Library of Congress Website

About the Digital Collections

The Library of Congress holds the most extensive array of Whitman and Whitman-related collections in the world, including manuscripts, rare books, prints, and photographs. Among the Library's holdings are three major manuscript collections housed in the Manuscript Division: the Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman; the Thomas Biggs Harned Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman; and the Walt Whitman Papers, 1837-1957. All or parts of these physical collections have been digitized and made available on the Library's website at the links given below. The listing for each digitized collection includes a link to the Manuscript Division's finding aid for the complete physical collection.

In addition to these collections, the Library's Rare Book & Special Collections Division holds the Charles Feinberg-Whitman Collection, which includes many early editions of Whitman's writings. This collection has not been digitized.

Crowdsourcing Whitman

During 2019 the Library of Congress celebrated the 200th anniversary of Walt Whitman’s birth with a series of exhibits, events, and a digital crowdsourcing campaign (#WaltWhitman200) that showcased the Library’s unparalleled collections of Whitman’s writings and artifacts. The campaign allowed member of the public the opportunity to transcribe samples of Whitman’s poetry, prose and correspondence, including versions of poems such as “Oh Captain! My Captain!” and fragments of poems Whitman published in more finished form in Leaves of Grass. A second Whitman crowdsourcing campaign launched in May 2021, focused on transcribing Whitman's notebooks and diaries.

Thomas Biggs Harned Collection of Walt Whitman Papers
The Thomas Biggs Harned Collection of Walt Whitman Papers consists of approximately 3,000 items (4,126 images) spanning the period 1842-1937, with most of the items dated from 1855, when Whitman first published the poem Leaves of Grass, to his death at age seventy-three in 1892. Harned, an attorney and one of Whitman’s three literary executors, donated his collection to the Library of Congress in 1918. It consists of correspondence, poetry and prose manuscripts, notes and notebooks, proofs and offprints, printed matter, and miscellaneous items.
-- As a comprehensive digital edition of the Harned Collection, this collection expands greatly on the Library’s earlier online presentation, titled Poet at Work, which was limited to the series listed as Recovered Cardboard Butterfly and Notebooks.
-- View the Finding Aid for the Thomas Biggs Harned Collection.
Walt Whitman Papers in the Charles E. Feinberg Collection
The papers of poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892) in the Charles E. Feinberg Collection consist of approximately 28,000 items spanning from 1763 to 1985. The bulk of the items date from the 1840s through Whitman's death in 1892, and into the twentieth century. The collection of correspondence, literary manuscripts, books, proofs, and associated items represent periods of Whitman's life from his early time living in New York, middle-age in Washington, D.C., and the last phase of his life in Camden, New Jersey. The papers include primary documentation of Whitman's friends and family; his experience as a civil servant and hospital volunteer in Washington, D.C., during the American Civil War; his contributions as a lecturer and social commentator; and his decades-long career as a journalist, prose writer, literary and arts critic, and poet, including Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous letter extolling Whitman's poetry.
-- View the Finding Aid for the Charles E. Feinberg Collection.
Walt Whitman Papers (Miscellaneous Manuscript Collection)
This small collection of papers (about 150 items; 1,200 images) of poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892) spans the years 1837-1957 with the bulk concentrated in the period 1840-1891. Included are examples of the poet’s original correspondence and literary manuscripts, photocopies and transcripts of similar Whitman material, and printed matter and miscellaneous items relating to Whitman. Known as the Walt Whitman Papers Miscellaneous Manuscript Collection (MMC), it contains only a small sampling of the types of items found in the larger Library of Congress collections of Whitman material, most notably those assembled by Thomas Biggs Harned and Charles E. Feinberg. It includes, however, some of Whitman's earliest known correspondence, written to Abraham P. Leech, and a printed copy of Whitman's poem "O Captain! My Captain!" containing the poet's handwritten corrections. A small selection of family letters, including correspondence of Whitman's mother, Louisa Van Velsor Whitman, and his sister, Hannah Louisa Whitman Heyde describe domestic routines and express personal sentiments.
-- View the Finding Aid for the Walt Whitman Papers (Miscellaneous Manuscript Collection).

The Library's Exhibitions pages feature digitized versions of present and past physical exhibits held at the Library since the early 1990s. Several of these exhibits include material related to Walt Whitman; one exhibit, Revising Himself: Walt Whitman and Leaves of Grass, focuses exclusively on Whitman's life and work. These exhibits are listed below.

Revising Himself: Walt Whitman and Leaves of Grass
This exhibition, created as a special presentation for American Treasures of the Library of Congress, traces the different occupations and preparations that led Whitman to become the author of Leaves of Grass, as well as his subsequent evolution as a poet.
American Treasures of the Library of Congress
A digital presentation of some of the Library most noted treasures. Sections featuring Walt Whitman include: A Whitman Notebook; Keeping Memories; Oh Captain! My Captain!; and Walt Whitman and the Civil War.
The Civil War in America
Assembles more than 200 unique items to commemorate the sesquicentennial of U.S. Civil War. Includes information about Drum-Taps and a brief biography of Whitman.

