Raymond E. F. Larsson Papers, 1927-1983 (bulk 1940-1960)19 containers (7.6 linear feet). A substantial collection of the correspondence, literary manuscripts, and drawings of the American poet Raymond E. F. Larsson (1901-1991). Larsson was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He lived in New York and Paris before publishing his first collection of poems, O City, Cities, in 1929. During the prewar period Larsson continued to publish, in journals and in editions of his work. In 1932 he converted to Catholicism; much of his subsequent poetry bears the obvious imprint of his faith (as does a devotional work, Saints at Prayer, published in 1942). In 1949 Larsson was institutionalized for mental illness; thereafter he published little, though he continued to write prolifically. The collection includes around 700 letters to and from Larsson; frequent correspondents include the British editor and historian George Dangerfield; the Wisconsin writer August Derleth; and Norbert Engels, professor of English at the University of Notre Dame. Among the literary manuscripts are around 1,000 of Larsson's poems, mostly unpublished, and edited typescripts of published collections. There are also some manuscripts of other writers, including Derleth and Theodore Maynard. Also in the collection are around 700 of Larson's pencil drawings, mostly from the 1940s and 50s. MSN/MN 3000-1 to MSN/MN 3000-306. [Finding Aid]