Mark Twain
Mark Twain Resources
Googling Mark Twain will bring up more than 12,300,000 hits.
You’ll need to make distinctions between inaccurate or copycat sites and the real thing. These are some of the best on the web.
Mark Twain Papers & Project
The Mark Twain Papers & Project at the University of California, Berkeley is where Twain’s vast published and unpublished materials are archived. The project has published scholarly editions of many of his works and offers extraordinary access to materials, including a searchable database of all known letters to and from Samuel L. Clemens.
Center for Mark Twain Studies
The Center for Mark Twain Studies at Elmira College in upstate New York maintains a strong archive, as well as a study center for scholars in the former home of Clemens’ sister-in-law, which was a summer retreat for the Clemens family and a workplace for the writer.
TwainQuotes.com
Barbara Schmidt’s twainquotes.com site is a wealth of information (not only quotes), but also hundreds of primary materials on Mark Twain, such as interviews and articles from the press of the era.
Mark Twain Forum
The Mark Twain Forum is a place where scholars and non-scholars swap information, quash myths and trade (sometimes strongly worded) opinions on the great American writer.
Mark Twain in His Times
Noted Mark Twain scholar Stephen Railton “produces and directs” this delightful, cleverly designed site from the University of Virginia. There are dozens of texts and manuscripts, scores of contemporary reviews and articles, hundreds of images and interactive exhibits.
Mark Twain: A Film Directed by Ken Burns
Mark Twain: A Film Directed by Ken Burns is a PBS site associated with the much-viewed documentary. It includes a chronology of Twain’s life, selected writings, classroom activities for teachers, and other source material, all wrapped up neatly in an elegant design.
Viewing Mark Twain Books
…And of course, there are Mark Twain’s books themselves, viewable and downloadable on Project Gutenberg.
Other Places Associated with Mark Twain
The Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum in Hannibal, MO
The mission of the Mark Twain Home Foundation is to promote awareness and appreciation of the life and works of Mark Twain and to demonstrate the relevance of his stories and ideas to citizens of the world.
Mark Twain Birthplace in Florida, MO
Our fellow Mark Twain house museums in Missouri are great places to visit, offering a perspective on the writer’s formative years and the world portrayed in his most famous books.
Mark Twain Public Library
And don’t forget the library in Redding, Connecticut founded by Mark Twain, which still has many of the books he donated (many still with his comments in the margins!) Librarian Heather Morgan works hard to preserve Twain’s heritage at www.marktwainlibrary.org.
Twain’s Last Days
Brent Colley, a local historian, has compiled a wealth of information on Twain’s last days in his Redding home, Stormfield.