James E. (James Ephraim) McGirt

Born in Robeson County, North Carolina, in 1874, James Ephraim McGirt was a poet, publisher, editor, and businessman whose work reflects both literary drive and practical resilience. Reliable sources agree that he studied in North Carolina, including at Bennett College, and began publishing poetry around the turn of the twentieth century.

McGirt is known for books including Avenging the Maine, a Drunken A. B. and Other Poems and Some Simple Songs and a Few More Ambitious Attempts. He also moved into publishing and editing, helping create space for his own writing at a time when opportunities for Black authors were sharply limited.

What makes him especially memorable is the breadth of his life: he was not only a writer, but also an entrepreneur who built a career in business after his early literary work. He died in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 1930, and is remembered as part of the rich tradition of African American writing in the South.