Alfred Doten (July 21, 1829 - November 12, 1903) was an American journalist and diarist, and "the dean of the newspaper men of Nevada."

Life

Born in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1829, he went west to try his luck in the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...

in 1849. He became a journalist for the ''Como Sentinel'' in Como, Nevada in 1863, the editor of the ''Virginia Daily Union'' in 1864, an editorial writer for the ''Virginia Enterprise'' in 1866, and subsequently the editor of the '' Gold Hill Daily News.'' By the time of his death in 1903, he had become known as "the dean of the newspaper men of Nevada." His diary was edited by

Walter Van Tilburg Clark Walter Van Tilburg Clark (August 3, 1909 – November 10, 1971) was an American novelist, short story writer, poet, and educator. He ranks as one of Nevada's most distinguished literary figures of the 20th century, and was the first inductee into ...

and published posthumously in 1973. His sister,

Lizzie Doten Elizabeth "Lizzie" Doten (April 1, 1827 – January 15, 1913) was an American poet and a prominent spiritualist lecturer and trance speaker and writer who received special attention for her supposed ability to channel poetry from Edgar Allan Poe ...

, was a well-known writer and spiritualist. She visited him in Nevada in 1889, the first time they had seen each other in 40 years.

Works

References

1829 births 1903 deaths People from Plymouth, Massachusetts Journalists from Nevada 19th-century American journalists 19th-century American diarists {{US-journalist-19thC-stub