Charles E. (Charles Edward) Bolton

Born in 1841 and active in Ohio, he built a public life that mixed business, civic work, and writing. Available reference sources describe him as an American businessman, philanthropist, and author, and note that he served as mayor of East Cleveland from 1899 until 1901.

His books ranged from practical literary guidance to imaginative fiction. Catalog and bibliographic sources link him with works including What to Read and How to Write, Ten Books for the People, and the later The Harris-Ingram Experiment, a speculative novel published after his death.

He was married to the writer Sarah Knowles Bolton, which places him in a household deeply involved with books and public culture. Although he is not widely known now, his surviving work suggests a writer interested both in self-improvement and in big social ideas.