William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections

The Division of Archives and Research Collections is named after William Ready who served as University Librarian from 1966 until his retirement in 1979. In 2002 the Archives was awarded the Archives Association of Ontario's Institutional Award in recognition of its strong archival program and service to the community.{{cite news |title=Library's William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections Division Receives AAO Award |url=https://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/articles/librarys-william-ready-division-of-archives-and-research-collections-division-receives-aao-award/ |accessdate=31 December 2018 |work=Daily News |publisher=McMaster University |date=24 June 2002}}

William Bernard Ready (pronounced Reedy) was born on 16 September 1914 in Cardiff, Wales to James Ready and Nora Hart. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Wales in 1937, a Master of Arts from the University of Manitoba in 1949 and a Master of Library Science from the University of Western Ontario in 1970, in addition to several diplomas related to archives and library administration. Ready married Bessie Dyer (1917–2007) on 25 April 1945 and together they had six children.{{cite book|author1=R. Reginald|author2=Douglas Menville|author3=Mary A. Burgess|editor1-last=Menville|editor1-first=Douglas|editor2-last=Burgess|editor2-first=Mary A.|title=Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature, Volume 2|date=2010|publisher=Wildside Press LLC|pages=1043–1044|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3nPYfqEbfrsC|isbn=9780941028783|accessdate=6 January 2016|ref=Reginald}}{{cite web|title=Deaths & Funerals - Ready, Bessie|url=http://www.canada.com/story.html?id=3cbc97ae-1a69-47c5-aa19-0b566689f62f|website=Canada.com|publisher=Times Colonist (Victoria)|accessdate=20 January 2016|location=Victoria, British Columbia|date=3 October 2007}}

Ready considered himself a "working librarian" and rejected the academic side of librarianship in favour of hands-on work and collection development{{cite journal|last1=Neill|first1=S. D.|title=Review of Files on Parade: A Memoir by William B. Ready|journal=The Journal of Library History|date=1983|volume= 18|issue= 4|pages=521–523|jstor=25541478|publisher=University of Texas Press}} He was known for his enterprising and cunning{{cite news|last1=Grescoe|first1=Paul|title=William Ready is Cunning, Devious, Relentless, Ruthless (and sneaky)|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1946&dat=19710424&id=C5gkAAAAIBAJ&pg=2566,5958655&hl=en|accessdate=6 January 2016|newspaper=The Montreal Gazette|date=24 April 1971|pages=28–29}} approach to building and managing archives and research collections. Having read and enjoyed The Hobbit, Ready asked a London-based book dealer to contact J. R. R. Tolkien about acquiring his works for Marquette University. Concerned about his retirement, Tolkien initially agreed to sell a selection of manuscripts. Further negotiation led to Marquette's acquisition of the manuscripts for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, among others, amounting to more than 11,000 pages.{{cite news|last1=Antlfinger|first1=Carrie|title=Marquette University holds 'Lord of the Rings,' other Tolkien works|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=dukfAAAAIBAJ&pg=1486%2C2154990|accessdate=21 January 2016|newspaper=Nevada Herald|date=3 February 2002|page=8A}} During the same period Ready also secured the personal papers of social activist Dorothy Day.{{cite journal|last1=Heinen|first1=Tom|title=Diaries reveal another Dorothy|journal=Journal Sentinel|date=7 May 2008|url=http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/29522229.html|accessdate=21 January 2016}}{{cite news|title=Dorothy Day — Catholic Worker Collection|url=http://marquettewire.org/2626374/tribune/tribune-news/sheen-mean-on-social-work/|accessdate=21 January 2016|newspaper=Marquette Wire|date=18 September 2003}} As University Librarian at McMaster he played an instrumental role in securing numerous high-profile collections, most notably the archives of philosopher and political activist Bertrand Russell.

Ready died in Victoria, British Columbia on 12 September 1981, two years after retiring from McMaster. His autobiography, Files on Parade, was published posthumously in 1982.{{cite web|title=William Ready fonds|url=http://library.mcmaster.ca/archives/findaids/fonds/r/ready.htm|website=McMaster University Library|publisher=The William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections|accessdate=20 January 2016}}

