Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer (born Cambria Station,

Chester County, Pennsylvania Chester County (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Tscheschter Kaundi''), colloquially referred to as Chesco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in ...

, October 5, 1868; died December 8, 1936,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, age 68) was an American

biographer Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography. Biographers Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...

and

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

writer.

Biography

He was the son of John Oberholtzer, a former schoolteacher who during Ellis' lifetime ran Willowdale Mills (now The Mill at Anselma in

Chester Springs, Pennsylvania Chester Springs is an unincorporated community in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is centered on West Pikeland Township, and extends into Charlestown Township, Upper Uwchlan Township, Wallace Township, East Nantmeal Townshi ...

) and later became a successful grain merchant. Ellis' mother, Sara Louisa Vickers Oberholtzer, was a respected poet and social activist known for her work in abolition, post-Civil War social reform, and equal rights. Ellis had one brother named Vickers Oberholtzer. Ellis was educated at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

( Ph. D., 1893), at

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

universities (

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

), and in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He was on the editorial staff of the Philadelphia ''Evening Telegraph'' (1889–96), editor of ''The Manufacturer'' (1896-1900), and literary and dramatic editor of the Philadelphia ''Public Ledger'' (1902–08). He edited the American Crisis Biographies (20 volumes) and in 1908 and 1912 directed historical pageants at Philadelphia. His wife, Winona McBride Oberholtzer, was the sister of publisher Robert M. McBride. Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer tombstone

He died in 1936 and was interred at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in

Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community and census-designated place in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania and borders the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Route ...

Works

*''The Referendum in America'' (1893; new edition, 1900; 3rd ed., 1908; revised, 1911) *''Die Beziehungen zwischen dem Staat und der Zeitungspresse im deutschen Reich'' (1895) * ''The New Man'' (1897) * '' Robert Morris, Patriot and Financier'' (1903) *''

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

'' (1904) *''The Literary History of Philadelphia'' (1906) * *''

Henry Clay Henry Clay (April 12, 1777June 29, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the United States Senate, U.S. Senate and United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives. He was the seventh Spea ...

'' (1909), with T. H. Clay *''Philadelphia: A History of the City and its People'' (four volumes, 1912). *''A History of the United States since the Civil War'' (1917). *''The Morals of the Movie'' (1922).

Notes

References

Website of The Mill at Anselma
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxson University of Pennsylvania alumni Writers from Philadelphia 1868 births 1936 deaths Burials at West Laurel Hill Cemetery People from Chester County, Pennsylvania 19th-century American historians 20th-century American historians 20th-century American biographers Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Heidelberg University alumni 19th-century American male writers 20th-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers