Last week Deb Burling, the widow of Bill Burling, a professor of English at Missouri State University, donated dozens of book about London theatre and literature of the late 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries to the MSU Libraries. 

Burling died in March 2009 at the age of 60 from melanoma cancer, which he had battled for years. According to his daughter, quoted in a March 12, 2009 article in The Standard, “Bill was an avid gardener, astronomer, chef, wine taster, crossword-puzzler, interior decorator, brick mason, musician, author, world traveler, theatregoer and songwriter.”

The donated collection contains works by noted English authors and playwrights, such as Henry Fielding, John Dryden, Colley Cibber, Tobias Smollett, and Alfred, Lord Tennyson, as well as works from several U.S. authors, such as Walt Whitman and Ralph Waldo Emerson. 

The collection also contains some nice original copies of early British periodicals, such as The Rambler, The Tatler, and The Spectator. 

The collection will be housed in the Special Collections and Archives area on the Third Level of Duane G. Meyer Library. We thank Mrs. Burling for this generous gift.