Francis S. (Francis Samuel) Drake

author

Francis S. (Francis Samuel) Drake

1828–1885

A 19th-century American historian and biographer, he is best remembered for assembling an enormous reference work on notable figures from across the Americas. His books reflect a lifelong passion for historical research, old records, and the people who shaped early American history.

1 Audiobook

Tea Leaves Being a Collection of Letters and Documents relating to the shipment of Tea to the American Colonies in the year 1773, by the East India Tea Company. (With an introduction, notes, and biographical notices of the Boston Tea Party)

Tea Leaves Being a Collection of Letters and Documents relating to the shipment of Tea to the American Colonies in the year 1773, by the East India Tea Company. (With an introduction, notes, and biographical notices of the Boston Tea Party)

by Francis S. (Francis Samuel) Drake

About the author

Born in Northwood, New Hampshire, in 1828, Francis Samuel Drake was the son of historian and antiquarian bookseller Samuel Gardner Drake. He was educated in Boston and followed a similar path, working as a bookseller while developing a deep interest in historical and biographical research.

Drake became known for careful, large-scale reference works. His best-known book, Dictionary of American Biography, gathered thousands of short lives into a single volume and helped make biographical information more accessible to readers and researchers. He also wrote and edited works on New England history, Native American history, and Revolutionary-era subjects.

He died in Washington, D.C., on February 22, 1885, his fifty-seventh birthday. Though not a household name today, his compilations and documentary work show the energy of a writer determined to preserve American history in usable, wide-ranging form.