Hubert Creekmore Collection | General Special Collections

Born in Water Valley, Mississippi, Hiram Hubert Creekmore (1907-1966), gained notoriety as an author, poet, translator, editor, and literary critic. He spent much of his adult life in New York City, with sporadic moves back to Mississippi. His novels drew largely upon his early life in the Southern United States and often criticized the region’s history of racial discrimination. In addition, as a gay man living in the South, Creekmore faced what scholar Courtney Chartier described as the “forced heterosexuality” of the area, which is also reflected in his work

Read more about Hubert Creekmore's life as a writer, editor, translator, and literary critic.

The Creekmore Collection, donated by Mary Alice Welty White and Elizabeth Welty Thompson in 2010 and subsequently by Cynthia Walker Kennedy, is arranged into three series:1. professional/personal correspondence; 2. family correspondence; 3. ephemera (including a large collection of theatre programs collected by Creekmore).

This digital collection was made possible through the generous support of the Creekmore family. Additional physical items may be consulted on-site in the Department of Archives and Special Collections (archivesdept@olemiss.edu).

For more information about use and permissions, please consult the Hubert Creekmore Collection Introduction.

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Letter from Charles R. Bowen to Hubert Creekmore (27 December 1954)

Charles R. Bowen and Hubert Creekmore

Bowen writes on Neely Bowen Southern Farms and Plantations letterhead in Memphis, Tennessee, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He discusses moving in New York City, plans for New Year's Eve, and the London Times Literary Supplement on "American Writing - its Vigour and Characteristics," which mentions Eudora Welty and Creekmore. Bowen heard from Elizabeth Spencer, who is in Italy. He asks about Creekmore's next project and compares it to Tennessee Williams' Camino Real. He discusses Broadway shows he has seen, including Mrs. Patterson, The Pajama Game, House of Flowers, New Faces, Portrait of a Lady, Cherry Orchard, and Hedda Gabler with Geraldine Page. Includes envelope.
Letter from Earle Davis to Hubert Creekmore (28 November 1954)

Earle Davis and Hubert Creekmore

Davis writes on letterhead from the Department of English at Kansas State College in Manhattan, Kansas. He writes to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding Creekmore's previous correspondence. He states that his own study on Social Credit, Douglas, [Alfred Richard?] Orage, the New English Weekly, the Alf Venison pseudonym, Ezra Pound, and Benito Mussolini. He mentions he is finishing a textbook for Prentice-Hall and a translation for Dante's Inferno. Includes envelope.
Letter from Lehman Engel to Hubert Creekmore (24 November 1954)

Lehman Engel and Hubert Creekmore

Engel writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, to discuss the production of Shakespeare's Hamlet and changes to Fanny. Engel will be doing Hallmark [Hall of Fame?] with Maurice Evans and Judith Anderson at NBC and Ed Sullivan at CBS. Includes envelope.
Letter from Lehman Engel to Hubert Creekmore (08 November 1954)

Lehman Engel and Hubert Creekmore

Engel writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, to thank Creekmore for the opening night message. Engel says that he hopes Brother Joshua does not keep them in rehearsal for the next two years. Engel plans to share stories with Creekmore soon in person. Includes envelope.
Postcard from L. R. Lind to Hubert Creekmore (undated)

L. R. Lind and Hubert Creekmore

Postcard from L. R. Lind from Italy to Hubert Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi regarding a possible visit by Hubert to Italy in the future, as well as Creekmore's translation of Tibullus. The front of the postcard features a photograph of the Oratory of St Bernadine in Siena, Italy.
Letter from Mittie Horton Creekmore to Hubert Creekmore (14 October 1954)

Mittie Horton Creekmore and Hubert Creekmore

Mittie writes from Jackson, Mississippi to Creekmore in New York, regarding personal matters. She's returned from vacation and reports family and local news.
Letter from Mittie Horton Creekmore to Hubert Creekmore (08 October 1954)

Mittie Horton Creekmore and Hubert Creekmore

Mittie writes from Pasedena, Texas to Hubert in New York reagrding the further details of her vacation in Texas. Envelope included.
Letter from Mittie Horton Creekmore to Hubert Creekmore (03 October 1954)

Mittie Horton Creekmore and Hubert Creekmore

Mittie writes from Pasedena, Texas to Hubert in New York reagrding the details of her vacation in Texas. Envelope included.
Letter from Thomas G. Bergin to Hubert Creekmore (20 September 1954)

Thomas G. Bergin and Hubert Creekmore

Bergin writes on letterhead from the Timothy Dwight College at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. He writes to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding Creekmore's volume of Provencal poetry translations that Creekmore submitted to Yale University Press. He explains why [Norman V.?] Donaldson rejected the manuscript. Envelope included.
Letter from [C.] Dewitt [Eldridge?] to Hubert Creekmore (16 September 1954)

