Robert Frost: A study in sensibility and good sense

About this book

The work is a scholarly biography that traces the Frost family from its medieval roots in England through the turbulent settlement of New England, culminating in the birth and early influences of the poet Robert Frost. It opens with a detailed etymology of the name “Frost,” linking it to Saxon and Scandinavian origins, then moves into a genealogical narrative that follows early ancestors such as Henry Frost, founder of a Cambridge college, and Nicholas Frost, a 17th‑century pioneer who endured frontier hardships and violent conflict with Native Americans. The author, Gorham Bert Munson, weaves together land records, heraldic descriptions, and anecdotal accounts of colonial skirmishes, establishing a sense of continuity that frames Robert Frost as the ninth‑generation heir to a line marked by “hardiness, resistance, decency and kinship to the soil.”

Written in the measured, documentary style of early‑20th‑century American scholarship, the book reflects the period’s emphasis on factual detail and a restrained narrative voice. Readers who appreciate thorough historical context, particularly those interested in New England colonial history, genealogy, or the cultural background of literary figures, will find this study rewarding. Its focus on lineage, settlement patterns, and the modest, steady character of the Frost ancestors makes it especially appealing to scholars and enthusiasts who enjoy a grounded, fact‑rich portrait of a poet’s familial roots.

Opening lines

New England is our association with the name of Frost, and we are no doubt surprised when told that it is a Scandinavian name. Yet there are today many persons in Denmark who hearing this sound uttered behind their backs would turn with that sudden interest aroused by the unexpected pronouncing of one’s name. Certain of the remote ancestors of these Danish Frosts may have roved into England in the ninth century A.D., or it may have been Saxons bearing the name of Forst, which is the Saxon form of Frost, who invaded England in the fifth century A.D. and founded the line of English Frosts. In either case, the Frosts were settled there before the Norman Conquest and the name had begun to accrete sturdy Anglo-Saxon associations about its slightly harsh sound. …

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