Allen Turner Cassity and Family Papers (Z/2383)

Original; Reference photocopies
Restrictions: Box 21 contains Restricted originals; Use Box 11 for Reference copies.

Biography:

Allen Turner Cassity

Allen Turner Cassity was born in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, on January 12, 1929. His parents were Allen Davenport Cassity (1903-1934) and Dorothy Turner Cassity (1903-1999). His mother was a violinist and founding member of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra. His father was also a musician, both for piano and saxophone, and worked at the family-owned Cassity Paint and Wall Paper Company and at the Bienville Lumber Company.

Cassity spent most of his childhood in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, and graduated from Central High School in 1947. Afterwards, Turner Cassity attended Millsaps College from 1947 to 1951, where he studied English Literature. The following year, he studied at Stanford University under the advisement of poet Yvor Winters while he earned his Master's degree in English. Shortly after graduating from Stanford, he joined the U.S. Army in 1952. After training in North Carolina, he served in Puerto Rico, teaching English to Puerto Rican soldiers. He was discharged in 1954 and returned to his education.

Turner Cassity graduated from Columbia University in 1956, earning a Master's degree in Library Science. He then returned home to Jackson after securing a position at the Jackson Municipal Public Library as an assistant librarian, a position he held until 1958. For the next few years, Cassity worked as a traveling librarian in South Africa, based out of the Transvaal Provincial Library, frequently traveling from Johannesburg to Pretoria. These years, from 1958 to 1961, proved influential to his poetry, which often dealt with themes of colonialism.

Returning to the United States in 1962, Cassity joined the staff of the Robert Woodruff Library at Emory University, serving as chief of the serials and binding department where he worked until his retirement. In 1966, Cassity published his first poetry collection Watchboy, What of the Night?. He would publish his poetry consistently during the 1970s through the 2000s, both in collections and in literary magazines, winning awards such as Poetry Magazine's Levinson Prize in 1971. Allen Turner Cassity lived in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, until his death on July 26, 2009. He is buried in Eastern Cemetery located in Forest, Scott County, Mississippi.

Dorothy Turner Cassity, maiden name Dorothy Liles Turner, was born in Mabank, Kaufman County, Texas, on November 5, 1903. Her parents were Elizabeth “Bessie” Taylor Liles Turner and Eugene Lamar Turner. Dorothy’s mother, Bessie Turner (1880-1934), was a pianist and organist who played for silent films and for the Hippodrome Orchestra. Eugene Lamar Turner (1875-1950) was a lumberman and cattle dealer.

Dorothy Cassity lived in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, during her late teenage years, but returned to Forest in Scott County, Mississippi, in time to graduate from Forest High School in 1921. She studied violin privately in Missouri and at the American Conservatory of Music in Illinois before settling at Loyola University at New Orleans. She married Allen Davenport Cassity in Forest on October 19, 1927. Dorothy Cassity joined the WJDX orchestra in 1933 and later taught violin at Forest High School. After her husband's death in 1934, she returned to Jackson, Hinds County, where she worked at the United Gas Pipeline Company for the next eighteen years. She resumed her musical career in the 1940s, becoming one of the founding members of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra during its inception in 1944. In the 1950s, Dorothy Cassity would serve as a Concert-Mistress for three years. She retained her membership at the Jackson Symphony Orchestra for 38 years until her retirement in 1982. After retiring from the symphony, she continued her memberships with the Chaminade and MacDowell Music Clubs.

Dorothy Turner Cassity died in Decatur, DeKalb County, Georgia, on January 31, 1999, and is buried in Eastern Cemetery located in Forest, Scott County, Mississippi.

Mary Davenport Spiva, maiden name Mary Ella Davenport, was born in Bienville Parish, Louisiana on September 1, 1906. She was the only child of Ella Allen Davenport (1869-1940) and William “Billy” Alexander Davenport (1864-1954). Her mother was from Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and was a homemaker. William Alexander Davenport worked for the Bienville Lumber Company in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. He also worked as Vice President for the A.J. Neimeyer Lumber Company in Arkansas. After the Bienville Lumber Company moved to Forest, Scott County, Mississippi in 1915, Walter Davenport continued working for the Bienville Lumber Company as President and General Manager.

