author
John B. (John Banister) Tabb
1845–1909
Remembered for brief, musical poems that often turn on wit, faith, and close attention to nature, this Virginia-born writer also lived a remarkable life as a teacher and Catholic priest. His verse was widely published in major magazines of his day and still stands out for its delicacy and compression.
1 Audiobook
Child Verse: Poems Grave & Gay
by John B. (John Banister) Tabb
About the author
Born in Virginia on March 22, 1845, John Banister Tabb lived through a dramatic stretch of American history. During the Civil War he served on the Confederate side and was later held at Point Lookout prison. After the war, he taught in Baltimore and at Racine College before entering the Roman Catholic Church in 1872.
Tabb studied for the priesthood at St. Charles College in Maryland, was ordained in 1884, and went on to teach English there for many years. He became widely known as "Father Tabb," a poet-priest whose short lyrics appeared in magazines such as Harper's Monthly, The Atlantic Monthly, and The Cosmopolitan.
His poems are often very brief, but they carry a surprising amount of feeling and craft. Writing about birds, flowers, memory, sorrow, childhood, and devotion, he developed a style that was graceful, compact, and instantly recognizable. He died in Maryland on November 19, 1909.