Gloria Oden Papers

Myles Mikulic

Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library

800 North Dartmouth Avenue

Claremont, CA 91711

Phone: (909) 607-3977

Email: specialcollections@claremont.edu

URL: http://library.claremont.edu/scl

Descriptive Summary

Title: Gloria Oden Papers

Dates: 1955-2010

Collection number: H.Mss.1112

Creator: Oden, Gloria

Creator: Hall, Donald, 1928-2018

Extent: 1.2 Linear Feet (1 records box, 1 slim document box)

Repository: Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, The Claremont Colleges Library, Claremont, CA 91711.

Abstract: This collection contains materials relating to the poet Gloria Oden, created between 1955 and 2010. The collection predominantly consists of correspondence and poetry, but also includes photographs, newspapers clippings, and VHS tapes. A majority of the correspondence consists of letters from poetry critic Donald Hall to Gloria Oden written between 1974 and 1979, and letters from Gloria Oden to Claremont McKenna College humanities and government professor Jay Martin from 1999 to 2010.

Physical Location: Please consult repository.

Language of Material: Languages represented in the collection: English.

Administrative Information

Access

Collection open for research.

Publication Rights

All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Gloria Oden Papers (H.Mss.1112). Special Collections, The Claremont Colleges Library, The Claremont Colleges Services, Claremont, California.

Provenance/Source of Acquisition

Donated by Jay Martin in 2019.

Accruals

No additions to the collection are anticipated.

Processing Information

Processed in 2019 by library assistant Myles Mikulic, in the Special Collections branch of the Honnold Mudd Library with assistance from Sara Chetney and Lisa Crane. Materials have been stored in acid free folders and placed in a record box. Folders have been organized alphabetically by subject. Unopened letters have been opened and arranged chronologically. VHS tapes have been placed in acid free cases. High school report cards relating to Jay Martin were deemed out of scope and offered back to the donor.

Biographical / Administrative History

Gloria Oden was born on October 30, 1923 in Yonkers, New York. In 1939 she graduated from New Rochelle High School. She went on to attend Howard University, earning a BA in 1944 and a JD in 1948.

Oden began writing poetry at a young age, and in 1952 self-published her first book of poetry, The Naked Frame. She continued publishing poems in magazines throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and in 1978 published a second book of poetry, Resurrections. The book, about the murder of her mother and older sister, went on to be nominated for the 1979 Pulitzer Prize. In 1980 Oden published a third book of poetry, The Ties that Bind, about her father. In 2004 Oden published a fourth book of poetry, Appearances, followed by Homage in 2011.

Oden died on December 16, 2011.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The collection contains materials relating to Gloria Oden, created between 1955 and 2010. Most of the collection consists of correspondence and poetry, with a majority of the correspondence consisting of letters from poetry critic Donald Hall to Gloria Oden written between 1974 and 1979, and letters from Gloria Oden to Claremont McKenna College humanities and government professor Jay Martin from 1999 to 2010. The collection does not contain any letters from Oden to Hall, nor does it include letters from Martin to Oden.

Oden's letters to Martin frequently include newspaper clippings (mostly from The New York Times) and typed poems. The folders containing typed poems were likely included in letters to Martin, but were and undated and found unsorted when received.

Organization and Arrangement

This collection has been organized alphabetically by subject. Correspondence has been organized in chronological order.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library’s online public access catalog.

Subject Terms

Hall, Donald, 1928-2018

Martin, Jay, 1935-

Oden, Gloria

Poets

Williams, Galen

Genre and Form of Materials

Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)

Correspondence

Letters

Photographs

Poetry

Video tapes

Box 1, Folder 1

Correspondence 1965-1969

Note

Mostly contains correspondence between Gloria Oden and Galen Williams.

Box 1, Folder 2

Correspondence 1971

Note

Contains one letter from Gloria Oden to Mildred.

Box 1, Folder 3

Correspondence 1974

Note