Norbert Krapf papers
Biographical / Historical note
Norbert Krapf was born on November 14, 1943, to Clarence and Dorothy (Schmitt) Krapf in the German community of Jasper, Indiana. After attending high school in Jasper, Krapf received his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from St. Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana, in 1965. At the University of Notre Dame, he obtained his M.A. in English (1966) and Ph.D. in English and American Literature, with a concentration in American Poetry (1971). Krapf married Katherine (Trahan) Krapf, a middle and high school teacher, on June 12, 1970, and later adopted two children, Elizabeth and Daniel, from Bogotá, Columbia.
From 1970 through 2004, Krapf taught English at Long Island University’s C.W. Post Campus, where he was honored as emeritus Professor of English. While there, he was named Poet Laureate from 2003 through 2007 and directed the C.W. Post Poetry Center for eighteen years. Krapf was a Senior Fulbright Professor of American Poetry at Germany’s University of Freiberg and the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and served as a U.S. Exchange Teacher at West Oxon Technical College, England. He has received many honors, including the Lucille Medwick Memorial Award from the Poetry Society of America for his poem "Fire and Ice," an honorary doctorate of letters from St. Joseph's College, the David Newton Award for Excellence in Teaching from Long Island University, and a Trustees Award for Scholarly Achievement from Long Island University. In 2002, Krapf was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. After residing in New York for 34 years, he moved back to Indiana in 2004 to continue his writing.
In addition to his 23 published books of poetry and prose, Krapf has collaborated with singer-songwriters Kriss Luckett, Greg Ziesemer, Tom Roznowski, and Tim Grimm, as well as with musicians Gordon Bonham and Jennie DeVoe. In 2007, he released the CD Imagine – Indiana in Music and Poetry (Acme Records) with jazz pianist and composer Monika Herzig. After a public competition, Krapf’s poem "Back Home" was one of the poems selected by the English artist Martin Donlin for a stained-glass panel installed at the Indianapolis International Airport. In 2008, Krapf was appointed Poet Laureate of Indiana for a two-year term for which he coordinates a series at The American Cabaret Theatre in Indianapolis called Together Again: Music & Poetry. He currently resides in Indianapolis.
Scope and Contents
The Norbert Krapf Papers consists of 50 boxes and 1 oversize pamphlet of Krapf’s personal papers, including 24 boxes of correspondence; 23 boxes and one oversize pamphlet of manuscript and printed material by Krapf; one box of material from Krapf’s public appearances; and one box of essays, newspaper articles, and Krapf’s curriculum vitae. Items of particular interest to researchers include manuscripts, typescripts, and printed ephemera from Krapf’s poetry collections, including Finding the Grain: Pioneer Journals, Franconian Folktales, Ancestral Poems (1976), Under Open Sky: Poets on William Cullen Bryant (1986), Beneath the Cherry Sapling: Legends from Franconia (1988), Somewhere in Southern Indiana: Poems of Midwestern Origins (1993) Blue-Eyed Grass (1997), Bittersweet Along the Expressway (2000), and The Country I Come From (2002); and correspondence from well-known writers and artists, including Robert Bly, Martin Booth, Joseph Bruchac II, Siv Cedering, Diana Chang, Vince Clemente, John DePol, Rita Dove, Louise Erdrich, Carolyn Forché, Donald Hall, Michael Hamburger, Seamus Heaney, William Heyen, David Ignatow, Aaron Kramer, Adrian Louis, Robert Morgan, Lisel Mueller, John F. Nims, Tillie Olsen, Linda Pastan, Robert Pinsky, William Stafford, Lucien Stryk, Kurt Vonnegut, Robert Penn Warren, and Richard Wilbur.
Creator
- Krapf, Norbert, 1943- (Person)
Dates
- Creation: 1974-1999
Language of Materials
English
Extent
50 box(es) (50 boxes and 1 oversized pamphlet)
Access
The Norbert Krapf Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.
Use
In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.
Preferred Citation
[Item title, item date], Norbert Krapf Papers, D.291, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Subject
- Krapf, Norbert, 1943- (Person)
- Title
- Norbert Krapf papers
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Rare Books and Special Collections staff
- Date
- undated
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Library Details
Part of the Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation Library
