Robert Frost, one of the great poets of the 20th century, passed away on January 29th, 1963. He was born in San Francisco, California in 1874, to a journalist father and a Scottish immigrant mother. Frost’s early life was turbulent as his father died soon after the birth of his younger sister, leaving his mother to care for the family. Frost attended Lawrence High School and Harvard University, though he did not graduate from either. After leaving Harvard, he became a teacher and continued to write poetry. He married Elinor Miriam White in 1895 and had six children.
Frost published his first poem in 1894 and started gaining recognition from the public. By the 1920s, he had become one of the most widely read and admired poets in America. He earned four Pulitzer Prizes for poetry during his career. He also made several lecture tours and readings of his works, perfecting the art of public performance. His poems are noted for their use of rural and small-town imagery, and for their American sensibility.
Throughout his writing career, Frost was always concerned with the direction of modern poetry. In 1936, he published his most popular collection of poems titled “A Further Range,” which included some of his most famous poems, such as “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” and “The Road Not Taken.” He continued to publish poetry until his death in 1963. His last book, “In the Clearing,” was published in 1962.
Frost died of complications from prostate surgery on January 29th, 1963. He was buried in Old Bennington Cemetery in Vermont, where he had moved with his family in 1912. A 22-foot-high monument was erected in his honor in Bennington in 1965, which includes a quotation from his poem “The Gift Outright.” A national award for excellence in poetry was established in his name in 1996, and his work continues to be studied and celebrated.
Robert Frost is remembered as one of the greatest American poets of the 20th century. His work is admired for capturing a simple but powerful intersection between rural life and the complexities of modern society. Although he passed away nearly six decades ago, his impact on American culture and literature continues to be felt today.
Early Life and Education of Robert Frost
Robert Frost was born on March 26th, 1874, in San Francisco, California. His father, William Prescott Frost Jr., a journalist and editor, died shortly after Frost was born, leaving his mother, Isabelle Moodie, to care for Frost and his sister. After his mother passed away in 1888, Frost was taken in by his maternal grandparents in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He attended Lawrence High School and then enrolled at Dartmouth College in 1892, but left Dartmouth without graduating.
Frost then took classes at Harvard University for two-and-a-half years and managed to graduate in 1895 with honors. During his time in college, he wrote some of his earliest poems. In 1896, he moved to the New Hampshire farm owned by his grandfather, and began writing seriously. He married a schoolteacher, Elinor Miriam White, in 1895 and they had six children.
The Career of Robert Frost
Frost published his first poem, “My Butterfly: An Elegy” in the “New York Independent” in 1894. He slowly gained recognition as a poet, and by 1912 had become an established writer with the publication of “A Boy’s Will” and “North of Boston”. Frost’s success allowed him to quit teaching and devote his full attention to writing poetry. He moved to England in 1912 and became heavily influenced by British poets, such as Thomas Hardy and Edward Thomas.
In 1915, he and his family returned to America and settled on a farm in Franconia, New Hampshire. He continued to publish poetry and by 1921 was one of the most renowned poets in America, with the publication of “Mountain Interval” (1916) and “New Hampshire” (1923). He earned four Pulitzer Prizes in the 1920s and 1930s, and continued to travel the US and abroad to lecture on his poetry and read his works.
Frost had a profound impact on modern American poetry, becoming an artistic and cultural icon in the US and beyond. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1960 and was made a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1962. He published his last volume of poetry, “In the Clearing”, in 1962.
Death of Robert Frost
Frost underwent two invasive medical procedures in 1963, and the complications caused by the post-operative care led to his death on January 29th. He was buried in Bennington, Vermont, in the Old Bennington Cemetery, where it is said that “the sun will never set on [his] fame”. To honour his memory, a 22-foot-high monument was erected in Bennington in 1965, and includes a quotation from his poem “The Gift Outright”. A national award for excellence in poetry was established in his name in 1996.
Legacy of Robert Frost
Robert Frost became one of the most celebrated and beloved poets of the 20th century. His work, which often features rural and small-town themes, has influenced poets around the globe. His use of everyday language in poetic form, as well as his willingness to experiment with form, have continued to inspire generations of poets, authors, and readers.
In addition to his works of poetry, many of Frost’s letters and essays have been preserved and published. His lectures, interviews, and readings have been recorded, and some of his books have been adapted for film and television. Much of Frost’s work is still studied today, and he is remembered as a master of modern American poetry.
Honoring Robert Frost
To celebrate his lasting influence, Frost has been honored with memorials and awards in the US and around the world. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1960 and was made a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1962. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964.
In addition to these national awards, many universities, schools, and libraries have established awards, scholarships, and reading rooms in his honor. In 2015, the Robert Frost Farm in Derry, New Hampshire, was designated a National Historic Landmark, and is now open to the public.
Personal Life of Robert Frost
Robert Frost married Elinor Miriam White in 1895 and they had six children together. He experienced much sorrow during his lifetime—his mother and father both died when he was young, and his firstborn son also died—but he remained devoted to his family. He lived in England and the US, eventually settling in Derry, New Hampshire, where he and Elinor lived for the remainder of their lives.
Frost was a beloved and outgoing presence in the literary scene, and enjoyed rafting and riding horses. He was known to be mischievous, gregarious, and passionate. Despite suffering from bouts of depression, Frost was an astute observer of the world around him, and transcribed these observations into some of the most powerful poems of his time.
