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Charles A. Fenton papers

 Collection
Call Number: YCAL MSS 579

Scope and Contents

The collection consists primarily of material created and accumulated by Charles Fenton in the course of researching and writing books on Stephen Vincent Benét and Ernest Hemingway. Research material includes correspondence about Benét and Hemingway, Fenton's notes about their lives and careers, and index cards with which Fenton organized his research. In addition to research on Benét and Hemingway, the collection contains a smaller amount of research material on the topic of "Writer in America" and the history of The National Institute of Arts and Letters, as well as notes regarding Fenton's World War II anthology and notes on American writers. The collection also contains professional and personal papers, including manuscripts and teaching materials from Fenton's years as a lecturer at Duke University.

Dates

  • 1866 - 1965
  • Majority of material found within 1918 - 1960

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The materials are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

The Charles A. Fenton Papers is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Charles A. Fenton, Jr., 1961.

Arrangement

Organized into four series: I. Stephen Vincent Benét Research Material, 1866-1960. II. Ernest Hemingway Research Material, 1929-1959. III. Other Research Material, circa 1955. IV. Personal and Professional Papers, 1946-1965.

Associated Materials

Charles Andrews Fenton Papers. Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. MS 206.

Extent

21.1 Linear Feet (38 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Catalog Record

A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog

Persistent URL

https://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/beinecke.fenton

Additional Description

Overview

The collection consists primarily of material created and accumulated by Charles Fenton in the course of researching and writing books on Stephen Vincent Benét and Ernest Hemingway. Research material includes correspondence about Benét and Hemingway, Fenton's notes about their lives and careers, and index cards with which Fenton organized his research. In addition to research on Benét and Hemingway, the collection contains a smaller amount of research material on the topic of "Writer in America" and the history of The National Institute of Arts and Letters, as well as notes regarding Fenton's World War II anthology and notes on American writers. The collection also contains professional and personal papers, including manuscripts and teaching materials from Fenton's years as a lecturer at Duke University.

Charles A. Fenton (1919-1960)

Charles A. Fenton, author and educator, was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1919. He is the author of The Apprenticeship of Ernest Hemingway: The Early Years (1954) and Stephen Vincent Benét: The Life and Times of an American Man of Letters (1958). He also edited The Best Short Stories of World War II: An American Anthology (1957) and Selected Letters of Stephen Vincent Benét (1960). He taught English at Yale from 1948 to 1958, and at Duke University from 1958 until his death in 1960.

Processing Information

The collection received preliminary processing at or around the time of acquisition. Further rehousing and description were carried out in 2012.

Formerly classed as Za Fenton.

Subjects

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the Charles A. Fenton Papers
Author
by Andrea Benefiel and Jennifer Meehan
Date
2012
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository

http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/
Contact:
P. O. Box 208330
New Haven CT 06520-8330 US
(203) 432-2977

Location

121 Wall Street
New Haven, CT 06511

Opening Hours

Access Information

The Beinecke Library is open to all Yale University students and faculty, and visiting researchers whose work requires use of its special collections. You will need to bring appropriate photo ID the first time you register. Beinecke is a non-circulating, closed stack library. Paging is done by library staff during business hours. You can request collection material online at least two business days in advance of your visit, using the request links in Archives at Yale. For more information, please see Planning Your Research Visit and consult the Reading Room Policies prior to visiting the library.

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