University of Oregon Libraries
Special Collections & University Archives
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1299
URL: http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/index.html



Guide to the Doris Gates Papers, 1936-1985


Coll. 180





Finding aid prepared Robert Koppelman

Finding aid encoded by ArchProteus, 2006
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.


Overview of the Collection

 
Repository Name:
 

University of Oregon Libraries
Special Collections & University Archives

1299 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1299
URL: http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/index.html

 
Collection Number:
 

Coll. 180

 
Creator:
 

Gates, Doris, 1901-

 
Title:
 

Doris Gates Papers

 
Dates:
 

1936-1985 (inclusive)

 
Quantity:
 

27 linear feet
45 containers

 
Languages:
 

Collection materials are in English. 

 
Summary:
 

Doris Gates (1901-1987), renowned author and editor of literary works for children, was born in Mountain View, California. Gates' deep interests in storytelling and mythology are evident in both her oral and written narratives. This collection includes correspondence, manuscripts, and published materials. Also included are records relating to Ginn and Company, publisher of textbooks.

 

Biographical Note

Doris Gates, renowned author and editor of literary works for children, was born on November 26, 1901 in Mountain View, California. Raised on her family's prune ranch, Doris had a little gray burro and soon developed a fondness for horses that would later recur as a frequent theme in her children's novels, such as Sarah's Idea and Little Vic.

After receiving a degree in library science from Western Reserve University in 1930, Doris Gates launched her active and celebrated career in the field of children's literature. Her experiences ranged from her work as children's librarian at the Fresno Public Library in California from 1939 to 1940, to her long-standing association with Ginn and Company as editor and contributor for the basic reader and enrichment textbook series, and her own prolific career as an author. Although she had children of her own, Gates maintained contact with young readers through her frequent and popular guest lectures at elementary schools and children's libraries. Her deep interests in storytelling and mythology were evident in her oral and written narratives.

Gates also worked with older students and prospective writers as a lecturer at San Jose State College from 1940 to 1942, and the University of San Francisco from 1944 to 1948, as well as her editorial work for Ginn and Company. Gates spent the latter years of her life writing and raising horses at her "dream-home" overlooking the Pacific coast in Carmel, California, until her death in 1987.

Content Description

The Doris Gates Papers consists largely of correspondence, manuscripts and published materials. Business-related correspondence is arranged chronologically. A separate folder of family correspondence appears at the end of this series.

Manuscripts are arranged by length and nature, alphabetically within each segment. Each title is arranged in the order in which it was written, ranging from outlines and notes to final drafts submitted for publication.

Ginn and Company, a series in itself, is devoted to materials Gates either received or submitted during her more than thirty-year association with the publishing house. Included are promotional material, curriculum policies, sales and conference reports, and manuscripts.

Speaking engagements are arranged alphabetically by state, and, within each state, by city. Also included in the collection are Gates' teaching notes, memorabilia, souvenirs and awards, and a large volume of fan mail, mostly written by children that she promised to save. Several tape recordings, found in box 44, document the writing of several works. The remainder of the collection consists of books written by Gates as well as several textbooks in which her stories were published.

Arrangement

Collection is organized into the following series:

Series I: Biographical Information

Series II: Correspondence

Series III: Manuscripts

Series IV: Ginn and Company

Series V: Speaking Engagements

Series VI: Teaching notes

Series: Memorabilia, souvenirs, and awards

Series: Fan mail

Series: Audiotapes

Series: Scrapbook

Administrative Information

Processing Note 

Collection processed by Robert Koppelman, Manuscripts Processor, October 1988.

Separated Materials 

Photographs in this collection are stored separately under call number PH158.

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Access 

Collection is open to the public.

Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room.

Restrictions on Use 

Property rights reside with Special Collections and University Archives. Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Special Collections and University Archives. The reader must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.

Preferred Citation 

[Identification of item], Doris Gates Papers, Coll. 180, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries, Eugene, Oregon.

Subjects

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.

 
Gates, Doris, 1901-
Children's literature, American--Authorship
Curriculum planning--Puerto Rico
Publishers and publishing--Correspondence
Textbooks--Editing
Women authors, American--20th century--Correspondence
Radio scripts
Sound recordings

Detailed Description of the Collection

 

Biographical Material

 
Container(s)
Description
 
box
1
folder
1

Biographical material
 
 
2
Biographical material
 
 
3
Biographical material
 
 
4
Biographical material
 
 
5
Biographical material
 

 

