The Project Gutenberg eBook of A dictionary of American authors, by Oscar Fay Adams
Title: A dictionary of American authors
5th Edition
Author: Oscar Fay Adams
Release Date: August 3, 2023 [eBook #71324]
Language: English
Credits: Richard Hulse, Krista Zaleski and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
BY
OSCAR FAY ADAMS
AUTHOR OF “THE STORY OF JANE AUSTEN’S LIFE,” “THE ARCHBISHOP’S UNGUARDED MOMENT,” ETC.; EDITOR OF “THROUGH THE YEAR WITH THE POETS,” ETC.
FIFTH EDITION
REVISED AND ENLARGED
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY
1904
REPUBLISHED BY GALE RESEARCH COMPANY, BOOK TOWER, DETROIT, 1969
COPYRIGHT 1884, 1897, 1904 BY OSCAR FAY ADAMS
To
My Mother
[Pg iv]
In the present issue of this work such errors and misprints as the writer or others have noted in earlier editions are corrected, while the supplement has been extended sixty-five pages by the insertion of thirteen hundred and twenty names in excess of those included in the fourth edition. Wherever needful the entries in this portion of the volume have been materially amplified, and this has occurred in numerous instances, while throughout the book there have been supplied many dates of deaths happening since the first issue of the Dictionary, in 1897. Since that year the work has been enlarged to the extent of one hundred and forty-six pages of addenda in all, and though it still falls much short of perfection in its line, the writer trusts that it will yet be found responsive to all reasonable requirements that may be made upon it.
Boston, December 1, 1904.
[Pg v]
The present volume is an outgrowth of the writer’s “Handbook of American Authors,” first published in 1884, several features which the judgment of the public approved in the earlier work having been retained in this. Without pretending to contain an exhaustive list of American writers, it may nevertheless lay claim to be fairly inclusive, as the more than six thousand names herein mentioned will serve to show. A few names that might naturally be looked for here have been omitted at the request of their owners; while some others have not been included, for the reason that diligent search failed to discover any trustworthy data concerning them. Here and there, too, the reader may chance upon unfilled dates of birth, or initials unexpanded. Yet in the majority of such cases application by letter made directly to the owners of the names aforesaid, or to relatives and immediate friends of such persons, has failed to elicit any response. All reasonable effort has been made to obtain trustworthy information upon such points, but failure to obtain replies to letters of inquiry must account for the greater number of such omissions; and here it may not be out of place to mention that information of more general character obtained from private sources has now and then been received too late to be of service, owing to the fact that the work was already electrotyped before it came to hand.
In a comprehensive work like this, including so large a number of names and so many thousand dates, errors must of necessity occur, and the author cannot hope to escape adverse criticism in this respect. While absolute accuracy would have been impossible to attain, he has nevertheless taken no little pains to approach this ideal; and to this end, besides resorting to the ordinary means of information, he has consulted hundreds of catalogues of libraries, colleges, and publishers, as well as denominational year-books, and in numberless instances has availed himself of trustworthy information received directly from private sources. It thus happens that in certain cases dates given in this volume differ from those in other works of reference, and where this occurs the reason for the adoption of a different date herein is supported by excellent authority.
It has been thought advisable to retain the “u” in the spelling of such words as “colour,” “favour,” and the like, the exceptions to this occurring in titles where the spelling of the original has been followed. In connection with this[Pg vi] it may not be amiss to note that the original spelling of titles has been very commonly though not invariably retained. To have done this in every instance, however, would have entailed more labour than it was desirable to incur.
For several reasons the author has thought best in his classification of certain authors to discriminate between poets and verse-writers. To apply the name of poet to each and every writer of verse would have been manifestly unjust. The poets of a generation are not numerous, but the verse-writers are very many. If the term “poet” be loosely applied it loses its signification, while to deny that name to many a writer of excellent verse is to do him no injustice, but rather a service, as it is no disparagement to a private soldier not to be addressed as colonel.
To the many persons who have so cordially responded to his letters of inquiry, and whom he may not thank by name, the writer desires in this place to express his acknowledgments. To Mr. Arthur Mason Knapp, the superintendent of the Bates Hall department of the Boston Public Library, he has been indebted for very much in the way of help and suggestion from the time the work was begun, and to other officials of that department he is under obligations likewise. He also gratefully acknowledges much timely assistance received from the publishing firms of Lee & Shepard, T. Y. Crowell & Co., and Lamson, Wolffe & Co. In the reading of the proofs many valuable suggestions have been received from the proof-readers at the Riverside Press; but his especial thanks are due his friend, Mr. Francis H. Allen, of Boston, whose watchful, critical supervision has been exercised upon every page of proof from first to last. The debt of gratitude which the writer owes him for this service may not be lightly estimated. Without his help, the book would have fallen far short of whatever measure of excellence it may now be judged to attain.
