Papers of Jean Lunn, 1933-2015 (inclusive), 1955-2010 (bulk)

The collection consists primarily of Lunn's personal and professional correspondence, with much of the latter focused on Lunn's singing career. Other materials include programs for her concerts; poetry and prose by Lunn (as well as some poetry by others); coursework ranging from elementary school through classes taken at Cape Cod Community College in the 1980s; diaries and dream journals; and an interview with poet Carole Oles. Little or no material related to Lunn's work at Cape Cod Synagogue or with Sandscript is included.

The bulk of the folder headings were created by Lunn or by Carl Scovel, who arranged for the collection to come to the Schlesinger Library and, with input from Lunn, sorted and organized the material. The archivist maintained the existing arrangement as much as possible. Folder titles created by the archivist appear in square brackets.

Series I, BIOGRAPHICAL AND PERSONAL, 1943-2015 (#1.1-10.12), includes appointment books listing Lunn's activities in the 1950s (and also reminders to herself to do various things such as "wash hair!" or get her mother a birthday present); diaries; dream journals she kept from the 1980s until near the end of her life; and schoolwork, ranging from book reports and other essays Lunn wrote in grade school to editing classes she took in the 1980s. Of particular note are Lunn's 1948 diary, which vividly details her interest in music and also the typical interests and pursuits of a 1940s teenage girl; a letter Lunn's parents received regarding Lunn's academic standing at Radcliffe suffering due to her neglecting her studies due to her "generous participation in concerts"; and medical evaluations of Lunn after her second stroke. Also included are drafts of Lunn's will and obituary. The series also includes a number of what Carl Scovel describes as "small workbooks with daily tasks to be done" from the 1940s and 1950s. The lists and notations in these notebooks (some of which apparently relate to trips to Europe Lunn made in 1951 and 1954) are not easily decipherable. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Series II, CORRESPONDENCE, 1945-2015 (#10.13-30.9), contains Lunn's extensive correspondence with family and friends, ranging from her days as a student at Shady Hill School to her final years at the Cape Regency Rehabilitation & Health Care Center. The bulk of the series consists of letters Lunn received. Of particular note for the light they shed on 1950s societal norms and gender roles are letters from Lunn's brother Gordon and from her friend Eliza Lloyd, with Gordon commenting on the ease with which a young woman could acquire a bad reputation and Lloyd giving her view of the responsibilities of young men and women in romantic relationships. Lunn's correspondence with Gordon conveys their sometimes tense relationship and their differing approaches to life. In her final years, Lunn did not trust Gordon to carry out her wishes regarding her home and possessions and felt he was motivated by feelings of inferiority towards her, while Gordon felt that Lunn often frustrated his attempts to make improvements on her house, which was in poor condition.

Other correspondents include Lunn's mother, her nephew John, her niece Valerie, and her sister-in-law Twyla. Of note is Lunn's "sundry" correspondence, which includes letters in which she details her feelings of depression and her crisis of identity after leaving the King's Chapel Choir; her relationship with alcohol; and her view that "...nothing is worth losing your joie de vivre for, and that if you can't be yourself you can't do anything else." The series also includes Lunn's correspondence with Carl Scovel, who served as Lunn's health care proxy and power of attorney for a few years after her second stroke, and continued to visit her until her death. This correspondence addresses Lunn's desire to return home and her feeling that Scovel did not sufficiently understand this desire; Scovel's efforts to manage Lunn's affairs; and tasks Lunn wanted him to perform for her. After the second stroke, Lunn wrote her letters with her left hand and her handwriting deteriorated over the years, making her letters and drafts (she sometimes made multiple copies of her letters and notes) increasingly difficult to decipher.

Lunn sorted her correspondence into several categories and the archivist has preserved this arrangement. Thus, the series is arranged with chronologically sorted correspondence appearing first, followed by an alphabetical arrangement of what Scovel or Lunn deemed "general" correspondence, and finally by the "sundry" correspondence. Some overlap exists between these groups. Professional correspondence (designated as such by Lunn) appears in Series III and some overlap also exists between the correspondents in the two series.

Series III, PROFESSIONAL, 1950-2008 (#30.10-39.8, FD.1), includes Lunn's correspondence with fellow musicians, with music companies for whom she did translating work, and with various concert venues including Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the Detroit Institute of Art, and the Currier Gallery of Art in Manchester, New Hampshire; and programs and reviews for her concerts. Some folders contain a mix of professional and personal matters. Of note is her correspondence with John Davison. In many of his early letters, Davison describes his issues with women in general and with Lunn in particular, including his not always flattering views of her personality and singing voice. Their later correspondence focuses more on their respective musical endeavors, with Davison also expressing his admiration for Lunn. Lunn's letters to Davison are included in the collections of his papers at the Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections: see the Papers of John Davison (Coll.839) and the John Davison Papers: Additions, 1939-1999 (Coll.839.1.) Lunn also frequently corresponded with composers whose work she was performing or hoped to perform, inviting them to her concerts, commenting on their work, and asking for guidance on how best to interpret it. The series includes copies of Lunn's outgoing letters as well as ones she received.

The series also includes the transcript of an interview Lunn conducted with poet Carol Oles; drafts of her poem cycle "Linette" (based on a character in Thomas Mallory's Le Morte d'Arthur); other unpublished poems and prose writings (some apparently done for writing classes); and Lunn's notes from meetings of the Cape Cod Writers' Conference. Only one of Lunn's published poems is included. The series is arranged with correspondence appearing first, followed by an alphabetical arrangement of the remaining material.