Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials. Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open to research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Eugene Field Poem, Ms1994-014, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The Eugene Field Poem was donated to Special Collections and University Archives in 1994.

Processing Information

The processing and description of the Eugene Field Poem commenced and was completed in October, 2023.

Biographical / Historical

Eugene Field, son of Roswell and Frances Maria Reed Field, was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on September 3, 1850. After a few reportedly half-hearted attempts in higher education, Field traveled in Europe for six months. By 1875, he had returned to Missouri, where in 1875 he began a career in journalism at the St. Joseph Gazette . That same year, he married Julia Sutherland Comstock (1856-1936); the couple would have eight children. After rising to the position of editor at the Register , Field moved to St. Louis, where he worked as an editorial writer for the city's Morning Journal and, later, the Times-Journal . He then served as managing editor of the Kansas City Times and for two years as editor of the Denver Post . In 1883, Field went to work as a humor columnist for the Chicago Daily News . For his many poems for and about children, Field came to be known as the "poet of childhood." Eugene Field died in Chicago on November 4, 1895, and was buried in Church of the Holy Comforter Courtyard, Kenilworth (Cook County), Illinois.

Scope and Contents

This collection consists of a two-page poem (photocopy only) by Eugene Field entitled "Little Willie," and relating to the writer's young, bed-wetting son. The photocopy is of a limited edition of 200 (of which this is copy 38), published by E. C. Hill (New York), in 1901. A note at the end of the poem reads, "Unpublished poem read by Mr. Eugene Field before the Chi Press Club." Accompanying the poem is a brief biography (photocopy only) of Field, from American Writers for Children Before 1900 , volume 42 of Dictionary of Literary Biography (Detroit: Gale Research Company).

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Eugene Field Poem by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).