Edwin Markham House

Edwin Markham House. . Edwin Markham and his mother moved into this house at 432 South Eighth Street in 1870 while he studied to become a teacher at San José Normal School, now known as San José State University. After graduation, he became a teacher and then a school administrator., Inspired by the Jean-Francois Millet painting entitled "Man with a Hoe", Markham gained national fame after he published a similarly titled poem of social protest in 1899. Markham made the French peasant the symbol of the exploited classes throughout the world. Following this initial literary success, he left the school and concerned himself with social and industrial problems., Markham continued his poetry and writings into the twentieth century until his death in 1940 at the age of 88. His New York Times obituary noted Markham as "the poet laureate for labor" and "the dean of American poets.", Encouraged by the worldwide attention toward the poet, San José State students and faculty formed the Edwin Markham Landmark Association and held meetings in the home. The university purchased the structure in 1920. The house moved to History Park in 1987., This building is the current home of the Poetry Center San José.