An Inventory of Her Papers at the Harry Ransom Center
Creator:
Kaup, Elizabeth Dewing, 1885-1966
Title:
Elizabeth Dewing Kaup Papers
Dates:
1892-1966
Extent:
8 boxes (7.42 linear feet)
Abstract:
Correspondence, diaries, literary
productions, printed material, legal and financial documents, maps, drawings, and
photographic materials make up the bulk of the collection of American novelist Elizabeth
Dewing Kaup.
Call Number:
Manuscript Collection MS-02246
Language:
English
Access:
Open for research. Researchers must create an online Research Account and agree to the Materials Use Policy before using archival materials. Part or all of this collection is housed off-site and may require up to three business days’ notice for access in the Ransom Center’s Reading and Viewing Room. Please contact the Center before requesting this material: reference@hrc.utexas.edu
Use Policies:
Ransom Center collections may contain material with sensitive or confidential information
that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers
are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable
living
individuals represented in the collections without the consent of those individuals
may have
legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy
may
arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be
deemed
highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the Ransom Center and The University
of
Texas at Austin assume no responsibility.
Restrictions on Use:
Authorization for publication is given on behalf of the University of Texas as the
owner of
the collection and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright
holder
which must be obtained by the researcher. For more information please see the Ransom
Center's Open Access and Use Policies.
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
Elizabeth Dewing Kaup Papers (Manuscript Collection MS-02246). Harry Ransom Center,
The
University of Texas at Austin.
Elizabeth Bartol Dewing Kaup was born in New York City on November 26, 1885, the daughter
of artists Maria Oakey and Thomas William Dewing. She spent her youth in New York,
Cornish,
New Hampshire, London, and Paris, but lived in New York City for most of her adult
life.
During her early literary career, Kaup wrote under the name Elizabeth Dewing. After
her
marriage to Kaup she used the name Elizabeth Dewing Kaup, and continued to do so throughout
her life.
Kaup first achieved literary success in 1909, when her book Other People’s Houses
was
published by MacMillan. MacMillan also published her next work in 1911, A Big Horse
to Ride.
These novels were followed by My Son John, published by Minton, Balch and Company
in 1926,
Eagles Fly High, published by Frederick A. Stokes Company in 1929, Not for the Meek,
published by MacMillan in 1941, Seed of the Puritan, published by Dial Press in 1943,
and
Repeat with Laughter, published by Appleton-Century-Crofts in 1948.
In addition to her novels, Kaup had numerous short stories and articles published
in
magazines which included Pagan Magazine, the Century Magazine, Writer’s Digest, Harper’s
Magazine and House and Garden. A stage play, Don’t Bother Mother, co-authored by Courtenay
Savage, was produced at the Little Theatre in New York in 1925. In addition to her
literary
work, Kaup had a short stage career following World War I, appeared on a lectured
circuit in
the 1940s, and was a New York radio personality.
Although Kaup’s popularity as a novelist waned after 1948, she continued to write
and
submit to publishers a wide variety of literary works. She died in Savannah, Georgia
in
1966.
Scope and Contents
The papers of Elizabeth Dewing Kaup contain correspondence, diaries, literary productions,
printed material, legal and financial documents, maps, drawings, and photographic
materials
related to both her personal life and her literary career. The papers are arranged
into two
series: I. Personal and II. Literary. Letters dated 1909-1966 between Kaup and her
family
and friends not directly involved in her literary career form the bulk of the materials
relating to her personal life. Five-year diaries dating from 1924 to 1958 and 1964
to 1966,
undated family photographs, legal documents dating from 1911 to 1966, and financial
documents dating from 1956-1957 relating to the estate of Kaup’s daughter, Elizabeth
Dewing
Richmond, chronicle the details of Kaup’s life as a daughter, wife, mother, and grandmother.
A small body of undated poetry, reminiscences, and typed and handwritten notes illuminate
Kaup’s close familial ties. Correspondence and printed material reveal her involvement
in
New York City politics as an electee to New York City Judicial District Conventions
in 1953,
1954, and 1958, and her association with the Theosophical Society of Savannah, Georgia
as a
member and guest speaker during the 1950s and 1960s.
Over two-thirds of the Kaup papers consist of materials relating to her literary career.
A
large body of correspondence between Kaup and her literary colleagues, agents, and
publishers detail the development of Kaup’s career from 1909-1966. Over one hundred
undated
manuscripts are contained in the collection. These include published and unpublished
novels,
short stories, poetry, stage and radio plays, and articles on a variety of subjects
including women and careers, theosophy, and gardening. Resumes, autobiographical sketches
written for publicity purposes, and typed transcriptions of radio interviews provide
insight
into how Kaup viewed her life as a professional writer. Newspaper and magazine clippings,
publisher’s catalogs, pamphlets, and flyers provide information on the critical reception
of
Kaup’s publications throughout her career. A small body of legal and financial documents,
including contracts and royalty notices, date intermittently from 1909 to 1958.