Mary Spiva's aunt, Elizabeth Allen Cassity (1881-1946), was the mother of Allen Davenport Cassity, father of Allen Turner Cassity. Mary Spiva earned her Bachelor's degree at Millsaps College in 1925 and her Master's degree at Stanford University in 1928. It is probable that Mary Davenport met Walter Yeates Spiva while they were both students at Millsaps College. She married Walter Spiva in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi on June 12, 1928. She worked briefly as a history instructor at Millsaps during the year of her marriage. She was a homemaker and member of the Official Mississippi Women's Club. Both Mary Spiva and her husband Walter Spiva were members of the Galloway Methodist Church.

Walter Yeates Spiva was born in Winston County, Mississippi, on August 31, 1903. He was the son of homemaker Lucita Adella Yeates Spiva (1867-1957) and prominent Mississippi physician Dr. Walter Spiva, Sr. (1864-1927). Lucita Spiva was born in Webster County, Mississippi, and lived in Louisville, Winston County, Mississippi for four decades until she moved to Jackson in 1951. Walter Spiva was one of three children. His siblings were Katherine Spiva Sharborough (1895-1921) and Madge Spiva (1897-1973). After graduating from Louisville Public School in 1919, he attended Staunton Military Academy in Virginia. He graduated from Millsaps College in Jackson in 1925. He taught at Ford Consolidated School in Winston County and at Gulfport High School after his graduation. He briefly studied economics and law at Stanford University from 1926 to 1927 before his marriage to Mary Davenport.

Walter Spiva was involved in numerous clubs and organizations in Jackson during his lifetime. He worked for the state of Mississippi for most of his life, beginning at the State Income Tax Commission and serving as a representative for Winston County in the state legislature from 1928 to 1930. During World War II, he served as an instructor for the Air Force in Biloxi, Harrison County, Mississippi, and later served as director in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi. He later served as Director of the Mississippi Highway Department from 1945 to 1950. Afterwards, he worked as Mississippi's Director of Civil Defense from 1950 to 1952. After working for Governor Fielding Wright, Spiva held the position of director and later vice president at Deposit Guaranty Bank from 1953 until his death. Spiva often gave lectures at certain events, including speeches for the local Rotary Club on which he served on the board of directors. He also was a member of the local Knife and Fork Club, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Jackson Music Association, and the Advisory Committee at St. Dominic's Hospital, among numerous other organizations and clubs.

Walter Spiva died in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, on October 22, 1972. Mary Spiva died in Forest, Scott County, Mississippi, on December 10, 1985. They are both buried in Eastern Cemetery located in Forest.

Scope and Content Note:

The papers of Allen Turner Cassity provide insight into his life and relationships as he develops his writing skills and establishes his dual careers of both poet and librarian throughout the mid to late twentieth century. The earlier papers of the collection, from 1951 to 1955, primarily consist of correspondence to his mother Dorothy Turner Cassity during his years as a student at Stanford and Columbia Universities and his years stationed in Puerto Rico during the Korean War. These letters reveal his keen wit and efforts to begin his career as a writer and librarian, from his studies under poet and scholar Yvor Winters to the first publications of his poetry in Poetry magazine. They also reveal his interest in the arts, from film to opera to literature, as well as his thoughts on current events from the international to local, such as the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the Rosenberg Trial, and the Sullens-Hederman newspaper trial.

Following his graduation from Stanford, Cassity was employed as a librarian at the Jackson Municipal Library in Hinds County, Mississippi, then as a librarian in South Africa. There are no papers from his time in Jackson or in South Africa. Later correspondence continues after his employment at Emory University in 1961. From this year onward his correspondence becomes sporadic, primarily consisting of letters to cousin Mary Davenport Spiva and her husband Walter Spiva, as well as letters to Cassity from various friends such as Mary and Oliver Triplett, Jr., and those in the publication industry, such as Rich Howard and Harold Random. These letters reveal his writerly success from his first published and well-received poetry collection. His extensive travels are also discussed. Poetry and letters penned by University of California in Los Angeles professor Charles Gullans are also included, in which Gullans discusses both his own writing and that of Cassity.

