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Ralph Ellison

A Register of His Papers in the Library of Congress

Prepared by Donna Ellis
with the assistance of Patricia Craig, Julie Hunsaker, Sherralyn McCoy, John Monagle, Angela Moore, and Andrew Passett

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/xmlcommon/lcseal.jpg

Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

Washington, D.C.

1997

Contact information: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html

Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress
Manuscript Division, 2002

Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov.loc.mss/eadmss.ms002008

Latest revision: 2007 November

Table of Contents

Collection Summary

Selected Search Terms

Names:

Subjects:

Occupations:

Administrative Information

Provenance:

Processing History:

Transfers:

Copyright Status:

Restrictions:

Preferred Citation:

Biographical Note

Scope and Content Note

Organization of the Papers

Description of Series

Container List

Family Papers, 1890-1996, n.d.

General Correspondence, 1930-1996, n.d.

Organizations File, 1939-1994, n.d.

Writings File, 1935-1995, n.d.

Speeches, Lectures, and Interviews, 1945-1993, n.d.

Reference File, 1901-1995, n.d.

Miscellany, 1904-1994, n.d.

Closed, 1932-1994, n.d.

Oversize, 1923-1993, n.d.

Collection Summary

Title: Papers of Ralph Ellison
Span Dates: 1890-1996
Bulk Dates: (bulk 1933-1990)
ID No.: MSS83111
Creator: Ellison, Ralph
Size: 46,100 items; 231 plus 22 oversize; 110 linear feet
Language: Collection material in English
Repository: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Abstract: African-American author and educator. General correspondence, organizational correspondence and reports, family papers, drafts, notes, and production files for novels, essays, poetry, short stories, reviews, and other writings, speeches, lectures, and interviews, reference file, and miscellany documenting Ellison's career and development as a writer. Among the many works represented are Going to the Territory (1985), Invisible Man (1952), and Shadow and Act (1964).

Selected Search Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein.



Names:
Ellison, Ralph
Bellow, Saul--Correspondence
Brooks, Harry, 1895-1970--Correspondence
Calicutt, Harold--Correspondence
Cheever, John--Correspondence
Ciardi, John, 1916- --Correspondence
Clark, Kenneth Bancroft, 1914- --Correspondence
Davis, Henry B. O., 1911- --Correspondence
Dawson, William Levi, 1899- --Correspondence
Engle, Paul, 1908- --Correspondence
Hughes, Langston, 1902-1967--Correspondence
Hyman, Stanley Edgar, 1919-1970--Correspondence
Jackson, Shirley, 1916-1965--Correspondence
Murray, Albert--Correspondence
Warren, Robert Penn, 1905- --Correspondence
Wright, Richard, 1908-1960--Correspondence
American Medical Center for Burma
Bennington College
Carnegie Commission on Educational Television
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Federal Writers' Project
Museum of the City of New York
Negro People's Theatre (Chicago, Ill.)
New School for Social Research (New York, N.Y.)
Wake Forest University
Ellison, Fanny McConnell. Papers of Fanny McConnell Ellison
Ellison, Ralph. Going to the Territory
Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man
Ellison, Ralph. Shadow and Act

Subjects:
African American authors
American literature--African American authors--Study and teaching

Occupations:
Authors
Educators

Administrative Information

Provenance:

The papers of Ralph Ellison (1914-1994), author and educator, were acquired by the Library of Congress from his widow, Fanny McConnell Ellison, through a gift, purchase, and deposit, 1995-1997.

Processing History:

A description of the Ralph Ellison Papers appears in Library of Congress Acquisitions: Manuscript Division, 1994-1995, pp. 56-60.

Transfers:

Items have been transferred from the Manuscript Division to other custodial divisions of the Library. Audio and video recordings have been transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division. Photographs have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division. All transfers are identified in these divisions as part of the Ralph Ellison Papers.

Copyright Status:

Copyright in the unpublished writings of Ralph Ellison in these papers and in other collections in the custody of the Library of Congress is controlled by the estate of Fanny McConnell Ellison.

Restrictions:

Restrictions apply governing the use, photoduplication, or publication of items in this collection. Consult a reference librarian in the Manuscript Division for information concerning these restrictions.

