Restrictions
Noncirculating; available for research.
Copyright
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.
Biographical Sketch
Dorothy Sterling was born on November 23, 1913 in New York City and grew up in
Manhattan. She started Wellesley College at the age of 16 and received her bachelor's
degree from Barnard College in 1934. After graduating, she worked as an editor and
author of the weekly column, "Paris Notes," for Art News and as a writer for
the Federal Writers Project in New York. In 1937, she married Phillip Sterling, who was
also a writer. From 1941 to 1949, she was a researcher for Life magazine. Her
first book, Sophie and Her Puppies, a photo essay, was published in 1951.
After this book and four others like it were published, Sterling still did not consider
herself a writer.
It was at this time that she decided to write a book about women that would "empower girls." While doing research on Harriet Tubman, she went to the Schomberg Collection in New York City and realized the potential for writing biographies about famous African Americans, a topic about which she knew very little. Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman was published in 1954. While writing books, she also served as a consulting editor on black history for Firebird Books, Scholastic, Beacon Press, and Doubleday. She is an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and many of her books focus on black history, the civil rights movement, and African American biographies.
Source:
Scope and Content
The collection contains typescripts, correspondence, layouts, proofs, galleys and dust
jackets for nine titles. The materials are arranged alphabetically by title. Within each title
the materials are arranged in the probable order in which they were created. The
correspondence is also separated by title. The titles can be grouped in three categories:
general non-fiction, African American history, and mysteries.
Fall is Here! (1966) and Spring is Here! (1964), both illustrated by Winifred Lubell, are books about the seasons. There are typescripts for both titles as well as galleys, a dust jacket and correspondence for Fall is Here! and research notes and a proof for Spring is Here! The Outer Lands: A Natural History Guide to Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Block Island, and Long Island (1967), is a historical guide for older children interested in the New England area. There are typescripts and a proof for this title. Many of her books included photographs by Myron Ehrenberg such as The Story of Mosses, Ferns and Mushrooms (1955) and United Nations, N.Y. (1953) There is a dummy, a partial galley and a press sheet for The Story of Mosses, Ferns and Mushrooms and a dust jacket for United Nations, N.Y.
Three of the books in the collection are non-fiction books about African-American history, Forever Free: The Story of the Emancipation Proclamation (1963), Lift Every Voice: The Lives of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, Mary Church Terrell, and James Weldon Johnson (1965), and Tear Down the Walls!: A History of the American Civil Rights Movement (1968). There are typescripts for all three of the titles. There are also proofs for Forever Free and galleys, proofs, and layouts for Tear Down the Walls!
Sterling also wrote quite a few mysteries for children. One of the books in the collection, Secret of the Old Post-Box, is a mystery about a girl who moves next door to a pre-Revolutionary house with a hidden treasure. There is a partial galley for this title. The collection also contains 5 teaching aides called "Springboards" published by Portal Press in 1967. The titles Sterling wrote include "Diary of a Quiet Rebel," "Doctor in Petticoats," "Harriet Beecher Stowe Speaks Out," "Harriet Tubman Leads the Way," and "She Fought for Women's Rights."
