Vachel Lindsay Collection
Title
Vachel Lindsay Collection
Subject
Lindsay, Vachel, 1879-1931
Vachel Lindsay Association
Lindsay, Elizabeth Conner, 1901-1954
Lindsay, Nick, 1922-
Russell, Susan Doniphan Lindsay, 1926-1990
Graham, Elizabeth
Lindsay, Vachel Thomas, 1843-1918
Lindsay, Esther Catharine Frazee, 1848-1922
Frazee, Ephraim S. (Ephraim Samuel), 1824-1896
Description
Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, a major American poet, was born in 1879 at 603 South Fifth Street in Springfield, Illinois to Dr. Vachel Thomas Lindsay and Catherine Frazee Lindsay. He graduated from Springfield High School and studied at Hiram College in Ohio, the Chicago Art Institute and the New York School of Art.
Lindsay made three famous walking tours of the United States in 1906, 1908 and 1912, covering more than 2,800 miles. On these treks, Lindsay traded poems for food and shelter, earning him the title “The Prairie Troubadour.”
Lindsay first earned fame with the publication of his poem “General William Booth Enters into Heaven” in 1913. Two years later his poem, “The Wedding of the Rose and the Lotus”, calling for tolerance between Eastern and Western cultures was printed by the United States Secretary of the Interior and sent to both houses of Congress in connection with the opening of the Panama Canal.
Much of Lindsay’s poetry was written to be read aloud, and he performed extensively across the country and in Europe. He often created drawings to go with his poems. He was a leading voice in the American “New Poetry” movement and published a total of 20 volumes of poetry and prose. He and other artists of his day championed a new language to express new subjects, such as civil liberties, civic excellence and humanitarian and aesthetic values. He also wrote poems of protest against spiritual and environmental blight. Lindsay’s Springfield home was his creative center, and he returned there many times during his career.
In 1925 he married Elizabeth Conner of Spokane, Washington. He returned to Springfield with his wife and two children in 1929, where he committed suicide on December 5, 1931.
The Vachel Lindsay Association, a not-for-profit private corporation, was founded in 1946 in Springfield, Illinois “to perpetuate the spiritual and material estate of Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, the Poet”. The organization proposed to finance the collection and publication of various Lindsayana and to maintain and preserve the Lindsay Home as a site for perpetuating interest in Lindsay and his poetry and ideals. In 1990 the Lindsay Home was transferred to the state of Illinois and became a historic site open to the public. The Association continues to promote interest in Lindsay through various public programming and publishing endeavors. Elizabeth Graham, friend of Lindsay, was a founding member and curator of the Lindsay Home from 1958 to 1978.
The finding aid for the Vachel Lindsay Association Records, 1881-1994 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library may be found at http://alplm-cdi.com/chroniclingillinois/items/show/650.
Photographs in this collection include images of Vachel Lindsay and his extended family as well as Vachel Lindsay Association members and activities.
Lindsay made three famous walking tours of the United States in 1906, 1908 and 1912, covering more than 2,800 miles. On these treks, Lindsay traded poems for food and shelter, earning him the title “The Prairie Troubadour.”
Lindsay first earned fame with the publication of his poem “General William Booth Enters into Heaven” in 1913. Two years later his poem, “The Wedding of the Rose and the Lotus”, calling for tolerance between Eastern and Western cultures was printed by the United States Secretary of the Interior and sent to both houses of Congress in connection with the opening of the Panama Canal.
Much of Lindsay’s poetry was written to be read aloud, and he performed extensively across the country and in Europe. He often created drawings to go with his poems. He was a leading voice in the American “New Poetry” movement and published a total of 20 volumes of poetry and prose. He and other artists of his day championed a new language to express new subjects, such as civil liberties, civic excellence and humanitarian and aesthetic values. He also wrote poems of protest against spiritual and environmental blight. Lindsay’s Springfield home was his creative center, and he returned there many times during his career.
In 1925 he married Elizabeth Conner of Spokane, Washington. He returned to Springfield with his wife and two children in 1929, where he committed suicide on December 5, 1931.
The Vachel Lindsay Association, a not-for-profit private corporation, was founded in 1946 in Springfield, Illinois “to perpetuate the spiritual and material estate of Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, the Poet”. The organization proposed to finance the collection and publication of various Lindsayana and to maintain and preserve the Lindsay Home as a site for perpetuating interest in Lindsay and his poetry and ideals. In 1990 the Lindsay Home was transferred to the state of Illinois and became a historic site open to the public. The Association continues to promote interest in Lindsay through various public programming and publishing endeavors. Elizabeth Graham, friend of Lindsay, was a founding member and curator of the Lindsay Home from 1958 to 1978.
The finding aid for the Vachel Lindsay Association Records, 1881-1994 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library may be found at http://alplm-cdi.com/chroniclingillinois/items/show/650.
Photographs in this collection include images of Vachel Lindsay and his extended family as well as Vachel Lindsay Association members and activities.
Collection Items
Frances Frazee Hamilton
A young Frances Frazee Hamilton poses for a portrait next to a long curtain. Frances Frazee Hamilton was the sister of Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay and aunt of Vachel Lindsay.