The Hermitage,[Pg vii]
Am. | American Book Co. | New York. |
Ap. | D. Appleton & Co. | New York. |
Ar. | Arena Publishing Co. | Boston. |
A. U. A. | American Unitarian Association | Boston. |
Ba. | Baker & Taylor Co. | New York. |
Bai. | Henry Carey Baird & Co. | Philadelphia. |
Ban. | Banner of Light Publishing Co. | Boston. |
Bap. | American Baptist Publication Society | Philadelphia. |
Bar. | A. S. Barnes & Co. | New York. |
Ben. | Benziger Bros. | New York. |
Bo. | Bowen-Merrill Co. | Indianapolis. |
Bon. | Bonnell, Silver & Co. | New York. |
Bur. | Burrows Brothers Co. | Cleveland. |
Cas. | Cassell Publishing Co. | New York. |
Cent. | Century Co. | New York. |
Clke. | Robert Clarke Co. | Cincinnati. |
Co. | Henry T. Coates & Co. | Philadelphia. |
Cop. | Copeland & Day | Boston. |
C. P. S. | Congregational S. S. & Publishing Society | Boston. |
Cr. | Thomas Y. Crowell & Co. | New York and Boston. |
Dil. | G. W. Dillingham Co. | New York. |
Dit. | Oliver Ditson Co. | Boston. |
Do. | Dodd, Mead & Co. | New York. |
Dou. | Doubleday, Page & Co. | New York. |
Dut. | E. P. Dutton & Co. | New York. |
El. | George H. Ellis | Boston. |
Est. | Estes & Lauriat | Boston. |
Fen. | R. F. Fenno & Co. | New York. |
Fl. | Flood & Vincent | Meadville, Pa. |
Fo. | Fords, Howard & Hulbert | New York. |
Fu. | Funk & Wagnalls Co. | New York. |
Gi. | Ginn & Co. | Boston. |
Har. | Harper & Bros. | New York. |
He. | D. C. Heath & Co. | Boston. |
Hi. | J. A. Hill Co. | New York. |
Ho. | Henry Holt & Co. | New York. |
Hou. | Houghton, Mifflin & Co. | Boston. |
Int. | International Book Co. | Chicago. |
J. H. U. | Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore. |
Ju. | Orange Judd Co. | New York. |
Ke. | Charles H. Kerr & Co. | Chicago. |
Kt. | Joseph Knight Co.[1] | Boston. |
Lai. | Laird & Lee | Chicago. |
Lam. | Lamson, Wolffe & Co. | Boston. |
Le. | Lee & Shepard | Boston. |
Lgs. | Longmans, Green & Co. | London and New York. |
Lip. | J. B. Lippincott Co. | Philadelphia. |
Lit. | Little, Brown & Co. | Boston. |
Ll. | Lovell, Coryell & Co. | New York. |
Lo. | Lothrop Publishing Co. | Boston.[Pg viii] |
Lov. | A. Lovell & Co. | New York and Chicago. |
Mac. | Macmillan & Co. | New York and London. |
Mar. | Marlier, Callanan & Co. | Boston. |
Mc. | McClure, Phillips & Co. | New York. |
Mer. | Merriam Co. | New York. |
Meth. | Methodist Book Concern | New York. |
Mg. | A. C. McClurg & Co. | Chicago. |
Mor. | John P. Morton & Co. | Louisville. |
My. | David McKay | Philadelphia. |
Ne. | F. Tennyson Neely | New York. |
Pa. | L. C. Page & Co. | Boston. |
Pen. | Penn Publishing Co. | Philadelphia. |
Pr. | Preston & Rounds | Providence. |
Put. | G. P. Putnam’s Sons | New York. |
Ra. | Rand, McNally & Co. | Chicago and New York. |
Ran. | A. D. F. Randolph & Co. | New York. |
Rev. | Fleming H. Revell Co. | Chicago. |
Ric. | George H. Richmond & Co. | New York. |
Rob. | Roberts Brothers | Boston. |
S. | Herbert S. Stone & Co. | Chicago. |
Sc. | Scott, Foresman & Co. | Chicago. |
Scr. | Charles Scribner’s Sons | New York. |
Se. | N. J. Stone & Co. | San Francisco. |
Sh. | Sheldon & Co. | New York. |
Sil. | Silver, Burdett & Co. | Boston. |
Sm. | Small, Maynard & Co. | Boston. |
St. | Stone & Kimball | New York. |
Sto. | Frederick A. Stokes Co. | New York. |
Vn. | D. Van Nostrand Co. | New York. |
Wat. | John D. Wattles & Co. | Philadelphia. |
We. | W. A. Wilde & Co. | Boston. |
West. | West Publishing Co. | Milwaukee. |
Wh. | Thomas Whittaker | New York. |
Wil. | John Wiley & Sons | New York. |
Wn. | Bradlee Whidden | Boston. |
Wy. | Way & Williams | Chicago. |
