On This Date - July 13

On July 13, 1865, Horace Greeley printed a now-famous quote in his editorial for the New York Tribune. Attributed erroneously to Greeley’a authorship, the generally misquoted “Go west, young man, go west and grow with the nation” was akin to the “shot heard round the world,” echoing long after it was first made.

The youth of America were weary of the long, just-ended Civil War. Jobs were scant and wages low as the United States struggled to reinvent itself. The New York Tribune, founded by Greeley in 1841, was the premier influencer of American life. With over three hundred thousand subscribers at one point, it has been compared to the Internet of the era. At the height of his influence Greeley continued to stump for expansion in the Western territories, using his considerable influence to encourage and support land grants for farmers and a railroad across country to the Pacific Ocean. “The agrarian West, especially California, held the key to economic and social renewal of a country torn by regional and class differences.” (David Fennimore, University of Nevada, Reno, June 12, 1996)

Greeley was also an originator of credible journalism. He looked for good writers and supporting correspondents, using reports from both sides of the Civil War, and later from settlers and travelers exploring the West; one of the most famous of whom was Mark Twain. He published serial stories, as did most other newspapers of the day, notably that of Henry James, and even employed the first female literary critic, Margaret Fuller.

Americans would naturally have pioneered the west, but due to Greeley’s encouragement, many of those settlers had a better idea of what they were getting themselves into through the stories and reports he printed. Among the pioneers and the subsequent second generation Americans were the romantics—the artists, naturalists, and writers who grew out of the hardships and dreams of their forebears. We have benefited from the likes of those who were able to capture the West through picture and tale: John Muir and Ansel Adams, the great Willa Cather, Zane Grey, Louis L’Amour, down to Larry McMurtry and Tony Hillerman.

I am a huge fan of Zane Grey. I read Under the Tonto Rim every couple of years, just for the joy of the word pictures and the setting. Though Grey was criticized for creating larger than life and often violent characters, a prolific writer, his body of work influenced other authors such as Erle Stanley Gardner. The television and film industry continued to use his material long after his death in 1932. The Zane Grey Theater had a hugely popular following, and the 110 film adaptations were credited with launching the movie careers of actors such as Gary Cooper and Shirley Temple.

Willa Cather’s O Pioneers is still one of the most-beloved tales of pioneer life. There are so many western adventure and western romance authors to talk about. How about Louis L’Amour? His eighty-nine novels are still read by both men and women all over the world today. Bret Harte, Frederick Faust who wrote under Max Brand, Jack London, John H Reese, all gave rise to another generation of authors. Pulitzer and Nobel-prize-winning author John Steinbeck wrote about the seamier side of life in turn-of-the twentieth century California, Dee Brown focused on the world of Native Americans, as did Tony Hillerman. Of course there are innumerable new generation Prairie Romance authors such as Tamera Alexander and Terry Burns, just to pick on two.

How about you? Do you have a favorite Western author? Who and why? Let’s share our favorite authors and books.

Oh, and the actual quote from Greeley’s 1865 editorial? "If you have no family or friends to aid you . . . turn your face to the Great West and there build up your home and fortune."