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This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
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.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 217 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 139,000 items) |
| Abstract | The collection of white poet and professor of literature and creative writing, Shelby Stevenson (1938-) includes personal and professional correspondence; files relating to Pembroke Magazine, North Carolina arts organizations, and Stephenson's academic career; and many writings by Stephenson, both poetry and prose. Included is correspondence with local, national, and international poets, novelists, editors, and publishers, including A. R. Ammons, Fred Chappell, Norman Macleod, Guy Owen, and Paul Green. There is also some correspondence with friends and relatives. Pembroke Magazine materials include correspondence with contributors and issue files. Also included are files relating to North Carolina arts organizations with which Stephenson was involved, including the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association, the North Carolina Writers Network, the North Carolina Poetry Society, and the Friends of Weymouth. There is also some material relating to Stephenson's academic career, especially at the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University). Included are teaching materials and other items. Stephenson's writings include many drafts of poems, manuscripts of several books of poetry, and essays and book reviews. There are also biographical materials and bibliographies of Stephenson's writings and audio recordings of talks, lectures, panels, and interviews by Stephenson and others. |
| Creator | Stephenson, Shelby, 1938- |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Subject Headings
The 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.
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Biographical Information
Shelby Stephenson (1938-) is a poet; professor of literature and creative writing at Campbell College (now University), Buies Creek, N.C., 1974-1978, and at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University) after 1978; and editor of Pembroke Magazine beginning in 1979.
Shelby Stephenson was born 14 June 1938, near Benson, N.C. The youngest of four children, he lived in a three-room shanty on the 62-acre family farm until 1951, when the family built a ranch house on the property. The Stephensons lived off the farm, where they hunted, fished, and raised livestock.
As a child, Stephenson learned to play the guitar and to appreciate and write poetry. He was graduated from Cleveland High School in 1956 and was named the most outstanding student of his class. The following fall, Stephenson began working his way through the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where he cleaned tables in the dining hall. While in college, Stephenson also worked at as janitor and disc jockey at WMPM radio in Smithfield. After graduation from UNC in 1960, Stephenson worked at WTVD-TV in Durham, N.C. At the same time, Stephenson began studying at the UNC Law School, but quit after two and a half years, leaving one semester short of graduation.
Stephenson then worked for American Telephone & Telegraph for a year and a half. In April 1965, he entered graduate school in English at the University of Pittsburgh. In 1966, he married Linda Letchworth Wilson, and, in 1968, he was admitted to the doctoral program in English at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Stephenson received his Ph.D. in May 1974 with a dissertation on law in the novels of William Faulkner. In 1974, Stephenson became chairman of the English Department at Campbell College in Buies Creek, N.C. In 1978, he left for a position at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University), Pembroke, N.C., where he has edited Pembroke Magazine since 1979.
Stephenson began to publish his own poetry in spring 1973, gaining a reputation as one of the finest poets of eastern North Carolina. His first book, Middle Creek Poems (1979) was the co-winner of the Zoe Kincaid Brockman Memorial Award. Other books include Carolina Shout! (1985); Finch's Mash (1990); The Persimmon Tree Carol (1990); Plankhouse (1993), a poetic documentary with photographs by Roger Manley; and Poor People (1998). He and his wife have also recorded a CD called Tribute to Hank Williams.
Stephenson lived in Southern Pines, N.C., from August 1978 to March 1996, when he moved to his birthplace near Benson.
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Scope and Content
The collection includes personal and professional correspondence of Shelby Stephenson; files relating to Pembroke Magazine, North Carolina arts organizations, and Stephenson's academic career studying and teaching at the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University); and many writings by Stephenson, both poetry and prose. Included is correspondence with local, national, and international poets, novelists, editors, and publishers, including A. R. Ammons, Fred Chappell, Guy Owen, and Paul Green. There is also some correspondence with friends and relatives. Files relating to Pembroke Magazine include material on each issue since Stephenson began to edit the magazine in 1979. Items include manuscripts of literary pieces included in the issues, correspondence with readers of the magazine, correspondence with subscribers to the magazine, and organizational notes about the issues. Financial information about each issue is also included.
Included in the writings are manuscripts of individual poems as well as manuscripts for books of poems, and Stephenson's critical essays and book reviews. There are also two boxes of material containing rejection letters from literary contests and journals and one box of index cards documenting successes and failures of Stephenson's literary submissions.
