Adele V. Holden Returnings manuscript

Collection — Box: 1

Identifier: MS-1021

Staff Only

Content Description

This collection contains a draft of poet Adele V. Holden's memoir of her childhood as a Black woman on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. While it was ultimately published as Down on the Shore: The Family and Place That Forged a Poet's Voice, this draft is titled Returnings. This draft includes editorial comments, author corrections, and an editorial note to others in the Woodholme House publishing company regarding its potential to be marketed as a lead title for the fall of 1998.

Dates

Creation: 1998

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is housed off-site and requires 48-hours' notice for retrieval. Contact Special Collections for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions. It is not necessary to seek our permission as the owner of the physical work to publish or otherwise use public domain materials that we have made available for use, unless Johns Hopkins University holds the copyright.

Biographical / Historical

Adele Virginia Holden (1919-2006), was a Black English teacher and poet known for her memoir Down on the Shore: The Family and Place that Forged a Poet's Voice, which describes her experiences growing up in the racially segregated town of Pocomoke City, MD.

Holden received her undergraduate degree from what is now Morgan State University, and was a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University Writing Seminars. She taught English at Dunbar High School and later Baltimore City Community College. She published two books, a book of poetry in 1961 titled Figurine and her 1999 memoir Down on the Shore.

The daughter of Snow Holden and Laura Dickerson, her memoir shares stories of her parents' attempts to create opportunities for their children, including her father's successful effort to create Pocomoke City's first Black 10th grade class in the public school system.

Sources:

1. Adele Virginia Holden. Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

2. Hopkinson, Natalie. “A Poet’s Voice Comes of Age.” Washington Post, February 8, 2000. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2000/02/09/a-poets-voice-comes-of-age/bc70797c-5806-414c-9e4d-de9c011e6cb9/.

3. Kelly, Jacques. “Adele V. Holden.” Baltimore Sun, December 28, 2006. https://www.baltimoresun.com/2006/12/28/adele-v-holden/.

Extent

0.19 Cubic Feet (1 letter half box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection contains a draft of poet Adele V. Holden's memoir of her childhood as a Black woman on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, which was ultimately published as Down on the Shore: The Family and Place That Forged a Poet's Voice but is titled here Returnings.