The holdings of the Division of Archives and Research Collections reflect a broad spectrum of Canadian popular culture ranging from the records of Canadian publishers{{cite web|title=About|url=http://hpcanpub.mcmaster.ca/|website=Historical Perspectives on Canadian Publishing|publisher=McMaster|accessdate=31 January 2016}} and advertisers{{cite news|last1=Foda|first1=Farzeen|last2=Cumerlato|first2=Sam|title=Collection of popular media donated to Mac|url=http://www.thesil.ca/collection-of-popular-media-donated-to-mac|accessdate=5 February 2016|publisher=The Silhouette|date=16 February 2012}} to the personal papers of internationally recognized authors and musicians. Included are writers Louise Bennett-Coverley,{{cite news|last1=Wong|first1=D.|title=A treasure trove from Miss Lou|url=http://www.thespec.com/news-story/2174025-a-treasure-trove-from-miss-lou/|accessdate=28 November 2015|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=14 February 2011}} Pierre Berton,{{cite book|last1=McKillop|first1=A.B.|title=Pierre Berton a biography|date=2010|publisher=Emblem|location=Toronto|isbn=9781551996226|page=678|edition=Unabridged.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6QmQvocn4IYC|accessdate=31 January 2016}} Austin Clarke,{{cite web|title=Friends, colleagues pay tribute to Austin Clarke|url=http://sharenews.com/friends-colleagues-pay-tribute-to-austin-clarke/|website=ShareNews.com|publisher=Share Newspaper|accessdate=31 January 2016}} Marian Engel,{{cite journal|last1=Kavanagh|first1=Afra|title=Ambivalence and Intertextuality in Marian Engel's The Glassy Sea: What the Archives Reveal|journal=Journal of Canadian Studies|date=2006|volume=40|issue=2|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/journal_of_canadian_studies/v040/40.2kavanagh.html|accessdate=31 January 2016}} Basil H. Johnston{{cite news|last1=Nolan|first1=Daniel|title=Ojibwa author Johnson donates papers to McMaster|url=http://www.thespec.com/news-story/4124929-ojibwa-author-johnson-donates-papers-to-mcmaster/|accessdate=5 February 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=26 September 2013}} and Farley Mowat{{cite news|last1=Rinehart|first1=Dianne|title=Farley Mowat, acclaimed Canadian author, dead at 92|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/books/2014/05/07/farley_mowat_acclaimed_canadian_author_dead_at_92.html|accessdate=31 January 2016|publisher=Toronto Star|date=7 May 2014}} and singer-songwriters Bruce Cockburn,{{cite news|last1=Carter|first1=Adam|title=Bruce Cockburn donates archives to McMaster University|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/bruce-cockburn-donates-archives-to-mcmaster-university-1.1373187|accessdate=31 January 2016|publisher=CBC|date=2 May 2013}}{{cite news|last1=Rockingham|first1=Graham|title=Bruce Cockburn donates his archives to McMaster|url=http://www.thespec.com/whatson-story/2550392-bruce-cockburn-donates-his-archives-to-mcmaster/|accessdate=5 February 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=3 May 2013}} Ian Thomas{{cite news|last1=Rockingham|first1=Graham|title=The Thomas crowned affair: Local music superstar joins McMaster archives|url=http://www.thespec.com/whatson-story/4503524-the-thomas-crowned-affair-local-music-superstar-joins-mcmaster-archives/|accessdate=31 January 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=7 May 2014}} and Jackie Washington.{{cite news|last1=Rockingham|first1=Graham|title=Jackie Washington, 89: Hamilton jazz icon|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2009/06/30/jackie_washington_89_hamilton_jazz_icon.html|accessdate=5 February 2016|publisher=Toronto Star|date=3 June 2009}} A sample of Alice Munro's handwriting, whose letters appears in the fonds of publishers Macmillan Canada{{cite web|title=Macmillan Company of Canada fonds: Part IV. Sixth accrual (Accession No. 06-1993)|url=http://library.mcmaster.ca/archives/findaids/findaids/m/macmilla.06.htm|website=McMaster University Library|publisher=The William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections|accessdate=31 January 2016}} and McClelland & Stewart,{{cite web|title=McClelland & Stewart Ltd. Sixth Accrual (accession 02-2006)|url=http://library.mcmaster.ca/archives/findaids/findaids/m/mcstew.06.htm|website=McMaster University Library|publisher=The William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections|accessdate=31 January 2016}} appeared on a commemorative stamp released by Canada Post in 2015.{{cite news|last1=McNeil|first1=Mark|title=Munro stamp taps into McMaster's archives|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=24 July 2015}}

Personal papers and research collections of non-Canadian figures are equally well represented by holdings pertaining to Samuel Beckett,{{cite news|title=Mowatt Discussing Sale of Works|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdPnEvbEKgQC|accessdate=2 February 2016|agency=Ottawa Citizen|date=6 January 1972}} Vera Brittain, Thomas Carlyle and Sir George Catlin.{{cite book|last1=Colombo|first1=John Robert|title=Canadian literary landmarks|date=1984|publisher=Hounslow Press|location=Willowdale, Ont., Canada|isbn=9780888820730|page=124|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdPnEvbEKgQC|accessdate=5 February 2016}} The Division of Archives and Research Collection also holds the only surviving manuscript of Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange. The manuscript, along with several of Burgess' early works, was acquired by McMaster as a result of Ready's persistence and eventual friendship with the author. McMaster's copy is of particular interest because it includes the final chapter that was omitted by American publishers of the work. The manuscript contains an annotation in Burgess' hand that reads "Should we end here?", indicating that he questioned its inclusion.{{cite news|last1=Humphreys|first1=Adrian|title=A clockwork original: McMaster University bought manuscript of iconic novel for $250|url=http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/a-clockwork-orange-original-manuscript|accessdate=6 January 2016|publisher=National Post|date=11 November 2012}}

