Margarette Ball Dickson American poet and educator
Margarette Ball Dickson (June 4, 1879 - July 21, 1963) was an American poet and educator who served as the first poet laureate for the state of Minnesota.
Early life
Margarette Adell Ball was born in Little Rock, Iowa to Leroy Augustus Ball and Mary Adell Mansfield. She graduated Rock Rapids High School, and earned her B.A. from Iowa State Teachers College in 1925 and M.A. at the University of South Dakota in 1926. She studied at the University of Iowa, earning a Ph.D. She headed the English department at Valparaiso University in Indiana, taught creative writing at California State Teacher's College in Chico, and was a correspondence course instructor for the Stapes School of Writing. She married George Robert Dickson on June 1, 1904, who worked for the Chicago and North Western Railway . The couple had two sons and one daughter. She remarried fellow poet John Allison Haining in 1930. She remarried to Andrew Christian Jensen on June 5, 1945, but retained Margarette Ball Dickson as her pen name. She was also a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Order of the Eastern Star, the American Association of University Women, and General Federation of Women's Clubs.
Poetry
Dickson was appointed state poet laureate by Minnesota Governor Floyd B. Olson on April 25, 1934. By 1936 she had been published in 53 anthologies. She co-founded the Minnesota Poetry League and was its second president, and was president of the Minnesota Poetry Society. She was national vice president of the League of American Pen Women and president of the American Poetry Circle. She was also member of the National Country Bard Association, American Lit Association, and American Literary League.
Dickson was a founder of the Midwest Federation of Chaparral Poets, serving as its regional director from 1939 to 1951, and national director until her death in 1963. She also helped organize the East Coast Canadian Chaparral Poets and European Chaparral Poets.
Publications
Books
Gumbo Lillies 1925.South Dakota Poetry as the Voice of the Commonwealth 1926.Glimpses of Washington 1925.Those Were the Days 1926.Tumbleweeds Harold Vinal. 1927.Patterns and Poems Argus Publishing. 1938.More Patterns for Poems Argus. 1947.A Son Enlists Argus. 1947.Editor
Country Bard magazineThe American Bard magazineModern Poems for Special Days (1928)Thorns & Thistledown 1927.The Owl (League of American Penwomen) Dean & Co. 1929One Man and a Dream Argus. (1937)Yearbook of the League of Minnesota Poets (1937)Book of Father Verse Argus. 1947.Anthologies
Bookfellows Anthology 1925 (1925)Fifty Poems by American Poets Dean & Company. (1925)"Stray Kittens" The Oracle Anthology of Poetry (1926)
"Symphony" Bookfellows Anthology 1926 (1926)
Fifty Poems by American Poets Dean & Company. (1926)"A Life for a Life?" Fifty Poems by American Poets Dean & Company. (1927)
"Poetry" Fifty Poems by American Poets Dean & Company. (1927)
Blumenauer Anthology of Architectural Verse (1926)"Home Burial - The Father Speaks" Bookfellows Anthology 1927 (1927)
"At Echo out in Utah" Davis Anthology of Newspaper Verse for 1927 (1928)
An Anthology of South Dakota Poetry" J.F. Olander. (1928) "The Humble Folk with Fish and Cake" Bookfellows Anthology 1928 (1928)
"The Loving Cup" Bookfellows Anthology 1928 (1928)
"Tonight" Bookfellows Anthology 1928 (1928)
"Walled In" Bookfellows Anthology 1928 (1928)
"The Veil" The Grub Street Book of Verse H. Harrison. (1929)
Braithwaite's Anthology of Magazine Verse for 1929 "White Hyacinths" An Anthology of Revolutionary Poetry (1929)
Continental Anthologies H. Vinal. Paris. (1930)"Night on the Dunes" Minnesota Verse: An Anthology Times Publishing Company. (1934)
"Stratford Hall" Contemporary American Women Poets H. Harrison (1936)
Minnesota and Nebraska Poets H. Harrison (1937)American Women Poets 1937 H. Harrison (1937)Davis Anthology of Newspaper Verse for 1937 (1938)Davis Anthology of Newspaper Verse for 1941 H. Harrison. (1942)To Sing Along the Way New Rivers Press (2006)Poems
"The American Vampire" The News and Advance August 15, 1908
"See Welfare Committee" The Des Moines Register November 27, 1924
"A New Year Symphony" Argus-Leader January 7, 1925
"Death of John Coolidge" The Sioux City Journal March 23, 1926
"To Light the Candles" The Sioux City Journal May 2, 1926
"All Summer Hollyhocks have Smiled" The Sioux City Journal June 6, 1926
"The Last Stand" Argus-Leader July 1, 1926
"Dr. George Schott" The Sioux City Journal July 8, 1926
"The Last Watch" Jacksonville Journal Courier August 3, 1927
"Burden Sharing" The Sioux City Journal August 15, 1926
"To all whose Loving Hands have Smoothed Our Way" The Sioux City Journal October 17, 1926
"Phoenix" The Sioux City Journal November 4, 1926
"A Father" The Sioux City Journal November 10, 1926
"The Gray Poet (Whitman)" The Fresno Bee March 13, 1927
"The Wizard of the East" The Sioux City Journal March 27, 1927
"The Scholar President" The Sioux City Journal May 8, 1927
"Wings to Dare" The Sioux City Journal August 27, 1927
"Tumbleweeds" The Fresno Bee October 2, 1927
"The Canwita Tree" Vidette-Messenger of Porter County November 10, 1927
"Let Us Thank" Vidette-Messenger of Porter County December 17, 1927
"Night on the Indiana Dunes" The Indianapolis Star February 10, 1929 "How Like a Harp" The Sioux City Journal January 29, 1928
