Main entry
Duncan, Norman
Scope and contents
The Norman Duncan Papers are contained in two boxes and consist of correspondence with agents and publishers; manuscripts and typescripts (both published and unpublished); and scrapbooks, notebooks and photographs. Correspondence includes contracts with publishers; these are scattered throughout the fonds but are concentrated in file 1.5. Correspondents include Thomas Allen, as well as several American publishers.
BRS Assigned Accession Number
000001397
Birth or creation dates
1871
Death or termination dates
1916
Inclusive dates of creator
1871-1916
Start date of records
1900
Date of creation of records
ca. [1900-1979]
Extent of descriptive unit
2 boxes
Physical description
Includes textual records and other materials.
Linear metric measurement
less than 2 m approx.
Type of publishing represented
children's books; geography, travel, regional studies -- travel; literature -- fiction
Title note
Title has been assigned after review of archival finding aids.
Telephone number - main
(709) 737-4349
Telephone number - fax
(709) 737-3118
Street address
Memorial University of Newfoundland.; Queen Elizabeth II Library
City and province
St. John's, Newfoundland
Postal code and email
A1B 3Y1
Biographical sketch
Norman Duncan was born in Brantford, Ontario, in 1871. He attended the University of Toronto, then became a reporter and eventually worked for the NEW YORK EVENING POST. In 1900, he became recognized for a series of articles on New York's Syrian Quarter, entitled "The Soul of a City." He subsequently worked as a correspondent for several prestigious American magazines for which he travelled throughout the world. His visits to Newfoundland formed the basis for many of his articles, short stories, and novels. Duncan's publications include THE ADVENTURES OF BILLY TOPSAIL (New York and Toronto: Fleming H. Revell Co., 1906), CRUISE OF THE SHINING LIGHT (Toronto: Henry Frowde, 1907), and BILLY TOPSAIL, MD (Toronto: Thomas Allen, 1916). Although he worked and lived mostly in the United States, Duncan never became an American citizen; he was honoured posthumously by the Canadian Literature Club in Toronto as the "Dickens of Canada." Norman Duncan died at the age of 45, in 1916.
Name of repository
Centre for Newfoundland Studies Archives.
Fonda identification number
Coll-067
Finding aids
A file list is available. A copy has been obtained by CPRD.