Drafts of Cassity's written works include typewritten and handwritten poetry, both complete and incomplete, published and unpublished. An unpublished manuscript for a short story titled “The Hillbrow Gesture” provides a rare example of Cassity's prose style. Reviews written about Cassity's poetry show an early and sustained interest in his satirical tone and mastery over the poetic form, and his various influences from his travels and time overseas.

Other materials relating to Cassity include photographs from throughout his life, newspaper clippings pertaining to his career, and miscellaneous ephemera from related publications, awards, and academic affiliations.

The papers of Dorothy Turner Cassity are primarily related to her early adulthood in the 1920s, her career as a musician, and her role in the development of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra. Early material includes various correspondence, photographs, and ephemera from her scrapbook titled “School-Girl Days,” which ranges roughly from 1918-1924. The majority of materials correspond to Dorothy's early adulthood and the losses of her husband, mother, and other relatives, or to her later role as a musician and founding member of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra.

Correspondence does not include letters with Allen Turner Cassity, but does include a 1917 postcard to her father Eugene Lamar Turner and letters from her friends and relatives, such as Ruth Elizabeth Horton, Carolyn DeLarue Lawrence, and Carrie Bell. Also included in correspondence is a letter from Judy Ritter and attached interview between Ritter and Dorothy Cassity concerning her role in the Jackson Symphony League. Newspaper clippings cover: Dorothy Turner's marriage to Allen Davenport Cassity and his death in 1934; the death of Dorothy Turner Cassity's mother Elizabeth Liles Turner in the same year; and Cassity's career as a musician and member of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra from 1928 to 1970.

The photograph series includes archivist-identified photos of Dorothy Turner Cassity and unidentified friends and family from the 1920s and 1930s, with two photographs from Dorothy Cassity's later years. The majority of photos are unidentified. The papers paint a portrait of a woman whose early tragedies did not stop a successful career as a dedicated musician.

The papers of Mary Davenport Spiva and Walter Yeates Spiva cover a wide variety of content and a broad time range, from 1856 to 1987. Correspondence largely consists of letters from close friend Perle Young Johnson and her family living in California, the letters spanning from 1936 to 1986. These letters reveal a close friendship between the Johnsons and Spivas, which continues after the deaths of Perle Johnson and Walter Spiva through Mary Spiva and the Johnson children.

The second subseries of correspondence ranges from 1896 to 1985, and consists of miscellaneous letters to and from Mary and Walter Spiva, concerning both personal and business relationships. Letters include correspondence of Mary Spiva's father, William Alexander Davenport; various personal letters and business correspondence; and an outpouring of sympathy following the death of Walter Spiva's mother in 1957.

The third subseries of correspondence pertains to the business of the Alexandria and Bienville Lumber companies in 1913 and 1914. This includes business dealings between William Wadley, John Davenport Allen, and William Alexander Davenport, including land sales and the acquisition of the Alexandria Lumber Company by the Bienville Lumber Company.

Family and personal papers demonstrate Walter Spiva's respected and influential position in the Jackson community, as numerous speeches given by Walter Spiva are saved as well as newspaper clippings detailing his multiple career changes and roles as a public servant and leader. Other materials reveal a more personal side to the Spivas and their families, as many handwritten and typed songs, poems, quotes, and stories are preserved, including some poems written by Walter Spiva.

Printed materials cover a wide variety of interests. This series includes pamphlets and newsletters covering regional topics, such as the Forestry History newsletters (1956-58; 1960) which give insight into the lumber industry in the Southeast, and pamphlets from the Forest Methodist Church (1961; 1968). Civil Defense guidebooks and operation plans (1961-1962) give a glimpse into Cold War regulations and plans of action in the event of nuclear attack. Other printed materials are more personal, including Mary Davenport's Master's thesis (1928) from Stanford University and myriad newsclippings covering the lives and careers of Mary and Walter Spiva. Several newsclippings also cover an assortment of humorous, religious, and other miscellaneous topics.

Photographs include images from Mary and Walter Spiva's trip to England in 1952 and visits with the Johnson family in California. Many photographs are unidentified, ranging from the late 1800s to the 1980s.

The wide variety of materials, topics, and individuals the collection encompasses paints a broad and complete portrait of the richly textured lives of Mary and Walter Spiva, providing an excellent example of the interests and obligations of a couple highly involved in Jackson society during the twentieth century.

