Abstract: This collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, typescripts, published books, journals, periodicals, news clippings, photographs, artwork, audio tapes, video tapes, research materials and notes, and ephemera from Neala Schleuning's research and archival collection, most of which was used toward her 1978 dissertation and subsequent book on the American writer Meridel Le Sueur.

Source

Processing

Processed by Gerald Cloud, April 2004. Encoded by Jillian Kuzma, January 2009. Updated by Julia Pompetti, November 2010.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Terms Governing Use and
Reproduction

Use of materials from this collection beyond the
exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S.
Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is
required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections
Department, University of Delaware Library,
http://www.lib.udel.edu/cgi-bin/askspec.cgi

Biographical Notes

Meridel Le Sueur

The American writer Meridel Le Sueur (1900-1996) was the author of short stories, poems, a novel, articles, essays, and reportage pieces. The rise of radicalism in the 1960s and the Women's movement in the 1970s brought revitalized attention to Le Sueur's work, and she continued producing new writing and publishing into her nineties. Much of Le Sueur's work remains in print.Le Sueur was a well-known and respected writer of the political left who published in magazines and journals such as
American Mercury,
Anvil,
Dial,
New Masses,
New Republic,
Scribner's,
Story, and
Yale Review.

Le Sueur was born on February 22, 1900, in Murray, Iowa; she died November 14, 1996, in Hudson, Wisconsin. She was raised in a climate of social activism: her mother, a college instructor, and her step-father, Arthur Le Sueur, a lawyer and founder of the Industrial Workers of the World, worked to support the socialist ideals that developed in the American Midwest at the beginning of the twentieth century (see
Crusaders, Le Sueur's biography of her parents). The Le Sueur family associated with figures such as Big Bill Haywood, Eugene Debs, Lincoln Steffens, and Emma Goldman; and Meridel Le Sueur's writing inherited the spirit of the Socialist movement of the 1920s and 1930s. The stories that Le Sueur published at this time--some of which were anthologized in
O. Henry Prize Stories and
O'Brien Best Stories --reflect her commitment to Midwestern populist values and feminism.

Le Sueur published consistently until 1947 when she was blacklisted by the House Committee on Un-American Activities. In spite of the blacklist, Alfred Knopf continued to publish Le Sueur's children's books, but sales were not enough to provide her with an income and she turned to teaching as one means of supporting herself. Le Sueur described the post-war years as her "dark time" (Coiner 82-3).

Neala Schleuning

The American educator and writer Neala Schleuning, also known as Neala Janis Schleuning Yount, received her Ph.D. in American Studies from the University of Minnesota in 1978 with a dissertation on the life and work of Meridel Le Sueur. Schleuning's association with Le Sueur began in 1973 and continued while Schleuning wrote her dissertation and worked with the Twin Cities Women's Film Collective on the film
My People Are My Home (1976).

The film is narrated by Le Sueur from a script of her own poetry and prose, and also includes some brief interviews. In the course of Schleuning's research for both the Film Collective project and her dissertation, she worked directly with Le Sueur, drawing on Le Sueur's journals and other archival materials. Schleuning remained in contact with Le Sueur until the latter's death in 1996.

Schleuning taught American history, Women's Studies, and American Studies, and was involved in higher education administration. She was director of the women's center at Mankato State University (now known as Minnesota State University, Mankato), and assistant director of the Illinois Board of Higher Education. A Fulbright Scholar, she is the author of several books, including
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing (1983),
Idle Hands and Empty Hearts: Work and Freedom in the United States (1990),
Women, Community, and the Hormel Strike of 1985-86 (1994), and
To Have and to Hold: the Meaning of Ownership in the United States (1997).

Scope and Content Note

The Neala Schleuning - Meridel Le Sueur Collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, typescripts, published books, journals, periodicals, news clippings, photographs, artwork, audio tapes, video tapes, research materials and notes, and ephemera from Schleuning's research and archival collection, most of which was used toward her 1978 dissertation and subsequent book on the American writer Meridel Le Sueur,
America, Song We Sang Without Knowing: The Life and Ideas of Meridel Le Sueur (1983). Material in the collection spans the dates 1930 to 1997, comprising 2.3 linear feet and 43 audio cassettes, 10 reel-to-reel tapes, and 2 VHS videotapes. The collection is arranged in five series of material related to Schleuning's scholarly work on and interest in Meridel Le Sueur: I. Neala Schleuning:
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing; II.
My People Are My Home; III. Research and resources; IV. Meridel Le Sueur; and V. Media.

