A Centennial Tribute to
Langston Hughes

LANGSTON HUGHES 
(1902-1967) 

                                                                            

LANGSTON HUGHES, was part of the Harlem Renaissance and was known during  his lifetime as "the poet laureate of Harlem," He also worked as a journalist, dramatist, and children's author. His poems, which tell of the joys and  miseries of the ordinary black man in America, have been widely translated.

James Langston Hughes was born on Feb. 1, 1902, in Joplin, Mo. In 1921 he enrolled at Columbia University in New York City but he was so lonely and  unhappy that he left after a year.

He worked at various jobs, including that of a seaman, traveling to Africa  and Europe. His first book of poetry, 'The Weary Blues', published in 1926, made him well known among literary people. He went on to Lincoln University in Oxford, Pa., on a scholarship and received his B.A. degree there in 1929.

From then on Hughes earned his living as a writer, portraying black life in the United States with idiomatic realism. 'Not without Laughter', a novel published in 1930, won him the Harmon god medal for literature. A book of  poems for children, 'The Dream Keeper', came out in 1932. In 1934 appeared 'The Ways of White Folk's', a collection of short stories. His play 'Mulatto' opened on Broadway in 1935. He wrote the lyrics for 'Street Scene', a 1947 opera by Kurt Weill. Hughes also lectured in schools and colleges, where he talked with black youth who had literary ability and encouraged them to write.

In the 1950s and 1960s, Hughes's work included a volume of poetry, 'Montage of a Dream Differed', published in 1951; of short stories,  'Laughing to Keep from Crying' (1952); and a children's picture book titled 'Black Misery'(1969), which wryly illustrates what it is like  to grow up black in the United States. 

Langston Hughes died of Lung Cancer, in New York City, in 1967.

 

F. Leon Wilson of Spectra Links Digest

Arnold Rampersad on Langston Hughes

Born in 1902 in Joplin, Missouri, Langston Hughes grew up mainly in Lawrence, Kansas, but also lived in Illinois, Ohio, and Mexico.

By the time Hughes enrolled at Columbia University in New York, he had already launched his literary career with his poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" in the Crisis, edited by W E. B. Du Bois. He had also committed himself both to writing and to writing mainly about African Americans.

Hughes's sense of dedication was instilled in him most of all by his maternal grandmother, Mary Langston, whose first husband had died at Harpers Ferry as a member of John Brown's band, and whose second husband (Hughes's grandfather) had also been a militant abolitionist. Another important family figure was John Mercer Langston, a brother of Hughes's grandfather who was one of the best-known black Americans of the nineteenth century. At the same time, Hughes struggled with a sense of desolation fostered by parental neglect. He himself recalled being driven early by his loneliness 'to books, and the wonderful world in books.’

Leaving Columbia in 1922, Hughes spent the next three years in a succession of menial jobs. But he also traveled abroad. He worked on a freighter down the west coast of Africa and lived for several months in Paris before returning to the United States late in 1924. By this time, he was well known in African American literary circles as a gifted young poet.

His major early influences were Walt Whitman, Carl Sandburg, as well as the black poets Paul Laurence Dunbar, a master of both dialect and standard verse, and Claude McKay, a radical socialist who also wrote accomplished lyric poetry. However, Sandburg, who Hughes later called "my guiding star," was decisive in leading him toward free verse and a radically democratic modernist aesthetic.

His devotion to black music led him to novel fusions of jazz and blues with traditional verse in his first two books, The Weary Blues (1926) and Fine Clothes to the Jew (1927). His emphasis on lower-class black life, especially in the latter, led to harsh attacks on him in the black press. With these books, however, he established himself as a major force of the Harlem Renaissance. In 1926, in the Nation, he provided the movement with a manifesto when he skillfully argued the need for both race pride and artistic independence in his most memorable essay, 'The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain."

By this time, Hughes had enrolled at the historically black Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, from which he would graduate in 1929. In 1927 he began one of the most important relationships of his life, with his patron Mrs. Charlotte Mason, or "Godmother," who generously supported him for two years. She supervised the writing of his first novel, Not Without Laughter (1930)--about a sensitive, black midwestern boy and his struggling family. However, their relationship collapsed about the time the novel appeared, and Hughes sank into a period of intense personal unhappiness and disillusionment.

One result was his firm turn to the far left in politics. During a year (1932-1933) spent in the Soviet Union, he wrote his most radical verse. A year in Carmel, California, led to a collection of short stories, The Ways of White Folks (1934). This volume is marked by pessimism about race relations, as well as a sardonic realism.

After his play Mulatto, on the twinned themes of miscegenation and parental rejection, opened on Broadway in 1935, Hughes wrote other plays, including comedies such as Little Ham (1936) and a historical drama, Emperor of Haiti (1936). Most of these plays were only moderate successes. In 1937 he spent several months in Europe, including a long
stay in besieged Madrid. In 1938 he returned home to found the Harlem Suitcase Theater, which staged his agitprop drama Don't You Want to Be Free? The play, employing several of his poems, vigorously blended black nationalism, the blues, and socialist exhortation. The same year, a socialist organization published a pamphlet of his radical verse, "A New Song."

With World War II, Hughes moved more to the center politically. His first volume of autobiography, The Big Sea (1940), written in an episodic, lightly comic manner, made virtually no mention of his leftist sympathies. In his book of verse Shakespeare in Harlem (1942) he once again sang the blues. On the other hand, this collection, as well as another, his Jim Crow’s Last Stand (1943), strongly attacked racial segregation.

Perhaps his finest literary achievement during the war came in the course of writing a weekly column in the Chicago Defender that began in 1942 and lasted twenty years. The highlight of the column was an offbeat Harlem character called Jesse B. Semple, or Simple, and his exchanges with a staid narrator in a neighborhood bar, where Simple commented on a variety of matters but mainly about race and racism. Simple became Hughes's most celebrated and beloved fictional creation, and the subject of five collections edited by Hughes, starting in 1950 with Simple Speaks His Mind.

After the war, two books of verse, Fields of Wonder (1947) and One-Way Ticket (1949), added little to his fame. However, in Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951) he broke new ground with verse accented by the discordant nature of the new bebop jazz that reflected a growing desperation in the black urban communities of the North. At the same time, Hughes's career was vexed by constant harassment by right-wing forces about his ties to the Left. In vain he protested that he had never been a Communist and had severed all such links. In 1953 he suffered a public humiliation at the hands of  Senator Joseph McCarthy, who forced him to appear in Washington, D.C., and testify officially about his politics. Hughes denied that he had ever been a party member but conceded that some of his radical verse had been ill-advised.

Hughes's career hardly suffered from this episode. Within a short time McCarthy himself was discredited and Hughes was free to write at length about his years in the Soviet Union in I Wonder as I Wander (1956), his much-admired second volume of autobiography. He became prosperous, although he always had to work hard for his measure of prosperity and sometimes called himself, with good cause, a 'literary sharecropper.’