Series Identification:

Subgroup 1: Papers of Allen Turner Cassity

Series 1: Correspondence, 1951-1984; n.d.

Letters from Turner Cassity to his mother Dorothy Turner during his years as a student at Stanford and Columbia Universities and his time serving in the U.S. Army, with some letters from this time written to Mary and Walter Spiva. Other letters from Cassity's youth include a letter from close friend Carol Straub and correspondence and writing from Charles Gullans, a professor at University of California in Los Angeles and a fellow writer. Also includes letters from the Wesleyan University Press concerning Cassity's early publications from 1965 and 1966. Of interest is a photocopy of a brief 1966 letter from poet Marianne Moore to Wesleyan Press complimenting Turner Cassity. Researchers will also find letters from writerly connections Rich Howard and Harold Random, and familial correspondence to the Spivas from the 1960s to the 1980s.

Box 1, Folders 1-23

Series 2: Written Works by Cassity, 1961-1988; n.d.

This series consists of works by Cassity both published and unpublished, complete and incomplete. Also included are reviews written by others about Cassity and his poetry collections.

Subseries 2.1: Poetry and Prose, 1961; 1966; 1986; n.d.

Poetry includes typewritten and handwritten poems, some of which were published in official collections. Likely incomplete poems and unpublished poems are also included. Included are multiple prose manuscripts: two drafts of the unpublished story “The Hillbrow Gesture” and unpublished story “A Few Sketches for a Funeral March.”

Box 1, Folders 24-29
Box 2, Folders 1-5

Subseries 2.2: Reviews and Writings of Cassity, 1966-1988; n.d.

Reviews include professional criticisms of Cassity's poetry collections: Watchboy, What is the Night?; Steeplejacks in Babel; Yellow for Peril, Black for Beautiful; Hurricane Lamp (1966-1986). This subseries also consists of writings about Cassity, including an interview with Cassity and Crazy Horse magazine dated 1975, a bibliography of Cassity and other writers who studied under Yvor Winters titled Laurel, Archaic, and Rude from 1978, and a Millsaps College Friday Forum introduction for Cassity.

Box 2, Folders 6-13

Series 3: Personal Papers, 1952-1962; n.d.

The personal papers of Cassity include legal and financial documents, library miscellany, and promotional material from Wesleyan University Press, an early publisher of Cassity's work.

Box 2, Folders 14-17

Series 4: Printed Material, 1949-1987; n.d.

This series includes numerous newsclippings covering Cassity's publications, public appearances, and interviews regarding both his literary and library careers, mostly from Mississippi and Georgia newspapers, with additional material from magazines and other included publications: Emory University Quarterly; Library Horizons; A Little Treasure of Modern Poetry; The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker; The Marx Brothers. Also included are Cassity’s personal copies of the 1949, 1950, and 1951 editions of the Millsaps College yearbook.

Box 2, Folders 18-21
Box 10, Folder 1-2
Box 11, Folder 1
Box 12, Folder 1
Box 13, Folders 1-2
Box 14, Folders 1-3
Box 15, Folder 3
Box 16, Folder 3
Box 21, Folder 1 (Restricted originals; Use reference photocopies in Box 11)

Series 5: Photographs, [1929]-1989; n.d.

This series of identified photographs range from Cassity's childhood, including a baby photograph album and portraits of him during his adulthood and travels. Photographs of Cassity serving in the U.S. Army are also included.

Box 17, Folders 1-6
Box 13, Folder 3

Series 6: Memorabilia, 1966; n.d.

This series consists of two placards: The Allen Turner Cassity Fund for the Robert W. Woodruff Library at Emory University, and the Library Achievement Award presented to Cassity in 1966.

Box 13, Folders 11-12

Subgroup 2: Papers of Dorothy Turner Cassity

Series 7: Correspondence, 1917-1982; n.d.

This series included a 1917 postcard written by Dorothy Turner to her father. The majority of correspondence is from 1965-1982, and consists of correspondence from friends and relatives including Ruth Horton, Carolyn Lawrence, and Carrie Bell. A 1982 letter from Judy Ritter includes a typewritten interview between Ritter and Cassity concerning the Jackson Symphony League.

