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Museum Archive

Primary Source Material

The RLSM archive contains a large holding of original manuscripts, letters and notes produced by Robert Louis Stevenson, his family and friends. From Stevenson himself, the museum holds over fifty manuscripts, over a hundred letters, and several notes and signed pieces of ephemera (canceled cheques and the like).

Highlights include original pages for Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeSt. IvesThe Master of Ballantrae, several complete poems, diary pages from his time in the South Seas, and the manuscripts for articles, such as “On the Art of Literature” and “On the Morals and Ethics of Life.”

Also included in the archive are hundreds of original letters and notes from Stevenson’s family and friends, particularly a large collection by his wife Fanny Van de Grift Stevenson, his mother Margaret Stevenson, and his stepdaughter Isobel Field. There are also literary manuscripts by Stevenson’s wife, stepdaughter, father Thomas Stevenson, stepson Lloyd Osbourne and step-grandson Austin Strong. These include important diaries from the family’s time in the South Seas and various unpublished materials.

Page 7 of Robert Louis Stevenson’s CASCO diary 

Fanny Osbourne and Samuel Osbourne’s divorce decree. December 15, 1879

Note to Lloyd Osbourne from Stevenson. Lloyd was his stepson. 

Fanny and Louis’s marriage license. May 17, 1880 in San Francisco, CA

Last writing of Robert Louis Stevenson. December 3, 1894

Secondary Source Material

Over a thousand articles and other documents conducive to research into the legacy of Robert Louis Stevenson are available. There are hundreds of scholarly and critical essays, newspaper and magazine reviews and articles, manuscripts, and research collections of a handful of Stevenson scholars, publishing proofs and edits, auction catalogs, playbills and scripts, educational projects, popular culture ephemera, and similar types of material.

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The Robert Louis Stevenson Museum is open
Tuesday – Saturday from 12 to 4 PM

Give to the RSLM

The Robert Louis Stevenson Museum depends on many sources to support our mission to preserve and promote the legacy of RLS

Address

1490 Library Lane
P.O. Box 23
St. Helena, CA 94574

Reach Out

T 707.963.3757
F 707.963.0917

[email protected]

Hours

Tuesday 12 PM – 4 PM 

Wednesday 12 PM – 4 PM 

Thursday 12 PM – 4 PM

Friday 12 PM – 4 PM

Saturday 12 PM – 4 PM