Sophus Keith Winther

Exhibit at the Danish American Archive and LibraryPresented byThe Danish American Archive and Library and The Rural Lit RALLY InitiativeSophus Keith WintherSophus Keith Winther was born in Denmark in 1893; his family moved to the United States in 1895, living first in Massachusetts, then moving to Nebraska, and finally settling in Oregon in 1912. The Winthers became naturalized citizens in 1900. His education included a B.A. in English and an M.A. at the University of Oregon, and he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Washington in 1925. Winther married Mabel Eline Peterson that same year.After becoming an instructor at the University of Washington, he would remain there for 41 years. Although he taught courses in Victorian literature, he was interested in and urged the teaching of contemporary literature. This interest led him to the works of Eugene ONeill; after Winther was granted an interview with ONeill, the two men became lifelong friends.Winther was a prolific writer, producing the novels Take All to Nebraska (1936), Mortgage Your Heart (1937), and This Passion Never Dies (1939), which form a trilogy depicting the rural life of a Danish family in Nebraska experiencing fluctuating grain prices that ultimately drive them into bankruptcy, a common occurrence during the time. A fourth book in the trilogy was never published; the manuscript is housed in a collection of Winthers works held by The Danish American Archive and Library.Among his other works are Beyond the Garden Gate and The Realistic War Novel. His one non-fiction work is Eugene ONeill: A Critical Study (New York: Random House, 1934).In 1980, Winther received The Western Literature Associations Distinguished Achievement Award.Terminally ill with cancer, Sophus Keith Winther ended his own life on May 10, 1983, in Seattle, Washington.Interesting facts:

Winther adopted the middle name of Keith in order to have an Americanized name in hopes of not being teased so much in school. It did not have the desired effect.Dr. Winther was interviewed by the Canwell Committee as part of the Washington State Joint Legislative Fact-Finding Committee on Un-American Activities, Second Report: Un-American Activities in Washington State (Olympia, 1948). He was the only professor to provide names to the committee out of fear that he would lose his job if he did not testify against his colleagues. For more information, and to read his testimony, visit: http://www.washington.edu/uwired/outreach/cspn/Website/Classroom%20Materials/Curriculum%20Packets/Cold%20War%20&%20Red%20Scare/VII.html

Brief Biography of Sophus Keith Winther

Exhibit at the Danish American Archive and Library, 1738 Washington St, Blair, NE, US, 68008

List of some of the exhibit items.

L.W.F.H.P.D. stands for Love, Wild Flowers, Horses, the Prairie, and Death. The inside cover makes a reference that the final title of the novel will be Nobody Home.

Winthers working titles for the manuscript.

Correspondences between Winther and his childhood sweetheart, Eva Fowler. Dated December 1, 1911 and October 1, 1914.

Winther family. Father Anton, Mother Sine. Brother Rasmus, standing, and Soren, seated. Sophus is seated on the table.

Receipt for royalty payments for Mortgage Your Heart and Take All to Nebraska, the first two books in the Grimsen Trilogy.

First book in the Grimsen Trilogy, Take All to Nebraska.

Agreement with MacMillan to publish the Danish version of Take All to Nebraska.

Danish edition of Take All to Nebraska.

Manuscripts of the unpublished novel, the Horse Pasture and Beyond, with the alternate title L.W.F.H.P.D.

Two versions of The Horse Pasture manuscripts and rejection letters.

First rejection letter for The Horse Pasture manuscripts.

Second rejection letter for The Horse Pasture Revisited.

Winther s address to Dana College.

Quote from Winthers address to Dana College.

Winther (right), with poet Ted Kooser.