Schleuning's developing friendship with Le Sueur led her to accumulate more materials documenting both Le Sueur's career and Schleuning's own interest in Midwestern literature, feminism, and political activism. Schleuning and Le Sueur maintained a correspondence until Le Sueur's death in 1996, and the collection provides many insights into Le Sueur's literary interests and activities during the 1970s until the end of her life.

Series I. contains a copy of Schleuning's dissertation and miscellaneous working notes. A copy of
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing (1983), the published book resulting from the dissertation, is also included.

Series II. includes materials related to the making of a 1976 documentary film by the Twin Cities Women's Film Collective,
My People Are My Home. The film is narrated by Le Sueur from a script of her own poetry and prose and also includes some brief interviews. Several drafts of the film's script are included, as well as a VHS video tape of the final film (compare to Series V. F68). Both Schleuning and Le Sueur were members of the collective, and the film was made with Le Sueur's direct cooperation and input. The multiple drafts of scripts in this series bear autograph notes and corrections and provide an indication of how the project was developed.

Series III. comprises correspondence, audio transcriptions, reviews and news clippings, and ephemera that Schleuning used during her work on Le Sueur. The correspondence includes both incoming and outgoing letters between Le Sueur and Schleuning, revealing the progression of Schleuning's scholarly work, as well as the growing friendship between the two women. Other correspondence includes Schleuning's communications with scholars and acquaintances of Le Sueur, such as writer and
Anvil editor Jack Conroy, Twin Cities political activist Don Olson, Le Sueur's long-time friend and labor activist Irene Paull (see also IV.C.2 and IV.C.6 for more on Paull), writer and editor Fred Whitehead, and Paula Zimmering. The audio transcripts in this series correspond to the audio tapes in Series V. The transcripts include interviews and conversations between Le Sueur, Schleuning, and others associated with Le Sueur. The content of the tapes cover Le Sueur's thoughts on her writing, the culture of rural America, the feminist and socialist movements in America, and the history of social activism from the 1930s to the 1970s. Schleuning drew from the content of the tapes for her dissertation. The series also includes several posters for readings and appearances by Le Sueur spanning the dates 1977 to 1990. Some of the materials in this series document the revived interest in Le Sueur's work that took place during the 1970s through the 1990s.

Series IV. comprises works composed by Meridel Le Sueur. Included are manuscripts, photocopies of previously published short stories, poems, and essays (many of which have never been reprinted), transcriptions from Le Sueur's journal, transcriptions of interviews conducted by Le Sueur in the 1930s-1950s with various farmers, socialists, and radicals across the Midwest, and published works authored by Le Sueur, including books, broadsides, several small press publications, periodicals, and journals with writings about Le Sueur. Some of the published works have been removed to the general collection. Among the other significant items in this series are excerpts from Le Sueur's journals, several unpublished works in progress (F47-48), a typescript copy of Le Sueur's 1930 novel
The Girl (F45), and many early short stories and essays copied from old-left journals and other publications.

Series V. contains photographs, artworks, and audio and video tapes. The series includes over 60 photographs of Le Sueur from the 1970s to the 1990s and more than 90 archival photographs used in the production of the film
My People Are My Home. The artworks (in various media) in the series include portraits of Le Sueur. The audio tapes (cassettes and reel-to-reel) contain conversations and interviews with Le Sueur and various friends and associates. The content of the tapes cover Le Sueur's thoughts on her writing, the culture of rural America, the feminist and socialist movements in America, and the history of social activism from the 1930s to the 1970s (some of these tapes are transcribed in Series III.). Two video tapes are also included in the series: the documentary film
My People Are My Home and an interview conducted with Le Sueur in 1988.

Selected Search Terms

Personal Names

Schleuning, Neala.

Le Sueur, Meridel.

Corporate Names

Twin Cities Women's Film Collective.

Alternate Title

My people are my home.

Topical Terms

Authors, American--20th century.

Feminism--United States--History--20th century.

Socialism--United States--History--20th century.

Blacklisting of authors--United States--History--20th century.

