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Harold Monro Collection
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Harold Monro Collection

  • US TxAM-C 229
  • Collection
  • 1903-2001

This collection consists of handwritten research notes, correspondence from various individuals, institutions and organizations, and photocopied materials collected by Dominic Hibberd for his 2001 biography Harold Monro: Poet of the New Age. It also includes the papers and research notes of Ruth Tomalin. Alida Monro left Tomalin money to write a biography of Harold Monro, but this was contested by an executor of the will. Though she won her court case, Tomalin did not write the biography, and instead passed her notes to Patric Dickson, another potential biographer, who in turn gave them to Dominic Hibberd. The collection also contains publicity materials and publication information for Hibberd's book.

Monro, Harold, 1879-1932

Research Notes

1/1: Research materials on Harold Monro's ancestry, including information on the genealogy, wills, businesses, weddings, residences, and publications of the family. Folder contains a hand-drawn family tree, notes on books published about the lineage, photocopies of materials written by Monro and various relatives, letters concerning family members, and handwritten notes on the lives and activities of Monro's extended family.

1/2: Chronological information about Monro's life through the creation of The Poetry Bookshop, including notes about his education at Cambridge and Lincoln's Inn, his life in Ireland, his first marriage, and his son Nigel. The notes also describe the founding and work of Monro's Samurai Press and his pilgrimage to Italy and subsequent life at Monte Verita. The folder contains a floor plan for The Poetry Bookshop and information on the building and staff, as well as a description of The Poetry Review, the Monro designed and edited journal of the Poetry Society. Also included are notes on Monro's army service during World War I.

1/3: Notes on Monro's legacy and stature. Handwritten notes on how other authors, from J. R. Ackerley to Virginia Woolf, viewed Monro. Arranged alphabetically by first letter of last name. Includes the reminiscences, comments, and criticisms of almost one hundred of his contemporaries. Folder includes notes on manuscript collections found in various libraries and photocopies of articles by Arundel del Re, an Italian professor of English literature.

1/4: Hibberd's extensive handwritten notes from his research of the British Library's Poetry Bookshop Papers. Folder includes an index of the manuscript collection and notes regarding Monro's literary notebooks, photographs and lecture notes. Also contains letters written by Monro to his second wife and assistant, Alida Klemantaski, and to Galloway Kyle, who succeeded Monro as the editor of The Poetry Review, as well as others.

1/5: Notes from and on Monro's 1906, 1907, and 1908 diaries, also part of the British Library's Poetry Bookshop Papers. Hibberd highlighted those portions of his notes that he considered suitable to use as quotes in his Monro biography, and this section contains the most highlighting. The notes document the poetic sentiments, commentary on public affairs, daily activities, and discussion of relationships found in Monro's personal journal. Also includes notes on the memos with Monro's broader autobiographical recordings as well as brief descriptions of Monro's accounts and business affairs.

1/6: Hibberd's British Library collection notes specifically about the Poetry Bookshop. The notes describe the readings schedule, business affairs, printings, important contacts and addresses, account information, and photographs found in the British Library collection. The folder also contains notes on other British Library manuscripts of relevance.

Correspondence

1/7: Correspondence to Hibberd regarding research for his biography of Harold Monro. Folder contains responses to Hibberd's requests for information from a variety of sources, including the Royal College of Physicians, David Monro, G. K. Monro, and the Essex Archives. Information on Nigel Monro, Harold's son, was provided by correspondence from Fred Urquhart, Eastbourne College, St. Thomas's Hospital, and the General Medical Council. Also contains correspondence from executors, including the law firm of Hubbard & Co., Penelope Fitzgerald, Ruth Tomalin, and Freda McGregor. Also includes pedigrees of the Monro family.

1/8: Responses to Hibberd's requests for information in the form of correspondence and copies of research materials. Includes information from the Radley College school magazine, correspondence, and an article (in French) concerning Clinique La Ligniére. Folder contains copies of newspaper reports concerning Monro's 1903 wedding and two postcards of the church in which he was married, as well as information on Arundel del Re from his daughter Dianora del Re and university libraries. Also includes correspondence concerning Monte Verita, Galloway Kyle, and the Poetry Society.

1/9: Letters and information about individuals who had contact with Harold Monro. Includes information about Basil Watt, Robert Frost, Amy Lowell, Anna Wickham, Herbert Read, Ottoline Morrel, and Seigfried Sassoon. Information obtained via articles and copies of original correspondence.

1/10: Miscellaneous biographical information, various manuscript collections, and a portrait of Monro by Wyndham Lewis that could not be located. Includes copies of articles, other items, and letters from Gwen Staveley, Samuel Hynes, Joy Grant, Jeff Coopers, and others in the U.K. and the U.S.

1/11: Miscellaneous photocopies of articles written by Monro and documents belonging to Monro. Articles include "How I Began" from an April 4, 1913 issue of T. P.'s Weekly and reviews written by Monro. Folder also contains copies of letters written to and articles about Monro, including his obituary from the March 17, 1932 edition of The London Times.

1/12: Documents given to Dominic Hibberd by Joy Grant, author of Harold Monro and the Poetry Bookshop, relating to The Poetry Bookshop and Harold Monro. Contains copies of letters to Grant about her book both before and after publication. Also includes an article from the September 11, 1970 edition of the Times Literary Supplement titled "Harold Monro as Shopkeeper and Poet."

2/1: Correspondence between Harold Monro and Galloway Kyle, who replaced Monro as editor of The Poetry Review. Folder also contains correspondence to Hibberd, miscellaneous correspondence from Kyle, articles about Kyle, and information on the Poetry Society.

Ruth Tomalin's Papers

2/2: Tomalin's transcripts of original manuscripts typed on delicate green paper. Organized by Monro's dates of note, letters, writings, family albums, dreams, meditations, notebooks, account books, newspaper cuttings, readings, a few items relating to the Poetry Bookshop, and Alida Monro’s list of Charlotte Mew's writings.

2/3: Photocopies, mostly made by Tomalin, of correspondence between Harold and Alida. Also includes notes by Alida on Grant's book, copies of Alida Monro’s draft and final 1969 dictated memoir, with some comment by Mrs. Lutrell, one of Alida Monro's executors.

Publication Information

2/4: Illustrations for Hibberd's Harold Monro: Poet of the New Age, including prints, hand-drawn plates, negatives, some unused photographs, and miscellaneous photocopies.

2/5: Publicity material for Hibberd's biography of Monro. Contains photocopies of book reviews, information on the launch, and a variety of publicity material such as newsletters, book announcements, letters to Hibberd, and order forms.