Margaret S. Sullivan Papers
Scope and Contents
These papers include Sullivan's school papers, research materials (mainly focusing on Carson McCullers and Lillian Smith) from graduate school through her later life, newspaper clippings of local and national events, copies of her dissertation, and a varied and voluminous correspondence.
Below are two lists of selected correspondents; one alphabetically by signature and the other by last name, if known:
Selected Correspondents of Margaret S. Sullivan, alphabetically by the name they used in correspondence:
Alberta = Alberta Schwartz
Alice = Alice Clark
Alice = Alice Degilio
Alicia = Alicia Jurado
Alva = Alva Current-Garcia
Ann = Ann and Howard (last name not known)
Arlin = Arlin Turner
Arthur = Arthur Rosenthal
Barbara = Barbara Freeman
Barbara = Barbara and Bob Kernelk
Barbara = Barbara Maris
Barbara = Frank and Barbara Star
Beau = Beau Brian
Belle (or Aunt Belle) = Mrs. Clarence Bailey
Bev = Beveridge Webster
Bill = William Erwin
Carlton = Carlton Johnson
Caroline = Caroline Cable
Casey = unidentified
Cesi = Cecilia Cook
Chuck = Charles Padora
Clint = Clinton J. Atkinson
Clarence (or Uncle Speedy) = Clarence Bailey
Constance = Constance Johnson
Cora = Cora Howell, later Mrs. J. J. Sullivan
Dawn = Dawn Langley Simmons, a.k.a. Pepita
Dean = Dean Barton
Dee = Dee Rainey
Diane = Tim and Diane Aureden
Dick = Richard and Lilo Larner
Dolores = Mrs. Rick Eckberg
Don = Don Dixon
Donald = Donald Diamon
Donna = Donna and B. T. (Bennie) Abbott
Doris = Doris Bullock
Dot = Dorothy Lewis Griffith
Edwin = Edwin Peacock
Elizabeth = Elizabeth Barton
Emily (Miss Emily) = Mrs. Colin Davies
Emily (Miss Emily) = Emily Massee, later Mrs. James F. Brown
Emily = Emily Woodruff
Estelle (Miss Estelle) = Mrs. W. E. H. Searcy, III
Esther = Esther Smith
Fred = Frederick Marshall Karsten
Gene = Gene Current-Garcia
Genie = Genie Rose
George = George P. Brockway
Gin = Virginia Tucker, later Mrs. Thomas Melgaard
Helen = Helen Anne Caine, later Mrs. Benjamin Ira Franklin
Helen = Helen Harvey
Humphrey = unidentified
Isabelle = Jim and Isabelle Portner
Jay and Zee = Jay and Zee Claiborne
Jim = Jim and Isabelle Portner
John = unidentified
Judy = Judy Brown
Judy = Judy Frazer and later Mrs. Bernice (Bernie) Brouillette
Judy = Judy Ludwig
Judy = Mrs. Fred Stoll (of NYC in 1976)
Karen = Karen Tucker Melgaard, later Mrs. Russell Ward Miller
Lee = Nathalie Lee Goldstein
Lil = Lillian Smith
Liz = Elizabeth Barton
Liza = Liza Molodovsky
Locke = Locke Bullock
Louise = unidentified
Margaret = Margaret Smith, a.k.a. Rita (the sister of Carson McCullers)
Maris = Maris Urbans
Mark = Mark Orton, later married to Doris Cunningham
Mary = Mary Ames
Mary = Mary Dawson
Mary = Mary Louise Lasher
Mary = Mary Elizabeth Mercer, MD
Mary = Mary Tucker
Mary Ann = Mary Ann and Henry (last name not known)
Mary Ann = Mary Ann Taylor
Mary Ellen = Mary Ellen Templeton
Mitsy = Edna H. Campbell, later Mrs. Imre Kovacs
Monica = Monica Fleishman
Muriel = Muriel McClanahan
Myrtis = Mrs. H. Maxwell Morrison, Jr.
Nancy = Nancy Bunge
Nancy = Nancy Bush
Nelson = Nelson Shipp
Noel = Noel Dorman
Noel = Noel Mawer
Norman = Norman Rothschild
Odessa = Odessa Elliott
Olga = Olga Perlgueig, a.k.a. Olga Merx
Pastora = unidentified
Pat = Mrs. Harold Davis
Pat = Pat Stutts
Pat = Patricia Sullivan, later Mrs. Frank H. Conner, Jr.