Feminists--United States--History--20th century.

Form/Genre Terms

Correspondence.

Manuscripts for publication.

Typescripts.

Photographs.

Audiotapes.

Videotapes.

Documentary films.

Biographical films.

Interviews.

Occupation

Authors.

Scholars.

Personal Contributors

Le Sueur, Meridel.

Related Materials in this
Repository

MSS 409, Meridel Le Sueur papers

GRA, Neala Schleuning poster collection

Materials Cataloged Separately

Additional titles by Meridel Le Sueur are available with imprints in Special Collections.

Arrangement

I. Neala Schleuning:
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing

II.
My People Are My Home

III. Research/resources

IV. Meridel Le Sueur

V. Media

Detailed Contents List

Series I. Neala Schleuning:
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing , 1978-1983, undated

This series contains a copy of Schleuning’s dissertation and miscellaneous working notes. A copy of
America: Song We Sang Without Knowing (1983), the published book resulting from the dissertation, is also included.

Miscellaneous notes from thesis draft
, undated [Box 1 F1]

Typescript and carbons with autograph notes in NS’s hand for her dissertation at the University of Minnesota.

This series includes materials related to the making of a 1976 documentary film by the Twin Cities Women's Film Collective. The film is narrated by Le Sueur from a script of her own poetry and prose and also includes some brief interviews. Several drafts of the film's script are included, as well as a VHS video tape of the final film (compare to Series V. F68). Both Schleuning and Le Sueur were members of the collective, and the film was made with Le Sueur's direct cooperation and input. The multiple drafts of scripts in this series bear autograph notes and corrections and provide an indication of how the project was developed.

Film scripts
, undated [Box 1 F4]

Typescript, typescript copy, and carbons of the script for a documentary on MLS, by the Twin Cities Women’s Film Collective (of which Le Sueur was a member). Includes multiple drafts, notes, and fragments with autograph corrections in various hands. The script for this film was narrated by MLS and composed of her published writings. A copy of the video tape can be found in Series V. of this collection.

Film scripts
, undated [Box 1 F5]

Fragments and notes for the final script.

Promotional ephemera
, undated [Box 1 F6]

Includes a brochure from Femme Films, Inc. advertising the film, a Twin Cities Women’s Film Collective flyer, an advertisement for VHS sales, and a news clipping from the
Minneapolis Star reviewing the film.

Series III. Research/resources
, 1915-2003

This series comprises correspondence, audio transcriptions, reviews and news clippings, and ephemera that Schleuning used during her work on Le Sueur. The correspondence includes both incoming and outgoing letters between Le Sueur and Schleuning, revealing the progression of Schleuning's scholarly work, as well as the growing friendship between the two women. Other correspondence includes Schleuning's communications with scholars and acquaintances of Le Sueur, such as writer and
Anvil editor Jack Conroy, Twin Cities political activist Don Olson, Le Sueur's long-time friend and labor activist Irene Paull (see also IV.C.2 and IV.C.6 for more on Paull), writer and editor Fred Whitehead, and Paula Zimmering. The audio transcripts in this series correspond to the audio tapes in Series V. The transcripts include interviews and conversations between Le Sueur, Schleuning, and others associated with Le Sueur. The content of the tapes cover Le Sueur's thoughts on her writing, the culture of rural America, the feminist and socialist movements in America, and the history of social activism from the 1930s to the 1970s. Schleuning drew from the content of the tapes for her dissertation. The series also includes several posters for readings and appearances by Le Sueur spanning the dates 1977 to 1990. Some of the materials in this series document the revived interest in Le Sueur's work that took place during the 1970s through the 1990s.

Letter begins "dearest Neala, it was kind of you … " Verso includes two poems: "Family Man: One and Two." Also includes typescript carbon of the poem "High on the Hog, Hog on the High," signed by MLS.

