COLLECTION DESCRIPTION
Manuscripts, letters, documents, clippings, photographs, filmstrips, film reels, notecards, cassette tapes, bound photocopies, medals and awards by, to, or about E.B. White, spanning the entire range of his activities throughout his life. Letters consist of ca. 3,000 letters by White and 25,000 letters to him from others; manuscripts include drafts, notes, and some galley proofs for his books Charlotte's Web, The Elements of Style, the Essays of E.B. White, the Letters of E.B. White, One Man's Meat, The Points of My Compass, Poems and Sketches, and Stuart Little, as well as drafts of his "Notes and comment" and "Talk of the Town" columns for the New Yorker magazine from 1934-1953. Printed items include White's contributions to the New Yorker and other magazines, his editorials for his high school newspaper, and ca. 350 articles about him, including interviews and reviews. Photographs include a large portrait photo of White, ca. 1950, and a family group photo taken at the 50th wedding anniversary of Samuel T. White and Jesse White in 1929, with E.B. and Katherine Sergeant White included in the group. Films include Maine Lobsterman, narrated by White and produced for the television show Omnibus in 1954, and The Family That Dwelt Apart, written and also narrated by White. Also included in the collection are objects such as E.B. White's typewriter, desk, and table.
Correspondents include: Katharine Sergeant White (his wife), James Thurber, Frank Sullivan, Harold Ross, William Shawn, Gus Lobrano, S.J. Perelman, Nathaniel Benchley, Howard Cushman, Alice Burchfield Sumner, Scott Elledge, and publishers such as Harper & Row, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, and Macmillan.
Dates
- 1899-1999.
Creator
- White, E. B. (Elwyn Brooks), 1899-1985. (Person)
- White, Katharine Sergeant Angell. (Person)
- Thurber, James, 1894-1961. (Person)
- Sullivan, Frank, 1892-1976. (Person)
- Ross, Harold Wallace, 1892-1951. (Person)
- Shawn, William. (Person)
- Lobrano, Gustav Stubbs. (Person)
- Perelman, S. J. (Sidney Joseph), 1904-1979. (Person)
- Benchley, Nathaniel, 1915-1981. (Person)
- Cushman, Howard. (Person)
- Elledge, Scott. (Person)
- Sumner, Alice Burchfield. (Person)
- White, E. B. (Elwyn Brooks), 1899-1985. (Title of work: Family that dwelt apart..) (Person)
- Harper & Row, Publishers (Organization)
- Farrar, Straus, and Giroux (Organization)
- Macmillan & Co (Organization)
Language of Materials
Collection material in English
Conditions Governing Use
Due to the fragility and potential degradation of moving image and sound recordings, viewing and listening is limited to items that have been digitized. If an item is in another media format, you may request to have the item digitized for access. Information on ordering access copies may be found on the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections webpage.
Conditions Governing Use
Audio visual media that has been digitized: TR-10529, TR-10534, and TR-10535.
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
American essayist and author.
Extent
96.9 cubic feet. (96.9 cubic feet.)
4 mapcase folders. (4 mapcase folders.)
4 items. (4 items.)
Abstract
Manuscripts, letters, documents, clippings, photographs, filmstrips, film reels, notecards, cassette tapes, bound photocopies, medals and awards by, to, or about E.B. White, spanning the entire range of his activities throughout his life.
COLLECTION ARRANGEMENT
Organized into the following major series: Manuscripts by White; miscellaneous printed material; letters received by White; letters written by him; fan letters received by him; and other materials.
Manuscripts arranged alphabetically by book title; letters received by White, alphabetically by correspondent; letters written by White, in chronological order; fan letters received, alphabetically by subject.
SERIES LIST
Series I. Manuscripts Box 1-58; 263
Series II. Correspondence Boxes 59-219; 260-261; 266 Outgoing Correspondence Incoming Correspondence Miscellaneous and Solicitations Readers Mail from Harper's Incoming Correspondence from Readers
Series III. Photographs, Printed Material, and Whiteiana Boxes 220A-230; 260; 266 Photographs Printed Material Whiteiana
Series IV. Medals, Awards and Clippings Boxes 231-240; 258; 260; Mapcase Folder 3 and 4 Medals and Awards Clippings
Series V. Harper and Row Files Boxes 241-243
Series VI. Macmillan Publishing Company files related to Elements of Style Box 267
Series VII. Books on E.B. White by Others Boxes 244-257; 259; Mapcase Folder 2 Scott Elledge, E.B. White: A Biography Katherine Romans Hall, E.B. White: A Bibliographic Catalogue
Series VII. Miscellaneous (mainly oversize) Boxes 260 and 262; Museum Items
Series VIII. Adaptations, Films, and Recordings Boxes 260; 264-266; Mapcase Folder 1 Adaptations and Recordings of Charlotte's Web Adaptations and Recordings of Stuart Little Films and Recordings (not based on books)
Physical Description
Manuscripts, letters, documents, clippings, photographs, filmstrips, film reels, notecards, cassette tapes, bound photocopies, medals, and awards.
General
- Contact Information:
- Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections 2B Carl A. Kroch Library Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853 (607) 255-3530 Fax: (607) 255-9524 rareref@cornell.edu http://rmc.library.cornell.edu
- EAD encoding:
- Martin Heggestad, June 2003
- Date modified:
- Jude Corina, October 2017
- American fiction -- 20th century -- Sources.
- American literature -- 20th century.
- American literature -- History and criticism.
- American wit and humor.
- Authors, American.
- Humorists, American.
- Journalism -- United States.
- New Yorker.
- Photographs.
- Portraits.
- White, E. B. (Elwyn Brooks), 1899-1985.
- White, Katharine Sergeant Angell.
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- June 2003
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections Repository
2B Carl A. Kroch Library
Cornell University
Ithaca NY 14853
607-255-3530
607-255-9524 (Fax)
rareref@cornell.edu