Table of Contents
- Collection Summary
- Biographical Note
- Scope and Content Note
- Subject Headings
- Related Material
- Administrative Information
- Access and Use
- Encoding Information
- Container List
Collection Summary
| Repository: | Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries |
|---|---|
| Creator: | Moore, Marianne, 1887-1972 |
| Title: | Marianne Moore Papers |
| Dates: | 1924-1969 |
| Quantity: | 0.2 cubic feet (1 box, 1 OV folder) |
| Abstract: | American poet Marianne Moore's letters to Fanny Borden (Vassar College Librarian, 1924-1954), as well as one letter from Moore's mother, Mary W. Moore, and a New York Times Book Review article about Moore's book Tell Me, Tell Me: Granite, Steel, and Other Topics signed by Moore. |
Biographical Note
Marianne Moore (1887-1972) was born in Kirkwood, MO, and grew up in a happy atmosphere of familial affection and intimacy. With the exception of her years at Bryn Mawr, Miss Moore lived almost constantly with her mother and was never far from her brother, John Warner Moore. After graduation from Bryn Mawr in 1909, Miss Moore studied at the Carlisle Commercial College and went on to work as an indexer for Melvil Dewey and to teach commercial subjects at an Indian school. Marianne Moore did not seriously begin to write poetry until after 1914. Her poems appeared in Poetry, Others, The Dial, and The Egoist.
Soon Moore began to attract attention despite her habitual self-disparagement. In 1924 her observations won The Dial Award; and from then until its demise in 1929, that magazine absorbed much of Moore's energy both as a writer and editor. Her Selected Poems was published in 1935, with an introduction by T.S. Eliot; and in the next two decades she continued to publish volumes of poetry - Pangolin and Other Verse, What Are Years, and Nevertheless - establishing her as a first-rate poet. In the early 1950s Marianne Moore was showered with prizes, including the Bollingen, the Pulitzer, and the National Book Award. In 1955 she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In her later years she was a popular celebrity, known for her tricorn hats and love of baseball.
TopScope and Content Note
The collection contains fifty-eight letters to Fanny Borden (Vassar College Librarian, 1924-1954), discussing The Dial, her mother's health, friendship with Elizabeth Bishop, Vassar College, aiding refugee children during World War II, experiences of Louise Lucas and family in France in 1941, including typescript copy of a letter describing a fire in their home while it was occupied by German troops, Moore's visits to the Vassar College Library, and other personal issues. Also include are two letters between Moore and Mary Pat Ladner; one letter by Moore's mother, Mary W. Moore, regarding the death of Mary Norcross in 1938; and a New York Times Book Review article about Moore's book Tell Me, Tell Me: Granite, Steel, and Other Topics signed by Moore.
TopAccess and Use
Access
This collection is open for research according to the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library without any additional restrictions.
Restrictions on Use
Permission to quote (publish) from unpublished or previously published material must be obtained as described in the regulations of the Vassar College Archives and Special Collections Library.
Subject Headings
Names:
- Borden, Fanny
- Lucas Family
- Lucas, Louise
- Moore, Marianne, 1887-1972
- Moore, Mary W.
- Norcross, Mary, d. 1938
Organizations:
- Vassar College. Library
Subjects:
- Charities
- Children--Europe
- Editors
- Refugees
- Social work with children--Europe
- Women poets
- World War, 1939-1945--Children
- World War, 1939-1945--Refugees
- World War, 1939-1945--Civilian relief
- World War, 1939-1945--France
Places:
- France--History--German occupation, 1940-1945
VCL Categories:
- Literature and Writing
- War and War Crimes
Encoding Information
Encoded by Elizabeth Clarke, February 2007. Updated by Emma Gronbeck, December 2022.
TopAdministrative Information
Preferred Citation
Marianne Moore Papers, Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries.
Processing Information
Separated from the Autograph Files and processed by Emma Gronbeck, December 2022.
Acquisition Information
Gift of the estate of Fanny Borden (VC 1898).
Gift of Mary P. Robertson, 2022. [M2022-002]
Container List
| Folders 1-2 | Letters, Marianne Moore to Fanny Borden [includes photographs and clippings], 1924-1952 |
| Folder 3 | Envelopes, Marianne Moore to Fanny Borden, 1934-1949 |
| Folder 4 | Letters, Marianne Moore to and from Mary Pat Ladner, 1969 |
| Folder 5 | Letter, Mary W. Moore to "Fanny" [includes 2 photographs], 15 Feb 1938 |
| Multiple Collection Box 2 | Review of "Tell Me, Tell Me: Granite, Steel, and Other Topics," The New York Times Book Review, signed by Marianne Moore, 1966 Dec 25 |
Return to the Table of Contents
Details
American poet Marianne Moore's letters
to Fanny Borden (Vassar College Librarian, 1924-1954), as well as one letter from
Moore's mother, Mary W. Moore, and a article about Moore's book signed by Moore.
