Fred A. Gannon

Born in 1881, Fred A. Gannon wrote a series of books and pamphlets centered on Salem, Massachusetts, and on the history of American shoemaking. Library and catalog records consistently identify him as the author of works including Old Salem Scrap Book, A Short History of American Shoemaking, Shoe Making, Old and New, and later studies connected with Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Sources we could confirm describe him as a local newspaper reporter for the Salem Evening News and as a compiler of the Old Salem Scrap Book series. His books draw heavily on diaries, local anecdotes, historical records, and material culture, which gives them the feel of someone trying to save community memory before it disappeared.

Very little readily accessible biographical information appears to survive beyond his birth year and his body of work. Because no clearly verified portrait was available from the pages we checked, no author image is included here.