articles written by others at his request for the Jay B. Hubbell Center, printed materials inscribed to him and written by him, and unpublished manuscripts. The material chronicles the four decades of Hubbell's career as professor and critic, which he dedicated to the growth and development of American literature as a field of critical inquiry. Among the many significant correspondents or subjects of others' writings are Conrad Aiken, Gay Wilson Allen, Robert Frost, Clarence Gohdes, members of the Hubbell family, Ralph Leslie Rusk, Carl Sandburg, Allen Tate, Arlin Turner, and John Hall Wheelock. Other significant topics covered by the material include the founding of the Jay B. Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography at Duke University, the study and teaching of literature from the American South, the activities of the faculty at Duke University, and the development of the American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association (MLA). The collection is divided into eight series: Biographical; Correspondence, Alphabetical; Correspondence by Date; Writings and Speeches; Subject Files; Teaching Abroad; Photographs; and Clippings.

The Biographical Data Series contains correspondence, manuscripts of his autobiographical writings, financial and legal documents, writings by his siblings, curriculum vitae, and obituaries, all of which chronicle Hubbell's life from his earliest years until his death.

The largest component of the collection contains correspondence from colleagues, former students, and literary figures. The Correspondence, Alphabetical Series consists of many letters from students and colleagues. The bulk of the correspondence gives shape to the nature and status of American literary studies in the early- to mid-twentieth century. In particular, the many letters exchanged among Hubbell, his colleagues, and his students provide insight into the routine professional life of this first pioneering generation of scholars. From job appointments to topics of scholarship, the letters uncover the kinds of professional interests and pressures that influenced the formation of American literary studies. Additional miscellaneous letters are arranged chronologically in the Correspondence by Date Series. These letters mainly represent single items from colleagues, publishers, and minor writers. The same topics are represented here as in the correspondence arranged alphabetically.

Jay B. Hubbell authored numerous articles and books throughout his career which contributed to the bibliography of American literary studies. Samples of such are located in the collection's Writings and Speeches Series. The series is divided into two subseries, the Writings by Hubbell Subseries and the Writings by Others Subseries. The Writings by Hubbell Subseries includes unpublished manuscripts, publication files consisting of correspondence with publishers and review clippings, and printed material consisting of article reprints and reviews. The Writings by Others Subseries contains articles and essays by Hubbell's colleagues and peers, as well as several essays that Hubbell collected on topics of interest to him. It also contains several memoirs which narrate the lives and influence of several key figures in the first generations of American literary scholars.

The Subject Files Series chronicles some of the major events, interests, and projects of Hubbell's career. His involvement with the Modern Language Association is represented by material filed in the General Files Subseries. Also included in this subseries is material concerning several of his institutional affiliations, including Clemson University, Columbia University, and Southern Methodist University (SMU). Hubbell's papers concerning his many professional projects can be found in the Projects Subseries, such as the Checklist of Manuscripts and the Center for Southern Studies. Information related to many of the subject files can be found throughout the collection, particularly in the Biographical Data and Correspondence Series.

Jay Hubbell dedicated a generous portion of his scholarly career to teaching and students. Besides his interest in different configurations and institutions for furthering learning and scholarship, Hubbell spent several years teaching abroad. The Teaching Abroad Series contains correspondence and incidentals concerning his service at universities in Vienna, Jerusalem, and Athens. This series includes materials which highlight Hubbell's experiences at the intersection of American foreign policy and university teaching, as Hubbell served as a Visiting Expert for the U.S. Army in Vienna as well as a quickly evacuated Visiting Professor in Jerusalem in 1956, during the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The Photographs Series includes photographs of Hubbell, family, and colleagues. The series includes portraits of Hubbell alone as well as with family.

The Clippings Series contains newspaper and journal clippings recording the many significant personal and professional events of Hubbell's life. The series also includes clippings about contemporary events, friends, and colleagues which Hubbell found noteworthy.

Hubbell's papers pertaining to English Department matters and committee assignments can be found in the Duke University Archives. The David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Duke University houses many related collections, particularly in the Hubbell Center for American Literary Historiography: the records of American Literature; American Literary Manuscripts; and the Modern Language Association's American Literature Section and Southern Literature Discussion Group; and the papers of Gay Wilson Allen, Sacvan Berkovitch, Cathy Davidson, and Arlin Turner.