I. General correspondence with Quine
Scope and Contents
Folders within this series may include letters by the main correspondent, but also could be a topical folder which is "about or relating to" the main correspondent. Most of his correspondence is academic, with many letters containing philosophical proofs, logical and mathematical symbols, and other philosophical expressions. This series also includes notes, memoranda, ephemera, clippings, and occasionally, photographs.
Quine established a system of annotating letters for classification based on the nature of the communication. The following is a list of the most frequently used classifications:
- Acad = Academic
- Fan = Fan letter
- Sci/Scient = Scientific
- Inv = Invitation
Dates
- Creation: 1908-2020
Language of Materials
Collection materials are in English, German, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, and Italian.
Conditions Governing Access
Some materials in this series are restricted. Duration of restriction is listed with item description.
Extent
86 linear feet (155 boxes)Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by correspondent.
This series is the general A-Z group, set-up by Quine, comprising the core of Quine's professional correspondence. Quine's arrangement was maintained in the repository; when materials were moved to another series, it is so noted in the descriptive entry.
Correspondence not extensive enough to warrant its own file is arranged alphabetically within general files, for example "Bu- through By-" and this file is at the beginning of each letter. Significant names are listed in the note.
Physical Location
Harvard Depository, pf, Vault
Repository Details
Part of the Houghton Library Repository
Houghton Library is Harvard College's principal repository for rare books and manuscripts, archives, and more. Houghton Library's collections represent the scope of human experience from ancient Egypt to twenty-first century Cambridge. With strengths primarily in North American and European history, literature, and culture, collections range in media from printed books and handwritten manuscripts to maps, drawings and paintings, prints, posters, photographs, film and audio recordings, and digital media, as well as costumes, theater props, and a wide range of other objects. Houghton Library has historically focused on collecting the written record of European and Eurocentric North American culture, yet it holds a large and diverse number of primary sources valuable for research on the languages, culture and history of indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.
Houghton Library’s Reading Room is free and open to all who wish to use the library’s collections.
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