Marianne Moore Collection
The Rosenbach’s literary collections include virtually all of the manuscripts and papers of Modernist poet Marianne Moore (1887-1972), as well as her personal library, thousands of photographs, and the contents of her Greenwich village living room, thus making the Rosenbach the undisputed center for the study of this important American writer. The Moore Collection is a unique literary repository, preserving intact a comprehensive record of a writer’s intellectual development. The Rosenbach has become a pilgrimage site for students and lovers of twentieth-century American art and literature, and the Moore papers are the heart of this collection. Their great significance to the story of Moore’s artistic and intellectual growth, as well as that of her peers, including Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, H.D., Elizabeth Bishop, William Carlos Williams, Wallace Stevens and many more has made the Moore papers such an important and heavily-used resource.
Moore’s Greenwich Village living room is permanently installed on the third floor of the historic Rosenbach house and is always on view to visitors as part of the Rosenbach house tour. The over 2,500 personal objects from the Moore room, ranging from furniture to figurines to postage stamps have been cataloged and are also a fruitful source of inquiry for interested researchers.
Access Phil, the Rosenbach’s collections database, here.
- Summary of Marianne Moore collections guide
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series I Poetry
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series II Prose
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series III Book Manuscripts
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series IV Translations
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 1 (92nd Street Y – Byrne, Evelyn B.)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 2 (C.W. Post College – Dylan Thomas Fund)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 3 (E.P. Dutton Co. – Hyman, Stanley)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 4 (Iberica Publishing Co. – McWilliams, Helen)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 5 (Meacham, Harry M. – Putnam, John)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 6 (Quarterly Review of Literature – Szul, A. V.)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series V General Correspondence: Section 7 (Talbot, Richard – Zuilli, Lillian and unidentified correspondence)
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series VI Family Correspondence
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series VII Notebooks
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series VIII Datebooks and Calendars
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series IX Address Books
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series X Albums
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series XI Financial Records
- Guide to Marianne Moore Series XV Awards & Degrees
Marianne Moore Digital Archive
In partnership with the Marianne Moore Digital Archive at the University at Buffalo, select Marianne Moore notebooks from our collection have been digitized. A group of Moore scholars is using the digital images to transcribe the contents, which include notes on the vast array of reading, lectures, conversations, and other sources from which Moore drew inspiration for her poems; as well as drafts of some of the poems themselves.
Collection Highlights
Letter from Ezra Pound to Marianne Moore
Marianne Moore Letter
Marianne Moore’s Reading Notes on Literary Topics
Related Posts
Women Breaking Barriers: Objects from The Rosenbach Collection Presented in Celebration of Alice Dunbar-Nelson
The following objects were selected by The Rosenbach’s Collections Department staff as examples from across our collections of women who broke barriers in their eras, cultures, and professions. They changed the world around them and became role models for those who followed in their footsteps. Amy Lowell (1874-1924), typed letter signed to A. Edward …
Harry Belafonte and Marianne Moore on the Tonight Show
This blog post was written by Andrew White The lovely lady Harry Belafonte is addressing here is the modernist poet Marianne Moore, whose archive resides with us at The Rosenbach. For one week in February of 1968 Harry Belafonte hosted The Tonight Show, and Moore was one of his guests. The Rosenbach has handwritten notes of …
Hope Smalley’s experience as the collections intern at the Rosenbach
My name is Hope Smalley and I was the collections intern at the Rosenbach this summer. Over the course of my ten-week internship, I had the unique opportunity to experience all the amazing things that the collections department does on a daily basis. From looking at letters in a barn to installing an exhibition, to …
5 Questions with Rebecca Romney
A series of informal, intimate talks given by literary and cultural luminaries, In Conversation with the Rosenbach delves into fascinating histories, intellectual curiosities, and inspiring ideas. Each program offers the audience a chance to join the conversation after the talk and share their own thoughts and questions. On April 27, rare book expert and Pawn …
A Collector’s Collection: Moore Inspired Musings
Years ago as an undergraduate student of literature, I ended up in a class that focused solely on the work of William Blake and I wasn’t exactly thrilled about it. I had just discovered the vivid trove of Latin American magical realism and the last thing I wanted to spend my time reading was the …
5 Questions with Allison C. Meier
A series of informal, intimate talks given by literary and cultural luminaries, In Conversation with the Rosenbach delves into fascinating histories, intellectual curiosities, and inspiring ideas. Each program offers the audience a chance to join the conversation after the talk and share their own thoughts and questions. Join us January 26 to hear Hyperallergic writer …
The Language of the Hand
Many years ago, I worked as a ghost tour guide in New Orleans and struck up a deal with one of the palm-readers who set up tables along the periphery of Jackson Square. I led my group to his table at the beginning of my tour, and he would choose a volunteer and read the shape …
Drinking Tea with Muhammad Ali
As the world began to mourn the death of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali on Friday June 3, 2016, his spoken words were remembered as well as his punches. Modernist poet Marianne Moore is mentioned in The Slate article “’I Done Handcuffed Lightning’: The Exuberant Spoken-Word Poetry of Muhammad Ali” for writing the liner notes for …
Graduation Gear
We have just passed through college graduation season, with its new graduates roaming the streets in caps and gowns. The Rosenbach actually has a fair amount of academic dress represented in our collections owing to degrees accumulated by our founder A.S.W. Rosenbach, and even more by Marianne Moore, so I thought I’d post a few. …