DONALD ELMER LAWSON PAPERS

de Grummond Children's Literature Collection
The University of Southern Mississippi

	Creator:	Donald Elmer Lawson
	Title:	Donald Elmer Lawson Papers
	Dates:	1961-1989
	Dates:	[1965-1989]
	Quantity:	5.95 cubic feet (20 boxes)
	Identification:	DG0597

Biographical Note

Donald Elmer Lawson was born on May 20, 1917, in Chicago, Illinois, to Elmer and Christina (Grass) Lawson. He displayed an interest in writing early in life and published stories in his high school and college magazines. Lawson received a B.A. degree from Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, in 1939 and attended the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop in 1939-1940. He served in a counterintelligence unit of the U.S. Army Air Corps in Europe during World War II. Lawson married Beatrice Yates in 1945 and went to work for Compton's Encyclopedia the following year. He stayed with the company for the next twenty-seven years, eventually rising to a vice presidential position.

The challenge of writing clear and dramatic encyclopedia articles drew Lawson toward writing non-fiction books for children. He published his first children's book, Young People in the White House, in 1961, the same year that he sold his first and only adult novel. A natural interest in history, his wartime experiences, and his "personal belief that to achieve peace we must first understand war," all motivated Lawson to write mainly on subjects from American military history. Consequently, he produced The Young People's History of America's Wars, an eleven-volume series covering American military history from colonial wars to Vietnam; two anthologies of pacifist writings; and several other books on military themes. Lawson also wroteand edited works on European and Asian history, modern North Africa, current events, and civics. He produced over forty non-fiction books during his career.

In 1970, Lawson received an honorary Litt.D. from Cornell College in recognition of his accomplishments as a writer and editor. He left Compton's in 1973 to become executive editor for United Educators, Inc. He remained with that organization until his death in 1990.

Sources:
Something About the Author, ed. Anne Commire (Detroit: Gale Research, 1976), 9:132-133.
Contemporary Authors: New Revision Series, ed. Hal May and James G. Lesniak (Detroit: Gale Research, 1989), 26:232-233.

Scope and Content Note

The Donald Elmer Lawson Papers contain manuscripts, typescripts, galleys, page proofs, blues, folded and gathered sheets, correspondence, photographs, publications, and clippings created and accumulated by Donald Elmer Lawson between 1961 and 1989. Lawson's papers were created from his composition of twenty-one published books. The material is organized into three series: books, a photograph, and correspondence.

The papers in the books series contain material for twenty-one books, covering the spectrum of Lawson's literary subject matter: American political and military history, European and Asian history, modern North Africa, current events, and civics. The papers are arranged alphabetically by title and the material for each book is arranged chronologically in order of creation when known. The material that Lawson collected for his research is mostly undated and unarranged, but inclusive dates have been given for the dated material included. In cases where most of the research material is dated, the items have been arranged in chronological order. Also, Lawson regularly wrote, typed, revised, and retyped the first drafts of books one chapter at a time. While his method produced an accumulation of manuscript and early typescript pages apparently in a state of disorder, the pages have a fixed arrangement scheme and comprise unified, continuous narratives.

The Lawson Papers contain a photograph of Don Lawson, Lena de Grummond, and others at the first University of Southern Mississippi Book Festival in 1968. The pieces of correspondence with the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection were selected and photocopied from the correspondence file of the de Grummond Collection because they provide information on Don Lawson's appearance at the festival as well as other biographical information. The letters are arranged chronologically.

Restrictions

Restrictions on Use

Noncirculating; available for research.

Copyright Restrictions

The collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). Reproductions can be made only if they are to be used for "private study, scholarship, or research." It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials, other than that noted above.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

(Identify the item and cite the series), Donald Elmer Lawson Papers, de Grummond Children's Literature Collection, University of Southern Mississippi Libraries.

Provenance

These papers were donated to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection of the University of Southern Mississippi Libraries by Donald Elmer Lawson and Beatrice Yates Lawson between 1968 and 1992.

Processing Information

Processed by Hans Rasmussen, December 2001. Encoded into EAD Version 1.0 by Danielle L. Bishop. This finding aid is the product of a grant funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Container Listing

Contact:
The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection
The University of Southern Mississippi
118 College Drive, #5148
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
(601) 266-4349
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