Physical description

Poetry of America
Author: W.J.Linton
Publisher: George Bell & Sons, York St Covent Garden, London
Date: 1878

Publication type

fiction

Inscriptions & markings

The label on the spine cover with typed text PAT 811.08 LIN
Paste down front end paper has a sticker from Warrnambool Mechanics Institute and Free Library covered by a sticker from Corangamite Regional Library Service.
Front loose endpaper has a stamp from Corangamite Regional Library Service.

Summary

The full title is Poetry of America: Selections From One Hundred American Poets From 1776 to 1876. Compiled just after the US Centennial, it is an ambitious anthology celebrating a century of American poetic independence from Britain. It includes works by major literary figures like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Edgar Allan Poe, and Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Beyond mainstream poetry, the book features two highly distinctive additions: a comprehensive introductory review analyzing early American verse written before 1776, and a section dedicated to traditional African American songs and spirituals. This was one of the earliest instances of a major transatlantic anthology recognizing African American folk music as a vital pillar of American culture. This volume also features an iconic frontispiece portrait of Walt Whitman.