COLLECTION ARRANGEMENT
The collection is organized into the following series:
Autobiographical Materials, Diaries, Correspondence, Literary Manuscripts,
Broadcasts, Recordings and Readings, Professional Activities, Other Activities,
Writings about Laura (Riding) Jackson, Writings by Others, Photographs, and
Ephemera.
Autobiographical Materials span the years 1938-1977. Arranged
chronologically, they consist mainly of pieces written for periodicals, entries
for biographical dictionaries, and personal notes and commentaries.
Diaries are subdivided into the Laura (Riding) Jackson Diaries
(1960-1980), and Schuyler B. Jackson Diaries (1964-1968). They are arranged and
stored by format, rather than by date, because they were entered on notepads of
greatly varying sizes. Thus the researcher needs to scan the whole list when
looking for specific dates. Access to the Diaries is restricted. See the
"Restrictions" section of this guide.
Correspondence spans the years 1926-1990. The letters are organized in
the following three subseries: Laura (Riding) Jackson Correspondence, Schuyler
B. Jackson Correspondence, and Restricted Correspondence. Each subseries is
arranged into incoming and outgoing correspondence. The incoming correspondence
is arranged in alphabetical order by name of correspondent, with the
unidentified senders placed at the beginning of the subseries; the outgoing
correspondence is in chronological order, with the undated letters at the
beginning of the subseries. However, there are two exceptions. Some materials
in the incoming correspondence have been kept in thematic order, as Laura
(Riding) Jackson arranged them. These are the letters relating to the fruit
shipping business and the incoming selected Christmas messages. The restricted
correspondence for each individual is housed in separate boxes, the materials
being arranged into incoming and outgoing correspondence. The letters of
Theodore Wilentz to and from Laura (Riding) Jackson are interfiled with those
of his wife Joan.
Literary manuscripts span the years 1926-1991. The series includes
works by both Laura (Riding) Jackson and Schuyler B. Jackson, with whom she
worked on The Dictionary of Related Meanings and Rational Meaning. The
materials are subdivided into two categories, published and unpublished
manuscripts and are further subdivided by genre: Major works, Poems, Essays and
commentaries, and Letters to editors. All materials are arranged in
chronological order when dated, otherwise in alphabetical order. The Major
Works section includes book-length projects of criticism, collaborations,
translations, and pamphlets individually published; Essays and commentaries
includes works published as parts of other works, such as contributions to
periodicals or to collections of essays, and a variety of notes and
commentaries on Laura (Riding) Jackson 's works, on others' works, and on
poetry and language in general. Her notes about her own works written after
publication are placed in the Unpublished works section, unless the notes
themselves were published. Letters to editors of journals and magazines,
written in response to book reviews of Laura (Riding) Jackson 's works, are
placed among the literary manuscripts rather than in the correspondence series,
as they are often literary essays in their own right.
The Major Works subdivision in the Unpublished Works section contains
a variety of manuscript and typescript drafts, notes, and background materials
that are sporadically dated. They have been arranged in alphabetical order by
title, then within each title in the following order: background materials,
manuscript drafts, typescript drafts, notes and commentaries.
Materials in the Broadcasts, Recordings, and Readings series span the
years 1963-1972 and are arranged in chronological order. They include the text
of the Preface of Four Unposted Letters to Catherine written in 1963 for a
reading aired by BBC on July 15 and 16, 1963, revised for the occasion; notes
and transcripts of a poetry reading recorded at Lamont Library, Harvard
College, in January 1972; and corrections for a recording made at the Library
of Congress.
Materials in the Professional Activities series span the years
1936-1976. They are arranged chronologically and include a contract stipulated
by the Seizin Press and a grant application from Laura (Riding) Jackson to the
Guggenheim Foundation.
Materials in the Other Activities series span the years 1973-1978 and
consist of documents and correspondence relating to Mrs. Jackson's involvement
in a dispute over a development project in Wabasso, Florida, where she
resided.
Materials in the Writings about Laura (Riding) Jackson series span the
years 1932-1990 and are subdivided into the following two sections:
Biographical Pieces and Critical Reception of Laura (Riding) Jackson's Works.
The latter section includes book reviews and critical essays, in addition to
entries in reference works and anthologies. The book reviews are listed in
chronological order of appearance in periodicals, the essays in the
chronological order of publication of the works in which they are
contained.
Materials in the Writings by Others series span the years 1926-1981
and include clippings from reviews and articles on language, literature, and a
variety of other subjects, which Laura (Riding) Jackson found of interest and
collected. They are listed in chronological order of appearance.
The Photographs series consists of fifteen black and white
photographs, which span the 1920s to the 1980s. They include photographs of
paintings of Laura (Riding) Jackson.
The Memorabilia series includes a number of legal documents.