Box 2, Folders 22-25

Series 8: Printed Materials, 1924-1970; n.d.

This series included newspaper clippings covering the early performances of Dorothy Turner, her marriage to Allen Davenport Cassity, and her later involvement with the Jackson Symphony Orchestra and prominent music clubs. Also included are memorials and funeral records for Allen Davenport Cassity, and Dorothy Turner Cassity's parents Elizabeth Liles Turner and Eugene Lamar Turner. Of interest to genealogists is a booklet following genealogy and familial connections for McKay, Pulliam, Tatum, Fullilove, Griffith, Baskin, Neal, and Middleton families. Orchestra enthusiasts may appreciate the 1944 Jackson Symphony Orchestra Concert booklet.

Box 2, Folders 26-33
Box 11, Folder 2
Box 14, Folder 4
Box 21, Folder 2 (Restricted originals; Use reference photocopies in Box 11)

Series 9: Handwritten Materials, n.d.

This series consists of a hand-drawn house floor plan, likely for one of Dorothy Turner Cassity's residences. Also included is her undated handwritten will.

Box 2, Folders 34-35

Series 10: Financial Papers, 1984-1985.

This series consists of a few utility bills pertaining to Dorothy Turner Cassity’s household.

Box 2, Folder 36

Series 11: Memorabilia, 1949-1950.

This series consists of two funeral books for Dorothy Turner Cassity’s father Eugene Lamar Turner and her father-in-law Marvin Mather Cassity.

Box 3, Folders 1-2

Series 12: Scrapbook and Included Materials, 1919-1927; n.d.

This series includes identified and unidentified photographs of friends, teachers, and family members; handwritten letters from friends, relatives, and family connections; postcards and other holiday cards; printed invitations to dances, performances, and parties; and music programs and performance schedules. Ephemera includes decorative paper napkins, dried flowers, a candy wrapper, a paper doily, a ribbon, and a pencil stub. Of interest is a handwritten play. Scrapbook includes original scrapbook and catalogued loose items removed from scrapbook for preservation.

Box 3, Folders 3-37
Box 20

Series 13: Photographs, 1929-1938; n.d.

This series includes archivist-identified photos of Dorothy Turner Cassity. Unidentified photographs of or belonging to Dorothy Turner Cassity are also included, featuring numerous assumed friends and family members, mostly ranging from the 1920s to 1930s. Many photographs may have identifications possibly in Dorothy's handwriting.

Box 16, Folders 1-2
Box 17, Folders 7-10

Subgroup 3: Papers of Mary Davenport Spiva and Walter Yeates Spiva

Series 14: Correspondence, 1896-1985; n.d.

Subseries 14.1: Perle Young Johnson and Nels Edwin Johnson, 1936-1985; n.d.

This subseries consist of typewritten letters ranging from 1936 to 1985, with majority of letters written by Californian and close friend Perle Johnson to Mary and Walter Spiva. There are some exceptions written by Johnson's son and daughter-in-law, Hal and Lila Johnson. There are also a few letters written by Mary and Walter Spiva to Perle and Edwin Johnson.

Box 4, Folders 1-13
Box 5, Folders 1-10

Subseries 14.2: Spiva and Davenport Correspondence, 1896-1986.

Letters involving Mary Davenport Spiva, Walter Spiva, and close friends and relatives; including letters to and from William Alexander Davenport, Marjorie Williamson, Jas S. Galloway, Kate Hood, Madge Spiva, Lena Allen Tipton, and many others.

Box 5, Folders 11-13
Box 6, Folders 1-9
Box 7, Folders 1-4

Subseries 14.3: Alexandria Lumber Company Correspondence, 1913-1914.

This correspondence consists of business dealings between William Wadley, John Davenport Allen, and William Alexander Davenport arranging land deals and business acquisitions for the Alexandria Lumber Company, Allen Brothers and Wadley, Ltd.

Box 7, Folders 5-11

Series 15: Family and Personal Papers, 1856-1984; n.d.

