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, …
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Citation: Loges, Max Lester. "Edgar Lee Masters". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 September 2013 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2982, accessed 21 November 2024.]