Toomer, Jean

Toomer, Jean, 1894-1967, American writer, b. Washington, D.C., as Nathan Eugene Toomer. A major figure of the Harlem Renaissance, he is known for one work, Cane (1923), a collection of stories, poems, and sketches about black life in rural Georgia and the urban North.

orig. Nathan Eugene Toomer

(born Dec. 26, 1894, Washington, D.C., U.S.—died March 30, 1967, Doylestown, Pa.) U.S. poet and novelist of the Harlem Renaissance. He taught briefly before turning to writing. Cane (1923), considered his best work, is an experimental novel that depicts the experience of being black in the U.S.; it had a strong influence on younger black writers. He also wrote for The Dial and other small magazines. He visited the Gurdjieff Institute in France in 1926 and led Gurdjieff groups in Harlem and Chicago. He became a Quaker in 1940. Ambivalent about his mixed racial background and preoccupied with spiritual matters, he avoided race issues in subsequent works.

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Toomer is a family name.

Several important people have had the family name Toomer, including:

• Jean Toomer, an American poet of the Harlem Renaissance
• Amani Toomer, a football player for the New York Giants
• Ron Toomer, a roller coaster designer
• Fred A. Toomer, Third Vice-President and member of the Board of Directors of Atlanta Life Insurance Company.

Toomer is also used as an abbreviation for Fred A. Toomer Elementary School in Atlanta, Georgia.