Stephen Crane

American novelist, poet, and short-story writer, b. Newark, N.J. Often designated the first modern American writer, Crane is ranked among the authors who introduced realism into American literature. The 14th child of a Methodist minister, he grew up in Port Jervis, N.Y., and briefly attended Lafayette College and Syracuse Univ. He moved to New York City in 1890 and for five years lived in poverty as a free-lance writer.

His first novel, Maggie: A Girl of the Streets (1893), a grimly realistic story of slum life, was unpopular but gained the young writer the friendship of Hamlin Garland and William Dean Howells. Crane's next novel, The Red Badge of Courage (1895, restored ed. 1982), brought him wide and deserved fame. Set during the Civil War, the novel traces the development of a young recruit, Henry Fleming, through fear, illusion, panic, and cowardice, to a quiet, humble heroism. This remarkable account of the emotions of a soldier under fire is all the more amazing since Crane had never been in battle. On the strength of the novel he served as a foreign correspondent in Cuba and in Greece.

Around 1897 Crane married Cora Taylor, who ran a brothel in Florida. His marriage, coupled with his unorthodox personality, aroused scandalous rumors, including those that he was a drug addict and a satanist. Because of this slander Crane spent his last years abroad; he died of tuberculosis in Germany at the age of 28.

Crane was a superb literary stylist who emphasized irony and paradox and made innovative use of imagery and symbolism. Thus, although realistic, his novels are highly individual. Crane also wrote superb short stories and poems. The title stories of The Open Boat and Other Tales (1898) and The Monster and Other Stories (1899) are considered among the finest stories in English. His two books of epigrammatic free verse, The Black Rider (1895) and War Is Kind (1899), anticipated several strains of 20th-century poetry.

About The Crane House - Historical Background

Saved from demolition in 1995 through the efforts of Tom and Regina Hayes and scores of dedicated volunteers (dubbed the "Crane Crew"), the Stephen Crane House is Asbury Park�s link to great American literature. This modest house was built about 1877 and was then known as "Arbutus Cottage". It was bought by widow Mary Helen Peck Crane in 1883. Stephen Crane (1871-1900), born in Newark, was the youngest of Mrs. Cranes fourteen children. He was enrolled in the Asbury Park Public School system, and it was there that he wrote his first fully-developed short story. Later he worked as a journalist, filing stories from Asbury Park for a New York newspaper. After spending his last summer at the Jersey shore in 1892, he left to begin in earnest his writing career in New York City. Three years later his second novel, his masterwork, The Red Badge of Courage, was published to great acclaim in America and Europe.

Despite his short life, Stephen Crane was a prolific essayist, poet, short story writer, novelist, and war correspondent. He died in Germany at the age of 28 and is buried in Hillside, New Jersey. Unfortunately, his birthplace in Newark was torn down many decades ago, and the Stephen Crane House in Asbury Park is the only remaining residence of the great author.

The House Today

The entire first floor and four public rooms on the second floor serve as a museum dedicated to Stephen Crane. The building was purchased in 2001 by local resident Frank DAlessandro in order to be maintained as a museum. That year the trustees had the aging building completely re-roofed in a style consistent with the original slate roof. The entire exterior has been expertly repainted by a prodigious local house painter extraordinaire, Kathleen Magee. The Asbury Park City Historian, Werner Baumgartner, serves as curator, keeping a watchful eye on rehabilitation efforts. Rehabilitation to the lecture room on the first floor is ongoing, thanks to the contributions of local residents. The generous donation given by Mr. Bruce Springsteen and friends has been of enormous help in making it possible for recitals, lectures, and poetry readings to take place there. An upcoming project is to make the first floor fully handicap accessible.

There were several literary events in early 2002 in cooperation with the Black Box Theater of downtown Asbury. The Stephen Crane House presented, on Edgar Allan Poes birthday, January 19, an evening of works by or about the great short story writer and poet. A Vietnamese language movie, "The Scent of Green Papaya" was shown. Participants also sampled Vietnamese taste treats that evening. An acclaimed one-woman show on "Jane Eyre" was presented to an overflow audience. And a panel discussion about the history of "Gay Asbury Park"