O ther Books in the Men of Achievement Series Ed ar Kni ht J . g Hoover, Modern g Errant John Foster Dulles , Peacemaker Herbert Hoover , Humanitarian McKni ht t William L . g , Indus rialist Ernest Hemingway, Man of Courage Charles F . Kettering, Inventor and Idealist Albert Schweitzer, Medical Missionary Lowell Thomas , Adventurer J . C . Penney , Merchant Prince Frank H . Krusen, M . D . , Pioneer in Physical Medicine Car l Sandbu r Po et g, and Patriot By GLADYS ! EHNPFENNIG Publishers D E I . N S ON T . S COMPANY, INC . Minneapolis , Minnesota Co r ht 1963 b py ig , y D E . O S . S C O I T N I N N C . All r hts re served nc d n the r ht to re rod ce th s ig , i lu i g ig p u i book or ort ons thereof ex ce that erm ss on is hereb , p i , pt p i i y granted to rev iewers to quote brief p assages in a rev iew to be r nted in m a az nes and news a ers p i g i p p . i n A Pr nt i h U S . d t e . e . By TH E BRINGS PR ESS Fir P intin — Ma 1 63 st r g y, 9 i n — r S ec ond Pr nti g O ctobe , 1963 n in —Ma 1 Third Pri t g y, 964 Internationa l Copyright S ecured Library of Congress Catalog C ard Number : 63 - 14389 To all the librarians and teachers who inspire a deep love for reading and to all the young searchers for knowledge who realize that you can go anywhere , anything, and be anyone you want to be ul in the wonderf world of books . Cont ent s Foreword Acknowledgments and Remembrances Chapter I Melting- Pot Baby Chapter II The Mama Chapter III The Papa Chapter IV Book Fever Chapter V ’ ! Little Man , You ve Had a Busy Day Chapter VI Groping and Seeking Chapter VII ! Puerto Rico , Here We Come Chapter VIII “ The Terrible Swede Chapter IX A Feeling of Momentum Chapter X The Pattern Comes Clear Chapter XI Assignment : The People Cont ent s Cont . Chapter XII ‘ ’ Flummyw isters and Flickers Chapter XIII The Background of a Social Aggravator Chapter XIV ’ Carl Sandburg s Mr . Lincoln Chapter XV A Patriot Writes Chapter XVI Poet of the People Chapter XVII War on Paper Chapter XVIII Remembrance Rock Chapter XIX ’ s Mr . Lincoln s Me sage Chapter XX To Dwell in Many Places Chapter XXI ’ l Mr . Lincoln s Car Sandburg Credits Forew ord Searching for a title for the biography of Carl Sandburg is a frustrating pre - occupation that usually comes to a dead end with something desperate like “ ” ! bio ra Mr . Everything Poet of the People , Lincoln g pher and authority, novelist , collector and singer of - the songs of The People , dream weaver of delightful Am erican fables , reporter, commentator, TV and radio — personality the list is overwhelming . Clearly discernible , a robust theme runs through all his works . Carl Sandburg loves his country , and he is devoted to the welfare of The Family of Man . Patriot Carl Sandburg is a lamp - lighter along the - - high roads and back lanes of American history . He passes the torch to his readers who feel the glow of patriotism stimul ating them to new appreciation of freedoms dearly bought . Carl Sandburg is a patriot “ who reminds us that the dead hold in their clenched s hand that which became the heritage of us , the liv ing . He begs for vigilance with a somber warning when a society or a civilization perishes , one con H E dition may always be found . THEY FORGOT W RE ” THEY CAME FROM . - During the greatest part of his eighty five years , Carl Sandburg has waged a vigorous campaign to — S how Americans where they came from the better to judge where they are going . It might be said that a patriot is a citizen who gives the ultimate gift to his his country, with perceptive awareness of dedicated purpose . Bountifully and abundantly has Carl Sand burg given . - 6 1963 Eighty five years old on January , , Carl Sandburg can look back on a lifetime in which the customs , viewpoints and working patterns of a mighty nation ’ s people have been altered beyond the dreams of his Swedish immigrant parents . With his fingers on the pulse of his beloved country , he has helped to shape its destiny with words both gentle and barbed , imm eas both booming and hushed , and always with l urab e . understanding for the people . The People , Yes A ck no w ledgment s and Remembrances To be honored with the opportunity to write about the fabulous Carl Sandburg, and to be privileged to ’ Vi i s t with him in the process , is an author s realization of the American Dream . My first expressions of grati tude and deep affection are for you , Carl Sandburg . Thank you for taking time from your busy writing schedule