Preferred Citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Ralph Ellison Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Biographical Note

Date Event
1914, Mar. 1 Born, Oklahoma City, Okla.
1933-1936 Attended Tuskegee Institute, Tuskegee, Ala.
1938-1942 Researcher, Federal Writers' Project, Works Progress Administration
Married Rose Poindexter (divorced 1945)
1939 Published short story "Slick Gonna Learn" in Direction
1940 Published short story "The Birthmark" in New Masses
Published short story "Afternoon" in American Writing, ed. Hans Otto Storm and others (Prairie City, Ill.: J.A. Decker)
1941 Published short story "Mister Toussan" in New Masses
1942 Managing editor, Negro Quarterly
1943-1945 Seaman, merchant marine
1944 Published short story "Flying Home" in Cross Section, ed. Edwin Seaver (New York: L. B. Fischer)
Published short story "King of the Bingo Game" in Tomorrow
1945 Received Rosenwald Fellowship
1946 Married Fanny McConnell Buford
1948 Published short story "Battle Royal" in '48, The Magazine of the Year
1952 Published Invisible Man (New York: Random House. 429 pp.)
1953 Received National Book Award for Invisible Man
1955-1957 Received American Academy of Arts and Letters Fellowship for study in Rome
1958-1961 Instructor, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y.
1960 Published short story "And Hickman Arrives" in The Noble Savage
1961 Alexander White Visiting Professor, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.
1962-1964 Visiting Professor of Writing, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.
1964 Published Shadow and Act (New York: Random House. 317 pp.)
1964-1965 Visiting Fellow in American Studies, Yale University, New Haven, Conn.
1966-1972 Honorary consultant in American letters, Library of Congress
1967-1977 Trustee, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, D.C.
1968-1979 Board of Directors, Educational Broadcasting Corp.
1969 Decorated chevalier Ordre des Arts et Lettres, France
Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom
1969-1982 Trustee, New School for Social Research, New York, N.Y.
1970-1975 Trustee, Bennington College, Bennington, Vt.
1970-1979 Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities, New York University, New York, N.Y.
1970-1985 Board of Directors, Museum of the City of New York, New York, N.Y.
1971-1984 Trustee, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
1972-1985 Board of Visitors, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, N.C.
1975 Opening of Ralph Ellison Branch, Metropolitan Library System, Oklahoma City, Okla.
1985 Awarded National Medal of Arts
1986 Published Going to the Territory (New York: Random House. 338 pp.)
1994, Apr. 16 Died, New York, N.Y.
1999 Posthumous publication, Juneteenth (New York: Random House. 368 pp.)

Scope and Content Note

The papers of Ralph Ellison span the years 1890-1996 with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period 1933-1990. The collection documenting Ellison's career as author and educator includes nine series: Family Papers; General Correspondence; Organizations File; Writings File; Speeches, Lectures, and Interviews; Reference File; Miscellany; Closed; and Oversize.

The Family Papers contain personal material pertaining to Ellison, his wife, Fanny McConnell Ellison, and their parents, siblings, former spouses, and other relatives. A substantial file relating to Ellison's employment includes material from his many teaching appointments. Of particular interest are the notes and reports he compiled for the Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Fanny Ellison's employment papers document her work for the American Medical Center for Burma through the Harold L. Oram agency and her contribution as one of the founders of the Negro People's Theatre in Chicago. Also noteworthy are her drawings pertaining to the history of costume executed as a WPA project for the Chicago Board of Education. Household papers contain material on the Ellisons' property in New York, Key West, Florida, and Plainfield, Massachusetts. The latter includes insurance records of the fire which destroyed the first drafts of Ellison's unpublished Hickman novel. Other material in the family papers consists of biographical information, financial, legal, and medical records, school and military records, newspaper and magazine articles about Ellison, travel documents, notes, and printed matter.

The General Correspondence series contains Ralph and Fanny Ellison's incoming and outgoing letters to friends and business associates. Correspondents include institutions and businesses as well as individuals. Chief among them are Saul Bellow, John Cheever, John Ciardi, Kenneth B. Clark, William Dawson, Paul Engle, Langston Hughes, Stanley Edgar Hyman, Shirley Jackson, Albert Murray, Robert Penn Warren, and Richard Wright. Several of Ellison's letters to friends and acquaintances such as Harry Brooks, Harold Calicutt, and Henry B. O. Davis contain reminiscences of his childhood, college years, and early adulthood.

The Organizations File concerns a wide range of cultural, educational, and charitable institutions in which Ellison participated as an officer, advisor, or trustee. For example, he served on the governing boards of Bennington College, the Carnegie Commission on Educational Television, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Museum of the City of New York, the New School for Social Research, and Wake Forest University. Material in the file consists primarily of correspondence and reports.

