Historians
Arrathoon, Leigh Adelaide
November 30, 1942 -
Place of Birth: Manhattan, NY
Place of Principle Residence: Rochester, MI
Biography:
Leigh Adelaide Arrathoon was born to Henry Elkin and Peggy Walles in Manhattan, New York. For one year she attended Centre d’art dramatique, a New York French Acting School, with a full tuition scholarship in 1957 to represent Forest Hills High School. She received her AB in French and Spanish from Hunter College Park Avenue in 1963 and enrolled in summer school at the Universities of Geneva, Lausanne, and Lille at Boulogne sur Mer, between 1961 and 1963 to study French language, literature, and culture. In 1966 and 1968 Arrathoon got her MA in French literature and Spanish literature respectively, and her MA and PhD in French Medieval Language and Literature in 1975. She was one of the first four women admitted to graduate school at Stanford. Arrathoon has worked as a teacher at many schools as a French, Spanish, or medieval literature teacher at schools including Princeton University and Oakland University. Many of her stories and articles have appeared in publications like The South Hill Gazette, Verses Magazine, and The Dana Literary Society. Ball State University forum nominated her article “The Two Saras of Chaucer’s Merchant’s Tale” for the Pushcart prize. She has published a seven-book series about Michigan and short historical fictions for children, as well as historical novels for young adults. One of her historical novels, Summer of the Bear, won the Michigan State History Award.
Selected Works:
- The Lady of Bergi (1984)
- Mirror of Love (1991)
- Great Places: Jody’s Michigan Adventures (1999)
- The Summer of the Bear (2002)
Awards:
- 2001 Appeared on Michigan Magazine
- 2007 Michigan State History Award
- n/a nominated for Pushcart Prize
Critical Reception:
Arrathoon’s work on medieval history, literature, and poetics has received academic attention, as demonstrated in her nomination for the Pushcart Prize for her article “The Two Saras of Chaucer’s Merchant’s Tale.” In addition, her historically researched children’s novels have been well received, including a Michigan State History Award in 2007.
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Arrathoon has published several books of children’s stories about Michigan, including a seven-book series entitled Jody’s Michigan Adventures, focusing on different locations like Detroit, Greenfield Village, and Mackinac Island. Her work won the Michigan State History Award in 2007.
Baker, Ray Stannard
April 17, 1870 - July 12, 1946
Place of Birth: Lansing, MI
Biography:
Ray Stannard Baker was born to Joseph Stannard and Alice Baker in 1870. He achieved a B.S. at Michigan State University in 1889 and briefly studied Law and Literature at the University of Michigan. From 1892 to 1897 Baker was a reporter for the Chicago Daily Record, and then moved on to McClure Syndicate as manager in 1898. It was at this publication that Baker earned the reputation of being a prominent “muckraker” along with Ida Tarbell and Lincoln Steffens. During this time Baker also published children stories for Youth’s Companion along with a nine volume series of stories about rural living in America under the pen name of David Grayson. Troubled with the hard-hitting journalism in McClure, Baker left the magazine in 1906 to start his own publication called American Magazine. In 1908 Baker became the first well-known journalist to examine America’s social divide by writing the book Following the Color Line, which enjoyed great success. After supporting President Theodore Roosevelt, Baker experimented with socialism before supporting the candidacy of Woodrow Wilson in 1912. The two men struck a close friendship and in 1918 Wilson sent Baker to Europe to study the war situation. When it came to peace negotiations, Wilson appointed Baker as his press secretary at Versailles. Baker published fifteen volumes about Wilson and internationalism, including an eight-volume biography on Wilson, the last two of which won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1940. Baker died of heard attack in 1946 in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Selected Works:
- Seen in Germany (1901)
- Following the Color Line; an Account of Negro Citizenship in the American Democracy (1908)
- Adventures in Friendship (1910)
- Woodrow Wilson and World Settlement (1922)
- American Chronicle (1945)
Awards:
- Appleton’s Cyclopaedia of American Biography
- Contemporary American Literature
- Pulitzer Prize for Biography, for Woodrow Wilson: Life and Letters
Critical Reception:
Starting with his years as a muckraker, Baker became well known for his journalism and stories. After working closely with Woodrow Wilson, Baker was placed in a position of trust and took over important responsibilities such as being press secretary at Versailles and editing the President’s papers. Wilson once said, “I would rather have your [Baker’s] interpretation than that of anyone else I know.”
