John Blair Linn

American clergyman and poet

John Blair Linn (March 14, 1777 - August 30, 1804) was an American clergyman and poet.

John Blair Linn was born in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, on March 14, 1777.[1] William Linn, his father, was an academic administrator.[2]

Linn graduated from Columbia College in 1793.[1][3] He published in magazines and newspapers while at college.[4]

After college, Linn studied law in the office of Alexander Hamilton,[1] a friend of his father's,[5] but did not take to it.[6][7] After abandoning the law, he studied theology with Dirck Romeyn at Union College, receiving an MA in 1797.[6][8] He was ordained a Presbyterian clergyman in 1798 and became assistant pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia on June 13, 1799.[1][2]

Shortly after his graduation from college, Linn wrote a play titled Bourville Castle, or the Gallic Maidens. The play premiered at John Street Theatre on January 16, 1797,[9] but was not successful.[1] He published five books of poetry and three prose works.[10]

He died of tuberculosis in Philadelphia on August 30, 1804.[1]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f Ripley, George; Dana, Charles Anderson, eds. (1860). The New American Cyclopaedia: A Popular Dictionary of General Knowledge. D. Appleton. p. 556. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
2. ^ a b Smyth, Albert H. (1892). The Philadelphia Magazines and Their Contributors, 1741–1850. R. M. Lindsay. pp. 117–118. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
3. ^ Johnson's Universal Cyclopaedia. D. Appleton and Company. 1897. p. 286. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
4. ^ Leary 1975, p. 178.
5. ^ Leary 1975, p. 184.
6. ^ a b Patterson, Robert M.; Davidson, Robert (1876). Historical sketch of the Synod of Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication. pp. 57–58. ISBN 978-0-524-01334-2. OCLC 681429522. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
7. ^ Kettell, Samuel (1829). Specimens of American Poetry. Vol. 2\. S.G. Goodrich and Company. pp. 121–124. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
8. ^ Leary 1975, pp. 185–185.
9. ^ Leary 1975, p. 185.
10. ^ Leary 1975, p. 175.

## Sources[edit]

* Leary, Lewis (1975). Soundings : some early American writers. University of Georgia Press. ISBN 0-8203-0350-X. OCLC 1659338.

## Further reading[edit]

* Bonnet, J. M. (August 1974). "John Blair Linn and Alexander Gerard: Taste, imitation and genius". English Studies. 55 (4): 361–363. doi:10.1080/00138387408597635. ISSN 0013-838X.

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