Roberto Brenes Mesen (1874-1947) Papers

Through his long and varied career in both Latin America and the United States, Roberto Brenes Mesen came into contact with many noteworthy political and literary figures of the day. His interests were wide-ranging; there is material of historical significance in several different areas in this collection, extending from the theosophical movement to the philosophy of education. The Roberto Brenes Mesen Papers comprise 24 boxes and are arranged in six subseries: biographical materials, correspondence, teaching materials, research materials, publications, and critical studies.

The biographical materials include autobiographical notes, diary fragments, address books, passports, educational certificates, newspaper clippings, and a few financial records. Also included in this subseries are printed materials pertaining to Brenes Mesen's professional associations and activities (additional material on these subjects may be found in the correspondence files), along with items relating to members of his family.

The bulk of the correspondence files dates from 1903 to 1947, with one folder containing items dating from the period 1947-1959 and addressed to Ana Maria Carillo de Brenes Mesen after Brenes Mesen's death. Most of the correspondence in the collection is incoming, with only three separate folders (Box 6, Folders 2, 3, and 4) containing Brenes Mesen's letter drafts and carbons. In one instance both incoming and outgoing correspondence has been arranged in a single folder: the correspondence between Brenes Mesen and the law firm of Hardin, Hess & Eder (Box 5, Folder 9). These letters concern Brenes Mesen's involvement in negotiations to release the Niehaus brothers--three prominent Costa Rican businessmen and landholders of German extraction who were held in an American internment camp during World War II.

A separate folder of prominent correspondents has been extracted from the general correspondence (see list of contents for Box 5, Folder 15). This includes letters mainly from various Hispanic literary figures along with a few letters from Ricardo Jimenez, the President of Costa Rica from 1910-1914. In general, the vast majority of the correspondence reflects Brenes Mesen's literary activities and his business affairs. There is little personal correspondence, with only a few items between members of the Brenes Mesen family, and only small amount with former students and academic colleagues.

The teaching materials are very sparse and include only a few course descriptions, reading lists, lecture notes, and examination questions. Most extensive in this category are the class records from Brenes Mesen's years at Northwestern; these span the period 1926-1939. One folder (Box 6, Folder 6) contains correspondence from Syracuse and Northwestern universities concerning academic appointments and salary.

The research files include notebooks and notes pertaining to Brenes Mesen's academic, political, philosophic, and literary interests. Much of this material is mixed in subject matter, and is often undated and untitled. The main subject areas include etymology and philological studies, literary style and poetics, metaphysics, and politics. The notes have been separated into these broad categories whenever possible, but the contents of two boxes (Boxes 10 and 11) can best be described as miscellaneous and fragmentary.

The bulk of the collection consists of Brenes Mesen's publications. He wrote voluminously on a wide variety of subjects, and although the representation here of his publications is not complete, it is quite extensive. The first section of this subseries is devoted to his major works, and includes both manuscript and printed copies. This is followed by poetry and prose articles, subdivided by journal or column title whenever possible. Many of Brenes Mesen's articles appeared in newspaper publications and a number are represented in the newspaper clippings.

Critical studies concerned with Roberto Brenes Mesen's work fill one box.

Addition (Box 26): These files include books, clippings, programs, and correspondence related to the Roberto Brenes Mesen Centennial Celebration in 1974.

Materials include books, clippings, and letters sent to Brenes’ daughter Fresia Brenes de Hilarov from Evangelina Gamboa. Included in the clippings are pieces from Hilarov describing her father and their relationship.