Nancy Byrd Turner
Encyclopedia
Nancy Byrd Turner was an American poet
, editor and lecturer.
In 1898 she graduated from Hannah More Academy
in Maryland and began work as a teacher. During this period her work appeared in several national magazines including the Saturday Evening Post and Scribners.
In 1917, she moved to Boston to join the editorial staff of The Youth's Companion. By 1922 she was an editor for The Atlantic, The Independent
, and Houghton Mifflin. She joined the MacDowell art colony
in 1925 and remained there until 1944.
Her first book of poetry, A Riband on My Rein, was published in 1929. Over the course of her career she published 15 books, ranging from adult poetry to children's literature and lyrics. Her work appeared in England and in the United States in such magazines as Good Housekeeping, Harper's Magazine, Ladies' Home Journal, and the New Yorker.
She retired to Ashland
, Virginia
to become a lecturer and freelance writer.
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, editor and lecturer.
Life
Nancy Byrd Turner, born in Boydton, Virginia, was the eldest child of Rev. Byrd Thornton and Nancy Turner.In 1898 she graduated from Hannah More Academy
St. Michael's Church (Reisterstown, Maryland)
St. Michael's Church, also known as St. Michael's Chapel and Hannah More Chapel, is a historic Episcopal Church located at Academy Lane and Reisterstown Road in Reisterstown, Baltimore County, Maryland. It is a small, Carpenter Gothic-style, board and batten frame structure. It features a simple...
in Maryland and began work as a teacher. During this period her work appeared in several national magazines including the Saturday Evening Post and Scribners.
In 1917, she moved to Boston to join the editorial staff of The Youth's Companion. By 1922 she was an editor for The Atlantic, The Independent
The Independent (Boston)
The Independent published in Boston, Massachusetts, was a weekly newspaper devoted to politics, social and economic tendencies, history, literature, and the arts. It was published from 1848 to 1928, when it merged with The Outlook....
, and Houghton Mifflin. She joined the MacDowell art colony
MacDowell Colony
The MacDowell Colony is an art colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, U.S.A., founded in 1907 by Marian MacDowell, pianist and wife of composer Edward MacDowell. She established the institution and its endowment chiefly with donated funds...
in 1925 and remained there until 1944.
Her first book of poetry, A Riband on My Rein, was published in 1929. Over the course of her career she published 15 books, ranging from adult poetry to children's literature and lyrics. Her work appeared in England and in the United States in such magazines as Good Housekeeping, Harper's Magazine, Ladies' Home Journal, and the New Yorker.
She retired to Ashland
Ashland, Virginia
Originally known as Slash Cottage, Ashland is located on the Old Washington Highway U.S. Route One and the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad, a busy north-south route now owned by CSX Transportation...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
to become a lecturer and freelance writer.
Awards
- 1930 Golden Rose AwardGolden Rose AwardThe Golden Rose Award, one of America’s oldest literary prizes, was inaugurated in 1919.The rose was modeled after the Gold Rose which is now in the Cluny Museum in Paris. The awards the Rose annually for American poetry.-List of winners:...
, of the New England Poetry Society. - 1948 Virginia Writers' Club's poetry prize