In the 1950s he constantly looked to the musical stage for success, as he sought to repeat his major coup of the 1940s, when Kurt Weill and Elmer Rice had chosen him as the lyricist for their Street Scene (1947). This production was hailed as a breakthrough in the development of American opera; for Hughes, the apparently endless cycle of poverty into which he had been locked came to an end. He bought a home in Harlem.

The Simple books inspired a musical show, Simply Heavenly (1957), that met with some success. However, Hughes's Tambourines to Glory (1963), a gospel musical play satirizing corruption in a black storefront church, failed badly, with some critics accusing him of creating caricatures of black life. Nevertheless, his love of gospel music led to other acclaimed stage efforts, usually mixing words, music, and dance in an atmosphere of improvisation. Notable here were the Christmas show Black Nativity (1961) and, inspired by the civil rights movement, Jericho--Jim Crow (1964).

For Hughes, writing for children was important. Starting with the successful Popo and Fifina (1932), a tale set in Haiti and written with Arna Bontemps, he eventually published a dozen children's books, on subjects such as jazz, Africa, and the West Indies. Proud of his versatility, he also wrote a commissioned history of the NAACP and the text of a much praised pictorial history of black America. His text in The Sweet Flypaper of Life (1955), where he explicated photographs of Harlem by Roy DeCarava, was judged masterful by reviewers, and confirmed Hughes's reputation for an unrivaled command of the nuances of black urban culture.

The 1960s saw Hughes as productive as ever. In 1962 his ambitious book-length poem Ask Your Mama, dense with allusions to black culture and music, appeared. However, the reviews were dismissive. Hughes's work was not as universally acclaimed as before in the black community. Although he was hailed in 1966 as a historic artistic figure at the First World Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar, Senegal, he also found himself increasingly rejected by young black militants at home as the civil rights movement lurched toward Black Power. His last book was the volume of verse, posthumously published, The Panther and the Lash (1967), mainly about civil rights. He died in May that year in New York City.

In many ways Hughes always remained loyal to the principles he had laid down for the younger black writers in 1926. His art was firmly rooted in race pride and race feeling even as he cherished his freedom as an artist. He was both nationalist and cosmopolitan. As a radical democrat, he believed that art should be accessible to as many people as possible. He could sometimes be bitter, but his art is generally suffused by a keen sense of the ideal and by a profound love of humanity, especially black Americans. He was perhaps the most original of African American poets and, in the breadth and variety of his work, assuredly the most representative of African American writers.

From The Oxford Companion to African American Literature, Oxford University Press, © 1997.

Biographical Sources

• The Negro Speaks of Rivers:  Dream Keeper - Langston Hughes is often referred to as the "Poet Laureate of the Negro Race."
• I Hear America Singing - J. Langston Hughes:  A central figure of the Harlem Renaissance.
• James Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967) - "We younger Negro  artists now intend to express our individual dark - skinned selves without fear or shame.  If white people are pleased we are glad.  If they aren't, it doesn't matter.  We know we are beautiful. and ugly too...If colored people are pleased we are glad.  if they are not, their displeasure doesn't matter either.  We build our temples for tomorrow, as strong as we know how and we stand on the top to the mountain, free within ourselves." "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain"  the Nation, 1926
• Books and Writers - African - American poet, novelist, and playwright, who became one of the foremost interpreters of racial relationships in the United States.
• Lawrence Hughes in Lawrence: Lawrence, Kansas - Saint .Luke's AME Church in Lawrence, Langston attended services, sometimes reluctantly. In his autobiography, Langston stated that in the black churches of Lawrence, he heard rhythms that influenced his poetry.
• Amazing Americans - Langston Hughes - Hughes' creative genius was influenced by his life in New York City's Harlem, a primarily African American neighborhood.
• Black History Month - Biography - Langston Hughes - Following the example of  Paul Laurence Dunbar, one of his early poetic influences, Langston  Hughes became the second African American to earn his living as a writer.
• Modern American Poetry - Compiled and prepared by Cary Nelson.
• Langston Hughes Biography
• Langston Hughes and the Academy of American Poets - "Hughes who claimed Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Carl Sandburg, and Walt Whitman as his primary influences, is particularly known for his insightful, colorful portrayals of black life in America from the twenties though the sixties."
• Langston Hughes - The Black Renaissance in Washington,  D.C. - Washington's middle class community experienced a literary rebirth during the 1920s.  Eventually, some writers took their skills to Harlem.  Hughes lived in Washington, D.C.  from November 1924 to January 1926.
• Poetry Authors in Depth -Langston Hughes - Meyer Literature - Throughout his long career as a professional writer, Hughes remained true to the African American heritage he celebrated in his writings, which were frankly "racial in theme and treatment, derived from the life I know.
• Spectra Links - Langston Hughes : The Shakespeare of Harlem
• Gale - Free Resources - Black History Month - Biography - Langston Hughes - Young Hughes learned the blues and spirituals.  He would subsequently weave these musical elements into his own poetry and fiction.
• Library of Congress.  Today in History Archive - See:  Langston Hughes
• America's Library.  Langston Hughes - Biographical articles on Hughes
• The Negro Speaks of Rivers:  Dream Keeper - Langston Hughes is often referred to as the "Poet Laureate of the Negro Race."
• I Hear America Singing - J. Langston Hughes:  A central figure of the Harlem Renaissance.
• James Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967) - "We younger Negro  artists now intend to express our individual dark - skinned selves without fear or shame.  If white people are pleased we are glad.  If they aren't, it doesn't matter.  We know we are beautiful. and ugly too...If colored people are pleased we are glad.  if they are not, their displeasure doesn't matter either.  We build our temples for tomorrow, as strong as we know how and we stand on the top to the mountain, free within ourselves."
• "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain"  the Nation, 1926
• Books and Writers - African - American poet, novelist, and playwright, who became one of the foremost interpreters of racial relationships in the United States.
• Lawrence Hughes in Lawrence: Lawrence, Kansas
• Saint .Luke's AME Church in Lawrence, Langston attended services, sometimes reluctantly. In his autobiography, Langston stated that in the black churches of Lawrence, he heard rhythms that influenced his poetry.
• Amazing Americans - Langston Hughes
• Hughes' creative genius was influenced by his life in New York City's Harlem, a primarily African American neighborhood.
• Black History Month - Biography - Langston Hughes - Following the example of  Paul Laurence Dunbar, one of his early poetic influences, Langston  Hughes became the second African American to earn his living as a writer.
• Modern American Poetry - Compiled and prepared by Cary Nelson
• Langston Hughes Biography
• Langston Hughes and the Academy of American Poets - "Hughes who claimed Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Carl Sandburg, and Walt Whitman as his primary influences, is particularly known for his insightful, colorful portrayals of black life in America from the twenties though the sixties."
• Langston Hughes - The Black Renaissance in Washington,  DC. - Washington's middle class community experienced a literary rebirth during the 1920s.  Eventually, some writers took their skills to Harlem.  Hughes lived in Washington, D.C.  from November 1924 to January 1926.
• Poetry Authors in Depth -Langston Hughes - Meyer Literature - Throughout his long career as a professional writer, Hughes remained true to the African American heritage he celebrated in his writings, which were frankly "racial in theme and treatment, derived from the life I know.
• Spectra Links - Langston Hughes : The Shakespeare of Harlem
• Gale - Free Resources - Black History Month - Biography - Langston Hughes - Young Hughes learned the blues and spirituals.  He would subsequently weave these musical elements into his own poetry and fiction.
• Library of Congress.  Today in History Archive - See:  Langston Hughes
• America's Library.  Langston Hughes - Biographical articles on Hughes.
• The Harlem Renaissance - "Harlem was like a great magnet for the Negro intellectual, pulling him from everywhere.  Once in New York, he had to live in Harlem.  Harlem was not so much a place as a state of mind, the cultural metaphor for black America itself."   (Langston Hughes)                                                                                
• Chronology - The Harlem Renaissance - See:  Langston Hughes 
• America's Library.  Langston Hughes - Biographical articles on Hughes' life
• Langston Hughes : The Shakespeare of  Harlem - He shared his feelings about everyday African Americans through different forms of literature. 
• Harlem Renaissance 1919 - 1948 - African American Writers and Poets

