Lowry Wimberly, Papers
Title: Lowry Wimberly,
Papers
Creator: Wimberly, Lowry
Charles, 1890-1959
Dates: 1877-1982
Quantity: 8
boxes (4.0 linear ft.)
Collection Number: RG
12-10-50
Language: English
Restrictions: Due to privacy laws and donor restrictions, items in Box 8, Folders 2 and 12 are restricted.
Access to these materials must be requested in writing.
Access and Use: For information on access or copyright, please see our guidelines or email
archives@unl.edu.
Historical Records Statement: Please see our statement on historical records and materials.
Preferred Citation: Lowry Wimberly, Papers (RG 12-10-50). Archives & Special Collections, University of
Nebraska—Lincoln Libraries.
Biography:
Lowry Charles Wimberly was born in 1890 in Louisiana. He received his bachelor's degree in
1916, his master's in 1920 and his doctorate in 1925, all from the University of Nebraska. He
joined the University as an instructor in 1917 and became a full professor in 1928. In 1926,
Lowry Wimberly developed the concept of a literary magazine as an outlet for the creative work
of University of Nebraska students. Student members of the "Wordsmith
Chapter" of Sigma Upsilon, a national honorary literary society, were known as "Wimberly's Boys" and met in his home each Sunday. As the first
editor of the Prairie Schooner, Wimberly worked on all aspects of
the magazine. By 1956, Wimberly's health declined and he requested to be placed on retirement,
at which time he became a Professor Emeritus.
Wimberly was a prolific writer and wrote for many national magazines such as Harper's, The American Mercury, Atlantic Monthly, The Forum and the Saturday Review of Literature. He also belonged to many social and
professional organizations, such as the Second Presbyterian Church, The Masons, Cosmopolitan
Club, Tau Kappa Epsilon, Sigma Upsilon, Phi Beta Kappa, Kappa Tau Alpha, American Folklore
Society, American Association of University Professors, The Nebraska Writers Guild and Midland
Authors.
Wimberly married Ida May Boynton in 1910. They had four children: Steve, Ben, Ruth and Martha.
Wimberly died July 8, 1959 at the age of 68.
Scope and Content:
The collection consists of Wimberly's professional and personal papers arranged into two
series and includes audio materials and realia. The professional papers mainly consist of
research material and manuscripts, such as Wimberly's research and drafts of articles on Charles
Lindbergh, George E. Woodbury, and Oscar Wilde. Correspondence is centered on Wimberly's writing
projects and university career. Notable correspondents include Nebraska authors John Neihardt,
Mari Sandoz, and Bess Streeter Aldrich. The collection also has various papers from the
fraternal organizations that Wimberly belonged to, including Sigma Upsilon, Phi Beta Kappa, and
Tau Kappa Epsilon. Family members continued after his death to collect newspaper clippings
related to his career.
Wimberly's personal papers include correspondence and papers to and from family members and
former students. This series also includes information on Wimberly's early education, his family
and their religious involvement, and awards and personal associations.
Records relating to Wimberly's service as founder and editor are located in the records of
Prairie Schooner.
Subjects:
Aldrich, Bess Streeter, 1881-1954
Lindbergh, Charles, 1902-1974
Neihardt, John, 1881-1973
Sandoz, Mari, 1896-1966
Twain, Mark, 1835-1904
Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900
Wimberly, Lowry Charles, 1890-
Woodbury, George E., 1855-1930
Prairie Schooner
Phi Beta Kappa
Sigma Upsilon
Tau Kappa Epsilon
Series Description:
Series 1: Professional Papers, Boxes 1-7The professional papers series includes manuscripts and papers relating to Wimberly's career
as a writer and professor of English. This series includes the following: correspondence,
research material, manuscripts, teaching material, association records, published material,
presentations and speeches, newspaper clippings, photographs, and realia. The correspondence
in the series focuses on Wimberly's writing and university career. Research material is
comprised of notes and collected materials for various articles written by Wimberly. Most of
the information collected on George E. Woodbury consists of transcripts Wimberly made from
original letters and newspaper articles. There is only one folder of original correspondence
written by Woodbury between 1881 and 1911. Wimberly's manuscripts include drafts, articles,
and stories, some that were not published and cannot be identified as Wimberly's work. The
teaching material includes note cards and final examinations Wimberly created for English
classes that he taught. Material relating to professional associations is composed of
correspondence, meeting minutes, copies of bylaws and other documents illustrating Wimberly's
involvement. Published material includes articles and books that Wimberly collected. The
presentations and speeches consist of three recordings on compact disc, album, and cassette
tape. They include Wimberly and other men talking about various subjects including Adolph
Hitler. The newspaper clippings include photocopies and original clippings on various
subjects, including Wimberly's professional life, the work of others, local interest stories,
and Nebraska history. The photographs are both originals and photocopies of Wimberly in his
office on city campus and his acquaintances. The realia consists of one item: a woodblock used
to make the letterhead graphic on the 1929 Prairie Schooner.
