Poets House is a national literary center and poetry library based in New York City. With more than 70,000 volumes of poetry, the library is the premier independent poetry library in the United States. It is free and open to the public. Founded in 1985 by the late Stanley Kunitz, two-time poet laureate of the United States, and arts administrator Elizabeth Kray, Poets House contains virtually all poetry books published in the U.S. since 1990, plus many that are long out of print dating to the early 20th Century. It also contains literary journals and chapbooks, and many audiotapes, videotapes, CDs, and DVDs of poetry readings from the mid-twentieth century through today. Visitors to Poets House can hear the voices of Walt Whitman, E. E. Cummings, William Carlos Williams, Sylvia Plath and hundreds of other poets. Every year, Poets House hosts the Poets House Showcase, which gathers and displays every book of poetry published in the United States in the preceding year. Poets House also curates and presents hundreds of readings, lectures, panels, symposiums and performances each year. In 1996, the literary newspaper Poetry Flash called Poets House "The House That Holds A Country," a reference to its dedication to being a caretaker of the nation's poetic heritage. In 2005, it was among 406 New York City arts and social service institutions to receive part of a $20 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation, which was made possible through a donation by New York City mayorMichael Bloomberg. In 2009, Poets House moved from its longstanding location in SoHo to an eco-friendly "green" building at Ten River Terrace in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park City. With a long-term lease awarded by the Battery Park City Authority, Poets House has a permanent home for its collection. This new home for Poets House, with interiors designed by architect Louise Braverman, is on two floors covering with a large children's room, an exhibition space, a reading room and library, and a program hall that opens onto an extension of Teardrop Park. With views of the Hudson River and the Statue of Liberty, the new Poets House is bordered by Nelson A Rockefeller Park and is in walking distance of numerous subway and bus lines as well as the Port Authority Ferry Terminal at the World Financial Center. A public grand opening of the new facility took place on September 25 and 26 of 2009. "For nearly 25 years Poets House has been an anchor for poets and poetry lovers," noted Robin Pogrebin in the New York Times. Poets House is free and open to the public. Library hours are Tuesday-Friday, 11am to 7pm, and Saturdays, 11am to 6pm. The Children's Room is open 11am to 5pm.
Programs
Emerging Poets Fellowship
One of the most prestigious programs of its kind, the Poets House Emerging Poets Fellowship offers 10 NYC poets unique craft and industry guidance yearly through renowned writers and publishers. The 3-month fellowship includes a weekly workshop, mentoring sessions, a publishing panel, and free access to guest speakers and other events at Poets House, as well as to the library's 70,000 volumes of poetry and poetry-related material. The application process is competitive, but participation free, with a $500 honorarium and $100 stipend. The program's culminating event, the Emerging Poets Fellowship reading, has been hailed as introducing audiences to some of the most highly anticipated poetry in NYC today, and past fellows like Ocean Vuong, Yanyi, and José Olivarez have gone on to win major book deals and awards.
