Overview
Compositions and correspondence of British collector and philanthropist, Laurence W. Hodson.
Dates
- 1893-1969
Language of Materials
Collection materials are in English and Latin.
Conditions Governing Access
There are no restrictions on physical access to this material. Collection is open for research.
Extent
.5 linear feet (1 box)Includes letters to Hodson from Douglas Cockerell, Sydney Carlyle Cockerell, Frederick James James Furnivall, H. C. Marillier, William Morris, Emery Walker, and many others. Also includes letters to Constance Belliss from Douglas Cockerell, Sydney Carlyle Cockerell, and Frederick James Furnivall.
Compositions include: autograph manuscript poem by G. J. Lawley celebrating the life of William Morris; Hodson’s autograph manuscript notes on the Kelmscott and other Presses; his autograph manuscript for a sonnet sent as Christmas greetings, with the printed version, the autograph manuscript for his long poem “A Christmas Reverie”, 1915; other autograph manuscripts by him for talks and book reviews; and other manuscript and printed material relating to the private presses.
Also includes materials dated after Hodson's death, apparently added to this collection by others.
Biographical / Historical
Laurence W. Hodson (1864–1933) was a wealthy British, West Midlands brewery owner, collector, and philanthropist. Following the death of his father in 1890, Hodson became a partner in the Springfield Brewery in Wolverhampton; he also inherited his father’s estate, Compton Hall near Wolverhampton and commissioned Morris & Co. to refurbish the interior in 1896. He was a founder of Birmingham University, chairman of the Wolverhampton Art and Industrial Exhibition of 1902, and supporter of the Guild of Handicraft. Hodson was a close friend of William Morris and an admirer of the Kelmscott Press.
Constance Belliss was Hodson’s wife Mary's cousin who worked for Hodson as a secretary and librarian, as well as organizer with John Masefield of the 1902 Wolverhampton exhibition.
Arrangement
Arranged into the following series:
- I. Correspondence
- II. Compositions
- III. Printed material
Physical Location
b
Immediate Source of Acquisition
2012M-160, 2012M-161, 2012M-162, 2012M-163, 2012M-164, 2012M-165, 2012M-166. Purchase with Louis J. Appell Jr. Fund for British Civilization; received: 2013 April 4. Purchased from the sale of "Books, manuscripts and artwork from the collection of Laurence W. Hodson ... sold at auction ... 2013." See curatorial file for additional information about lots at sale.
Processing Information
Processed by: Bonnie B. Salt
- Title
- Hodson, Laurence W. Laurence W. Hodson papers, 1893-1969: Guide.
- Author
- Houghton Library, Harvard College Library
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- hou02509
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.
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