  
Literary Criticism on Hughes' Work

• Critical Works: Langston Hughes - Selected Bibliography of Critical Works on Langston Hughes
• Criticism - a bibliography - see:  Langston Hughes
• hughesbib - Excellent site of resources on the study of  Hughes' work.
• Academy of American Poets - Site on Langston Hughes, with good links to the web.
• Voices and Visions Series - Offers an extensive Hughes site.
• Bibliography: Langston Hughes - Reflection :  Minority Voices
• Criticism - Art - Harlem Renaissance - see: Langston Hughes
• African American Poetry Criticism - An excellent bibliography of critical work on Hughes' literary work.
• Short Stories of Langston Hughes - Hughes was fond of calling himself  "a literary sharecropper."
• Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967) - Teacher Resource File
• Lesson Plan - Langston Hughes - Related topics: Music, Poetry, Civil Rights Movement, Geography, and Choral Readin
• Bibliography : Langston Hughes - Selected bibliographies of critical works of Langston Hughes.  From the Jazz Literature Archive.
• The Stranger Redeemed: A Portrait of a Black Poet - Yale - New Haven Teachers Institute
• Langston Hughes Related Sites - They provide interesting information on the life and work of an American Original.
• Political Plays of Langston Hughes - Little - Known Labor Plays of Langston Hughes to be Published on Hughes' Birthday
• Works of Langston Hughes - Hughes addresses Jazz : its universality and its ability to bring people together despite their differences.
• The Langston Hughes Tribute - A dedication to a great great African American writer.
• Major Themes, Historical Perspectives, and Personal Issues - Classroom Issues and Strategies. The primary problems encountered in teaching Langston Hughes grow out of his air of improvisation and familiarity.  Vital to an understanding of Hughes's poetry and prose is to understand the quality of black colloquial speech and the rhythms of jazz and the blues.
• The poet's Corner - Langston Hughes
• Critical Work on Langston Hughes -
• Langston Hughes and the Chicago Defender - Essays on Race, Politics, and Culture, 1942-62.
• African - American History : Roy DeCarava and Langston Hughes - Recent Acquisitions in African - American History
• Jazz is Timeless - Langston Hughes:  Flypaper of Life with Roy DeCarava (1984). Suggested readings etc.
• SCORE: Teacher Guide - The Poetry of Langston Hughes - Teacher Cyber Guide to the Poetry of  Langston Hughes
• Langston Hughes - Modern American Poetry
• The South - Langston Hughes:  Poems
• Langston Hughes Cultural Arts Center - Seattle, WA

Bibliographic Information on Langston Hughes

• The Crisis Magazine On - Line - Cover Story:  The Life and Times of Langston Hughes - remembering the prolific literary legend 100 years after his birth
• Featured Author:  Langston Hughes - With News and Reviews  From the Archives of the New York Times.
• Featured Author - Langston Hughes - With News and Reviews From the Archives of the New York Times.
• Poetry Website - Langston Hughes
• Link baton - Books by Langston Hughes, ISBN etc.
• IMS : Langston Hughes, HarperAudio - Short Stories; written by Langston Hughes and read by actor Ossie Davis.
• PAL : Perspectives in American Literature:  A Research and Reference Guide - See:  Langston Hughes
• Not  So Simple : The "Simple" Stories by Langston Hughes - "The fictional works of Langston Hughes have not yet received the scholarly attention they deserve."
• The Langston Hughes Review - Official Publication of the Langston Hughes Society
• Featured Author : Langston Hughes - With News and Reviews From the Archives of the New York Times.
• Longman English Literature - The English Pages Literature Workbook
• Literature of the Harlem Renaissance - Most African American Writers wrote to escape the trials of life, such as poverty and discrimination.  In the 1920s, literature blossomed and became a key factor in the lives of common folk.
• Langston Hughes - Langston Hughes was one of the dominant voices in American literature of this century and perhaps the single most influential Black poet.
• Black Renaissance in DC Timeline - See: Langston Hughes. In 1926, when Langston Hughes presented his famous manifest, "The Negro and the Racial Mountain".  he attacked the tendency of middle-class blacks to suppress their Black selves and heritage in an uncritical embrace of whiteness.
• A Spark for Langston Hughes - Bessie Smith:  A Heroine for Cora
• Hughes Langston - An Encarta Encyclopedia Article titled "Hughes, Langston"
• African American Odyssey: World War 1 and Postwar Society (Part 2) - The Harlem and the Flowering of Creativity. African Americans wrote symphonies and sonatas in the period between the world wars. They did not only write. However the night club scene and music seemed to capture the period.
• Langston Hughes: An Illustrated Edition; artist: Stephen Alcorn - Listed in The New York Review of Books'   READER'S CATALOG: The 40,000 Best Books In Print.
• Miss Blues'es Child by Langston Hughes
• Storylines:  storytellers - Langston Hughes
• Internet School Library Media Center - Langston Hughes bibliography page
• Langston Hughes : The Weary Blues

