Kenneth Silverman Papers
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Creator
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Abstract
Kenneth Eugene Silverman (1936-2017) was a Lithuanian-American magician, biographer and New York University professor who specialized in Colonial American literature. Silverman was the co-director of NYU's American Civilization department and writer of several biographies such as Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance. The Kenneth Silverman Papers mainly consists of photocopies of Silverman's research findings, detailed notes and annotations on notecards for his 1991 biography, Edgar A Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance.
Biographical Note
Kenneth Eugene Silverman (1936-2017) was a Lithuanian-American magician, biographer and New York University professor who specialized in Colonial American literature. After completing his PhD in English at Columbia University in 1964, Silverman taught English at New York University until his retirement in 2001. Silverman was the co-director of NYU's American Civilization department and writer of several biographies such as Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance and The Life and Times of Cotton Mather for which he won a Pulitzer Prize for Biography and a Bancroft Prize in American history in 1985. The Kenneth Silverman Papers mainly consists of photocopies of Silverman's research findings, detailed notes and annotations for his 1991 biography, Edgar A Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance.
Arrangement
This collection has been arranged into two series reflecting the different types of documents in the collection, Silverman's research photocopies and Silverman's research notes. The two series are Series I: Journal of Research Citations and Photocopies of Reasearch Files and Series II: Research Notes and Annotations.
Scope and Contents
This collection mainly consists of photocopies of Silverman's research findings, detailed notes and annotations for his 1991 biography, Edgar A Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance. The photocopied research materials give an overview of Edgar Allan Poe's personal and professional life ranging from his childhood, family history and romantic relationships with alleged fiance Sarah Elmira Royster and wife Virginia Poe. They consist of correspondence and journal entries from various manuscript and archival collections across the United States, maps of Poe's homes in various cities such as Baltimore and Philadelphia, newspaper articles and book extractions from about 1800 to the late 1890s. Silverman was also well known for his research intensive writing process. The Kenneth Silverman Papers is a reflection of this process.
Subjects
People
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright (or related rights to publicity and privacy) for materials in this collection was not transferred to New York University. Permission to use materials must be secured from the copyright holder.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Materials found in collection; provenance is unknown. The accession number associated with these materials is 2017.231.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Materials in this collection were placed in new acid-free folders and boxes. Original caption information, was transcribed onto archival folders. The collection was arranged into two series based on the original order of the records and original folder titles were retained.
Repository
Series I: Journal of research citations and photocopies of research files, Early 1800s - late 1890s, inclusive
Scope and Contents
This series contains Kenneth Silverman's journal of research citations and photocopies of his research files for his 1991 book Edgar Allen Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance. The research files are categorized by person, place and time period and materials, although mostly photocopied, are extracted from primary and secondary sources. The photocopied research materials give an overview of Edgar Allan Poe's personal and professional life ranging from his childhood, family history and romantic relationships with alleged fiance Sarah Elmira Royster and wife Virginia Poe. They consist of correspondence and journal entries from various manuscript and archival collections across the United States, maps of Poe's homes in various cities such as Baltimore and Philadelphia, newspaper articles and book extractions from about 1800 to the late 1890s.
Arrangement
This series has not been arranged by an archivist. The materials are arranged in the order in which they were received from the donor.
Journal of research citations and photocopies of research files, 1800-1890s, inclusive
Series II: Index cards of research notes and annotations, Circa 1980s, inclusive
Scope and Contents
This series contains Kenneth Silverman's index cards of research notes for his 1991 book Edgar Allen Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance. These notes are categorized, handwritten and typed in full sentence/paragraph form, including annotations and supporting quotes from the documents in his research files. Notecard categorization include notes Poe in Philadelphia and New York in 1837 as well as notes on Poe's personality traits as stated by those who knew him.
Arrangement
This series has not been arranged by an archivist. The materials are arranged in the order in which they were received from the donor.