Josie Frazee, [Sudie] Frazee, and Annie Frazee
![Josie Frazee, [Sudie] Frazee, and Annie Frazee](https://chroniclingillinois.org/files/thumbnails/5e9e7643dd7cb536b29766d486fbe7aa.jpg "Josie Frazee, [Sudie] Frazee, and Annie Frazee")
Josie, [Sudie], and Annie Frazee sit for a portrait in front of a pastoral backdrop.
Eva Frazee, Gracie Frazee, and Mary Frazee
Eva Frazee poses with her daughters, Gracie (left), and Mary (right) for a portrait.
Elizabeth Lindsay and Child
Elizabeth Conner Lindsay closes her eyes while holding a young child in a candid photograph.
Vachel Lindsay and Vachel Lindsay Blair
Vachel Lindsay poses for a photo in Cleveland, Ohio, with his nephew, Vachel Lindsay Blair, the son of Vachel's sister, Joy Frazee Lindsay Blair.
Vachel Lindsay
Vachel Lindsay sits in a chair with an unidentified boy on his knee for an outdoor portrait.
Vachel Lindsay and Unidentified Girl
Vachel Lindsay sits in a chair speaking to an unidentified girl while their picture is taken.
Vachel Lindsay
Vachel Lindsay poses for a portrait at the age of 16. On verso: "Nicholas Vachel Lindsay, Jan. 28, 1896, Aged 16 yr, 3 mo, 18 da, Weight 120 lbs; Height 5 ft, 6 1/2 in."
Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay, Vachel Thomas Lindsay, Olive Catharine Lindsay Wakefield, Aurthur Paul Wakefield, Mary Churchill Wakefield, Catharine Frazee Wakefield, and Vachel Lindsay Wakefield
Members of the Lindsay and Wakefield families pose for a photo outside the Lindsay residence in Springfield. Included are Vachel Lindsay's parents, Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay (left) and Vachel Thomas Lindsay (middle), his sister, Olive Catharine…
Miss Shropshire's Sunday School Class
Sunday school children, including Vachel Lindsay (on floor in front of Miss Shropshire), pose for a class photo with their teacher in Springfield. Lindsay was eight years old at the time of this photo.
Olive Lindsay, Esther Lindsay, Isabel Lindsay, and Vachel Lindsay
Olive Lindsay (left), Isabel Lindsay (lower middle), Esther Lindsay (upper middle), and Vachel Lindsay (right) pose for a portrait. According to the verso, Esther and Isabel were the two oldest of the three sisters who died at a young age. The third,…
Boy and Girl at Table
An unidentified boy seated at a table and a girl holding a book pose in profile for a portrait.
Vachel Thomas Lindsay
Vachel Thomas Lindsay, father of poet Vachel Lindsay, poses in profile for a portrat.
Ephraim S. Frazee
Ephraim S. Frazee, a preacher from Rush County, Indiana, poses for a portrait in a dark suit. Frazee was the husband of Frances Elizabeth Austen Frazee and the father of Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay.
Vachel Lindsay and Elizabeth Conner Lindsay
Vachel Lindsay and his wife, Elizabeth Conner Lindsay, pose for a photo under a willow tree.On verso: "Love Under the Golden Willows."
Vachel Lindsay
A young Vachel Lindsay stands next to a fabric-covered pedestal during a portrait session.
Susan E. Wilcox
Poet Susan E. Wilcox poses for a portrait wearing a dark dress with a light collar. Wilcox was Vachel Lindsay's English teacher at Springfield High School. She is credited with first inspiring his writing.
Vachel Lindsay
Vachel Lindsay stands between a chair and a framed picture on an easel during a portrait session.
Vachel Lindsay Funeral
Pallbearers carry poet Vachel Lindsay's coffin from the hearse into First Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois. The pallbearers are Willis J. Spaulding, Roger E. Chapin, Duncan MacDonald, Paul M. Angle, John P. Snigg, Dr. H. S. Morrison, Romaine…
Vachel Lindsay Funeral
Pallbearers carry Vachel Lindsay's coffin out of First Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois. Lindsay's wife, Elizabeth Conner Lindsay, and sister, Olive Catharine Lindsay Wakefield, follow pallbearers Willis J. Spaulding, Roger E. Chapin, Duncan…
Vachel Lindsay Funeral
Pallbearers carry Vachel Lindsay's coffin from First Christian Church in Springfield, Illinois. Pallbearers include Willis J. Spaulding, Roger E. Chapin, Duncan MacDonald, Paul M. Angle, John P. Snigg, Dr. H. S. Morrison, Romaine Proctor, and V. Y.…
Frances Elizabeth Austen Frazee
Frances Elizabeth Austen Frazee, of Rush County, Indiana, poses for a portrait wearing a dark dress. Frazee was the wife of preacher Ephraim S. Frazee, the mother of Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay, and grandmother of Nicholas Vachel Lindsay.
Ephraim S. Frazee
Ephraim S. Frazee, a preacher of Rush County, Indiana, poses for a portrait wearing a dark suit. Frazee was the husband of Frances Elizabeth Austen Frazee, the father of Esther Catharine Frazee Lindsay, and the grandfather of poet Vachel Lindsay.
Collection Tree
- Illinois Photographic Collection
- Vachel Lindsay Collection