   
Awards & Other Recognitions

• Blunt(MO07) - Press Release - Blunt Reports Stamp  to Honor Langston Hughes - Joplin's Native Langston Hughes won the honor of having a postage stamp to celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth. US Congressman Roy Blunt's Bill was co-sponsored by Congressman Charlie Rangel (D-Harlem), and expressed the sense of Congress to issue a postage stamp to commemorate Hughes' work.
• The Crystal Stair Award - A crystal stair serves as the central image of the poem "Mother to Son" by the 20th - century African American poet Langston Hughes.  The Crystal Stair Award has been established by School of Social Work to recognize "natural social workers" - volunteers and professionals from any discipline who have worked passionately for social justice and the elimination of prejudice and oppression.
• Happy 100th Birthday Mr. Hughes - Alice Walker celebrates 100th birthday of poet Langston Hughes
• In 1926 Langston Hughes was awarded the Witter Bynner Prize - This award was  for the best poetry submitted by an American undergraduate.  His award was given based on a collection of  five poems, one of which was "The House in Taos".  In this very same contest, Waring Cuney received an honorable mention.
• First African American to be inducted into the Missouri Writers Hall of Fame* - http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/mo07_blunt/langstonhughesstamp.html
• Guggenheim Fellow - Langston Hughes  is a Guggenheim Fellow.  The fellows are appointed on the basis of distinguished achievement in the past and exceptional promise for future accomplishment.
• News and Media - Events at Rutgers University to celebrate Black History Month. See:  Langston Hughes:  100th Birthday celebration.
• The Langston Hughes Society - The Langston Hughes Review:  Official Publication of the Langston Hughes Society
• Langston Hughes Symposium - A celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Langston Hughes
• Lawrence celebrates Langston Hughes Events - To learn more about the celebrations, please visit the Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau Website.
• Langston Hughes Cultural Arts Center
• Poet in residence: Laboratory School; University of Chicago
• First prize for poetry in the Opportunity Magazine; 1925
• First Prize  for poetry in the Witter Bynner Undergraduate Contest, Lincoln University; 1926
• The Amy Springarn Award
• The Intercollegiate Poet Award; Palms magazine; 1927
• The Harmon Gold Medal for Literature;  1931
• Langston Hughes and his World:  A Centennial Celebration, a research conference at Yale University February 21-23, 2002. Note: A Website link will be available in future.
• Langston Hughes Festival, Joplin, Missouri  - February 1, 2003
• Dream Explosion: The fifth Annual Langston Hughes Black Poetry Festival, Florrisant, Missouri. April 20-27, 2002
• Langston Hughes Celebration, Enoch Pratt Library, Baltimore, Maryland February 24, 2002.
  

Langston Hughes' Bibliography

  
Prose Writing

(Most of the titles can be found at a Howard University Library.) 

• A Negro Looks at Soviet Central Asia. Moscow and Leningrad: Co-operative Publishing Society of Foreign Workers in the U.S.S.R., 1934.
• The Big Sea: An Autobiography. Knopf, 1940, reprinted, Thunder's Mouth, 1986. Howard University Library.
• The Sweet Flypaper of Life. Langston Hughes and Roy De Carava. Simon & Schuster, 1955, reprinted Howard University Press, 1985. Howard University Library.
• I Wonder as I Wander: An Autobiographical Journey. Rinehart, 1956, reprinted, Thunder's Mouth, 1986. Howard University Library.
• A Pictorial History of the Negro in America.  Langston Hughes and Milton Meltzer. Crown, 1956. 4th Edition published as A Pictorial History of Black Americans, 1973. 6th Edition published as A Pictorial History of African Americans, 1995. Howard University Library.
• Fight for Freedom: The Story of the NAACP. Norton, 1962. Howard University Library
• Black Magic. Langston Hughes and Milton Meltzer. A Pictorial History of the Negro in American Entertainment. Prentice-Hall, 1967.  Howard University Library.
• Black Misery. Paul S. Erickson, 1969, reprinted, Oxford University Press, 1994.
• The Langston Hughes Reader. New York: Braziller, 1958.
• Five Plays by Langston Hughes. Edited by Webster Smalley. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1963.
• Good Morning Revolution: Uncollected Social Protest Writings by Langston Hughes. Edited by Faith Berry. New York & Westport: Lawrence Hill, 1973.

Fiction

• The Best of Simple. Illustrated by Bernhard Nast. New York: Hill and Wang, 1961. Howard University  Library.
• The Best of Simple. Paperback. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1988. Howard University Library.
• The Best of Simple. 1 sound recording. Folkways Records, 1961.  Library of Congress.
• Laughing to Keep from Crying. 1st ed. New York: Holt, c1952 (Held at College of William and Mary); Mattituck, NY: Aeonian Press, 1976. Howard University Library. [Note: Short stories]
• Laughing to Keep from Crying and 25 Jesse Semple Stories. Limited ed. Franklin Center, PA: Franklin Library, 1981. Howard University Library.
• Not Without Laughter. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1930; New York: Collier, 1979; 1st Scribner paperback fiction ed. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1995. Howard University Library.
• The Return of Simple. Edited by Akiba Sullivan Harper. 1st ed. New York: Hill and Wang, 1994. Howard University Library. 
• Short Stories. Edited by Akiba Sullivan Harper. 1st ed. New York: Hill and Wang, 1996. Howard University Library.
• The Simple Omnibus. Mattituck, NY: Aeonian Press, 1978, c1961. Howard University Library.
• Simple Speaks His Mind. New York: Simon and Schuster, c1950; Mattituck, NY: Aeonian Press, 1976. Howard University Library.
• Simple Speaks His Mind. 1 sound disc. (side 2).Folkways Records, 1952. Howard University Library.
• Simple Stakes a Claim. New York: Rinehart, c1957. Howard University Library.
• Simple Stories. 1 cassette. 7 stories from The Best of Simple and Simple's Uncle Sam. Caedmon, 1968. Howard University Library. 
• Simple Takes a Wife. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1953.  University of Virginia.
• Simple's Uncle Sam. New York: Hill and Wang, 1967, c1965.  New York.  Hill and Wang, 1977.  Howard University Library .
• Something in Common and Other Stories. New York: Hill and Wang, 1963.  University of Virginia.
• Something in Common. 1st ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000. Paperback. Howard University Library.
• Tambourines to Glory: A Novel. New York: Hill and Wang, 1958. New York: Hill and Wang, 1970.  Howard University Library.
• The Ways of White Folks. 1st ed. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1934. Howard University Library.
• The Ways of White Folks. (Short Stories) New York: A. A. Knopf, 1969; New York: Vintage, 1971. Howard University Library.