"Prayer Amid the Poppies" Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen's Magazine July 1928
"An Age Old Reverberant Hymn" International Poetry Magazine March 1929
"Love Wove a Wreath" International Poetry Magazine May 1929
"What is It?" International Poetry Magazine May 1929
"Oh, Not Till Then" The Sioux City Journal October 27, 1930
"Books" The Palm Beach Post November 30, 1930
"The First Snowfall" Argus-Leader November 4, 1931
"Wanagi Sica the Painted Demon" Argus-Leader March 31, 1932
"Minnesota Sunset" Argus-Leader October 7, 1932
"Of Every Day" Argus-Leader October 30, 1932
"Calvin Coolidge 1872-1933" Argus-Leader March 16, 1933
"Apples of Gold" St. Cloud Times April 28, 1934
"I Offer Thanks" Brainerd Dispatch November 30, 1935 "Utility" The Palm Beach Post May 23, 1937
"Dedication" The Austin Daily Herald November 23, 1937
"Rispetto" The Spokane Press June 14, 1938
"Twilight Hush" St. Cloud Times October 25, 1939
"Fog Glimpses" The Fayette Advertiser August 20, 1940
"Morning Sentinel" The Miller News January 29, 1942
"Bridge to East Hartford" Hartford Courant June 28, 1942
"Prairie Oasis" Argus-Leader April 17, 1943
"Beyond the Sand Dunes" West Los Angeles Independent October 15, 1943
"Overtones" The Indianapolis News June 26, 1945
"Early November Twilight" The Anniston Star November 4, 1949
"Peter Norbeck" Rapid City Journal June 17, 1961
"Homely Things" The Tooele Transcript May 12, 1978 References
↑ "Jensen, Margarette", Minnesota, Death Index Certificate No. 020231, Minnesota Department of Health; St Paul, Minnesota, USA. 1 2 3 "Dr. Margarette Jensen" . Vidette-Messenger of Porter County. 24 July 1963. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 Margarette Adell Ball in The Compendium of American Genealogy, Vol Iv: First Families of America 155. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage Book : NSDAR : Volume 151 : 1919 129. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 3 4 "Dr. Margarette B. Jensen" . St. Cloud Times. 24 July 1963. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 "Iowa Born Poet Guest Speaker" . Globe Gazette. 20 October 1951. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 3 4 5 Braithwaite, W.S. (1926). Anthology of Magazine Verse 5, 12, 72. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . 1 2 3 4 5 Lindberg, J.C. (1928). An Anthology of South Dakota Poetry 65– 69. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ "Recital at Federated Church" . Orland Register. 9 February 1939. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ "M. Ball Dickson Married in Odessa" . St. Cloud Times. 13 June 1945. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 "Poets League Holds Meet" . The Albert Lea Tribune. 21 March 1955. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ "Margarette Ball Dickson" . St. Cloud Times. 14 Jul 1936. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ "Mrs. Dickson to be Honored" . The Des Moines Register. 20 April 1937. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ "To Address Poetry Group" . Baltimore Evening Sun. 16 April 1928. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ "Poetry Clinic of Midwest Federation to be Sunday" . Kearney Hub. 22 April 1947. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ "Chaparral Poets Hold Seminar in Emporia Sunday" . The Emporia Gazette. 4 May 1964. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 "Poets Corner" . Oregon Daily Journal. 29 May 1938. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ "Mrs. Dickson presents a new volume of poetry" . The Sioux City Journal. 3 April 1927. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .1 2 3 4 Derleth, August (6 February 1947). "Books of Today" . The Capital Times. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ "Distinctive Honors for Local Poet" . The Morning Herald. 30 Jul 1946. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ "Anthology of Verse" . The Brooklyn Daily Times. 27 January 1929. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .1 2 "League of MN Poets Will Hold Annual Meeting Luncheon" . St Cloud Times. 3 Feb 1938. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .1 2 3 4 5 Dean, Joseph (1927). Fifty Poems by American Poets 72. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ The Oracle Anthology of Poetry 60. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ Seymour, G.S. (1926). Bookfellows Anthology 1926 62. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ Seymour, George Steele (1927). Bookfellows Poetry Annual 58– 59. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Davis, F.P. (1928). Davis Anthology of Newspaper verse for 1927 42. 1 2 3 4 Seymour, G.S. (1928). Bookfellows Annual 1928 49– 52. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Harrison, Henry (1929). The Grub Street Book of Verse 20. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ "Braithwaites Anthology" . The Indianapolis News. 1930. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ Graham, Marcus (1929). An Anthology of Revolutionary Poetry 176. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ "Poems by university graduates contained in recent anthology" . Columbia Missourian. 12 April 1930. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ "Mrs Schilplin compiles anthology of state verse" . The Albert Lea Tribune. 27 November 1934. