Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Clyde Morton Stallings letters
Abstract
The Clyde Morton Stallings letters (dated 1939-1996, undated; 0.68 cubic feet; 2 boxes) comprise letters that document the experiences of Clyde Stallings in college in North Carolina during World War II and the experiences of gay men across the United States in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Clyde Morton Stallings letters
- Date
- 1939-1996, undated (inclusive)
- Creator
- Stallings, Clyde Morton, 1920-2007
- Extent
- 0.68 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Letters.
- Education, Higher.
- Correspondence.
- Gays -- Social life and customs
- North Carolina
- Universities and colleges.
- Travel.
- World War, 1939-1945.
- Travel -- Personal narratives.
- AIDS (Disease)
- AIDS activists.
- Death
- Gay community
- Gay rights.
- Gay couples
- Maryland
- North Carolina
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged chronologically for early letters and materials, the rest is alphabetical by sender last name. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.0071: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Clyde Morton Stallings letters, 1939-1996, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Clyde Stallings (1920-2007) went to Louisburg College (Louisburg, North Carolina), a preparatory school, in 1940 before entering college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1941. He was drafted into the United States military during World War II in 1942. In his adult years, he worked as an interpreter in Colonial Williamsburg and for the Washington Evening Star. Many of the letters to Stallings were sent from his Louisburg College roommate, Matt Compton McDade (1922-2002). McDade also went to college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he majored in journalism. He was drafted into the United States military in 1943 and wrote for the Stars and Stripes in Cairo, Egypt. After the war, McDade continued his journalism career, writing for the Richmond Times Dispatch and Washington Post. He also worked for the U.S. State Department in 1947 at its London bureau.
- American Letters collector Wade Hall (1934-2015) was a native of Union Springs, Alabama. Starting in 1962, he lived in Louisville, where he taught English and chaired the English and Humanities/Arts programs at Kentucky Southern College and Bellarmine University. He also taught at the University of Illinois and the University of Florida. He held degrees from Troy State University (B.S.), the University of Alabama (M.A.), and the University of Illinois (Ph.D.). He served for two years in the U.S. Army in the mid-fifties. Dr. Hall was the author of books, monographs, articles, plays, and reviews relating to Kentucky, Alabama, and Southern history and literature. His most recent books include A Visit with Harlan Hubbard; High Upon a Hill: A History of Bellarmine College; A Song in Native Pastures: Randy Atcher's Life in Country Music; and Waters of Life from Conecuh Ridge.
- Scope and Content
- The Clyde Morton Stallings letters (dated 1939-1996, undated; 0.68 cubic feet; 2 boxes) comprise letters that document the experiences of Clyde Stallings in college in North Carolina during World War II and the experiences of gay men across the United States in the late 1980s and 1990s. The incoming letters to Stallings are from university friends, especially from Louisburg College (Louisburg, North Carolina) roommate, Matt McDade; the letters detail the lives and friendships of young men coming of age in North Carolina during World War II, both on and off campus. Topics include dating and dancing in McDade's small North Carolina hometown of Cedar Grove; McDade's anxieties about being drafted; and his belief that the war marked the end of their "carefree" days as young adult boys. The collection also includes Stallings' sketches of his Louisburg College friends and dorm room; an issue of the student newspaper; and a letter Stallings wrote to collector Wade Hall in 1988 explaining the seemingly intimate nature of the letters.
- Later in life, Stalling's friends write to him from places including Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, Florida, North Carolina, Colorado, Texas, and England. The letters are arranged by sender's last name and where there are two names together it is a couple with the more frequent author listed first. The letters are sent to Clyde from a variety of friends, those he knows through school, ones he met while traveling, past landlords and coworkers, and others through professional and social organizations. Many of the letters cover similar topics, including the AIDS epidemic, intra- and international trips taken, reminiscing on college memories, and employment and retirement updates. Some letters discuss books being written and published, having accepting family members, and the gay scene in the 1970s. Many of the letter authors are acquainted with each other and discuss the same topics and people frequently, including the break-up of different couples, money issues with Clyde and other mutual friends, and the trouble many with an organization called TRIANGLES. Prominent letter authors include Wade Hall, Gregg Swem, Matt McDade, Normal Bowles, Frank Cannon, and Spencer Tucker.
- The Clyde Morton Stallings letters collection is part of the Wade Hall Collection of American letters, which includes correspondence and diaries from all over North America covering the time period of the Civil to Korean Wars. The materials were collected by Wade Hall and document everyday men and women.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- The 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
Letters to Clyde Stallings, 1939
Letters to Clyde Stallings, 1940
Letters to Clyde Stallings, 1941
Letters to Clyde Stallings, 1942
Outgoing Letters to Wade Hall, 1988
Sketches of Louisburg College dorm and roommates, 1940
Whispering Oaks Louisburg College student newspaper, 1940 February 9
Letter to Clyde Stallings from "all your friends in Virginia", 1984 January 13
Letters from Andrews, Wes, 1995
Letters from Barlow, William and David Powell, 1992
Letters to Barlow, William and David Powell, 1995-1996
Letters from Bescher, Art, 1995
Letters from Blickwedel, Dana F., 1994-1995
Letters from Bowles, Norman F. and Jim Hueholt, 1993-1995
Letters from Cannon, Frank "Clara Bow", 1992-1996
Letters from Capek, Richard, 1995-1996
Letters from Carr, Virginia Spencer, 1985-1989
Letters from Couch, Philip, 1992-1995
Letters from D, Rudd, 1991
Letter from Dillman, Archie, Jr., undated
Letters from Duncan, Richard, 1995-1996
Letters from Dyer, Iain and Glenn Hunter, 1993-1994
Letters from Hall, Wade, 1993-1996
Letters from Halstead, Raymond, 1985, 1995-1996
Letters from Haney, Hal, 1990-1996
Letters from Hill, John "Jack", 1995-1996
Letter from Hockenbury, Ken, 1995 September 26
Letter from Howard, William, 1994 February 27
Letters from Jerritt, James, 1994
Letter from Koffler, Jerry, 1991
Letters from McDade, Jean, 1992-1993
Letters from McDade, Matt, 1991-1996
Letters from Mooney, John and Robert Bell, 1991-1993
Letters from Morris, Harold, 1993-1995
Letter from Pease, Gerry, 1990 December 10
Letters from Platt, Jeanne, 1994-1995
Letters from Porter, Bill, 1995-1996
Letters from Rawnsley, George, 1992-1996
Letter from Rollins, Chris, 1994 December 5
Letters from Sanders, Roberta, 1994-1995
Letters from Smith, Allen R., 1994-1995
Letters from Springelt, Lee and Roberth Hathaway, 1994-1995
Letter from Stuart, Michael, 1990 December 15
Letters from Swem, Greg, III, 1993-1996
Letters from Truax, David, 1994, undated
Letters from Tucker, Spencer, 1989-1994
Letters from Vranesh, Mark, 1993-1996
Letters from Wann, Georgianna, 1993-1994
Letters from Wirick, Roy, 1994-1995
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Table of Contents
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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.
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.
