author
Osmond Tiffany
b. 1823
A Baltimore merchant turned writer, he moved easily between travel writing, history, and fiction in the mid-1800s. His books range from vivid scenes of Canton, China, to American colonial tales and historical sketches.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Born in 1823, Osmond Tiffany was a Baltimore merchant and occasional author whose work appeared in the lively print culture of the 19th century. Records of his books and archival listings show a career that mixed business life with writing on history, travel, and religion.
His best-known works include The Canton Chinese; or, The American's Sojourn in the Celestial Empire (1849), drawn from his time in China, and Brandon; or, A Hundred Years Ago (1858), a novel set in colonial America. He also wrote A Sketch of the Life and Services of Gen. Otho Holland Williams, read before the Maryland Historical Society in 1851, showing his interest in American history as well as storytelling.
Later in life, Tiffany was associated with large religious and historical compilations such as Sacred Biography and History. Available library and archival sources place his life from 1823 to 1895. No suitable confirmed portrait image was found from the sources reviewed, so none is included here.