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ Gordi, Tooni (1936). Contemporary American Women Poets 141. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . 1 2 "Women poets of MN appear in Anthology; another in preparation" . The Minneapolis Journal. 19 December 1937. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ Schiplin, Maude (9 February 1938). "Verse of Minnesota Poets published in nationwide magazines, anthologies" . St. Cloud Times. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ "Express Poetry in Anthology" . The Chickasha Daily Express. 7 December 1941. Retrieved 20 October 2026 .↑ Renalls, Candace (19 November 2006). "Poetic Revival" . The Duluth News-Tribune. Retrieved 20 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (15 August 1908). "The American Vampire" . The News and Advance. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (27 November 1924). "See Welfare Committee" . The Des Moines Register. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (7 January 1925). "A New Year Symphony" . Argus-Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (23 March 1926). "Death of John Coolidge" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (2 May 1926). "To Light the Candles" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (6 June 1926). "All Summer Hollyhocks have Smiled" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (1 July 1926). "The Last Stand" . Argus-Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (8 July 1926). "Dr. George Schott" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (3 August 1927). "The Last Watch" . Jacksonville Journal Courier. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (15 August 1926). "Burden Sharing" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (17 October 1926). "To all whose Loving Hands have Smoothed Our Way" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (4 November 1926). "Phoenix" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (10 November 1926). "A Father" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (13 March 1927). "The Gray Poet (Whitman)" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (27 March 1927). "The Wizard of the East" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (8 May 1927). "The Scholar President" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (27 August 1927). "Wings to Dare" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (2 October 1927). "Tumbleweeds" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (10 November 1927). "The Canwita Tree" . Vidette-Messenger of Porter County. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (17 December 1927). "Let Us Thank" . Vidette-Messenger of Porter County. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (10 February 1929). "Night on the Indiana Dunes" . The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (29 January 1928). "How Like a Harp" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen's Magazine 76.1 2 3 De Aryan, Harold Alexander Leon (1929). International Poetry Magazine 5, 8– 9. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (27 October 1930). "Oh, Not Till Then" . The Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (30 November 1930). "Books" . The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (4 November 1931). "The First Snowfall" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (31 March 1932). "Wanagi Sica the Painted Demon" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (7 October 1932). "Minnesota Sunset" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (30 October 1932). "Of Every Day" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (16 March 1933). "Calvin Coolidge 1872-1933" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (28 April 1934). "Apples of Gold" . St. Cloud Times. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (30 November 1935). "I offer thanks" . Brainerd Dispatch. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (23 May 1937). "Utility" . The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (23 November 1937). "Dedication" . The Austin Daily Herald. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (19 October 1938). "Rispetto" . The Spokane Press. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (25 October 1939). "Twilight Hush" . St. Cloud Times. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (20 August 1940). "Fog Glimpses" . The Fayette Advertiser. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (29 January 1942). "Morning Sentinel" . The Miller News. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (28 June 1942). "Bridge to East Hartford" . Hartford Courant. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (17 April 1943). "Prairie Oasis" . Argus Leader. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (15 October 1943). "Beyond the Sand Dunes" . West Los Angeles Independent. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (26 June 1945). "Overtones" . The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 21 October 2026 . ↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (4 November 1949). "Early November Twilight" . The Anniston Star. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . ↑ "Peter Norbeck" . Rapid City Journal. 17 June 1961. Retrieved 19 October 2026 .↑ Dickson, Margarette Ball (12 May 1978). "Homely Things" . The Tooele Transcript. Retrieved 19 October 2026 . 