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Correspondence and manuscripts, ca. 1895-1945
Manuscript
Collection 485
About
Eleanor de la Vergne Risley
Eleanor de la Vergne Risley (1868-1945)
was born to Philip Stanton Doss and Anne de la Vergne in Nashville,
Tennessee. Risley spent most of her youth in Brownington, Missouri,
but also lived in Tennessee and California. At the turn of the
century, she married her first husband, Allan Douglas Risley,
and settled in Kansas City. Ten years later, the Risleys moved
to Nevada, Missouri, where they lived in an abandoned orchard.
This place inspired Risley to write her book, An Abandoned
Orchard, published in 1932. From Nevada, Missouri, the
Risleys moved to Fairhope, Alabama, where they traveled extensively
throughout Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee; these travels inspired
her book, The Road to Wildcat, published in 1930.
In 1926, Risley moved to the then-booming city of Phoenix, Arizona. Seeking quieter surroundings,
she decided to return to the South. Risley finally settled in
Ink (Polk County), Arkansas, a small village near Mena, where
she wrote the abovementioned books, as well short stories, plays,
and poetry. Around 1939, Risley moved to Eureka Springs (Carroll
County). Until her death in 1945, Risley was a focal point for
artists and writers who lived in Eureka Springs.
About
the Collection
The
papers contain handwritten and typed manuscript fragments
of Risley's unpublished novels, short stories, plays, and
poems. Except for a novel, The Jackson Family, a
few plays, and several poems, the papers do not contain a
complete version of any of Risley's writings. Most of the
manuscripts are not dated but they appear to be from the 1895-1935
time period. Note that Risley often used the pen name Dosia
Philips.
Louis Freund of Eureka Springs (Carroll County), Arkansas,
donated the papers of author Eleanor de la Vergne Risley to
Special Collections in December 1983.
Processed by Anthony J. Wappel, Special Collections, University
of Arkansas Libraries, Fayetteville, Arkansas, in January
1989.
Contents
of the Collection - 4 boxes (1.5 linear feet)
Box
1
1. Biographical papers [includes two photographs].
2. Correspondence, 1907-1939.
3-4. Novel -- The Jackson Family, [complete typed
version].
5-6. Novel -- The Jackson Family, typed fragments.
7. Novel--The Jackson Family, handwritten fragments.
Box 2
1-4. Novel -- The Sheep's Wall, typed fragments.
5-6. Novel -- A Summer At Grassy Cove, typed fragments;
missing chapter 3.
Box 3
1-2. Novel -- The Time of Lighted Lamps, typed fragments.
3-4. Novel -- The Time of Lighted Lamps, handwritten
fragments.
5. Novel -- untitled, about God, man, and spirituality, typed
and handwritten fragments.
6. Short Stories -- Titles "B-O."
7. Short Stories -- Titles "P-W."
8. Short Stories -- Subtitled "From the Backwoods."
9. Short Stories -- miscellaneous typed fragments.
10. Short Stories -- miscellaneous handwritten fragments.
Box
4
1. Plays--"Christmas Eve and the Wishing Cap," "Lurene
of the Mountains," and miscellaneous fragments.
2. Poems--Titles "A-B."
3. Poems--Titles "C."
4. Poems--Titles "D-H."
5. Poems--Titles "I-R."
6. Poems--Titles "S-T."
7. Poems--Titles "V-W."
8. Poems--Subtitled "Sketches from the Backwoods."
Last modified: Thursday, January 15, 2004 |
