Collection Dates: [1966 -- 1972]
5 linear ft.
This document describes a collection of materials held
by the
Special Collections Department
University of Iowa Libraries
Iowa City, Iowa 52242-1420
Phone: 319-335-5921
Fax: 319-335-5900
e-mail: lib-spec@uiowa.edu
Posted to Internet:1998
Acquisition Note: Dow Mossman gave these papers to the University of
Iowa in 1971 and 2000.
Access and Restrictions:
Digital Surrogates: Except where indicated, this document describes but
does not reproduce the actual text, images and objects which make up this
collection. Materials are available only in the Special Collections
Department.
Copyright: Please read
The University of Iowa Libraries' statement on "Property Rights, Copyright Law, and Permissions to Use Unpublished
Materials"
Use of Collections: The University
of Iowa Libraries supports access to the materials, published and unpublished,
in its collections. Nonetheless, access to some items may be restricted by
their fragile condition or by contractual agreement with donors, and it may
not be possible at all times to provide appropriate machinery for reading,
viewing or accessing non-paper-based materials. Please read our Use
of Materials statement. Prior
to using collections, all readers are required to complete and submit a registration form.
Born in Cedar Rapids, Mossman studied at Coe College for two years but finished college at the University of Iowa and completed a MA from the Writers' Workshop in 1969. His novel, The Stones of Summer, was published by Bobbs-Merrill and Popular Library in 1972.
This collection consists of papers from Mossman's academic career, early drafts of The Stones of Summer and materials related to or used in the book, and the heavily edited typescript used to typeset the published version. The papers have been left largely as foldered by Mossman, and such Mossman notes on folders as existed have been transcribed to this inventory. The papers have been placed in chronological order as best that could be determined; it is unlikely, however, that a full chronological sequence has been established, particularly for the many overlapping drafts of portions of the novel, most of which were created in a relatively brief period 1969-1971. It may be possible to further order the materials by carefully noting the author's general method of composition: a handwritten draft, typically marked up, on loose sheets, often on varied kinds of paper; the annotated draft transferred to a fair text in a note or theme book, often again annotated; then typescript, usually with carbon copies. The typescripts in some cases undergo mutliple edits and retypings.
Inventory
Box 1: Folder
1. "Landmark of Western Iowa Dow City Founder's Home, Imposing Residence Overlooks Valley," Omaha (Nebraska) World-Hearld, February 8, 1942. Clipping.
----. "Dow City was one of First County Settlements," a article about the town in Crawford County, Iowa, founded by S.A. Dow in the 1850s. His son (also S.A.) and dauther-in-law, Dow Mossman's great-great-grandparents, are pictured. Dennison (Iowa) Bulletin, June 27, 1952. Clipping.
----. "Wilson Hounds Leave for Eastern Races," an article on Art Wilson's purebred greyhounds Dennison Bulletin, May 16, 1946. Clipping.
2. Mossman notes, notebooks, typescripts and ditto sheets created as an undergraduate. Among other papers are "Goethe's Faust as seen through Night: Faust's Study (i)" (November 1964) for European Classics in Transition; "The Tin Art of Norman Mailer" (May 1965) for Representative Works Since 1900; "Sartoris by William Faulkner" (May 1965) for Understanding Fiction; "England's Road to Social Security by Karl de Schweinitz" (May 1965) for English History; includes short poems and some drawings.
3. ----. mostly holograph, but including "In Stillness the Willow Breaks" (February 1965) for Mark Strand's Undergraduate Poetry Workshop.
4. ----. includes "Labor, Sweat, Tears Part of Learning to Write," Cedar Rapids Gazette, July 21, 1965. Clipping.
5. ----. including several poems for the 1964 Undergraduate Poetry Workshop; "Where in the Author of the History is Seen to be a bit of an arse in at least one Modern Eye: that is, if any such Value-Judgement will be Permitted by the Powers that Be" (November 1965) for English Novel Defoe to Austen; "Dinesen and Orwell: Style and Meaning" (January 1966) for British Literature 1914-1945.