The Writings File contains drafts, notes, and production material for Ellison's literary works. The material in an essays and essay collections file, arranged alphabetically by title, appeared as journal articles or chapters published in compilations by others. Material pertaining to Ellison's own collections, Shadow and Act and Going to the Territory, is also included in this section. Many of his essays were reworked and republished several times. Ellison also wrote poetry, reviews of books, films, and recordings, short stories, and forewords, introductions, and endorsements for literary works of others. There is evidence that Ellison wrote book reviews in the 1940s under the pseudonym David Wilson. An incomplete draft of his memoirs also contains notes and outlines. Dates in parentheses in the container list refer to the publication date; other dates refer to the creation and span of the material in the folder.

Material relating to Ellison's novels makes up the bulk of the Writings File. In order to show Ellison's approach to writing, his system of filing drafts alphabetically by title of episode rather than final story sequence has been maintained. Quotation marks are used to indicate episode titles devised by Ellison. A section relating to Invisible Man includes production material, publicity items, reviews, opera and film proposals, correspondence with publishers regarding various editions, foreign rights and translations, and the comments and criticism of others. A miscellany section in the Writings File contains bibliographies and literary criticisms of Ellison's works, plot ideas, notes, royalty statements, and information regarding copyrights, permissions, and reprints.

The Speeches, Lectures, and Interviews series demonstrates Ellison's popularity as a speaker at special events, club meetings, and university seminars. His customary subjects were literary, but also included music and art. During his fellowship at the American Academy in Rome, Ellison lectured at several European seminars. Ellison also held numerous teaching positions ranging from one semester as a visiting professor to appointments lasting for several years. Courses included the contemporary American novel and Russian literature. He was frequently interviewed for radio programs, magazines, and newspapers. Among his interviewers were Michael S. Harper, Irving Howe, and Robert Penn Warren. The three sections of this series, containing texts, correspondence, notes, and printed matter, are arranged chronologically.

The Reference File includes newspaper and magazine articles and other printed matter on subjects ranging from music, art, and literature to sports, politics, and civil rights. A large biographical section includes material on individuals whom Ellison either knew or considered interesting.

The Miscellany series contains address books, appointment calendars, invitations, programs, and ephemera. Also included are papers relating to the awards, citations, and honorary degrees awarded to Ellison. The Closed series consists primarily of correspondence, writings, and drawings which are too fragile for handling. Photocopies of each item have been placed where the original would have appeared in the collection. Material too large for the document boxes has been moved to the Oversize series.

Organization of the Papers

The collection is arranged in nine series:

Description of Series

Container Series
BOX 1-34

Family Papers, 1890-1996, n.d.

Correspondence between family members, vital records, school papers, military records, household, financial, and legal papers, employment records, diaries, notes, newspaper articles, and printed ephemera relating to Ralph and Fanny Ellison and other family members.
BOX 35-79

General Correspondence, 1930-1996, n.d.

Incoming and outgoing correspondence of Ralph and Fanny Ellison with friends, colleagues, and business associates.
Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent and chronologically therein.
BOX 80-94

Organizations File, 1939-1994, n.d.

Correspondence, reports, and printed matter relating to Ellison's participation in professional and social organizations as an officer, trustee, or advisor.
Arranged alphabetically by name of organization and chronologically therein.
BOX 95-169

Writings File, 1935-1995, n.d.

Drafts of essays, novels, reviews, short stories, and other material written by Ellison. Correspondence and material relating to the production, publicity, and reception of his works are included. Dates in parentheses in the container list refer to the publication date; other dates refer to the period covered by the material in the folder.
Arranged alphabetically by type of work and alphabetically by title therein.
BOX 170-178

Speeches, Lectures, and Interviews, 1945-1993, n.d.

Texts of speeches, lectures, and interviews along with related correspondence, notes, and printed matter.
Arranged by type of material and chronologically therein.
BOX 179-211

Reference File, 1901-1995, n.d.

Printed matter, primarily newspaper and magazine clippings, on topics of interest to Ellison, such as jazz, blues, photography, art, and prominent individuals.
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
BOX 211-219

Miscellany, 1904-1994, n.d.

Appointment books and calendars, awards and citations, honorary degrees, invitations to social, cultural, and charitable events, mailing addresses, notes, printed ephemera, and memorabilia.
Arranged alphabetically by type of material and chronologically therein.
BOX 220-231

Closed, 1932-1994, n.d.

