Sept 15, 1789. American novelist, historian and social critic, born at Burlington, NJ, James Fenimore Cooper was one of the earliest American writers to develop a native American literary tradition. His most popular works are the five novels comprising The Leatherstocking Tales, featuring the exploits of one of the truly unique American fictional characters, Natty Bumppo. These novels, The Deerslayer, The Last of the Mohicans, The Pathfinder, The Pioneers and The Prairie, chronicle Natty Bumppos continuing flight away from the rapid settlement of America. Other works,including The Monikins and Satanstoe, reveal Cooper as an astute critic of American life. He died Sept 14, 1851, at Cooperstown, NY, the town founded by his father.
Image: Public Domain, Photograph by Mathew Brady, 1850
