Sgt. Joyce Kilmer Square

E. 12 St., Kings Hwy., Quentin Rd.

Brooklyn

Directions via Google Maps

The square is named for Sergeant Alfred Joyce Kilmer (1886-1918), a poet and soldier who died during World War I. Joyce Kilmer was considered America’s premier living Catholic poet. His 1913 poem “Trees,” which millions of children learned by heart, was so loved that his mother put it into a song cherished by the entire country.

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

Discover the history of Sgt. Joyce Kilmer Square

Show Disclaimer