Edgar Lee Masters

Max Lester Loges (Lamar University)
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Edgar Lee Masters was an early twentieth century American poet and prose writer. Although he wrote over fifty books in a variety of genres, he is almost exclusively known for

Spoon River Anthology (SRA)

, first published in serial form in 1914.

Masters was born on August 23, 1868 in Garnett, Kansas to Hardin and Emma Masters. His father was a lawyer who had recently come to Kansas for a change of scenery, but he soon returned to his hometown of Petersburg, Illinois on the Sagemon River where the family spent the next eleven years. In 1880 the family moved to Lewiston, Illinois on the Spoon River. Lewiston was larger than Petersburg and offered greater opportunities for Hardin to get established as a lawyer. These two towns, each located on a river, would serve in Masters’ mind as models

2120 words

Citation: Loges, Max Lester. "Edgar Lee Masters". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 September 2013 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2982, accessed 19 March 2024.]

2982 Edgar Lee Masters 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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