Series 2: Personal Papers, Boxes 7-8The personal papers include material relating to Wimberly's personal life, concentrating
heavily on his family. The series includes correspondence, biographical material, association
records, awards, papers, newspaper clippings, and photographs. The correspondence contains
letters dated before and after Wimberly's death from family members and former students, as
well as greeting cards from friends. Within the biographical material is a copy of an entry
from a Who's Who list of publishers and editors. This is a good
source for an overview of Wimberly's life. The association records include programs and
newsletters from Wimberly's memberships in private organizations. There is a newspaper
clipping and an award for Wimberly's teaching accomplishments. Additional items include
information on Lowry and Ida's early education, photocopies relating to Wimberly family
history, and a sketch of Wimberly's home in Lincoln. The newspaper clippings and photographs
consist mainly of photocopies of Wimberly, his family, and his personal interests.
Container List:
Series 1: Professional PapersBox 1. Folder 1. Correspondence, 1919-1941
Box 1. Folder 2. Correspondence, 1942-1958, undated
Box 1. Folder 3. Research material, Mark Twain, Folklore in the Works of Mark
Twain, 1930
Box 1. Folder 4. Research material, notes, funerals, The American Funeral
Director,
The Professional Embalmer, 1937
Box 1. Folder 5. Research material, "Mark Twain/Tichenor Bonanza,"
notes, 1943, undated
Box 1. Folder 6. Research material, Mark Twain's Newspaper: Territorial
Enterprise and Virginia City News, 1954
Box 1. Folder 7. Research material, notes, "Lindbergh in
Lincoln"
Box 1. Folder 8. Research material, notes, "The Little
Man"
Box 1. Folder 9. Research material, George E. Woodbury, original Woodbury
correspondence, 1881-1911
Box 1. Folder 10. Research material, George E. Woodbury, correspondence transcripts, 1877-1878
Box 1. Folder 11. Research material, George E. Woodbury, correspondence, transcripts, 1879-1880
Box 1. Folder 12. Research material, George E. Woodbury, correspondence, transcripts, 1881-1883
Box 1. Folder 13. Research material, George E. Woodbury, correspondence, 1942-1947
Box 1. Folder 14. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1878
Box 1. Folder 15. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1879
Box 2. Folder 1. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1880
Box 2. Folder 2. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1880-1883 undated
Box 2. Folder 3. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1881
Box 2. Folder 4. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Omaha Republican,
newspaper transcripts, notes, 1882
Box 2. Folder 5. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1882
Box 2. Folder 6. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, handwritten, 1883
Box 2. Folder 7. Research material, George E. Woodbury, notes, lists
Box 2. Folder 8. Research material, George E. Woodbury, biographical information, notes
Box 2. Folder 9. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Lincoln, Nebraska, notes
Box 2. Folder 10. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Lincoln, Nebraska, notes
Box 2. Folder 11. Research material, George E. Woodbury in Lincoln, notes
Box 2. Folder 12. Research material, George E. Woodbury, University, notes
Box 2. Folder 13. Research material, George E. Woodbury, University, transcripts
Box 2. Folder 14. Research material, George E. Woodbury, University, transcripts
Box 2. Folder 15. Research material, George E. Woodbury, University, transcripts
Box 3. Folder 1. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Oscar Wilde, typed notes
Box 3. Folder 2. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Oscar Wilde, handwritten notes
Box 3. Folder 3. Research material, George E. Woodbury, American
Literature, 1940, The Nebraska Alumnus, 1941, The Saturday Review of Literature, 1944
Box 3. Folder 4. Research material, George E. Woodbury, Lincoln, Nebraska, newspaper clippings,
bibliography, 1943, 1945, undated
Box 3. Folder 5. Research material, bound notebook, notes, folk stories, folk song
Box 3. Folder 6. Manuscript, article, "Relief Needs Support," The Town Crier, 1936, Feb. 18
Box 3. Folder 7. Manuscript, "Customs, Beliefs, and Superstitions in
English and Scottish Balladry"
Box 3. Folder 8. Manuscript, drafts, "Dog Back Yonder"
Box 3. Folder 9. Manuscript, draft, "The Game of Ball in the English and
Scottish Popular Ballads"
Box 3. Folder 10. Manuscript, "I Recommend, " author
unknown
Box 3. Folder 11. Manuscript, draft, "Idyl"
Box 3. Folder 12. Manuscript, drafts, "Love Affair"
Box 3. Folder 13. Manuscript, draft, "Merry Christmas,
Prof."