C. Dewitt Eldridge and Hubert Creekmore

Dewitt writes from Oceanside, New York, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He discusses plans to move and his new job. The letter is written on an invitation for Eleanor Roosevelt's seventieth birthday celebration at the Hotel Roosevelt in New York City. The invitation includes names of members of the 70th Birthday Committee. Includes envelope.
Letter from [Robert] Evett to Hubert Creekmore (16 September 1954)

Robert Evett and Hubert Creekmore

Evett writes from Washington, D.C. on New Republic letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. Evett asks Creekmore to write an article on the Citizen's Councils, and he states that his only understanding of them comes from a Jackson Clarion-Ledger article. Includes envelope.
Letter from John Valentine Schaffner to Hubert Creekmore (11 September 1954)

John Valentine Schaffner and Hubert Creekmore

Schaffner is a literary agent and writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding Creekmore's letter from 28 August 1954. He states that he took time off with Perdita [McPherson Schaffner] on Long Island before moving to Spring Valley Farm. Schaffner fired Ralph Straight and hired Kirby Congdon, who is a friend of Donald Berwick, a graduate student at Columbia University. He discusses the royalty payment for The Chain in the Heart from Random House and the New American Library. He mentions that Perdita [McPherson Schaffner] is going to Rome, Italy. Includes envelope.
Letter from John Hall Wheelock to Hubert Creekmore (09 September 1954)

John Hall Wheelock and Hubert Creekmore

Wheelock writes from New York City on Charles Scribner's Sons letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding printing a popular edition of "A Little Treasury of World Poetry." He states that the publishers can initiate a new sales campaign beginning with an advertisement in Publishers' Weekly. Includes envelope.
Letter from Levi Robert Lind to Hubert Creekmore (06 September 1954)

Levi Robert Lind and Hubert Creekmore

Lind is a professor in the Department of Latin and Greek at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. He writes on department letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He responds to Creekmore's plans to translate Albius Tibullus's poetry into English. He suggests that Creekmore send the Provencal translated poems directly to Thomas G. Bergin of the Timothy Dwight College at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. He discusses translations of Petrarch, Mediterranean poetry, and Italian poetry. Lind explains that he's hoping James Laughlin will move forward on the New Directions Publishing Corporation's Book of Latin Verse, though Laughlin was hoping to follow the style of Kenneth Rexroth's Petronius. Includes envelope.
Letter from Don Brown to Hubert Creekmore (01 September 1954)

Don Brown and Hubert Creekmore

Brown writes from San Francisco, California, to Creekmore care of Charles Scribner's Sons in New York City, regarding A Little Anthology of World Poetry. He asks where he can find Kenneth Rexroth's 100 Japanese Poems and I.W. Furukami's translations to English translations of Manyoshu poetry. Includes envelope.
Letter from Marchy Kingswell "Dinnie" Mowery to Hubert Creekmore (31 August 1954)

Mary Kingswell Mowery and Hubert Creekmore

Mary Kingswell Mowery, who signs the letter by her stage name, "Dinnie Mowery," writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. She praises "The Chain in the Heart" and states that her husband, Irl Mowery, Jr., is a producer. Includes envelope.
Letter from Levi Robert Lind to Hubert Creekmore (26 August 1954)

Levi Robert Lind and Hubert Creekmore

Lind is a professor in the Department of Latin and Greek at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. He writes on department letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He tells of his time in New Haven, Connecticut, where he saw Thomas G. Bergin of the Italian Department. Bergin is interested in seeing Creekmore's translations of Provencal poetry and possibly publishing it with Yale University Press under Norman V. Donaldson. Lind will be spending a year in Rome, Italy, on a Fulbright Grant. Includes envelope.
Envelope to Hubert Creekmore (03 August 1954)

Hubert Creekmore

Single envelope addressed to Hubert Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi.
Envelope to Hubert Creekmore (03 August 1954)

Hubert Creekmore

Single envelope addressed to Hubert Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi.
Letter from David McDowell to Hubert Creekmore (15 July 1954)

David McDowell and Hubert Creekmore

McDowell writes on Random House, Inc. letterhead from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He states that he is glad Creekmore will not be visiting Europe, because then Creekmore can begin working on his next project. He mentions that John [Valentine Schaffner] did not understand Creekmore's recent letter, and he discusses the printing plant for "The Chain in the Heart." Includes envelope.
Letter from Mittie Horton Creekmore to Hubert Creekmore (12 July 1954)

