James Whitcomb Riley
James Whitcomb Riley (October 7, 1849 - July 22, 1916) was an American writer, poet, and best-selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the "Hoosier Poet" and "Children's Poet" for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively. His poems tended to be humorous or sentimental, and of the approximately one thousand poems that Riley authored, the majority are in dialect. His famous works include "Little Orphant Annie" and "The Raggedy Man." In about 1880, Riley was diagnosed...See more
James Whitcomb Riley (October 7, 1849 - July 22, 1916) was an American writer, poet, and best-selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the "Hoosier Poet" and "Children's Poet" for his dialect works and his children's poetry respectively. His poems tended to be humorous or sentimental, and of the approximately one thousand poems that Riley authored, the majority are in dialect. His famous works include "Little Orphant Annie" and "The Raggedy Man." In about 1880, Riley was diagnosed with Bell's palsy. Although he recovered to continue writing, he was stricken with it again in March, 1909. He recovered enough to be able to walk, but had to dictate his final poems and short autobiographical sketches. On July 22, 1916, Riley suffered a second stroke. He recovered enough during the day to speak and joke with his companions, but died before dawn the next morning, July 23. See less
