John Townsend Trowbridge (September 18, 1827 – February 12, 1916) was an American author.

Early life

Trowbridge was born in

Ogden, New York Ogden is a town in Monroe County, New York, United States. The population was 20,270 at the 2020 census. The Erie Canal passes through Ogden. History The town of Ogden was founded on January 17, 1817, from the town of Parma, which at that time ...

, to Windsor Stone Trowbridge and Rebecca Willey. His birthplace was a log cabin his father constructed through the use of wooden pegs. Trowbridge received an unremarkable education, but had an early interest in literature. He recalled in his autobiography that he wrote his first poem at age 13. His first published work was published anonymously in the ''Rochester Republican'' when he was 16. He started working as a teacher and on a farm for one year in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. In 1847, at age 19, he moved to

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 ...

to become an author and, with the assistance of

Mordecai Manuel Noah Mordecai Manuel Noah (July 14, 1785, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – May 22, 1851, New York City, New York, New York State, New York) was an American sheriff, playwright, diplomat, journalist, and utopian. He was born in a family of mixed Ashkena ...

, began publishing in periodicals while also working at a pencil case engraving factory. He moved to Boston in August 1848, and in 1850, during the absence of

Benjamin Perley Poore Benjamin Perley Poore (November 2, 1820 – May 30, 1887) was a prominent American newspaper correspondent, editor, and author in the mid-19th century. One of the most popular and prolific journalists of his era, he was an active partisan for the ...

in Washington, D.C., edited Poore's paper, the ''Sentinel'', but his editorial on the fugitive-slave law nearly destroyed the paper's popularity. He married Cornelia Warren (May 1, 1834 – March 23, 1864) in 1860. After her death, he remarried to Sarah Adelaide Newton in 1873. In June 1867, Trowbridge bought a house at 152 Pleasant Street, Arlington, Massachusetts where he lived until his death on February 12, 1916. Trowbridge also spent much time in

Kennebunkport, Maine Kennebunkport is a resort town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,629 people at the 2020 census. It is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area. The town center, the area in and around Dock Squa ...

, where he built Spouting Rock Cottage, near to ''Spouting Rock'' and ''Blowing Cave'', both of which he named.

Writing career

His novels include ''Neighbor Jackwood'' (1857), an antislavery novel; ''The Old Battle-Ground'' (1859); ''Cudjo's Cave'' (1864); ''The Three Scouts'' (1865); ''Lucy Arlyn'' (1866); ''Neighbors' Wives'' (1867); ''Coupon Bonds, and Other Stories'' (1873); and ''Farnell's Folly''. Another is ''Evening At The Farm''. Trowbridge wrote numerous works under the pseudonym of Paul Creyton, including ''The Midshipman's Revenge'' (1849), ''Kate the Accomplice, or, The Preacher and the Burglar'' (1849), ''The Deserted Family, or, Wanderings of an Outcast'' (1853), ''Father Brighthopes, or, An Old Clergyman's Vacation'' (1853), ''Burr Cliff: its Sunshine and its Clouds'' (1853); ''Martin Merrivale: His X Mark'' (1854), ''Iron Thorpe'' (1855), ''Neighbor Jackwood'' (1857). Among his very many juvenile tales are ''The Drummer Boy'', ''The Prize Cup'', ''The Lottery Ticket'', ''The Tide-Mill Stories'', ''The Toby Trafford Series'', ''The Little Master'', and the ''Jack Hazard'' series. His published volumes of verse include: ''The Vagabonds, and Other Poems''; ''The Emigrant's Story, and Other Poems''; ''A Home Idyl, and Other Poems''; ''The Lost Earl''; and ''The Book of Gold, and Other Poems''. ''The Vagabonds'', ''At Sea'', and ''Midsummer'' are among his best-known poems. His long poem ''Guy Vernon: A Novelette in Verse'' was first published anonymously in the compilation ''

A Masque of Poets A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...

