Oliver Wendell Holmes was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1809; he graduated from Harvard in 1829. Holmes was a central figure in the New England Renaissance; he studied both medicine and law; for most of his life he served as professor of anatomy and physiology at Harvard Medical School. In addition to his active professional life, Holmes maintained an active avocation as writer of both poetry and prose.
On September 16, 1830, Oliver Wendell Holmes' poem, "Old Ironsides," appeared in response to a report in the Boston Daily Advertiser that the Navy was going to scrap the USS Constitution. The report was inaccurate; apparently, there were no plans to demolish the ship, but a public outcry arose as a result of that report, and Holmes fired off his poem immediately. The poem is credited with saving the ship, which has a fascinating history.
| OLD IRONSIDES |
Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon's roar;
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.
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Her deck, once red with heroes' blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o'er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor's tread,
Or know the conquered knee;
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!
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Oh, better that her shattered bulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!
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