Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection, 1893-1913, undated

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Creators:
Bierce, Ambrose, 1842-1914?
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."
Extent:
0.42 Linear feet 1 box
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection, Collection no. 0342, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Background

Scope and content:

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.

Biographical / historical:

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.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE: Advance notice required for access.

Terms of access:

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.

Preferred citation:

[Box/folder# or item name], Ambrose Bierce correspondence collection, Collection no. 0342, Special Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California

Location of this collection:
Special Collections
Doheny Memorial Library, Room 209
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189, US
Contact:
(213) 740-5900
specol@usc.edu
Website