author
Charles A. (Charles Augustus) Goodrich
1790–1862
Best known as a 19th-century minister who also wrote lively history and educational books, this Connecticut author helped bring American biography and travel writing to young readers. He is also often linked with the familiar household motto about giving everything its proper place.
1 Audiobook
Great Events in the History of North and South America
by Charles A. (Charles Augustus) Goodrich
About the author
Born in Connecticut in 1790, Charles Augustus Goodrich was a Congregational minister, writer, and educator whose career moved between church life and popular literature. He graduated from Yale in 1812, was ordained in 1816, and served pastorates in Worcester, Massachusetts, then Berlin and Hartford, Connecticut.
Alongside his ministry, he wrote widely for general readers and for the young. His books include History of the United States of America, Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, Family Tourist, and several religious and instructional works. Sources also connect him with early children's writing through the literary circle of his brother Samuel Griswold Goodrich, better known as Peter Parley.
Goodrich also served in the Connecticut Senate and was elected to the American Antiquarian Society in 1820. He died on June 4, 1862, leaving behind a body of work that blended moral instruction, history, biography, and practical learning for 19th-century American readers.