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John Q. Anderson Papers

 Collection
Identifier: 1972-001

The John Q. Anderson Papers contain extensive materials including letters from former students, a diary, transcripts and other materials relating to American folk beliefs, medicine, and folksongs along with newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, notes, and many other items.

Dates

  • 1922-1975

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Special Collections owns the physical items in our collections, but copyright normally belongs to the creator of the materials or their heirs. The researcher has full responsibility for determining copyright status, obtaining permission to publish from copyright holders, and abiding by current copyright laws when publishing or displaying copies of Special Collections material in print or electronic form. For more information, consult the appropriate librarian. Reproduction decisions will be made by Special Collections staff on a case-by-case basis.

Extent

24.00 linear feet

Biographical Information

John Q. Anderson was born in Wheeler County, Texas on May 30, 1916. He received his A.B. from Oklahoma State University in 1939, his M.A. from Louisiana State University in 1948, and his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina in 1952. His World War II tour of duty included time spent in England, France, and Germany.

Anderson held teaching positions at the University of Texas, University of North Carolina, and McNeese State College before his 1953 appointment as Instructor at Texas A & M University, where he was Assistant Professor from 1954-1956, Associate Professor from 1956-1959, Professor from 1959-1962, and Department Head from 1962-1966. In 1966, he became Professor of American literature at the University of Houston and went on disability leave May 13, 1974.

Anderson was president of the Texas Folklore Society and the American Studies Association of Texas, which named him its first Distinguished Fellow in Houston on November 16, 1974.

Anderson was author of more than 70 articles and books. Some of his books include Brokenburn: The Journal of Kate Stone, 1861-1868 (1955), A Texas Surgeon in the C.S.A. (1957), Louisiana Swamp Doctor: The Life and Writings of Henry Clay Lewis (1962), Tales of Frontier Texas (1966), John C. Duval, First Texas Man of Letters (1967), With the Bark On: Popular Humor of the Old South (1967), Campaigning with Parson's Texas Cavalry Brigade, C.S.A. (1967), Texas Folk Medicine (1970), and The Liberating Gods: Emerson on Poets and Poetry (1971).

Dr. John Q. Anderson died on February 19, 1975, following a long illness.

Note on Harmful Language

In describing archival materials, Special Collections aims to respect individuals and communities represented in the collections in our care.

In the 2021 Special Collections reparative description project, staff decided to maintain potentially harmful language from original folder descriptions or titles in this finding aid to preserve the historical context of materials.

Title
Guide to the John Q. Anderson Papers
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • 2021-12-16: As a part of the 2021 Special Collections reparative description project, Bethany Scott revised this finding aid’s biographical information for relevance and brevity per current best practices.

Repository Details

Part of the University of Houston Libraries Special Collections Repository

Contact:
University of Houston Libraries Special Collections
MD Anderson Library
4333 University Drive
Houston TX 77204-2000 USA
713-743-9750