A 19th-century poet, essayist, and journalist, Walt Whitman stands as one of the most influential poets in American literature, and one of the first to gain international recognition. Whitman spent most of his early years in Brooklyn, where he worked as a printer and newspaper journalist through the 1850s. The first edition of his landmark collection of poetry, Leaves of Grass, was privately printed in 1855 and consisted of 12 untitled poems, one of which was to later become famous as "Song of Myself."

Source: National Park Service