In the Churchyard at Tarrytown
A simple stone beside a beloved river marks a humorist’s grave. The speaker remembers how his mirth and romantic tales cheered others, and describes his memory as bringing both grief and gladness.
By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow · Genre: Sonnet, Elegy · 164 words
First lines
Here lies the gentle humorist, who died / In the bright Indian Summer of his fame! / A simple stone, with but a date and name, / Marks his secluded resting-place beside / The river that he loved and glorified. / Here in the autumn of his days he came, / But the dry leaves of life were all aflame / With tints that brightened and were multiplied. / How sweet a life was his; how sweet a death! / Living, to wing with mirth the weary hours, / Or with romantic tales the heart to cheer; / Dying, to leave a memory like the breath / Of summers full of sunshine and of showers, / A grief and gladness in the atmosphere.
Genres
- Sonnet — Fourteen lines follow an ABBAABBA CDECDE rhyme scheme, moving from the riverside grave to remembrance of the dead man.
- Elegy — The speaker commemorates a deceased humorist and joins grief at his death with gladness in his memory.
Tags
remembrance · graves · humor · storytelling · grief · sonnet
What this Textopian page supports
In the Churchyard at Tarrytown is listed on Textopian as a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Sonnet, Elegy
- Length: 164 words
- Structure: 1 section, 1 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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- Work identity for In the Churchyard at Tarrytown by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
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