The Winifred Lubell Papers (DG0631) and The Grace Paull Papers (DG0765)
A. Books
B. Teaching Aides-"Springboards" (1967)
Box/Folder A. Books Fall is Here! by Dorothy Sterling, illustrated by Winifred Lubell (Garden City, New York: Natural History Press, 1963). 1/1 Correspondence, 1963, 3 items. 1/2-1/3 Typescripts, 1/2 Carbon copy, pp. 1-70. 1/3 Edited with typesetter's marks, pp. 1-69 and index 7 pp. 1/4 Galley, "final proof, reader's set," 29 pp. 1/5 Preliminary illustration for dust jacket, watercolor, 1 item. 1/6 Dust jacket, 2 items. Forever Free: The Story of the Emancipation Proclamation by Dorothy Sterling, illustrated by Ernest Crichlow (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1963). 1/7-1/9 Typescripts, 1/7 Carbon copy, pp. 1-180. 1/8-2/1 Edited with typesetter's marks, 1/8 Chapters 1-8, pp. 1-49. 1/9 Chapters 9-15, pp. 50-120. 2/1 Chapters 16-20 and index, 2/2-2/3 Proofs, 2/2 "Final galley proof," 63 pp. 2/3 "Foundry proof," pp. 1-208. 2/4 Proof of illustrations, 2 pp. Lift Every Voice: The Lives of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, Mary Church Terrell, and James Weldon Johnson by Dorothy Sterling and Benjamin Quarles, illustrated by Ernest Crichlow (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1965). 2/5 Typescript, carbon copy, 100 pp. 2/6 Dust jacket, 1 item. The Outer Lands: A Natural History Guide to Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Block Island, and Long Island by Dorothy Sterling, illustrated by Winifred Lubell (Garden City, New York: Natural History Press, 1967). 3/1 Typescript of original outline, 10 pp. 3/2-3/3 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks, 3/2 pp. 1-80 3/3 pp. 81-149 and index pp. 1-8 3/4 Proof, "first reader's set," 15 July 1966, 44 pp. Secret of the Old Post-Box by Dorothy Sterling, illustrated by Grace Paull (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1960). 3/5 Partial galley, pp. 5-16 Spring is Here! by Dorothy Sterling, illustrated by Winifred Lubell (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1963). 3/6 Research notes and materials, 16 items 3/7-3/8 Typescripts, 3/7 Carbon copy, pp. 1-64 3/8 Edited with typesetter's marks, pp. 1-64 and index pp. 1-6 4/1 Proof, 12 September 1963, pp. 1-97. The Story of Mosses, Ferns and Mushrooms by Dorothy Sterling, photographs by Myron Ehrenberg (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1955). 4/2 Dummy, 1 item. 4/3 Partial galley, chapter 1-2, 3 pp. ---- Press sheet, 1 item. (Oversized item, housed in 6/1) Tear Down the Walls! A History of the American Civil Rights Movement by Dorothy Sterling (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1968). 4/4-4/7 Typescript, edited with typesetter's marks, 4/4 Chapters 1-5, pp. 1-50. 4/5 Chapters 6-11, pp. 51-98. 4/6 Chapters 12-13, pp. 99-145. 4/7 Chapters 14-19, pp. 146-201. 5/1 Galley, "final reader's set," 12 February 1968, 65 pp. 5/2-5/3 Proof, "foundry proof," 29 April 1968, pp. 1-259, 2 copies. 6/1 Press sheet, oversized item removed from box 4, The Story of Mosses, Ferns, and Mushrooms 6/2-6/6 Layouts with pasted text and illustrations, 6/2 Chapters 1-5, pp. 1-57. 6/3 Chapters 6-9, pp. 58-105. 6/4 Chapters 10-13, pp. 106-157. 6/5 Chapters 14-17, pp. 158-219. 6/6 Chapters 18-19, pp. 220-251. 6/7 Dust jacket, 1 item. United Nations, N. Y. by Dorothy Sterling, photographs by Myron Ehrenberg (Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1953). 6/8 Dust jacket, 1 item. B. Teaching Aides-"Springboards" (New York: Portal Press, 1967) 6/9 Teaching aides, 5 items. "Diary of a Quiet Rebel" "Doctor in Petticoats" "Harriet Beecher Stowe Speaks Out" "Harriet Tubman Leads the Way" "She Fought for Women's Rights"
Box Inventory
Biographical Sketch | Scope & Content
| Related Collections | Series
& Subseries | Box Inventory
[Return to top]
ABOUT US | COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS | RESEARCH | EXHIBITS & EVENTS
Contact:
The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection
The University of Southern Mississippi
118 College Drive, #5148
Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001
(601) 266-4349
Comments and Questions
This page is maintained by the de Grummond
Collection.
The
University of Southern Mississippi
AA/EOE/ADAI