Famous Old Poems by Famous Poets

• Best Old Poems by Famous Poets
• Old Poems by Members
• Best Old Poems by Members
• Old Quotes

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The Old Vicarage Granchester

by Rupert Brooke

 Just now the lilac is in bloom,
All before my little room;
And in my flower-beds, I think,
Smile the carnation and the pink;
And down the borders, well I know,
The poppy and the pansy blow...
Oh! there the chestnuts, summer through,
Beside the river make for you
A tunnel of green gloom, and sleep
Deeply above; and green and deep
The stream mysterious glides beneath,
Green as a...Read more of this...

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The Old Prison

by Judith Wright

 The rows of cells are unroofed, 
a flute for the wind's mouth, 
who comes with a breath of ice 
from the blue caves of the south. 

O dark and fierce day: 
the wind like an angry bee 
hunts for the black honey 
in the pits of the hollow sea. 

Waves of shadow wash 
the empty shell bone-bare, 
and like...Read more of this...

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There was an Old Person of Troy

by Edward Lear

There was an Old Person of Troy,Whose drink was warm brandy and soy,Which he took with a spoon, by the light of the moon,In sight of the city of Troy. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old person of Rye

by Edward Lear

There was an old person of Rye,Who went up to town on a fly;But they said, "If you cough, you are safe to fall off!You abstemious old person of Rye!" ...Read more of this...

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Old Age

by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 OLD age is courteous--no one more:
For time after time he knocks at the door,
But nobody says, "Walk in, sir, pray!"
Yet turns he not from the door away,
But lifts the latch, and enters with speed.
And then they cry "A cool one, indeed!"

 1814....Read more of this...

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There was an old person of Bar

by Edward Lear

There was an old person of Bar,Who passed all her life in a jar,Which she painted pea-green, to appear more serene,That placid old person of Bar. ...Read more of this...

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There was an Old Man of Apulia

by Edward Lear

There was an Old Man of Apulia,Whose conduct was very peculiar;He fed twenty sons upon nothing but buns,That whimsical Man of Apulia. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old man on the Border

by Edward Lear

There was an old man on the Border,Who lived in the utmost disorder;He danced with the cat, and made tea in his hat,Which vexed all the folks on the Border. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old person of Nice

by Edward Lear

There was an old person of Nice,Whose associates were usually Geese.They walked out together in all sorts of weather,That affable person of Nice! ...Read more of this...

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The Poor Old Cannon

by Elinor Wylie

 Upbroke the sun 
In red-gold foam; 
Thus spoke the gun 
At the Soldier's Home:

"Whenever I hear 
Blue thunder speak 
My voice sounds clear 
But little and weak.

"And when the proud 
Young cockerels crow 
My voice sounds loud, 
But gentle and low.

"When the mocking-bird 
Prolongs his note 
I cannot be heard 
Though I split my throat."...Read more of this...

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The Old Chimaeras. Old Recipts

by Robert Louis Stevenson

 THE old Chimaeras, old receipts
For making "happy land,"
The old political beliefs
Swam close before my hand.

The grand old communistic myths
In a middle state of grace,
Quite dead, but not yet gone to Hell,
And walking for a space,

Quite dead, and looking it, and yet
All eagerness to show
The Social-Contract forgeries
By Chatterton - Rousseau -

A hundred such as these I tried,
And hundreds after that,
I...Read more of this...

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The Old Woman Of Harrow

by Mother Goose

There was an old woman of Harrow,
Who visited in a wheelbarrow;
   And her servant before,
   Knocked loud at each door,
To announce the old woman of Harrow....Read more of this...

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There Was an Old Man with a Beard

by Edward Lear

 There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, "It is just as I feared! --
Two Owls and a Hen, four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard....Read more of this...

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There was an old man of West Dumpet

by Edward Lear

There was an old man of West Dumpet,Who possessed a large nose like a trumpet;When he blew it aloud, it astonished the crowd,And was heard through the whole of West Dumpet. ...Read more of this...

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There was an Old Man on whose nose

by Edward Lear

There was an Old Man on whose noseMost birds of the air could repose;But they all flew away at the closing of day,Which relieved that Old Man and his nose. ...Read more of this...

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There was an Old Person of Dutton

by Edward Lear

There was an Old Person of Dutton,Whose head was as small as a button;So to make it look big he purchased a wig,And rapidly rushed about Dutton. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old person of Sestri

by Edward Lear

There was an old person of Sestri,Who sate himself down in the vestry;When they said, "You are wrong!" he merely said "Bong!"That repulsive old person of Sestri. ...Read more of this...

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Old

by Paul Laurence Dunbar

 I have seen peoples come and go 
Alike the Ocean'd ebb and flow; 
I have seen kingdoms rise and fall 
Like springtime shadows on a wall. 
I have seen houses rendered great 
That grew from life's debased estate, 
And all, all, all is change I see, 
So, dearest God, take me, take me....Read more of this...

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Old Crony

by Robert William Service

 Said she: 'Although my husband Jim
 Is with his home content,
I never should have married him,
 We are so different.
Oh yes, I know he loves me well,
 Our children he adores;
But he's so dull, and I rebel
 Against a life that bores.

'Of course there is another man,
 Quite pennyless is he;
And yet with hope and joy we plan
 A...Read more of this...

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There was an old man in a tree

by Edward Lear

There was an old man in a tree,Whose whiskers were lovely to see;But the birds of the air pluck'd them perfectly bare,To make themselves nests in that tree. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old person of Ickley

by Edward Lear

There was an old person of Ickley,Who could not abide to ride quickly;He rode to Karnak on a tortoise's back,That moony old person of Ickley. ...Read more of this...

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There was an old man of Toulouse

by Edward Lear

There was an old man of ToulouseWho purchased a new pair of shoes;When they asked, "Are they pleasant?" he said, "Not at present!"That turbid old man of Toulouse. ...Read more of this...

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There was an Old Man of Calcutta

by Edward Lear

 There was an old man of Calcutta,
Who perpetually ate bread & butter;
Till a great bit of muffin on which he was stuffing,
Choked that horrid old man of Calcutta....Read more of this...

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A Man Young And Old: II. Human Dignity

by William Butler Yeats

 Like the moon her kindness is,
If kindness I may call
What has no comprehension in't,
But is the same for all
As though my sorrow were a scene
Upon a painted wall.

So like a bit of stone I lie
Under a broken tree.
I could recover if I shrieked
My heart's agony
To passing bird, but I am dumb
From human dignity....Read more of this...

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There was an old man of Ancona

by Edward Lear

There was an old man of Ancona,Who found a small dog with no owner,Which he took up and down all the streets of the town,That anxious old man of Ancona. ...Read more of this...

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