to let me talk to you at Connemara Farm , while this biography was in the process of creative development . Thank you for being all the remarkable - things you are , at the splendid age of eighty five . Thank you for setting us an example of patriotism that is beyond selfish measuring—for sharing your ideal — istic American Dream with us and for reminding us to build strong arches of love and understanding that the Family of Man shall survive . May we keep read ing you and heeding you! Without access to the Rare Book Division in the Library of Congress , this biography could not have been written in such graphic detail . My appreciation is best expressed by the references which I have made to my visits there . As I have noted , Carl Sandburg “ ” dwells in many sections of the Library of Congress , and I did not lack for librarians to point me in the right direction! I am grateful to the Newsp aper Division in the Annex, and for all the Library of Congress research assistance that helped me to fill out the picture of a great life lived in the Great American Tradition . “ Once more I salute my home town font of knowl ” dl edge , the Han ey Library at Winchester, Virginia, which boasts four complete sets of Carl Sandburg ’ s epical Lincoln biography and a goodly collection of other Sandburg works . The girls at the Handley Li brary have pretty legs from running upstairs to the periodical room so often to track down research ma terial ! Thank you , my dears . I am deeply indebted to Carl Sandburg ’ s publish ers redeces , Harcourt, Brace and World, and their p R sors , Holt , inehart and Winston, for the wealth of s Sandburg quotation in this book . Each was needed to prove a point . They are a minute part of the whole Sandburg creative picture , and I hope they will arouse every reader of this book to a keen desire to read, read , read Sandburg ! To my fellow- member of The National League of American Pen Women , Gail Bakken , my most sincere appreciation for the fine material about Carl Sand ’ burg s memorable visit to Minnesota . It has been necessary to consult many authoritative ’ sources . Harry Golden, Carl Sandburg s cherished re friend and biographer, heads the list . Additional “ search sources include Rica Brenner ’ s Ten American ” ’ “ Ev ald am Poets , Benj in Lawson s That Man Knows ’ r Lincoln , M . D . Rosenberg s Sandburg featu e story “ ” ’ u in The Washington Post, Fanny Butcher s col mns ” in The Chicago Sunday Tribune , and The Chicago ” 1 25 Daily News for 9 . Background information and atmosphere were ob in d in ta e from miscellaneous books and publications , ’ “ ” cluding Thomas Wolfe s Look Homeward , Angel ; “ ’ “ The Saturday Review Macgruder s American ” Government Our Country by West and West; “ ” Universal Standard Encyclopedia and Encyclope ” dia Britannica . Thanks for further assistance great and small to Mr s . Carl Sandburg in memory of a special telephone visit; to Florence Kirkland, Donald Singerman, Mari al l lyn Silberman , and the other gentlefolk who helped me blaze a trail from Galesburg to Flat Rock . Special credit is given to Editta Sherman for the use of her photograph of Carl Sandburg . When Carl Sandburg autographed my copy of the “ ” “ : ! Abraham Lincoln distillation, he wrote Salud to ! ” “ . a ! G says Carl Sandburg Now I will answer, S lud ” ! . to Carl Sandburg says G . Thank you for crowning “ us with a shovel of stars for keeps ” to remember you by . —Gladys ! ehnpfennig IN APPRECIATION to THE CARL SANDBURG BIRTHPLACE Here in these United States , log cabins and modest cottages can cradle thinkers of great thoughts whose philosophies may stimulate the minds of their fellow men for countless generations . The Carl Sandburg Birthplace has been an appeal ing source of inspiration in the writing of this book . 331 Again and again , the pattern has led back to East Third Street in Galesburg, Illinois , where a boy child named Carl was born to Swedish immigrants August 187 8 6 . and Clara Sandburg on January , Part of the income derived from the sale of copies of CARL SANDBURG : POET AND PATRIOT will be contributed to the support of Carl Sandburg Birth place , Incorporated . As an additional salute to the poet and Lincoln biographer whose first home is ap ro riatel p p y honored in his own lifetime , the publishers will furnish the Birthplace with a number of copies of the biography for presentation to large high school visiting groups to be deposited in their school libraries .