Mittie Horton Creekmore and Hubert Creekmore

Mittie writes from Jackson, Mississippi to Creekmore in Gulf Breeze, Florida regarding personal matters. She reports family and local news. Envelope included.
Letter from Clifford Wright to Hubert Creekmore (09 July 1954)

Clifford Wright and Hubert Creekmore

Wright writes from the Yaddo artists colony in Saratoga Springs, New York, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding news about Dexter and Howard. Includes envelope. More about Clifford Wright: http://arslonga.dk/clifford_wright.htm.
Letter from Ilse Barker and Kit Barker to Hubert Creekmore (23 June 1954)

Ilse Barker, Kit Barker, and Hubert Creekmore

Ilse writes from Lodsworth, Petworth, Sussex, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. Barker mentions the New American Library, Mike Terzian, Walter, Polly, Elizabeth, Elizabeth Bishop, George, Cass in Italy, and John Farrelly in Lucca. Barker discusses taking a niece to Cornwall, Kit's show in London and Elizabeth Bishop's upcoming poetry compilation. Kit signs a note at the bottom.
Letter from John Valentine Schaffner to Hubert Creekmore (07 June 1954)

John Valentine Schaffner and Hubert Creekmore

Schaffner is a literary agent and writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He includes a check for Creekmore's poem published in Poetry magazine, and he plans to speak with David McDowell about Creekmore's novel prospectus. Includes envelope.
Clipped colored drawings from Punch Magazine (undated)

Norman Thelwell and Michael Ffolkes

Clipped printed color drawing of men working in a garden [Norman Thelwell, Punch Magazine 1954 May 31]; Clipped printed color drawing of two people in a lake near a sign reading, "Echo Lake," by Michael Ffolkes.
Letter from Eudora Welty to Hubert Creekmore (undated)

Eudora Welty and Hubert Creekmore

Eudora writes to Creekmore on the back of a Punch magazine cartoon regarding personal matters
Letter from [Rosalie] Thorne McKenna to Hubert Creekmore (24 May 1954)

Rosalie Thorne McKenna and Hubert Creekmore

McKenna writes from New York City regarding Creekmore's Memphis, Tennessee, article in Holiday magazine, and she thinks Holiday magazine should publish one on Vicksburg, Mississippi. She asks if Creekmore is interested in receiving any of the photographs taken in Jackson, Mississippi.
Letter from Robert M. MacGregor to Hubert Creekmore (14 May 1954)

Robert M. MacGregor and Hubert Creekmore

MacGregor writes from New York City on New Directions Publishing Corporation letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He states that Kenneth Patchen's The Famous Boating Party has been ordered for Creekmore, and he can include a copy of Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood. He asks if Creekmore would be interested in Tennessee Williams's Hard Candy. He mentions Creekmore's essay on Memphis, Tennessee, in Holiday Magazine, and Williams's grandfather Walter Daken. He praises The Chain in the Heart and relays a conversation with Frank Taylor about the Huntington-Hartford Foundation. He states that James Laughlin is in Japan. Includes envelope.
Letter from Sue Neil to Hubert Creekmore (06 May 1954)

Sue Neill, Hubert Creekmore, and John Valentine Schaffner

Neil is secretary at Poetry magazine and writes on company letterhead from Chicago, Illinois, to Creekmore via John Schaffner in New York City. She apologizes for Creekmore's name being omitted from the May issue of the magazine for his translation of Stéphane Mallarmé's poetry.
Letter from David McDowell to Hubert Creekmore (03 May 1954)

David McDowell and Hubert Creekmore

McDowell writes on Random House, Inc. letterhead from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. He states that Langston Hughes and Vernon Bartlett won the award in 1953, and Creekmore's "The Chain in the Heart" is not eligible to be submitted for the 1954 award. He states that he is not sure when the New American Library is going to print The Chain in the Heart.
Letter from Cal Alley to Hubert Creekmore (15 April 1954)

Cal Alley and Hubert Creekmore

Alley is a cartoonist for the Commercial Appeal in Memphis, Tennessee, and writes on company letterhead. He writes to Creekmore via Holiday magazine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to praise Creekmore's article on Memphis.
Letter from N. F. Chapman to Hubert Creekmore (10 April 1954)

N. F. Chapman and Hubert Creekmore

Chapman writes on Murder, Inc. letterhead from Pecos, Texas, to Creekmore via Holiday magazine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, regarding Creekmore's story on Memphis, Tennessee. Chapman states that his family lives in Sunflower County, Mississippi, and he is interested in having a writer tell his great story of an empire along the Mississippi River and the Delta. Includes envelope.
Letter from David McDowell to Hubert Creekmore (01 April 1954)

