Previous image preload Next image preload
Back to catalog
Lot 460
image_0 image_1 image_2 image_3 image_4 image_5
Margaret Mitchell TLS Re: Press on Gone With The Wind, "I beg of you...if anyone should ask...where my characters lived...they lived only in my mind"
Margaret Mitchell TLS Re: Press on Gone With The Wind, "I beg of you...if anyone should ask...where my characters lived...they lived only in my mind"
image_0 image_1 image_2 image_3 image_4 image_5
Description:

Margaret Mitchell
Atlanta, GA, February 23, 1939
Margaret Mitchell TLS Re: Press on Gone With The Wind, "I beg of you...if anyone should ask...where my characters lived...they lived only in my mind"
TLS

Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949). Typed Letter Signed, "Margaret Mitchell Marsh", 3pp, on three sheets of her personal stationery measuring 7" x 10.75", Atlanta, Georgia, February 23, 1939. Accompanied by the original stamped and postmarked envelope, which exhibits expected handling wear. The lengthy letter has folds, creases and isolated wrinkles. In fine condition and very boldly signed.

Mitchell writes to Franklin M. Garrett, the Vice President of the Atlanta Historical Society, and informs him that she has become aware of Atlanta historical tours claiming to show tourists locations from Gone With the Wind, then asks Garrett to stop "identifying" such locations from the novel as she purposely made them entirely fictional. Garrett evidently gave those alleged locations to the Atlanta Convention Bureau, which made them part of the city tour. Mitchell explains that she expended considerable effort to use fictional homes located in fictional places, so as to prevent people from singling out a particular person or family as the inspiration for her characters. Further, she argues that Garrett should have known this based on hundreds of public statements she has made affirming the fictional nature of her book and the characters and locations therein.

In full: "Dear Franklin: I have an embarrassing matter to take up with you, and I know of no other way of handling it except to dive right in. / Several days ago I noticed an item in the papers about the 'See Atlanta First' Tour which will take place on February 24th. I noted with distress and a great sense of weariness that, among other points of interest which were to be visited, were the sites of the homes of my characters, 'Aunt Pittypat, Rhett and Scarlett, Ashley and Melanie.' My distress and weariness rose from the fact that for two and a half years I have spent most of my time telling people – by word of mouth, by letter, through the newspapers and over the radio – that my characters were completely fictional and so were their homes. There were no 'sites' for my characters' homes. Because I did not wish the places to be identified, I went to great pains to mix up Atlanta geography. I studied old maps to make sure that even in my own mind I was locating houses where houses could not have stood. I went to as much pains about this as I did about the names of my characters, and it was a long and wearying affair. I had excellent reasons for not wishing the public to be able to say that 'Scarlett lived here or there.' I knew if the rumor went about that Scarlett had lived upon a certain spot inevitably people would believe that the family who had lived on that spot in the sixties were Scarlett's family. That would be highly embarrassing to innocent people and to me too.

One of my greatest problems since 'Gone With the Wind' was published has been the determination of tourists and many Atlanta people to identify such spots. I believe that I, and I alone, am the only person in the world who knows the truth about this matter, and if I say I had no definite sites in mind, then I am speaking the truth and everyone else is wrong. I have made this statement to the newspapers no less than a hundred times; people who have made radio talks about my book never failed to mention it; I have written hundreds of letters; and I have no count of the number of people whom I have told personally that neither the houses nor the sites of the houses of my characters existed.

So, you can understand my indignation and my sense of defeat when I read in the papers that the Atlanta Convention Bureau, which should know better, was busy adding and spreading and giving authenticity to these errors. As I was ill with a cold, John telephoned Faber Bollinger to find out why the Bureau was deliberately trying to embarrass me and to cause me even greater trouble from tourists that I have already had. Mr. Bollinger replied that he was very sorry, as such had not been their intent, and that the sites of the houses had been given to him by you. Coming as they did from the Vice President of the Atlanta Historical Society, Mr. Bollinger naturally thought he was getting accurate information. he said he would gladly eliminate these alleged points of interest from the tour, and regretted that the newspaper story had already gone out.

Franklin, I know you would not deliberately cause me any trouble, not would you for worlds go on record with an inaccurate statement. So I am at a loss to understand why you included these nonexistent houses in a historical tour, especially in view of the two-year fight I have made in the papers on the subject. I do not doubt that to many people my feeling about this matter seems very strange. but I feel very deeply on the subject, even as I do when people make flat-footed statements identifying characters in my book with actual people. When I went to so much trouble to keep this very thing from happening, it is disheartening to have friends make all my efforts go for nothing. I beg of you, in the future, if anyone should ask you about where my characters lived, please say they lived only in my mind.

I am sorry to have to write this letter, but I know I'm in for another session of trouble, both from tourists and from the descendants of people who once lived on the sites you mentioned. So I thought I'd better write you frankly and tell you that I intend to lay the blame on you."

Surprisingly, given the tone of the letter, Mitchell and Garrett were close friends, frequent correspondents, and occasional partners in the preservation and interpretation of Atlanta's history. Today, Garrett is known for having been the only official historian of Atlanta and for writing Atlanta and Environs: A Chronicle of its People and Events, widely regarded as the finest history of Atlanta ever written. Ironically, one of Garrett's last actions prior to his death was arguing for the restoration of the building where Mitchell wrote most of Gone With the Wind, an initiative she never would have supported given her belief that her book should have no monument to it. On the third page, Garrett has penned an addendum: "Misunderstanding adjusted to MM's entire satisfaction, 2/24/39 FMG".

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE!

  • Dimensions: 7" x 10.75"
  • Medium: TLS

Accepted Forms of Payment:

ACH, American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Unless otherwise indicated, we do our own in-house world-wide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses that proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with a signature required option, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice. If any changes to the shipping address need to be made, you must inform us immediately.***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third-Party Shipping Option: If a third-party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third-party. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third-party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third-party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third-party shippers.

After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 10 business days following receipt of full payment for item.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Wilton, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

April 23, 2025 10:00 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000