Fragile material, consisting mostly of correspondence, drawings, and writings, which has been removed and replaced with photocopies.
Organized and described according to the series and folders from which the items were removed.
BOX OV 1-OV 22

Oversize, 1923-1993, n.d.

Oversize material consisting mostly of drawings, financial and legal records, writings, and printed material.
Organized and described according to the series, folders, and boxes from which the items were removed.

Container List

Container Contents
BOX 1-34

Family Papers, 1890-1996, n.d.

Correspondence between family members, vital records, school papers, military records, household, financial, and legal papers, employment records, diaries, notes, newspaper articles, and printed ephemera relating to Ralph and Fanny Ellison and other family members.
BOX 1 Bell, Ida Ellison
Correspondence, 1912, 1921-1937, n.d.
Miscellany, 1918-1938, n.d.
Buford, Ligon
Citizens' Committee for Reemployment, 1938, n.d.
Miscellany, 1938-1945, n.d.
Ellison, Alfred, n.d.
Ellison, Fanny McConnell
Correspondence
Buford, James A., 1943-1944
Buford, Ligon, 1934-1945, 1963, 1980
(3 folders)
General, 1930-1996, n.d.
(4 folders)
BOX 2 Warren, Billy ("Willy") and George, 1932-1967, n.d.
(3 folders)
Warren, John, Rosanna, and Sue, 1968-1971, 1989-1992, n.d.
Waugh, Eliza ("Ella"), 1952-1963, n.d.
Waugh, Robert Harold and Mary, 1955-1957, 1967-1978, n.d.
Employment
Chicago Defender, 1939-1941, n.d.
(2 folders)
Chicago, Ill., Board of Education, Visual Education Project
"Ancient Roman and Byzantine Costume," n.d.
(3 folders) See also Oversize
BOX 3 Correspondence, 1938-1939, n.d.
"Costume of the Eighteenth Century," n.d.
(5 folders) See also Oversize
Costume of the Middle Ages and seventeenth century, n.d. See also Oversize
(5 folders)
BOX 4 (12 folders)
BOX 5 (1 folder)
"Egyptian Costume," n.d.
(7 folders) See also Oversize
"Greek Costume," n.d.
(4 folders)
BOX 6 (1 folder)
Miscellany, 1938-1939, n.d.
Persian and Chinese costume, n.d.
Harold L. Oram (fund-raising agency), 1950-1970, 1980-1981, n.d.
(3 folders)
Miscellany, 1933-1955, 1967, n.d.
National Urban League, 1943-1946, n.d. See also Oversize
Negro People's Theatre, Chicago, Ill.
Constitution and organization, 1939, n.d.
Correspondence, 1937-1940, n.d.
(4 folders)
BOX 7 Financial papers, 1938-1939, n.d.
Meetings, 1938-1939, n.d.
Membership and officers, 1938-1939, n.d.
Miscellany, 1936-1940, n.d.
(2 folders)
Proposals, 1939, n.d.
New York City Housing Authority, New York, N.Y., 1945-1946, n.d.
Résumés, 1929-1956
United States Navy, Bureau of Yards and Docks, 1941-1942, n.d.
War Production Board, Traffic Section, 1937-1944
BOX 8 Works Progress Administration, 1937-1941, n.d.
World Organization of the Lamp of Brotherhood, 1956-1963, n.d.
Young Women's Christian Association, 1937-1941, n.d.
Legal papers, 1937, 1944-1954, 1963-1981
(2 folders)
Medical papers, 1938-1984, 1995, n.d.
(4 folders)
Miscellany, 1929, 1937-1944, 1958-1963, n.d.
BOX 9 Notes
1942-1995
(5 folders)
BOX 10 Undated
(5 folders)
BOX 11 (7 folders)
BOX 12 (1 folder)
School papers
Elementary and high school, Chicago, Ill., 1921-1932, n.d. See also Oversize
Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn.
Creative Literature, 1933
General, 1931-1938, n.d.
General, 1931, 1936-1949, n.d.
(3 folders)
University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
Contemporary British drama, 1933-1936, n.d.
Fundamentals of speech, 1936
General, 1934-1942, n.d.
BOX 13 Miscellaneous notes, n.d.
(2 folders)
