''Caleb West, Master Diver'' is a novel published in 1898 by

Francis Hopkinson Smith Francis Hopkinson Smith (October 23, 1838 – April 7, 1915) was an American author, artist, and engineer. He built the foundation for the Statue of Liberty, wrote numerous stories, and received recognition for his paintings. Smith was th ...

that was the best selling book in the United States in 1898.

Alice Payne Hackett Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

Seventy Years of Best Sellers 1895-1965
p. 94 (1967) (the lists for 1895-1912 in this volume are derived from the lists published in ''

The Bookman (New York) ''The Bookman'' was a literary journal established in 1895 by Dodd, Mead and Company Frank H. Dodd, head of Dodd, Mead and Company, established ''The Bookman'' in 1895. Its first editor was Harry Thurston Peck, who worked on its staff from 1 ...

'') It was first serialized in ''

The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'' from October 1897 to March 1898, and was published in book form by

Houghton Mifflin The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

in April 1898 with illustrations by

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, and is the fourth List of ...

and Arthur I. Keller.(2 April 1898)
"Caleb West."; Mr. F. Hopkinson Smith's New Work of Fiction
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' The book is based on Smith's experience in the building of the

Race Rock Light Race Rock Light is a lighthouse on Race Rock Reef, a dangerous set of rocks on Long Island Sound southwest of Fishers Island, New York and the site of many shipwrecks. It is currently owned and maintained by the New London Maritime Society as p ...

near

Fishers Island, New York Fishers Island is an island within the town of Southold in Suffolk County, New York. It lies at the eastern end of Long Island Sound, off the southeastern coast of Connecticut, across Fishers Island Sound. About long and wide, it is about ...

in the 1870s.

Adaptations

The novel was adapted into a play by Michael Morton. It was also adapted into a silent film in 1912, and a 1920 silent film called '' Deep Waters''.

References

External links

* * *
Caleb West: Master Driver
', full scan of 1898 Houghton & Mifflin edition via archive.org * * (1912)

(1908) (Smith's short tribute to the actual master driver on the Race Rock project) 1898 American novels American novels adapted into films Novels by Francis Hopkinson Smith Novels first published in serial form Novels set in New York (state) Works originally published in The Atlantic (magazine) {{1890s-novel-stub