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Finding aid for the Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection
0342
0342
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Title: Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection
Collection number: 0342
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
0.42 Linear feet
1 box
Date: 1893-1913, undated
Abstract: Letters from Ambrose Bierce to a variety of correspondents, including Samuel Loveman, B.J.S. Cahill, and Burnette G. Haskell.
The collection also includes copies of some of Bierce's contracts with Neale Publishing, and pamphlets advertising his "Collected
Works."
creator:
Bierce, Ambrose, 1842-1914?
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE: Advance notice required for access.
[Box/folder# or item name], Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection, Collection no. 0342, Special Collections, USC Libraries,
University of Southern California
See also Willard Morse collection on Ambrose Bierce, Collection no. 0136.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian.
Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended
to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.
Letters from Ambrose Bierce to a variety of correspondents, including Samuel Loveman, B.J.S. Cahill, and Burnette G. Haskell
(and one letter from Haskell). The collection also includes copies of some of Bierce's contracts with Neale Publishing, and
pamphlets advertising his "Collected Works." Of particular note is Bierce's last letter to Samuel Loveman, in which he indicates
he is off to South America and does not know when he will return.
Ambrose Bierce was an American writer, poet, editor, journalist, and satirist. Born in Ohio in 1842, Bierce enlisted in the
Union Army and fought at, among others, the Battle of Shiloh. His experiences formed the basis for several stories and his
memoir, "What I saw of Shiloh." After the war, he settled in San Francisco and earned a reputation as a contributor and/or
editor for a number of local newspapers and periodicals. He spent the years 1872-1875 in England where his first book was
published. Upon his return, he traveled throughout the West and worked for a mining company, but when the company failed,
he returned to journalism in San Francisco, working for William Randolph Hearst's San Francisco Examiner. Bierce was a biting
social critic, and much of his journalistic career was steeped in controversy, but he was also well known for his encouragement
of younger writers, such as the poet George Sterling (who is often referred to in the letters in this collection). At the
age of 71, Bierce left for South America and disappeared without a trace. His disappearance has become one of the most famous
in literary history.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Bierce, Ambrose, 1842-1914? -- Archives
Bierce, Ambrose, 1842-1914? -- Correspondence
Cahill, Bernard J.S., (Bernard Joseph Stanislaus), 1867- -- Archives
Haskell, Burnette G., 1857-1907 -- Correspondence
Loveman, Samuel, 1887-1976 -- Archives
American poetry--20th century--Archival resources
Contracts
Correspondence
Pamphlets
Poets, American--20th century--Archival resources