Louise Bradley, Camp Chequesset, Cape Cod
Louise Bradley (1908-1979) was the sister of Morton C. Bradley, Jr. the inspiration for this blog. As a young girl, she attended Camp Chequesset on Cape Cod in Massachusetts during the summers where she met a fellow camper, three years younger than herself, named Elizabeth Bishop. These two struck up a friendship that lasted for many years. Both dreamed of becoming writers, and in fact, Bishop fulfilled her dream and became a well known poet. Her papers are archived at Vassar College, her alma mater, and a short biography of her can be found at the Vassar College Library website. http://projects.vassar.edu/bishop/
We were delighted to find that Louise saved many of the letters (over 60) that Elizabeth, or Bishie as she called herself, wrote to her starting in 1925. Most of the letters are from the years 1925 through 1934, but there are two from 1950, so it is apparent that the two friends kept up at least a sporadic correspondence for 25 years or more. Included with the letters are several poems written by Bishop. Scholars interested in Elizabeth Bishop may contact us about obtaining access to these early letters and poems.
