David Lane Wright papers
Scope and Contents
This collection contains the letters and writings of David Lane Wright. The scope and breadth is impressive due no doubt to Wright's compulsive saving, including letters he received as a child. The first six boxes are devoted to Wright's correspondence with friends, family, publishers, and the Air Force. box 1 contains outgoing mail from 1942 to 1963. boxes 2 through 5 contain incoming mail organized either chronologically or by addressee along the lines which Wright organized them himself. box six contains the envelopes from these letters. box seven contains early writings and autobiographical writings. boxes 8 through 11 contain some his writings. box 8 contains college writings and recommendations to the University of Iowa. box 9 contains mostly drafts and reviews of “Still the Mountain Wind.” box 10 contains drafts of “River Saints,” and “Speak Ye Tenderly of Kings.” The final box, box 11, contains various other poems and short stories. Finally, because the addendum was too large to incorporate into this collection and since they overlap, cross references to the addendum have been added to this register where appropriate.
Dates
- Creation: 1929-1967
Language of Materials
Material in English
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on use, except: not available through interlibrary loan.
Conditions Governing Use
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the David Lane Wright papers must be obtained from the Special Collections Manuscript Curator and/or the Special Collections Department Head.
Biographical Note
David Lane Wright was born on May 22, 1929, in Bennington, Idaho to Conover and Lenora Rich Wright. He was a descendent of LDS Apostle Charles C. Rich. He spent his childhood in Bennington, and from the time he was a young man he kept copious journals. He loved sports, especially baseball and football, and enjoyed exploring the terrain around Bennington and Montpelier which figures prominently in his work. When he was seven, his brother Rich, to whom he had been very close, died from an acute appendicitis and this event continued to influence David for the rest of his life and the character of his brother often appeared under different names in many of his writings. In fact his most prominent piece, a play first produced in 1956 called “Still the Mountain Wind,” was about Rich's death.
Wright started attending Utah State University,(then called Utah State Agricultural College), in 1946 at the age of seventeen on an athletic scholarship. He studied English under the tutelage of Professors A. N. Sorensen and Ira Hayward both of whom encouraged him to write and publish. He also was a sports writer for the student paper. Throughout his life, his dream was to become a writer, but he also prepared to become an English teacher. For the first three years at college he was on the track team and played football. His final year he quit football to spend more time writing.
After graduation Wright held many jobs as a teacher throughout Idaho. On October 22, 1950 he married Nancy Johnson, one of his students from Rexburg. He changed positions several times and eventually ended up back his home town working at the elementary school. He entered the Air Force and was called into active duty and continued write, winning several Air Force story contests and producing his work, “Still the Mountain Wind.” Also during this time he was stationed in various places throughout the United States and the world including South Dakota, Florida, Alabama, and Iceland.
In 1963, Wright was able to pursue his Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Iowa while still in the Air Force. He completed it in 1964. While stationed in Alabama during this time, he became involved in the civil rights campaign. In 1965, Wright was sent to Saigon, Vietnam. There he performed mostly administrative and diplomatic duties, earning a Bronze Star and was promoted to rank of Major. When he returned from Vietnam in December, 1966, he and Nancy divorced. Wright maintained custody of the children. In February of 1967, he suffered a heart attack. He recovered somewhat and was able to return to his home in Montgomery, Alabama where he lived for the next four months. On June 26, 1967, he suffered a second heart attack and passed away at the age of thirty-eight.
Extent
11 boxes (4.5 linear ft.)
Abstract
Roughly divided into half correspondence and half literary output, including literary manuscripts, poems, early journals and diaries (1946-1957), an autobiography (1951), and various publications. Much of the correspondence (1942-1957, 1961-1964) was exchanged with individuals involved with Utah State University athletes; significant correspondents include Dick Romney, John Holway, James Miller, Doris Taylor, and the Wright family. Also includes newspaper clippings and other material on E.L. "Dick" Romney.
Arrangement
Arranged by subject and chronologically
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Received as a gift from Charlotte Wright Piggot, Janice Wright Ruediger, Paul David Wright, and Gregory G. Wright--1973.
Monographs
- Autobiography David L. Wright. “Autobiography.” David Lane Wright Addendum Mss Coll 39, box 12, Fd 1. Special Collections and Archives, Utah State University Merrill Library: Logan, Utah.
- Autobiography David L. Wright. “Autobiography.” David Lane Wright Papers Mss Coll 2, , box 7, Fds 5, 6. Special Collection and Archives, Utah State University Merrill Library: Logan, Utah.
Serial Publications
- Discovering A Mormon Writer: David L. Wright 1929-1967 James Miller. “Discovering A Mormon Writer: David L. Wright 1929-1967.” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. V(2), pp. 79-85.
- Title
- Guide to the David Lane Wright papers, 1929-1967
- Author
- Finding aid/Register created by Special Collections & Archives
- Date
- 2010
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Based On Dacs (Describing Archives: A Content Standard, 2nd Edition)
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid encoded in English.
Revision Statements
- 2009: Template information was updated to refelct Archives West best practice guidelines.
Repository Details
Part of the Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections & Archives Repository
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
3000 Old Main Hill
Logan Utah 84322-3000 United States
435 797-8248
435 797-2880 (Fax)
scweb@usu.edu