Collection of Jonathan Swift materials

This collection contains 74 pieces related to Anglo-Irish writer and cleric Jonathan Swift, chiefly representing his later life in Ireland from the 1720s to the late 1730s. Documents include manuscripts in Swift's hand, or contemporary copies, as well as letters to and from Swift and his friends, and documents endorsed by Swift or once in his possession.

Twenty-seven of the manuscripts are in Swift's hand, with additional pieces endorsed, annotated by, or addressed to him. The holographs include unique versions of four of Swift's poems composed by him in Ireland between 1719 and 1734 (HM 14336, HM 14335, HM 14339, and HM 14338, fol. 12b), as well as two copies in contemporary hands of Swift's poems (HM 14340 and HM 14345).

The correspondence includes 11 letters from Swift to London Alderman John Barber, dated 1732-1733. Additional correspondents, chiefly represented by one to three letters, include Swift's cousin Martha Swift Harrison Whiteway and John Boyle, 5th Earl of Orrery & of Cork. Notably, the collection includes Swift's 1723 "A Letter to a Young Lady on Her Marriage" (HM 1559), containing 18-pages of advice and commentary by Swift about women and marriage.

Among the manuscripts, there are poems shared between Swift and his friends, with verse penned by Moore Booker, Irish member of Parliament George Rochfort, Patrick Delany, classical scholar Thomas Sheridan, Reverend William Dunkin, and John Boyle, 5th Earl of Cork and Orrery.

In addition, there are a few other manuscripts relating to Deane Swift and some 19th century letters related to use of the Theophilus Swift Papers.