Papers of Douglas Garman (1903-1969), communist, writer and educationalist

The archive reflects Garman's political, literary and educational interests from the 1930s until his death. It includes books, notebooks, miscellaneous notes, articles, pamphlets, letters and newscuttings. Among his papers notes and ephemera concerning the South Wales Hunger March of 1936, which he reported on behalf of the Daily Worker. His poems survive in manuscript and typescript, including copies of those published in 'The Jaded Hero' (1927). Some posthumous papers are included, evidence of efforts made after his death to collect material for a biography.

Correspondence, literary manuscripts

The material is arranged in nine series, partly by subject matter and partly by type of record.

Photocopies and photographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on the condition of the documents.

Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Keeper of Manuscripts and Special Collections (email mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk). The Department will try to assist in identifying copyright owners but the responsibility for copyright clearance ultimately rests with the reader.

Some material is restricted; other papers are accessible to all registered readers.

Garman's papers were sorted and arranged after his death by his widow. The papers were transferred to the University between 1988 and 1991.

Douglas Garman came from Wednesbury, Staffordshire, and was educated at Caius College, Cambridge. He spent the 1920s between London and Paris, and was in Leningrad in 1926. During this period he began to assist in editing The Calendar of Modern Letters, and to contribute articles to it. From 1930-1940 he worked for the publishers Lawrence and Wishart, including a period as editor of The Modern Quarterly. He had strong left-wing sympathies, and from 1940 to 1950 held the position of head of the Communist Party's education programme. His opinions came to be in disagreement with the Communist Party, and he retired to a farm in Dorset, where he continued to write and translate.