Few people remember this now, but the first page in American poetry was written by a woman.

Anne Dudley was born in 1612 in Northampton, England, to Dorothy York and Thomas Dudley, steward of the Earl of Lincoln. Anne was a well-educated woman for her time and studied literature, history, and languages. Because of her family's position, she grew up surrounded by culture and intelligence.

Illustration of Anne Bradstreet writing near a window
Anne Bradstreet became a foundational voice in early American poetry.

When she was 16, she married Simon Bradstreet, and took on the name Anne Bradstreet. Her childhood and adolescence coincided with religious and political unrest in England. The Puritans had become a significant force, and many lost hope for reform that would live up to their beliefs.

Anne and Simon, along with Anne's parents, emigrated to America aboard the Arabella. The voyage lasted two months and one week. After leaving England on April 8, they reached the shores of America on June 12, 1630.

The Arabella was the flagship of the Winthrop Fleet, which brought as many as a thousand people to the American colonies during the summer of 1630. Some returned to England a few months after landing at Salem, but Anne's family decided to stay and create their life there.

Despite poor health, Anne Bradstreet had eight children and a good social position. Her father and husband were instrumental in the founding of Harvard University in 1636. Two of her sons graduated from this university.

Her first book was called The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America. It was published in England in 1650. Therefore, Anne Bradstreet is not only the first American poet, but also the first poet whose works were published in both the New and the Old World.

On July 10, 1666, a fire broke out in Anne Bradstreet's house, tragically changing her life. The house was burned to the ground, and all her savings were lost, including a unique library with about 800 books on theology, history, literature, medicine, and politics.

At 60 years of age, Anne Bradstreet passed away on September 16, 1672. An edition of selected poems was published in America posthumously in 1678. She became the most prominent early English poet in North America, as well as the first woman writer in England's North American colonies to have her books published.

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome." - Anne Bradstreet