Leah Bodine Drake papers

Abstract

The Leah Bodine Drake papers (dated 1918-1968, undated; 3 cubic feet; 6 boxes) contain scrapbooks, writings, correspondence with publishers, photographs, and notebooks which document her career as a poet.

Descriptive Summary

Title
Leah Bodine Drake papers
Date
1918-1968, undated (inclusive)
Creator
Drake, Leah Bodine
Extent
3 Cubic Feet
Subjects
Women poets, American -- 20th century.
Arrangement
Collection is arranged by format.
Finding Aid Author
Ida Sell
Preferred Citation
68m100: [identification of item], Leah Bodine Drake papers, 1918-1968, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
Repository
University of Kentucky

Collection Overview

Biography / History
Writer and poet, Leah Bodine Drake was born in Chanute, Kanas, in 1904 to oilman Thomas Hulbert Drake. She attended Hamilton College for Women and Sayre College, both in Lexington, Kentucky. She published her first volume of poetry, A Hornbook for Witches, in 1950. From 1941-1951, she worked as a drama critic for the Evansville Courier in Indiana. Her second volume, This Tilting Dust, appeared in 1956. She reviewed poetry for The Atlantic Monthly from 1957-1958. Additionally, many of her own poems were published in The Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, Commonweal, The Saturday Review, and other national magazines. She won several poetry awards, including the Borestone Mountain award (twice). Her last volume of poetry, Multiple Clay was collected and arranged after her death in 1964.
Scope and Content
The Leah Bodine Drake papers (dated 1918-1968, undated; 3 cubic feet; 6 boxes) contain scrapbooks, writings, correspondence with publishers, photographs, and notebooks which document her career as a poet. The bulk of the collection consists of scrapbooks of her poems and illustrations that accompany the writings. There are notebooks with her thoughts on art, poetry, and witchcraft. Additionally, the collection includes her correspondence with major publishers in the United States. The 1959 Marquis' Who's Who of Poetry is included in the collection because Leah Bodine Drake's entry. The collection includes two manuscripts for collections of poems, This Tilting Dust and Multiple Clay, a collection Drake worked on prior to her death. Finally, there are photographs of Leah Bodine Drake, her family and friends.

Restrictions on Access and Use

Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
Use Restrictions
The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.

Contents of the Collection

Poetry scrapbooks, 1918-1964

Scope and Contents

The Poetry scrapbooks series includes colorful albums with Leah Bodine Drake's poems handwritten by her and accompanied with illustrations perhaps found in her contemporary magazines.

Early poems, 1918-1935

  • Box 1, folder 1
To top

Domes and minarets, 1934-1941

  • Box 1, folder 2
To top

Magic Casement: children's poems, 1935-1937

  • Box 1, folder 3
To top

The Haunted Hour, 1938

  • Box 1, folder 4
To top

The Search of the Soul, 1946

  • Box 1, folder 5
To top

The Singer from the Waste, 1942-1949

  • Box 1, folder 6
To top

The Book of Elfin, 1944

  • Box 2, folder 1
To top

Troll Women and Elfin Maids, 1940

  • Box 2, folder 2
To top

The Garden of Spices, 1935-1948

  • Box 2, folder 3
To top

Mermaids' Combs and Witches' Brooms, 1935-1948

  • Box 2, folder 4
To top

The Court of Oberon, 1937-1940

  • Box 2, folder 5
To top

Black Peacocks, 1944-1946

  • Box 2, folder 6
To top

Fantasy in a Forest, 1947-1953

  • Box 3, folder 1
To top

Precarious Ground, 1949-1951

  • Box 3, folder 2
To top

A Hornbook for Witches, 1940-1948

  • Box 3, folder 3
To top

A Design for a Tapestry, 1952-1953

  • Box 3, folder 4
To top

Toadstool Town, 1952-1954

  • Box 3, folder 5
To top

The Middle Ages, 1953-1955

  • Box 3, folder 6
To top

Candle, Last the Night, 1955-1956

  • Box 3, folder 7
To top

The Fruit Uneaten, 1956

  • Box 4, folder 1
To top

The Turn of the Year, 1957-1959

  • Box 4, folder 2
To top

A Cindering of Phoenixes, 1959-1963

  • Box 4, folder 3
To top

Enchanted Sails: poems for children, 1937-1947

  • Box 4, folder 4
To top

A Record of Poetry - poems accepted for newspaper write ups and reviews, 1957-1964

  • Box 4, folder 5-6
To top

Collected published magazine poems, 1954-1964

  • Box 4, folder 7
To top

Published Poems, 1935-1951

  • Box 5, folder 1-2
To top

The Woods Grow Darker, 1962-1964

  • Box 5, folder 3
To top

Notebooks, 1964, undated

Scope and Contents

The Notebooks series includes the thoughts of Leah Bodine Drake on poetry, folklore, witchcraft and art. Her writings in the notebooks suggest some ideas that influenced her own poetry.

Notes on poetry, undated

  • Box 5, folder 4
To top

Notes on folklore and art, undated

  • Box 5, folder 5
To top

Notes on witchcraft, undated

  • Box 5, folder 6
To top

Poems in progress, 1964

  • Box 6, folder 6
To top

Correspondence with publishers, 1950-1964

Scope and Contents

The correspondence with publishers series includes many letters between Leah Bodine Drake and the magazine and book industry. She often wrote reviews of works for national and local newspapers and magazines which is reflected in the communication. Also she petitioned for her poetry to be published which is also addressed in the letters of the series.

1950-1960

  • Box 5, folder 7
To top

1964 July-October

  • Box 5, folder 8
To top

1964 November-December

  • Box 5, folder 9
To top

Miscellaneous, 1935-1968

Scope and Contents

The miscellaneous series includes various writings by and about Leah Bodine Drake, as well as, photographs. Many articles and poems were published by Drake and clippings of some are included in the series. There are two copies of the 1959 Marquis' Who's Who which recognized Drake as a leading United States poetess. A copy of her final manuscript which was never published is included in the series. Some photographs of Drake, her family and friends from around the southern united states are apart of the series. Finally, the series contains a paper written on the life and work of Leah Bodine Drake by an english student at the University of West Virginia.

Published poems clippings, 1935-1959

  • Box 6, folder 1
To top

The Supplement to Who's Who, 1959 March-May

  • Box 6, folder 2
To top

This Tilting Dust manuscript, circa 1955

  • Box 5, folder 10
To top

Multiple Clay: new and selected poems manuscript, 1964

  • Box 6, folder 3
To top

Photographs, 1914-1947

  • Box 6, folder 4
To top

"Leah Bodine Drake": paper written by Edelene Wood at University of West Virginia, 1968 April 10

  • Box 6, folder 5
To top

UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.

Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.

Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.

You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.

If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.

UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.

Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.

Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.

Requests

No items have been requested.



Submit a request for SCRC materials.




You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.

If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.