Old Aristocracy Hill in Springfield in Sangamon County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Robert Stuart Fitzgerald Boyhood Home

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2021

1. Robert Stuart Fitzgerald Boyhood Home Marker

Inscription. Poet, translator, writer, educator, Robert Stuart Fitzgerald (1910-1985) lived in his family's home on this site (215 E. Jackson) for 20 years. While a student at Springfield High School, his talent for poetry came to the attention of poet Vachel Lindsay who lived just three blocks away. Fitzgerald was the author of three books of poems. His translations of Homer's Odyssey and Iliad and Virgil's Aeneid remain standard works for American scholars and students, and his other memoirs and writings have enduring value. From 1965-1981 he was Boylston Professor at Harvard. He was a close friend of James Agee, Flannery O'Connor, William Maxwell, and other significant writers of his generation. Among his many honors were election to the American Institute of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In the last year of his life he was named Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, a position later renamed Poet Laureate of the United States. For the 50th Anniversary of the Harvard Class of '33, he offered this observation: "So hard at best is the lot of man, and so great is the beauty he can apprehend,

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that only a religious conception of things can take in the extremes and meet the case. Our lifetimes have seen the opening of abysses before which the mind quails. But it seems to me there are a few things everyone can humbly try to hold onto: love and mercy (and humor) in everyday living; the quest for exact truth in language and affairs of the intellect; self-recollection or prayer; and the peace, the composed energy of art."

Erected 2010 by Springfield High School, the Vachel Lindsay Association, Illinois State Bar Association, and the Illinois State Historical Society.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music. In addition, it is included in the Illinois State Historical Society series list.

Location. 39° 47.84′ N, 89° 39.148′ W. Marker is in Springfield, Illinois, in Sangamon County. It is in Old Aristocracy Hill. It is at the intersection of East Jackson Street and South 2nd Street, on the left when traveling east on East Jackson Street. The marker is located along the street in front of a parking lot. Touch for map. Marker

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2021

2. Robert Stuart Fitzgerald Boyhood Home Marker

is at or near this postal address: 215 East Jackson Street, Springfield IL 62701, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Illinois.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: I Have a Dream (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The State Capitol (about 700 feet away); Second and Monroe Streets (approx. 0.2 miles away); Spanish American War Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Lincoln's Vision for America (approx. 0.2 miles away); The 21-Star Flag (approx. 0.2 miles away); "An Agreeable Assemblage of Dwelling Houses" (approx. 0.2 miles away); Three First Ladies Make a Difference (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Springfield.

Also see . . . Robert Fitzgerald.

Robert Stuart Fitzgerald; 12 October 1910 – 16 January 1985) was an American poet, critic and translator whose renderings of the Greek classics "became standard works for a generation of scholars and students". He was best known as a translator of ancient Greek and Latin. He also composed several books of his own poetry. Source: Wikipedia

(Submitted on October 26, 2021, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

The view of the Robert Stuart Fitzgerald Boyhood Home Marker from the street image. Click for full size.

Photographed by James Hulse, October 26, 2021

3. The view of the Robert Stuart Fitzgerald Boyhood Home Marker from the street

Credits. This page was last revised on December 14, 2024. It was originally submitted on October 26, 2021, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 312 times since then and 30 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on October 26, 2021, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.