Modern drama, 1934-1935, n.d.
Stagecraft, n.d.
Writings, 1930-1943, n.d.
(5 folders)
Ellison, Herbert M.
Correspondence, 1934-1937, n.d.
Miscellany, 1928-1944, n.d.
School papers, n.d.
BOX 14 Ellison, Ralph
Biographical material, 1943-1994, n.d.
(6 folders)
Correspondence
Bell, Ida Ellison
1933
(2 folders)
BOX 15 1934-1937, n.d.
(6 folders)
Bell, John, 1933-1935, n.d.
Brown, Lewis Thomas and Othello Albertha, 1953-1980, n.d.
Buford, Ligon, 1980
Ellison, Fanny McConnell
1944-1959
(4 folders)
BOX 16 1961-1963, 1970, 1984-1990, n.d.
(2 folders)
Ellison, Herbert M., 1933-1993, n.d.
(6 folders)
Ellison, Rose Poindexter, 1939-1943, n.d.
Johnston, May Belle DeWitt, 1936-1953, n.d.
BOX 17 Miscellaneous family members, 1937-1983, n.d.
Diaries, 1934-1936, n.d.
Drawings, 1932, n.d.
Employment
Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., 1956-1984, n.d.
(2 folders)
Bennington College, Bennington, Vt., 1958, 1964, 1974, 1982-1983
City University of New York, New York, N.Y., 1959, 1965-1993
(2 folders)
General, 1937-1942
New York University, New York, N.Y.
1960-1971
(2 folders)
BOX 18 1972-1995, n.d.
(10 folders)
BOX 19 Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J., 1959-1969, 1984-1992, n.d.
(2 folders)
Tuskegee Institute, Tuskegee, Ala., 1953-1954
University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill., 1959-1962, n.d.
Works Progress Administration, Federal Writers' Project
Assignments, 1938-1941, n.d.
Correspondence, 1938-1942, 1976-1980, n.d.
Miscellany, 1938-1942, n.d.
Reports
Anti-Semitism, n.d.
"Cultural Contributions of the American Negro," 1940, n.d.
BOX 20 "Famous Trials," 1941
(4 folders)
Folklore, ca. 1938
(2 folders)
History of New York, N.Y., n.d.
"Jews in American Theatre," ca. 1939
"The Negro and the War," ca. 1940
(3 folders)
"Negro Leadership," n.d.
BOX 21 "Negroes of New York"
Outline and comments, 1940
Chapt. II, n.d.
Chapt. V, n.d.
Chapt. VI, n.d.
Chapt. VII, n.d.
Chapt. XVII, n.d.
Chapt. XVIII, 1940
Notes, n.d.
Radio, n.d.
Religion and abolitionism, n.d.
Sociological studies, 1929, 1938, n.d.
(2 folders)
Financial papers
Income and expenses
1936-1937, 1945-1970
(3 folders) See also Oversize
BOX 22 1971-1992, n.d.
(5 folders) See also Oversize
Income taxes
1949-1971
(4 folders)
BOX 23 1972-1993, n.d.
(8 folders)
Miscellany, 1942, 1964-1994, n.d.
Pensions and investments
1968-1979
BOX 24 1980-1996, n.d.
(3 folders)
Household papers
Automobile papers, 1942, 1950-1991, n.d.
(3 folders)
Dog records, 1945-1951, 1960-1972, n.d.
Domestic service, 1964-1966, 1973-1976, 1995, n.d.
Inventories and insurance
1945, 1955-1956, 1964-1973
(3 folders) See also Oversize
BOX 25 1974-1994, n.d.
(5 folders)
Key West, Fla.
Correspondence, 1975-1994, n.d.
(3 folders)
Financial papers, 1976-1984 See also Oversize
Inventories and insurance, 1976-1977, 1990-1994, n.d.
Legal papers, 1976, 1986, n.d.
(2 folders) See also Oversize
BOX 26 Miscellany, 1989-1994, n.d. See also Oversize
Miscellany, 1979-1980, n.d.
Plainfield, Mass.
Correspondence, 1959, 1966-1970, 1976-1986, 1995, n.d.
(2 folders)
Financial papers, 1967-1993
Inventories and insurance, 1967-1968, 1993, n.d. See also Oversize
Legal papers, 1967
Miscellany, 1969, 1984-1990, n.d.
New York, N.Y.
Correspondence
1940-1942, 1952, 1961-1986
(5 folders)
BOX 27 1987-1993, n.d.
(3 folders)
Financial papers, 1939-1944, 1950, 1969-1991, n.d.
(2 folders)
Inventories, 1959, 1978-1979, n.d.
Legal papers, 1939, 1970-1971, 1993
Miscellany, 1941, 1970-1990, n.d.
Tenants' Association
1963-1989
(4 folders)
BOX 28