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| This webpage contains bonus materials for eight presidents: John Quincy Adams, John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Abraham Lincoln, Grover Cleveland, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Wilson Reagan, and Barack Obama. Poems by Adams, Fillmore, and Cleveland appear below; the selections by Fillmore and Cleveland were added after the publication of Poems by Presidents. Links provide access to two complete poetry books, a musical score featuring the text of a poem, video and audio clips of poems’ recitations, and nine additional poems. |
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John Quincy Adams
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| O God, with Goodness All Thy Own |
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O God, with goodness all thy own,
In mercy cause thy face to shine;
So shall thy ways on earth be known,
Thy saving health and power divine:
O, let the gladdening nations sing,
And praise thy name with hallowed mirth,
For thou of righteousness art King,
And rulest all the subject earth.
O, let the people praise the Lord;
The people all thy praise express;
And earth her plenty shall afford,
And God, yea, our own God, shall bless;
Our God his blessing shall bestow;
His power, his goodness, shall appear;
And all the ends of earth shall know
And worship him with holy fear.
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- Click here to read Adams's epic poem, Dermot Mac Morrogh, or The Conquest of Ireland.
- Click here to read a collection of Adams's poems, Poems of Religion and Society.
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John Tyler
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Click the thumbnail image to view the musical score of Tyler's "Virginia," arranged by his daughter Letitia Tyler Semple. |
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Millard Fillmore |
One sends you this who loves you well
but who he is you cannot tell
And rest assured no one will prove
More worthy of my constant love.
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Seek not to know from whom it be
Lest he is not beloved by thee. |
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Abraham Lincoln
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Grover Cleveland |
Who leaves Princeton’s classic shades,
To prowl around the Everglades?
Professor Findley.
Who with lithe and stalwart limbs,
Flops about and thinks he swims?
Doctor Findley.
Who tempts the depths of San Lucie,
In patient efforts to “catch he”?
J. H. Findley.
Who dangling o’er the launch’s side
Soaks canvas shoes in saline tide?
Dr. Findley.
Who sits with grace and hope, elate,
Watching his spinning, whirling bait?
John Findley.
Who first of all, impatient sees
The place to sink his crabs and flees?
One Findley.
Who feels the “strike” with rapture fine,
And yanks and jerks and breaks his line?
Findley.
Who soundly sleeps, with heedless nod
Bumping his head against his rod?
Why—Findley.
Who throwing spear with reckless aim,
Upsets the fire and scatters flame?
Of course—Findley.
Whose kindly heart and willing hand
Have won the love of all our band?
And who in all our future days
Shall we recall with tender praise?
Our Findley. |
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Jimmy Carter
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- Click here to watch Carter recite "Considering the Void."
- Click here to hear Carter recite "Rachel."
- Click here to hear Carter recite "The Pasture Gate."
- Click here to read "Rosalynn."
- Click here to read "Some Things I Love."
- Click here to read "A Reflection of Beauty in Washington."
- Click here to read "Progress Does Not Always Come Easy."
- Click here to read "Itinerant Songsters Visit Our Village."
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Ronald Wilson Reagan
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- Click here to read "State Budget." To view the poem with the proper line breaks, New York Times subscribers can click on the image of the newspaper and scroll to page B4.
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Barack Obama
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| All of the content linked to on this webpage was accessible as of the writing of Poems by Presidents: The First-Ever Anthology. Dover Publications and the editor of this anthology are not responsible if any of the materials are no longer available online. |
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