William Ellery Channing 1818 – 1901

Biography

Poet. Often referred to as William Ellery Channing the 2nd or simply Ellery Channing, he was the nephew of Dr. William Ellery Channing, the Unitarian preacher of Boston.  The name they shared was also the name of an ancestor who had signed the Declaration of Independence. The younger Channing dropped out of Harvard College and wandered west, living temporarily in Illinois before moving to Concord, Massachusetts. In 1841, he married Ellen Fuller, younger sister of Margaret Fuller, and became an important and influential member of the Transcendentalism movement. His books included “The Woodsman” (1849), “Near Home” (1858), and “The Wanderer” (1871). He built up a friendship with Henry David Thoreau and published a biography of him in 1873. (bio by: Midnightdreary)