Paula = Paula Snelling
Pepita = Dawn Langley Simons
Rinky = Mrs. Charles J. Caine
Rita = Margarita Smith (the sister of Carson McCullers)
Roberta = Mrs. J. E. Bush
Ruth = Mrs. William H. Barns
Ruth = Ruth and Richard Howell
Ruth = Ruth Lehmann
Sally = Sally Fitzgerald
Sally = Sally and Bill Thomas
Sam = Sam and Cheryl Dimon
Sissie = Bill and Sissie Morris
Speedy (Uncle Speedy) = Clarence Bailey
Susan = Mrs. Tom Rogan
Susan = Susan Sigmon
Susanne = Susanne Schaup
Tom = Tom Wrergbricke
Virginia = Virginia Spencer Carr
Virginia = Virginia Tucker, later Mrs. Thomas Melgaard
Walter = Walter Sturdivant
Selected Correspondents of Margaret S. Sullivan by last name (if known):
Abbott, Mrs. B. T (Bennie); known as Donna
Aureden, Tim and Diane
Ames, Mary
Ann and Howard (not otherwise identified)
Atkinson, Clinton J. (1928-2002); actor and director, working mostly in New York, and friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Bailey, Belle and Clarence (Aunt Bell and Uncle Speedy); relatives on Cora Howell Sullivan's side of the family
Barns, Mrs. William H., known as Ruth
Barton, Dean; 5th grade teacher of Carson McCullers
Barton, Elizabeth; sister of Dean Barton, 5th grade teacher of Carson McCullers
Brian, Beau
Brockway, George P.; editor of Lillian Smith
Brouillette, Judy Frazer; life-long friend of Margaret S. Sullivan, married to Bernard (Bernie) Brouillette in 1967
Brown, Emily Massee (Miss Emily); married to James F. Brown and sister of Jordan Massee, a cousin of Carson McCullers
Brown, Judy
Bullock, Locke and Doris
Bunge, Nancy; teaching colleague and friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Bush, Catherine; niece of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan and daughter of John and Nancy Sullivan Bush
Bush, Jeff; nephew of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan and son of John and Nancy Sullivan Bush
Bush, Nancy Sullivan (1935-1999); sister of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan, married to John Karl Bush
Bush, Roberta; the mother-in-law of Nancy Sullivan Bush
Bush, Steve; nephew of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan and son of John and Nancy Sullivan Bush
Cable, Caroline
Cain, Helen see: Mrs. Benjamin Ira Franklin
Caine, Mrs. Charles J., known as Rinky
Campbell, Edna H see: Kovacs, Mitsy
Carr, Virginia Spencer; biographer of Carson McCullers and research rival of Margaret Sullivan
Claiborne, Jay and Zee
Clark, Alice
Conner, Patricia Sullivan (1936-2003), known as Pat or Patsy; sister of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan, married to Frank H. Conner, Jr.
Conner, Frank H., III; nephew of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan, son of Frank H., Jr. and Patricia Sullivan Conner, married to Susan
Conner, William Jordan "Will"; nephew of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan and son of Frank H. Conner, Jr. and Patricia Sullivan Conner, married to Natalie
Conner, Ann (d. 1999); niece of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan daughter of Frank H. Conner, Jr. and Patricia Sullivan Conner, married to John Kraynik
Cook, Cathy and Bruce; parents of Cecilia (Cesi), Bob and Katy Cook
Cook, Cecilia, known as Cesi; daughter of Cathy and Bruce Cook
Current-Garcia, Alva and Gene
Davies, Mrs. Colin, known as Miss Emily; daughter of a Methodist preacher who lived in Columbus while Carson McCullers lived there. Was very useful to Sullivan in her McCullers research
Davis, Pat; married to Harold Davis
Dawson, Mary; friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Degilio, Alice
Diamond, Donald (1915-2005); musician and teacher at Julliard, and a friend of Carson McCullers and her family. Very useful to Sullivan in her McCullers research.
