John G. Ellenbecker

Born in Hancock, Michigan, on January 29, 1867, he was the son of Joseph and Mary Ann Ellenbecker and later became closely associated with Marysville in Marshall County, Kansas. He died on April 22, 1945.

His best-known surviving book is The Old-Time Spelling School (1922), a poetic work published in Marysville, Kansas. The book looks back on pioneer families, school entertainments, and the social world of spelling contests, giving it an affectionate, local-history flavor as well as a literary one.

Available records suggest that his published legacy was modest, but it has endured through archives and reprints. He is also connected with writing on regional subjects such as Indian raids along the Little Blue River, which fits the strong sense of place found in his work.