Casey Miller and Kate Swift papers , 1919-2000

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Miller, Casey; Swift, Kate
Title
Casey Miller and Kate Swift papers
Dates
1919-2000 (inclusive)
Quantity
25.6 linear feet, (53 containers, 1 oversize folder)
Collection Number
Coll 291
Summary
Casey Geddes Miller and Kate Swift were writers focused on nonsexist-language. The collection consists of their personal papers as well as their joint professional work on gender, language, and communication include correspondence, business records, manuscripts, subject files, and photographs.
Repository
University of Oregon Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
UO Libraries--SCUA
1299 University of Oregon
Eugene OR
97403-1299
Telephone: 5413463068
spcarref@uoregon.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open to the public. Collection must be used in Special Collections and University Archives Reading Room. Collection or parts of collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives in advance of your visit to allow for transportation time. Collection includes sound recordings, moving images, and digital files to which access is restricted. Access to these materials is governed by repository policy and may require the production of listening or viewing copies. Researchers requiring access must notify Special Collections and University Archives in advance and pay fees for reproduction services as necessary.

Additional Reference Guides

See the Current Collection Guide for detailed description and requesting options.

Languages
English

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Casey Geddes Miller was born on February 26, 1919 in Toledo, Ohio. Miller was a feminist author, editor, activist and philanthropist. One of three girls, she attended St. Margaret's School until 1936. Miller graduated with a philosophy major from Smith College in 1940 and soon began working in the publishing field as an editorial assistant. Miller also served in the women's section of the U.S. Naval Reserve as a part of the Women Appointed (later Accepted) for Volunteer Emergency Service, often referred to by its acronym, WAVES. She became the curriculum editor of the publishing house of the Episcopal Church, Seabury Press. Miller worked as a freelance editor while living in Greenwich, Connecticut. By 1970, she formed an editorial partnership with Kate Swift and began what would become both a successful business, and the inspiration for a proliferation of published work together.

Kate Swift was born December 9, 1923 in Yonkers, New York. Swift was a feminist editor, author, linguist, and activist known for her influence on the critical modification of language to recognize and include women. She studied at Connecticut College and University of North Carolina. Swift worked for several years as an editorial assistant and a writer for various organizations. Swift began her influential work with Casey Miller in 1970 when they formed a freelance editorial partnership. They write, "We have an editorial partnership known as Miller/Swift, and it was out of our work as freelance editors that we became interested on the effect of language on women" (Words and Women). The pursuit of this interest soon became the focus of both Swift's and Miller's careers.

As they edited vast numbers of articles, textbooks, and manuscripts, Miller and Swift identified a theme in much of the work they read: sexist language and stereotypes. When publishing their first article on this subject (in the first issue of Ms. magazine) they realized the unlimited potential of this unexplored field of linguistics. They both began to focus their scholarly work on the underlying sexism inherent in published work and in turn challenged the use of vocabulary that reinforced misogynist messages. Publishing articles in contemporary venues such as New York Magazine and The Washington Post, Swift and Miller were overwhelmed with demand to produce their first book, Words and Women. Collaborating with countless women and organizations, they continued on their overlapping projects to create shifts in the English language to include and prioritize the presence of and concerns of women, producing a great deal of original research that eventually contributed to their groundbreaking 1980 work, The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing.

As feminists in theory and practice, Miller and Swift devoted themselves to women's freedom through language. Miller and Swift together contributed to the growing community of women writers reviewing one another's work and creating academic and social space for feminist voices to be heard and legitimated. Miller struggled with her health for the last years of her life. She died of complications related to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) on January 5th, 1997. Kate Swift died on May 7, 2011 of cancer.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection includes the individual personal papers of Casey Miller and Kate Swift, and their joint papers and work. There was an attempt to separate materials, such as correspondence to either Miller or Swift, but it should be noted that there is significant crossover in this area. Oftentimes correspondence was left where Miller and/or Swift had filed it.

Series I, Casey Miller Papers, covers Miller's life, family history, education career, and her writing. Subseries include correspondence, personal and family records, health records, education, naval career, writing career, personal writings, journals, artwork, and professional work with D. Victoria Schrager. The correspondence series is arranged alphabetically by sender for materials processed initially and later additions are arranged by date. The writing and editing work found here is Miller's own work prior to working with Kate Swift.

Series II, Kate Swift Papers, documents Swift's life, family history, and professional career and writing before she entered into a writing partnership with Casey Miller. Subseries include correspondence, personal and family records, political work, professional work, and personal writings, journals, and scrapbooks.

Series III, Joint Professional Work, includes joint professional correspondence, financial records and editing work, language and gender subject files, press and news articles, and information regarding the Miller/Swift publishing company. The correspondence is organized mostly by name and subject with a few folders just bearing the title "correspondence." Also included in this series is a scrapbook documenting Miller/Swift's publishing adventures.

Series IV, Joint Literary Works, is comprised of drafts, proofs, reviewed and/or published copies of Miller and Swifts co-written published and unpublished works. Publisher and reviewer correspondence is included here as well as documentation of references used in their writings and a handmade scrapbook documenting the writing and publishing of The Handbook for Non-Sexist Writing.

Series V, Joint Speeches and Conferences, includes draft and final copies of speeches given by Miller and Swift, correspondence, and conference programs and pamphlets.

This collection also includes smaller series covering Miller/Swift's joint personal and political papers, both of which include correspondence, and personal photographs and audio recordings.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Communication criticism
  • Sexism in language
  • Women authors, American--20th century
  • Women authors, American--20th century--Correspondence

Form or Genre Terms

  • Audiocassettes
  • Correspondence
  • Manuscripts for publication
  • Photographs