Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow – Life, Career, and Famous Quotes

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) was a beloved American poet and translator whose works—Evangeline, The Song of Hiawatha, Paul Revere’s Ride—became staples of 19th-century American reading. Explore his biography, style, legacy, and enduring lines.

Introduction

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is one of the most famous poets in United States history. In the 19th century, he was celebrated widely for his lyrical, approachable verse and for bringing poetic form to a broad reading public. His poems frequently combined narrative, moral sentiment, and musical cadence. But alongside the popular appeal lay a more complex life: of grief, scholarly ambition, translation, and an evolving sense of what American literature might be.

Longfellow’s influence endures: his lines remain quoted, his life remains commemorated (including a bust in Westminster Abbey’s Poet’s Corner), and his works still provide insight into the literary and cultural currents of 19th-century America.

Early Life and Family

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born on February 27, 1807, in Portland, in what was then the District of Maine (then part of Massachusetts).

He was the second of eight children of Stephen Longfellow, a lawyer and later U.S. Congressman, and Zilpah Wadsworth Longfellow. On his mother’s side he was descended from Peleg Wadsworth, a Revolutionary War general, and also traced matrilineal descent from early Pilgrim settlers, including a relation to Richard Warren who came on the Mayflower.

His childhood took place largely in the Wadsworth-Longfellow House (in Portland) and summertime visits to his grandfather’s farm in Hiram, Maine. He was precocious: at age 3 he attended a dame school; by age 6 he was in private academy studies, becoming fluent in reading and writing. His early exposure to his father’s library and to classic works shaped his sense of literature and gave him early models of European poetic and narrative traditions.

Youth, Education, and European Sojourn

At about age 15, Longfellow entered Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine (class of 1825). While at Bowdoin he was a classmate of Nathaniel Hawthorne, who would become a longtime friend. He was an active student, submitting poems and prose to local periodicals, and in his senior year he gave the commencement address. After graduation, he accepted (with conditions) a professorship of modern languages at Bowdoin, with the understanding that he would travel to Europe first to study languages.

From 1826 to 1829 he toured Europe (France, Spain, Italy, Germany, England), studying modern languages largely informally. During his time in Madrid, he met Washington Irving, who encouraged him in his literary ambitions. While in Europe, he suffered the loss of his younger sister Elizabeth to tuberculosis (in 1829), a blow that weighed heavily on him.

On returning to the U.S., he declined immediately taking up the professorship until he had established his language skills further, and eventually accepted a revised appointment.

In 1834, Longfellow was offered the Smith Professorship of Modern Languages at Harvard. He delayed assuming the post until 1837 so as to travel more and refine his linguistic and cultural knowledge. He settled in Cambridge, renting the historically significant Craigie House (which later became known as Longfellow House — Washington’s Headquarters) as his residence.

Personal Life: Marriage, Loss, and Family

Longfellow’s personal life was marked by both deep affection and tragic loss.

His first marriage was to Mary Storer Potter in 1831. However, Mary suffered a miscarriage in 1835 during a European sojourn and died subsequently. Her death deeply affected him and inspired poems such as Footsteps of Angels.

While in Europe he began courting Frances “Fanny” Appleton, the daughter of Nathan Appleton, whom he met in Switzerland. Their courtship involved Longfellow often walking from Cambridge to Boston to see her (crossing a bridge later named Longfellow Bridge). In 1839 they married. As part of the wedding gift, Nathan Appleton purchased the Craigie House for them. Henry and Fanny had six children: Charles, Ernest, Fanny (who died in infancy), Alice, h, and Anne Allegra.

Tragically, in 1861 Frances was badly injured when her dress caught fire; Longfellow attempted to save her and himself suffered severe burns. Frances died soon thereafter. After her death, Longfellow underwent a long period of emotional struggle and creative drought. His grief is immortalized in the sonnet “The Cross of Snow” (1879), reflecting his enduring sorrow.

Literary Career and Major Works

Longfellow’s writing career is broad and spans poetry, translation, and prose. His significance lies both in the works he produced and the cultural space he occupied.

Early Collections and Poems

• Voices of the Night (1839) was his first collection of poetry, combining translations with original poems (including A Psalm of Life).

• Ballads and Other Poems (1841) included such popular pieces as “The Village Blacksmith” and “The Wreck of the Hesperus.”

• He also published Poems on Slavery (1842) and The Belfry of Bruges and Other Poems (1845).

Narrative & Epic Poetry

• Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie (1847) is one of his most famous narrative poems, written in dactylic hexameters, telling the story of Acadian expulsion and love across time.

• The Song of Hiawatha (1855) is an epic poem rooted in Native American legend and myth, employing a trochaic rhythm reminiscent of Finnish epic metre.

• The Courtship of Miles Standish (1858) and Tales of a Wayside Inn (1863) are other narrative works combining legend, folklore, and moral storytelling.

Translation and Later Works

Longfellow’s scholarly ambition led him to translation:

• He translated Coplas de Jorge Manrique (a Spanish work) as early as 1833.

