March 6, 2020 is the 214th birthday of Elizabeth Barrett Browning.  How Do We Celebrate Thee?  Visit the Armstrong Browning Library at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.   It is home to thousands of items related to Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. It has amassed one of the world’s largest collections of physical and digital research materials centered on one of history’s most noteworthy literary couples. And the library is free and open to the public.

Elizabeth is best remembered for her 1850 collection, Sonnets from the Portuguese. “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways…”  What valentine or special love letter does not include a portion of these sonnets?

 This amazing collection at Baylor includes Elizabeth’s:

Manuscripts including a rare working draft of “Sonnet No. 5”. Letters including one sharing her thoughts on slavery in America. Likenesses with photos used to recreate the poet’s dresses. The Brownings’ Library Collection. Personal Effects like a gift from her jewelry box.

In recent years, the Library has become known as a 19th-century research centr. The library has added substantial book and manuscript collections on Matthew Arnold, John Ruskin, Joseph Milsand, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Charles Dickens. Beyond these notables many other 19th-century writers,  poets and artists. Growing collections of 19th-century women poets and 19th-century theological pamphlets are among its newest avenues of expansion.

More information about Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning and the collection can be found on the Armstrong Browning Library and Museum website. Explore the Digital Collection of the Browning – from manuscripts, music, journals, photographs and more.