Henry Wadsworth LongfellowBorn into a prominent family on February 27, 1807, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow grew up in the bustling town of Portland, Maine. His parents Stephen and Zilpah Longfellow provided a strong, but refined, Puritan background, while encouraging Henry to excel in academics (Wagenk...

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote, "The Village Blacksmith", as a ballad in which he is describing the deep emotions and the great sorrow in "The Life of a Hard Working Smithy" in the early 1900's. His poem expresses the smithy's pride at being an honest, hard-working man. This is something that se...