Photographs ©2009 by Mark-Woods.com

Poets House is a national poetry library and literary center that invites poets and the public to step into the living tradition of poetry. Our poetry resources and literary events document the wealth and diversity of modern poetry, and stimulate public dialogue on issues of poetry in culture.

Founded in 1985 by poet Stanley Kunitz and arts administrator Elizabeth Kray, Poets House has created a home for all who read and write poetry. From 1990 to 2007 that home was located in an intimate loft at 72 Spring Street in Soho. As rent increases began to make Soho an impractical location, Poets House was fortunate to be designated by the Battery Park City Authority as a rent-free tenant in a new building on the banks of the Hudson River. In the summer of 2009, Poets House moved to its permanent home at 10 River Terrace in Battery Park City and opened to the public on September 25, 2009.

Throughout its transformations, the heart of Poets House has remained its poetry collection. With over 50,000 volumes of poetry—including books, journals, chapbooks, audio and video tapes, and digital media—our collection is among the most comprehensive, open-access collections of poetry in the United States and is the foundation for all our programs and services.

Each year we present over 200 public programs, including panels, lectures, readings, writing workshops and walking tours in New York City and nationwide. Panel discussions and lectures link the voices of poets living today to a vast literary tradition. Poets House readings presented in public parks and libraries cultivate a wider audience for the art. Innovative seminars and workshops taught by emerging and established poets offer aficionados and first-timers an opportunity to explore the writing process in greater depth.

Through the annual Poets House Showcase, we gather and exhibit all of the years' new poetry books. Thousands of books are shown each year from publishers large and small across the country. The Showcase provides readers and writers an opportunity to view the whole range of the art. All of the books are documented in the Directory of American Poetry Books, the most comprehensive bibliographic resource available for poetry published since the 1990's.

Poetry in The Branches is a model for developing poetry audiences in local communities by providing multi-layered poetry services in public libraries. Poetry in The Branches makes this model available nationwide through our Poetry in The Branches National Institute, on-site trainings and consulting to diverse library systems, and full-service programs in local branches. Branching Out: Poetry for the 21st Century, a joint project with the Poetry Society of America, brought PSA's Poetry In Motion™ program and Poets House's Poetry in The Branches model to 7 cities nationwide.

At the turn of a new century, Poets House is working to create a future where everyone has entree into the ageless, borderless conversation that is poetry. We invite you to join us.