Home > Overview

 

Collection Summary

Creator: Slessor, Kenneth, 1901-1971
Title: Papers of Kenneth Slessor
Date Range: c. 1815-1971 (bulk 1917-1971)
Collection number:MS 3020
Extent: 4.4 m. (22 boxes + 1 folio box)

 

Introduction

Scope and Content

The papers of Kenneth Slessor comprise: correspondence; family papers; literary drafts, manuscripts and typescripts; diaries; despatches; notes and notebooks; newspaper cuttings; publications; business, financial and legal papers; and photographs. They document Slessor's professional life as a journalist, newspaper and journal editor, official war correspondent, writer of poetry and prose, and his membership of professional associations, the Advisory Board of the Commonwealth Literary Fund and the National Literature Review Board. His personal life is represented by family documents and correspondence, photographs and legal papers relating to family property and his divorce.

The correspondence, which has been comprehensively indexed, with the exception of the 1979-2000 additions, (see the correspondence index at the end of this guide) includes letters from writers, academics, publishers and family members. Correspondents of note include Geoffrey Blainey, Harry H. Cox, Beatrice Davis, R.D. Fitzgerald, Dame Mary Gilmore, H.M. Green, Jill Hellyer, R. Guy Howarth, Herbert Jaffa, C.J. Koch, Jack Lindsay, Norman Lindsay, Hugh McCrae, Kenneth MacKenzie, Tom Inglis Moore, Frank Moorhouse, Les Murray, Grace Perry, Hal Porter, Roland Robinson, David Rowbotham, Clement Semmler, Douglas Stewart, Dal Stivens, Kylie Tennant, Francis Webb and Derek A. Whitelock.

Arrangement

The original consignment of Slessor papers, received by the Library in 1972, was arranged into series and a correspondence index created in 1977. At that time a hardcopy guide to the collection was published and in 2000 the guide was made available online. Eight consignments received between 1979-2000 were physically added to the collection at the end of the series sequence but were not represented in the guide. In 2008 the later consignments were incorporated into the series arrangement and the guide revised to reflect these changes. The small amount of correspondence in the later consignments was not indexed.

In the original arrangement, item numbers were allocated to selected series only. Whilst these have been retained in the revised guide, there are no item numbers for Series 5 or 18, or for material added to the collection after 1977.

Access

Papers relating to Slessor's divorce (Series 10) are not available for research during the life of Paul Slessor. The remainder of the collection is available for research.

Provenance

The papers of the poet and journalist Kenneth Slessor were offered to the National Library by his brother Robin Slessor, executor of the will, after his death in 1971. The National Library purchased the papers in 1972. Eight additional consignments of papers received by the Library between 1979 and 2000 were variously purchased from Robin Slessor, Paul Slessor and Peter Elder.

Copying and Publishing

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred Citation

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Kenneth Slessor, National Library of Australia, MS 3020, [series and folder or item number]'.

 

Home > Overview