Rye Poetry Path, 95 Dearborn Avenue, Rye, NY (2026)

06/19/2023

To celebrate Juneteenth we invite you to visit Lucille Clifton's powerful poem atlantic is a sea of bones in Rye Town Park. In the late 17th century a ship called the Charles arrived on this stretch of coast carrying 9 enslaved people. And according to the 1790 census, the Halsted family - the owners of the land that became Rye Town Park - enslaved 7 people.

To honor them we placed Clifton's poem in this contemplative space at the end of Dearborn Avenue with a view to the sea they traversed and the place where they landed.

We are so grateful to our friends at the The Rye Historical Society for helping us learn about the history of slavery in our part of NY and to the Friends of Rye Town Park for sponsoring this important installation. And to Brian Jackson for the beautiful sunrise photo.

them bones
them bones will
rise again
them bones
them bones will
walk again
them bones
them bones will
talk again
now hear
the word of the Lord.
- Traditional

atlantic is a sea of bones.
my bones.
my elegant afrikans
connecting whydah and new york,
a bridge of ivory.
seabed they call it.
in its arms my early mothers sleep.
some women leapt with their babies in their arms.
some women wept and threw the babies in.
maternal armies pace the atlantic floor.
i call my name into the roar of surf
and something awful answers.

Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester

04/03/2023

Our park's grandest and most gracious sycamore seemed the perfect companion to Maya Angelou's powerful words as they rise together. The rope ladder with engraved cedar steps was envisioned by Rye artist Meera Agarwal to celebrate the resilience of the poem's honorees and inspiration - black women, formerly enslaved people, and perhaps the human spirit in general. Learn more about this civil rights activist who was also Hollywood's first black female director as well as a composer, actress, essayist, dancer, stage and screen producer, songwriter, editor, singer, historian, playwright, memoirist ... and poet at mayaangelou.com.

Iowa artists John and Missy at Flint River Studio created the steps for us in cedar, a strong and durable hardwood known for its resistance to pests, humidity, and changes in temperature - perhaps appropriately so. The Friends of Rye Town Park made this meaningful installation possible, Sian Roath and Russ Gold braved heights and high winds to make it happen. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Meera Agarwal
Sian Roath
Russell Gold
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
Rye Poetry Path

04/02/2023

Affectionately known by some as the Pig Wallow and beloved by many a canine visitor, the low-lying area near the gazebo can get a tad muddy, the perfect spot for reflecting on the richness and potential of soggy dirt ... What would Spring be without mud? Thus we placed the poem down in the thick of it, on NY bluestones engraved by artist Tavia at Adirondack Stoneworks.

Scottish-Canadian poet Robert Service was known for his poetry inspired by the beauty, people, and adventure of the Yukon. Thank you Friends of Rye Town Park for sponsoring this poem. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School

Rye Poetry Path

04/01/2023

On this 1st day of we celebrate U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limon! This installation at the Forest Avenue entrance welcomes all visitors with a prelude, an invitation ... It was inspired by the songbirds you may find in the park, represented by the bamboo Koshi chimes hanging in the tree, the poem engraved by Springfield, MO based artist Natalya Brooks on matching bamboo panels placed on the mulch below. Wind chimes in doorways are also said to bring good fortune to those who pass through.

We are so grateful to sound therapist, musician, and composer Gary Posner for helping us choose just the right chimes for this, and to The Writing Goalies for sponsoring this poem. Read more of Ada Limon's work at adalimon.net or catch a reading as she tours the country. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Sound is Everything
Milobearco
Paula Fung
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
The Rye Arts Center
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/31/2023

Like many fine poets, Lucille Clifton says so much with so little. This poem was inspired by an annual fleet blessing ceremony near Saint Mary's College in Maryland where she taught. In it you may find themes of adversity and change, venturing and letting go, tolerance and learning, trust, nature, and impermanence.

Like this poem, much of her work emphasizes endurance and strength through adversity, focusing specifically on African-American experience and family life. We chose a font that is bold and bright, on a background photo taken nearby on the Playland pier - a close-up of the planks, where one might stand to watch boats come and go or to contemplate life.

This poem was sponsored by the members of the American Yacht Club, thanks to 2 of its poetry-loving members, Watershed Rye Co-Chair Paula Fung and Little Garden Club of Rye member Chris Duncan. May all boats that traverse the Sound travel safely! Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/30/2023

There are few better places along the Sound Shore to jog, walk, chat, or reflect than the promenade at Rye Town Park! For some the experience can be spiritual. Jogging on the Beach was meant to be read while moving, while jogging or otherwise. We imagined a handwriting font the color of pencil lead as the excerpt feels like a thought that could have been jotted in a journal or on a napkin - and Langley Metalworks made our vision a reality.

Westchester poet and novelist Kevin Pilkington teaches in the distinguished Writing program at Sarah Lawrence College - read more of his work at kevinpilk.com. The Friends of RTP made this poem possible, including installing it on a finger-freezing kind of day - thank you Diana Page and Friends of Rye Town Park! Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Langley Metal Works
Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/29/2023

The pavilions of Rye Town Park and beachfront restaurant Barley Beach House host birthdays, concerts, workshops, and an abundance of other life-affirming gatherings. Danse Printemps et Quarataine by Poetry Path Curator Iain Haley Po***ck was written during the pandemic, a reflection on life and hope in the midst of death. The poem is presented on stepping stones arranged in a loosely dance step-like pattern near the pavilions and the entrance of BBH - affirming life and perhaps inspiring visitors to dance!

