author
Benjamin Drake
1794–1841
A lively early American writer and editor, he is best remembered for bringing frontier history and Indigenous leaders such as Tecumseh to a wide readership. His books helped preserve stories of the Ohio Valley and the young city of Cincinnati during a fast-changing era.
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About the author
Born in May's Lick, Kentucky, on November 28, 1794, he became an American historian, editor, and writer whose work focused on the early West and the Ohio Valley. He was the younger brother of physician and author Daniel Drake, and he went on to build his own literary career in Cincinnati.
He co-founded the Cincinnati Chronicle and served as its editor for seven years. Alongside journalism, he wrote historical and biographical works, including books on Tecumseh and Black Hawk, as well as writings connected to Cincinnati and the surrounding region.
His best-known work, Life of Tecumseh, and of His Brother the Prophet, reflects his interest in preserving frontier and Native American history for 19th-century readers. He died in Cincinnati on April 1, 1841, leaving behind a body of writing closely tied to the early history of the American Midwest.