Today in history

• 1634

  George Chapman – On the 12th of May 1634 George Chapman passes away in London [London, United Kingdom]

• 1810

  William Wordsworth – On the 12th of May 1810 William "Willy" Wordsworth is born [Cockermouth, Cumberland, United Kingdom]

• 1811

  Ralph Waldo Emerson – Emerson's father died of stomach cancer when the boy was just 8 years old. [Boston, Massachusetts, United States]

• 1812

  Edward Lear – Edward Lear was born in Holloway, Middlesex in 1812. He was the last but one of 21 children born to Anne Skerrit and Jeremiah Lear. [Holloway, United Kingdom]

• 1828

  Dante Gabriel Rossetti – Poet and Painter Dante Gabriel was born in 1828 in London, the son of an Italian immigrant father. He was the brother of poet Christina Rossetti, critic William Michael Rossetti, and author Maria Francesca Rossetti. [London, United Kingdom]

• 1842

  Thomas Moore – More Sayings and Doings of Ancient Nicholas is published in the Morning Chronicle on the 12th of May 1842 [London, United Kingdom]

• 1903

  Lorine Niedecker – On May the 12th, 1903 Lorine Niedecker is born [Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, United States]

• 1925

  Amy Lowell – Lowell died at the age of 51 from a cerebral hemorrhage whilst in her hometown of Brookline. [Brookline, Massachusetts, United States]

• 1967

  John Masefield – In 1966, Masefield developed gangrene of his ankle and this spread to the rest of his body. He died, at the age 88, in May 1967. His ashes were scattered in Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey. [Boar's Hill, Oxford, United Kingdom]

• 1970

  Nelly Sachs – On the 12th of May 1970 Nelly Sachs passes away at the age of 78 in Stockholm, Sweden [Stockholm, Sweden]

Featured news

Okano and Rumens Pass Away – Poetry News Roundup May 8th

In this week's poetry news round up we bring you articles about the sad loss of two figures from the world of poetry. Hirohiko Okano, Leading Japanese Tanka Poet Dies at 101 The respected Japanese poet, Hirohiko Okano, who selected the poetry for the Urakai Hajime annual New Year’s poetry-reading ceremony, has died due to heart failure at the age of 101. Born in 1924 in the Mie Prefecture, he studied ...

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