Logan Pearsall Smith Papers

Identity elements

Reference code

US TxSaT SC.024

Level of description

Collection

Title

Logan Pearsall Smith Papers

Date(s)

  • 1887-1951 (Creation)

Extent

Three boxes totaling 1.5 linear feet.

Name of creator

(1865-1946)

Biographical history

Logan Pearsall Smith was born October 18, 1865 in Millville, New Jersey. His parents, Robert Pearsall Smith (1827-1898) and Hannah Whitall Smith (1832-1911), were prominent Quaker evangelists. He had two sisters: Alys Pearsall Smith, suffrage activist and first wife of philosopher Bertrand Russell, and art historian Mary Berenson. Smith attended the William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia, Haverford College, Harvard College, and the University of Berlin, before graduating from Balliol College, Oxford, in 1891. Smith remained in England after graduating, and became a British subject in 1913. For most of his life he resided in Chelsea, sharing a home with his mother and his sister Alys. While popular in British literary and social circles, Smith never married. He died in London on March 2, 1946, at the age of 80 years old.

A "man of letters," Smith published his first book, "The Youth of Parnassus and Other Stories" in 1895. He followed this work with three issues of a review entitled "The Golden Urn," printed in 1897 and 1898. His first book of aphorisms, "Trivia," was privately printed in 1902, and republished in 1918. Subsequent volumes of "More Trivia" and "Afterthoughts" were published in 1921 and 1931, respectively. Other works by Smith include "The Life and Letters of Sir Henry Wotton" (1907), "The English Language" (1912), "Words and Idioms" (1925), "The Prospects of Literature" (1927), "On Reading Shakespeare" (1933), "Reperusals and Re-Collections" (1936), the autobiographical "Unforgotten Years" (1938), "Milton and His Critics" (1940), and "A Religious Rebel" (published posthumously, 1949), an edited volume of his mother's letters. Smith also edited several anthologies. In 1919, Smith founded the Society for Pure English with poet Robert Bridges, and penned several tracts for that group.

Content and structure elements

Scope and content

The Logan Pearsall Smith Papers consist primarily of Smith's correspondence, manuscripts, and research notes. Smith corresponded with notable scholars and socialites of his era. Correspondence in this collection is arranged in three series: Series 1 contains correspondence from Smith, Series 2 contains correspondence received by Smith, and Series 3 contains correspondence between other individuals, related to Smith or his estate. Series 4 contains manuscripts and notes composed by Smith, including draft essays, word lists, notes on other authors, and draft anthologies. For this series, each folder level record in the finding aid includes a description of the manuscript material. Finally, the collection includes one folder of newspaper clippings and one folder of business cards.

System of arrangement

This collection maintains the arrangement created when first processed in 1987. Correspondence is arranged in three series based on author and recipient. Within each series, correspondence is arranged alphabetically by last name, and then chronologically . Series 4 consists of manuscripts and notes composed by Logan Pearsall Smith; the order of these materials was determined during the initial 1987 processing. Series 5 contains materials that do not fit into the categories of correspondence or manuscripts, arranged by format.

Conditions of access and use elements

Conditions governing access

This collection is open and available to the public for research in the Special Collections & Archives reading room. The materials are non-circulating.

Physical access

Technical access

Conditions governing reproduction

The materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code). The materials are available for personal, educational, and scholarly use. It is the responsibility of the researcher to locate and obtain permission from the copyright owner or his or her heirs for any other use, such as reproduction and publication.

Languages of the material

  • English

Scripts of the material

    Language and script notes

    Finding aids

    Acquisition and appraisal elements

    Custodial history

    Immediate source of acquisition

    Manuscript materials purchased from Bertram Rota, Ltd., 1968. Accompanying rare book collection donated by George P. Isbell, 1968.

    Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information

    Accruals

    Related materials elements

    Existence and location of originals

    Existence and location of copies

    Related archival materials

    Logan Pearsall Smith Collection at the Harry Ransom Center: https://norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/findingAid.cfm?eadid=01012
    Logan Pearsall Smith Papers at Kent State University: https://www.library.kent.edu/special-collections-and-archives/logan-pearsall-smith-papers
    Logan Pearsall Smith Papers at the Library of Congress: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms010079

    Related descriptions

    Notes element

    General note

    In addition to the Logan Pearsall Smith Papers, Trinity University Special Collections & Archives holds an extensive collection of Smith's published works. These titles are available via the library catalog; a detailed bibliography is also available at https://libguides.trinity.edu/ld.php?content_id=63336420.

    Specialized notes

    • Citation: Logan Pearsall Smith Papers. Coates Library Special Collections & Archives, Trinity University (San Antonio, Texas).

    Alternative identifier(s)

    Description control element

    Rules or conventions

    Sources used

    Archivist's note

    Collection processed by Katherine Denshaw Pettit, September 1987. Reprocessed by Colleen Hoelscher, September 2021. Finding aid created by Colleen Hoelscher, September 2021.

    Access points

    Place access points

    Name access points

    Genre access points

    Accession area