Robinson Jeffers
Robinson Jeffers (1887-1962) holds an important part in California history, specifically in Los Angeles and Carmel. He was California’s Poet Laureate, having earned stature as one of the preeminent poets of his day.
To learn about the man, his writing, and his personal life, we recommend https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/robinson-jeffers.
His personal life was fraught with twists and turns with a controversial marriage and the efforts he poured into raising their twin sons. They were brought up in the home he built with stones he hauled from Carmel’s shores below. The home became a popular social destination for some of the best-known writers and artists of his time, several of whom were also guests of Hearst Castle.
His Tamar and Other Poems is the work that initially brought him the most attention of readers, academia, and literary critics in the early 20th century.
He was a contemporary of D.H. Lawrence, whose ranch, visited by Robinson Jeffers and his wife Una, is also open to the public. Read about it here: D.H. Lawrence in New Mexico.
Tor House in Carmel
The home is in a residential wooded area that overlooks the Pacific Ocean coast. It is open to the public, but call in advance because hours are limited. Please check out the https://www.torhouse.org website to get current information and arrange your visit.
Carmel is perched above the Pacific Ocean shoreline and has a relatively small population. It is known for its golf culture and annual vintage car competitions.
Occidental College in Los Angeles
For the ultimate poetry scholar, the special collections department of the Occidental College Library in Los Angeles (Eagle Rock area) holds many of his original papers. See sites.oxy.edu/special-collections/jeffers for details.
Robinson Jeffers’s house is the third stop on our Northern Author Adventures California Trail.
Patricia Smart
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