• But perhaps his greatest translation was of Dante’s Divine Comedy. From 1864 onward, he hosted a “Dante Club” of friends and scholars who met to read and critique the translations. The full English translation was published in 1867 and went through multiple printings.

• He also published The Poets and Poetry of Europe (an anthology of translations), and later undertook other poetic experiments.

In 1854 he left his Harvard professorship to devote himself full time to writing.

Style, Themes, and Influence

Longfellow’s poetry is characterized by melodiousness, clarity, narrative structure, and moral sentiment. He employed a variety of metrical forms: ballads, sonnets, anapests, trochees, hexameter, blank verse—choosing forms to suit his subject. He preferred to write in a manner accessible to general readers; he respected the reader and often emphasized the idea of having poetry listened to, not merely admired: “what a writer asks of his reader is not so much to like as to listen.” He seldom used overt autobiography, though grief, memory, and reflection surface subtly in works like Resignation (on the death of his daughter) or The Cross of Snow.

His cultural role was also significant: he helped shape a distinctly American poetic voice, embracing European tradition while addressing American history, landscape, and myth.

Historical Context & Cultural Milestones

• Longfellow’s prime years coincided with the American Renaissance—a moment when American letters sought identity and prestige comparable to European literature.

• He was among the Fireside Poets (New England poets whose works were widely read around family hearths), and his poems were often memorized and recited in homes and schools across the country.

• His translation of Dante gave Americans broader access to a European classical canon and elevated his status in the international literary community.

• During the Civil War era, Longfellow expressed hopes for reconciliation. His poem Christmas Bells (1863) was inspired by the war and later became a carol I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.

• His celebrity was significant: in 1877 his 70th birthday was celebrated nationwide with parades, readings, and speeches.

• After his death in 1882, his fame declined in the 20th century as literary tastes shifted toward modernism (which saw his style as dated).

Legacy and Influence

During his lifetime Longfellow was perhaps the most popular American poet, with wide readership at home and abroad. He remains one of the few American writers honored in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey (bust placed in 1884) — arguably the first American poet so recognized. His works were translated into many languages during his life, and his moral, accessible style influenced generations of readers and poets in the 19th century. However, later critics often dismissed him as sentimental, derivative, or overly conventional; his reputation waned in the 20th century. In recent years, there has been some revived interest in re-assessing Longfellow’s cultural importance and restoring awareness of the range and emotional depth of his work.

That said, his name remains embedded in American culture: the Longfellow Bridge in Boston/Cambridge, Longfellow Park in Cambridge, and the preservation of Longfellow House – Washington’s Headquarters still attract visitors.

Personality, Character, and Artistic Persona

Longfellow was generally regarded as gentle, modest, and reserved. He suffered from chronic neuralgia and poor eyesight, and in his later years he often exhibited a quieter life, less socializing, more introspection. His public persona emphasized domestic virtue, moral earnestness, and devotion to family; he was sometimes criticized for being too safe, too sentimental—yet many readers found solace and clarity in his voice. As a translator and scholar, he was methodical and serious, inviting colleagues and friends to engage with his Dante translation in rigorous meetings.

Famous Quotes of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Here are some of his best-known lines and aphorisms:

• “Lives of great men all remind us / We can make our lives sublime, / And, departing, leave behind us / Footprints on the sands of time.”

• “For after all, the best thing one can do when it is raining is let it rain.”

• “Music is the universal language of mankind.”

• “Into each life some rain must fall, Some days must be dark and dreary.”

• “The heights by great men reached and kept / Were not attained by sudden flight, / But they, while their companions slept, / Were toiling upward through the night.”

• “When one’s life is half over, there is time for the greatest change.”

• “There is no failure except in no longer trying.”

• “We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done.”

These lines reflect his optimism, his belief in moral striving, and his lyrical, accessible tone.

Lessons from Longfellow

1. Make poetry for a broad audience. Longfellow believed in writing in clear, musical language that could enter ordinary lives.

2. Embrace translation and cultural bridges. He showed that translating canonical works can enrich one’s own national literature.

3. Let grief inspire but not silence. His losses shaped his poetry and inner life, but he found a way to weave sorrow into art.

4. Pursue range. He moved between lyric, narrative, epic, and translation—never limiting himself to a single mode.

5. Steadiness over flamboyance. His reputation suggests that consistent, conscientious work builds enduring influence.

6. Poetry listens. His line about asking the reader to “listen” more than to “like” is a reminder that poetry is an act of engagement, not mere decoration.

Conclusion

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was a defining figure in 19th-century American poetry: beloved in his time, widely read, and deeply embedded in the cultural fabric of his era. His works resonated for their lyric beauty, narrative spirit, moral tone, and human accessibility.

Though later critical fashions relegated him to “safe” poetry, his lines still linger in popular memory, his house still stands, and his reputation continues to be reconsidered. For readers and writers alike, Longfellow’s life and work offer lessons in bridging tradition and innovation, in tempering ambition with humility, and in forging a poetic voice that both speaks and listens.