Poetry

• Anthology of Magazine Verse for 1928: And Year Book of American Poetry. Edited by Stanley Braithwaite. New York: Harold Vinal, Ltd., 1928. University of Virginia.
• Ask Your Mama: 12 Moods for Jazz. 1st ed. New York: Knopf, 1961. (Held by University of Virginia); New York: Knopf, 1971, c1961. Carrier Library.
• The Block. Collage by Romare Bearden; selected by Lowery S. Sims and Daisy Murray Voigt. New York: Viking, 1995. Library of Congress. Howard University Library.
• Carol of the Brown King: Poems. N.Y.: Atheneum Books, 1997.
• The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. Edited by Arnold Rampersad. New York: Knopf, 1996, c1994. Howard  University Library.
• The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. Edited by Arnold Rampersad; David Roessel, associate ed. Paperback. Vintage Books, 1995. For review and a list of the poems included see Amazon Book Company. Howard University Library.
• Dear Lovely Death. Amenia, NY: Troutbeck Press, 1931. Library of Congress.
• The Dream Keeper and Other Poems. Knopf, 1932.
• Enjoyment of Poetry. Poetry of the Blues. Sound recording. Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature (Library of Congress). [Poetry of Hughes and Florence Becker Lennon] Howard University Library.
• Fields of Wonder. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1947. Howard University Library.
• Fine Clothes to the Jew. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1927.  University of Virginia.
• Four Negro Poets. By Alain LeRoy Locke. New York: Simon & Schuster, c1927. Howard University Library.
• Freedom's Plow. New York: Musette Publishers, 1943. Howard University Library..
• Jim Crow's Last Stand. Atlanta: Negro Publication Society of America, 1943.
• Langston Hughes Reading His Poems with Comment, May 1, 1959. Sound recording. 1959. Archive of Recorded Poetry and Literature, Library of Congress. 
• Langston Hughes Reads and Talks about His Poems. Sound recording. Spoken Arts, 1970. Library of Congress.  Howard University Library.
• Mandelik, Peter. A Concordance to the Poetry of Langston Hughes. Detroit: Gale Research, 1975. University of Virginia.
• Montage of a Dream Deferred. 1st ed. New York: Henry Holt, 1951. University of Virginia.
• The Negro Mother and Other Dramatic Recitations. New York: Golden Stair Press, 1931.
• A New Song. New York: International Workers Order, 1938.  Library of Congress.
• One-way Ticket. Illus. by Jacob Lawrence. 1st ed. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1949, c1948. Howarad University Library.
• The Panther & the Lash: Poems of Our Times. 1st ed. New York: Knopf, 1969. Howard University Library.
• The Panther & the Lash. 1st Vintage classics ed. New York: Vintage Books, 1992. Howard University Library.
• The Pasteboard Bandit. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Howard University Library.
• Poems. 1972. [uniform title, in Arabic] (From Library of Congress.) Howard University Library.
• Scottsboro Limited: Four Poems and a Play in Verse. Illustrations by Prentiss Taylor. New York: Golden Stair Press,1932. University of Virginia.
• Selected Poems of Langston Hughes. 1st ed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1959; Vintage classics ed. New York: Vintage Books, 1990.  Also, 1974 ed. University of Virginia.
• Selected Poems of Langston Hughes. 1st ed. Drawings by E. McKnight Kauffer. New York: Knopf, c1959 (Held by Averett); Drawings by E. McKnight Kauffer. New York: Knopf, 1993. Howard University Library.
• Shakespeare in Harlem. With drawings by E. McKnight Kauffer. 1st ed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1942. Howard University Library.
• The Weary Blues. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1926. Howard University Library.

Works Edited by Hughes

• An African Treasury: Articles, Essays, Stories, and Poems by Black Africans. Edited by Langston Hughes. New York: Crown, 1960. Howard University Library.
• Anthology of Black Poets. 1 sound cassette. Los Angeles, CA: Pacifica Radio Archive, 1983.
• Anthology of Negro Poetry. 1 sound disc. By Arna Wendell Bontemps. Folkways, 1961. (Held by University of Virginia).
• The Best Short Stories by Negro Writers: An Anthology from 1899 to the Present. Edited by Langston Hughes. Boston: Little, Brown, 1967. Howard University Library.
• The Best Short Stories by Black Writers; The Classic Anthology from 1899 to 1967. Paperback. Little, Brown, 1969.
• The Book of Negro Folklore. Edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1958. Howard University Library.
• The Book of Negro Folklore. Edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1983. Howard University Library.
• The Book of Negro Folklore. Microform. edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps. New York: Dodd, Mead, c1958. Library of Congress. Also Howard University Library.
• The Book of Negro Folklore. Microform. Edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1958. (From Library of Congress Catalog) Also Howard University Library.The Book of Negro Humor. Edited by Langston Hughes. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1966.  Carrier Library.
• Famous American Negroes. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1954. Howard University Library..Famous Negro Heroes of America. Illustrated by Gerald McCann. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1958.  Carrier Library.
• Famous Negro Music Makers. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1955. Howard University Library.
• The New Negro Poets. Bloomington: University of Indiana Press, 1964.  Old Dominion.
• Poems from Black Africa: Ethiopia, South Rhodesia, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Kenya, Gabon, Senegal, Nyasaland, Mozambique, South Africa, Congo, Ghana, Liberia. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1963. Howard University Library..
• The Poetry of the Negro, 1746-1970 An anthology edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps. 1st ed. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1949 (Held at College of William and Mary); Rev. and updated ed. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1970. Howard University Library.
• Seven Poets in Search of an Answer: Maxwell Bodenheim, Joy Davidman, Langston Hughes, Aaron Kramer, Alfred Kreymborg, Martha Millet, Norman Rosten. A poetic symposium, edited by Thomas Yoseloff. New York: Ackerman, 1944. University of Virginia.

Works Translated by Hughes

• Anthologie africaine et malgache, edited by Langston Hughes and Christiane Reygnault. Paris: Editions Seghers, 1962. Library of Congress.
• Blood Wedding; and Yerma. By Federico Garcia Lorca. tr. by Langston Hughes and W. S. Merwin. 1st ed. New York: Theatre Communications Group, 1994.
• Cuba Libre, Poems By Nicolas Guillen; tr. from the Spanish by Langston Hughes and Ben Frederic Carruther; illus. by Gar Gilbert. Los Angeles: Anderson & Ritchie, 1948.  University of Virginia.
• Masters of the Dew. By Jacques Rouman. tr. by Langston Hughes and Mercer Cook. New York: Reynal & Hitchcock, 1947.  University of Virginia.

Collections

• The Collected Works of Langston Hughes. Edited by Arnold Rampersad. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.  2001. Library of Congress.
• Langston Hughes in the Hispanic World and Haiti. Edited by Edward J. Mullen. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books,1977. Library of Congress.
• Langston Hughes. Presentation par Francois Dodat. Choix de textes, Bibliographie, Portraits [et] Fac-Similes. Paris: Editions P. Seghers, 1964. [French] 