Box 3. Folder 14. Manuscript, "Shetlands" pg. 1-55
Box 3. Folder 15. Manuscript, "Shetlands" pg. 56-103
Box 4. Folder 1. Published material, Death and Burial Lore in the English and
Scottish Popular Ballads
Box 4. Folder 2. Manuscript, fragments
Box 4. Folder 3. Manuscript, "Omnipotent Eye, " author
unknown
Box 4. Folder 4. Manuscript, essays on "woman" introduction-part
1
Box 4. Folder 5. Manuscript, essays on "woman" part 2
Box 4. Folder 6. Manuscript, essays on "woman" part 3
Box 4. Folder 7. Manuscript, essays on "woman" part 4-part
5
Box 4. Folder 8. Manuscript, story idea, "Letter
Answered," 1951, Mar. 17
Box 4. Folder 9. Teaching material, Armed Services Training Program (ASTP) 1943
Box 4. Folder 10. Teaching material, "The Short Story," Grace
Swift
Box 4. Folder 11. Teaching material, notes, note cards, A-D
Box 4. Folder 12. Teaching material, notes, note cards, E-F
Box 5. Folder 1. Teaching material, notes, note cards, G-O
Box 5. Folder 2. Teaching material, notes, note cards, P-Z, misc.
Box 5. Folder 3. Teaching material, memos and lists
Box 5. Folder 4. Teaching material, final examinations, 1933-1938, undated
Box 5. Folder 5. Teaching material, final examinations, English 21, 1933-1947, undated
Box 5. Folder 6. Teaching material, final examinations, English 22, 1933-1947, undated
Box 5. Folder 7. Teaching material, final examinations, English 225, 1933-1947, undated
Box 5. Folder 8. Teaching material, final examinations, English 226, 1933-1947, undated
Box 5. Folder 9. Teaching material, final examinations, misc.
Box 5. Folder 10. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, constitution, 1930
Box 5. Folder 11. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, bylaws, 1939, undated
Box 5. Folder 12. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, correspondence, 1940-1948
Box 5. Folder 13. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, membership certificates, 1926 (see also oversize box 17)
Box 5. Folder 14. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, ledger book, minutes, 1931-1938
Box 5. Folder 15. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, minutes, 1934, 1938
Box 6. Folder 1. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, ledger book, minutes, 1939-1940
Box 6. Folder 2. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, blank registration forms, oath, envelopes
Box 6. Folder 3. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, receipt, badges, 1927
Box 6. Folder 4. Associations, Phi Beta Kappa, event programs, 1930, 1955-1956
Box 6. Folder 5. Associations, Tau Kappa Epsilon, petition for charter 1925, membership certificate, 1951
Box 6. Folder 6. Associations, Tau Kappa Epsilon, quarterly publication,"The Teke," 1930, March
Box 6. Folder 7. Associations, Tau Kappa Epsilon, insignia pamphlet, badge stickers, 1949
Box 6. Folder 8. Associations, Sigma Upsilon, receipt, badges, 1927
Box 6. Folder 9. Publishing agreements, contracts, 1934-1937Item 1. "Hard Times Singing," 1934, Dec.
Item 2. "Famous Cats of Fairyland," 1937, July
Item 3. "Ideas and Models," 1934, May
Box 6. Folder 10. Advertisements, fliers, undated
Box 6. Folder 11. Professional solicitations, undated
Box 6. Folder 12. Royalty statements, purchase orders, 1946, 1955-1967
Box 6. Folder 13. Published material, The Eleusis of Chi
Omega
Box 6. Folder 14. Published material, The Freshman
Scrapbook, 1926, May
Box 6. Folder 15. Published material, "Christmas 1940, The First
Sunset"
Box 6. Folder 16. Published material, Live a Lyric
Box 6. Folder 17. Published material, The New Yorker, 1933
Box 7. Folder 1. Published material, The Silence of the Sea
Box 7. Folder 2. Presentations and speeches, compact discs (see audio/visual materials)
Box 7. Folder 3. Presentations and speeches, cassettes (see audio/visual materials)
Box 7. Folder 4. Presentations and speeches, long-play albums (see audio/visual materials)
Box 7. Folder 5. Newspaper clippings, about Wimberly (photocopies), 1931-1937
Box 7. Folder 6. Newspaper clippings, about Wimberly (photocopies), 1938-1981, undated
Box 7. Folder 7. Newspaper clippings, Schooner (photocopies), 1931-1989, undated
Box 7. Folder 8. Newspaper clippings, book reviews, 1931-1973, undated
Box 7. Folder 9. Newspaper clippings, misc. 1939-1982, undated
Box 7. Folder 10. Photographs
Box 7. Folder 11. Photographs (photocopies)
Series 2: Personal papersBox 7. Folder 13. Correspondence, 1908-1957
Box 7. Folder 14. Correspondence, postcards, 1930-1959, undated
Box 7. Folder 15. Correspondence, greeting cards, 1942-1970, undated
Box 7. Folder 16. Correspondence, post-death, 1962-1966
Box 7. Folder 17. Correspondence (photocopies), undated
Box 7. Folder 18. Correspondence, Wimberly family members (photocopies), 1938-1969
Box 7. Folder 19. Biographical material, Galley's Little Magazine Biography
Number: The First Annual Who's Who in Editing and Publishing
Box 7. Folder 20. Associations, certificate, The Institute of American Genealogy, 1939, membership cards and newsletter, Masons, 1949, 1953
Box 7. Folder 21. Associations, pamphlets, articles, Presbyterian churches
Box 7. Folder 22. Awards, teaching certificate and newspaper clipping, 1950, Sept.