Note that additions received after January 1994 have not been integrated into the original deposit. These additions include audio recordings of talks, lectures, panels, and interviews by Stephenson and others, including Lenard D. Moore, Erskine Cadwell, Mark Sofier, Mary Jarrell, and Sister Bernetta Quinn.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Correspondence and Related Items, ca. 1970-1993.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical by correspondent.
Correspondence and other items arranged by correspondent. Included are letters and, in some cases, writings by the correspondents and/or essays by Stephenson about their work. In a few cases, letters to Stephenson about particular correspondents also appear.
There is substantial correspondence with A. R. Ammons, Fred Chappell, Norman Macleod, Guy Owen, and others. With Ammons, Stephenson discussed Ammons's poetry, Stephenson's poetry, Stephenson's reviews of Ammons's books, interviews with Ammons, the Ammons issue of Pembroke Magazine (#18), book awards, and topics of personal interest. With Chappell, Stephenson discussed his own poetry and Chappell's views about academia and poetry in general, with specific references to individual poets. There is also discussion of opera, bluegrass, and jazz. Correspondence with Macleod chiefly concerns Pembroke Magazine and Macleod's health. A few drafts of Macleod's poetry are included.
While most of the correspondence is with people connected in some formal way with creative writing or academia, there is also some correspondence with family members and others. Topics discussed are poetry, Pembroke Magazine, and Stephenson's personal and professional life. Greeting cards, wedding announcements, and get-well letters are also included.
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Series 2. Pembroke Magazine, ca.
1968-1993.
See also additions after January 1994.
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Subseries 2.1. Issue Files and Related Items, ca.
1970-1992.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: by issue.
Files for each issue of the annual Pembroke Magazine since Stephenson assumed the editorship in 1979, plus some material from previous issues.
Folders typically contain materials generated in the process of putting an issue together. Material tangential to particular issues--grant applications, financial items, reader correspondence--appears as "Other Material" in the issue's final folder. folders marked "Layout/Design/Editing" include materials that relate to the organization of the issues--contributors' lists, internal memos, etc. folders marked "Original Manuscripts" submissions as received; folders marked "Typeset Manuscripts" contain galleys and proofs of those manuscripts along with corrections and printer's directions.
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Subseries 2.2 Submissions and Related Correspondence, ca.
1968-1993.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical by submittor.
Submissions to Pembroke Magazine and correspondence relating to those submissions. Included are manuscripts of poems and works of short fiction. Included are submissions and related correspondence from other authors not represented in Series 1.
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Subseries 2.3. Other Pembroke Magazine Material, ca. 1968-1993.
See also additions after January 1994.
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Series 3. Arts Organizations, ca. 1975-1992.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical by organization.
Materials relating to North Carolina arts organizations of which Stephenson was a member or from which Pembroke Magazine received funding. Organizations substantively represented are the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association, the North Carolina Writers' Network, the North Carolina Poetry Society, and the Friends of Weymouth. Items include memos, letters and notes, grant information, and materials relating to specific arts events.
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Series 4. Academic and Related Files, ca. 1975-1992.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Files relating to academic institutions with which Stephenson was associated, especially the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University). Included are teaching materials and items relating to institutional self-study, classes taken, classes taught, degrees earned, student evaluations, employment, and guitar classes Stephenson took at Sandhills Community College. Other institutions included are the North Carolina Governor's School, where Stephenson was a teacher, and South Johnston High School, where he was a member of the evaluation committee, 1981-1982.
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Series 5. Writings, ca. 1965-1992.
See also additions after January 1994..
Handwritten and typed writings by Stephenson, including writing his Ph.D. dissertation, notebooks, poems, critical essays, book reviews, and bibliographies of his published works.
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Subseries 5.1. Poetry, ca. 1965-1992.
See also additions after January 1994.
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Subseries 5.1.1. Poetry Notebooks, ca. 1968-1984.
See also additions after January 1994..
Materials removed from binders and tipped in materials. Following the notebooks that were numbered by Stephenson are six previously unnumbered and untitled notebooks now labeled "A" through "F," containing handwritten drafts of poems. Following these notebooks are five folders of material labeled "Culls" by Stephenson. These contain rough drafts of poems.
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Subseries 5.1.2. Sets of Poems, ca. 1974-1992.
See also additions after January 1994..
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Drafts of poems by Stephenson that he organized into books and chapbooks. Some books have been published, while others have not. Also included are books of verse drama.
