In memoriam—William Harwood Peden

Studies in Short Fiction, Fall, 1999

It is with sadness that we inform our readers of the death on 23 July 1999 of Dr. William Harwood Peden, professor emeritus of English at the University of Missouri. Dr. Peden was the last surviving member of this journal's original editorial committee, a group that also included Conrad Aiken, Cleanth Brooks, and Eugene Current-Garcia.

Dr. Peden was a professor at the University of Missouri from 1946 through 1979. His long and distinguished career included founding the University of Missouri Press in 1958 and co-founding the Missouri Review, whose annual fiction prize bears his name. On his retirement, Dr. Peden made a gift of his extensive library related to short fiction--now the William Peden Short Story Collection--to the university. His many publications on literature and American culture included essays in this journal on American short fiction, African American short fiction, and the work of individual--sometimes, neglected--authors, including Hubert Crackenthorpe, William Sansom, and Tennessee Williams. His many books included Twilight at Monticello; The American Short Story: Continuity and Change, 1940-1975; Short Fiction: Shape and Substance; numerous volumes that he edited and co-edited; and a volume of his own notebooks and stories, Fragments and Fiction: Workbooks of an Obscure Writer. He is survived by his wife, Margaret Peden, two daughters, a stepson, and a stepdaughter. We extend our deepest sympathy to Dr. Peden's family, with the assurance that his work continues to enjoy a grateful audience in this journal's readership and far beyond that--and that it will continue to do so for many years to come.