Guide to the Leonard Gilley Papers, 1964-1974, undated

Leonard Gilley was born on February 28, 1929 in Ellsworth, Maine. He grew up in Southwest Harbor. In 1951 he was graduated from Bowdoin cum laude with a degree in government. He received a Masters degree in Creative Writing from Johns Hopkins in 1961 and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Denver in 1966. In 1960 he married Daima Turner, also an author.

Gilley began his teaching career at John Hopkins University in 1960, where he taught for a year while in school. From 1961-1962 he taught at Washington College and then from 1962-1967 he taught at the University of Denver. Gilley then taught at Bloomsburg State College for one year beforing moving back to Maine and becoming a professor at the University of Maine Farmington (Farmington State College) in 1968.

Gilley had his poetry published in a variety of newspapers, magazines, and other publications, including the New York Times, Kansas City Times, Sunday Denver Post, Southwest Review, New Hampshire Profiles, Maine Digest, and Maine Sunday Telegraph. He also had essays published in Midwest Quarterly and Prairie Schooner. In addition, Gilley published several collections of poetry, including "Hippopotamus and Flowers" (1969) and "Lawyer Nead and Other Poems" (1965).

This collection includes correspondence from 1967-1974, primary letters and poetry sent to Professor Herbert Brown, Gilley's English Professor while at Bowdoin but also letters to and from publishers concerning Gilley's work; miscellaneous typed and annotated original poems, prose, poetry manuscripts, including "Hippopotamus & Flowers" and "The Learned Dr. K-----"; and photographs and clippings, including a headshot of Gilley from 1964 and a photograph of him 30 years into his teaching career.