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Altadena, California April 24, 1935
Miss Clerm Phelps
Honoraville, Alabama Dear Miss Phelps: While Jane Withersteen in "Riders of the Purple Sage" did not actually exist in the life, she was yet a product of conditions that were possible at that time. I spent a number of years traveling in the country in which the story is laid and came in contact with many characters around whome I built the romance. The sequel to "Riders of the Purple Sage" is the "Rainbow Trail." Yours sincerely, Zane Grey |
I recently found a letter that was written by Zane Grey to my father’s sister, Clera Phelps, in April 1935. I was not familiar with Mr. Grey, but looked up the book he referenced in the letter and found this website. Apparently, my aunt, an avid reader, had written him a letter, asking him questions about a character named Jane Withersteen in “Riders of the Purple Sage.” In the letter he mentioned a sequel called the “Rainbow Trail.”I’m not sure if it is valuable or collectable, but it is certainly interesting that he took the time to send a personal letter to my18-year-old aunt in Alabama.
My aunt, Clera Phelps, died in 1988 and the community they lived in --Honoraville, is about eight miles East of Greenville, Alabama. (It is pronounced, believe it or not, Hor-NOR-vul.)
Thanks for your interest,
Jennifer Davis
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