Dawn Langley Simmons papers, 1848-2014

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Summary

Creator:
Simmons, Dawn Langley
Abstract:
Dawn Langley Simmons (1937-2000), was a British author. She started her career editing newspaper society columns and went on to become a prolific biographer and the author of Man Into Women: A Transsexual Autobiography (1971). The Dawn Langley Simmons Papers span the years 1848-2001, with the bulk of the papers being dated between 1969 and 2001. The collection houses extensive files of correspondence dating from the 1950s to 2000, with topics ranging from Simmons' formative years in Great Britain, her relationship with her mother, Marjorie Hall Copper, literary circles in Great Britain, later personal events such as her wedding, and Simmons' development as a writer. Significant correspondents or individuals mentioned in letters include Margaret Rutherford, Isabel Whitney, Vita Sackville-West, Sir Harold Nicolson, Nigel Nicolson, Robert Holmes, and Edwin Peacock. The collection also includes writings by Simmons in the form of typescripts and diaries; printed material and clippings, including articles and reviews by and about Simmons; legal and financial papers; an extensive collection of scrapbooks; photographs; audiovisual materials; and other material relating to Simmons' personal life and career as a writer.
Extent:
20.0 Linear Feet
Language:
Materials in English
Collection ID:
RL.01190

Background

Scope and content:

The Dawn Langley Simmons Papers span the years 1848-2001, with the bulk of the papers being dated between 1969 and 2001. The collection consists of material collected and created by Simmons when she was using the names Gordon Langley Hall, Dawn Pepita Langley Hall, and Dawn Langley Simmons. Extensive files of correspondence dating from the 1950s to 2000 document Simmons' formative years in Kent and Sussex, Great Britain; her relationship with her mother, Marjorie Hall Copper; literary circles in Great Britain; later personal events such as her wedding and purchase of her house in Charleston, S.C.; and Simmons' development as a writer. Significant correspondents or individuals mentioned in letters and other materials include Robert Holmes, Sir Harold Nicolson, Nigel Nicolson, Edwin Peacock, Margaret Rutherford, Vita Sackville-West, and Isabel Whitney. The collection also includes writings by Simmons in the form of typescripts and diaries; printed material and clippings including articles by and about Simmons; legal and financial papers; an extensive collection of scrapbooks; photographs; audiovisual materials; and other material relating to Simmons' personal life and career as a writer. The writings in the collection are primarily typescripts but include a few proofs and printers' galleys. Many of the pieces are unpublished. The publication process of the 1995 autobiography Dawn: A Charleston Legend is extensively documented by a series of edited manuscripts and proofs as well as correspondence with the publisher. Collection materials also document to some extent sex change treatments begun in 1967 at the Gender Identity Clinic of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore; Simmons' 1969 interracial marriage to John-Paul Simmons; and the disruption in their lives in part brought on by the negative reaction of Charleston society to their marriage.

The collection also contains an electronic file of an unpublished manuscript, WANTING MAGIC, by J. Theodore Ellis, including his unpublished notes, footnotes, and reflections based on the works of Hall-Simmons and related individuals, as well as professional studies of transsexualism and sexual identity. Includes a printout of selected pages of the manuscript. There is also Ellis' copy of Simmon's GREAT WHITE OWL OF SISSINGHURST.

The Audiovisual Materials Series includes video and audio tape recordings and photographs. The recordings include professionally-produced audio broadcasts discussing Simmons' transgender life and her interracial marriage - and an amateur audio tape of Simmons' wedding. Several hundred photographs document Isabel Whitney and her family as well as Simmons' family and friends. Original recordings are closed to research; listening copies are available for most items. Otherwise, staff must arrange for use copies to be made.

The largest series in the collection, the Correspondence Series consists chiefly of incoming correspondence, spanning five decades, from family and friends, from publishers concerning Simmons' writing, and from other individuals. There is some correspondence written by Simmons scattered throughout.

