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There continues to be a great deal of interest in and activities related to the Porter holdings at the University of Maryland Libraries. The most significant activity during the period between November 1997 and April 1998 was the progress made on the NEH-funded project to complete preservation microfilming of the most heavily used and valuable portions of the Papers of Katherine Anne Porter. On November 24, 1997, the University of Maryland awarded the bid to microfilm the papers to Preservation Resources of Bethlehem, PA, a firm that specializes in this work.

Prior to the awarding of the bid, Project Archivist Rachel Vagts began preparing the materials for microfilming. During this process, it became apparent that she and I would need to re-examine closely the arrangement of all forty-eight linear feet of the papers to be microfilmed. During the last six months, we have reviewed all of Series I, III, IV, and V. I expect to review Series II and Series VI by summer's end so that, at long last, the guide to the collection can be completed, perhaps by September. When complete, it will be mounted on the Libraries' home page.

On December 19, 1997, Libraries' Preservation staff, Yvonne Carignan and Elise Calvi, and Porter project staff, Patricia Rettig, Rachel Vagts, and I, travelled to Bethlehem, PA, to meet with Preservation Resources staff. The vendor's staff examined representative examples from the eight manuscript boxes of the Porter papers that the project staff had prepared and transported to their site. We agreed to film a test reel of materials in order to determine the final technical specifications to be used in completing the project. In January and March, Libraries' staff reviewed test reels of microfilm and finalized the technical specifications for the project.

By the end of April 1998, thirty-two manuscript boxes, comprising about sixteen linear feet, of the Porter Papers had been prepared for microfilming; twenty-one of these boxes have already been transported to the Bethlehem facility. These portions of the collection include the all of the first three subseries of Series I, Correspondence, and a portion of the fourth subseries. Subseries 1, Agents and Publishing Activities includes correspondence dated 1918 to 1978 (Cyrilly Abels through Yale Review, Publishing Activities [Chronological], and Permissions). Derivative Works, Subseries 2, covers the period from 1952 to 1977 (Theodore Apstein through Douglas Watson). Subseries 3, Financial and Legal, 1930 to 1979, includes donation requests, financial correspondence, legal correspondence, and correspondence with E. Barrett Prettyman, Jr. The portion of Subseries 4, Personal, dating from 1918 to 1980, shipped in early May, includes Miss Porter's correspondence with William Abrahams through David Locher. As I complete this account in early May, I am pleased to report that our first shipment of ten reels of microfilm has arrived. Libraries' staff will inspect it for adherence to the technical standards defined in our contract with Preservation Resources as well as for readability and completeness.

At this time, we have not completed our policy for loaning the microfilm to special collections at other research libraries nor can we predict when any of the film will be available for loan. However, I have conferred with counsel in the university's President's Legal Office and expect to complete the inter-library loan policy in the next few months. Announcement of the policies and availability of the microfilm will appear on the Libraries' Literary Manuscripts home page (http://www.lib.umd.edu/UMCP/ARCV/litmss.html), in various scholarly journals, and in this newsletter. Notification will also be mailed to those on the Libraries' Katherine Anne Porter mailing list. Anyone wishing to be added to that mailing list should contact me.

During this six-month period there were fewer on-site researchers, as six series of the Porter papers were closed. The four visitors who consulted our Porter holdings at College Park travelled from Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Telephone, mail, and e-mail inquiries have also been received from California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin, as well as from Norway. As usual, the bulk of these requests came from graduate students and scholars, but there was a flurry of requests for photographs and other materials generated by the forthcoming events planned for Texas Writers' Month. As Miss Porter is the featured writer this year, the travelling exhibit prepared in 1991 as part of the University of Maryland Libraries' "Katherine Anne Porter at One Hundred" activities will be displayed in Austin, Texas. A photograph of Miss Porter from the Porter collection will be featured on the Texas Writers' Month poster. In addition, several of the photographs from the Porter collection appeared in the documentary "Influenza 1918," which was broadcast as part of PBS's American Experience series on February 9, 1998.

Five of the seven women who previously served as docents in the Porter Room continued their tenure during this period: Freddy Baer, Shirley Bauer, Dorothy Galvin, Beverly Lewoc, and Betty Warner. In January, they were joined by Joan Phelan, a retired CIA analyst and friend of Shirley Bauer. Regretfully, Rose Ann Jackson and Esther Birdsall were unable to continue their service. A brief obituary for Dr. Birdsall appears elsewhere in the newsletter. During the six-month period covered by this report, the Porter Room was open to the public thirty-six afternoons, and there were 136 visitors.

Barbara Thompson Davis and E. Barrett Prettyman, Jr., made significant gifts of Porter materials in recent months. Mrs. Davis discovered more than eight linear feet of Isabel Bayley's records among the literary trustee's papers that had been transferred to her after Mrs. Bayley's death. This addition to the Bayley papers includes literary trustee correspondence and financial records, manuscripts relating to various projects including Mrs. Bayley's edition of Miss Porter's letters, her notes from conversations with Miss Porter, and an unpublished memoir about her relationship with Miss Porter. Although this recent gift and the remainder of the Bayley papers remain unprocessed, there are preliminary inventories for the entire collection, and it is open to researchers.

Mr. Prettyman's recent gift, of approximately half a linear foot, includes his correspondence, dating between 1962 and 1984, related to Miss Porter. Some of this correspondence was exchanged between Mr. Prettyman and Miss Porter; some of it was between Mr. Prettyman and others relating to Miss Porter. Patricia Rettig, the graduate assistant who processed the Prettyman papers in May 1997, integrated this portion into the existing collection and revised the guide. Mr. Prettyman has placed some restrictions on this collection. During his lifetime, no one may quote from these papers unless authorized by him in writing. In addition, researchers may not consult the portion of the collection donated in December 1997 without Mr. Prettyman's written permission. This recent addition to the Prettyman papers is especially important because it documents the last years of Miss Porter's life.

Bill Wilkins continues to provide extraordinary support for our Porter holdings. His efforts in the last six months have focused on support for Rachel Vagts and myself in preparing the Porter Papers for microfilming. He completed his review of the arrangement of Miss Porter's clippings, has assisted in preparing portions of the collection for the microfilm vendor, and has dated some undated correspondence. His assistance remains invaluable.

Additional preservation initiatives have been undertaken on parts of the Porter Papers since my last report. Archives and Manuscripts colleague Chuck Howell made progress on duplicating reel-to-reel audiotapes onto audio cassettes, making them more accessible to researchers and protecting the fragile originals. Color slides of 291 color photographic prints in the Porter collection were made as an interim preservation measure because some of the early prints had begun to fade.

Anyone who has questions concerning the Libraries' Porter holdings should not hesitate to contact me, Curator of Literary Manuscripts, Archives and Manuscripts, McKeldin Library, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20752, 301-405-9298, ra60@umail.umd.edu.