Date of Birth: February 22, 1892
Zodiac Sign: Pisces
Date of Death: October 19, 1950
Biography
Edna St. Vincent Millay, born on February 22, 1892, in Rockland, Maine, was an acclaimed American lyrical poet and playwright. She was the daughter of Henry Tolman Millay, a schoolteacher, and Cora Buzzell Millay, a nurse. Edna showed literary talent at an early age, winning a scholarship to Vassar College, where she graduated in 1917. Her first collection of poems, “Renascence and Other Poems,” published in 1917, garnered significant attention and established her as a major voice in American poetry. Millay’s work often explored themes of love, death, and the fleeting nature of beauty, characterized by her poignant and evocative lyrical style. In 1923, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for her collection “The Ballad of the Harp-Weaver,” making her the third woman to receive this honor. Beyond her poetry, Millay was a noted playwright and an actress, contributing to the Provincetown Players—a key theater group in the early American modernist movement. Her personal life was as vibrant and unconventional as her work. She married Eugen Jan Boissevain in 1923, a Dutch businessman who supported her career and feminist views. The couple lived in a farmhouse called Steepletop in Austerlitz, New York, which became a hub for literary and artistic figures of the time. Edna St. Vincent Millay passed away on October 19, 1950, leaving behind a legacy of rich and enduring poetry that continues to influence and inspire readers and writers today.
5 Interesting Facts about Edna St. Vincent Millay
1. Edna St. Vincent Millay was the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry independently (without sharing it).
2. Her middle name, “St. Vincent,” was inspired by St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City, where her uncle’s life was saved shortly before her birth.
3. Millay was also an accomplished playwright and actress, contributing significantly to the Provincetown Players.
4. She was an outspoken feminist and social activist, advocating for women’s rights and freedom of expression.
5. Millay’s home, Steepletop, is now a museum and a National Historic Landmark dedicated to her memory and works.
5 Most Interesting Quotes from Edna St. Vincent Millay
1. “My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—It gives a lovely light!”
2. “Life is a quest and love a quarrel …”
3. “I am not resigned to the shutting away of loving hearts in the hard ground.”
4. “Beauty is whatever gives joy.”
5. “The longest absence is less perilous to love than the terrible trials of incessant proximity.”
Highest Net Worth Achieved
At the height of her career, Edna St. Vincent Millay’s net worth was estimated to be around $1 million, a significant sum for a poet at that time.
Children
Edna St. Vincent Millay did not have any children.
Relevant Links
2. [Biography on Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edna-St-Vincent-Millay
3. [Pulitzer Prize Profile](https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/edna-st-vincent-millay
4. [Edna St. Vincent Millay Society](http://www.millay.org/
5. [Steepletop Museum](http://www.millay.org/steepletop
