Thomas John Carlisle (October 11, 1913 – August 17, 1992) was an American poet,

Presbyterian minister Presbyterian (or presbyteral) polity is a method of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") typified by the rule of assemblies of presbyters, or elders. Each local church is governed by a body of elected elders usually called the session (o ...

, and an expert on

Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massac ...

. He was born in

Plattsburgh, New York Plattsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The population of the sur ...

, the only son of Ruby Grace Mann and Thomas H. Carlisle. He was educated at Williams College and Union Theological Seminary, New York. He married Dorothy Mae Davis (1912–1990) on August 20, 1936, and was ordained minister at First Presbyterian Church of Plattsburgh in 1937. He also served as minister in Tupper Lake and Delhi, New York. He served as pastor at Stone Street Presbyterian Church,

Watertown, New York Watertown is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, New York, United States. It is approximately south of the Thousand Islands, along the Black River, about east of where it flows into Lake Ontario. The city is bordered by the t ...

from 1949–1978. He retired from active ministry in 1978. His published poetry collections include ''I Need a Century'' (1963), ''You! Jonah!'' (1968), ''Celebration'' (1970), ''Mistaken Identity'' (1973), ''Journey with Job'' (1976), ''Eve and After: Old Testament Women in Portrait'' (1984), ''Beginning with Mary: Women of the Gospels in Portrait'' (1986), "Journey with Jonah" (1984); ''Invisible Harvest'' (1987), and ''Looking for Jesus: Poems in Search of the Christ of the Gospels'' (1993). His poetry has also appeared in the publications ''alive now!'' (published by '' The Upper Room''), the ''

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'', the ''

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''. His love poem "Rise Up, My Love, My Fair One" with music by Dr. Arthur W. Frackenpohl has been published as a choir anthem and as a solo by

Shawnee Press Shawnee Press, Inc., was an independent print and recorded music publisher and for a time, the largest educational music publisher in the world. The Company published several music types including choral, vocal, keyboard, handbell, instrumental, ...

, Delaware Water Gap, Pennsylvania. He is buried at Brookside Cemetery, Watertown, New York. The Thomas John Carlisle Papers are housed at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlisle, Thomas John 20th-century American poets 1913 births 1992 deaths Poets from New York (state)