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Subseries 5.1.3. Loose Poems, ca. 1968-1990.
See also additions after January 1994..
Stephenson's loose poems and groups of poems that have that Stephenson gathered into files that he labeled by date or theme.
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Subseries 5.2. Essays and Book Reviews, ca. 1966-1992.
See also additions after January 1994.
Essays and book reviews Stephenson wrote about other authors and their works. The essays are unarranged, but the reviews are arranged alphabetically by the author of the book reviewed.
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Subseries 5.3. Other Writings and Related Material, ca.
1970-1993.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Criticisms of Stephenson's writings by others; bibliographies of his published work; files of material about performances and poetry readings in which Stephenson took part; drafts of speeches; Stephenson's dissertation; and acceptance notices from magazines and awards.
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Series 6. Other Material, ca. 1973-1987.
See also additions after January 1994.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Miscellaneous material, including biographical information about Stephenson, material relating to small presses and magazines, and solicitations for membership in biographical associations, such as Who's Who. The biographical information consists of Stephenson's vitae, resumes, and biographical essays. The small press and magazine folders contain correspondence and promotional material related to such organizations.
There are also two boxes of unfoldered rejection letters from various poetry contests and journals. These rejections include standard form letters as well as personal letters with comments.
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Additions after January 1994
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Addition of June 1994 (Acc. 94077), 1960-1994.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Processing Note: For the most part, contents were transferred into new boxes as received, with little attempt at arrangement. Researchers should, therefore, review the entire description for pertinent materials.
Personal and family papers of Shelby Stephenson and Pembroke Magazine materials. Personal papers include correspondence of Stephenson and his children, student evaluations of classes taught by Stephenson, personal correspondence and clippings, school notebooks, and drafts and revisions of poetry written by Stephenson. Pembroke Magazine documents are primarily correspondence from potential contributors regarding submissions; some contain manuscripts of poems and short stories submitted for publication. Other Pembroke Magazine materials include grant applications, business papers, invoices and mailing lists, folders labeled as rejections or acceptances, folders containing documents pertaining to specific contributors, and galleys and copy for the magazine.
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Addition of October 1994 (Acc. 94152), 1990s.
Access: Boxes 97-98 unprocessed, but usable. Boxes 99-102 CLOSED: Unprocessed; should be screened for materials relating to students.
Chiefly professional papers of Shelby Stephenson relating to Pembroke Magazine materials and to his teaching responsibilities at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (formerly Pembroke State University).
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Addition of August 1995 (Acc. 95110), 1990s.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Addition of January 1996 (Acc. 96004), 1990s.
Access: Box 107 CLOSED: Unprocessed; should be screened for materials relating to students. Other boxes unprocessed, but usable.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Addition of March 1997 (Acc. 97036), 1977-1997.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Addition of November 1997 (Acc. 97158), 1995-1997.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Additions of June 1998 (Acc. 98139) and December 1998 (Acc. 98259), 1986-1998.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Addition of November 1999 (Acc. 98510), 1996-1999.
Access: Unprocessed, but usable.
Processing Note: Materials have been roughly sorted into the series established for the original accession and placed in folders.
Materials include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Addition of August 2001 and September 2016, 1997, 1999.
Acquisitions Information: Donated by Joy Acey in August 2001 (Acc. 99022) and September 2016 (Acc. 102646).
Access: No restrictions.
Letters, 18 October 1997 and 18 February 1999, from Shelby Stephenson to Joy Acey including words of encouragement on Acey's writing and advice for struggling writers.
| Box 125 |
Series 1. Personal correspondence: Acey, Joy. #04653, Subseries: "Addition of August 2001 and September 2016, 1997, 1999." Box 125Letter was added to materials in the addition of November 1999. |
Series 1. Personal correspondence: Acey, Joy. #04653, Subseries: "Addition of August 2001 and September 2016, 1997, 1999." Box 125Letter mentions Sam Ragan. |
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Addition of December 2000 (Acc. 98813), 1990s-2000.
Processing note: The Addition of December 2000 is arranged in same way as, but has not been incorporated into, the original deposit of materials.
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Additions of November 2001-January 2005 (Acc. 99122, 99317, 99481, 99814, 99977),
1972-2005.
Processing note: The additions of November 2001-January 2005 have been consolidated and arranged in same way as, but not incorporated into, the original deposit of materials. These materials exclude the additions of November 2003.
