Local Poets: Mary Palmer Dana Shindler

Image from Ralph W. Steen Library

Mary Stanley Bunce Palmer Dana Shindler (a.k.a. Mary S. B. Dana)

Born: February 15, 1810, Beaufort, SC

Died: February 8, 1883, Nacogdoches, TX

Her religious poems reflect on themes of comfort in the struggles of life and death.  Both her young son, Charlie, and her first husband, the Rev. Charles E. Dana, died during 1840.  Later she set some of her poems to music, favoring folk tunes for the melody of her hymns.  

Learn more about her hymns on the Hymnary database website.

Among her poetry collections are:

• Southern Harp (1840)
• The Parted Family, and other Poems (1841)
• Northern Harp (1841)
• Southern Sketches (1847)   

The BDC has a vertical file about her life and several of her collections.  Please drop by and visit us during our customary hours of operation.  That is, Mondays through Fridays, 10 am until 5 pm.