Other items held by the Archives include sheet music from the First World War,{{cite news|last1=McNeil|first1=Mark|title=Dusting off forgotten songs from the Great War|url=http://www.thespec.com/news-story/4956156-dusting-off-forgotten-songs-from-the-great-war/|accessdate=22 February 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=4 November 2015}} historical postcards,{{cite news|last1=Thompson|first1=Nicole|title=McMaster crowd-sources archival postcard project|url=http://www.thespec.com/news-story/5815795-mcmaster-crowd-sources-archival-postcard-project/|accessdate=22 February 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=27 August 2015}} and a figure skating collection consisting of books, programs, photographs and postcards.{{cite news|last1=Milton|first1=Steve|title=Figure skating collection put on ice: Former Mac archivist donates figure skating collection|url=http://www.thespec.com/sports-story/6245527-former-mac-archivist-donates-figure-skating-collection/|accessdate=22 February 2016|publisher=Hamilton Spectator|date=23 January 2016}}

File:Bertrand Russell photo.jpg

McMaster University is home to the Bertrand Russell Archives. Manuscripts, correspondence, newspaper clippings and other textual records, in addition to photographs and audio visual resources, make up the more than 140 meters of material held by the Archives.{{cite web|title=Bertrand Russell fonds|url=http://library.mcmaster.ca/archives/findaids/fonds/r/russell.htm|website=McMaster University Library|publisher=The William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections|accessdate=2 February 2016}} Russell's personal library and furniture from his home in Penrhyndeudraeth, Wales are also housed at McMaster.{{cite journal|last1=Spadoni|first1=Carl|last2=Harley|first2=David|title=Bertrand Russell's Library|journal=The Journal of Library History|date=1985|volume=20|issue=1|pages=25–45|jstor=25541563|publisher=University of Texas Press}} Russell's letters, totalling approximately 50,000,{{cite news|last1=Vowles|first1=Andrew|title=The Original Purchase of the Russell Archives|url=http://www.mcmaster.ca/russdocs/purchase.htm|accessdate=3 February 2016|publisher=The McMaster Courier|date=1994}} provide insight about his personal and political dealings addressing topics such as his love life, his thoughts on teaching and pacifism, and his experiences in prison.{{cite news|last1=McArthur|first1=Doug|title=Bertrand Russell|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6IEuAAAAIBAJ&pg=1124%2C7174167|accessdate=3 February 2016|publisher=Montreal Gazette|date=28 February 1970}} Joseph Conrad, T.S. Eliot, Nikita Khrushchev, Lady Constance Malleson, Ho Chi Minh, Jean-Paul Sartre, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Dorothy Maud Wrinch are among Russell's numerous correspondents.{{cite web|title=BRACERS' Correspondents|url=https://bracers.maclibraries.ca/php/correspondents.php|publisher=McMaster University Library|accessdate=3 February 2016}}

Russell's personal papers were purchased in 1968 for $520,000, with the first transfer of records consisting of 11 filing cabinets and 15 metal trunks.{{cite news|title=Blackwell Again Tackling Job of Assembling Russell Papers|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QjdQAAAAIBAJ&pg=926%2C3734554|accessdate=3 February 2016|publisher=Quebec Chronicle-Telegraph|date=29 November 1968}} At the time, it was the most money spent on the personal papers of one person, topping what was paid for the personal papers of Leon Trotsky and W. B. Yeats.{{cite news|title=Canada Gets Writings of Lord Russell|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fi8xAAAAIBAJ&pg=7032%2C3142161|accessdate=3 February 2016|publisher=Toledo Blade|date=31 March 1968}} That a Canadian university was able to secure Russell's papers has been linked to his disapproval of the United States' role in Vietnam.{{cite news|last1=Cowan|first1=Edward|title=Lord Russell's Papers to Canada|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sN8jAAAAIBAJ&pg=2413%2C2361913|accessdate=3 February 2016|publisher=Milwaukee Journal|date=5 October 1968}} There was, however, interest from American universities, most notably the University of Texas, which dried up after an erroneous report in Newsweek indicated that Russell intended to use the funds to support war efforts in North Vietnam. Selling his papers was, in actuality, a means to support the work of the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation.{{cite web|last1=Griffin|first1=Nicholas|title=How the Russell Papers Came to McMaster|url=http://www.lehman.cuny.edu/deanhum/philosophy/BRSQ/04aug/griffin.htm|publisher=The Bertrand Russell Society Quarterly|accessdate=3 February 2016}}

{{reflist|2}}

{{cite web|title=Archives & Research Collections homepage|url=https://library.mcmaster.ca/archives|publisher=McMaster University Library|accessdate=20 April 2020}}

{{cite web|title=Archives & Research Collections database|url=http://archives.mcmaster.ca/|publisher=McMaster University Library|accessdate=13 April 2016}}

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