Brief but detailed entries in the eleven volumes housed in the Diaries Series describe Simmons' writing career, emotional states, and family matters during the time periods from 1975-1976 and 1987-1989, ending with the years 1990-1994.

The Legal and Financial Papers Series chiefly consist of documents concerning Simmons' father, Jack Copper, Isabel Whitney and her family and estate, Simmons and her husband, and Simmons' inheritance from Whitney.

The Printed Materials Series houses clippings, travel guides, flyers, and other items that document Simmons' interests, travels, and hobbies; includes early journalistic writings (chiefly columns), and a hardcover copy of her children's book, the Great White Owl of Sissinghurst.

The twenty-odd albums found in the Scrapbooks Series feature memorabilia, clippings, photos, and correspondence assembled by Simmons concerning her writing career, family, hobbies, and interest in celebrities and royalty.

The small Volumes Series consists of two manuscripts collected by Simmons: a nineteenth-century diary written by Sarah Combs, a transcript of this diary, and an early twentieth century travelogue written by a member of the Whitney family.

The Writings Series primarily consists of typescripts of works by Simmons. There are a few written pieces by other authors. Other writings by Simmons can be found in the Correspondence Series (in the topical correspondence folders for the 1950s and 1960s and scattered throughout in other files); in the William Carter Spann Series, which contains research Simmons conducted in preparation for a book on President Carter's nephew; in the Diaries Series; and in the Printed Materials Series, which contains early columns and later writings by Simmons.

Oversize Materials housed separately from the main collection include posters, cover proofs, newspaper and magazine clippings, and a few diplomas and awards.

Acquired as part of the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's History and Culture.

Biographical / historical:
Chronology
Date Event
probably 1922
Born to Jack Copper and Marjorie Hall Ticehurst; later adopted as an adult by the actress Margaret Rutherford
1946
Emigrated to Canada, to Ojibway Reservation, Lake Nipigon, Canada; served as missionary, teacher, and midwife
1947-1949
Returned to England, taught theater and art at the Gregg School, Croydon
1950-1952
Returned to the U.S., worked as a society editor for The Nevada Daily Mail, Missouri
1952
Moved to New York, became society columnist for the Port Chester Daily Item
1955
Published Me Papoose Sitter
1957
Hall's play, Saraband for a Saint, performed in Harlem, New York
1957
Published Princess Margaret: An Informal Biography
1962
Hall moved permanently to Charleston
Hall legally adopted by Margaret Rutherford and her husband
1963
Publication of Vinnie Ream: The Story of the Girl Who Sculpted Lincoln
1967
Gender affirmation surgery, Johns Hopkins University, with name changed to Dawn Pepita Langley-Hall.
1963
Publication of Jacqueline Kennedy, a Biography
1969 Jan.
Married John-Paul Simmons in Charleston, first legal interracial marriage in South Carolina; second wedding ceremony performed in England
1970
Publication of Rose for Mrs. Lincoln: A Biography of Mary Todd Lincoln
1971
Natasha Simmons born; birth certificate, created at a later date, declares Dawn Langley Simmons the birth mother
1982
Divorced John-Paul Simmons
1983
Published biography, Margaret Rutherford: Blithe Spirit
1995
Published autobiography, Dawn: A Charleston Legend
2000 Sept. 18
Died, Charleston, S.C.
Acquisition information:
The Dawn Langley Simmons Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift from 1966-2005.
Processing information:

Processed by Daniel Breen, Lee Cloninger, Melissa Delbridge, Paula Jeannet, and Tania Roy, July 2007

Encoded by Lee Cloninger and Paula Jeannet.

Completed August 2007

All accessions from 67-352 to 2005-0035 were merged into one collection, described in this finding aid.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

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Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Access note. Collection contains fragile audiovisual/photographic formats that may need to be reformatted before use. Contact Research Services for access.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Dawn Langley Simmons Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University

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