This series includes funeral records and other papers pertaining to deaths of Walter's mother Lucita Adella Yeates Spiva in 1957 and Walter Spiva in 1972. There is also a typewritten history for the Weir family dated 1957, including family histories and genealogies for Weir, Spiva, and Yeates families; and also the Allen and Davenport families. Of interest may be papers and a journal related to Walter Spiva's sister Madge Spiva and her job as a Millsaps librarian. There are Mary and Walter Spiva’s event speeches, and a paper pertaining to their travels. Additionally, there is a large collection of miscellaneous songs, poems, and stories presumably saved by Davenport and/or Spiva families, including songs and poems possibly written by Walter Spiva. Also included are materials related to the Hogan family.

Box 7, Folders 12-26
Box 8, Folders 1-6

Series 16: Business and Financial Papers, 1900-1976; n.d.

Papers relating to land acquisitions and legal dealings of the Bienville Lumber Company, Allen Brothers and Wadley Ltd. Of interest may be a gold inventory for Mrs. J.F. Ainsworth dated 1915 and royalty statements from Allen Brothers and Wadley, Cotton Valley Oil Field for 1951; 1962-1967; 1976. An undated list of shares possibly for Deposit Guaranty Bank and miscellaneous business records from mid-1900s are included.

Box 8, Folders 7-13

Series 17: Printed Materials, 1891-1985; n.d.

Subseries 17.1: General Printed Materials, 1891; 1927-1984; n.d.

This subseries consists of Civil Defense operation plans and guides (1961-1962); Millsaps College publications (1940; 1953), including a 1960 printing of the Stylus literary magazine; travel memorabilia from California (1957; 1961) and other destinations; Los Gatos Art Association newsletter (1954); and a typewritten travel diary from Marcelle Dodson (1965). Also included are various event programs spanning nonconsecutively from 1891 to 1957; an undated opera program; papers from Forest Public Library and Forest Methodist Church (1968; 1961); and miscellaneous religious pamphlets, brochures, and booklets. Items relating to Walter Spiva also include election flyers circa 1928 and Worthwhile Book recommendations.

Box 8, Folders 14-16
Box 9, Folders 1-19

Subseries 17.2: Books, 1928; 1957.

This subseries includes the book Famous Old Cars by Hank Wieand Bowman (1957) and Mary Davenport's Master's thesis “Buchanan's Mission to England” (1928).

Box 15, Folders 1-2

Subseries 17.3: Newspapers, 1912-1985; n.d.

This subseries consists of newspaper clippings spanning the twentieth century covering personal and professional events in the lives of Mary Davenport Spiva and Walter Spiva, and their friends and family members, primarily from Mississippi newspapers. Also included are newsclippings from Californian newspapers, likely from Perle Johnson. Some of these articles include handwritten and typewritten comments, possibly from Perle Johnson. Exceptions from Arkansas and Louisiana papers.

Box 11, Folders 3-24
Box 12, Folder 2
Box 13, Folder 4
Box 14, Folders 5-9
Box 21, Folders 3-24 (Restricted originals; Use reference photocopies in Box 11)

Series 18: Memorabilia, 1928-1987; n.d.

The memorabilia series includes collected stamps (1945; 1963-1967; 1987; n.d.), Mary Davenport’s Master's Diploma (1928), Walter Spiva’s Rotary Club medallions (1948; 1951), and Walter Spiva’d Rotary Club certificate (1948).

Box 9, Folders 20-23

Series 19: Photographs, 1897-1985; n.d.

Identified and archivist-identified portraits, travel photos, and candid photos of Mary and Walter Spiva, including photos from 1952 trip to England (1925; 1952; n.d.). Photos from archivist-identified Lucita Adella Yeates Spiva 1957 funeral. Identified and partially-identified figures include: Miss America Mary Ann Mobley; “Honey” and assumed daughter “Bitsy;” Elizabeth Cassity; Ed Allen; E.B. Allen's mother; June Allen; Vaughn Schmidt; Philip Seusebe. Dates primarily range from 1890s to 1980s. Large quantity of unidentified photographs. Christmas card photographs from McMullan, Cloughly, Pass, and other families. Blank postcards from Mexico, New Jersey, England, and unidentified locations (n.d.).

Box 9, Folders 24-25
Box 13, Folders 5-10
Box 17, Folders 11-23
Box 18, Folders 1-31
Box 19, Folders 1-33

See: Box List