Juvenile Literature

• Black Misery. Illustrations by Arouni. New York: Paul Eriksson, 1969. University of Virginia.
• Black Misery. Illustrated by Arouni. New York: P.S. Eriksson, 1969.
• Black Misery. Illustrated by Arouni. Oxford University Press, 1994. (The Iona and Peter Opie Library of Children's Literature). Review at Amazon Book Company. Booklist recommends Grades 6-12, all ages.
• The Block: Poems. Collage by Romare Bearden, selected by Lowery S. Sims and Daisy Murray Voigt. New York: Viking, 1995.  University of Virginia.
• The Block: Poems. Illustrated by Romare Bearden. Viking Children's Books, 1995. Reviewed at Amazon Book Company. Booklist recommends grades 6-12.
• The Book of Rhythms. Illus. by Matthew Wawiorka. Rev. ed. of The First Book of Rhythms. Oxford University Press, 1995. Reviews available at Amazon Book Company. Ages 9-12.
• Carol of the Brown King: Nativity Poems. Illustrated by Ashley Bryan. New York: Atheneum Books, 1998.
• Davis, Ossie. Langston: A Play. New York: Delacorte Press, 1982. [Note: Play is about Hughes. He visits a drama group rehearsing one of his plays and uses the actors to recreate scenes from his early life. Juvenile drama]
• Don't You Turn Back: Poems. Selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins. Woodcuts by Ann Grifalconi. New York: Knopf, 1969.  University of Virginia.[Note: Poetry selected by Harlem fourth graders.]
• The Dream Keeper and Other Poems. Illustrations by Helen Sewell. New York: Alfred Knopf, 1932; New York: Knopf; dist. by Random House, 1986.  University of Virginia.
• The Dream Keeper and Other Poems. Illustrated by Brian Pinkney. New York: Knopf, 1994. Carrier Library.. For a review of this collection see Amazon Book Company. Booklist recommends for grades 4-12.
• The Dream Keeper and Other Poems. Illustrated by Brian Pinkney. Paperback. Knopf, 1996.The Dream Keeper and Other Poems 1 sound recording. Folkways Records, 1955.  Library of Congress.
• The Dream Keeper and Ohter Poems. Recording script & sound recording. Folkways, 1961?  Library of Congress.
• The First Book of Jazz. Pictures by Cliff Roberts. music selected by David Martin. New York: F. Watts, c1955; updated ed, 1976. 1955 ed. Carrier Library.
• The First Book of Jazz. Illustrated by Cliff Roberts. Ecco Press, 1995; Paperback ed. Ecco Press, 1997.
• The First Book of Negroes. Pictures by Ursula Koering. New York: F. Watts, c1952.  Carrier Library.
• The First Book of Rhythms. Pictures by Robin King [pseud.]. New York: F. Watts, 1954. Carrier Library.
• The First Book of the West Indies. Pictures by Robert Bruce. New York: F. Watts, 1956. Carrier Library.
• Jazz. By Langston Hughes; updated and expanded by Sandford Brown. 3rd ed. New York: F. Watts, 1982. (Note: earlier ed. was The First Book of Jazz.)
• The Langston Hughes Reader. 1st ed. New York: G. Braziller, 1958; New York: G. Braziller, 1971, c1958. Old Dominion.
• The Pasteboard Bandit. By Arna Wendell Bontemps and Langston Hughes; illustrations by Peggy Turley. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.
• Popo and Fifina. By Arna Bontemps and Langston Hughes; illus. by Simms Campbell. New York: Macmillan, 1932; New York: Oxford University Pr., 1993.
• The Sweet and Sour Animal Book. Illustrations by students of the Harlem School of the Arts. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994. University of Virginia.
• Thank You, M'am. Mankato, MN: Creative Education, 1991. (Note: A teenage tries to steal a purse and is rebuked in a surprising fashion).
  

Essays

• Langston Hughes and the Chicago Defender: Essays on Race, Politics, and Culture, 1942-62. Edited by Christopher C. De Santis. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, c1995. University of Virginia.
• Good Morning, Revolution: Uncollected Social Protest Writings. Edited by Faith Berry. 1st ed. New York: L. Hill,1973; Seacaucus, NJ: Carol Pub. Group, 1992. (1973 ed. University of Virginia.

Operas/Drama

• Black Nativity. Woodstock, Ill.: Dramatic Pub., c1992. Original title: Wasn't That a Mighty Day? Library of Congress. [Note: Christmas music]
• Black Nativity. 1 sound disc. By Marion Williams, Princess Stewart, Alex Bradford and Langston Hughes. Vee-Jay Records, 196- . Library of Congress.
• Canto de Una Muchacha Negra. By Silvestre Revueltas. New York: E.B. Marks Music Corp., 1948. Includes Hughes' "Song for a Dark Girl."  Library of Congress.
• Five Plays. Edited by Webster Smalley. 1st Midland book ed. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1968.  University of Virginia. (Note: c1963 ed. held by Carrier; includes "Mulatto," "Soul Gone Home," "Little Ham," "Simply Heavenly," "Tambourines to Glory.").
• Five Plays. Paperback. Edited by Webster Smalley. Indiana University Press, 1963.
• Jerico-Jim-Crow-Jerico; A Song-Play. Libretto. 1963. Library of Congress.
• Jericho-Jim Crow. 2 sound discs. New York: Folkways, c1964. Old Dominion.
• Mule Bone: A Comedy of Negro Life. By Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston; edited by George Houston Bass and Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and the complete story of the mule bone controversy. New York: HarperPerennial, 1991. University of Virginia.
• The Negro Mother, and Other Dramatic Recitations. With decorations by Prentiss Taylor. New York: Golden Staress, c1931; Freeport, NY: Books for Libraries Press, 1971. University of Virginia.
• The Negro Mother, and Other Dramatic Recitations. Salem, NH: Ayer Co., 1987. [Note: Contents include "The Colored Soldier," "Broke," "The Black Clown," "The Big-timer," "The Negro Mother," "Dark Youth of the U.S.A." Simply Heavenly. Script. University of Virginia.
• Simply Heavenly. Book and lyrics by Hughes, music by David Martin. New York: Dramatists Play Service, 1959.
• Street Scene. Kurt Weill composer/performer; book by Elmer Rice; lyrics by Langston Hughes. University of Virginia.
• Three Negro Plays. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1969. [Note: Hughes, "Mulatto," Baraka "Slaves," Hansberry "Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window."
• Troubled Island: An Opera in Three Acts. Libretto. By William Grant Stills; libretto by Langston Hughes. New York: Leeds Music Company, c1949. University of Virginia.

Musical Settings

• Barber, Samuel. Fantasy in Purple. Words by Langston Hughes. 1 music manuscript score. 1925.  Library of Congress.   
• Bartos, Jan Zdenek. Koncert Pro Housle a Orchestr. Original text Langston Hughes. Praha: Panton, 1974. Library of Congress.
• Davidson, Charles. Freedom Train. Microform. From a poem by Langston Hughes; music by Charles Davidson.  Library of Congress.
• Gordon, Ricky Ian. Genius Child: A Cycle of 10 Songs. Music by Ricky Ian Gordon, using poems by Langston Hughes. Williamson Music; distributed by Hal Leondard, c1995.  University of Virginia.
• Bonds, Margaret. The Ballad of the Brown King.   Written by Hughes, Libretto by Hughes, music by Margaret Bonds. New York: Sam fox, 1961.
• Gordon, Ricky Ian. Only Heaven: Piano-Vocal. Milwaukee, Wis.: Williamson Music; distributed by H. Leonard Corp.,1997. Library of Congress.
• Haden, Charlie. Dream Keeper. By Charlie Haden and the Liberation Music Orchestra. Hollywood, CA: Blue Note, 1991. Library of Congress.
• Siegmeister, Elie. Madam to You. Sound recording. Composers Recordings, p1979. Carrier Library.
• Siegmeister, Elie. Ways of Love: Langston Hughes Songs. 1 sound disc. Five pieces for piano. New York: CRI, p1986. University of Virginia.
• Swanson, Howard. Seven Songs. 1 sound disc. New York: American Recording Society, 1953. College of William and Mary.
• Weston, Randy. Bantu. 2 discs. sound recording. Roulette RE 130, 1976. Music by Randy Weston, words by Langston Hughes.  Library of Congress.

