George W. Cutter (died 1865) was an American

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

. According to biographical material provided by a cousin, he was christened George Wales Cutter. The date and place of his birth is disputed, claimed by or traced to either

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Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He settled in

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

, in 1826, where he studied and practiced law and ultimately was elected to the

Indiana legislature The Indiana General Assembly is the state legislature, or legislative branch, of the state of Indiana. It is a bicameral legislature that consists of a lower house, the Indiana House of Representatives, and an upper house, the Indiana Senate. Th ...

. After marrying actress Frances Denny Drake, widow of actor, Alexander Drake, who was known in national theater circles as "Mrs. Drake, Star of the West", in 1839, the Cutters resided in Terre Haute before relocating to the Drake residence in Covington, Kentucky. He fought in the Mexican War, serving under G. Zachary Taylor, and later entered the political field, where he soon became known as a brilliant speaker. His most celebrated poems are "The Song of Steam" "The Song of the Lightning", "E Pluribus Unum" and "Buena Vista". Cutter's marriage to Frances Denny Drake ended in divorce and, though he remarried, much of the remainder of his life was troubled by bouts with intemperance. He died in

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, in 1865. His works were published under the respective titles: *''Buena Vista and Other Poems'' (1848) *''Song of Steam and Other Poems'' (1857) *''Poems, National and Patriotic'' (1857) *

References

;Sources *''George W. Cutter: America's Poet Warrior'', The Journal of Kentucky Studies 18 (2001), pp. 74–85. Indiana lawyers People from Covington, Kentucky Writers from Terre Haute, Indiana Poets from Washington, D.C. American military personnel of the Mexican–American War 19th-century births 1865 deaths 19th-century American poets American male poets 19th-century American male writers 19th-century American lawyers {{US-poet-1800s-stub