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When first
asked what the title of my preface was going to be, I immediately
thought “In the Company of Strangers” –
speaking a bit tongue-in-cheek, playing off the title of the
exhibit, but there was a serious side to that title as well.
When I started working with the University of Tulsa in 1987, many
of the individuals discussed in this catalog were strangers to
me. I had heard their names and knew of their work, but they had
not become a part of my daily life as they have now. They were,
to all intents and purposes, strangers. And I was completely
unaware of how quickly and dramatically that all would
change.
It was the
day before the University was scheduled to close down for the
Christmas holiday in December 1987, and I had been working at the
University for just over two months. Sid Huttner, the former
curator, had already left and I decided to send the rest of the
staff home as well to get an early start on their holiday. thus
I was alone when the call came in from the U. S. customs Agency
wanting to know if the Department of Special collections had
recently accepted a large shipment from England. Yes, we had!
Just days before the first installment of the Richard Ellmann
papers had arrived in twenty-two large shipping cartons. I was
then informed the shipment had not cleared Customs and by
accepting the shipment I was in violation of Federal law. I
could be arrested – and jailed. While I didn’t want
to spend my holiday in jail, I suspected Ellmann’s papers
might be worth that sacrifice. I’m thankful I didn’t
have to spend my Christmas in jail that year, and I wasn’t
wrong about the papers. Having Richard Ellmann’s research
notes, his correspondence, and his library here at the University
of Tulsa and available for students and scholars alike has been
well worth the initial terror of that phone call so long
ago.
By the time
of the above incident, The University of Tulsa’s commitment
to James Joyce studies was well into its 25th year.
One result of that commitment has been the development of one of
the world’s premier James Joyce collections, housed within
McFarlin Library’s Department of Special Collections. To
be accurate, the Joyce collection should be described as a
collection of collections; an assemblage of the libraries, papers
and single items from individuals, known and unknown, who
influenced Joyce, his writing and its reception in the world, and
who in turn were influenced by him. Included within this
assemblage are key figures such as Harriet Shaw Weaver, whose
Joyce collection was acquired in 1977, the same year the
University acquired the unnumbered press copy of the 1922
Shakespeare and Company Ulysses, inscribed to
Joyce’s Aunt Josephine and warmly signed
“Jim”. Another key figure is Edmund Wilson, whose
library of approximately 10,000 volumes was acquired in 1976, the
same year that the 8,000-volume library and personal papers of
Cyril Connolly were acquired. In 1984 the University was very
fortunate to be able to acquire the Paul and Lucie Leon
Collection, which includes the annotated final page proofs of
Finnegans Wake among its other treasures. In 1985 the
University acquired at auction the Beach-Gilvarry manuscript of
Joyce’s Chamber Music poems. This autograph
manuscript of thirty-three of the thirty-six poems published in
1907 is the earliest known set of manuscripts for the suite. In
1986 the papers of Rebecca West, along with several hundred books
from her library, were acquired. And then in 1987, the papers
and library of Richard Ellmann were acquired.
Acquisitions
continued apace, single items, small groups of books or
materials, and then in June 2002, it was a tremendous sense of
pride and accomplishment that I coordinated the acquisition of
the broadside, Gas From a Burner. While the broadside is
not the most important work in the Joyce canon, or our most
spectacular acquisition, it was an item that had eluded our grasp
over the years, for a variety of reasons. To finally add a copy
to the collection came with great satisfaction. And I was
pleased that it had happened on my watch.
But it would
be wrong to look at the acquisition of this broad side as the
culmination point of forty years’ worth of collecting
effort. Rather it should be viewed as an indication that the
University of Tulsa’ commitment and dedication to James
Joyce studies is still strong and vibrant. Through the
generosity of our donors, the vision of our faculty present and
former, and the support of our administration, The University of
Tulsa has met the challenge of building a first class James Joyce
research collection, and we will continue to meet that challenge
with steadfast determination and commitment. We’ve come a
long way since Tom Staley, then a young Assistant Professor of
English, taught the first class on Joyce and founded the James
Joyce Quarterly in 1963. But now is not the time to rest on
our laurels. Our goal is to assemble a complete collection of
James Joyce publications, wherever they appeared. To this end I
have begun work to identify our holdings of Joyce’s
periodical appearances, and to acquire missing items where
needed. I was thrilled to discover within the Richard Ellmann
papers a near-complete set of Dana (lacking only one
issue); we have already located a complete set of the
Transatlantic Review (Paris edition), a complete set of
Two Worlds Monthly, and issues of The Egoist. It
is my sincere hope that this catalog will provide a glimpse into
our accomplishments to date, and a sense of where we are now
directing our efforts.
It is a
profound experience to be the curator of such an amazing
collection, but that experience pales beside that of sharing it
with others. The moments when I can witness and share in the
excitement of a student seeing for the first time a pristine
signed copy of the 1922 Shakespeare and company Ulysses,
or a scholar discovering that we have the Finnegans Wake
page proofs thought to be lost, make the job worth the, at times,
less-satisfying administrative responsibilities that come with
such a position. The moments when a scholar finds that elusive
piece of information and exclaims unabashedly in the Reading
Room, startling others but eager to share their find, remind me
why I do what I do. It is what I call the ‘Ah ha!’
of scholarship, and it’s worth the price of administration
every time!
I first met
Stacey Herbert and Luca Crispi in October 2001. I was impressed
with their knowledge, their enthusiasm and their excitement each
time they discovered the unexpected in Tulsa’s
collections. It has been a pleasure getting to know them and
working with them to produce what you now are reading. Through
their unflagging efforts and on our behalf, I am able to share
with the world at large a collection in which I take tremendous
pride.
I have had
nearly sixteen years of sharing in the triumphs of our users,
sixteen years of seeing the collections grow, of holding in my
hands amazing books and letters and so much more. It would be
easy to become jaded to the wonders of such and outstanding
research collection, but the scholars keep it real. They remind
me, in case I’ve forgotten, what we have and remind me that
it is all part of the puzzle, each piece tells a story. When you
work with a collection you develop an intimacy with the
individuals whose lives are in some way illuminated within the
pages of their books, in the boxes and folders of aging papers.
They become your friends. You learn of their hopes and dreams,
triumphs and tribulations. They are no longer strangers, just a
name in a by-line. The collections, the individuals whose lives
and works are illuminated within, our students, faculty and the
scholars who come to Tulsa are all part of a whole. And now I
can truly say I’m “In Good Company”.
Lori N.
Curtis
Head of Special Collections and Archives
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