Robert Indiana kept a series of illustrated journals during the late 1950s and 1960s, in which he discusses the development of his work as well as his daily life on Coenties Slip.

In his journal entry for June 21, 1962, Indiana records a call from his gallerist Eleanor Ward, who informed him that his show (at the Stable Gallery, his first solo show) would be postponed until the middle of October, and that he would not open the gallery as planed. He notes "but undoubtedly October is a better slot than September. A group show initiates."

Indiana then called Museum of Modern Art curator Campbell Wylly to consult with him about the call: "he came to like conclusion—without being informed of my various and serious anxieties regarding [the] whole situation. I feel I am losing a contact with her which was never v[ery] strong in the first place—what with summer coming on, and her removal from [the] city in particular."

He continues: "then there is the question of 'can I last until October?' Financially I suppose [that] I can, but my anxiety about my loft and my work—all stored in [this] firetrap is great indeed. I don’t feel particularly welcome [to] broach any solutions [to] these problems [to] her: she has not presented [that] opening."

Indiana then records tightening the stretcher for "Coenties Slip," the final section of The Trilogy (The Melville Triptych). He also writes that Wylly, who was on his way to Washington, D.C., came down to see James Rosenquist's new painting, which he liked but did not comment on its chances of being included in the collection for the new Singer Manufacturing Company offices.