Nonprint Media

• America's Town Meeting of the Air. 1 tape reel. Cataloged from notes compiled by the Recording Laboratory of the Library of Congress; actual tape contents may vary. Originally broadcast on ABC Radio, New York, Feb. 17, 1944. Address--Radio.  Library of Congress.
• The Beat Generation. 3 sound discs. Santa Monica, CA: Rhino/Word Beat, p1992. [Note: includes "Blues Montage" Langston Hughes, with Leonard Feather]. Old Dominion.
• The First Album of Jazz for Children, with Documentary Recordings from the Library of Folkways Records. New York: Folkways Records, c1954. [Note: narrated by Langston Hughes, based upon his book of the same title]. Old Dominion.
• The Glory of Negro History. 1 sound disc. New York: Folkways Records, 19 ?  [Note  narrated by Langston Hughes]. Old Dominion.
• The Harlem Renaissance and Beyond. 1 videocassette. Mt. Kisco, NY: Guidance Associates, c1990. Carrier Library.
• Langston Hughes Video recording: The Dream Keeper. Juvenile poetry. South Carolina Educational Television Network, a New York Center for Visual History Production, 1988.  Eastern Mennonite University.
• Looking for Langston. Video  recording. Sankofa Fil and Video. New York: Third World Newsreel, 198?  College of William and Mary.
• Poems from Black Africa. 1 cassette recording. Performed by Langston Hughes. Caedmon, 1971.  University of Virginia.
• Poetry and Reflections. 1 cassette. Caedmon, p1980.  University of Virginia.
• The Poetry of Langston Hughes. 1 cassette. Caedmon, 1969?.  University of Virginia.
• The Spoken Arts Treasury of 100 Modern American Poets Reading Their Poems. 1 sound cassette. New Rochelle, NY: Spoken Arts, 1985.  Old Dominion.
• The Subject Is Jazz. Jazz and Other Arts. 3 16mm tapes. NBC Television; in cooperation with the Educational Television and Radio Center; executive producer, Brice Howard. NBC Television, 1958. Gilbert Seldes, host; Langston Hughes, guest. Library of Congress.
• Tambourines to Glory. 1 sound disc. Gospel songs by Langston Hughes & Jobe Huntley. Folkways, 1958. University of Virginia.

• Autobiography/Biography
• Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea: An Autobiography. New York: A. A. Knopf, 1940 (Held by College of William and Mary); New York: Thunder's Mouth Press; dist. by Persea Books, 1986.  University of Virginia.
• Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea: An Autobiography. Hill and Wang, 1940, 1963; 2nd Hill and Wang ed., 1993.
• Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea: An Autobiography. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press; distributed by Persea Books,1986.
• Hughes, Langston. O Imenso Mar; Autobiografia de Langston Hughes. Rio de Janeiro: Editorial Vitoria, 1944. [Portugese]  Library of Congress Catalog.
• The Big Sea,. New York & London, A.A. Knopf, 1940. Note: 7p.  Library of Congress.
• Hughes, Langston. I Wonder as I Wander: An Autobiographical Journey. New York: Rinehart, 1956.  University of Virginia; New York: Hill and Wang, 1964, c1956 College of William and Mary; New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, dist. by Persea Books, 1986, c1956. Carrier Library.
• Hughes, Langston. I Wonder as I Wander: An Autobiographical Journey. Paperback. Rei ed. Hill and Wang, 1993.
• Hughes, Langston. I Wonder as I Wander: An Autobiographical Journey. 2nd Hill and Wang ed. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.
• Berry, Faith. Langston Hughes: Before and Beyond Harlem By Faith Berry. Westport, Conn.: L. Hill, c1983. College of William and Mary.
• Haskins, James. Always Movin' On: The Life of Langston Hughes. Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1993. Carrier Library.
• A Langston Hughes Memorial. 1 sound cassette. Los Angeles, Calif.: Pacifica Radio Archive, 198?.  University of Virginia.
• Nazel, Joe. Langston Hughes. Los Angeles, CA: Melrose Square Pub., c1994.
• Rollins, Charlemae H. Black Troubadour: Langston Hughes. Chicago: Rand McNally, 1970.  Carrier Library.
• Rampersad, Arnold. The Life of Langston Hughes. By Arnold Rampersad. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986.  Carrier Library.

Biography/Juvenile

• Berry, S. L. Langston Hughes. Mankato, Minn.: Creative Education, 1994.
• Cooper, Floyd. Coming Home:From the Life of Langston Hughes. New York: Philomel Books, c1994. (Held by Averett).
• Dunham, Montrew. Langston Hughes: Young Black Poet. By Montrew Dunham; illus. by Robert Doremus. 1st Aladdin pbk. ed. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1995.
• Hill, Christine M. Langston Hughes: Poet of the Harlem Renaissance Springfield, NJ: Enslow, c1997.
• McKissack, Pat and Fredrick McKissack. Langston Hughes: Great American Poet. Hillside, NJ: Enslow Pub., 1992.Meltzer,
• Milton. Langston Hughes: A Biography. New York: Crowell, 1968. (Held by Averett)
• Meltzer, Milton. Langston Hughes An illustrated edition by Milton Meltzer; illustrated by Stephen Alcorn. Brookfield, Conn.: Millbrook Press, c1997.
• Myers, Elisabeth P. Langston Hughes: Poet of His People. Illus. by Russell Hoover. New York: Dell, 1981, c1970. (Held by Averett).
• Osofsky, Audrey.Free to Dream: The Making of a Poet. 1st ed. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, c1996.
• Walker, Alice. Langston Hughes, American Poet. Juvenile By Alice Walker; illustrated by Don Miller. New York: Crowell, 1974.  Old Dominion.
• Walker, Alice. Langston Hughes, American Poet. New York: HarperCollins, 1998.