Iain's currently the Director of the MFA Program at Manhattanville College - read more about him and his work at iainhaleypollock.com. The stones were hand-made and engraved by artist and dog-lover David Fireng in Arizona. We're so grateful to the Friends of Rye Town Park for sponsoring this poem and to Debbie Reisner, Vic Federico, and the Town of Rye for their kind help with this installation and their enthusiasm and support for the Rye Poetry Path. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Iain Haley Po***ck
Manhattanville MFA
The Barley Beach House
Town of Rye, NY
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/28/2023

Tides are serious influencers in coastal NY, just as they were for Longfellow growing up in 19th century Maine. It was around the time of his death in 1882 that vacationers first came to our beach. This poem greets us as we travelers come into the park from the parking lot, the reddish-brown wood planks designed to mimic the wooden ceilings of our beloved pavilions, themselves nearly 115 years old. Want to know more? Check out The Rye Historical Society's terrific article on Rye Town Park https://www.ryehistory.org/stories/rye-town-park-how-lucky-we-are

If you were at our Ebb and Flow poetry + music event in April 2022 you were lucky enough to hear talented Rye High School student Ty Bibas' original composition on piano inspired by this poem. Catch a clip here ... https://youtube.com/shorts/rsJRbqtyy_8

The piece was hand-made by artist Batuhan Dogan of Falkel Designs in DE, a studio inspired by nature that donates to One Tree Planted with every piece. Our thanks to Sian Roath and the Lloyd-Roath family for making this installation possible, and to Park Director Russell Gold for his wisdom, helping us to install the sign with utmost care and respect for our beloved historic structures. And to photographer Brian Jackson for this beautiful image! Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Yvonne Lodders
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/27/2023

Major Jackson's poem Let Me Begin Again speaks of renewal, the narrator imagining a scene on a beach. We presented this poem using simple steel strips painted the color of beach sand, the Sound visible through the negative space of the words, in a font suggesting the reflective, spontaneous nature of handwriting. We placed it along the fence where one might pause to appreciate beautiful Oakland Beach and let their imagination wander too.

Celebrated poet Major Jackson lives in Nashville and is the Poetry Editor at The Harvard Review - read more of his work at majorjackson.com. Skilled designers and artists Jessica and Curtis at Langley Metal Works in TX have made several pieces for us, including this one. Thank you to the Pietrafitta Family for sponsoring this poem! Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Anne Pietrafitta
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/26/2023

Sea pebbles on our shore, each with their own story, like us. Poet Dana Gioia is a former California Poet laureate and Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts - read more at danagioia.com. In our correspondence we were delighted to learn that he spent several years living nearby along the Sound Shore and we're thrilled to have his poem featured along our beach on oversize pebbles engraved by - very coincidentally - a California-based artist also named Dana ... Dana Rowley. The artist Dana's engraving work is motivated by a desire to preserve memories, where we have been before we were here ... on this shore.

Our gratitude to the sea-loving Cunningham family for sponsoring Mr. Gioia's poem. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Alison Cunningham
Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

03/25/2023

From the Knapp House we move a few blocks over to Rye Town Park, host of what will eventually be 39 poems! Follow the red brick road from Dearborn Avenue into the park with Happiness by Stephen Dunn and keep your eyes peeled for castles, crocodiles, and more open doors during your visit, with your imagination leading the way.

Stephen Dunn was born in NYC and won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 2001. He passed away recently, in 2021 - read his NY Times obituary at https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/25/books/stephen-dunn-poet-dead.html and more of his work at stephendunnpoet.com. The bricks were engraved by artist Tom in Ohio, an Eagle Scout and avid hiker on the Appalachian Trail ... another magical road for many. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at the link in our bio.

Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
The Rye Historical Society
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Sian Roath
Rye Poetry Path

03/24/2023

We begin in the beginning, with a poem that honors the Native American communities who lived here long before we did. Prints was chosen for the Knapp House - the oldest house in Westchester County - because it embodies what the Rye Historical Society is all about - living history. Storyteller, children's book author, novelist, and poet Dr. Joseph Bruchac is a Native American scholar and explores his Abenaki ancestry in his work. He's the Executive Director of the Ndakinna Education Center in Central Village, NY which runs programs to promote Native American understandings, Adirondack culture, wilderness skills, and awareness of the natural world. Run - don't walk - to ndakinnacenter.org to see their essential, inspiring work.

The installation was designed by Alison Cupp Relyea - Director of Museum Education and Programming The Rye Historical Society - and created by the 2 talented artists of Rye's hometownlove. The fish scale style, fingerprint-ish cedar shingles reflect both the poem and the house. We are so grateful to the Relyea Family for sponsoring this meaningful installation. Read the full text of this and all Rye Poetry Path poems at https://ryepoetrypath.ryelibrary.org/.

Rye Town Park
Friends of Rye Town Park
Edith G. Read Wildlife Sanctuary, Rye NY
Westchester County Parks
Friends of Rye Nature Center
The Rye Arts Center
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Country Day School
ArtsWestchester
Rye Poetry Path

Rye Poetry Path

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