Benjamin Franklin King Jr.

Benjamin Franklin King Jr. by Chas A. Gray

Benjamin Franklin King Jr. (1857–1894) was an American humorist and poet whose work published under the names Ben King or the pseudonym Bow Hackley achieved notability in his lifetime and afterwards.[1]

Biography

King was born at St. Joseph, Michigan, March 17, 1857, and according to a short biography by Opie Read, as a child he was reputed a piano prodigy; in adult life he was by many deemed a failure for his lack of business instinct. But as "a poet, a gentle satirist and a humorist of the highest order, he achieved notability" in his short life for a series of newspaper published poems.

Rise to fame

King billed himself as "Ben King, the Sweet Singer of St. Joe," and first came to prominence for a concert given during the World's Columbian Exposition. Introduced to the Press Club of Chicago, he was quickly picked up by Read, who invited King to tour with him, reading his poetry with piano accompaniment.[2]

Death

King died of an undisclosed illness while on a speaking tour at Bowling Green, Kentucky, April 7, 1894. As he had become a favorite of the Press Club of Chicago, that organisation published a posthumous collection of his works titled Ben King's Verse in 1894, comparing him with Thomas Hood, a then-famous English humorist and poet.[1] For the next quarter century, the book reputedly outsold any other single volume of verses[2] in Michigan.

King was buried in the St. Joseph City, Michigan Cemetery. A monument later erected in Lake Bluff Park, Berrien County, Michigan in 1924 features a bronze bust of King created by Chicago sculptor Leonard Crunelle. On the granite monument base are lines from his poem "The River St. Joe":[3]

Where the bumblebee sips and the clover's in bloom,
  and the zephyr's come laden with peachblow perfume.
Where the thistle-down pauses in search of the rose
  and the myrtle and woodbine and wild ivy grows;
Oh, give me the spot that I once used to know
  by the side of the placid old River St. Joe!

Personal life

He was married November 27, 1883 to Aseneth Belle Latham, of St. Joseph, Michigan, and the couple had two children, Bennett Latham King and Spencer P. King, aged nine and five, respectively, at the time of his death.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Biography by Opie Read in Ben King's Verses, 1894
  2. 1 2 Michigan in Literature By Clarence A. Andrews, Wayne State University Press, 1992, p.257
  3. ↑ Benjamin Franklin King at FindaGrave
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