Dimon, Sam and Cheryl
Dixon, Don
Dorman, Noel
Eckberg, Jason, son of Dolores Eckberg
Eckberg, Mrs. Rick (Dolores), mother of Jason
Elliott, Odessa
Erwin, William (Bill)
Fitzgerald, Sally (1917-2000); friend and biographer of Flannery O'Connor, as well as the editor of her letters and short stories. Also friend of Margaret S. Sullivan.
Fleishman, Monica
Franklin, Mrs. Benjamin Ira, born Helen Cain
Frazer, Judy, see; Brouillette, Judy Frazer
Freeman, Barbara
Goldstein, Nathalie Lee; McCullers scholar and friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Griffith, Dorothy Lewis (b. 1932); pianist and friend of McCullers' piano teacher, Mary Tucker. She became a long-time friend and correspondent of Margaret S. Sullivan
Harvey, Helen; neighbor and friend of Carson McCullers in Columbus
Henry, Mary Ann
Howell, Ruth and Richard
Humphrey (unidentified)
Johnson, Constance and Carleton
Jurado, Alicia
Karsten, Frederick Marshall "Frank"
Kernelk, Barbara and Bob
Kovacs, Edna H Campbell, known as Mitsy; life-long friend of Margaret Sullivan
Larner, Richard "Dick" and Lilo
Lasher, Mary Louise
Lehmann, Ruth
Louise (unidentified)
Ludwig, Judy
Maris, Barbara (in Baltimore in 1975)
Mawer, Noel
McClanahan, Muriel
Melgaard, Karen Tucker; daughter of Mrs. Thomas Melgaard. She married Russell Ward Miller in 1971.
Melgaard, Mrs. Thomas; daughter of Mary Tucker, known as Virginia or Gin
Mercer, Dr. Mary Elizabeth (1911-2013); the doctor, friend and heir of Carson McCullers, and very useful to Margaret S. Sullivan in her McCullers research
Merx, Olga = Olga Perlgueig
Molodovsky, Liza
Morris, Mrs. William "Sissie"
Morrison, Jr., Mrs. H. Maxwell "Myrtis"
Orton, Mark (married Doris Cunningham in 1968
Padorn, Charles "Chuck"
Pastora (otherwise unidentified)
Peacock, Edwin
Perlgueig, Olga = Olga Merx
Porter, Katherine Ann; novelist and contemporary of Carson McCullers
Portner, Jim and Isabell; neighbors and friends of Margaret S. Sullivan in Fairfax, Virginia
Rainey, Dee
Regan, Susan; married to Tom Regan
Rosa, Genie
Rosenthal, Arthur; a close friend of Margaret Sullivan when she lived in New York in the 1960s
Rothschild, Norman (1908-1998) was a Columbus, Georgia artist and co-owner of the David Rothschild Company. He was a friend of Carson McCullers and became acquainted with Margaret Sue Sullivan as a result of her McCullers research during the 1960s. They formed a friendship that lasted as long as he lived.
Schaup, Susanne; Austrian-born friend of Margaret S. Sullivan and perhaps one of her students
Schwartz, Alberta
Searcy III, Mrs. W. E. H "Miss Estelle"
Shipp, Nelson
Sigmon, Susan; perhaps a student of Margaret Sue Sullivan
Simmons, Dawn Langley, known as Pepita; friend of Carson McCullers in her New York days.
Smith, Ester; sister of Lillian Smith
Smith, Lillian "Lil", author and friend of both Carson McCullers and Margaret Sue Sullivan
Smith, Margareta "Rita"; sister of Carson McCullers
Snelling, Paula; partner of Lillian Smith
Star, Frank and Barbara
Stoll, Judy; Mrs. Fred Stoll; friends of Margaret S. Sullivan who lived in New York in the 1970s
Sturdivant, Walter; writer and friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Stutts, Pat
Sullivan, Cora Howell (1907-1988); mother of Margaret S. Sullivan
Sullivan, Elizabeth T. "Beth"; daughter of James H. & Bunny Sullivan
Sullivan, James Howell (1931-2008); brother of Dr. Margaret Sue Sullivan, married to Margaret Thomas Sullivan "Bunny"
Sullivan, James H. Sullivan, Jr. "Jay"; son of James H. and Bunny Sullivan, married to Elizabeth G. Sullivan
Sullivan, Margaret "Meg"; daughter of J. H. and Bunny Sullivan, married to James L. Clark
Sullivan, Margaret Thomas (1933-2009) "Bunny", married to James "Jimmy" Howell Sullivan
Sullivan, Nancy; daughter of James H. and Bunny Sullivan, married to Robert F. Burgin
Taylor, Mary Ann; friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Templeton, Mary Ellen; friend of Margaret S. Sullivan
Thomas, Sally and Bill
Tucker, Mary (d. 1982); Carson McCullers' piano teacher in high school who became a friend of Margaret S. Sullivan during her research on McCullers
Turner, Arlin; Margaret S. Sullivan's dissertation advisor and friend
Urbans, Maris.
