This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
This collection was rehoused under the sponsorship of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Office of Preservation, Washington, D.C., 1990-1992.
Size | 1.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 325 items) |
Abstract | Sturgis Elleno Leavitt (1888-1976) was born in Newhall, Me. In 1914, he bagan his teaching career at the University of North Carolina, advancing through the ranks to Kenan Professor of Spanish and retiring in 1960. He was a widely recognized expert in Spanish literature and wrote and spoke extensively on the teaching of Spanish and on Pan-American international relations. Materials relating to Leavitt's career, includin.fffg a small amount of general correspondence, 1923 1960s, chiefly relating to awards Leavitt had received or to trips he had taken or was about to take. Only a few more substantive letters dealing with Spanish language or literature are included. There are also lengthy letters, 1911-1960s, that Leavitt wrote during his travels. These letters document travels in Europe, Latin and South America, and around the U.S. Also included are a few speeches, essays, and reports written by Leavitt, chiefly on the study and teaching of Spanish literature, biographical materials, clippings, materials relating to his 1952 trip to the west coast of South America for the U.S. State Department's Educational Exchange Program, materials from the centenary celebrations Leavitt attended of Cuban patriot Jose Marti in 1953 and Chilean scholar Jose Toribio Medina in 1952, and items relating to Leavitt's being named mayor for life of Zalamea de la Serena, Spain, in 1959. There are also a few photographs of Leavitt at various stages of his career. |
Creator | Leavitt, Sturgis E. (Sturgis Elleno), b. 1888. |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
Processed by: Roslyn Holdzkom, July 1992
Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008
This collection was rehoused under the sponsorship of a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Office of Preservation, Washington, D.C., 1990-1992.
Back to TopThe following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
Sturgis Elleno Leavitt was born in Newhall, Me., in 1888. He received his A.B. degree from Bowdoin College in 1908 and his M.A. in 1913 and Ph.D. in 1917, both from Harvard University. Also in 1917, he began his teaching career at the University of North Carolina, advancing through the ranks to Kenan Professor of Spanish and retiring in 1960. In 1941, he was named director of the Institute of Latin American Studies at UNC, and, in 1947, he help found the Southern Humanities Conference, which included fifteen societies focused on Latin American interests.
Leavitt was a widely recognized expert in Spanish literature and wrote and spoke extensively on the teaching of Spanish and on Pan-American international relations. He also authored many Spanish textbooks and compiled numerous bibliographies of Spanish literature. He also served as editor of the South-Atlantic Bulletin, the Revista Iberoamericana, and as associate editor of the Hispanic Review. He was a member of the board of trustees of the American Council of Learned Societies from 1946 to 1950 and chair of the Southern Humanities Conference from 1948 to 1951. He also served twice as president of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese and once as president of the South Atlantic Modern Language Association.
Leavitt traveled extensively, especially in Spain and Latin America. In 1953, he visited the west coast of South America lecturing at cultural centers and universities under the auspices of the U.S. State Department.
Throughout his long career, Leavitt received numerous honors, including honorary degrees from Davidson College and Bowdoin College. In 1959, he was made honorary mayor for life of Zalamea de la Serena, Spain. In 1961, he received a National Foreign Language Award from the National Federation of Modern Language Teachers Associations. In 1972, he was selected as one of the top ten scholars of Spanish in the U.S., and, in 1974, was elected to the Mexican Academy and as one of the first members of the Academy of Spanish Literature.
Leavitt was a member of the Mayflower Society and married to Alga Leavitt (d. 1964), who coached Thomas Wolfe when he acted with the Carolina Playmakers in the 1919 season.
Back to TopThe collection includes a small amount of general correspondence, 1923-1960s, chiefly relating to awards Leavitt had received or to trips he had taken or was about to take. Only a few more substantive letters dealing with Spanish language or literature are included. There are also lengthy letters, 1911-1960s, that Leavitt wrote during his travels. These letters document travels in Europe, South America, and around the United States. Also included are a few speeches, essays, and reports written by Leavitt, chiefly on the study and teaching of Spanish literature, biographical materials, clippings, materials relating to his 1952 trip to the west coast of South America for the U.S. State
Department's Educational Exchange Program, materials from the centenary celebrations Leavitt attended of Cuban patriot Jose Marti in 1953 and Chilean scholar Jose Toribio Medina in 1952, and items relating to Leavitt's being named mayor for life of Zalamea de la Serena, Spain, in 1959. There are also a few photographs of Leavitt at various stages of his career.
Back to TopArrangement: chronological by decade.
Letters chiefly relating to awards Leavitt had received or to trips he had taken or was about to take. Only a few more substantive letters dealing with Spanish language or literature are included.
Folder 1 |
1923-1939 |
Folder 2 |
1940s |
Folder 3 |
1950s |
Folder 4 |
1960s |
Arrangement: roughly chronological.
Chiefly lengthy letters that Leavitt wrote during his travels. These letters document travels in Europe, Latin and South America, and around the United States, and contain Leavitt's observations on what he saw and did. Some of these letters were addressed to specific persons (early ones often to Leavitt's mother), but many were meant to be circulated among friends and family and ultimately returned to Leavitt.
Folder 5 |
1911, Europe |
Folder 6 |
1919, South America |
Folder 7 |
1920, South America |
Folder 8 |
1929, Spain |
Folder 9 |
1930s, Mexico |
Folder 10 |
1940s, Mexico |
Folder 11 |
1950s, South America (excluding State Department trip and centenaries) |
Folder 12 |
1950s, eastern U.S. |
Folder 13 |
1960s, eastern U.S. |
Short writings by Leavitt, including typed copies of speeches on various subjects, most having to do with the study and teaching of Spanish literature; a printed letter to the editor of the Chapel Hill Weekly on university teaching; and a printed copy of Leavitt's essay called "Strip-Tease in Golden Age Drama" (1966).
Folder 14 |
Writings |
Biographical materials, clippings, materials relating to Leavitt's 1952 trip to the west coast of South America for the U.S. State Department's Educational Exchange Program, materials from the centenary celebrations Leavitt attended of Cuban patriot Jose Marti in 1953 and Chilean scholar Jose Toribio Medina in 1952, and items relating to Leavitt's being named mayor for life of Zalamea de la Serena, Spain, in 1959. There are also a few photographs of Leavitt at various stages of his career.