Letters/Papers

• Arna Bontemps-Langston Hughes Letters, 1925-1967. Selected and edited by Charles H. Nichols. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1980; New York: Paragon House, 1990. (1980, University of Virginia).
• Collection, 1921-1941 21 items, Library of Congress Manuscript Material.  Library of Congress.
• Langston Hughes Collection, 1926-1967. Microform. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 1995.  College of  William and Mary.  [Note: biographical material, research notes, manuscripts, galley proofs.]
• Papers of Langston Hughes, 1925-1982. 84 items. Manuscripts of the poems "Motto," "Youth," "Snail," "Alabama Earth (At Booker Washington's Grave)," "Cross" and "Mississippi-1955 ("To the memory of Emmett Till lynched in Mississippi, USA/August 1955")," and reprints of "Low to High" and "High to Low".  University of Virginia.
• Letters to Mrs. Ina Steele. 2 items. University of Letters of Langston Hughes to H. R. Hays. 1942 July 4-25. 3 items.  University of Virginia.
• Letter to F. Coleman Rosenberger. 1948 October 21. 1 item.  University of Virginia.
• Alain  Locke Papers 1841 - 1954.
• These papers are rich in documentation on the Harlem Renaissance including correspondence , manuscripts, and photographs of many of the prominent figures of this period . Langston Hughes is prominently featured here. Moorland Springarn Research Center; Howard University Libraries.
• Glenn C. Carrington Papers 1861 - 1977. The Carrington papers include a broad selection of materials documenting the Harlem Renaissance, including programs, flyers, newsclippings, articles, and photographs.  Noteworthy is the material on Langston Hughes, which includes correspondence, photographs, autographed writings and programs. Moorland Springarn Research Center; Howard University Libraries.
• Arthur B. Springarn Papers 1914 - 1971. Among the Arthur B. Springarn Papers is a series (l 1/2 linear foot in size) of materials on Langston Hughes, including correspondence and drafts of the play, Mule Bone, by Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston. Moorland Springarn Research Center; Howard University Libraries.
• Joel E. Springarn Papers.

Of note in these papers is the correspondence of Langston Hughes with Joel and his wife, Amy Springarn. Moorland  Springarn Research Center; Howard University Libraries.

Nonfiction

• African American History: Four Centuries of Black Life. By Langston Hughes and Milton Meltzer. New York: Scholastic, 1990.
• Black Magic: A Pictorial History of the African-American in the Performing Arts. By Langston Hughes and Milton Meltzer. New York: Da Capo Press, 1990; Pbk reprint ed., 1990; Reprint ed. 1993. (1990 ed. Old Dominion)
• Black Magic: A Pictorial History of the Negro in American Entertainment. By Langston Hughes and Milton Meltzer. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1967.
• Fight for Freedom: The Story of the NAACP. New York: Norton, 1962.  Carrier Library.
• The First Book of Africa. New York: F. Watts, 1960; rev. ed, 1964.  Carrier Library.
• Das Buch vom Jazz. Feldafing, Buchheim Verlag, 1955.
• A New Song. Frontispiece by Joe Jones. New York: International Workers Order, c1938. University of Virginia.
• A Pictorial History of Black Americans. By Langston Hughes, Milton Meltzer, and C. Eric Lincoln. 5th rev. ed. New York: Crown, 1983. ( University of Virginia + 4th ed). Formerly :A Pictorial History of the Negro in America.
• A Pictorial History of African Americans. 6th ed. New York: Crown Publishers, c1995.
• Proletarian Literature in the United States. Anthology edited by Granville Hicks, Joseph North, Michael Gold, Paul Peters, Isido Schneider and Alan Calmer. New York: International Publishers, 1935.
• The Sweet Flypaper of Life. By Roy DeCarava and Langston Hughes. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1955. University of Virginia.  New York: Hill and Wang, 1967, c1955.  College of William and Mary. Washington, DC: Howard University Press, 1984.

Criticism and Interpretation

• Barksdale, Richard. Langston Hughes: The Poet and His Critics. Chicago: American [1977]. Carrier Library.
• Bloom, Harold, ed. Langston Hughes. New York: Chelsea House, c1989.  Carrier Library.
• Bonner, Pat E. Sassy Jazz and Slo'Draggin' Blues: Music in the Poetry of Langston Hughes. New York: P. Lang, 1996.
• Cobb, Martha. Harlem, Haiti, and Havana: A Comparative Critical Study of Langston Hughes, Jacques Roumain, Nicolas Guillen. 1st ed. Washington, DC: Three Continents Press, 1979.
• Dace, Tish. Langston Hughes: The Contemporary Reviews. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997. Carrier Library.
• Emanuel, James A. Langston Hughes. New York: Twayne, 1967. Twayne's United States Authors Series. Carrier Library..
• Gates, Henry Louis, Jr. and K. A. Appiah. Langston Hughes: Critical Perspectives Past and Present. New York: Amistad. Dist. by Penguin USA, c1993.  Carrier Library.
• Harper, Donna S. Not So Simple: The "Simple" Stories by Langston Hughes. Columbia: University of Missouri Press,c1995.
• Miller, R. Baxter. The Art and Imagination of Langston Hughes. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, c1989.  Carrier Library.
• McLaren, Joseph. Langston Hughes: Folk Dramatist in the Protest Tradition, 1921-1943. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1997.  Old Dominion.
• Mullen, Edward J., ed. Langston Huges in the Hispanic World and Haiti. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, 1977. University of Virginia.
• Neilson, Kenneth P. To Langston Hughes, with Love. Hollis, NY: All Seasons Art, c1996. [Note: Selected newspaper articles published in The New York Voice/Harlem
• Onwuchekwa, Jemie. Langston Hughes: An Introduction to the Poetry. New York: Columbia University Press, 1976. (Held by Averett)
• Ostrom, Hans. Langston Hughes: A Study of the Short Fiction. New York: Twayne, c1993.  Carrier Library.
• O'Daniel, Therman B. Langston Hughes: Black Genius; A Critical Evaluation. For the College Language Association. New York: Morrow, 1971.  Carrier Library.
• Tracy, Steven C. Langston Hughes and the Blues. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, c1988. College of  William and Mary. [Note: Folklore & mythology].
• Trotman, C.James, ed. Langston Hughes: The Man, His Art, and His Continuing Influence. New York: Garland,1995.  Carrier Library.

Bio-Bibliography

• Dickinson, Donald C. A Bio-Bibliography of Langston Hughes, 1902-1967. 2nd rev. ed. Hamden, Conn.:Archon Books, 1972.  Carrier Library.
• Mikolyzk, Thomas A. Langston Hughes: A Bio-Bibliography. New York: Greenwood Press, 1990. Carrier Library.
• Miller, R. Baxter. Langston Hughes and Gwendolyn Brooks: A Reference Guide. Boston: G. K. Hall, c1978. Old Dominion.
  
  Other Content 
• Anch'io Sono America. Milano: Accademia, 1971.
• "Banquet in Honor". in Negro Quarterly. Vol. 1, no. 2 (Summer, 1942), p. 176-178.  University of Virginia.
• Barrel House: Northern City. U.S.?: s.n., 19--?. [Broadside, 1 sheet]  Library of Congress.
• Girls from Esquire. 1952.  Library of Congress.
• Jim Crow's Last Stand. New York: Negro Publ. Soc. of America, c1943.  College of William and Mary.

Researched and prepared by Celia C. Daniel, English Bibliographer

ccdaniel@howard.edu

February 2002