Finding-Aid for the Howard Nemerov Papers (WTU00089)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Descriptive Summary

Biographical Note

Scope and Contents Note

Restrictions

Administrative Information

Collection Outline

I. Correspondence.

II. Poetry.

III. Prose.

IV. Plays.

V. Material Towards Books.

VI. Miscellaneous manuscripts material.

VII. Teaching.

VIII. Manuscripts by others .

IX. Magazines.

X. Printed Materials.

XI. Miscellany.

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Biographical Note

Howard Nemerov, a native of New York City, is a widely published poet who has been recognized with numerous prizes, awards, grants, and fellowships. He graduated from Harvard in 1941 and immediately enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Nemerov flew for the Canadian forces in Europe until 1944, when he joined the U.S. Army Air Force and flew combat missions until 1945. In 1946, Nemerov became an associate editor of Furioso and began teaching at Hamilton College. He served on Furioso until 1951 and taught at several other schools--Bennington College, the University of Minnesota, Brandeis University and Hollins College--until 1963, when he received a one year appointment as Poetry Consultant to the Library of Congress. In 1969 Nemerov joined the English faculty at Washington University where he remains a highly visible and popular teacher, holding the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished Professor of English Chair.

Although he is best known as a poet, Nemerov has written novels, short stories, essays, and criticism. His first book, The Image and the Law, was published in 1947 and he has produced over 20 books since then. Nemerov has received nearly every award or prize available to poets including the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1977 for Collected Poems, and the Bollingen Prize for Poetry in 1981. He was inducted into the Academy of American Poets in 1971 and was elected a member of the American Institute of Arts and Letters in 1977.

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Scope and Contents Note

Washington University's Nemerov Papers are a large group of materials which help document the career of this important American poet. The collection includes a great number of worksheets, drafts, and notes towards poems, essays, lectures, stories, collections, and novels. Nemerov has corresponded with numerous important literary figures and their letters are housed in the Nemerov Papers. Kenneth Burke, Maxine Kumin, Kay Boyle, and Reed Whittemore, in particular, have been long-time correspondents with Nemerov and the Washington University holdings contain over 800 letters from these four authors. The Howard Nemerov Papers are completed by an extensive collection of business correspondence, most relating to the publication of his books, and a large group of photographs, teaching materials, journals, and miscellany.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Open.

Use Restrictions

Users of the collections must read and abide by the Rules for the use of manuscript collection materials.

Users of the collections who wish to use items from this collection, in whole or in part, in any form of publication (as defined in the form) must sign and submit to the Washington University Department of Special Collections a hard copy of the Notification of intent publish manuscript collection materials form.

All publication not covered by fair use restricted to those who have permission of the copyright holder.

Copyright to significant portions of the collection held by Peggy Nemerov 6970 Cornell Ave.St. Louis, MO 63130

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Administrative Information

Source of Collection

Purchases and gifts of Howard Nemerov

Processing Information

Processed by Washington University Department Special Collections Staff ca. 1983EAD encoded finding-aid complete March, 2001

Accruals

Interfiled within collection or by accession at end of collection.

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