Scope and Contents
The VERSEtility BOOKS Records consist of correspondence, financial papers, computer disks, and other administrative files relating to the bookselling business of VERSEtility BOOKS. Correspondence contains letters between Jacob and poets regarding their signed books and subsequent sales. A small portion of the correspondence relates to the appraisal and sale of poets' personal libraries to various universities. Financial papers and administrative files include sales records, bills, invoices, and correspondence regarding the financial operation of the business. Nine computer disks store VERSEtility BOOKS catalogs and advertisements for Poetry Magazine.
Dates
- 1985-2001
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Box 7 (computer disks): Restricted fragile material. Reference copies of electronic files may be requested. Consult Access Services for further information.
Conditions Governing Use
The VERSEtility BOOKS Records are 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
Purchased from Robert Jacob on the Eugene G. O'Neill Memorial Fund, 2002.
Arrangement
Organized into two groupings: I. May 2002 Acquisitions, 1985-2001. II. October 2002 Acquisition, 1986-2001.
Extent
5.05 Linear Feet (7 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The VERSEtility BOOKS Records consist of correspondence, financial papers, computer disks, and other administrative files relating to the bookselling business of VERSEtility BOOKS. Correspondence contains letters between Jacob and poets regarding their signed books and subsequent sales. A small portion of the correspondence relates to the appraisal and sale of poets' personal libraries to various universities. Financial papers and administrative files include sales records, bills, invoices, and correspondence regarding the financial operation of the business. Nine computer disks store VERSEtility BOOKS catalogs and advertisements for Poetry Magazine.
VERSEtility BOOKS
VERSEtility BOOKS was a book selling business founded by Bob Jacob in Connecticut. Prior to its founding, Jacob and his wife, Betty Jacob, owned Brook Farm Inn in Lenox, Massachusetts, an inn they dedicated to poetry by housing poets free of charge and hosting poetry events. In 1992, they sold the farm and moved to Connecticut. VERSEtility BOOKS's mission was the sale of signed copies of poets' books and donation of most profits to the poets. Through relationships with a few poets, Jacob was asked to appraise their private book collections and broker sales of these collections to universities. VERSEtility BOOKS ceased operation in 2001 and Jacob turned his attention to reading poetry to cancer support groups and volunteering his time at the Connecticut Hospice Hospital in Branford and other hospitals.
Processing Information
Collections are processed to a variety of levels, depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived research value, the availability of staff, competing priorities, and whether or not further accruals are expected. The library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections, and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit.
The collection received preliminary processing at the time of acquisition. Further organization, rehousing, and description were carried out in 2013.
The collection is comprised of material formerly classed as: Uncat MSS 291 and Uncat MSS 376. Various acquisitions associated with the collection have not been merged and organized as a whole. Each acquisition is described separately in the contents list below, according to month and year of acquisition.
Information included in the Description of Papers note and Collection Contents section is drawn from information supplied with the collection and from an initial survey of the contents. Folder titles appearing in the contents list below are often based on those provided by the creator or previous custodian. Titles have not been verified against the contents of the folders in all cases. Otherwise, folder titles are supplied by staff during basic processing.
This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
- Title
- Guide to the VERSEtility BOOKS Records
- Author
- by Beinecke staff
- Date
- January 2013
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository
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.