Edward S. Ellis (original) (raw)

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American novelist (1840–1916)

Edward Sylvester Ellis
Born (1840-04-11)April 11, 1840Geneva, Ohio
Died June 20, 1916(1916-06-20) (aged 76)Cliff Island, Maine
Nationality American
Other names James Fenimore Cooper Adams Captain Bruin Adams Boynton M. Belknap J. G. Bethune Captain Latham C. Carleton Frank Faulkner Capt. R. M. Hawthorne Lieut. Ned Hunter Charles E. Lasalle H. R. Millbank Billex Muller Lieut. J. H. Randolph Emerson Rodman E. A. St. Mox Seelin Robins
Education Master of Arts (Princeton 1877)
Occupation Author
Spouses Anna M. Deane ​(m. 1862⁠–⁠1887)​ Clara Spalding Brown ​ ​(m. 1900)​
Parent(s) Sylvester Ellis Mary Ellis
Signature
Notes
Information sourced from NIU Beadle and Adams Novel Digitization Project[1]

Edward Sylvester Ellis (April 11, 1840 – June 20, 1916) was an American author.[1][2]

Ellis was a teacher, school administrator, journalist, and the author of hundreds of books and magazine articles[3] that he produced by his name and by a number of pen names. Notable fiction stories by Ellis include The Steam Man of the Prairies[4] and Seth Jones, or the Captives of the Frontier.[5] Internationally, Edward S. Ellis is probably known best for his Deerfoot novels read widely by young boys until the 1950s.

Seth Jones was a prototypical early dime novel published by Beadle and Adams.[6] It is said that Seth Jones was one of Abraham Lincoln's favorite stories.[7] During the mid-1880s, after a fiction-writing career of some thirty years, Ellis eventually began composing more serious works of biography, history, and persuasive writing. Of note was "The Life of Colonel David Crockett", which had the story of Davy Crockett giving a speech usually called "Not Yours To Give". It was a speech in opposition to awarding money to a Navy widow on the grounds that Congress had no Constitutional mandate to give charity. It was said to have been inspired by Crockett's meeting with a Horatio Bunce, a much quoted man in Libertarian circles, but one for whom historical evidence is non-existent.

Besides the one hundred fifty-nine books published by his own name, Ellis' work was published under various pseudonyms, including:[1]

Cover of Seth Jones; or, The Captives of the Frontier by Edward S. Ellis

Partial bibliography

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famous american naval commanders 1899 by edwards . ellis

Ellis' best known books follow the adventures of Deerfoot of the Shawnee, a young Native American brave based on the historical character of the same name who was renowned for his skill with the bow, and his abilities as a runner.[9]

This series introduces the characters Oskar Relstaub and Jack Carleton. Deerfoot appears in the second and third books.

Further series of books written by Ellis included the following:[14][15]

  1. ^ a b c "Ellis, Edward Sylvester". Beadle and Adams Dime Novel Digitization Project. Northern Illinois University. Archived from the original on October 4, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2007.
  2. ^ "Ellis Bio". The Life of Kit Carson. Lost Classics Book Company. Archived from the original on June 10, 1998. Retrieved December 30, 2007.
  3. ^ Jayne, R. H. (November 1889). "The Story of Sybrant Quackenboss". Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly. XXVIII (5): 609–611. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  4. ^ Ellis, Edward S. (August 1868). "The Steam Man of the Prairies". Beadle's American Novel. I (45).
  5. ^ Ellis, Edward S. (October 2, 1860). "Seth Jones". Beadle's Dime Novels. I (8).
  6. ^ Columbia Literary History of the United States - 1 p554 Emory, Elliott, Martha Banta, Houston A. Baker - 1988 "It is not insignificant to note, therefore, that while Malaeska is best remembered as the first dime novel, Seth Jones is the far more representative work of the House of Beadle and Adams. Seth Jones has none of Malaeska's moral ambiguities.
  7. ^ Vicki Anderson -The Dime Novel in Children's Literature 2004- Page 104 "Before many years had passed, however, the author of Seth Jones had accomplished the feat which the writers' world used to describe as “getting between boards.” In Seth Jones the Native Americans who capture Ina are Mohawks." ... It is said that Seth Jones was one of Abraham Lincoln's favorite stories."
  8. ^ Mary, Crosson. "The War Whoop Series". Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  9. ^ Ellis, Edward Sylvester (September 28, 2020). The meeting with Deerfoot. Library of Alexandria. ISBN 9781465585349 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ The camp in the mountains, worldcat.org. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  11. ^ Stephens, Charles Asbury (1872). On the Amazons – via Google Books.
  12. ^ The Lost Trail, Philadelphia: Porter & Coates, 1884. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  13. ^ "Log cabin series".
  14. ^ Publisher's advertisement in final pages of Across Texas, by Edward S. Ellis, hathitrust.org. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  15. ^ Publisher's advertisement in final pages of Deerfoot in the mountains by Edward S. Ellis, gutenberg.org. Retrieved 14 September 2025.

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