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Baker received his education in Michigan,
Carter, James L.
October 17, 1935—
Place of Birth: Marquette, MI
Place of Principal Residence: Marquette, MI
Biography:
James L. Carter was born to Cecille and Forest Carter in Marquette, MI on October 17, 1935. In 1961 he earned his BA in History at Aquinas College, followed by his MA in 1967 at Northern Michigan University. Between earning his BA and MA, Carter was a teacher at Sacred Heart School and Spring Lake Public Schools. When he graduated from Northern, Carter took over the University’s position of Assistant Director of Research and Development. Eight years later he became Director of the University Press until his retirement in 1996. His experience in journalism goes back to graduate school, where he worked as a reporter for the Mining Journal in addition to his studies. Carter’s first book, Grand Marais: Voyageurs’ Harbor was published in 1967, followed by other works including historical and book review articles for magazines and newspapers. Currently, Carter devotes his time to editing books on Great Lakes history. He and his wife, Nancy, live in Marquette, MI and have two children: Emily and Catherine.
Selected Works
- Grand Marais: Voyageurs’ Harbor (1967)
- The Grand Island Story (1974)
- The Story of Caribou Island, Lake Superior (2001)
Awards:
- 1978 Award of Merit, Historical Society of Michigan
- 1980 Superior-A State for the North Country
- 1991 Helen Longyear Paul Memorial Award, Marquette County Historical Society
- 1991 Charles Follo Award, Historical Society of Michigan
- 1996 Northern Michigan University Press Award
- 1997 Center for Native American Studies Humanitarian Award
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Carter has devoted most of his life to researching and writing about the history of Michigan. In addition to publishing many of his own books on the topic, Carter reviews works of those who do the same.
Catton, Bruce
1899—1978
Place of Birth: Petoskey, MI
Place of Principal Residence: New York, NY
Biography
Though Catton was born in Petoskey, MI, the majority of his youth was spent in Benzonia, MI since his father, a Congregationalist minister, accepted a job at Benzonia Academy. Catton’s fascination with history, especially the Civil War, stemmed from the tales of Civil War veterans he heard in his youth. In 1916 he went to Oberlin College to further his education, yet WWI prevented him from completing his degree. He ended up serving in the U.S. Navy for a short amount of time. In 1925 he married Hazel H. Cherry and together they had one child, William Bruce. Following his military service, Catton took up journalism and reported for the Cleveland News, the Boston American, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer until he accepted employment at the Newspaper Enterprise Association writing editorials, book reviews, and serving as a correspondent to D.C. Catton went on to serve as the Director of Information for the War Production Board. He also held positions at the Department of Commerce and the Department of the Interior. This government experience inspired his first book titled War Lords of Washington, which was published in 1948. Catton left the government in 1952 in order to pursue a writing career, and in 1954 he helped found the American Heritage magazine. He obtained the position of senior editor of the magazine in 1959 and continued to hold that position until he died in 1978 at his summer home in Frankfort, MI. Throughout his career as a full-time author he published numerous Civil War books and other historical novels. Gerald R. Ford presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and he was given 26 honorary college degrees, including one from Oberlin College.
Selected Works
- Mr. Lincoln’s Army (1951),
- Glory Road (1952)
- A Stillness at Appomattox (1953)
- U.S. Grant and the American Military Tradition (1954)
- Banners at Shenandoah (1955)
- The Hallowed Ground (1956)
- American Goes to War (1958)
- The Coming of Fury (1961)
- Terrible Swift Sword (1963)
- Never Call Retreat (1965)
- Grant Moves South (1960)
- Grant Takes Command (1968)
- Waiting for the Morning Train (1972)
- Michigan: A Bicentennial History (1976)
- The Bold & Magnificent Dream: America’s Founding Years, 1492-1815 (1978)
Awards
- 1954 Pulitzer prize for A Stillness at Appomattox
- 1961 Special Pulitzer citation for The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War
- 1954 National Book Award for A Stillness at Appomattox
- 1952 Ohioana Book Award from Martha Kinney Cooper Ohioana Library Association for Mr. Lincoln’s Army and for The Coming Fury (1962)
- 1957 Fletcher Pratt Award from The Civil War Round Table of New York for This Hallowed Ground and for Grant Takes Command (1970)
- 1959 award for “meritorious service in the field of Civil War history,” presented by Harry S Truman
Critical Reception
Catton’s genius ability to vividly depict history in a historically accurate fashion brought his novels praise and recognition. According to the Evening Standard: “…Mr. Catton becomes, by right of scholarship and true literary genius, one of the great historians of our age…” Also, in referring to Catton’s Civil War Trilogy, the historian Henry Steele Commager writes, “Better than any other history of our Civil War it combines narrative vigor, literary grace, freshness of view and independence of judgment, and a kind of catholic spirit which embraces the whole vast tumultuous scene.” Catton captures his audience with his vividly colorful writing and brings them onto the battlefield so that they may experience the reality of war. The New York Times joined in praising Catton’s Civil War Trilogy as well in calling it, “... a major work by a major writer, a superb re-creation of the twelve crucial months that opened the Civil War.”
