Archive of approximately 50 letters, nearly all in Leary's hand; a small number of typed letters. On a variety of papers including Leary's personal stationery, writing paper from the United States Military Academy, West Point, the University of Alabama, and various plain papers, lined and unlined. Various sizes. In total comprising approximately 180 pages.

Unprecedented archive of correspondence from one of the most influential figures of the 1960s, best remembered for his involvement with the psychedelic substance LSD and his encouragement to the counterculture to "turn on, tune in, drop out." The letters span Leary's late high school years, through his enrollment at the United States Military Academy at West Point, his studies at the University of Alabama and his subsequent enlistment in the United States Army. All of the letters are penned to his childhood friend William Scanlon. Scanlon and Leary were schoolmates in Springfield, Massachusetts. After a year at Springfield's Classical High, Scanlon followed a religious calling, transferring his studies to a monastery of the Passionist Brothers Order in Western New York State. Their friendship endured and correspondence was frequent. Scanlon would later fill the role of Best Man at the wedding of Leary and his first bride, Marianne Bush. Scanlon later set aside his religious pursuits and enjoyed a successful career as a liquor distributor. The earlier letters show Leary as a presumably normal young man, with significant interest in sports (Leary played on golf, hockey, basketball and other sports teams), girls, cars and other typical pursuits of the young American male of the time. He frequently makes mention of his writings for the school paper "The Recorder" for which he served in several capacities. The high school letters serve to keep Scanlon up to date on the goings-on of their shared circle of friends. In one letter Leary recounts the "biggest thing in years" to happen when "the Hindenburg flew over Spfd. for about 15 minutes." Following high school and two years, in his family's tradition, at The College of The Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., Leary entered the United States Military Academy at West Point pursuing the study of Philosophy. In an interestingly prescient letter, on West Point stationery, Leary shares an idea for a story with his friend that is suggestive of later events in Leary's life: "I have a new idea for a story. A man discovers the "Milk of Human Kindness" which causes men to forget themself[sic] and act unselfishly. He tries it out on different people and the results are apparently chaotic. Example: clerks cease cheating the public & lying about their products & their employers go bankrupt etc. The result of the experiments threaten everything so important in our civilization & it would seem that civilization would crumble if people were unselfish..." In other letters while at West Point Leary makes several mentions of his Court Martial and silencing ("put in Coventry") for "belligerancy". Leary was the first cadet to be acquitted of these charges. Another letter, on University of Alabama stationery, relates his decision to change the course of his studies from Philosophy to Psychology: "...I have dropped Philosophy from my course entirely. Have been offered an assistantship in psychol. next year even tho I haven't had any of the courses." One of the later letters describes his life as an Army Psychologist: "My future seems pretty well decided - a month more here and then three months at Officers School...Actually I enjoy the life. The Army is a wonderful organization in its way - at least a couple of centuries ahead of its time - a good indication of how society is going. The Army, you recognize is tolerant, for any race or creed can advance equally,...It's the type of socialistic, semi-totalitarian state that we shall see or expect in the future..." A remarkable collection, ripe for further study. A rare glimpse into the formative years of a fascinating individual. Provenance: From the collection of Leary friend and biographer, Peter O. Whitmer, author of "Aquarius Revisited: Seven Who Created the Sixties Counterculture That Changed America", acquired directly from William Scanlon.