Janis P. Stout papers
Abstract
Janis Pitts Stout (1939-) was an English professor and administrator at a number of research universities, most notably Rice University, Texas A & M, and Auburn University, from 1973 until her retirement in 2002. She produced three novels, compiled and edited a calendar based on the works of Willa Cather, and published six scholarly works, including Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995). Dr. Stout's papers consist almost exclusively of material related to the research and publication of her 1995 book on Katherine Anne Porter. Included is correspondence regarding permissions from her book, a copy of the book proposal evaluation, other scholarly work on Katherine Anne Porter by Dr. Stout, and a portion of Dr. Stout's research notes. Some general correspondence related to Dr. Stout's book is also included.
Important Information for Users of the Collection
This collection is open for research.
Janis P. Stout papers, Special Collections, University of Maryland Libraries.
Photocopies of original materials may be provided for a fee and at the discretion of the curator. Please see our Duplication of Materials policy for more information. Queries regarding publication rights and copyright status of materials within this collection should be directed to the appropriate curator.
This collection is PROCESSED.
Historical Note
Janis Pitts Stout was born in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1939. She graduated from Polytechnic High School in Fort Worth, married soon afterward, and became the mother of three sons before completing a B.A. (1966) and an M.A. (1968) in English at Lamar State University in Beaumont, Texas. After the birth of her fourth son, she entered the graduate program in English at Rice University, completing her doctoral degree there in 1973. She taught at Bryn Mawr College; Haverford College; Pennsylvania State University, Delaware County; Lamar State University; Rice University; and Texas A & M University before her retirement on January 31, 2002. Much of her career, however, was given to administration. She served at Rice University as Administrator of Graduate Programs, then Director of Graduate Programs, for ten years; as Associate Dean of Liberal Arts at Texas A & M from 1987 to 1992 and 1993 to 1994; as Interim Associate Dean of Liberal Arts at Auburn University from 1992 to 1993; and as Dean of Faculties and Associate Provost at Texas A & M from 1998 to 2002. In addition to numerous scholarly articles, Dr. Stout's publications include three novels: A Family Likeness (1982), Eighteen Holes (1984), Home Truth (1992) and six scholarly books: Sodoms in Eden (1976), The Journal Narrative in American Literature (1984), Strategies of Reticence (1990), Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995), Through the Window, Out the Door: Women's Narratives of Departure (1998), and Willa Cather: The Writer and Her World (2000). She compiled and edited A Calendar of the Letters of Willa Cather (2002). She and her husband, Dr. Loren D. Lutes, now reside in Edgewood, New Mexico.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
The Papers of Janis P. Stout include materials dating from 1988 to 1997. The collection consists of correspondence, a book proposal evaluation, a scholarly paper, and research materials. The bulk of the material consists of correspondence related to the research and publication of Stout's Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995). There are also research notes on acquaintances of Katherine Anne Porter and photocopies of primary research materials.
Custodial History and Acquisition Information
Janis P. Stout's papers from her work Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995) came to the University of Maryland Libraries in January 2002 through purchase and donation.
Processing Information
Processed and guide compiled by Jessica Ford Cameron, May 2002.
Paper clips and staples were removed from the materials, and letters were removed from envelopes and flattened. All correspondence was placed in alphabetical order by correspondent or institution. A book proposal evaluation, scholarly work, and research materials were moved to separate series. All materials were re-housed in acid-free folders and boxes.
EAD markup created using EAD database in Microsoft Access. Markup completed by Michael Yates, August 2005.
Arrangement of Collection
These materials have been divided into four series.
Detailed Description of the Collection
Series 1: Correspondence, 1988-1997 (162 items)
This series consists almost entirely of letters to and from Janis P. Stout, primarily requests for permission to quote from correspondence cited in Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995) and replies to the requests. There are individual files for persons (Isabel Bayley, Joan Givner, Paul Porter, etc.) and institutions (Houston Chronicle, Library of Congress). For some of the correspondents, the name of the author whose work is the subject of the request appears in parentheses. There is also a file containing Stout's list of addresses from her permissions process. The series is arranged alphabetically.
