Aline Murray Kilmer (August 1, 1888 – October 1, 1941), was an American

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, children's book author, and

essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...

, and the wife and widow of poet and journalist

Joyce Kilmer Alfred Joyce Kilmer (December 6, 1886 – July 30, 1918) was an American writer and poet mainly remembered for a short poem titled "Trees" (1913), which was published in the collection ''Trees and Other Poems'' in 1914. Though a prolific poet who ...

(1886-1918). The couple attende
Rutgers College Preparatory School
and married shortly after his graduation from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1908. In their short marriage, lasting 10 years, her husband had achieved fame as a poet, literary critic and among Catholic circles as America's most prominent Catholic writer. After his death in World War I, she began publishing her own poetry and a few children's books. Today, her work is largely forgotten.

Biography

KILMER Aline Murray Grave St Josephs Cemetery Newton NJ

She was born as Aline Murray on August 1, 1888, in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, the daughter of Ada ( Foster) Murray, a poet; and Kenton C. Murray, editor of the ''Norfolk Landmark'' newspaper. Ada Murray remarried on February 22, 1900 in

Metuchen, New Jersey Metuchen ( ) is a suburban borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The borough is a commuter town of New York City, located in the heart of the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. The borough, along wit ...

Henry Mills Alden Henry Mills Alden (November 11, 1836 – October 7, 1919) was an American author and editor of ''Harper's Magazine'' for fifty years—from 1869 until 1919. Early years He was born on November 11, 1836, in Mount Tabor near Danby, Vermont, eighth ...

, the managing editor of ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

''; he became Aline's stepfather. Aline Murray was educated at the Rutgers College Grammar School (now Rutgers Preparatory School) in

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat, seat of government of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Vail-Deane School in

Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth is a city and the county seat of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New J ...

, the latter institution from which she was graduated in 1908. Shortly after graduation, Aline married

Alfred Joyce Kilmer Alfred Joyce Kilmer (December 6, 1886 – July 30, 1918) was an American writer and poet mainly remembered for a short poem titled "Trees" (1913), which was published in the collection ''Trees and Other Poems'' in 1914. Though a prolific poet who ...

on June 9, 1908, after he was graduated from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The pair had five children: Kenton Sinclair Kilmer (1909-1995), Rose Kilburn Kilmer (1912-1917), Deborah Clanton Kilmer (1914–1999; who became a nun, "Sister Michael", at Saint Benedict Monastery, St. Joseph, Minnesota), Michael Barry Kilmer (1916-1927), and Christopher Kilmer (1917-1984). Their daughter Rose was stricken with an

infantile paralysis Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...

shortly after her birth, a crisis which led Joyce and Aline to convert to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

."A Tribute to Aline Kilmer" by Francis X. Talbot in ''America'' October 18, 1941, pp. 44-46. Shortly before Joyce's deployment to France in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Rose Kilburn Kilmer died, predeceasing both her parents. During his deployment, her husband was killed in action during the

Second Battle of the Marne The Second Battle of the Marne (french: Seconde Bataille de la Marne) (15 July – 18 July 1918) was the last major German offensive on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First World War. The attack failed wh ...

near Muercy Farm, beside the

Ourcq River The Ourcq (, ''Urc'' in 855) is an river in France, a right tributary of the Marne. Its source is near the village Ronchères, and its course crosses the departments of Aisne, Oise, and Seine-et-Marne. It flows southwest through the towns of ...

near the French village of Seringes-et-Nesles on July 30, 1918 at the age of 31. In 1927, her second son, Michael Barry Kilmer, predeceased her. After Joyce was killed in action, his widow turned to publishing her poetry and to authoring children's books. Her poetry has been described as "subtle, delicate, and somewhat subdued — certainly far from gayety", and with a tone of "ironic disillusionment" compared to her husband's as "direct, vigorous, gay."

Death

In her final three years, Aline Kilmer suffered from an excruciating illness. She died at her home, "Whitehall", in

Stillwater Township, New Jersey Stillwater Township is a township located in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Kittatinny Valley, Stillwater is a rural farming community with a long history of dairy farming. As of the 2010 United States Census, the tow ...

, on October 1, 1941, aged 52, and was interred at Saint Joseph's Catholic Cemetery in

Newton, New Jersey Newton, officially the ''Town of Newton'', is an incorporated municipality located in Sussex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is situated approximately by road northwest of New York City. As the location of the county's administrati ...

. Five lines from her poem, "Sanctuary", are inscribed on her gravestone:

There all bright passing beauty is held forever
Free from the sense of tears, to be loved without regret
There we shall find at their source music and love and laughter,
Colour and subtle fragrance and soft incredible textures:
Be sure we shall find what our weary hearts desire.Kilmer, Aline
"Sanctuary"
in ''Hearst International,'' Volume 41. (New York: International Publications, 1922), 22:28.

Works

* 1919: ''Candles That Burn'' (poetry) * 1921: ''Vigils'' (poetry) * 1923: ''Hunting a Hair Shirt and Other Spiritual Adventures'' (essays) * 1925: ''The Poor Kings Daughter and Other Verse'' (poetry) * 1927: ''Emmy, Nicky and Greg'' (children's book) * 1929: ''A Buttonwood Summer'' (children's book) * 1929: ''Selected Poems'' (poetry) *''To Two Little Sisters of the Poor (Date Unknown)''

References

External links

Tribute page
at ''Rising Dove'' (a site by his granddaughter)

located in Special Collections of the University of Delaware Library.

at the University of Toronto * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kilmer, Aline Murray 1888 births 1941 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism from Protestantism Catholics from New Jersey Catholics from Virginia American women children's writers American Roman Catholic poets American children's writers American women poets American women essayists Writers from New Jersey Writers from Norfolk, Virginia Poets from Virginia Rutgers Preparatory School alumni People from Stillwater Township, New Jersey 20th-century American poets 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American essayists