Webster, Beveridge; pianist and colleague of Dorothy Lewis Griffin, known as Bev
Woodruff, Emily
Wrergbricke, Tom
1897-2011 13 boxes (13 c.f.)
Dates
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1897 - 2011
Biographical / Historical
Margaret Sue Sullivan, PhD (January 4, 1935- December 27, 2012) was a teacher and literary scholar. Through her research, she became friends with Carson McCullers (1917-1967) and Lillian Smith (1897-1968), among other notable Southern writers.
According to her obituary in the Columbus Ledger Enquirer, Sullivan was born January 4, 1935 to Cora Howell and Jordan James Sullivan in Green Mountain, North Carolina. Her siblings were Dr. James Howell Sullivan (April 1, 1931-October 2, 2008), who was married to Margaret "Bunny" Thomas Sullivan (November 9, 1933-February 12, 2009); Nancy Sullivan Bush (July 9, 1935-November 25, 1999), who was married to John Bush; and Patricia Sullivan Conner (November 23, 1936-March 26, 2003), who was married to Frank H. Conner, Jr.
Margaret (known as "Margie" to family and friends) and her family moved to Chipley (now Pine Mountain), Georgia in her early years before settling in Columbus, Georgia. She was a 1952 graduate of Columbus High School. She graduated from Duke University in 1956 and returned to Columbus to teach at Jordan High School and to pursue her Master's Degree at Auburn University. She then became a Professor of English at Auburn and taught her favorite subject, Southern Women's Literature. She was an authority on many southern writers, especially Carson McCullers, to whose life and works she devoted years of research, as she did as well to Lillian Smith and her works. During her research she became friends with both McCullers and Smith, as well as with Dr. Mary E. Mercer (1911-2013) and Paula Snelling (1899-1985), the executors of the McCullers and Smith estates, respectively.
Sullivan returned to Duke University, receiving her doctorate in English Literature from Duke in 1966. Her thesis was on Carson McCullers. She was a professor of English at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. until she returned to Columbus to live in 1972, partly due to poor health, having been diagnosed with lupus, which she fought the rest of her life.
She was a member of St. Luke United Methodist Church in Columbus for 68 years, was an active member of the French Lit Club and in years past, Mensa. She also lectured on Carson McCullers and was active with the Springer Opera House, Elderhostel of Columbus and other local organizations. She died on December 27, 2012 and is buried in Parkhill Cemetery in Columbus, Georgia.
Extent
13.0 Cubic Feet
Language of Materials
English
Custodial History
This collection was a gift from the estate of Dr. Margaret Sullivan.
Materials Specific Details
See also:
Ballad of the Sad Cafe Playbill (SMC 60)
The Bradley Memorial Library Carson McCullers Collection (MC 184)
John L Brown Papers, Georgetown University Archives
Virginia Spencer Carr Collection (MC 23)
Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians
Carson McCullers Society Records (MC 192)
Loretto Chappell Collection (MC 29)
Carlos Dews Collection (MC 175)
Mary Martha Johnson Photograph Collection (SMC 53)
Clason Kyle Collection (MC 86)
Jordan Massee/Carson McCullers Collection (MC 170)
Mercer/McCullers Collection (MC 296)
The Valley Reads: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter Collection (MC 179)John Zeigler and Edwin Peacock Collection (MC 182)
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Columbus State University Archives and Special Collections Repository
4225 University Ave
Columbus Georgia 31907 United States