Hughie Call papers , 1936-1978

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Call, Hughie, 1890-1969
Title
Hughie Call papers
Dates
1936-1978 (inclusive)
Quantity
9 linear feet, (6 containers)
Collection Number
Coll 073
Summary
Hughie Florence Call (1890-1969) was a writer whose works reflect her life on a Montana sheep ranch. The collection includes correspondence, manuscripts of books and articles, reviews, legal documents, and general memorabilia that follow her writing career from 1936-1969.
Repository
University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
UO Libraries--SCUA
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene OR
97403-1299
Telephone: 5413463068
spcarref@uoregon.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time.

Additional Reference Guides

See the Current Collection Guide for detailed description and requesting options.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Hughie Florence Call was born in Trent, Texas on May 20, 1890, to John Hicks Florence, a physician, and Kathleen Best Florence. Her father's work with the state quarantine department and later his position with the state legislature occasioned her frequent moves in childhood to many small coastal and border towns and to Galveston, Houston and Dallas. She received her education from tutors and in private schools, including the present Trinity University of San Antonio. Florence was a feature writer for a chain of Texas newspapers under what was known as the Bagley Syndicate before marrying Andrew Dickinson on May 5, 1909. She was widowed just ten years later with one son, Andrew Dickinson, Jr.

While visiting California in 1920, Hughie Florence Dickinson met Thomas J. Call, a veteran Montana woolgrower. He was also a widower with a young son, Leigh Call. After they were married on June 4, 1920, Hughie Florence Call moved from the relative urbanity of Texas to the isolated sheep ranch in the Rocky Mountains of Montana where she accumulated a lifetime of material for her books and stories.

Mrs. Call began her writing career in earnest in 1936,when the first of her factual articles, "Eavesdroppers in Eden" and "Sheep Bought It" were published. She then turned to fiction with "We, The Living," after which she ventured into short stories and later novels for children and adults. Mrs. Call wrote her first novel, The Golden Fleece in 1942, followed by four others: Rising Arrow (1950), Peter's Moose (1955), The Little Kingdom (1961), and The Shorn Lamb (1969). The Little Kingdom is about Call's daughter, Florence Louise "Wezie," who died at age 17 of a sudden illness, and is dedicated to Tom, who died in1946. It received widespread recognition, having been translated into Braille and published internationally. It was also honored by The National Federation of Press Women as the best non-fiction juvenile book of 1965. Call's short stories were published in The American Magazine, The Country Beautiful, Reader's Digest, Redbook, The Saturday Evening Post, Scribner's, This Week, and Woman's Home Companion, among others.

In addition to writing, Mrs. Call was a frequent guest lecturer at various schools and taught creative writing both privately and at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri. A member of Theta Sigma Phi, The Texas Institute of Letters, and Who's Who of American Letters in 1967, Mrs. Hughie Florence Call died on September 3, 1969.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Hughie Call Papers contain correspondence, manuscripts of books and articles, reviews of her works, legal documents, and general memorabilia, and cover her entire career from 1936-1969. Her early days as a newspaper writer are not represented in the collection.

The correspondence is arranged chronologically from 1937-1978, a large portion of which is from publishers pertaining to her works in progress. The balance is divided between fan mail from friends and strangers. Of special note are letters received from fellow authors Burt Struthers, Mrs. Peggy (Simson) Curry, Archer Gilfillan, Fred Gipson, A.B. "Bud" Guthrie and Mrs. (Claire) George Sessions Perry. The correspondence after Mrs. Call's death is between her publishers and friends and family relating to her works in progress and the consolidation of her papers. There are only five outgoing letters from Mrs. Call in the collection.

The manuscripts series contains galley proofs of two of her five published books The Little Kingdom and The Shorn Lamb. The original story line for The Golden Fleece is included, but not the final draft. Call's other two published works, Rising Arrow and Peter's Moose are not represented in this collection. However, both rough and final drafts of her unpublished novel, Spring Storm are included. These works are arranged alphabetically by title, along with the rough and final drafts of novelettes and short stories. Fragments of story lines and several completed but untitled short stories are also part of this series, including works co-authored with Ruby Wiley and Naomi Lane Babson. Finally, notebooks of works in progress, research and writing class notes, and some of her poetry complete the manuscript series.

A few novelettes and short stories, which have been published in magazines, are filed in a separate tearsheet series and are also arranged alphabetically by title. Following these are reviews of Call's works, which for preservation purposes are divided into newsprint and non-newsprint. The legal documents, which comprise the next series, pertain to copyright and ownership rights of the Hughie F. Call manuscripts. Finally, the general memorabilia includes biographical information about contemporary authors and correspondents A. B. "Bud" Guthrie, J. Frank Dobie and Emma Yearing; writing awards; a list of her students in a writing class, and a photograph of the Call ranch and one of her father, Dr. Florence, included in a book he authored. There is also an unidentified pencil drawing of a sheep in this last file.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Children's literature, American--Authorship
  • Sheep ranches--Montana--Juvenile literature
  • Women authors, American--20th century--Correspondence
  • Young adult literature, American--Authorship

Personal Names

  • Call, Hughie, 1890-1969
  • Call, Hughie, 1890-1969

Geographical Names

  • Montana--Description and travel
  • Montana--In literature