Typed letter (carbon), NS to MLS
, 1987 January 10 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Typed carbon signed, MLS to NS
, 1987 January 11 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Typed letter signed (carbon), NS to MLS
, 1987 March 31 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Letter begins "yes I'd like to go … "

Autograph card signed, MLS to NS
, 1987 May 18 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, 1987 June 17 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Autograph card signed, MLS to NS
, 1987 July 08 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Autograph card signed, MLS to NS
, 1987 July 16 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Letter begins "dearest Neale well you certainly … "

Typed letter signed (carbon), NS to MLS
, 1988 February 26 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Letter begins "dearest Neale I'm amazed at the women's thing … "

Typed letter signed (copy), NS to MLS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Letter begins "Dearest Meridel, We're really a pair! … "

Autograph card signed, MLS to NS
, 1989 January 31 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

2 pages

Letter begins "Dearest Meridel, Got your note today … "

Typed letter signed (carbon), MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Autograph card signed, MLS to NS
, 1989 March 28 [Box 1 F8]

1 card

Typed letter, MLS to NS
, 1989 July 06 [Box 1 F8]

1 page with envelope

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, 1990 February 03 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

03 February 1990; Includes a flyer from the Minnesota Historical Society for Meridel Le Sueur: A Witness to Minnesota History" and a typed letter signed from Claire McInerney of the College of St. Catherine, St. Paul, Minnesota, concerning various projects related to MLS.

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, 1990 November 27 [Box 1 F8]

2 pages

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, 1991 April [Box 1 F8]

2 pages

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Letter begins "dearest poor Neale, I'm damned glad … "

Autograph letter signed, MLS to NS
, undated [Box 1 F8]

1 page

Written on the verso of a flyer for MLS's ninetieth birthday celebration, "Songs for Our Time," Orpheum Theatre, 17 February 1990, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Typed letter signed, MLS to NS
, 1991 June 17 [Box 1 F8]

3 pages

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, 1991 June 18 [Box 1 F8]

3 pages

Typed letter, NS to MLS
, 1991 October 20 [Box 1 F8]

2 pages

Autograph letter signed, MLS to NS
, 1994 February 05 [Box 1 F8]

1 page

05 February 1994; Autograph note signed "Meridel" and "Rachel" on the verso of a broadside containing MLS's poem "Arise!"

Transcripts of letters
, undated [Box 1 F8]

5 pages

Made by NS of letters received at various times; date when copies were made is unknown.

Includes a mention of MLS's step-father, Arthur Le Sueur, Dean of the Law department, page 24. Photocopy.

Ephemera, 1977-1983
, 1977-1983 [Box 1 F26]

News clippings, publisher’s newsletters, flyer Includes news clippings from the late 1970s-early 1980s; West End Press catalog and newsletters: 1.5 (1977) and 3.2 (1981); Holy Cow! Press title list;
Midwest Villages & Voices newsletter (1.1, Sp 1986); a flyer from the Feminist Press for
Ripenings, Selected Works 1927-1980, a flyer for a reading October 1, 1977 at the Women’s Art Registry of Minnesota (Minneapolis), and other readings and appearances by MLS. Also includes a program for a sermon by Le Sueur at The Nora Free Christian Church, Hanska, Minnesota, on June 16, 1983, as part of the Eighty-Sixth Annual Midsummer Festival.

Honors, 1980-1992
, 1980-1992 [Box 1 F27]

News clippings, correspondence, invitations to MLS birthday celebrations, programs related to awards and events honoring MLS, including a program for a concert in honor of MLS, “Earth Mass,” by the Paul Winter Consort, April 14, 1984, Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis, MN., featuring MLS.

Articles related to MLS’s writings and career from various sources, including newspapers, journals, and periodicals. Includes NS’s transcriptions from reviews and news articles, dated 1931 – 1947, and unpublished essays written by graduate students.

Includes NEH grant proposal for a biographical radio series on MLS, 1988;
Ripenings, a play by Phyllis MacDougal for Molly Culligan based on the writings of MLS, undated. (poster removed to Oversized); two flyers for “Hurt of the Daughters, based on the novel,
The Girl by Meridel Le Sueur” [1978], Cherry Creek Theatre, St. Peter, MN; Minnesota Women Calendar, 1984.

This series comprises works composed by Meridel Le Sueur. Included are manuscripts, photocopies of previously published short stories, poems, and essays (many of which have never been reprinted), transcriptions from Le Sueur's journal, transcriptions of interviews conducted by Le Sueur in the 1930s-1950s with various farmers, socialists, and radicals across the Midwest, and published works authored by Le Sueur, including books, broadsides, several small press publications, periodicals, and journals with writings about Le Sueur. Some of the published works have been removed to the general collection. Among the other significant items in this series are excerpts from Le Sueur’s journals, several unpublished works in progress (F47-48), a typescript copy of Le Sueur’s 1930 novel
The Girl (F45), and many early short stories and essays copied from old-left journals and other publications.

