Papers of Ernest Dickinson (fl 1900-1973), Nottingham poet

The collection comprises a series of war poems by Ernest Dickinson. They are gathered in a booklet of 14 pages, which is stapled, and features an original watercolour of the Sea of Galilee and surrounding countryside on its cover. The watercolour is by Ernest Dickinson; a note inside the cover describes the location. There are ten poems in the book: 'Firing Squad', 'No Compromise', 'No Olive Branch', 'Damascus Interlude', 'Ass Through Jerusalem', 'Baptised in Jordan', 'Fear', 'Still in the Dark', and 'Fragrance After Fighting'. An accompanying letter, dated 4 December 1973, to the Nottingham poet Connie Ford is also present.

Little is known about Ernest Dickinson. He was born at the turn of the twentieth century and served with the British Army in the First World War. He saw action in the Middle East. He privately published a number of collections of his poetry in the 1960s and was an active member of the Nottingham Poetry Society in the 1960s and 1970s. Trade directories for Nottingham record that Dickinson was an accountant until at least 1950. He appears to have lived in Devonshire Crescent, The Park, Nottingham from the late 1920s until at least 1973.

Privately published collections of his work include: 'Donkey brays on Parnassus' (Nottingham, 1961), 'Montmartre: Mount of Temptation' (Nottingham, 1963); 'Dickolympians' (Nottingham, 1966); and 'A Joseph Coat' (Nottingham, 1968).

No archival arrangement has been necessary.

Accessible to all registered readers.

This description is the only finding aid available for the collection. Copyright in the description belongs to The University of Nottingham.

Good

Reprographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on access status and 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Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult.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 collection was given to the University of Nottingham's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections in August 2002.

Papers of Connie Ford, poet (Ref: CF)