Winning Poems Photos |
James McIntyre Poetry Contest 2008 Attention poets! Enter the 2008 James McIntyre Poetry Contest for original poetry, sponsored by the Ingersoll Times and the Corporation of the Town of Ingersoll. The deadline for entries is Thursday October 9, 2008.
The first ten years of award-winning poems by students and adults in one volume Cheese, trains, families, friendship, memories Remember what you and your friends wrote; 300 pages, 15w x 22h cm, spiral bound, paper cover Order it now! |
Brief History of the Poetry Contest
by Rosemary Lewis, 2006
The James McIntyre Poetry Contest is an annual poetry contest, held in Ingersoll Ontario. From its beginning in 1997 until 2005, it was organized under the auspices of Oxford County Library, with vital support from its sponsors, The Ingersoll Times and the Corporation of the Town of Ingersoll. In 2006, the Town of Ingersoll took over the administration of the contest, which had outgrown the library’s resources.
The James McIntyre Poetry Contest was originally conceived as a way to encourage local poets and writers of all ages. As well, a connection with the local area was sought by encouraging poems on subjects of special interest to Oxford County, such as cheese or dairying, local history, and people and places in the area. Each November, we have recognized the contest winners in two ways. First, all the winning poems were published in The Ingersoll Times newspaper, an honour that is highly regarded by the poets and writers. Secondly, we held the James McIntyre Poetry Evening in the Town of Ingersoll’s Council Chamber, where ribbons, certificates, and prizes were awarded and the first prize poems read aloud.
Many people have helped with the James McIntyre Poetry Contest and Poetry Evening over the years. Although we cannot mention everyone, the library wishes to give special thanks to the Poetry Contest committee members: Yvonne Holmes Mott, Michael Hennessy, and Shirley Lovell, who have been unfailingly supportive, giving their time and creatively solving problems over the contest’s nine years. We are grateful to Gail MacKay, who has read aloud the first prize winning poems, truly a challenging task, at Poetry Evenings since 2001. Our thanks also go to Dr. Lynne McKechnie and Dr. Catherine Ross, both of the University of Western Ontario, who have been contest judges since 1997 and 1998 respectively. And finally, we thank The Ingersoll Times and the Corporation of the Town of Ingersoll for sponsoring and supporting the contest from the beginning.