| Description | Series | Box / Reel | Folder / Frame | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Addresses: KAP Correspondents from JPS Permissions Process, undated | series 1 | box 1 | folder 1 | |
| Art Museum of the Americas, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 2 | |
| Isabel Bayley, 1992-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 3 | |
| Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library (Yale University), 1992-1995 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 4 | |
| Janice Biala, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 5 | |
| E.S. Bird Library (Syracuse University), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 6 | |
| John Malcolm Brinnin, 1992-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 7 | |
| Cleanth Brooks, 1992-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 8 | |
| John Burt (Robert Penn Warren), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 9 | |
| Butler Library, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 10 | |
| Paul Cadmus, 1994 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 11 | |
| Frances N. Cheney, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 12 | |
| Deborah W. Clark (Barbara Harrison Wescott), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 13 | |
| Imogene Clayton, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 14 | |
| Gene Collins (Eugene Pressly), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 15 | |
| Robert Cowley (Malcolm Cowley), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 16 | |
| Barbara Thompson Davis, 1991-1995 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 17 | |
| Richard H. W. Dillard, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 18 | |
| Kenneth Fields (Yvor Winters), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 19 | |
| Marcellus E. Foster, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 20 | |
| George Garrett, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 21 | |
| Reginald Gibbons (William Goyen), 1992-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 22 | |
| Margaret Doane Gilson, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 23 | |
| Joan Givner, 1990-1997 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 24 | |
| Judith Gregory (Dorothy Day), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 25 | |
| John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 26 | |
| Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library (University of Georgia), undated | series 1 | box 1 | folder 27 | |
| Houghton Library, Harvard University, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 28 | |
| Houston Chronicle, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 29 | |
| International Film Seminars, Inc, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 30 | |
| Rita B. Johns (Erna Schlemmer Johns), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 31 | |
| Hilton Kramer (Josephine Herbst), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 32 | |
| Seymour Lawrence, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 33 | |
| Library of Congress, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 34 | |
| David Locher, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 35 | |
| Andrew Lytle, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 36 | |
| Margaret D. Neal (Mary Louis Doherty), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 37 | |
| Marquette University Archives, 1990-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 38 | |
| Museo de Arte Moderno, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 39 | |
| Newberry Library, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 40 | |
| Olin Library, Special Collections, Washington University, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 41 | |
| George Thomas Parsons III, 1992-1995 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 42 | |
| Jordan Pecile, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 43 | |
| Anatole Pohorilenko (Glenway Wescott, Monroe Wheeler), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 44 | |
| Paul Porter, 1988-1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 45 | |
| Princeton University Libraries (Rare Books and Special Collections), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 46 | |
| Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center (University of Texas at Austin), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 47 | |
| Hazel H. Ransom (Harry R. Ransom), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 48 | |
| Phyllis Rifield, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 49 | |
| Daniel J. Rogers (Raymond Roseliep), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 50 | |
| Pete Seeger, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 51 | |
| Monroe and Betty Spears, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 52 | |
| Syracuse University Library, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 53 | |
| Mary Titus, 1997 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 54 | |
| University of Maryland Libraries (Archives and Manuscripts), 1993-1995 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 55 | |
| Helen van Dongen (Kenneth Durant), 1993-1994 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 56 | |
| Wadsworth Atheneum (A. Everett Austin, Jr.), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 57 | |
| Joe A. Walters (Hubert Humphrey), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 58 | |
| Eleanor Clark Warren, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 59 | |
| Cyrilly Abels Weinstein, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 60 | |
| Eudora Welty, 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 61 | |
| Donald Windham, 1992-1995 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 62 | |
| Janet Lewis Winters (Yvor Winters), 1993 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 63 | |
| Nancy Tate Wood (Caroline Gordon, Allen Tate), 1993-1994 | series 1 | box 1 | folder 64 | |
Series 2: Book Proposal Evaluation, 1991 (1 item)
This series consists of an evaluation written by George Garrett on Stout's proposal for an intellectual biography of Katherine Anne Porter for the University Press of Virginia's Minds of the South Series. The resulting book was published as Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times in 1995.
| Description | Series | Box / Reel | Folder / Frame | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Garrett, $Comment on Proposal by Janis P. Stout for Minds of the South Series$, 1991 | series 2 | box 1 | folder 65 | |
Series 3: Scholarly Work, 1990 (1 item)
This series includes Stout's "Porter as Distiller: aA Liquor Never Brewed,'" a paper delivered at the Georgia State University Centennial Celebration for Katherine Anne Porter on November 9, 1990.
| Description | Series | Box / Reel | Folder / Frame | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $Porter as Distiller: aA Liquor Never Breweda$, 1990 | series 3 | box 1 | folder 66 | |
Series 4: Research Materials, undated (25 items)
This series contains some of Stout's research materials for Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times (1995). It includes both her notes and photocopies of archival materials. The series is arranged alphabetically.
| Description | Series | Box / Reel | Folder / Frame | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notes -- (Richard Dillard), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 67 | |
| Notes -- (George Garrett), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 68 | |
| Notes -- (Paul Porter), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 69 | |
| Photocopies of Archival Materials -- (Jane Anderson), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 70 | |
| Photocopies of Archival Materials -- (Joan Givner), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 71 | |
| Photocopies of Archival Materials -- (Josephine Herbst), undated | series 4 | box 1 | folder 72 | |
Related Material
Materials related to the Stout Papers can be found in the Papers of Katherine Anne Porter, Special Collections, University of Maryland Libraries. Other related materials can be found at the following institutions, all of which were contacted by Stout during the course of her work on Katherine Anne Porter: A Sense of the Times: the Papers of Josephine Herbst, Robert Penn Warren, and Matthew Josephson at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University; the William Van O'Connor Papers at the E. S. Bird Library, Syracuse University; the Papers of Ernestine Evans and Frank Tannenbaum at Butler Library, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University; the Windham-Campbell Collection of Modern Literature at the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Georgia; the Dorothy Day Papers at Marquette University of Maryland; the Malcolm Cowley Papers at Newberry Library; the Ford Madox Ford Papers at Olin Library, Special Collections, Washington University; the Papers of Allen Tate at Princeton University Libraries, Rare Books and Special Collections; the Papers of Harry Ransom at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, University of Texas at Austin; and the Papers of William Van O'Connor and Peggy Bacon at the Syracuse University Library.
For other related archival and manuscript collections, please see the following subject guides.
Selected Search Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the University of Maryland Libraries' Catalog. Researchers desiring related materials about these topics, names, or places may search the Catalog using these headings.
Subjects
- Janis P. Stout -- Correspondence
- Janis P. Stout -- Katherine Anne Porter, a sense of the times
- Katherine Anne Porter -- 1890-1980 -- Biography -- Archival Resources
Names (Added Entries)
- Barbara Thompson Davis
- Cleanth Brooks -- 1906-1994
- Cyrilly Abels
- Eudora Welty -- 1909-2001
- Isabel Bayley
- Katherine Anne Porter -- 1890-1980
- Paul Porter
- Seymour Lawrence