Description
Ruth Reid and Kent Hyde were both authors and lovers for over forty years. Their correspondence documents the changing political
landscape of the twentieth century as well as their intellectual development and personal relationships. For most of their
relationship Kent Hyde, a woman, passed as a man. This collections consists mostly of correspondence, but also includes unpublished
novels, poetry, drawings, and interviews.
Background
Ruth Reid was born Ruth Hatch in Salem, Massachusetts in 1903. She was born to a conservative family and in her teenage years
left to live with her half brother and his wife in Greenville, South Carolina. She attended the University of North Carolina
to study literature. At the University of North Carolina she met a gentleman by the name of Edgar, a German Jewish professor
of philosophy. They were married in 1926 and moved to Hamburg after Edgar secured a teaching position there. Ruth pursued
her PhD but never finished. Edgar left Germany in 1933 as Hitler came to power, but Ruth stayed until 1934 and carried on
an affair with a Jewish doctor named Dena.
Extent
2.0 linear feet
(5 boxes)
Restrictions
Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Availability
COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. All requests to access special collections material must be made in
advance using the request button located on this page.