6. ----. including "John Donne and Dylan Thomas" (December 1966) for Dr. Dunlap's Metaphysical Poetry; "In Defense of Myself - A Demonstration of a Certain Critical Presumption" (May 1967) for Mr. Santos' Form of Fiction; "Don Keyoote at the Clavier," "The Red Balloon" (ccTms).
7. Two steno books containing draft poetry.
8. Two notebooks with prose drafts and notes.
9. "An Odyessy into the American Dream." Holograph story and 3 ditto copies.
Box 2
1. Draft stories and poems including "A Children's H Bomb" (ccTMs), "An Odyssey into the American Dream" (ccTMs, 2 copies, and ditto); "Stacellfasscel" (ccTMs and ditto); and "When August Came".
2. ----. including "Black Rain (ccTMs); "A Children's Tale" (ccTMs); "When August Came" (ditto, dated April 5, 1965).
3. ----. including "The Bridge" {ccTMs)," "Chiasma X," "The Red Balloon" (ccTMs).
4. ----. "Stacellfasscel" (ribbon copy dated February 1965; and ditto dated March 1965).
5. ----. "When August Came (ribbon copy dated Mach 1965, ccTMs, and ditto).
6. ----. including "The Red Balloon (ccTMs); "Black Rain" (ccTMs); "Return of the Sad Cafe" (poem; ccTMs).
7. ----. including "The Red Balloon" (Ribbon copy); outline for Stone of Day, "Chiasma" (Ditto)
8. ----. "Fragments from the novel The Glass Porch". 2nd ccTMs for prologue, "When August Came," "The Town," "The Porch," "A Ten Penny Odyssy into the American Dream."
9. "When August Came" (ditto); with rejection letter and envelope dated January 1966 from The Georgia Review.
10. Le Beau Pétard, An anthology of prose and poety from the younger writers of the Iowa Workshops (Iowa City, May 1966). Mossman edited the volume, contribued "When August Came" and poems. Two copies.
11. 3 clippings dated June 1967 regarding Mossman's winning a $3,000 national fellowship from the Book-of-the-Month Club; a 4th clipping (undated) notes the graduation of Anne Mossman from William Woods College, Fulton, Mo.
12. Faith Sale, ed. New Writing: the Book of the Month Club College English Association Award Anthology (New York: Washington Square Press, [1967]. Mossman's contribution, p104-124 is "From The Glass Porch: The Notebooks of Dawes Williams, American Yeoman, 1942-1962".
Box 3
1. "Braun Daniel's Furious Spring" (ditto, with additional notes); folder labeled "The Cold Spring of Draun Daniel *The last scene in Gunner's Christmas card" containing notes; notebook containing fair copy.
2. The Stones of Summer, A Novel (TMs, 174p, with thesis statement for MA in the Writer's Wokshop on cover page). Removed from a box labeled "Early Draft of Part I, A Stone of Day". p. 1-80.
3. ----. p[81]-140.
4. Miscellaneous pages, TMs.
5. "Elements" [i.e., an outline] of A Stone of Day; notebooks labeled "Structural Notes I, II, III" and "Stone of Night 1954-1961."
6. Fair copy notebooks numbered 1, 2, 3. First begins "Peanuts, popcorn, cracker-jacks, a bucket of rags...." [A varient beginning of the novel].
7. Fair copy notebooks numbered 4 and 5. #4 begins "3. / He lay in the moon of the sunroom dreaming, and in the redfog of his dream he and Ronnie Crown and Johnny B. Harper once again walked through, like foriegn stickmen..."; #5 begins "Michael was a mute. He said nothing...."
8. Fair copy notebook with clear text of Part II, chapter 2, beginning "There was a bulldozer in Ratship Rawlings front yard...."
----. Notebook with various notes and texts including a fragment of part II of the novel.
