Leonard Dalton Abbott Papers

Dates

Majority of material found within 1933-1953

Scope and Content Note

The Leonard Dalton Abbott papers span the period from 1933 to 1953. The collection mainly consists of correspondence. Abbott kept copies of letters he sent, letters from Alexander Harvey, and correspondence between himself and Anna Strunsky Walling. The Abbott papers also include socialist publications, notes and essays written by Abbott among other miscellaneous items. The collection is small, approximately .3 cubic feet.

The collection contains four files of correspondence between Anna Strunsky Walling and Leonard Abbott from 1933 to 1951. Walling was born in 1879 in Russia and emigrated to the United States. She was a writer and involved in radical activities. Although both Walling and Abbott were involved in radical causes, the letters reflect personal matters more than political or radical topics. The correspondence between Anna Strunsky Walling and Abbott reveal more about Walling than Leonard Abbott. Walling writes about her strong feelings for Abbott. She often addresses Abbott as "Darling" or "Dearest," and he in tum, ends his letters with "Lovingly, Leonard." Walling even wrote to Abbott when she was abroad and several times sent him rose petals. Four of these petals are encapsulated and are included in the collection. This correspondence also gives us a glimpse into the later years of his life. Abbott also reflects back on his life and his philosophy in his letters.

Alexander Harvey was Abbott's long time friend and colleague. Harvey and Abbott worked under Dr. Wheeler as associate editors for Current Opinion. This collection contains Harvey's letters addressed to Abbott from 1936 until 1949. There are no letters written by Leonard Abbott to Alexander Harvey in this collection. Harvey was born in 1868 and died in 1949. He was a writer who published novels and short stories. h1 his letters, Harvey mainly talks about his literary career as well as his personal life. Apparently, Harvey, Abbott and a gentleman named George Sylvester Viereck met on a regular basis. (Viereck's father, Abbott wrote, was the illegitimate son of German Emperor William I.) Harvey often referred back to those meetings and set up the next meeting's date and time.

This collection also contains copies of letters Abbott sent from 1941 to 1952. He wrote to various people including Alexis Fenn and Anna Schwartz from the Modern School, and his cousin Len to name just a few. In his letters, Abbott talks about his personal life, philosophy on religion, and his opinion of people. In his letters, Abbott frequently mentions his financial troubles. His financial situation does not improve after World War II. The letters also document Abbott's thoughts about various subjects including his involvement in the radical movement, the Ferrer Association, and the Modem School. The letters are important because they disclose the personal thoughts of a radical leader in his later life. Towards the later years of his life, Abbott increasingly became disillusioned with himself and the radical movement - partly because the Ferrer Center and the Modern School did not succeed. The majority of the letters were photocopied for preservation.

The Leonard Abbott Papers also include writings by Abbott. There are two essays written by Abbott entitled, "Reflections on the 'Golden Period' of American Socialism" (1949) and "Robert G. Ingersoll's Life and Philosophy" (1951). The collection also includes notes, mostly on books, that Abbott took. There are several issues of radical publications in the collection as well, including the Truth Seeker, The Arbitrator, and The Atheist. Personal miscellany in the collection include a tiny book of poems by J. William Lloyd entitled California Vespers, a newspaper article on Anna Strunsky Walling, a photograph, Abbott's mass card, and obituary.

Extent

0.3 Cubic Feet

Physical Location

No restrictions

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

<emph render="bold">Biographical Sketch</emph>

Leonard Dalton Abbott was born in Liverpool, England on May 20, 1878 to Lewis Lowe and Grace (Van Dusen) Abbott. Of eight sons, Leonard was the only one to have a radical career. While in England, he attended the Uppingham School. By 1895, when Abbott was seventeen, he was attending Socialist meetings. Two years later, in 1897 his family settled in the United States where Abbott refused to go to college, choosing to focus on radical causes. In the United States, Abbott became an important figure in the anarchist and socialist movements.

He was a member of the executive committee of the Socialist Party in 1900 and helped found the Inter-Collegiate Socialist Society (later the League of Industrial Democracy) in 1905. Abbott also served on the original board of directors of the Rand School of Social Science in 1906. In 1910, Leonard D. Abbott was elected President on the Thomas Paine National Historical Association and held the same position in the Free Speech League from 1913 to 1914. He was a member of the American Civil Liberties Union, the War Resisters League and Freethinkers of America.

In 1903, Abbott met Emma Goldman and was increasingly influenced by her and anarchism; although he did turn more toward anarchism, Abbott did not abandon his socialist ideas. On October 13, 1909, the Spanish government executed anarchist Francisco Ferrer. The execution of Ferrer ignited an international outcry and intensified the radical movement in the United States. The Ferrer Association was founded in 1910 by Abbott and other anarchists including Goldman. Abbott was an impo1tant figure in the Ferrer Association, serving as its first president. One of the goals of the Ferrer Association was to establish Modern Schools throughout the nation to promote "libertarian education," and in 1911, the first Modern School in New York opened. Although Abbott was the first president of the Ferrer Association, he did not send his children to the Modern School.

Abbott also had a literary career. He served on the editorial board of The Comrade from 1901 to 1905 and as an associate editor for Literary Digest. From 1905 to 1925, he was an associate editor of Current Literature (later Current Opinion). In 1929, Abbott was appointed editor of the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences where he served until 1934. In addition, he was part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Federal Writers Project in Washington, D.C. from 1935 to 1939. After serving in Washington, D.C., Abbott returned to New York jobless. Plagued with financial difficulties, he applied for and received a loan from the League of Mutual Aid. However, relief did not come until Henry Schnittkind asked Abbott for help with the Masterworks series in 1942. Abbott worked with the Doubleday Masterworks series until 1951.

On April 9, 1915, Abbott married Rose Yuster. Abbott had first met Yuster at the Ferrer Center and in May of 1914 the couple had their first child, Voltairine. Sadly, Voltairine died in infancy the same month that she was born. Soon after Rose and Leonard married, they had their second child - William Morris. Five years later, Ellen Key was born. Abbott and Yuster lived in Westfield, New Jersey until 1925 when they were forced to sell their cottage because of financial difficulties. In 1920, Rose Yuster was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and Abbott withdrew from all radical activities to care for her. Ten years after her diagnosis on December 21, 1930, Rose Yuster passed away.

During the later years of his life, Abbott became disillusioned with the anarchist movement and his primary commitment once again shifted back to socialism, although he never completely abandoned his anarchists ideas. In 1952, Abbott was diagnosed with cancer and on March 19, 1953, at the age of 74, Leonard Dalton Abbott passed away. He was residing at 49 Grove Street, New York at the time of his death. Leonard D. Abbott was an influential individual in the anarchist and socialist movements in New York City during the early twentieth century. He dedicated his entire life to the radical cause and became a prominent figure within the radical movement.

Sources:

Avrich, Paul. The Modern School Movement. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980.

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title: Inventory to the Leonard Dalton Abbott Papers MC 1495
Status: Edited Full Draft
Author: Jeong Uk Grace Ko
Date: April 1998
Language of description note: Finding aid is written in English.
Sponsor: Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University received an operating support grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State.