Biographical Note
Poet and author William Wordsworth was born on April 7, 1770 in Cockermouth, Cumberland, England. He began attending St. John's College, Cambridge the same year he published his first poem, in 1787, and he earned his B.A. in 1791. Along with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Wordsworth is credited with originating the Romantic Age of English Literature with the joint publication Lyrical Ballads (1798). He was England's Poet Laureate from 1843 until his death in 1850. Wordsworth's most famous work, The Prelude, was published posthumously in 1850.
Scope and Content Note
Included in the collection are an Account book of Dora Wordsworth for 1876-1885, ink sketches of cats on the verso of a letter dated August 6, 1872, an invitation to William Wordsworth from the Queen to attend a ball at Buckingham Palace, a rosewood lap desk that was owned by Mary (Hutchinson) Wordsworth, the wife of the poet, a lock of hair of William Wordsworth and a poem fragment with his signature on verso, a photograph of Dora Wordsworth, poems by F. A[rnold?], B. Buonomini (in honor of Dora), and Bennet Christian Huntington Calcraft Kennedy, a piece of yew tree planted by William Wordsworth in 1819, and a folder of printed materials.
Correspondents include: Edmund Phillips; Edward Quillinan; Dora Wordsworth; John Wordsworth (1803-1875); John Wordsworth (1837-1927); Mary Harriet (Gamble) Wordsworth; Mary (Hutchinson) Wordsworth.
The contents of the collection were formerly housed by Dora Kennedy in the rosewood lap desk bequeathed to her in 1932.
Arrangement
Items are arranged chronologically.
Restrictions
Access Restrictions:
This collection is open for research.
Many collections are housed offsite; retrieval requires advance notice. Please make an appointment a minimum of one week in advance of your visit.
Usage Restrictions:
Photography and digitization may be restricted for some collections. Copyright restrictions may apply. Before publishing, researchers are responsible for securing permission from all applicable rights holders, then filling out the Permission to Publish form.
Indexed Terms
-
Persons
- Wordsworth, Dora, 1804-1847--Correspondence.
- Wordsworth, John, 1803-1875--Correspondence.
- Wordsworth, John, 1843-1911--Correspondence.
- Wordsworth, Mary, 1770-1859--Correspondence.
- Wordsworth, William, 1770-1850 --Correspondence.
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Subjects
- Art
- English Poetry
- Poets, English--19th century--Biography
- Poets, English--19th century--Correspondence
- Poets, English--20th century--Biography
- Poets, English--20th century--Correspondence
Administrative Information
Preferred Citation
[Item], Wordsworth mss. II, Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.
Acquisition Information
Acquired: 1961
Processing Information
Processed by Staff.
Completed in 2013
Collection Inventory
Box 1
"Isabella C[urwen] Wordsworth. Died in Italy." , Sept. 13, 1848
Box 1
Quillinan, Edward to Charlotte Elliott. , Jul. 28, 1849
Box 1
[?] to Mrs. [Luke?] Dolan. , Oct. 25, 1854
Box 1
Wordsworth, Mary (Hutchinson) to Wordsworth, Marion (Dolan). , Nov. 3, 1858
Box 1
Wordsworth, Mary (Hutchinson) to Kennedy, Jane Stanley (Wordsworth). , 1858
Box 1
Envelope addressed to Mrs. Wordsworth, Rydal Mount, nr Ambleside. , Apr. 8, 1859
Box 1
[Wordsworth, John] to unidentified correspondent. , Mar. 30, 1867
Box 1
Wordsworth, John to Phillips, Mrs. [Charlotte?]. , Apr. 2, 1867
Box 1
[Fletcher, G.?] to Saidler, Mrs. , Apr. 7, 1867
Box 1
Wordsworth, John to Dolan, Mrs. [Luke?]. , May 8, 1867
Box 1
Poem by B. Buonomini. , Mar. 30, 1868
Box 1
"Miss Dora Wordsworth, in reverent recollection of another Dora and another Wordsworth. " Florence. , 1871
Box 1
Legg, R., manager, Hampshire Banking Company to Kennedy, Rev. B. S. Receipt, with pen and ink sketch of three carnival figures, and sketch of 14 cats with French captions. , Aug. 6, 1872
Box 1
Account book of Dora Wordsworth. , Feb. 23, 1876-Jul. 6, 1889
Box 1
hillips, Edmund to "My dear little Pet" [Dora]. , Dec. 11, 1876
Box 1
Wordsworth, M[ary Harriett] to Wordsworth, Dora. , Jan. 1, 1877
Box 1
Houlgate, William to Wordsworth, Rev. John. , Mar. 24, 1877
Box 1
Wordsworth, John to Wordsworth, Dora. , May 20, 1881[?]
Box 1
Wordsworth, John to Wordsworth, Dora. , May 24, 1881[?]
Box 1
Harris, Edith M. to Wordsworth, Dora. , Nov. 5, 1894
Box 1
Poem by B. C. H. Kennedy. , Mar. 18, 1909
Box 1
Arnold, F. to Wordsworth, Mrs. , undated
Box 1
A[rnold?] F. Wordsworth. Poem. , undated
Box 1
Fragment of letter: "of Dora W. Miss Coleridge says..." , undated
Box 1
Kennedy, [?] to "My very dear Dora..." , undated
Box 1
Kennedy, E. D. to Turner, Mrs. Includes lock of Wordsworth's hair. , undated
Box 1
[Phillips, Charlotte?]. Incomplete letter to Dora. , undated
Box 1
Wordsworth, Dora to "My dear Grdma" [Mrs. Luke Dolan]. , undated
Box 1
Wordsworth, Dora to "Dear Papa" [John Wordsworth]. , undated
Box 1
Wordsworth, John to Wordsworth, Dora. , Sept. 19, [undated]
Box 1
Wordsworth, M H to Stanger, Mrs. , undated
Box 1
Wordsworth, Marion to "My dear little girl..." , Mar.19, [undated]
Box 1
Invitation for William Wordsworth: "The Lord Chamberlain is commanded by The Queen..." , undated
Box 1
[Unidentified]. "With a Father's love and best wishes." , undated
Box 1
Unidentified]. Two letters in blue pencil. , undated
Box 1
Dora Wordsworth, granddaughter of William Wordsworth
Box 1
Group of men attending dedication
Box 1
Monument in cemetery of Mary (Calvert) Stanger , 1804-1890
Box 1
Clipping on death of Rear Admiral Inglefield
Box 1
Clipping on influence of Wordsworth on John Stuart Mill
Box 1
Clipping on unveiling ceremony of monument to John Ruskin, reprinted , Feb. 8, 1890
Box 1
Three clippings mounted on one page about marriage of Rev. John Wordsworth and Mary Harriet Gamble; the death of John Wordsworth and the death of Mary Wordsworth , July, 1875, Sept. 1902
Box 1
Clipping: England's Debt to Wordsworth The Spectator with note in pencil by D. Wordsworth , Aug. 5, 1899
Box 3
Piece of yew tree, planted by William Wordsworth in , 1819