John Barton Wolgamot was an outsider poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

 who is primarily remembered for his experimental book-length poem "In Sarah, Mencken, Christ and Beethoven There Were Men and Women." Wolgamot was not a professional writer by any means (he ran a movie theater for a living) but his work captured the imagination of several young poets and critics when the poem was discovered in a second-hand shop in the 1950s by then graduate student Keith Waldrop

Keith Waldrop

Keith Waldrop is the author of numerous books of poetry and prose, and has translated the work of Claude Royet-Journoud, Anne-Marie Albiach, and Edmond Jabès, among others. A recent translation is Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal .With his wife Rosmarie Waldrop, he co-edits Burning Deck Press...

.

Wolgamot’s status as a cult figure has been enhanced in recent decades by musical compositions by Robert Ashley

Robert Ashley

Robert Ashley , is a contemporary American composer, best known for his operas and other theatrical works, many of which incorporate electronics and extended techniques. Along with Gordon Mumma, Ashley was also a major pioneer of audio synthesis.Ashley was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan...

 and Tortoise

Tortoise (band)

Tortoise is an American post-rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1990.-Music:Tortoise's almost entirely instrumental music defies easy categorization, and the group gained significant attention from their early career. The members have roots in Chicago's fertile music scene, playing in...

in which his work, if not celebrated outright, is heavily referenced.

External Links
http://www.ubu.com/historical/wolgamot/