Collections : [Rare Book & Manuscript Library]

This archive consists of manuscripts, business files, production materials, and correspondence from 1966 -2012. The journal Hanging Loose was first published in 1966 was preceded by the journal Things, begun by two Columbia College students Emmet Jarrett and Ron Schreiber, Hanging Loose Press founders. The most recent issue #101 was published in 2013. The press has also published books, mostly poetry. The selection process is collective and inclusive. Hanging Loose publishes high school students and has dedicated issues to literature written by prison inmates. HL published Hettie Jones, long-time Columbia-affiliated poet Paul Violi, Jack Agueros, Sherman Alexie, and Charles North, as well as many of the collective members. Denise Levertov is a former board member.

The collection contains correspondence with the authors, including contracts signed with authors as well as negotiations with the authors over various aspects of publishing their works; financial records documenting many aspects of the operation of Harper & Brothers, including royalties paid to authors, records of stock offerings and company reorganizations, and general ledgers which contain daily notes on all aspects of the operation of the business; book catalogues and trade lists; research materials collected by Eugene Exman for his history of Harper & Brothers; visual materials, from drawings and photographs of Harper's authors to colophon designs and an oil painting of the original Harper's building.