Skip to main content

Judith Raymo Collection of Sylvia Plath at Smith College

 Collection
Identifier: MRBC-MS-00451

Scope and Contents

The materials in this collection represent a portion of Judith Raymo's Sylvia Plath collection, assembled by Judith Raymo. Materials include Plath correspondence, Plath typescripts, poetry reprints, periodical publications, broadsides, ephemera, sounds recordings, and video recordings.

Dates of Materials

  • Creation: 1953 - 2021

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research use without restriction beyond the standard terms and conditions of Smith College Special Collections.

Conditions Governing Use

Materials in this collection may be governed by copyright. For reproductions of materials that are governed by fair use as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission to cite or publish is required. Researchers are responsible for determining who may hold materials' copyrights and obtaining approval from them. Researchers do not need anything further from Smith College Special Collections to move forward with their use.

Biographical / Historical

Judith Raymo (Smith College Class of 1953) collected Sylvia Plath’s work for three-decades before donating the collection to the Mortimer Rare Book Collection at Smith College. Raymo met Sylvia Plath as undergraduate students attending Smith College and several years later, after reading Plath’s posthumous publications, Raymo developed an interest in collecting Plath’s published and unpublished writings. Raymo identified with Plath’s struggles in balancing a professional career alongside the expectations associated with marriage and motherhood in the mid-twentieth century. Raymo’s late husband, Robert Raymo, was an avid book collector and medieval scholar who encouraged her pursuits in finding and purchasing the rare materials. She bought Plath’s unpublished manuscripts as well as books and periodicals that featured Plath’s work. In 2017, Raymo hosted a Grolier Club exhibition titled, This Is the Light of the Mind: Selections from the Sylvia Plath Collection of Judith G. Raymo.

Judith Raymo is a published author and editor of books and articles on women in the academic workplace. Her works include, Shattering the Myths: Women in Academe (1999) and Unfinished Agendas: New and Continuing Gender Challenges in Higher Education (2008). She received a doctorate in higher education from New York University and is professor emerita of education at Long Island University.

Source: Raymo, Judith G. “Girl on a Train,” Smith College Alumnae News, March 17, 2021. Accessed July 12, 2022. https://www.smith.edu/news/2021-saq-sp-judith-raymo-mary-ventura-plath

Extent

3.417 linear feet (6 containers)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The materials in this collection represent a portion of Judith Raymo's Sylvia Plath collection, assembled by Judith Raymo. Judith Raymo (Smith College Class of 1953) collected Sylvia Plath’s work for three-decades before donating the collection to the Mortimer Rare Book Collection at Smith College.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

As a preservation measure, researchers must use digital copies of audiovisual materials in this collection. Please consult with Special Collections staff or email specialcollections@smith.edu to request the creation of and access to digital copies.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Judith Raymo in June 2022 and June 2023.

Separated Materials

Published books from the Judith Raymo collection of Sylvia Plath at Smith College, primarily from the original "Separate Works by and About Plath" series will be cataloged individually. A full list of books retained by the Mortimer Rare Book Collections is available at Book list for the Judith Raymo collection of Sylvia Plath at Smith College. Other books from the original collection were separated and offered to the Smith College Library circulating collection.

Processing Information

This collection was accessioned by Althea Topek in 2022. The materials arrived with an itemized inventory and each item had been assigned a unique identifier by the collection creator. During accessioning, a portion of published books were retained by the Mortimer Rare Book Collection and cataloged individually. The remaining published books were offered to the Smith College Library circulating collection. The materials represented in this finding aid were determined to be archival and were placed in new archival housing. The inventory was repurposed and original series arrangement as well as item identifiers have been maintained.

An additional 7 items were added to the collection in 2023.

Title
Finding aid to the Judith Raymo Collection of Sylvia Plath at Smith College
Author
Althea Topek
Date
2022-07-07
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Mortimer Rare Book Collection Repository

Contact:
Neilson Library
7 Neilson Drive
Northampton MA 01063