One of the most celebrated American poets of the nineteenth century, Edwin Markham was the first Oregon poet laureate. Markham gained widespread popularity with his labor-themed poem, "The Man with the Hoe" (1899). Although Markham was born in Oregon, and has long been considered an Oregon poet, he spent most of his life in California and New York. This collection of Markham materials represents the only Markham holdings in the state of Oregon.