Subject Files Series, 1857-1969 and undated, bulk 1915-1969

Scope and content:

Organized into groupings reflecting Gohdes's interests and projects: bibliographies, poetry, travel narratives of the American West, and UNESCO's best books list.

The bibliographic materials contain issues of the Bulletin of Bibliography and bibliographic information that Gohdes requested, such as library holdings in literature in various areas, including Cleveland, St. Louis, and Balboa Heights (Canal Zone).

The poetry files contain copies and mimeographs of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century poetry. "Contemporary Poetry," "Modern Poetry" and "Poetry" all contain early twentieth century materials. The first folder, "Criticism and Reviews," contains reprints of essays and articles by various authors. The only original writing can be found in the second folder, "Introductory Lecture, University of Wisconsin," which Lewis Chase may have written.

The "Travel Narratives and the West" folders contain photocopies and reproductions of nineteenth-century accounts of travel through the western United States, with some notes by Gohdes.

Inspired by the UNESCO translation project, Gohdes initiated a survey of leading American literature critics and scholars in 1949 to determine the best twenty American books. Gohdes and his fellow committee members, Jay B. Hubbell and Lewis Leary, successfully polled approximately twenty-five people. Those polled include many major critics of the day: Ralph Rusk, Walter Blair, Henry Canby, Mark Van Doren, Fred Lewis Pattee, F. O. Matthiessen, Van Wyck Brooks, Clarence Gohdes, Jay B. Hubbell, Charles Anderson, and Henry Nash Smith. Files includes correspondence from these critics discussing and listing their choices for the best twenty American books. The survey seems to have been passed on to UNESCO, and was used for publicity for the American Literature Section of the Modern Language Association by submitting the final tallied poll to newspapers and journals. Arranged alphabetically.

Contents

Using These Materials