Elbert Hubbard

Born in 1856, he became an American writer, publisher, and lecturer whose name is closely tied to the Roycroft movement. Before turning fully to writing and publishing, he worked successfully as a salesman for the Larkin Soap Company, an experience that shaped his energetic, promotional style.

In the 1890s he founded the Roycroft Press and then the Roycroft artisan community in East Aurora, New York, inspired in part by William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. From there he published books, essays, and magazines that blended inspiration, social commentary, humor, and practical philosophy, reaching a wide popular audience.

His most famous piece, A Message to Garcia, became one of the best-known American essays of its era. He died in 1915 in the sinking of the Lusitania, but his work and the Roycroft legacy kept his reputation alive long after his lifetime.