The 262 letters and 1 poem included in this collection were written by Sinclair Lewis to Marcella Powers between 1939 and 1947. Lewis met Powers in August 1939 when they were both acting in Eugene O’Neill’s play Ah Wilderness! at the Provincetown Theater in Cape Cod. Lewis and Powers began a relationship despite the 36 year age difference between them.

In these letters, Lewis discusses a wide variety of topics - his career, his writing, and his feelings for Powers. During the time of their relationship, Lewis traveled quite a bit throughout the United States giving lectures. He also spent time working in Los Angeles in the motion picture industry and lived in Excelsior and Duluth in Minnesota where he spent much time writing. Lewis also wrote about his social life, including the people that he met, the games of chess that he played, and the books that he read. Many of the letters are very long while others are quite short, with some including cartoons drawn by Lewis.

The letters end in September 1947, shortly after Powers marriage to Michael Amrine. Lewis tells Powers that she will no longer receive an allowance from him, but that if she were ever in need of help that he would be there for her. When Lewis passed away in 1951, Powers was listed in his will.

This collection contains records from the Department of Music at St. Cloud State University, totaling 12 boxes. The records date from 1923-2009, with the vast majority of the items pertaining to faculty meeting minutes as well as student and faculty musical performances. Miscellaneous department records comprise a significant portion of this collection and range in content from department handbooks and newsletters to various scrapbooks.

The collection is arranged into three series, which are as follows:

Series 1: Faculty Meetings and Memorandum, 1960-1998

This series consists of department meeting minutes along with the notes and documents pertaining to each meeting. The subject matter of the materials is primarily related to: curriculum and program developments/requirements for undergraduate and graduate students, enrollment and budgetary figures/estimates, the organization of workshops and camps, sabbatical leaves and faculty changes, and special committee and council proposals, activities, evaluations, and requests. Materials are organized chronologically by date of meeting.

Series 2: Recitals and Performances, 1924-2009

This series contains promotional materials and programs for performances held at SCSU or by SCSU faculty and students. The series is arranged chronologically according to type of performance. All guest and visitor performances hosted by the music department are organized by date and arranged separately from all SCSU faculty, music group, and student performances. The programs most frequently pertain to: student and faculty recitals, Christmas concerts, fine arts and jazz festivals, ensemble performances and competitions, concert series and tours, division conferences, guest concerts and recitals, and joint SCSU/guest performances. Beginning in 1995, email notifications were used to promote performances and are therefore included in this series.

Series 3: Miscellaneous, 1936-2009

This series is organized first by subject matter and subsequently by date. The majority of the records pertain to departmental planning, program and curriculum development, and the promotion of educational opportunities such as scholarships, graduate assistantships, workshops, and camps. The series includes various forms of publications, including: student handbooks, brochures, calendars, scrapbooks, songbooks, newsletters, and syllabi. There are a total of three scrapbooks as well as additional materials highlighting the activities of particular music groups. Records date from 1936-2009 but major extent are from 1970s and 1980s.