Search the Library's collections of prints, photographs, and drawings on the phrase "Walt Whitman" to find images of Walt Whitman, his residences, and other related items. A gallery of selected images of Whitman appears below.

*[Walt Whitman, three-quarter length portrait, standing, facing front].* 1849 or 1850. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

*Walt Whitman, 1819-1892.* Created 1854. Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

William Kurtz, photographer. *Walt Whitman, 1869.* Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Samuel Hollyer, engraver. *Walt Whitman, 1819-1892.* Created 1854. Feinberg-Whitman Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

*Walt Whitman, 1819-1892.* Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

G. Frank E. Pearsall, photographer. *Walt Whitman, 1876.* Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Matthew Brady, photographer. *[Walt Whitman, half-length portrait, seated in chair, facing left].* [1862]. Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

*Walt Whitman, 1819-1892.* Created 1863 or 1864. Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Napoleon Sarony, photographer. *Walt Whitman, 1878.* Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Edy Bros., photographer. *Portrait of Walt Whitman at seventy.* 1880. Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

George C. Cox, photographer. *Walt Whitman, 1887.* Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Matthew Brady, photographer. *[Walt Whitman, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing left].* 1866. Feinberg-Whitman Collection. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Whitman has been the subject of numerous posts on Library of Congress blogs. These are listed below.

"Walt Whitman and Modern Voices in Poetry: A Resource Guide."
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, May 4, 2022
"'What beauty there is in words!' – Walt Whitman’s An American Primer"
Unfolding History: Manuscripts at the Library of Congress, March 31, 2022
"Pride Month: Walt Whitman’s “'No Doubt the Efflux'"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, June 3, 2021
"Wordsmithing Whitman: Diaries and Notebooks from the Feinberg-Whitman Papers"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, May 26, 2021
"Remembrance: Whitman’s “The Death of Lincoln” and the By the People Whitman Campaign"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, April 14, 2021.
"Hiroshima, 75 Years Later: A Survivor’s Account, Now at the Library"
Library of Congress Blog. August 6, 2020.
"Thoughts in the Time of Pandemic: Walt Whitman at Memorial Day"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. May 26, 2020.
"Celebrate Walt Whitman with Braille Music"
NLS Music Notes, June 20, 2019.
"Watch 'Walt Whitman: Citizen Poet'"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. June 4, 2019
Walt Whitman in Popular Culture: When Can We Buy a Bobblehead?
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. June 1, 2019
"Celebrate Walt Whitman’s Legacy at the Library of Congress Young Readers Center on June 1 (Tomorrow!)"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. May 31, 2019
"Walt Whitman: A Life in Newspapers"
Headlines & Heroes: Newspapers, Comics, & More Fine Print. May 31, 2019
"Pic of the Week: Walt Whitman Birthday Edition"
Library of Congress Blog, May 31, 2019
"Celebrating Ourselves through Whitman’s 'Song of Myself'"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. May 23, 2019
"Copyrighting Leaves of Grass"
Copyright: Creativity at Work. May 15, 2019
"Whitman: Designing Leaves"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. May 14, 2019
‘O Captain! My Captain!’ Walt Whitman, Two Centuries Later
Library of Congress Blog, May 6, 2019
Starting from Paumanok/Proto-Leaf: Happy 200th Birthday, Walt Whitman!
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress. May 1, 2019
"My Sprig of Lilac"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, April 18, 2019
The Evolution of Walt Whitman’s “O Captain! My Captain!”
Teaching with the Library of Congress, April 18, 2019
"Wound Dressing: Walt Whitman in Washington"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, April 9, 2019
"Reading Whitman"
(also published on Medium)
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, April 5, 2017
"Walt Whitman’s Wartime Experience: Using Primary Sources to Offer Context"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, March 1, 2017
"New Online: The Walt Whitman Papers in the Charles E. Feinberg Collection"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, January 26, 2017
"Discovering Walt Whitman at the Library of Congress"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, December 7, 2016
"Two Walt Whitman Collections Added to Library’s Website"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, August 18, 2016
"The Process of Discovery: How a New Walt Whitman Poem was Found at the Library of Congress"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, May 27, 2015
"Walt Whitman’s War Work: Primary Sources in the English Classroom"
From the Catbird Seat: Poetry and Literature at the Library of Congress, October 23, 2014
"A Fake Audio Butterfly"
Now See Hear! The National Audio-Visual Conservation Center Blog, October 9, 2014
"Inquiring Minds: An Interview with Kluge Fellow Lindsay Tuggle"
Library of Congress Blog, January 24, 2013
"Louisa May Alcott and Walt Whitman in the Law Library"
In Custodia Legis: Law Librarians of Congress, August 5, 2010

The Library has hosted a number of talks, presentations, and symposia related to Walt Whitman during the past two decades, many of which have been filmed and made available online as webcasts. Links to these webcasts appear below.

Rebel Souls: Walt Whitman & America's First Bohemians
In the mid-19th century, Pfaff's Saloon in Manhattan hosted a circle of radicals who changed American society and helped set poet Walt Whitman on the path to immortality. In Rebel Souls: Walt Whitman and America's First Bohemians," Justin Martin tells the story of this colorful group of artists-regulars at Pfaff's, who are "rightly considered American's original bohemians." Filmed April 21, 2015.
Walt Whitman Birthday Celebration
Poets Mark Doty and Sally Keith read from the work of Whitman, and materials from the Library's Whitman collection were on display. Filmed May 31, 2013.
Lindsay Tuggle, "The Afterlives of Specimens: Science & Mourning in Whitman's America"
Lindsay Tuggle examines the Civil War narratives of Walt Whitman and Union surgeon John H. Brinton as alternative histories of war casualties: military and poetic, phantom and physical. Filmed January 24, 2013.
Karen Karbiener, "Walt Whitman, Rural New Yorker"
Kluge fellow Karen Karbiener delivers a lecture entitled "Walt Whitman, Rural New Yorker." A boy from rural Long Island moves to Brooklyn and, without money or mentorship, conceives, writes, and self-publishes America's declaration of cultural independence. This story remains one of the great mysteries of American literary scholarship. How did Walter Whitman - grammar school dropout and second son of a farmer-turned-carpenter - become Walt Whitman? This lecture will focus on the most obscure yet most seminal period of Whitman's life: his childhood and youth on his beloved "Paumanok," where he claims to have been born as a poet. Filmed June 24, 2010.
Whitman and Place
The Library of Congress Manuscript Division presented a symposium titled "Whitman and Place," held in conjunction with the Library's exhibition Revising Himself: Walt Whitman and Leaves of Grass. Topics of discussion were "Walt Whitman in New York," "Whitman and the Civil War" and "Whitman in Camden-Philadelphia." Joann P. Krieg, English professor at Hofstra University; Ted Genoways, editor of the Virginia Quarterly Review at the University of Virginia; and William Pannapacker, assistant professor and Towsley Research Scholar in the English department at Hope College, made the presentations. Filmed November 3, 2005.
Daniel Mark Epstein on Walt Whitman's "The Death of Lincoln"
The Library of Congress presented an evening concert and a dramatic reading of Walt Whitman's historic lecture on the "Death of Lincoln." Daniel Mark Epstein, author of Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington (Ballantine Books, 2004), offered a complete reading of Whitman's tribute to the assassinated president. Whitman first delivered the "Death of Lincoln" lecture at Steck Hall in New York on April 14, 1879, to reflect upon the meaning of Lincoln's death to an American nation pressed to reunite and heal from the wounds of the Civil War. In keeping with the outline of Whitman's original 19th century lecture program that began with a musical performance, Epstein's lecture was preceded by a short concert of musical selections performed by members of the Air Force Band, in a brass quintet with tenor solo and piano. The lecture includes an account of the tragic events at Ford's Theatre and a reading of poetry, including Whitman's popular tribute to Lincoln, "O Captain, My Captain." Filmed April 14, 2005.
Walt Whitman’s Elegy for Lincoln
A reading of Whitman's great "Lilacs" elegy was the first event in the Library's 2005 celebrations marking the sesquicentennary of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass and was presented by Alice L. Birney, the Library's literary manuscript specialist, March 25, 2005. Prof. Rosemary Winslow of Catholic University of America introduced the elegy, and the reading was then performed by 11 staff members and four distinguished guests. Whitman wrote this elegant elegy in the weeks following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln in Ford's Theater in Washington D.C., April 14, 1865. Neither Lincoln nor assassination is named in it, making the poem more universally appealing as dealing with the theme of death in general. Whitman was in New York at the time of the shooting, but he used printed and personal reports as source materials. With its central images of lilac, star and thrush, the elegy follows a classical pattern, moving from grief to consolation. Its song echoes traditional Roman and English formal elegies but is played to a new American rhythm and structure. Filmed March 25, 2005.
Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington
Poet, dramatist and biographer Daniel Epstein discusses his book Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington (Ballantine Books, 2004). Filmed September 30, 2004.

Lincoln and Whitman: Parallel Lives in Civil War Washington

SPEAKER: Daniel Mark Epstein
EVENT DATE: 2004/09/30
RUNNING TIME: 47 minutes

The Library maintains many resources designed to help teachers and other educators incorporate primary source materials on the Library's website into the classroom. Educator resources on the Library's website that feature materials from the online Whitman collections are listed below.