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work
The Grand Army of the Republic veterans of Michigan inspired Catton, which sent him on a lifelong study of the Civil War; his Michigan roots shaped his future writing career. Though most of his books focus on the history of the Civil War, two of his novels speak about his home state, Michigan. In Waiting for the Morning Train, Catton reminisces about the place of his youth. He describes the bygone days of the sleeper trains, clear lakes for fishing, and grand resort hotels. Catton also describes the impact of the logging industry on Michigan. In addition, Catton wrote Michigan: A Bicentennial History in which he tells the story of industrialization’s impact on the Michigan wilderness. He wrote about the changes that have occurred in this place of his youth.
Cleland, Charles E.
February 2 1936—
Place of Birth: Kane, PA
Place of Principal Residence: Charlevoix, MI
Biography
Charles E. Cleland was born to Margaret and Charles Cleland in Kane, PA on February 2, 1936. Cleland has degrees from Denison University, Arkansas University, and earned his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan in 1965. Starting in 1964, Cleland served as a professor of anthropology at Michigan State University, retiring in 2000. For all his education in community studies, anthropology, and Great Lakes history, Cleland remains devoted to letting the Ojiibwa Indians speak for themselves in his book published in 2000 The Place of the Pike (Gnoozhekaaning): a History of the Bay Mills Indian Community, relating the history, social conditions, and governmental relations of the Ojibwa Indians. The same work was selected for the 2001 “Read Michigan” List by the state of Michigan. Using oral accounts from tribal elders and photographs from the tribe’s archives, Cleland communicates the identity of the Bay Mills community using their own stories and heroes rather than the framework of federal Indian policy or academic and economic theories. Cleland has also contributed to the world of scholarship in the field of archaeology, a contribution acknowledged by the collection An Upper Great Lakes Archaeological Odyssey: Essays in Honor of Charles E. Cleland. Included essays cover both the geography and subject matter Cleland himself did, traversing from Illinois to Ontario and the Great Lakes inland shore fishery to the fur trade archeology of Fort Michilimakinac. Cleland aims, in his own words, to “make the details of the historic past interesting and accessible to the sophisticated lay public,” and his scholarly works coupled with the striking photograph collections and tribal stories have hooked both colleagues and Michigan citizens into realizing the stories and realities of their land’s people and past. Cleland lives in Charlevoix, MI and has four children: Elizabeth, Joshua, Elena, and Katherine.
Selected Works
- Rites of Conquest: The Culture and History of Michigan’s Native People (1992)
- The Place of the Pike (Gnoozhekaaning): a History of the Bay Mills Indian Community (2000)
Critical Reception
Fellow scholars such as John Robert Halsey of the Michigan Historical Society write, “Cleland is arguably one of the most important figures in American archaeology in the latter third of the twentieth century…his testimony as an expert witness in Native American land claims and fishing rights have made him a lightning rod for controversy inside and outside archaeology. The results of his activities have affected the practice of archaeology, the working lives of natural resource managers, and the activities of sport fishermen.”
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work
Cleland is an author who not only lives in Michigan but also is deeply aware of the past and people of the land itself. With thirty-five years of research and his current work in anthropology at Michigan State University, he brings a wealth of knowledge to his works about the Native Americans in Michigan and offers careful and complete analyses of the culture and history Michigan’s native people.