Conclusive Proof Reveals Joyce Kilmer Penned "Trees" in Mahwah, NJ 100 Years Ago

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The famous poem was written in an upstairs bedroom/office of the Kilmer house overlooking a heavily-wooded section of Mahwah, NJ, and was dated February 2, 1913 in a notebook used by him and poet wife Aline, research by the Mahwah Historic Preservation Commission showed. The findings should put to an end the years of mystery over where and when Kilmer composed the poem.

Mahwah, New Jersey, United States., February 5, 2013 - (PressReleasePoint) -Joyce Kilmer's 100-year old poem "Trees" finally has a "birth certificate."
One of the world's most famous and often-quoted poems was written in his Mahwah, NJ house and dated February 2, 1913, the Mahwah Historic Preservation Commission discovered from research of Joyce Kilmer letters and notebook, interviews by Kilmer's family and real estate data.
"We have a unique history in Mahwah and I think it's so important to preserve that," Mahwah Mayor Bill Laforet told Mahwah Patch Editor Jessica Mazzola as the township issued a proclamation declaring February 2nd as Joyce Kilmer Day now and hereafter.
"And it's an extremely significant mark in time. It'd be wrong for us not to recognize the 100th anniversary."
The multi-floor Kilmer house is still standing at the southwest corner of Airmount and Armour Roads in leafy Mahwah, NJ, 35 miles from Times Square in Manhattan, and the huge boulder that the Kilmers loved so much still stands sentry near the front door.
The only thing missing was authoritative proof of where Kilmer penned the poem and when, and that is now no longer a mystery.
The local historic preservation commission said its extensive research revealed:

* Joyce Kilmer purchased a lot for a house in the fledgling Cragmere Park section of Mahwah in 1911.

* Kilmer, his wife, Aline and their son, Kenton, moved into the house in 1912, and lived there until 1917.

* Son Kenton, in a book entitled "Memories of My Father, Joyce Kilmer" and in telephone interviews, said he had the notebook in which the poem was written in their Mahwah home and the poem was dated February 2, 1913. He said it was written in an upstairs bedroom that also served as Joyce's office and that "the window looked out down a hill, on our well-wooded lawn -- trees of many kinds, from mature trees to thin saplings: oaks, maples, black and white birches and I don't know what else."

* Dorothy V. Corson, author of "The Spirit of Notre Dame," said she interviewed Kenton and subsequently received additonal written material from him. She said Kenton told her: "It ("Trees") was written in the afternoon in the intervals of some other writing. The desk was in an upstairs room, by a window looking down a wooded hill. It was written in a little notebook in which his father (Joyce) and mother (Aline, also a poet) wrote out copies of several of their poems, and in most cases added the date of composition. On one page the first two lines of "Trees" appear, with the date, February 2, 1913, and on another page, further on in the book, is the full text of the poem."

* Deborah Kilmer, Joyce Kilmer's daughter who became a Benedictine nun, corroborated Kenton's evidence in a separate interview with Corson.

* In a May 4, 1913 letter (four months after the February 2 date) Joyce Kilmer wrote his mother, Annie Kilbourn Kilmer, also a poet, that "Trees" would probably be published in Poetry magazine.

* In the August, 1913 issue of Poetry magazine, "Trees" was pubished for the first time. The front page listed "Trees...by Joyce Kilmer" as the third poem in the Table of Contents.

*Joyce Kilmer's grand-daughter, Miriam A. Kilmer, an artist and keeper of Kilmer history, corroborated her father Kenton's account of the writing of "Trees" on her website, RisingDove.com.
About Us:
Alex Michelini, the author of this report, is a former member of the Mahwah Historic Preservation Commission, and has lived in Mahwah for the last 28 years. He is a former reporter/editor at the New York Daily News and received numerous awards for journalistic excellence, including the New York Press Club's Gold Typewriter Award twice, and was nominated and reached the finals of the Pulitzer Prize for a series on soaring healthcare costs.)



Contact:
Alex Michelini
michelinialex@aol.com
T. 201-831-0171
Cell: 201-895-1126