Smith, William Jay

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 22 April 1918 - 18 August 2015

Biography

The poet William Jay Smith was born on April 22, 1918, in Winnfield, Louisiana, and grew up in Missouri. He got his A.B. and M.A. degrees from Washington University in St. Louis and his Ph.D. from Columbia University. Smith married poet Barbara Howes in 1947 and moved to Europe. The couple divorced in the mid-1960s, and Smith later married Sonja Haussmann. Back in the States, Smith taught at Williams College, Columbia University, and Hollins University. Smith’s poetry has been admired for its adherence to traditional poetic styles; his work was often published in The Sewanee Review and The Southern Review. Two of his poetry collections were finalists for the National Book Award. Smith died in 2015, and his papers are housed at Washington University at St. Louis.

Found in 2 Collections and/or Records:

Tate, Allen - Poem - “At Delphi” by William Jay Smith for Allen Tate on his 75th birthday, November 19, 1974

 Item — Box 4, Folder: 13
Scope and Contents From the Collection: This collection contains 1.67 linear feet of materials on the Fugitive Poets and the Nashville Agrarians. Most of the materials have to do with the years in the 1920’s when the Fugitive poet group was formed and the resulting poems, manuscripts, and correspondence. In addition there are a few items, mostly articles, that concern the Agrarian group. The Collection contains many items of unique interest including poems that were read at the Fugitive meetings and correspondence that records the...
Dates: November 19, 1974
Found in: Vanderbilt University Special Collections / MSS.0160, Fugitive and Agrarian Collection / Materials on individual Fugitives and Agrarians

William Jay Smith

 Item — Box 2, Reel: 39
Scope and Contents From the Collection:

This collection is 1.21 linear feet. It contains 157 pieces of correspondence, in 27 file folders, to Walter Sullivan from the following Southern literary writers, who were part of the Fugitives/Agrarians: Donald Davidson, Andrew Lytle, Allen Tate, Peter Taylor, and Robert Penn Warren. It also includes four books, and 43 reel-to-reel tapes, in chronological order, from Literary Symposium Lectures, Panels, Readings, and Interviews with Southern writers.

Dates: 1928-1993
Found in: Vanderbilt University Special Collections / MSS.0426, Walter Sullivan Collection / Literary Symposium Lectures, Panels, Readings, and Interviews – 43 reels

 

About this Site

This site contains collection guides, or finding aids, to the archival collections held by Vanderbilt University Special Collections and University Archives, the History of Medicine Collection, and the Scarritt Bennett Center. Finding aids describe the context, arrangement, and structure of archival materials, allowing users to identify and request materials relevant to their research.

Requesting Materials

Each finding aid contains a link to request materials from the collections. Collections can also be requested by emailing the repository directly through the library website. Each repository has its own location, hours, and contact information. Please consult the repository with questions about using the materials. Collections are non-circulating and must be used in the repository’s reading room. In many cases, the collections are stored off-site and require advance notice for retrieval.