Walt Whitman at 200
2019 marks the 200th anniversary of Walt Whitman's birth. Whitman worked as a school teacher, printer, newspaper editor, journalist, carpenter, freelance writer, civil servant, and Union Army nurse in Washington D.C. during the Civil War, but he is best known as one of America’s most famous poets–and as a poet of democracy. This crowdsourcing campaign presents a large subset of writings from the Library's digitized Whitman collections.

This is a special opportunity for teachers and students to engage with Whitman’s creative process. To learn more about introducing the Whitman crowdsourcing campaign into the classroom, teachers can watch this recording of an April 24, 2019, Whitman Transcribe-a-Thon webinar. This one-hour webinar brought together experts from the Library, National Council of Teachers of English, and educators to discuss how students can analyze, transcribe, review, and tag the Whitman papers.
1900 America: Historical Voices, Poetic Visions
This lesson plan includes an Introduction to the Epic Poem Format which asks students to compare Whitman's Song of Myself to Hart Crane's The Bridge.
Found poetry exercise
Using the Whitman notebooks as source material, students create a found poem.
Lyrical Legacy – "O Captain! My Captain"
Analyze Whitman's poem "O Captain! My Captain" as a historical document.
Primary source investigation
Students can study this set of materials related to Walt Whitman to gain practice analyzing primary sources.
Thomas Hampson Teacher Institute
The Thomas Hampson Teacher Institute was designed to help educators use Library of Congress primary source materials to explore the legacy of American song and poetry in their classrooms. The online materials for the Teacher Institute feature two activities which incorporate items from the Library's digitized Whitman content:
Wise Guide
A now-inactive digital magazine designed to introduce users to the many fascinating, educational, and useful resources available on the Library's website. It includes three articles which highlight Whitman resources: Each of Us is Inevitable ; The 'Parallel Lives' of Lincoln and Whitman; and Whitman's Notebooks: A Mysterious WWII Disappearance and a Happy Homecoming.

Materials related to Walt Whitman are dispersed through the Library's website. Notable resources on the site that include Whitman materials, and which are not mentioned elsewhere in this research guide, are listed below.

Chronicling America

A collaborative project of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress, Chronicling America makes available nearly 15 million digitized newspaper pages from 48 U.S. states and District of Columbia. The dates covered currently range from 1789-1963, and the pages are all in the public domain and are free to reuse. The historical newspapers in Chronicling America include samples of Whitman's poetry, as well as articles about his life and writings. For help locating newspaper articles about Whitman, see the following resource created by staff in our Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room:

Topics in Chronicling America - Walt Whitman
Provides access to a sampling of articles about Whitman from historic newspapers in Chronicling America. Use the "Important Dates" and "Suggested Search Strategies" sections for help locating newspaper articles about Whitman.

Commentary on "I Hear America Singing"

A discussion of Whitman's poem "I Hear America Singing" by former Library of Congress poetry specialist David Kresh. See also the related recording of former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins reading "I Hear America Singing."

Library of Congress Information Bulletin

Search on Walt Whitman to return articles about Whitman events and features at the Library taking place between 1993-2011, such as a 2005 feature article on the exhibition Revising Himself: Walt Whitman and Leaves of Grass.

Poetry of America

A collection of field recordings by a wide range of award-winning contemporary poets. Each poet reads a singular American poem of his or her choosing and discusses how the poem connects, deepens, or re-imagines our sense of the nation. The feature includes a print version of the poem to complement the recording, as well as a piece by the participating poet. Three Poetry of America recordings feature Whitman:

Song of America Project

The Song of America Tour was a celebration of creativity across America. This affiliated website provides information about the musical arrangement of Whitman's poem "Ethiopia Saluting the Colors," which was sung by renowned baritone Thomas Hampson during the tour (listen to recording).

Today in History

Today in History is a feature that highlights significant events or figures in American history associated with a particular day. Every Today in History feature includes a brief essay supported by primary resources, followed by a bulleted listed which offers suggestions for finding related Library of Congress resources. Two Today in History features highlight Walt Whitman's life and poetry:

May 31, 1819
Walt Whitman, American poet, journalist, and essayist, was born on May 31, 1819, in West Hills, New York.
February 9, 1888
On February 9, 1888, Walt Whitman penned a note to the publishers of The Riverside Literature Series No. 32 calling attention to mistakes in their recently printed version of his poem, "O Captain! My Captain!"

Walt Whitman Salutes the New Republic Brazil

Includes the text of the poem "A Christmas Greeting."

Whitman and Nationalism

This page, part of the presentation The World of 1898: The Spanish-American War, includes excerpts from Whitman's writing that reflect national pride and confidence.

Walt Whitman: A Resource Guide

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