David McDowell and Hubert Creekmore

McDowell writes on Random House, Inc. letterhead from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, conveying interest in seeing an outline for a Natchez trace book. He sent "The Faulkner Reader" to Eudora Welty. Includes envelope.
Letter from W. E. Barksdale to Hubert Creekmore (16 March 1954)

W. E. Barksdale and Hubert Creekmore

Barksdale writes on Mississippi Agricultural Industrial Board letterhead from Jackson, Mississippi, to invite Creekmore to the Governor's Luncheon. William Faulkner was also invited to attend, whose story on Mississippi will appear in Holiday magazine.
Letter from Doug Cooke to Hubert Creekmore (26 February 1954)

Doug Cooke and Hubert Creekmore

Cooke writes from New York City on Johns-Manville Sales Corporation letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He includes a book from Ben Abromson's rare book list and mentions conversations with David [McDowell?] and Gertrude. Includes envelope.
Letter from Frances Axelrath to Hubert Creekmore (22 February 1954)

Frances Axelrath and Hubert Creekmore

Axelrath writes from Hammonton, New Jersey, to Creekmore via John Valentine Schaffner in New York City, regarding "The Chain in the Heart." Includes envelope.
Postcard from Howard S. to Hubert Creekmore (15 February 1954)

Howard and Hubert Creekmore

Howard writes from Saratoga Springs, New York, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He tells Creekmore he read "The Welcome" and "The Long Reprieve," and relays greetings from Elizabeth and Polly.
Letter from David McDowell to Hubert Creekmore (12 February 1954)

David McDowell and Hubert Creekmore

McDowell writes on Random House, Inc. letterhead from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding "The Final Seas"; the Memphis, Tennessee, piece in Holiday magazine; and sales for "The Chain in the Heart." Includes envelope.
Letter from Ruth Graves to Hubert Creekmore (27 January 1954)

Ruth Graves and Hubert Creekmore

Graves writes from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Holiday magazine letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding galley proofs for Creekmore's article on Memphis, Tennessee.
Letter from Jennie D. to Hubert Creekmore (24 January 1954)

Jennie D. and Hubert Creekmore

Jennie writes from Water Valley, Mississippi, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding local news. Includes envelope.
Letter from Irita Van Doren to Hubert Creekmore (15 January 1954)

Irita Van Doren and Hubert Creekmore

Van Doren writes from New York City on New York Herald Tribune Book Review letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. Van Doren asks Creekmore to review Speed Lamkin's "The Easter Egg Hunt."
Letter from P. Gehring to Hubert Creekmore (29 December 1953)

P. Gehring and Hubert Creekmore

Gehring writes from Stuttgart, Germany, on George Washington Memorial Library letterhead to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding receipt of Creekmore's "The Chain in the Heart" for the George Washington Memorial Library.
Telegram from Charles R. Bowen to Hubert Creekmore (26 December 1953)

Charles R. Bowen and Hubert Creekmore

Bowen writes from Memphis, Tennessee, to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, regarding plans for a train ride to Jackson.
Letter from Charles R. Bowen to Hubert Creekmore (20 December 1953)

Charles R. Bowen and Hubert Creekmore

Bowen writes from New York City to Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi. He mentions Creekmore's Memphis, Tennessee, essay in Holiday magazine. He discusses his plans for New Year's Eve in Memphis, Tennessee, and a past New Year's Eve in New Orleans, Louisiana. He asks who David Smythe is. Bowen talks about New York during the holidays, hearing Hector Berlioz's L'enfance du Christ at Carnegie Hall, reading Simone de Beauvoir's "America Day by Day." Includes envelope.
Card from Vi and Paul Griffith to Hubert Creekmore (18 December 1953)

Vi Griffith, Paul Griffith, and Hubert Creekmore

The Griffiths write from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to wish Creekmore in Jackson, Mississippi, a merry Christmas.
Letter from Arland Ussher to Hubert Creekmore (16 December 1953)

Arland Ussher and Hubert Creekmore

Ussher writes from Dublin, Ireland, to follow up on a previous letter. He asks if a misprint of his own translation of Brian Merriman's "The Maiden's Complaint" can be corrected in a future edition.
Christmas card from Chuck Shrader to [Hubert Creekmore?] (undated)

Chuck Shrader and Hubert Creekmore

Christmas card from Chuck Shrader to [Hubert Creekmore?]. The front of the card features artwork.
Holiday card from Doug Nichols to Hubert Creekmore (undated)

Doug Nichols and Hubert Creekmore

Holiday card sent by Doug Nichols to Hubert Creekmore containing various news, including: receiving a copy of Hubert Creekmore's work A Little Treasury of World Poetry; Nichols poetry; and a wish for a visit.

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