Elizabeth Akers Allen
Elizabeth Akers Allen (October 9, 1832 – August 7, 1911) was an American poet and journalist. She published early poems under the pen name Florence Percy and became known for her flowing, sentimental verse. Many of her first pieces appeared in the Portland Transcript.
She was born Elizabeth Anne Chase in Strong, Maine. Her mother died when she was an infant, and her family moved to Farmington, where she attended Farmington Academy. Her earliest poems, written when she was about 12 to 15, were published under the name Florence Percy. In 1855 she published her first book of poetry, Forest Buds from the Woods of Maine.
Allen began contributing to magazines in 1858, including the Atlantic Monthly. In 1859–60 she traveled in Europe, which helped her gain recognition as a writer. While abroad she worked as a correspondent for the Portland Transcript and the Boston Evening Gazette. In 1866 she published a second collection, Poems, under the name Elizabeth Akers, and later volumes appeared under Elizabeth Akers Allen.
For much of her career, she earned part of her living as a journalist. The success of her first book allowed her to travel in Europe, and in 1874 she moved to Portland, Maine, where she served for seven years as the literary editor of the Daily Advertiser. She was also a member of Sorosis, a professional women's club with many writers.
Allen is best known for the opening couplet of the sentimental poem "Rock Me to Sleep" (1859), written in Europe and first published in the Saturday Evening Post. The line was very popular during the Civil War and was later set to music by Ernest Leslie. There were years of dispute over authorship because others claimed the poem, especially after its music became a hit.
Her personal life included three marriages: first to Marshall S. M. Taylor in 1851 (they divorced in 1857 after he abandoned her and their infant daughter), then to Paul Akers in 1860 (he died in 1861 and their child died soon after), and finally to Elijah M. Allen in 1865 or 1866. The couple lived in Richmond, Virginia, and Ridgewood, New Jersey, before settling in New York City. Allen moved to Tuckahoe, New York, in 1881 and died there in 1911.
Elizabeth Akers Allen’s papers are preserved at Colby College and in the Maine Women Writers Collection at the University of New England.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 05:14 (CET).