The Grave of William Miller

Posted on 2024/06/16 by Bartholomew Barker

Looking for poets’ graves to visit on my vacation and I discovered that there’s a monument to William Miller in the Glasgow Necropolis.

I’d never heard of Mr. Miller but I knew his famous nursery rhyme, Wee Willie Winkie. As you can see on his stone, they claimed he was Laureate of the Nursery.

He probably based the poem on a folktale or expanded upon a preexisting rhyme but after he published his chapbook, he became famous. If he became wealthy off his poetry, he squandered it because he died a pauper, buried in an unmarked grave in what is now an eastern suburb of Glasgow.

This cenotaph was erected later.

About Bartholomew Barker

Bartholomew Barker is one of the organizers of Living Poetry, a collection of poets and poetry lovers in the Triangle region of North Carolina. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he makes money as a computer programmer to fund his poetry habit.
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14 Responses to The Grave of William Miller

  1. The Cheesesellers Wife says:
    2024/06/16 at 18:55

    I’m in Glasgow this August -I’ll make a pilgrimage!

    Liked by 1 person

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  2. Michele Lee says:
    2024/06/17 at 00:55

    Thanks for sharing part of your journey with us, Bart. An interesting discovery. Best to you and safe travels.

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. berniebell1955 says:
    2024/06/17 at 05:01

    I thought the Necropolis might appeal to you.

    A possibility for Edinburgh?… https://www.getyourguide.com/edinburgh-l44/underground-catacombs-cemeteries-tc1113/

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Bartholomew Barker says:
      2024/06/17 at 12:56

      A possibility. I generally dislike guided tours but it does look interesting.

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      • berniebell1955 says:
        2024/06/17 at 13:08

        I/we don’t go for guided tours either, but sometimes it’s the only way the public can access a place – for example – we had to accept the whole ‘taken-there-in-a-bus-stay-with-your-group’ thing at Newgrange. Maes Howe is just as bad now.

        Some of the Edinburgh tours are for small groups. See how you feel when the time comes – I could see you being tempted by the whisky tasting one – a combination of pleasures!

        Liked by 1 person

      • Bartholomew Barker says:
        2024/06/17 at 15:32

        A group whisky tasting would just be pain. ugh!

        Like

  4. Nicole Smith says:
    2024/06/17 at 21:54

    my uncle Bill passed in May, William Miller. I was like what the heck.

    Liked by 1 person

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  5. Nicole Smith says:
    2024/06/18 at 20:29

    No, I am okay, I just thought it was odd.

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