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Subseries 1. Correspondence and Related Items, ca. 1978,
1990s-2004.
Arrangement: alphabetical by correspondent.
Correspondence and other items arranged by correspondent. Included are letters, emails, and, in some cases, writings by the correspondents and/or essays by Stephenson about their work. Topics discussed include poetry, Pembroke Magazine, and Stephenson's personal and professional life.
While the bulk of the correspondence is from 2000 to 2004, there is some from the 1990s as well as copies of correspondence with Anna Wooten-Hawkins dating from 1978.
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Subseries 2. Pembroke Magazine,
ca. 1980-2004.
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Subseries 2.1. Issue Files and Related Items, ca.
1980-2004.
Arrangement: by issue.
Folders contain materials generated in the process of putting an issue of Pembroke Magazine together. Materials for each issue include contributor lists, printing invoices, original drafts, proofs and galleys, and correspondence related to the production of each issue.
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Subseries 2.2. Submissions and Related Correspondence, ca.
2000-2004.
Arrangement: alphabetical by submitter.
Submissions to Pembroke Magazine and correspondence relating to those submissions. Included are manuscripts of poems, works of short fiction, and submissions and related correspondence from authors not represented in Series 1.
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Subseries 2.3. Other Pembroke Magazine Material, ca. 1980-2004.
Arrangement: alphabetical and by issue.
Primarily financial materials and other items not directly related to the actual production of each issue. Materials for each issue include grant information and applications, copyright registrations, subscriber lists, subscription invoices, and budget information.
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Subseries 3. Arts Organizations and Events, ca. 2000-2004
.
Arrangement: alphabetical by organization.
Materials relating to arts organizations of which Stephenson was a member or from which Pembroke Magazine received funding. Organizations substantively represented are the Paul Green Foundation, the North Carolina Writers Conference, the North Carolina Poetry Society, the North Carolina Literaray Hall of Fame, and SAMLA (South Atlantic Modern Language Association). Items include memos, a few letters and notes, grant information, and materials relating to specific arts events.
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Subseries 4. Academic and Related Files, ca. 2000-2005
.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
Files relating chiefly to Stephenson's teaching at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke.
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Subseries 5. Writings, ca. 1984-2004.
Handwritten and typed writings by Stephenson, including mostly poetry, and a few critical essays and book reviews.
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Subseries 5.1. Poetry, ca. 1994-2004.
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Subseries 5.1.1. Poetry Notebooks, ca.
2000-2004.
Arrangement: chronological.
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Subseries 5.1.2. Sets of Poems, ca.
1994-2004.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
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Subseries 5.1.3. Loose Poems, ca.
2000-2004.
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Subseries 5.2. Essays and Book Reviews, ca.
2000-2004.
Arrangement: alphabetical.
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Subseries 5.3. Other Writings and Related Material, ca.
1984-2004.
Included are manuscripts or copies of works by other authors, some sent to Shelby Stephenson for his feedback or review.
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Subseries 6. Other Material, ca.
1972-2004.
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Addition of November 2003 (Acc. 99670), 2000-2003.
Chiefly literary magazines from the 2003 North Carolina Literary and Historical Association Student Publication Awards, a proof of Pembroke Magazine, correspondence, and drafts of poems. The poetry appears to consist primarily of drafts of Stephenson's "Calendar Poems," although there are other poems mixed in. These poems have not been arranged chronologically. Poems referring to 11 September 2001 also appear. The correspondence is roughly arranged by month and year.
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Addition of November 2005 (Acc. 100268), 2000-2005.
Chiefly letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine, proofs of Pembroke Magazine 37, correspondence, and drafts of Stephenson's poems from 2000 to 2005, although some items may have earlier dates. The letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine and Stephenson's correspondence have been roughly sorted, and some materials may overlap. Researchers may want to look through both categories in order to find desired materials. Drafts of Stephenson's works include versions of "Percy's Walk," "What's Heard More than This?" "A Broken Song for July" (also titled "Out of Slavery: Kinfolks,") "Paul's Hill," "Homage to a Slave Girl" (also titled "Black & White Family Matters,") "My Shortpants My Mother Made for Me," "An Aria in Black and White," and "Black & White."
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Addition of November 2006 (Acc. 100531), circa
2005-2006.