Correspondence

 
Container(s)
Description
Dates
 
box
1
folder
6

Correspondence
  October 1936-September 1938
 
7
Correspondence
  October 1938-February 1940
 
8
Correspondence
  April 1940-1941
 
9
Correspondence
  October 1943-March 1944
 
10
Correspondence
  April 1944-October 1944
 
11
Correspondence
  November 1944-December 1944
 
12
Correspondence
  1945
 
13
Correspondence
  1946
 
14
Correspondence
  April 1947-May 1948
 
15
Correspondence
  June 1948-October 1948
 
16
Correspondence
  November 1948
 
17
Correspondence
  December 1948
 
2 1
Correspondence
  January 1949
 
2
Correspondence
  February 1949
 
3
Correspondence
  March 1949
 
4
Correspondence
  April 1949
 
5
Correspondence
  May 2-13, 1949
 
6
Correspondence
  May 16-31, 1949
 
7
Correspondence
  June 1949
 
8
Correspondence
  July 1949
 
9
Correspondence
  August 1949
 
10
Correspondence
  September 1949-October 1949
 
11
Correspondence
  November 1949-December 1949
 
12
Correspondence
  January 1950-February 1950
 
13
Correspondence
  March 1950-April 1950
 
14
Correspondence
  May 1950-March 1951
 
15
Correspondence
  April 1951-July 1951
 
16
Correspondence
  August 1951-September 1951
 
17
Correspondence
  October 1951-November 1951
 
18
Correspondence
 
 
3 1
Correspondence
  January 1951
 
2
Correspondence
  February 1952
 
3
Correspondence
  March 1952-April 1952
 
4
Correspondence
  May 1952-July 1952
 
5
Correspondence
  August 1952-September 1952
 
6
Correspondence
  October 1952
 
7
Correspondence
  November 1952
 
8
Correspondence
  December 1952
 
9
Correspondence
  January 2, 1953-February 9, 1953
 
10
Correspondence
  February 13, 1953-March 1953
 
11
Correspondence
  April 1953
 
12
Correspondence
  May 1953
 
13
Correspondence
  June 1953
 
14
Correspondence
  July 1953-August 1953
 
15
Correspondence
  September 1953
 
16
Correspondence
  October 1953
 
17
Correspondence
  November 1953
 
18
Correspondence
  December 1953
 
4 1
Correspondence
  January 1954-March 1954
 
2
Correspondence
  April 1954-May 5, 1954
 
3
Correspondence
  May 7, 1954-June 1954
 
4
Correspondence
  July 1954-September 1954
 
5
Correspondence
  October 1954-December 1954
 
6
Correspondence
  January 1955-April 1955
 
7
Correspondence
  May 1955-June 1955
 
8
Correspondence
  July 1955-August 1955
 
9
Correspondence
  September 1955
 
10
Correspondence
  October 1955-December 1955
 
11
Correspondence
  January 1956-April 1956
 
12
Correspondence
  May 1956-December 1956
 
13
Correspondence
  January 1957-July 1957
 
14
Correspondence
  August 1957
 
15
Correspondence
  September 1957-December 1957
 
16
Correspondence
  February 1958-August 1958
 
17
Correspondence
  September 1958-December 1958
 
5 1
Correspondence
  January 1959-March 1959
 
2
Correspondence
  April 1959-June 1959
 
3
Correspondence
  July 1959
 
4
Correspondence
  August 1959-October 1959
 
5
Correspondence
  November 1959-December 1959
 
6
Correspondence
  January 1960
 
7
Correspondence
  February 1960-March 1960
 
8
Correspondence
  April 1960-July 1960
 
9
Correspondence
  August 1960-September 1960
 
10
Correspondence
  October 1960
 
11
Correspondence
  November 1960-February 1961
 
12
Correspondence
  March 1961-May 1961
 
13
Correspondence
  June 1961-August 1961
 
14
Correspondence
  September 1961
 
15
Correspondence
  October 1961
 
16
Correspondence
  November 1961
 
17
Correspondence
  December 1961
 
6 1
Correspondence
  January 1962-February 1962
 
2
Correspondence
  March 1962
 
3
Correspondence
  April 1962
 
4
Correspondence
  May 1962-June 1962
 
5
Correspondence
  July 1962
 
6
Correspondence
  August 1962
 
7
Correspondence
  September 1962
 
8
Correspondence
  October 1962-November 6, 1962
 
9
Correspondence
  November 12-24, 1962
 
10
Correspondence
  November 26, 1962-December 1962
 
11
Correspondence
  January 1963
 
12
Correspondence
  February 1963
 
13
Correspondence
  March 1963
 
14
Correspondence
  April 1963
 
15
Correspondence
  May 1963-June 1963
 
16
Correspondence
  July 1963-August 1963
 
17
Correspondence
  September 1963
 
18
Correspondence
  October 1963
 
19
Correspondence
  November 1963-December 1963
 
7 1
Correspondence
  January 1964
 
2
Correspondence
  February 1964
 
3
Correspondence
  March 1964
 
4
Correspondence
  April 1964
 
5
Correspondence
  May 1964
 
6
Correspondence
  June 1964
 
7
Correspondence
  July 1964-August 1964
 
8
Correspondence
  September 1964
 
9
Correspondence
  October 1964
 
10
Correspondence
  November 1964
 
11
Correspondence
  December 1964
 
12
Correspondence
  January 1965-April 1965
 
13
Correspondence
  May 1965-June 1965
 
14
Correspondence
  July 1965
 
15
Correspondence
  August 1965
 
8 1
Correspondence
  September 1965
 
2
Correspondence
  October 1965
 
3
Correspondence
  November 1965
 
4
Correspondence
  December 1965
 
5
Correspondence
  January 1966
 
6
Correspondence
  February 1966-March 1966
 
7
Correspondence
  May 1966-July 1966
 
8
Correspondence
  August 1966-September 1966
 
9
Correspondence
  October 1966-December 1966
 
10
Correspondence
  January 1967
 
11
Correspondence
  February 1967
 
12
Correspondence
  March 1967-April 1967
 
13
Correspondence
  May 1967
 
14
Correspondence
  June 1967-August 1967
 
15
Correspondence
  September 1967
 
16
Correspondence
  October 1967-November 1967
 
17
Correspondence
  December 1967
 
9 1
Correspondence
  January 1968
 
2