The place of birth of the larger number of the authors mentioned in this volume is indicated by an abbreviation placed before the date of birth, which the following list will serve to explain:—
[Pg x]
A. | Austria. |
Al. | Alabama. |
A. M. | Asia Minor. |
Ar. | Argentina. |
Ark. | Arkansas. |
B. | Brazil. |
Ba. | Bermuda. |
B. G. | British Guiana. |
Bh. | Burmah. |
Bm. | Belgium. |
Bo. | Bohemia. |
Bv. | Bavaria. |
C. | Cuba. |
Cal. | California. |
Ch. | China. |
Ct. | Connecticut. |
Cy. | Ceylon. |
Del. | Delaware. |
D. C. | District of Columbia. |
Dk. | Denmark. |
E. | England. |
E. I. | East Indies. |
F. | France. |
Fl. | Florida. |
G. | Germany. |
Ga. | Georgia. |
Gr. | Greece. |
H. | Holland. |
H. I. | Hawaiian Islands. |
Hy. | Hungary. |
I. | Ireland. |
Ia. | Iowa. |
Il. | Illinois. |
Ind. | Indiana. |
Ion. | Ionian Islands. |
Iy. | Italy. |
J. | Jamaica. |
Ky. | Kentucky. |
La. | Louisiana. |
L. I. | Long Island. |
Ma. | Moravia. |
Mch. | Michigan. |
Md. | Maryland. |
Me. | Maine. |
Mg. | Mecklenburg. |
Mi. | Mississippi. |
Min. | Minnesota.[Pg xi] |
Mo. | Missouri. |
Ms. | Massachusetts. |
N. | Norway. |
N. B. | New Brunswick. |
N. C. | North Carolina. |
N. H. | New Hampshire. |
N. J. | New Jersey. |
N. M. | New Mexico. |
N. S. | Nova Scotia. |
N. Y. | New York. |
O. | Ohio. |
Ont. | Ontario. |
Or. | Oregon. |
P. | Prussia. |
Pa. | Pennsylvania. |
P. E. I. | Prince Edward Island. |
Per. | Persia. |
Ph. | Philippine Islands. |
Pl. | Portugal. |
Po. | Poland. |
Q. | Quebec. |
R. | Russia. |
R. I. | Rhode Island. |
S. | Scotland. |
Sa. | Syria. |
S. C. | South Carolina. |
Sd. | Switzerland. |
Sg. | Schleswig. |
S. I. | Staten Island. |
Sil. | Silesia. |
Sl. | Senegal. |
Sn. | Sweden. |
Sp. | Spain. |
Sxy. | Saxony. |
Sy. | Sicily. |
Tn. | Tennessee. |
Ts. | Texas. |
Ty. | Turkey. |
Va. | Virginia. |
Vt. | Vermont. |
W. | Wales. |
Wa. | Westphalia. |
Wg. | Wurtemburg. |
Wis. | Wisconsin. |
W. I. | West Indies. |
W. Va. | West Virginia. |
Brackets occurring in the names of men indicate that the portion they inclose has been dropped from the owner’s signature. In the names of women the bracketed portion is the maiden name and, in the case of a second marriage, the first married name also.
[Pg 1]
B
C
D
E
Common Sense in Déshabillé, or the Farmer’s Monitor; Daranzel, or the Persian Poet, a tragedy.
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
Miscellaneous Poems (1801).
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
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U
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Z
[1] Since the above was in type the firm name has become L. C. Page & Co.
[2] See Addenda, p. 441.
[3] A distinguishing initial only.
[4] A distinguishing initial only.
[5] A distinguishing initial only.
[6] A distinguishing initial only.
[7] A distinguishing initial only.
[8] A distinguishing initial only.
Obvious typographical errors have been silently corrected. Variations in hyphenation have been standardised, except where those variations exist in book titles. All other spelling and punctuation remains unchanged.
The following corrections were made to the text:
Page 142: Fairfield, Genevieve Genevra
Daughter of S. L.
field, infra. Genevra, or the History
Fair of a Portrait;
-> Daughter of S. L. Fairfield, infra. Genevra, or the
History of a Portrait;
Page 174: Hartt, Charles Frederick and Hartzell, J[onas] Hazard were placed into correct alphabetical order.
Page 242: McIlvaine, Charles Petitt, 1709-1873. -> 1799-1873.
Page 335: Sears, Barnas: president of Brown University, 1855-47. -> 1855-67.
Page 367: Stroud, George McDowell, 1895-1875. -> 1795-1875.
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