Celia Thaxter

American, 1835-1894

Celia Laighton Thaxter was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and when she was four her father became the lighthouse keeper on White Island. He subsequently built a legendary hotel on Appledore Island, on which she grew her famous garden. In addition to her poetry, she also published a human and natural history called Among the Isles of Shoals (1873).