Alvarado M. (Alvarado Mortimer) Fuller

Born in 1851 and died in 1924, he was an American army officer, inventor, and author. Reference works on speculative fiction describe him as a US inventor and military man, and memorial records place his birth in Providence, Rhode Island, and his death in Topeka, Kansas.

His reputation today rests mainly on A. D. 2000, first published in 1890 and later reissued as Back to Life (A.D. 2000): A Thrilling Novel. The book imagines a man awakening in the year 2000, making it an early example of futuristic and utopian fiction.

Although not a widely known literary figure, his work has lasted because of its imaginative leap into the future and its place in the history of early science fiction. Surviving references also note his background as an inventor and career soldier, which helps explain the practical, technology-minded feel of his fiction.