'' (1878). In ''Darius Green and his Flying Machine'', Trowbridge penned the following prophetic verse: "Darius was clearly of the opinion / That the air is also man's dominion / And that with paddle or fin or pinion, / We soon or late shall navigate / The azure as now we sail the sea." He is today perhaps best remembered for his study ''The South: A Tour of Its Battlefields and Ruined Cities'' (1867, republished two years later with additions by another author as ''A Picture of the Desolated States and the Work of Reconstruction, 1865-1868''). Trowbridge toured much of the defeated Confederacy during the summer of 1865 and the following winter. He observed carefully, and talked with a wide variety of people of both sexes, including freedmen, die-hard Rebels, Unionists, farmers, businessmen, refugees, and Northern entrepreneurs. In his book, he lets these people speak in their own voices, often adding his own comments. His book can profitably be read with those of John Richard Dennett (''The South As It Is: 1865-1866'') and

Whitelaw Reid Whitelaw Reid (October 27, 1837 – December 15, 1912) was an American politician, diplomat and newspaper editor, as well as the author of ''Ohio in the War'', a popular work of history. After assisting Horace Greeley as editor of the ''New-Yo ...

(''After the War: A Tour of the Southern States, 1865-1866''). All three accounts are written from the perspective of a loyal and fair Northerner genuinely concerned about conditions in the South and the evolving policies of the United States towards that section. From 1865 to 1873 Trowbridge was co-editor with

Lucy Larcom Lucy Larcom (March 5, 1824 – April 17, 1893) was an American teacher, poet, and author. She was one of the first teachers at Wheaton Female Seminary (now Wheaton College (Massachusetts), Wheaton College) in Norton, Massachusetts, teaching there ...

of ''

Our Young Folks ''Our Young Folks: An Illustrated Magazine for Boys and Girls'' was a monthly United States children’s magazine, published between January 1865 and December 1873. It was printed in Boston by Ticknor and Fields from 1865 to 1868, and then by Jame ...

''. Since his death he has been well known as a friend of

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...

and

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...

. Trowbridge's papers are located at

Houghton Library Houghton Library, on the south side of Harvard Yard adjacent to Widener Library, Lamont Library, and Loeb House, is Harvard University's primary repository for rare books and manuscripts. It is part of the Harvard College Library, the library s ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

.J.T. Trowbridge papers: Guide
at Houghton Library.

Selected works

*''The Midshipman's Revenge'' (1849) *''Kate the Accomplice, or, The Preacher and the Burglar'' (1849) *''The Deserted Family, or, Wanderings of an Outcast'' (1853) *''Father Brighthopes, or, An Old Clergyman's Vacation'' (1853) *''Burr Cliff: its Sunshine and its Clouds'' (1853) *''Martin Merrivale: His X Mark'' (1854) *''Iron Thorpe'' (1855) *''Neighbor Jackwood'' (1857) *''The Old Battle-Ground'' (1859) *''Cudjo's Cave'' (1864) *''The Three Scouts'' (1865) *''Lucy Arlyn'' (1866) *''Neighbors' Wives'' (1867) *''The Vagabonds, and Other Poems'' (1869) *''Lawrence's Adventures Among the Ice-cutters, Glass-makers, Coal-miners, Iron-men, and Ship-builders'' (1870) *''Coupon Bonds, and Other Stories'' (1873) *''The Emigrant's Story and Other Poems'' (1874) *''The Book of Gold and Other Poems'' (1977) *''Guy Vernon: A Novelette in Verse'' (1878) *''A Home Idyl and Other Poems'' (1881) *''Farnell's Folly'' (1884) *''The New Physics: A Manual of Experimental Study for High Schools and Preparatory Schools for College'' (1884) *''The Little Master'' (1886) *''A Start in Life: A Story of the Genesee Country'' (1888) *''Biding His Time or Andrew Hapnell's Fortune '' (1888) *''The Lost Earl with Other Poems and Tales in Verse'' (1888) *''The Kelp-Gatherers: A Story of the Maine Coast '' (1890) *''The Drummer Boy'' (1891) *''The Scarlet Tanager and Other Bipeds'' (1891) *''The Prize Cup'' (1896)

References

External links

* * * *
Poems by John Townsend Trowbridge
at English Poetry {{DEFAULTSORT:Trowbridge, John Townsend 1827 births 1916 deaths Writers from Massachusetts People from Arlington, Massachusetts People from Ogden, New York

Early life

Writing career

Selected works

References

Further reading

External links