Grant Redford papers, 1930-1977

Grant Hubbard Redford was born December 25, 1908 in Seattle, Washington, son of Thomas Lloyd Redford and Sarah Gwennie Hubbard of Logan. Redford grew up in Logan and eventually moved to Cedar City,Utah where he taught English. A few years later, he relocated to Seattle, Washington where he taught creative writing at the University of Washington. In the mid-1950s, he taught in Turkey, then returned to teach and live in Seattle. Redford died in 1965.

Redford attended Logan High School in the late 1920s, winning the Hendrick's Medal for oration at Utah State Agricultural College (USAC) in 1929. His youth was fueled by an ambition to be a known author. In high school and college years, he was active in both literary and dramatic societies. He was a contributor to the Logan Daily Herald, The Scribbler (USAC art/literary journal), and he was also editor for The Scribbler and Student Life. A fellow classmate of May Swensen, both published poetry in an anthology of contemporary Utah poetry Utah Sings, in the mid-1930s. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Vermont from 1930 -1932. As a member of USAC International Relations Club, he led an anti-war demonstration at USAC in the fall of 1936.

Upon graduation from USAC in 1936, Redford taught speech at the Branch Agricultural College in Cedar City, Utah. In the 1940s, he served as associate editor for Rocky Mountain Review, and in 1941 he earned an MS degree in speech from the University of Iowa.

By the late 1940s, Redford taught in the English department at the University of Washington in Seattle. His teaching emphasis was short story and play writing; both genres reflected his own writing interests and pursuits. Redford also taught drama at the University of Ankara, Turkey, from 1958-1959. He helped found the Port Townsend Summer School of the Arts in Washington in 1961 and served on its faculty until his death in 1965.

Redford's short stories were published in national magazines like Cosmopolitan as well as scholarly journals. In the 1960s, he sought performance of his plays by contacting agents on Broadway, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and television stations. When Redford died in 1965, he had established a reputation as a well-known writer in the Pacific Northwest.