9. Fair copy notebook with clear text beginning "I've always had this grudge against being born..."
----. Notebook beginning with Part III, prologue.
Box 4
1. Fair copy notebook with titlepage "Handsaw Williams: or; the Witch's Stone; or, Portrait of a Mad-Indian, or..." etc.
2. Notebook with cover title "An Eulogy delivered from a room; The Witch's Stones: or Handsaw Williams, ....." etc.
3. Miscellaneous drafts on various papers, mostly handwritten. [Portions used in Part I?].
4. ----.
5. ----. Another collection in a clamp binder and containing several pieces from Workshop typings. Laid in: a photograph of Mossman at his desk, smoking a cigarette and writing.
6. "Old Elements in old Structure, Part I;" Towards a new II;" "Old Elements Part II;" "A New Opening for III;" Old Elements Part III." TMs.
7. Portion of Part I, TMs paged 1-79.
8. Draft of Part I, annotated ccTMs, pages numbered 1-157.
Box 5
1. Portions of Part I, annotated ccTMs paged 1-174.
2. Draft of Part II, ccTMs, unnumbered pages.
3. ----. Mixed TMs and ccTMs, pages numbered 1-149.
4. ----. Notebook with fair copy of "The Porch," Part II, ccTMs, pages not numbered
5. Early full draft of the novel, TMs without annotation, pages unnumbered, Part I [removed from a springback binder].
Box 6
1. ----. Part II [removed from spingback binder]
2. ----. Part III [removed from springback binder].
3. Early draft of the narrative section of Part III. Pages hand numbered 40-133, additional pages with typed numbers.
4. Steno notebook labeled "Handsaw Williams Notes. Save."
5. Ledger journal titled "Notebook #1 1969: Dawes Williams' Journals (entitled simply: September 1, 1939)". [Journal is quoted in Part III, Stones of Summer].
6. Handsaw Williams: Chinese Mirrors, a Novel by Dawes Williams. TMS on tissue stock, 118 (+) pages. [Removed from a springback binder].
Box 7
1. "First draft of what became "notebooks" Part III". ccTMs (with some parts of TMs of Parts I and II).
2. Draft of Parts I and II, mixed TMs and ccTMS, variously paged.
3. Draft of Part II, TMs, hand numbered pages 1-221.
4. Draft of Part III, ccTMs, pages numbered 1-179.
5. ----. another draft of Part III, mixed TMS and ccTMs, variously paged.
Box 8
1. Part I autograph drafts and notes and typed pages removed from earlier drafts; left as bundled by Mossman..
2. ----. Part II.
3. ---- Part III.
Box 9
1. --- Rough autograph drafts of portions of Part III.
2. "Some less than scrap from rewrite 1969-1970, III".
3. TMs edited by Betty Kelly (Bobbs-Merrill) and used to typeset the first edition of Stones of Summer. Part I, pages numbered in red 1-248.
4. ----. Part II, pages numbered 248a-508.
5. ----. Part III, pages numbered 509-655.
Box 10
1. ----. Part III, pages numbered 656-811.
2. "Correspondence with Mrs. [Betty] Kelly (Editor - Bobbs Merrill) concerning revisions of Stones of Summer." Also includes other notes, drafts and excised pages, among them the first page of a typed letter from Mossman to John Frederick.
3. "Deleted pages and retyped pages" wih cover note: "Dow, this is what has been deleted from the final mss. Betty." [Since the pages bear typed numbers (and often hand-written numbers), it may be possible to reinsert them in the TMs to "restore" the text as submitted for publication].
4. The Stones of Summer (Bobbs-Merrill, 1972). In shrinkwrap, as issued.
5. Clipping about The Stones of Summer and Mossman
Items related to "Stone Reader" and the subsequent re-issue of The Stones of Summer, added to the collection in 2010
6. "Stone Reader" clippings
7. "Stone Reader" fliers
