100 years ago

100 years ago on September 4, 1906, on the last night of the return crossing from the European tour he took with his parents, Vachel Lindsay had one his visions. Quoting Ruggles:

"Last night," he wrote, "I saw Immanuel singing in the New Heaven . . . in a bright grassy place . . . singing almost alone . . . singing wonderfully, as become a son of David. He was almost as simple a shepherd as David, and his robe was Angelico red. His lips scarcely sng at all, it was his harp that sang. And some one listening behind me said. 'It is Immanuel.'"

Harriet Monroe

It would be difficult to overstate the importance of Harriet Monroe (left) in Vachel Lindsay's career. In 1912, as she was researching prospective contributors for her brainchild magazine, Poetry, she found Vachel in an issue of the American and contacted him through that magazine.

Lindsay, fresh from the road on his last great tramp, responded with a large envelope full of verses including General William Booth Enters into Heaven. The appearance of that poem in Monroe's magazine in January, 1913 was the break-through event that secured Lindsay's place in American letters. Monroe later called it "a great event in the art."

Monroe remained a loyal friend and ally of Lindsay's for the rest of his life.

Lindsay home featured in Heartland Magazine

Heartland Magazine, the weekly pullout in The State Journal-Register, featured the Vachel Lindsay Home in its September 8, 2006 edition. The story, titled "Where Time Stands Still", was written by DiAnne Crown with photographs by Shannon Kirschner.

Feature stories such as this appear in the local newspapers from time to time serving to remind Springfield of the unique imprint left on the town by Lindsay, but this particular story features some of the best and most artistically conceived images of the interior of the home and its treasures ever presented in print.

The Vachel Lindsay Association is always deeply appreciative of the attention paid to Lindsay by the media, and we are excited to see Lindsay and the VL Home presented in such an attractive light.

About the image

We don't know who photographed the image above, a stunning take on the Vachel Lindsay bust by Adrien Voisin, but we found it at http://www.poetryfoundation.org/. We'll devote other posts to Poetry, Harriet Monroe and the Voisin bust.