Sterling, George

Biography

George Sterling (1869-1926), California lyric poet, was born in Sag Harbor, New York. After leaving school he came to California and in 1892 first met Ambrose Bierce, who was to become a major influence in his life. In 1908 Sterling and his wife (Caroline Rand) moved from Oakland to Carmel. Then, after several years in New York, Sterling lived at the Bohemian Club in San Francisco. Thus, most of the years he was writing poetry were spent in the San Francisco-Carmel region. He published ten volumes of verse, five separately published poems, four dramatic poems, and much uncollected magazine prose and verse. Carey MeWilliams writes of Sterling: The remarkable range and the intimate quality of his acquaintance, coupled with his long residence in the West, gave a cultural significance to his career quite apart from his writing.

The present collection of correspondence and poems well illustrates the breadth of Sterling's acquaintance. One of his best friends, of course, was Jack London. A valuable part of the present collection is the fine series of letters from Sterling to London. In addition to the Sterling interest, there is valuable material in the collection for the student of poetry in America for the years 1915-1925.