David Law Proudfit (October 27, 1842,

Newburgh, New York Newburgh is a City (New York), city in Orange County, New York, United States. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area. ...

– February 23, 1897,

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

) was an American poet and lithographer, who also wrote under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Peleg Arkwright. Son of a clergyman, Proudfit was educated at the common schools until the onset of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. Enlisting as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

in the 1st Regiment New York Mounted Rifles aged nineteen, he spent four years as a soldier, rising to the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. He then went to New York and entered business in

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

. He began contributing to periodicals under the pseudonym Peleg Arkwright, until success encouraged him to write under his own name. In 1868 he married Frances Marian Dodge. His later business interests included

pneumatic tubes Pneumatics (from Greek 'wind, breath') is the use of gas or pressurized air in mechanical systems. Pneumatic systems used in industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A centrally located and electrically-po ...

; in the 1880s he was president of the Meteor despatch company of New York.''Appletons' cyclopaedia of American biography'', 6 vols, 1888

Works

*''Love among the Gamins, and other poems'', New York, 1877 *''Mask and Domino'', 1888 *''From the Chaparral to Wall Street; or a man from the West'', 1891

References

External links

1842 births 1897 deaths American telecommunications industry businesspeople 19th-century American poets American male poets 19th-century American male writers 19th-century American businesspeople {{US-business-bio-1840s-stub