Born in Livermore Falls, Maine, Louise Bogan attended Boston College but was never awarded a formal degree. In 1923, Body of This Death, her first collection of poetry was published. A reserved individual, Bogan avoided talking about herself in public and details concerning her private life are thus scarce. However, for almost four decades she worked as a poetry reviewer for The New Yorker and during her life her work regularly appeared in respected periodicals and her books of poetry were critically acclaimed. Released in 1968, The Blue Estuaries 1923-1968 collected much of her work during four and a half decades into one volume. Louise Bogan died in New York City in 1970 at the age of 73.