Poems in Place will place a poem, written by an Alaskan writer, in each of the seven regions of the Alaska State Park’s system in the coming years. What might happen when the old knowing that lives inside poetry marries the voices of wind, river, forest, the pull of the tide, or the quiet rhythm of a lake and is available to all who pass by?  

Poems in Place is a collaboration between Alaska Center for The Book, Alaska State Parks, a volunteer steering committee of poets and writers and the residents of Alaska.

Our 1st year project will put poems in two locations: one in Chena River State Recreation Area, above Fairbanks, and another at Totem Bight State Historical Park in Ketchikan. From January 15 to March 15, 2013 we will be accepting poetry submissions from Alaskan residents. We invite nominated poems written by Alaskan poets and submitted by appreciative readers as well as original work by Alaskan poets in response to this invitation. Coinciding with the selected poem’s dedication, two community poems-in-place creative writing workshops will held.

Poems in Place offers residents and visitors to Alaska the chance to pause in the landscape, enter the realm of a poem and find something that speaks to them there.

The current project grew naturally from a poem, What Whales and Infants Know by Kim Cornwall, that was installed and dedicated at Beluga Point in Chugach State Park in May 2011. The experience of reading this poem has been so powerful that several people have contacted us. One visitor from Florida even wrote and asked us to please send her a copy of the poem.

We are currently raising funds to support this project and hope to initiate the first two poems in 2012-2013.  

Please consider becoming a part of this project, we welcome your contribution. Please make donations by clicking the donate button below or by mailing a check to: