J. E. (James Ernst) Gallaher

Born in 1858, James Ernst Gallaher was an American writer and editor remembered for Best Lincoln Stories, Tersely Told and for Representative Deaf Persons of the United States of America. Contemporary deaf-history sources describe him as having lost his hearing in childhood after an illness and later graduating from the Illinois school for the deaf as valedictorian.

Gallaher’s writing joined biography, history, and public-minded documentation. Alongside his Lincoln book, he edited a volume of portraits and character sketches of prominent deaf Americans, aiming to show the range of their accomplishments and professional lives.

He is especially interesting as a figure who wrote from within the deaf community while also reaching a broader general audience. Although detailed biographical information appears limited in the sources readily available online, the record that survives shows a writer concerned with preserving stories and making notable lives accessible to ordinary readers.