William Marion Reedy
William Marion Reedy (1862 – July 28, 1920) was a St. Louis-based editor best known for his promotion of the poets Sara Teasdale, Edgar Lee Masters, and Carl Sandburg to the audience of his newspaper, Reedy's Mirror. Politically, Reedy was a liberal Democrat and advocated Georgist economics.[1]
William Marion Reedy | |
|---|---|
 William Marion Reedy. Missouri History Museum | |
| Born | 1862 St. Louis, Missouri |
| Died | (aged 58) San Francisco, California |
| Occupation | Editor, writer |
| Language | English |
| Alma mater | St. Louis University |
Biography
Reedy was born in St. Louis in 1862.[2] He spent his childhood in Kerry Patch and later attended St. Louis University.[3] He began his career as a writer's assistant at the Missouri Republican. He then worked for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat before starting his acclaimed tenure at the Mirror in 1893. He became owner of the Mirror, where he published the work of up-and-coming poets like Sandburg, Teasdale and Masters. Reedy had an eye for talented new writers, often publishing writers before they gained widespread recognition. He published Edgar Lee Masters' poetry in 1914, work that later formed the Spoon River Anthology. The poet and editor, Orrick Johns, wrote in Time of Our Lives that "Reedy was the only figure to give St. Louis a literary character in the eyes of the rest of the country between 1900 and 1920.[3]
Reedy died unexpectedly in San Francisco on July 28, 1920.[2]
References
- Faherty, William (2001). The St. Louis Irish: An Unmatched Celtic Community. Saint Louis: Missouri Historical Society Press Distributed by University of Missouri Press. ISBN 9781883982393.
- "William M. Reedy, Noted Editor, Dies in San Francisco". St. Louis Star-Times. July 28, 1920. p. 1. Retrieved March 12, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- Literary St. Louis. St. Louis, Missouri: Associates of St. Louis University Libraries, Inc. and Landmarks Association of St. Louis, Inc. 1969.
External links
- William Marion Reedy Papers at Newberry Library
- Max Putzel Papers Relating to William Marion Reedy and The Mirror. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.