Box 8. Folder 1. Family papers, Lowry and Ida Wimberly, education (photocopies), 1908-1910, 1942
Box 8. Folder 2. Papers, transcripts, Wimberly's school grades, 1904, 1916 RESTRICTED
Box 8. Folder 3. Papers, Wimberly's college education, 1925-1926
Box 8. Folder 4. Papers, marriage and death documents, Wimberly family, 1911-1997 (photocopies)
Box 8. Folder 5. Papers, Wimberly children
Box 8. Folder 6. Papers, house sketch, 3201 "R" Lincoln, Nebraska,
subpoena, pay stub, 1931, 1951
Box 8. Folder 7. Newspaper clippings, Wimberly family, church (photocopies), 1930-1969, undated
Box 8. Folder 8. Newspaper clippings, miscellaneous (photocopies), 1962-1967, undated
Box 8. Folder 9. Photographs, Wimberly family, early 1900 to 1957
Box 8. Folder 10. Photographs, Wimberly friends, acquaintances, 1909, undated
Box 8. Folder 11. Photographs, gravesite
Box 8. Folder 12. Photographs (photocopies) late 1800s to 1946, undated RESTRICTED
Related Material and Resources: For more information on Lowry C. Wimberly, such as information on his work for the Prairie Schooner, see Prairie Schooner,
Records (RG 12-10-06). Stewart, Paul R., The Prairie Schooner Story; a Little Magazine's First
25 Years. [Lincoln] University of Nebraska Press, c1955. Wimberly, Lowry Charles, editor. Prairie Schooner Caravan; an
Anthology. Lincoln, University of Nebraska Press, 1943. _________________, "Dispossessed," Prairie Schooner,
1927, Apr. _________________, "The Decline of the Ghost," Prairie Schooner,
1927, Oct. _________________, "The Red Gentian," Prairie Schooner,
Spring
1928. _________________, "The Happy Man," Prairie Schooner,
Summer 1928. _________________, "The Red-Headed Man," Prairie Schooner,
Fall 1929. _________________, "Tall and Straight," Prairie Schooner,
Winter 1929. _________________, "Men Without Books," Prairie Schooner,
Spring 1931. _________________, "The New Regionalism," Prairie Schooner,
Summer 1932. _________________, "Vachel Lindsay, an interview," The Frontier and Midland,
1934, March. _________________, "Hemingway and Horatio Alger, Jr.," Prairie Schooner,
Fall 1936._________________, "Anagrams: Highbrow,"
Prairie Schooner,
Fall 1938. _________________, "The Bellicose B: Phonetic Phantasy," Prairie Schooner,
Spring 1942. _________________, "Blivins on Paleophobia," Prairie Schooner,
Spring 1943. _________________, "Writers and the War," The Nebraska Alumnus,
1943, Oct. _________________, "Mark Twain and the Tichenor Bonanza," The Atlantic Report,
1943, Nov. _________________, "W.J. Bryan's Handicap," Prairie Schooner,
1944. _________________, "Crime Journal Addicts," The University of Kansas City Review,
Winter 1945. _________________, "Oscar Wilde Meets Woodberry," Prairie Schooner,
1947. _________________, "Lindbergh: Shamefully Treated Man," Prairie Schooner,
1949. _________________, "The Catch," The
American Mercury,
1951, May. _________________, "Windfall for Whitford" Harper's Magazine,
1951, June. _________________, "Watchman, What of the Donor?" Prairie Schooner,
1951. _________________, "Using Better English," undated. |