author
Joseph Kirkland
1830–1894
A Chicago lawyer, Civil War veteran, and sharp-eyed novelist, he turned the raw material of Midwestern life into fiction that helped push American writing toward realism. His best-known books capture pioneer Illinois with humor, conflict, and a strong sense of place.
1 Audiobook
The Chicago Massacre of 1812 With Illustrations and Historical Documents
by Joseph Kirkland
About the author
Born in Geneva, New York, in 1830, Joseph Kirkland was the son of educator William Kirkland and writer Caroline Kirkland. He moved into business work in Illinois, including jobs connected with the Illinois Central Railroad and coal mining, experiences that gave him a close view of the developing Midwest.
During the Civil War, he served in the Union Army and rose to the rank of major. After the war he settled in Chicago, studied law, and built a career as a lawyer while also becoming active in the city's literary life.
Kirkland is remembered chiefly for a small group of novels shaped by his knowledge of frontier and small-town Illinois, especially Zury: The Meanest Man in Spring County, The McVeys, and the Civil War novel The Captain of Company K. Britannica notes that this trilogy of Midwestern pioneer life contributed to the growth of realistic fiction in America, and that reputation still gives his work its lasting interest.