Typescript copies and carbons with autograph corrections. According to Neal Schleuning's note, the drafts include "Meridel's work-in-progress in the [19]80s-[19]90s … unsorted, but pages numbered. [H]er 'nounless' novel … may also include typed up journal entries ... "

Subseries IV.F. Journal transcripts
, undated

Meridel Le Sueur Journal entries
, undated [Box 2 F49]

Typescript copies and transcriptions from MLS's journals made by Film Collective members in early research for the film
My People Are My Home. The transcriptions are in some cases typed copies and in other cases photocopies. The original journals are held by the Minnesota Historical Society.

Subseries IV.G. Interview transcriptions
, 1930-1959

Typescript copies and transcriptions from audio tape interviews conducted by MLS with miscellaneous farmers, socialists, and radicals across the Midwest, some of whom are specifically identified. The tapes associated with these interviews, held by the Minnesota Historical Society, are not contained within the collection, with the possible exception of Madge Hawkins (cf. T27).

Cultural Democracy 36 (Summer 1988): 3-4. See F55 for original artwork from the magazine's cover.

"Tradesman La Salle."
, undated [Box 2 F52]

Unidentified periodical, pages 33-57.

"Xmas Tree."
, undated [Box 2 F52]

The Windsor Quarterly. 146-53.

Subseries IV.I. Poems
, 1951-1976, undated

Poems
, 1951-1976, undated

"Corridos of Love."
, 1962 June [Box 2 F53]

Mainstream 15.6 (June 1962): 23-25.

"The Dance of St. Paul, Then and Now and Yet."
, undated [Box 2 F53]

2 pages

Transcript copy

"From the Furrow."
, 1951 March [Box 2 F53]

Masses and Mainstreams 4.3 (March 1951):35-38.

"A Memorial By Meridel Le Sueur"
, undated [Box 2 F53]

6 pages

Typescript copy. Poem appears as part of an eulogy for Margie Baker by Mildred Ptashne of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom and Irving Nudell, for the staff of the Jewish Family and Children's Service.

"Nests"
, undated [Box 2 F53]

1 page

Typescript copy.

"Poem for Elizabeth."
, 1963 May [Box 2 F53]

Mainstream 16.5 (May 1963): 32-34.

"Put on you best buckskin … "
, undated [Box 2 F53]

Typescript carbon.

"Spring Out of Jerusalem."
, 1933 April [Box 2 F53]

Scribner's Magazine April 1933: 234.

"Women of Summer Ripe." Written for the Women's Film Collective
, 1976 July [Box 2 F53]

1 page

Typescript copy.

Series V. Media
, 1973-2004, undated

This series contains photographs, art works, and audio and video tapes. The series includes over 60 photographs of Le Sueur from the 1970s to the 1990s and more than 90 archival photographs used in the production of the film
My People Are My Home. The art works (in various media) in the series include portraits of Le Sueur. The audio tapes (cassettes and reel-to-reel) contain conversations and interviews with Le Sueur and various friends and associates. The content of the tapes cover Le Sueur’s thoughts on her writing, the culture of rural America, the feminist and socialist movements in America, and the history of social activism from the 1930s to the 1970s (some of these tapes are transcribed in Series III.). Two video tapes are also included in the series: the documentary film
My People Are My Home and an interview conducted with Le Sueur in 1988.

Artwork includes camera ready art for the cover of
Cultural Democracy 36 (Summer 1988); a silver silk-screen print; two graphite portraits (copies) by Charles Waterman, a Minnesota poet; and a photocopy of a drawing by Tecla for Le Sueur's
Women on the Breadline (a copy of which is contained in the collection), inscribed by Tecla.

Archival Photographs
, undated [Box 3 F56]

95 photographs

94 Black and white photographs used in the making of the film
My People Are My Home, with production notes and crop marks. Reproduced from originals held by the Minnesota Historical Society.

Produced by Adina Back. Readings by Bridget Cleary and original music by Dave Patchkey. [Available August 2004 from http://soundprint.org/radio/display_show/ID/54/name/Fierce+for+Change%3A+Meridel+Le+Sueur]