John Greenleaf Whittier

author

John Greenleaf Whittier

1807–1892

An American Quaker poet and passionate abolitionist, John Greenleaf Whittier turned New England landscapes, faith, and the struggle against slavery into memorable verse. He is especially remembered for his anti-slavery poems and the beloved narrative poem Snow-Bound.

45 Audiobooks

Yankee Gypsies

Yankee Gypsies

by John Greenleaf Whittier

Snow-bound : a winter idyll

Snow-bound : a winter idyll

by John Greenleaf Whittier

About the author

Born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, in 1807, John Greenleaf Whittier grew up in a Quaker family and began writing poetry at an early age. Though he had limited formal education, he developed a long career as a poet, editor, journalist, and advocate for social reform.

Whittier became one of the most dedicated literary voices of the American abolitionist movement. His writing was shaped by his rural New England upbringing, his Quaker faith, and his admiration for the Scottish poet Robert Burns. His collections included Voices of Freedom, Songs of Labour, and In War Time.

A member of the group often called the Fireside Poets, Whittier reached a wide audience with poems about nature, home, liberty, and moral conviction. His 1866 work Snow-Bound remains one of his best-known books. He died in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, in 1892.