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American Literary Studies
Ambrose Gwinett Bierce Papers
The Papers
Location: Department of Special Collections, Green
Library
Call Number: M0080
Size: 2 linear feet
Finding Guide: A printed version is available in the reading room
of the Department of Special Collections. Electronic versions of
this finding guide are also available. If you have Microsoft's Internet
Explorer version 6.0 or higher, click here
to connect to the XML version on the Stanford server; if not, click
here
for the html version on the Online Archives of California server.
Research Access and Use: Materials in the Department
of Special Collections are non-circulating and must be used in the
Special Collections' Reading Room in the Cecil H. Green Library.
The Reading Room is open 10:00am to 5:00pm Monday through Friday.
Photocopies, photographs, and microfilm can be made of some materials
in the collections. For more information about the collections and
access policies, please contact Special Collections by telephone
at (650) 725-1022, by electronic mail at speccollref@stanford.edu or by regular mail
at the Department of Special Collections, Stanford University Libraries,
Stanford, California 94305-6004.
Career of Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?)
Ambrose Gwinett Bierce was born in Meigs County, Ohio on June
24, 1842, the tenth of thirteen children born to Marcus Aurelius
and
Laura Sherwood Bierce. He became a printer's apprentice in Kosciusko
County, Indiana, before entering the Kentucky Military Institute
in 1859. Bierce entered the Union Army after the outbreak of the
Civil War, where he served with the 9th Regiment of Indiana Volunteers.
He rose quickly in rank from private to lieutenant and became the
acting topographical engineer on General W. B. Hazen's staff. At
the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, Bierce sustained a near-fatal head
wound which led to his eventual discharge after a lengthy recuperation.
His first job in journalism was as managing editor for the San
Francisco News-Letter and California Advertiser in 1868, writing
the entries for the weekly column "Town Crier." Bierce
married Mary Ellen Day on Christmas Day, 1871, and eventually had
three children, Day, Leigh, and Helen. From 1872-74, Bierce was
in England writing for Tom Hood's Fun and James Mortimer's
Figaro, where he published his first book, The Fiend's
Delight (1873), culled from his journalistic pieces. He returned
to San Francisco in September of 1875, where he worked editing magazines,
including Argonaut and the Wasp. Bierce became a columnist
for the San Francisco Examiner in 1887, while continuing
to produce his own books. His experiences in the war formed the
basis for his first book of short stories, Tales of Soldiers
and Civilians (1891), which contains his most famous story,
"The Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." The next year he
produced his first volume of poetry, Black Beetles in Amber
(1892) which was later followed by Shapes of Clay (1903).
In 1896, he was sent to Washington, D.C. by the Examiner to
cover the Railroad Funding Bill controversy, where he stayed as
a political reporter for the Hearst papers. He is perhaps best known
for his satirical work lapooning human folly, first in Fantastic
Fables (1899) and later in his celebrated The Devil's Dictionary
(1906). His last major literary work was the massive project, Collected
Works (1912) which filled twelve volumes. In 1913, at the age
of seventy-one, Bierce disappeared into Mexico to cover the expolits
of the bandit Pancho Villa, whom he much admired. The exact circumstances
of his death remain a mystery.
Highlights and Research Potential of the Bierce Papers
The Ambrose Gwinett Bierce Papers consist primarily of correspondence
to Bierce from 1872-1913. Correspondents include: Upton Sinclair,
Joaquin Miller, Gertrude Atherton, H.L. Mencken, Edwin Markham,
William Randolph Hearst, George Sterling, and Percival Pollard.
Also included in the collection are photographs, diaries, and sketches
by Bierce. There are several letters by Bierce himself but of these,
many are printed copies or carbons. Several of the photos in the
collection have notations and inscriptions in Bierce's hand, as
do many of the incoming letters.
The papers cover Bierce's journalistic career in England, San Francisco,
and Washington, D.C.; the publication of his works and commentaries
on the political controversies and governmental policies of the
day including the Spanish American War, the question of annexation,
and the treaty of Hawaii. The telegram correspondence to Bierce
in 1896 details the Railroad Funding Bill controversy which Bierce
covered in Washington, D.C. for William Randolph Hearst's San
Francisco Examiner. Other topics include women's suffrage and
the Titanic. The collection also contains reminiscences and
memorabilia of the Civil War, including the sketchbook Bierce kept
while serving as a Union topographer with the staff of General W.
B. Hazen. Of special note is the diary which records Bierce's wanderings
through the Southwest and into Mexico in late 1913 before his disappearance
somewhere in Mexico.
The papers are arranged in seven series:
1. Correspondence
2. Legal documents and business contracts
3. Other personal papers
4. Papers about Bierce
5. Miscellaneous printed materials
6. Sketches
7. Photos
Bibliography of Ambrose Bierce
- Gaer, Joseph. Ambrose Gwinett Bierce: Bibliography and Biographical
Data. New York : B. Franklin, 1968. Z8094.3.G13 1968
- Starrett, Vincent. Ambrose Bierce, a Bibliography. Philadelphia
: The Centaur Book Shop, 1929.
Z8094.3 .S79
Selected Biography and Criticism
- Grenander, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth). Ambrose Bierce.
New York : Twayne Publishers, 1971.
PS1097.Z5G75
- Davidson, Cathy N. Critical Essays on Ambrose Bierce.
Boston, MA. : G.K. Hall, 1982. PS1097.Z5D3
- Saunders, Richard. Ambrose Bierce : The Making of a Misanthrope.
San Francisco : Chronicle Books, 1985. PS1097.Z5 S28 1985
Other Manuscript Collections
- The Clifton Waller Barrett Collection at the University of Virginia
- The Huntington Library in San Marino, California
- Mills College in Oakland, California
- University of Southern California
Last modified:
July 3, 2006
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