Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Preferred Citation
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
Scope and Contents
Processing Information
Arrangement
General
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Clinton F. Larson papers
Creator:
Larson, Clinton
F.
Identifier/Call Number: mssLarson
Physical Description:
1.7 Linear Feet
(4 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1969-1986
Abstract: The collection consists primarily of
material related to the work of American poet, professor and editor Clinton F.
Larson.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
Conditions Governing Use
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item]. Clinton F. Larson papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Clinton F. Larson, in 1988; gift of Marden J. Clark in 1989.
Biographical / Historical
Clinton Foster Larson (1919-1994) was born on September 22, 1919 and grew up in Salt Lake
City, Utah. In 1942 he married Naomi Barlow in the Salt Lake Temple and served in the Army
Air Corps during the Second World War. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from
the University of Utah (1948) and a doctorate in English from the University of Denver. In
1947, Dr. Larson joined the faculty at Brigham Young University where he served as a
professor of creative writing for the English department. After teaching for 27 years, he
was appointed BYU's first poet in residence; Larson retired in 1985. He was a prolific poet
and playwright who wrote hundreds of poems throughout his career. He was well known for his
work in producing a multi-volume illustrated children's version of the Book of Mormon and
for his devotion to portraying the Mormon theme and bringing gospel principles to light
through his writings.
Biographical / Historical
William Edgar Stafford (1914-1993) was born in Hutchinson, Kansas in 1914. He earned his
bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Kansas and a doctorate in English
from the University of Iowa. He was a professor of English at Lewis and Clark College in
Portland, Oregon, was Poet Laureate for the state of Oregon from 1975 to 1993, and served as
a poet in residence of the Library of Congress in 1970. In 1963, Stafford received the
National Book Award for Poetry for his first collection of poems, "Traveling Through the
Dark." He died in Lake Oswego, Oregon, on August 28, 1993.
Scope and Contents
A collection of 1,695 items from 1969 to 1986; it consists primarily of correspondence and
poems relating to the compilation and publication of "Modern poetry of western America, an
anthology of poems written by principal 20th century poets of the western United States,"
the book was published in 1975 by the Brigham Young University Press. The book was compiled
and edited by Clinton F. Larson and William E. Stafford, both poets and professors of
English. The collection includes biographical writing, editorial materials, published
reviews, published poetry with lists and waivers, rejected poetry, and miscellaneous
material. The letters written between Larson and Stafford express various thoughts, opinions
and criticisms regarding the poems submitted for their review as well as decision-making
concerning which authors, and which of their poems, to ultimately include or exclude from
the anthology. In the invitations extended by the editors to contributing authors, the
following material was provided: a letter conveying their vision for the anthology and a
request for samples of the author's work, a release form for permission to publish the
selected works, and a cover sheet requesting biographical information of the author. The
bulk of the collection is dated 1974 and consists of these returned release forms and cover
sheets, in addition to copies of poems submitted for review by the authors. Both accepted
poems and rejected poems from nearly all authors are included, as well as biographical
profiles from contributing authors. Poets in the collection include, among others: Earle
Birney, Marilyn McMeen Miller, R. A. Christmas, Marden J. Clark, Thomas H. Ferril, Brewster
Ghiselin, Thom Gunn, Philip Levine, Sandra McPherson, Theodore Roethke, Ralph J. Salisbury,
Karl Shapiro, Ann Stanford, A. Wilber Stevens, May Swenson, and Peter Wild.
Processing Information
Processed by Margaret Phung in 2014. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the electronic
finding aid derived from an earlier finding aid.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically.
General
Former call number: mssLarson papers.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
American poetry -- 20th century
American poetry -- Mormon authors
American poetry -- West (U.S.)
West (U. S.) -- Poetry
Letters (correspondence) -- United States -- 20th century
Manuscripts -- United States -- 20th century
Poems -- United States -- 20th century
Birney, Earle, 1904-1995
Brown, Marilyn McMeen Miller,
1938-
Christmas, R. A.
Clark, Marden J., 1916-2003
Ferril, Thomas Hornsby, 1896-1988
Ghiselin, Brewster, 1903-2002
Gunn, Thom
Levine, Philip, 1928-2015
McPherson, Sandra
Roethke, Theodore,
1908-1963
Salisbury, Ralph J.
Shapiro, Karl, 1913-2000
Stafford, William,
1914-1993
Stanford, Ann
Stevens, A. Wilber (Arthur
Wilber), 1921-
Swenson, May
Wild, Peter, 1940-