Donald Gallup's descriptive bibliographies of Gertrude Stein, T. S. Eliot, and Ezra Pound, based in part on his own collections, have been admired by scholars of twentieth-century literature. Gallup is also known for his work on editions of the writings of Stein, Thornton Wilder, and Eugene O'Neill. His literary friendships have been instrumental in the acquisition of material for his own collections and for those of Yale University Library.

Donald Clifford Gallup was born on 12 May 1913 in Sterling, Connecticut, the son of Carl Daniel Gallup, a lumberman, and Lottie Stanton Gallup. He attended Plainfield High School, gaining a Milner Scholarship to enter Yale University in the fall of 1930, where he received his A.B. in 1934. As a self-supporting honors student he developed his interests in book collecting, American and English literature, and the theater. Early influences were Chauncey Brewster Tinker, Sterling Professor of English and Keeper of Rare...