Collection Summary
Information for Researchers
Administrative Information
Biographical Information
Scope and Content of Collection
Collection Summary
Collection Title: Collection of Joaquin Miller Papers
Date (inclusive): 1871-1967,
Date (bulk): , bulk 1871-1913
Collection Number: BANC MSS C-H 58
Creator :
Miller, Joaquin, 1837-1913
Extent:
Number of containers: 5 boxes and 2 cartons
Linear feet: 4.5
Repository: The Bancroft Library
Berkeley, California 94720-6000
Abstract: Contains correspondence, to and from Miller; manuscripts of writings, including poetry; clippings by and about Miller, many
about his death. Also includes a small amount of legal and financial records, tributes, programs and souvenirs, and other
miscellaneous items. Some correspondents include Andrew Carnegie, Ina D. Coolbrith, Jack London, James D. Phelan, George Sterling
and Charles Warren Stoddard.
Languages Represented: Collection materials are in English
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Information for Researchers
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to The Bancroft Library. All requests for permission to publish or reproduce must be submitted
in writing to the Head of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-6000. Permission
for publication is given on behalf of The Bancroft Library 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 by the reader.
Copyright restrictions also apply to digital representations of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted
to research and educational purposes.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Collection of Joaquin Miller Papers, BANC MSS C-H 58, The Bancroft Library, University of California,
Berkeley.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternate forms of this collection.
Related Collections
Joaquin Miller papers: to various individuals, (BANC MSS 88/36 c)
Joaquin Miller letters and manuscripts, (BANC MSS 2005/250 c)
Ina Donna Coolbrith Collection of Letters and Papers, (BANC MSS C-H 23)
Ina Donna Coolbrith Papers: Additions, (BANC MSS 70/117 c)
Yone Noguchi Papers: Additions, (BANC MSS 71/39 c)
Charles Warren Stoddard Collection of Papers, (BANC MSS C-H 53)
Partington Family Papers (BANC MSS C-H 84)
Partington Family Papers: Additions (BANC MSS 81/143 c)
Juanita Joaquina Miller Papers (BANC MSS C-H 147)
Separated Material
Photographs have been transferred to the Pictorial Collections of The Bancroft Library. (BANC PIC 1963.014-.015)
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Miller, Joaquin, 1837-1913--Archives
Cook, Ina Peterson--Correspondence
Wagner, Harr, 1857-1936--Correspondence
Carnegie, Andrew, 1835-1919--Correspondence
Coolbrith, Ina D. (Ina Donna), 1842?-1928--Correspondence
London, Jack, 1876-1916--Correspondence
Phelan, James D. (James Duval), 1861-1930--Correspondence
Sterling, George, 1869-1926--Correspondence
Stoddard, Charles Warren, 1843-1909--Correspondence
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, 1828-1882--Correspondence
Boughton, George Henry, 1834-1905--Correspondence
Poets, American--19th century
American poetry--California
Authors, American--19th century
Poems
Manuscripts for publication
Honeyman, Robert B.--Robert B. Honeyman, Jr. collection
Norris, Thomas W. (Thomas Wayne).--Thomas W. Norris collection
Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
The Collection of Joaquin Miller Papers were given to and/or purchased by The Bancroft Library at various times. Some folders
are annotated with information with respect to provenance. Most of the original materials were acquired in the T.W. Norris
Collection and the Robert B. Honeyman Collection. Additions were made in October 1962, a gift of his daughter, Juanita Miller.
Additions in the form of purchases were made in February 2006.
Accruals
No additions are expected.
Processing Information
Processed by Alison E. Bridger and Brian Plimley in 2006.
Biographical Information
Born Cincinnatus Heine (or Hiner) Miller on September 8, 1837, near Liberty, Indiana. In 1852, his family moved to the Oregon
Territory and two years later at the age of 17 he went to the California gold fields. At the urging of Ina D. Coolbrith, he
changed his name to Joaquin Miller sometime around 1870.
Best know as a poet, Miller also worked as a mining camp cook, a lawyer and a judge, a newspaper writer, a conservationist,
and a Pony Express rider. Miller proclaimed himself the "Poet of the Sierras," and the "Byron of the Rockies."
Miller took poetic license to heart and stretched many of the facts of his life, sometimes even claiming to be younger than
he was. He found fame in England with many of his "tall truths."
In 1886, Joaquin began buying land above Oakland, using poetic license and naming it "The Hights." The land was later sold
by his family in 1919 to the City of Oakland and named Joaquin Miller Park.
Joaquin Miller died February 17, 1913.
Scope and Content of Collection
Contains correspondence, to and from Miller; manuscripts of writings, including poetry; clippings by and about Miller, many
about his death. Also includes a small amount of legal and financial records, tributes, programs and souvenirs, and other
miscellaneous items. Some correspondents include Andrew Carnegie, Ina D. Coolbrith, Jack London, James D. Phelan, George Sterling
and Charles Warren Stoddard.