Lewis Morris--New Jersey's Colonial Poet-Governor

Authors

  • Richard Cook Rutgers University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14713/jrul.v24i3.1404

Keywords:

Lewis Morris, New Jersey, Poetry

Abstract

Lewis Morris (1671-1746) was the govenor of colonial New Jersey from 1738-1746 and his family papers are in Rutgers Special Collections. Among these papers are a sheaf of some eighteen poems of the Governor's own composition.  Cook discusses his public life and his poetry.  He concludes Moris "practiced poetry as a gentlemanly diversion, intended for little more than the private amusement of himself and a few friends. It is perhaps a sufficient tribute to Lewis Morris's satiric vigor that the modern reader, more than two centuries later, can still share some measure of that amusement."

Author Biography

Richard Cook, Rutgers University

Rutgers University Libraries

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Published

2012-05-10

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Section

Articles