John Dodge

Born in Connecticut on July 12, 1751, John Dodge is known for the captivity narrative published from his own experiences during the American Revolution. His best-known work, Narrative of Mr. John Dodge during his Captivity at Detroit, is valued less as polished literature than as a direct, personal record of frontier war and imprisonment.

Later editions and library records identify him as living from 1751 to 1800, and his narrative has continued to be reprinted because of its historical interest. For modern listeners, his writing offers a close-up view of the fears, hardships, and political tensions of the western frontier in the late eighteenth century.

Biographical details about Dodge are limited in the sources readily available online, so much of his lasting reputation rests on this single surviving work and the window it opens onto early American history.