Arthur Upson

Arthur Upson (January 10, 1877-August 14, 1908) was born in New York in 1877 and moved with his family to Minnesota in 1894. In 1898, Upson entered the University of Minnesota. Because of his literary skill, Upson was asked to edit the school newspaper, The Minnesota Daily. Upson, however, was sickly. Because of his chronic poor health, he was unable to complete his degree, and the University of Minnesota awarded him an honorary degree in 1906 and also gave him a position in the English department. Tragically, Arthur Upson was found drowned in Lake Bemidji in 1908 when he was only 31.

While at the University of Minnesota, the president of the school, Cyrus Northrup, asked Upson to rewrite the second verse of “Hail! Minnesota,” which later became the university hymn and the state song of Minnesota. Though Upson’s verse is no longer sung in the present day, it was sung during the first part of the 20^th century. Upson was also a poet. He published several collections of poetry and the rest of his verses were published posthumously in a collection. Some have compared his writing style to John Keats or Thomas Chatterton.