 In 1842 , Griswold released his 476 @-@ page anthology of American poetry , The Poets and Poetry of America , which he dedicated to Washington Allston . Griswold 's collection featured poems from over 80 authors , including 17 by Lydia Sigourney , three by Edgar Allan Poe , and 45 by Charles Fenno Hoffman . Hoffman , a close friend , was allotted twice as much space as any other author . Griswold went on to oversee many other anthologies , including Biographical Annual , which collected memoirs of " eminent persons recently deceased " , Gems from American Female Poets , Prose Writers of America , and Female Poets of America . 
