George Pope Morris (October 10, 1802 – July 6, 1864) was an American editor, poet, and songwriter.

Life and work

With

Nathaniel Parker Willis Nathaniel Parker Willis (January 20, 1806 – January 20, 1867), also known as N. P. Willis,Baker, 3 was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfello ...

, he co-founded the daily ''

New York Evening Mirror The ''New-York Mirror'' was a weekly newspaper published in New York City from 1823 to 1842, succeeded by ''The New Mirror'' in 1843 and 1844. Its producers then launched a daily newspaper named ''The Evening Mirror'', which published from 1844 ...

''Sova, Dawn B. ''Edgar Allan Poe: A to Z''. New York: Checkmark Books, 2001: 160. by merging his fledgling weekly ''

New-York Mirror The ''New-York Mirror'' was a weekly newspaper published in New York City from 1823 to 1842, succeeded by ''The New Mirror'' in 1843 and 1844. Its producers then launched a daily newspaper named ''The Evening Mirror'', which published from 1844 ...

'' with Willis's ''American Monthly'' in August 1831. Morris is credited with the longevity the ''Evening Mirror'' would enjoy and for giving it a wide scope, covering not only news and entertainment but reviews of the fine arts, editorials, and many original engravings. Morris also funded in advance Willis's trip to Europe, for which Willis wrote several letters to be published in the ''Mirror'', which helped establish his fame. On January 29, 1845, the ''Evening Mirror'' published an "advance copy" of

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

's "

The Raven "The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe. First published in January 1845, the poem is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. It tells of a distraught lover who is paid a myste ...

". It was the first publication of that poem with the author's name. The publishing partners also issued an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

called ''The Prose and Poetry of America'' in 1845. Willis and Morris left the ''Mirror'' in 1846 and founded a new weekly, the ''National Press'', which was renamed the ''Home Journal'' after eight months. Beginning in 1854 his son

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

, who had graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1851, resigned from the Army and worked for the newspaper as an editor. Beginning in 1901, it was published as '' Town and Country'' and is still in print under that title today. Their prospectus for the publication, published November 21, 1846, announced their intentions to create a magazine "to circle around the family table".

In addition to his publishing and editorial work, Morris was popular as a poet and songwriter; especially well-known was his poem-turned-song "Woodman, Spare that Tree!" His songs in particular were popular enough that ''

Graham's Magazine ''Graham's Magazine'' was a nineteenth-century periodical based in Philadelphia established by George Rex Graham and published from 1840 to 1858. It was alternatively referred to as ''Graham's Lady's and Gentleman's Magazine'' (1841–1842, and J ...

'' in Philadelphia promised Morris $50, sight unseen, for any work he wanted to publish in the periodical. "Woodman, Spare that Tree!" was first published in the January 17, 1837, issue of the ''Mirror'' under the title "The Oak" and was that year set to music by Henry Russell before being reprinted under its more common title in 1853. Lines from the poem are often quoted by

environmentalists An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

. The poem was also included in one of Morris's volumes of collected poems, ''The Deserted Bride and Other Poems'', 1838, which ran into several editions. Morris was friends with artist

Robert Walter Weir Robert Walter Weir (June 18, 1803 – May 1, 1889) was an American artist and educator and is considered a painter of the Hudson River School. Weir was elected to the National Academy of Design in 1829 and was an instructor at the United States M ...

to whom he dedicated his only book of prose, ''The Little Frenchman and His Water Lots'' (1839). A collection of short stories and sketches, the little Frenchman of the title story was the victim of an unscrupulous dealer in real estate bordering

Wallabout Bay Wallabout Bay is a small body of water in Upper New York Bay along the northwest shore of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, between the present Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges. It is located opposite Corlear's Hook in Manhattan, acros ...

, that was under water at high tide. Morris died July 6, 1864. Horace Binney Wallace wrote the introductory biographical notice for Morris's posthumous collected works.

Critical response

Critic and writer

acknowledged the popularity of Morris's songs, "which have taken fast hold upon the popular taste, and which are deservedly celebrated". In April 1840, Poe wrote that Morris was "very decidedly, our best writer of songs—and, in saying this, I mean to assign him a high rank as ''poet''". Willis wrote of Morris: "He is just what poets would be if they sang like birds without criticism... nothing can stop a song of his". Morris was one of several poets who were gently mocked by

Bayard Taylor Bayard Taylor (January 11, 1825December 19, 1878) was an American poet, literary critic, translator, travel author, and diplomat. As a poet, he was very popular, with a crowd of more than 4,000 attending a poetry reading once, which was a record ...

in his 1876 verse parody ''The Echo Club and Other Literary Diversions''.Wermuth, Paul C. ''Bayard Taylor''. New York: Twayne Publishers, Inc., 1973: 163. .

Bibliography

*''The Deserted Bride and Other Poems'' (1838) *''The Little Frenchman and His Water Lots'' (1839)

References

External links

* * *
1843 issue of ''The New Mirror''
edited by G. P. Morris and N. P. Willis, at

Google Book Search Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

Woodman, Spare That Tree!
: the first American environmental protest song?
''The Deserted Bride and Other Poems''
by George P. Morris (1843), at Google Book Search
George Pope Morris Collection
at the New York Public Library

from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

Derek B Scott sings Henry Russell's 1837 setting of “Woodman, Spare That Tree"Songs on IMSLP
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, George Pope American newspaper publishers (people) American male poets American editors American male songwriters People from Philadelphia 1802 births 1864 deaths 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century American male musicians