Chiefly letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine, proofs of Pembroke Magazine 38, correspondence, and drafts of Shelby Stephenson's poems from 2005 to 2006, although some items may have earlier dates. The letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine and Stephenson's correspondence have been roughly sorted, and some materials may overlap. Researchers may want to look through both categories in order to find desired materials. Drafts of Stephenson's works primarily include versions of "Family Matters: Homage to a Slave Girl Named July" (also titled "Family Matters: Remembrance of a Slave Girl Named July"), but also includes "Her Name is July" and "Paul's Hill." There are also drafts of "Charles Edward Eaton: Appreciation of Art & Life."
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Addition of December 2007 (Acc. 100846), 2006-2007.
Primarily letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine 39, correspondence, and drafts of Shelby Stephenson's works 2006-2007. As with previous additions, these materials have been roughly sorted and some materials may overlap. Drafts of Stephenson's work include poems and more pages from "Family Matters: Homage to July, A Slave Girl."
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Addition of January 2009 (Acc. 101055), 2007-2008.
Primarily letters and submissions to Pembroke Magazine, correspondence, and drafts of Shelby Stephenson's works 2007-2008. As with previous additions, these materials have been roughly sorted and some materials may overlap.
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Addition of July 2013 (Acc. 101844): Papers and Audio Recordings, circa 1979-2013.
Papers and audiocassette recordings related to Shelby Stephenson. Cassettes consist of audio recordings of talks, lectures, panels, and interviews by Stephenson and others, including Lenard D. Moore, Erskine Cadwell, Mark Sofier, Mary Jarrell, and Sister Bernetta Quinn.
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Addition of July 2016 (Acc. 102617): Letters to Sanford J. Smoller, 2004-2009.
This addition consists of letters written by Shelby Stephenson to Sanford J. Smoller between 19 March 2004 and 30 September 2009.
| Box 201 |
Letters to Sanford J. Smoller, 19 March 2004-30 September 2009 #04653, Subseries: "Addition of July 2016 (Acc. 102617): Letters to Sanford J. Smoller, 2004-2009." Box 201 |
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Addition of November 2016 (Acc. 102708), 1960s-2013 (bulk 2012-2013)
Most of this addition consists of correspondence, research material, and drafts of Shelby Stephenson's works, 2012-2013, most notably, "Our World," "Adventures of a Hunting Troubleshooter," "Shub's Cooking," and "Forthwith--Lament: To Attempt a Meditation on Guns." Also included are two folders of Stephenson's correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues from 1960s to 1990s.
Box 206-208
Box 206Box 207Box 208 |
Correspondence and other materials, 1960s-2014 #04653, Subseries: "Addition of November 2016 (Acc. 102708), 1960s-2013 (bulk 2012-2013)" Box 206-208 |
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Addition of March 2017 (Acc. 103043): Correspondence and Draft Materials, 2015-2016.
Media removed from this addition is closed pending curatorial review.
This addition consists of correspondence, both traditional and email; draft materials; and materials relating to a trip to California.
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Addition of March 2018 (Acc. 103333): Correspondence, 1979-2014
This addition consists of letters written by Shelby Stephenson to Sanford J. Smoller between 1979 and 2014.
| Box 205 |
Correspondence, 1979-2014 #04653, Subseries: "Addition of March 2018 (Acc. 103333): Correspondence, 1979-2014" Box 205 |
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Items Separated
Processed by: Christopher Ryland, Kristin Olson, Rebecca Hollingsworth, Janna Sayle, Linda Sellars, Lynn Holdzkom, Michelle Mascaro, Emily O'Neill, Dawne E. Howard, Kathryn Roth, October 2001, 2004-2005, December 2006, 2007
Encoded by: Jackie Dean, 1998
Updated by: Gergana Abernathy, July 2016; Amy Morgan and Nancy Kaiser, March 2017; Lydia Neuroth and Laura Smith, March 2018; Anne Wells and Melanie Meents, June 2019; Dawne Howard Lucas, December 2021
Additions since January 1994 have not been integrated into the original deposit; researchers are encouraged to review description for all additions for pertinent materials.
Since August 2017, we have added ethnic and racial identities for individuals and families represented in collections. To determine identity, we rely on self-identification; other information supplied to the repository by collection creators or sources; public records, press accounts, and secondary sources; and contextual information in the collection materials. Omissions of ethnic and racial identities in finding aids created or updated after August 2017 are an indication of insufficient information to make an educated guess or an individual's preference for identity information to be excluded from description. When we have misidentified, please let us know at wilsonlibrary@unc.edu.
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