Walter de la Mare Collection (VMF039), 1938-1956 | MSS Manuscripts

de la Mare, Walter, 1873-1956, British author

Walter John de la Mare (April 25, 1873 –June 22, 1956) was an English poet, short story writer and novelist, probably best remembered for his works for children and the poem "The Listeners."  He was born in Kent and was educated at St Paul's Cathedral School.  In 1892, De la Mare joined the Esperanza Amateur Dramatics Club, where he met and fell in love with Elfrida (Elfie) Ingpen, the leading lady. Elfie was ten years older than De la Mare. On August 4, 1899, De la Mare and Elfie, who was by then pregnant, were married.

His first book, Songs of Childhood, was published under the name Walter Ramal. He worked in the statistics department of the London office of Standard Oil for eighteen years while struggling to bring up a family, but nevertheless found enough time to write, and, in 1908, through the efforts of Sir Henry Newbolt he received a Civil List pension which enabled him to concentrate on writing.

De la Mare also wrote some subtle psychological horror stories such as "Seaton's Aunt" and "Out of the Deep." Also a significant writer of ghost stories, many of his ghost stories can be found in the collections Eight Tales, The Riddle and Other Stories, The Connoisseur and Other Stories, On the Edge and The Wind Blows Over. His complete short stories have now been published in three volumes issued by Giles de la Mare Publishers, London. De la Mare also wrote two supernatural novels, Henry Brocken (1904) and The Return (1910). For children, De la Mare wrote the fairy tale The Three Mulla Mulgars.